Blog Archives
A NEW CREATION: DEFINING THE NEW BIRTH [Part 1]
Because original Creation was severely damaged by sin and rebellion in both the angelic and human realms, it required God’s subsequent plan for a New Creation.
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AND GOD SAW THAT IT WAS GOOD
Creation does not work as intended according to the will of the Creator unless the Creator is recognized and honored by all members of His Creation. Anything less than this will cause problems, allow for faults and malfunctions, and may ultimately cause major failures. Yet the Creator has deemed that all who desire His intention and will can only agree to it voluntarily. It is why He gifted humanity with a free will. People are thus given both the authority and responsibility to choose the Creator’s will and vision or not. The correct choice also should be their top priority since it is the Creator who created everything to begin with, and everything in His original Creation extended forth and branched out from Him, that is, from His plans and creative process—and that it was good.
In this we can see that the Creator is both benevolent and non-coercive in that He never forces one to recognize and honor Him and will not violate His complimentary endowment of free will, which proves His love and His obvious understanding that love can only be freely given. He has also created human beings with the power of perception—the ability to perceive on their own—and the desire to “look around and discover” whatever His Creation has to behold. He knows that in this process, if one remains honorable and honest in one’s ongoing search, one will eventually find Him.
OF SAINTS AND SINNERS
The perfection of His original Creation was marred due to an angelic revolt. One may wonder why such a thing happened or how it could have happened within the bliss and harmony of the heavenly realm. Such bewilderment reigns until one considers the foundational culprit at the heart of it all—the sin of pride. This unfortunate trait is the result of a strange brew. It arises as an alchemical concoction formulated deep within the bowels of worshipful reflection upon self—arising from gifts such as outward beauty, lofty intellect, and/or superior attributes and abilities—that which the self had nothing to do with but takes possession of as if it did.
When one is thinking correctly, the proper response to such personal gifts and attributes is the very opposite of the aforementioned sin. It is one’s focus on the Creator and the recognition that one is a created being with no right to claim creative title nor the right to choose as one sees fit. Thus, rather than personal pride, in which one puts his or her own selfish interests first, one chooses instead to yield to the will of one’s Maker and appropriate the positive character trait of humility, which is a recognition of endowed blessings as gifts given in love. This is an acknowledgment of the Giver and an expression of gratitude to Him. Humility thus originates from the unpretentious heart of a person very aware that he or she is the blessed creation of a loving and beneficent Creator.
As such, rather than focusing laterally on self and generating rebellion, one instead looks upwardly towards one’s Maker and offers praise.
REBELS WITHOUT A CAUSE
And there was war in heaven, Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon. The dragon and his angels waged war, and they were not strong enough, and there was no longer a place found for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. [Revelation 12:7-9]
An apparent third of the angels of heaven rebelled against the Creator (Rev 12:4). This was followed by a much greater percentage of humanity throughout history. Such defiant outcomes had to be in order to allow for a dutiful Community willingly dedicated to the Creator composed of those who honored Him, appreciated Him, and loved Him. Those who refused were culled by their own choices. Each of the rebels, whether angelic or human, chose incorrectly, having been made vulnerable by personal pride, which caused their inability to withstand temptation, which further caused their descent into the darkness of deception.
THE TEMPTER’S TRICKS
The temptation tactics of the enemy are exactly the same in pretty much every respect as that which was presented to the Lord during His temptation in the wilderness, though nuanced to varying degrees to fit the person thereof:
(1) It was suggested to the Lord that He act out of character and turn stones into bread to satisfy His natural hunger, that is, prioritize natural desires and natural food over spiritual desires (serving God) and spiritual food—the Word of God.
(2) It was suggested to the Lord that He act out of character upon arrival at the “pinnacle of the temple” (having the highest level of spiritual authority and power) by operating outside the Law of God through engaging in a potentially harmful and injurious personal act, knowingly and purposely, in the sight of all, as if to prove He was bulletproof and above approach no matter what He did, in order to summon God’s unilateral protection and unconditional approval, and thus verify His official outward exalted sanitized religious image. (Sound familiar?)
(3) It was suggested to the Lord that He act out of character and accept the rule over all the kingdoms on earth in exchange for worshipping the devil, that is, trade His spiritual authority over His eternal spiritual kingdom for all the temporary perks of natural authority at the highest level over the entire planet, while serving as the devil’s flunky.
This is pretty much what Adam and Eve did. Of course, their spiritual kingdom was the Garden and the devil lied about the world outside it, which brings to mind the following:
For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand outside.
I would rather stand at the threshold of the house of my God
Than dwell in the tents of wickedness. [Psalm 84:10]
Therefore, we must understand that there are basic natural tendencies endemic to every person which can be utilized by the enemy to gain advantage. The serpent in the Garden knew this, of course, since he was a fallen angel who had failed his own temptation battle. He was very aware of personal makeup and knew the newly created humans had a similar nature in that they were free will beings made in the image of God. It is why temptation always starts in one of three overall areas:
For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. [John 2:16]
When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate… [Genesis 3:6]
IN THE IMAGE OF GOD
God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. [Genesis 1:27]
One might take a step back here when thinking of the devil and demons as somehow being like God but one must also understand that such fallen angels were at one time bright shining sinless creatures who dwelt in heaven and that in his previous personification the devil was apparently the most gifted angel among them. We must also understand that God Himself has a particular distinct and unique nature and that He draws from Himself to create those whom He would be in relationship with, which, again, means that both angels and humans are at least similar to Him if not predominantly like Him (until they rebel against Him). It is why both have such wondrous abilities in both the spiritual and natural spheres.
Human beings, “made, lower than the angels” (Hebrews 2:7), are intelligent, physically gifted, and infused with potentially tremendous spiritual aptitude including the inherent capacity for accomplishing the things we see the Lord doing in the Gospels. The first man was like that, whose attributes also included immortality before his fall into sin, and was “a type of Him who was to come” (Romans 5:14). It is why the apostle Paul related the first created man to the Lord Jesus, calling both Adam:
So also it is written, “The first man, Adam, became a living soul.” The last Adam became a life-giving spirit. [1Corinthians 15:45] [1]
Adam was made in the image of God. The Lord Jesus IS the Image of God.
This puts things into greater perspective regarding God’s original intentions for humanity and also how very different humanity was originally. What we see in the Lord Jesus is an absolutely perfect Man but also One who is a type of what all people should be. In fact, Christians are instructed by the Lord’s teachings to strive to be just like Him, as impossible as that may appear. What He means by this is one must appropriate the same divine nature that Adam and Eve had before the fall. It is also why the Lord Jesus taught that every one of His followers must undergo a new spiritual birth in that they must be born again, which means “born from above” (John 3:7).
The Lord’s mission is thus the process of transforming humanity back to its original state and condition.
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued…]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
REMEMBERING JFK
Iniquity and lawlessness began rising exponentially in this country after the cold-blooded murder of an American President on this date sixty-two years ago.
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In 2019 I started a new annual tradition on this site with a post entitled Remembering JFK. I’ve made a new post each year since with the same title, except for last year (2024). What follows is the sixth installment posted, as always, on November 22, the day America changed forever and which allowed for the greater rise of an evil element in power and ever-greater damage to the principles of our Constitution and rule by We the People. Today’s article is an update of the one I wrote in 2023, which remains topical, relevant, and informative, and also reveals the likely perpetrators.
A HIDDEN PLAN AND A CHANGE IN COURSE
Without getting into the deeper root causes that began in the 1890s and which eventuated in two world wars, a national depression, and the later creation of an entirely new country in the next stage of American Empire called Pax Americana, the most predominant changes to the country began in 1945. In our brief history lesson here, one may want to keep in mind that there is no such thing as the “accidental theory of history” in which transformative international events just happen by themselves and occur with no rhyme or reason or at the whim of obscure minor characters.
We are conditioned to see history this way because it is the manner in which the major news media has always presented it. Most people have no clue of the connecting undercurrents always in play or of a powerful ruling elite calling the shots behind the scenes, since they own the media and control the narrative. The only news the average person is aware of, including the larger events in our world, is that from headlines suddenly jumping forth on major media or news bulletins on television airwaves, which sometimes include seemingly disconnected-from-reality shocking events suddenly becoming reality before his or her eyes. Right after this, quick explanations come forth so the masses will know the “why” and the “who” and thus know how to respond. As on cue, the majority always responds in the same way according to the psychological suggestion given, and accepts not only the explanation of who perpetrated the deed or caused the event and why but also how one must understand and adapt to it.
This is how the powers-that-be deceived early 1900s America, a sovereign nation of freedom loving people who would never have agreed to so much intrusion upon their liberty had they known any better or been aware of the sly doings behind the scenes. It is how America was tricked, for example, into accepting the creation of the Federal Reserve Act in late 1913 at the zero hour before the Christmas break which gave the control of the economy to a small cabal of bankers, which dovetailed well with the ratification of the 16th Amendment in February of that year giving Congress the legal right to impose a Federal Income Tax on American citizens.
It is also how the country was propagandized and tricked into supporting WWI in faraway Europe in which four million US soldiers were mobilized and almost 117,000 American military personnel died for no reason. The propaganda was such that the relatively few enlightened Americans who were intelligent and aware enough to know what was really going on were castigated as unpatriotic cowards while those easily fooled and cowed by fear tactics were conned into embracing official disinformation supporting the war with no reservations and seemingly without a thought. It was likely the first time in American history the majority of the population revealed itself as an easy mark that fell without a fight, no pun intended.
The same process continued throughout the early to mid-twentieth century with each major event that transpired. None of these occurrences “just happened” or took place due to the official explanation. They happened because of the rich and powerful pulling strings behind the scenes according to a master scheme toward world control which had been well-planned far in advance.
Of such was also the assassination of President Kennedy. He represented an unknown quantity with an independent mind and an apparent belief in the Constitutional process. Though there were immediate theories on what actually happened that day constructed by those who could see through the charade which were then followed by many more theories based on emerging truth since, most Americans still don’t know the truth and pretty much don’t care to find it. The vast majority of the generation that was of age in the 1960s quickly buried its head in the sand and accepted whatever they were told to accept and thus believed the false “official” story like the good children they were, though this sad attitude began changing in following decades.
In their defense, however, it was not easy for the everyman to gain the required information in a dig for truth at that time, since so many of the necessary clues were hidden behind doors most had no access to, though once a door or two did open it led to more data coming forth which a few authors successfully compiled and built upon. Once the internet happened, though, a veritable tsunami of information became increasingly available which reminds one of a certain Biblical prophecy:
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 KJV]
Consequently, at this stage of the game, the news is now out that most people paying even the slightest attention know that members of the intelligence community participated in the JFK assassination. It has even come forth quite recently, according to a nephew of JFK, who was a boy at that time, and who happens to be a member of the current President’s cabinet—Robert F. Kennedy Jr.—that the CIA was involved. Of course, this was suspected by some from the get-go sixty-two years ago. Another belief that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has reported which came out just a few years ago was that the actual killer of his father, Robert F. Kennedy, in June of 1968, was not Sirhan but a mysterious security guard. It has since been established that though Sirhan was there and did fire multiple shots, he fired wildly from the front, though the senior RFK was hit from behind. There were also too many shots to have come from just one gun. There are other anomalies which end up refuting the official story.
CONTENDER PRETENDER
With regard to the death of our 35th President in 1963, however, the official story has long since been proven to be absolutely false and full of holes though most people are none the wiser largely because they have never taken the time to look into it, which is why such disinformation thrust forth by the major media always works with regard to the majority. It is in part why the majority is always wrong—it simply never has the full story or the complete facts and therefore bases its beliefs on what it is told to believe rather than the truth. One would think a person may say, “Well, I don’t really know what happened. I know what they said happened but I would not be very smart to believe it without verifying it.” And at that, if the person was truly interested in the truth, he would begin his research. Yet most people never do this simply because they believe the official story since they would rather not contest convention and also willingly submit to the authoritarians pronouncing and promoting the given narrative.
This used to be, long ago, un-American. Yet because the American Constitutional construct changed radically with the events of the Civil War in the 1860s—the War of Northern Aggression—and continued down that path in succeeding decades, it is no wonder that so many Americans had become subject to deception and official propaganda by the turn of the century (1900). There was truly a war on the Constitution back then by powerful people who refused to be restricted by its principles. And even though the twentieth century brought forth great scientific accomplishments and much of American life was improved, critical thinking skills in general have diminished substantially.
For example, if one were to compare the collegians of the 1950s and early 60s to those of later generations, one would see not only an ongoing lessening of personal strength, maturity, and awareness at a young age, as well as practicality and common sense, but also an increasing inability to perceive authoritative, manipulative social agendas and an increasing acceptance of official narratives, as if such were truth rather than the means to indoctrinate the masses into the formation of a veritable hive mind. This proves that the long-running psychological effort to dumb down the populace has worked and worked quite well.
Again, this hive mind concept was nothing new but the current manifestation of it is, in that it is the end result of a century’s work upon the minds of Americans. Most believe that which is not true as if it was and reject the truth that is. It calls to mind what William Casey, the director of the CIA, said in 1981:
“We’ll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false.”
Regarding who actually killed JFK and why has always mattered, of course, but has gained in importance ever since and especially matters at present, even though most Americans had previously become apathetic and would probably never believe or accept the truth anyway. However, the current Great Awakening, which began circa fifteen years ago, has changed that dynamic. Over these ensuing years the topic has grown in popularity as has the demand for answers.
It took a while, but thanks to a few key book authors, writers, many researchers, and most of all, what this author believes is the light of God shining forth exposing darkness, we have discovered the assassination had much to do with a certain entity’s resolute determination to become a nuclear power and JFK’s powerfully determined refusal to allow them to get there. It also had to do with the earlier forced selection of Kennedy’s running mate in 1960 which utilized egregious blackmail tactics with a future change of personal in mind. Kennedy had grave reservations regarding the choice but likely had no knowledge the man was chosen to be JFK’s planned replacement to serve the entity’s forthcoming interests.
What this means, of course, is that in this fallen world of sin and evil the great ones with great wealth and power exist at the top as they always have and can do pretty much anything they want as long as they have a willing and complicit majority population of dupes. All they must do to achieve this is work to keep people ignorant and unschooled yet obedient to and compliant toward high authority figures, something which has always been the case throughout much of history.
Dealing with an educated population, however, requires a different tactic, one the devil is great at—lies and deception. If such can be couched within the realm of knowledge and historical “facts,” and if actual truth can be subverted, then one can achieve exactly what William Casey envisioned.
This does not mean God is not in charge but that He has given much dominion to humanity in general which should work to restrain the evil humans from wreaking such havoc. However, if the majority that can make a consequential difference refuses to take responsibility but continually allows itself to be deceived and submits weakly to false authority, then the relatively small percentage of humans that knows better and wants positive change has not only the evil ones to overcome but also the many willingly unaware who don’t seem to care.
THE CHALLENGE BEFORE US
Those who know ancient history and the Old Testament know the current ruling construct has actually existed since the beginning with the fall of man and has grown worse over time in that massive populations of the ancient world could be controlled by only a few and outwardly by only a solitary man sitting atop a pyramidal throne as it were. Such figures were Sumerian kings, Egyptian pharaohs, and Roman emperors. But they also included strictly religious leaders who used “the opiate of the people” to control minds and then wallets. Nevertheless, though only a relative few could see the solution by which to overcome such control, God certainly did so before everyone else and in the case of wayward ancient Israel, sent independent, incorruptible, intelligent, and ANOINTED prophets to expose the false narratives put forth as truth, reveal the wicked hidden sin of the powerful few, and break the mind power inflicted on the masses. This worked to varying degrees at times though many of these prophets ended up dead.
And there was and is no greater Prophet than our Lord Jesus who was also put to death as a result of sinister intrigue and a conspiracy but whose death serves as the greatest purpose in the history of humanity. For by it His people regain their spiritual freedom and life through His salvation and the new birth, and enlighten their minds to know and understand the truth as well as see right through the hidden machinations of evil ones intent on using humanity as slaves for their own purposes toward their own malevolent ends. The Lord referred to this as “having eyes to see.” The infilling of the Holy Spirit works wonders to enhance such spiritual sight.
On a human level JFK was very much aware of such hidden machinations behind the scenes and was intent on exposing the immoral perpetrators thereof. He died because he had the courage to rightfully challenge powerful men acting above the law, those who were wantonly engaging in evil and subverting the Constitution for their own sinister purposes. As President of the United States, he used the legal governmental authority he was given in the attempt to curtail their activity and even stop them. In the brief time he had, President Kennedy only had relative middling success in his efforts but did more than his predecessors ever did and much more than all those who followed him. Think of him what you will but the only way to stop him was to kill him. This meant he was on to something big.
May we all do our part to continue the fight that his death be not in vain.
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
THE LORD’S REAL COVENANT MODEL AND DISCIPLESHIP STANDARD [Part 3]
There were times when the Lord was tactful and parabolic in His teachings. There were other times He didn’t hold back a whit and came out with guns blazing.
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A STRONG POWERFUL MAN
“Never has a man spoken the way this man speaks.” [John 7:46]
No one taught like the Lord. No one ever spoke like Him or would ever do so again. During His ministry, the Lord Jesus, the great Yehoshua Ha`Mashiach, was the very epitome of the perfect Gospel Minister and the most excellent example possible to follow. He was the Living Word …and the Word was God.
Here was a Man who was strong as an ox, who had worked very hard at manual labor throughout His early life, specifically as a builder and carpenter, working with wood and stone, using by our modern standards relatively crude but effective tools and materials often straight from the fields. He likely hewed and harvested His own trees, loaded and hauled heavy rocks, made His own bricks, and possibly even forged metal though certainly used it as needed. All of it was extremely labor intensive and time consuming.
As a builder myself, and longtime carpenter and tradesman, I know what hard work is and have the “evidence” to prove it. Yet the work I’ve done is relative to the times which are wholly unlike the Lord’s times in that tools are a massive upgrade, the materials are often machined to the point of direct use, and most of all, we have electricity. There have been many times when I did remodeling work on relatively very old houses built prior to 1900 when local carpenters of that time did everything by hand using hand saws and drills. The first hand-held power saws were not invented until the early 1920s. The old material I worked on in those houses—old dark wood studs and framing—was somewhat rougher cut, thicker, and much harder—the latter likely being due in part to the passage of time. But those boys back then had to cut it all by hand without losing any precision or time. The milled lumber used for tongue and groove flooring, trim, and siding was all hand-nailed. It was very hard work and I think underappreciated by modern tradesmen. It did not matter what the trade was in the past, the men working them were much stronger and tougher. They had to be.
Keep this in mind when considering the work of ancient times. Most of the men the Lord chose for ministry were likewise strong and tough, wiry and ripped, and accustomed to hard labor whether they were carpenters, fishermen, lumbermen/millers, stonecutters, butchers—you name it. Whatever it was they did it was without the many later innovations and certainly without electricity which we all pretty much take for granted. This does not mean that modern workers do not work very hard in their own right or are not tough and strong as well (one has to be), but times must be put in perspective.
THICK SKIN TENDER HEART
No one is more tender-hearted than the Lord. No one loves as much, No one is more willing to serve and do whatever must be done in the process of saving souls from eternal death. It is why the Lord could use finesse and tenderness when called for, knowing a deft touch works wonders for the heart, especially upon those with broken, aching, and contrite hearts. Living in this fallen world of sin, pain, and suffering wreaks havoc on human hearts and the Lord was never one to pile on but expressed compassion whenever necessary. He was the essence of kindness.
Imagine such a strong Man with weathered thick skin and crinkling about His face and eyes showing such care and concern. He was the very picture of the ultimate Disciple, putting up with the rigors and necessities of life while also exhibiting the height of spiritual Light and Grace. He was a Man from heaven within but appearing ever much like a Man of his times without.
Yet, He was also a Lion and His roar could be heard at a distance. This was often the case when He had to preach to great crowds. To lesson the decibels, He would on occasion use natural means to make His voice go further, such as when He would preach from a boat just off the shoreline or at His Sermon on the Mount when He was actually at the base of the rise, allowing His voice to waft upwards as in a natural amphitheater.
I think He saved his greatest roar for those with the thickest hearts and thinnest skins. You know who I mean. Check out all His world-class “Woe to you” rebukeathons dispersed throughout the Gospel accounts. These were directed at non-men existing in the mere guise of humanity who hated people and wanted only to rule them, extract whatever wealth from them they could, and make them live in fear. In their twisted minds, people subjected to such conditions were far easier to control. The Lord greatly opposed such miscreants, those given over to false authority, especially those of the religious leadership variety. They were pretty much all sellouts, existing as mealymouthed persnickety hairsplitters, devious to a T, with less compassion than an angry rattlesnake. They were so evil they relentlessly attacked their very Creator, the One so infinitely unlike them. They were, as the Lord Himself stated, “of your father the devil.” This gives us insight into the hard-hearted thin-skinned one opposing all that is good and always falsely accusing the righteous.
WHY A COVENANT?
I spent many seasons as a coach. I put my own men’s softball teams together. I’ve done decades of team-oriented blue collar work in construction and the Texas oil field. Try working with people who refuse to be team players. These are usually not the higher minded and talented independent types able to forge their own path by God’s grace. If needing to be team players, such independent types almost always submit to teamwork because they are smart enough to know it works for the greater good and makes working together much more enjoyable and doable. The good guys often don’t care so much about who’s in charge but only that whoever is in charge is very good at it for the benefit of everyone else. Most people have no problem submitting to such leadership but there are always bad apples who can’t make it on their own and for whatever reason, can’t work so well within a team either (a covenant).
It is the same with many Christians. They either simply cannot understand the concept of covenant with God or refuse to do so, displaying a lack of perceived understanding regarding its required purpose, an incomprehension of its necessary full application, or an insufficient grasp of its inherent constitutional structure. Regardless, there is never any reason or excuse to violate it.
Speaking of which, there are times when tact and finesse won’t do. When the Lord has already put the very best deal together, one that can never be improved upon, He sometimes has to enforce it. Though it may be harsh, it is necessary. Here’s an example:
I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed! As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed! [Galatians 1:6-9][1]
This is why the Lord created a sacred covenant that each of His followers must sign on to in the beginning knowing it is forever and always and also knowing that one’s total submission to the Leader is a non-negotiable requirement. It is not because the Lord wants to rule and reign over His people and make them feel His weight (He can), but to simply make the whole thing work. He is the best. The best of the best. There is nobody better. He is the greatest Leader there could ever be and is infinitely trustworthy, loving, and kind. He is also stronger and tougher than anyone else, the greatest Alpha Male of all time, and proved it by His entire ministry.
The final proof came when He voluntary went to the cross, subjecting Himself to abject horrendous torture and shame on our behalf. There is no greater love than this. He deserves infinite glory for all eternity. One can never praise Him enough!
Therefore, whoever has a problem with signing an eternal covenant with such a Man has got a severe problem which likely demands spiritual deliverance. In other words, if the Lord will never wrong you (He won’t), if you can always trust Him (you can), if He will never walk out on you (He won’t), or betray you (He won’t), will always love you (He will), can always be counted on (Amen), and will forever do His best to keep His end of the deal (He will), then what’s the problem? There is no other covenant or contract or agreement that any of us has ever signed onto that is anywhere close to being as beneficial as the Lord’s covenant. And it’s eternal! Therefore, though church and ministry agreements are fine, they pale in comparison to the agreement each of us makes with the Lord. Anyone with a measurable IQ knows it’s the Lord who has by far the bigger challenge in such a deal.
WORTH IT ALL
For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us. [Romans 8:18]
It is understandable then, why the Lord has commandments that His followers must keep. Whatever it is they must do is nothing comparable to what He subjects Himself to in His Covenant. And no matter what the cost of Discipleship may be, it is next to nothing compared to the benefits both here and beyond. Those who sign up and stay the course make the greatest and best decision of their entire existence.
The names of every one are found recorded in the Book of Life.
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE LORD’S REAL COVENANT MODEL AND DISCIPLESHIP STANDARD [Part 1]
It allows for no deviancies or dissent, is always per the authoritative command of the Lord Jesus, and requires absolute trust and obedience (even unto death).
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It is also entirely unforced and voluntary. The Lord never uses coercion. He never utilizes religious demands, false fear tactics, or compulsion to gain converts and grow His congregation. He also never engages in the payoff to buy the services of others. His model and standard is so unlike any other which must use such illicit methods of conscription to force compliance, it is truly a wonder He is left with any community at all. Yet His following grew quickly by leaps and bounds. He also had none of the usual personal incentives, such as the desire for social credibility and acceptance, a good living and hope of greater prosperity, and worldly religious power. These facts demand an otherwise unknown component, one based on a pure heartfelt willingness to submit to servanthood toward the Lord and one another, regardless of its perceived negative effect on personal choice and natural liberty. This hidden factor must be something great that God has done for those He loves before they could ever possibly do anything for Him.
SPIRITUAL COVENANT
The Lord Jesus taught that all who are apart from God and not in relationship with Him are dead in sin. Not most. Not a mere majority. ALL. In this He perfectly agreed with all previous Old Testament teachings and prophetic pronouncements on the subject. The Word of God thus makes it clear that personal sin separates one from God. From God’s perspective, this was a horrifying development which grew ever more so as the gangrene of sin spread evilly outward as a plague on mankind. He knew people in that condition could never fix themselves or transcend their situation. Something had to be done, of course, but it would have to start with Him.
Yet it is not possible for God to be in fellowship with sinners. It is primarily because He is holy and pure, which requires those in right relationship with Him to be the same. Though in the beginning, humanity had been created in the image of God, the original visage had become greatly marred. Some yearned for a return to the Garden. Most, however, adapted to sin and became comfortable in their fallen state. If such separation from God is desired, it is also an indication that the willful sinner places more importance on whatever causes the broken covenant than he or she does toward God or a relationship with Him. Regardless, in reality, human beings were not only created by God but created for Him. We were designed to be in relationship with Him and without Him we have a hard row to hoe.
Adam and Eve discovered this early on. Rather than continue to honor her husband as she had been doing and remain faithful, she made the fateful decision to honor another above him. In this she violated her covenant with Adam, which, because she committed gross sin, also violated her covenant with God. When Adam discovered that Eve had violated herself in sin, something from which she would not be able to recover, it was his duty to remain faithful to God and make sure the same terrible circumstance did not befall him. To keep everything intact he should have shown Eve the door. Instead, he allowed her deception to violate his good conscience because he apparently could not fathom life without Eve.
In that critical though brief interval of time when Eve was hopelessly corrupted but Adam was not, the man made a much more grievous decision than had the woman. Why? Because other than Eve, who had made her choice, everything else could still be saved. Adam’s covenant relationship with God could remain pure. The Garden could remain perfect, growing, and fruitful. God’s original plan for man could remain intact. This, however, would have required Adam to become as the Lord and be a savior.
Speaking of which, remember when Jacob’s son Joseph saved his entire family and future nation? He did so because he had apparently already subjected himself as a young man to the will of God. He therefore allowed God to use him for great good though it would cost him everything but his own life and also thirteen years of terrible trial, pain, and misery. Nevertheless, Joseph remained faithful throughout and completed his course. The famine which would have wiped out the tiny emerging nation of Israel in the land of Canaan would, though just as deadly in Egypt, have a solution against it there, again by the hand of God through Joseph, which also allowed him to save the most important thing of all—the generational line going through the children of his brother Judah that would result many centuries later in the coming Messiah, the real and greatest SAVIOR of all mankind.
Would that Adam had accepted his savior assignment. Instead, he did the opposite. Instead of saving everything He turned his back on God and effectively embraced the serpent as had Eve. She convinced him to partake of the dirty deed as she had done, because from her new perspective eating the forbidden fruit had become the right and good thing to do. This meant her life with God was already in her rear view mirror and she was not changing her mind.
Perhaps Adam had no natural defense or immunity from such powerful manipulation in that there is only so much God can teach us in His attempt to persuade us from making stupid idiotic decisions, the bad result of which we cannot perceive. Such a thing comes down to faith and trust and that even though it may look like God could not be more off base and wrong one will honor and obey Him anyway. Had Adam done this by simply fighting through the great temptation, something he was certainly equipped to do, and stating unequivocally as his future descendant did—“Go, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only,’”—everything would have been saved, save for Eve.
He also could have saved himself future misery by giving Eve what she wanted post haste, which she would get eventually anyway, by escorting her to the Garden Gate pronto and wishing her well in the wild world beyond which she seemed desperate to experience, you know, to push the envelope and enjoy life and rumble off on a Harley with her snake friend and no longer be cooped up in a boring Garden or under subjection to a measly man with incorrigible discipleship standards instead of being hooked up with a powerful demonic personage. Yeah, sure. What fun. See ya, Eve. Watch out for that screen door…
But no. Adam ended up forcing God’s hand to kick them both out. For God, this revolting development was not a surprise and was even something of which He had already made future provision:
For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. [1Corinthians 15:21-22][1]
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued…]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
OUR GREAT SPIRITUAL WARRIOR [Part 3]
Luke’s Gospel reports that the Lord and His well-trained twelve engaged in spiritual warfare doing masterful ministry work in the Miracle Realm. Then, the Seventy…
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OVERCOMING DEAD TRADITION
One can believe what one will concerning what they think Christianity actually is or is supposed to be but the vast majority of Christians usually revert to their traditional modes of both belief and practice whenever the Lord may apply an extra degree of persuasion toward a higher level of ministry and the necessity of obeying His Word. Why He does this should be obvious since it involves the practice of actual real ministry as illustrated quite clearly in the written gospels. But many Christians are only familiar with such ministry in mere abstract form in that a few might actually read the Scriptural accounts of Miracle Realm happenings but pretty much never see such happenings in their own Christian circles.
Many also rarely or never see their own chosen Christian leaders performing in such a way and know next to no one who does. This raises the question of why such rejection of real ministry exists in the first place though it apparently often involves the fear of breaking church protocol, being perceived as a weirdo by Christian peers, or simply causing a general sense of discomfort (conviction?) among one’s social group.
It is also likely the case that most Christians believe the powerful ministry of the Lord and His twelve apostles was only meant to be ministered by the Lord and his twelve apostles and no one else ever again. In this we rightly place the Lord Jesus way up high as our Great Spiritual Warrior who could kick the devil’s backside all over Creation and defeat every other enemy in His path toward reaching the people whom He loves and who have great faith in Him and who need real ministry which includes every need of any kind whether outside or inside the Miracle Realm. It is good that many Christians, though very likely not a majority, do not see the gospel accounts as mere fantasy or made up stories. Such Christians actually believe the accounts are real and reflect actual historical events. Yet how many of these same Christians believe the Lord when He claims the same power which He possesses can be given to and practiced by whosoever will? Did not the twelve apostles prove this?
Yet, what has transpired in this regard is that the twelve apostles have been transformed (in the thinking of most within traditional Christianity, especially by many Christian controllers) into some form of ultra-human demigods as the mighty Titans of Greek Mythology throwing lightning bolts and whatnot. However, the Scriptures are very clear that the Lord purposely chose practical unpretentious hard-working men essentially like everybody else who struggled with life like everybody else and continually proved their humanity like everybody else pretty much every day and even in the early going after dropping their nets and exiting tax booths. They were just people no different than you or I. They were not special in any greater way but were chosen primarily because they BELIEVED IN THE LORD JESUS and He knew that about them. He knew they were teachable. He knew they would trust Him. And He knew He would be able to work with them and through them to extend His ministry.
Therefore, the original twelve apostles were men who, regardless of their shortcomings, personal foibles, sins, past failures, wrong choices, and likely even a feeling of inherent disappointment in themselves, somehow still had the desire to please God. They wanted to be right with God. They somehow knew such a thing was possible. And even though they had at the time done their best to achieve such but felt like they never got there, still believed it was possible and still had the desire to keep trying. This made them spiritually hungry. It also made them potentially faithful. And the Lord noticed…
This is why there is no excuse for any Christian anywhere not walking in the same Miracle Realm and doing as the apostles did to varying degrees and why the vaulting up of the twelve into demigod status is not only grossly wrong but also gross sin. The whole point in one sense is the Lord showing what He can do by raising up pretty much anyone to train for His work and get them out there doing it which proves He can elevate weak-minded temptation-prone spiritually fruitless struggling sinners (anyone and everyone) from the general low level of fallen humanity ruled by evil forces into fully trained Spirit-filled anointed witnesses and effective workers in His kingdom with authority over the enemy and even over the so-called laws of nature.
This does not make such people the stuff of myths and legends but born-again human beings appropriating their original spiritual nature possessed before the fall.
THE SEVENTY
We learn of the Seventy in Luke Chapter 10. Like the twelve, the Seventy were an additional large group of the Lord’s disciples apparently specially chosen by Him for the exact Miracle Realm ministry. This immediately dispels the notion once again that such ministry was only for the Lord and His twelve. It is here that we see what is effectively, for the purposes of this teaching, a third level of direct ministry participation. The Lord is obviously first, the twelve were second since He needed a relatively small core group to act as His initial elders and first ambassadors into the world—a foundation. The third level, then, is everybody else. As you read the following account picture the members of this large group and how excited and overjoyed they must have been to be counted worthy of being sent into the world as viable ministers of the Gospel just as important as anyone else with a distinct ministry to perform according to the will of God (rather than simply being as so many faceless members of the religious crowd, many of whom are stashed away on pews, rarely ever doing all that much or anything at all in the Lord’s Miracle Realm):
Now after this the Lord appointed seventy others, and sent them in pairs ahead of Him to every city and place where He Himself was going to come.
And He was saying to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest. Go; behold, I send you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. Carry no money belt, no bag, no shoes; and greet no one on the way. Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace be to this house.’ If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you. Stay in that house, eating and drinking what they give you; for the laborer is worthy of his wages. Do not keep moving from house to house. Whatever city you enter and they receive you, eat what is set before you; and heal those in it who are sick, and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’”
“But whatever city you enter and they do not receive you, go out into its streets and say, ‘Even the dust of your city which clings to our feet we wipe off in protest against you; yet be sure of this, that the kingdom of God has come near.’ I say to you, it will be more tolerable in that day for Sodom than for that city.” [Luke 10:1-12][1]
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
OUR GREAT SPIRITUAL WARRIOR [Part 2]
In Part 1 we saw the Lord Jesus in action taking the fight to the enemy who could do nothing to stop Him. We then saw that nothing could stop the twelve apostles.
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A WELL-TRAINED FIGHTING FORCE
Book learning is great. I have shelves loaded with books as do many of you. As a research scholar I have read a massive amount of books, periodicals, articles, study papers, PDFs, and the list goes on and on. The Word of God states clearly that the Lord’s people must, in the KJV Old English, Study to shew thyself approved. These were Paul’s written words to Timothy, one of his noted protégés which he trained in the faith. Here is the full passage in the Amplified Classic:
Study and be eager and do your utmost to present yourself to God approved (tested by trial), a workman who has no cause to be ashamed, correctly analyzing and accurately dividing [rightly handling and skillfully teaching] the Word of Truth. [2Timothy 2:15]
This means one must work very hard to initially gain the necessary knowledge one needs to successfully work his craft. The top priority in this regard is, of course, reading and studying primarily the New Testament Scriptures focusing on the teachings of the Lord in the gospels. This is foundational. It is the only way to gain knowledge of the Word which is a must for ministry especially a teaching or witnessing ministry.
One must know, therefore, that the Lord’s twelve apostles were already somewhat well-versed in OT Scripture prior to walking with the Lord as were many of the Israelites at that time in that the young were required whenever possible to gain such knowledge beginning at an early age. Such knowledge was stored for later retrieval when necessary and included many applications for practical and social matters. The Lord then built on their basic knowledge level and “book learning” to demonstrate the Word in action. He made the Word come alive in the 3D world before them as they followed in great wonder.
Thus we see that study is good and necessary but also that it must be followed up with meeting people where they live and applying the fruits of study for hands-on ministry purposes as the Lord did most effectively. The twelve then followed the Lord’s lead after seeing great demonstrations of miracles, healings, and successful operative ministry attacks against the enemy. Again, as stated in part 1, we see this throughout our primary text of Luke’s gospel in Chapters 7 and 8 after the apostles were first called in Chapter 6. And in Chapter 9 He sent them forth to do as they were trained:
Departing, they began going throughout the villages, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere. [Luke 10:6]
To prove their spiritual education had taken root and progressed very well, even at that early time, the twelve apostles met with great ministry success also.
When the apostles returned, they gave an account to Him of all that they had done. [Luke 10:10]
This was very important for their futures. Again, it is indicative of excellent training, the right kind of training, and proof that the spiritual authority they were given was no fluke. In other words, one can talk all day long about their Christian education whether from church ministry or a Bible college, but if it does not include actual working authority over the devil, the world, and the flesh, and the capacity to change lives for the better at their very core and usher people into the spiritual kingdom of the Lord, then it is not only lacking but essentially worthless.
AN EVEN HIGHER LEVEL
After that the Lord performed the great incontrovertible though far out miracle of multiplying bread and fish to feed a multitude. One wonders what the apostles were thinking. It became a matter of trusting their eyes because what they were seeing was otherwise impossible. They had already been called and trained on fundamental spiritual knowledge and then further trained on witnessing the miraculous but the miracle of multiplication was yet another level above. After this (still in Chapter 9) the Lord revealed to them His future death by great sacrificial love and taught them about carrying their cross. This added an entirely new dimension of ministry in that humility and self-sacrifice (being strong in weakness as per Paul) is paramount to great effectiveness and moving spiritual mountains. Again, as I mentioned in Part 1, how many “official” Christian ministers ever get anywhere close to this level of spiritual training? We both know the answer.
Moving on in Luke Chapter 9 the Lord ramps up the training of a select few even higher with His phenomenal and wholly unprecedented Transfiguration. For this event He only chose Peter, James, and John as disciple witnesses, His so-called inner circle. As I’ve stated before in my work, the three celestial ones on the Mount that day, the Lord, Moses, and Elijah, are the only ones ever recorded in Scripture as going on forty day fasts which is yet another indication of their very high level ministries. This does not mean they were the only ones to do it but that their spiritual level required it. Moses and Elijah represented the Law and the Prophets. The Lord, of course, represented in a word—Grace. By choosing only three of His twelve, the Lord was placing upon them a similar ministry mantle of greater responsibility which each of them later fulfilled. Every real Christian must also strive to fulfill their calling though it will undoubtedly involve the fight of their life.
The Chapter closes with several finer points of required real ministry as characterized in the following:
An argument started among them as to which of them might be the greatest. But Jesus, knowing what they were thinking in their heart, took a child and stood him by His side, and said to them, “Whoever receives this child in My name receives Me, and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me; for the one who is least among all of you, this is the one who is great.” [Luke 9:46-48]
John answered and said, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name; and we tried to prevent him because he does not follow along with us.” But Jesus said to him, “Do not hinder him; for he who is not against you is for you.” [Luke 9:49-50]
And He said to another, “Follow Me.” But he said, “Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father.” But He said to him, “Allow the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God.” Another also said, “I will follow You, Lord; but first permit me to say good-bye to those at home.” But Jesus said to him, “No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.” [Luke 9:59-62][1]
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued…]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
OUR GREAT SPIRITUAL WARRIOR [Part 1]
He represented by far their greatest threat. They perceived early on it would be an intense winner take all battle. It is why they threw everything they had at Him.
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TOWARD REAL SPIRITUAL MINISTRY
As in everything else, the Lord showed His people how to fight. He was the perfect archetype of warrior. He modeled what it means to engage in spiritual warfare, how to outsmart and overcome the enemy, and how to gain spiritual victories. He made Himself a flawless example of warriorship and was willing to subject Himself to the worst of wickedness on our behalf.
His followers had to see Him in action. They had to see how it was to be done. They must experience how their Master faced off against powerful sinister forces and not only defeat them but make them look foolish. And perhaps most of all, they had to know that they could also—somehow, some way—do as He did, as absolutely impossible as that appeared to be.
Now, regarding this, one may think the Lord would start small with relatively easy doable tasks so His men could gain confidence. To this end, we see that just after His very careful choosing of the twelve apostles after much prayer throughout the previous night, that prior to any actual field work in the spiritual realm there first must be much instruction by example. In Luke’s gospel, this occurs in Chapter 6 in which appears a condensed version of such advanced spiritual teaching. Then in Chapters 7 and 8 we see the Lord modeling highly advanced spiritual ministry with much parabolic teaching, the doing of many miracles, and actual hands-on attacks against demonic forces. His apostles experienced it all, gained loads of empirical evidence, saw that all was possible, and understood the full ramifications of spiritual ministry and its highly beneficial impact on people’s lives. At that point they graduated from instruction and example to becoming doers of the Word:
And He called the twelve together, and gave them power and authority over all the demons and to heal diseases. And He sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to perform healing. And He said to them, “Take nothing for your journey, neither a staff, nor a bag, nor bread, nor money; and do not even have two tunics apiece. Whatever house you enter, stay there until you leave that city. And as for those who do not receive you, as you go out from that city, shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.” Departing, they began going throughout the villages, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere. [Luke 9:1-6]
As men very well prepared and instructed properly and fully, the record is clear that the twelve apostles had great success right from the start. One wonders why all Christian ministry is not like this. Most of it, of course, is not and never has been. Why? How did Christian ministry become transformed into what can only be referred to as something else entirely? Why is it that most Christians worldwide going back many centuries have never experienced anything close to what appears matter-of-factly in the Lord’s ministry? And why have the vast majority of all Christian “leaders”/ministers/pastors/priests/etc. never been used of God for a single miracle or healing as we see in Luke’s gospel? Why do we not see them attacking the gates of hell?
Could it be because they were never taught by the Lord Jesus or instructed properly in real spiritual ministry? Could it be because no minister ever modeled for them what the Lord Jesus modeled? Could it be because they were not instructed in His Gospel—the real one—at all but in a false gospel altogether different and wholly powerless? Could it be because no one ever taught them how to engage in spiritual warfare? It is obvious therefore, that they were instead taught from a different playbook.
Check out what the apostle Paul said in this regard:
But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ. For if one comes and preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted, you bear this beautifully. For I consider myself not in the least inferior to the most eminent apostles. But even if I am unskilled in speech, yet I am not so in knowledge; in fact, in every way we have made this evident to you in all things. [2Corinthians 11:3-6]
I have become foolish; you yourselves compelled me. Actually I should have been commended by you, for in no respect was I inferior to the most eminent apostles, even though I am a nobody. The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with all perseverance, by signs and wonders and miracles. [2Corinthians 12:11-12]
This was spoken by a man who had the exact miracle witness in his ministry as did the Lord. In fact, one of the signs of the ministry of a true original apostle was having the exact miracle power and authority over the demonic as did the Lord, in addition to a purity of in-depth teaching that changed hearts and destinies for the better in line with the Lord’s will. This means that Paul must have been taught by the Lord Himself as were the original twelve though there is no record of Paul ever meeting or knowing the Lord Jesus during His ministry or prior to Paul’s conversion. This is indeed what happened:
For I would have you know, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. [Galatians 1:11-12][1]
What does this tell you about the vast majority of churches and Bible schools? The so-called ministers being turned out by these have apparently never been instructed by the Lord Jesus. The apostle Paul had a great lifetime ministry but says he never had any principle teacher of the Gospel in his life except the Lord. Such a statement is exceptionally profound. It also speaks very clearly to a preponderance of counterfeit gospels and masquerading ministers and explains why none of those guys could ever fight their way out of spiritual paper bag.
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued…]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
JUDAS GOATS
After everything the Lord Jesus accomplished to lead people into His eternal spiritual Kingdom, whoever never gets there simply chose to be led by another.
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“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.” [Matthew 7:13-14]
So Jesus said to them again, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.” [John 10:7-9]
“But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before Him; and He will separate them from one another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats; and He will put the sheep on His right, and the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.’” [Matthew 25:31-34]
“Then He will also say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels…” [Matthew 25:41]
GOATS ON PARADE
The vast majority of the wealthy and well-off privileged and influential people you see in high positions in this world, whether in government, private banking and business, or religious circles—those who essentially run pretty much everything and from the highest levels—are not as they may appear. When one sees the outward personas presented as the façade of the controllers, one observes only a very carefully fabricated surface image. When one hears them one hears only carefully crafted and embellished largely political prose loaded with otherwise fully unknown agendas designed to deceive and capture, and lead people toward beliefs they would otherwise not embrace and destinations toward which they would otherwise not go.
Due to their great deceptive influence over several millennia, going at least as far back as the vast sands of ancient Sumer of Tower of Babel fame, such figurative alpha goats bleating in the spotlight and their unseen owners/handlers at the top of the ziggurat have managed to form and create the largest and longest-lasting ongoing planet-wide roundup and herd drive, complete with trail bosses, point riders, and every conceivable clandestine cowboy on the range, all the while also gaining ever greater power, wealth, and overall success. Their resolute unrelenting actions prove there is indeed big power and money in deceiving and collecting the souls of humanity and subverting them to do their will. It also reveals the enemy’s hateful revenge in attempting to keep as many people from heaven as possible.
SELLOUTS
Regarding the perpetrators thereof, the unseen reality, successfully exposed only by the Lord Jesus beginning long ago and until this very day, is that this high-riding elite sold their souls to the devil. Also, they are well aware of what they did, of who they are, and of who they serve, and would do it again ad infinitum, largely because they simply love this present world and all its fleshly delights far too much to entertain any hopes of pinning their hopes on a mythical promised hereafter that would require them to cease from sin. Thus, whoever will assist them in fulfilling their pride and lusts and desire for fame are the ones they will serve, and gladly, regardless of the differing counsel of a holy God.
Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever. [1John 2:15-17]
The only difference between the elite controllers and the clueless majority following their lead and being duped to believe in, accept, and personally apply their asinine antichrist agendas don’t know they are being led astray. They do not know they are on a trail drive. They do not realize they have become a mere commodity going to market. If anyone in this massive crowd the world over ever comes to their senses by seeing through the deception, noticing and breaking their hidden chains, changing their direction post haste, and getting the heck out of there, they can escape. They can be found by the Good Shepherd, their new Leader, and He can lead them out toward the real green pastures. For all others who fail to act in time, they will otherwise make it all the way to the end of the trail and to the slaughterhouse. Of course, by that time, when all those unaware arrivees finally figure it out, the exits will be closed and it will be too late. They will then see those credentialed, respected, and honored ones they obliviously followed and sucked up to for who they actually are—the Judas Goats leading them to hell.
Then one of the twelve, named Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, “What are you willing to give me to betray Him to you?” And they weighed out thirty pieces of silver to him. From then on he began looking for a good opportunity to betray Jesus. [Matthew 26:14-16]
And Satan entered into Judas who was called Iscariot, belonging to the number of the twelve. And he went away and discussed with the chief priests and officers how he might betray Him to them. They were glad and agreed to give him money. So he consented, and began seeking a good opportunity to betray Him to them apart from the crowd. [Luke 22:3-6]
Everyone who refuses the Lord’s offer of free salvation and eternal life takes the same backroom deal that Judas took. For the Pharisees in general, which the New Testament states are lovers of money, and for Judas, who was friends with influential Pharisees and was likely one himself, it was the love of money which precluded them from loving the Lord. In the simplest of terms, it always comes down to choosing one or the other:
“No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and *wealth.” [Luke 16:13]
[*Greek: mamonas, for Aramaic mamon (mammon); i.e. wealth, etc., personified as an object of worship.]
One may keep this in mind when considering the example of the Lord Jesus, His apostles, and His original followers in contrast with the bulk of Christianity which insists that very large sums of dinero are a must-have if one would do ministry right especially ministry of the ultra-non-organic televideo form demanding huge outlays of cash and which pretty much always creates its own fabricated figureheads which makes one wonder about their (1) suspect murky monetary sources, and (2) their actual sheep/goat identity.
TARGETING THE SHEEP
When I was a rookie Christian, after experiencing my first encounters with relatively mild persecution, the mocking of all things Christian, and also my initial engagements in spiritual warfare, I wondered why I was suddenly such a target. I also wondered why non-Christians never seemed to suffer for all their attacks against the Lord, whether they understood such or not, and for their own sin. When I asked mature believers about this they said it was largely because the devil has no need to attack the ones he already has. That made sense to me. I thought later on that it could also be because the enemy could be using such people for his own purposes. Hence—the reality of temptation and cultural peer pressure to lead one away from God and to the proverbial dens of iniquity. One may say there is no such mythical devil involved in any of this but I think the Lord Jesus would beg to differ.
In reality, all people everywhere are subjected to false leaders with hidden alternative agendas. I say leaders in the sense of actually leading one to a place they would otherwise not go, whether an actual physical location or usually a false belief or belief system (lies masquerading as truth). In this process, it is not the goats who are targeted but the sheep, since the goats are already in the devil’s fold.
Now, regarding the original Judas Goats, somebody figured out a long time ago in the circa late 1800s that a goat could be trained to gain the confidence of unsuspecting sheep to do what the human workers thereof could not do, which was to quietly and effectively lead small herds through the pens, corridors, and upper levels of packinghouses to the very place of slaughter. They got the Judas Goats to do this by getting them hooked on nicotine which was supplied as a reward.
It was said that cows and pigs were relatively easy to move to their final destination without the use of such goats. Sheep, however, were a different story entirely. They were essentially impossible to move because they would balk at such efforts having the sense to know something was not right. They would bunch up and refuse onward movement. Other livestock were susceptible to human force (think cattle drives) but sheep are different—they generally require a shepherd. And this is where the deviousness of the Judas Goat concept entered the picture. Once the sheep trusted the goat they could be moved to the eventual killing pit with ease. The Judas Goat would then be used again and again, with no apparent remorse, moving group after group of unsuspecting sheep to their final doom. This is what happens when one’s trust is misplaced and does not choose wisely. Thus, the Lord’s clear and strong warnings:
“Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.” [Matthew 7:15]
“For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect. Behold, I have told you in advance.” [Matthew 24:24-25]
But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned; and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep. [2Peter 2:1-3][1]
Be very careful who you choose to follow.
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE PURITY AND PERFECTION OF THE BRIDE OF CHRIST [Part 1]
The Bride of the Lord Jesus is comprised of every real Christian believer. Each member must therefore possess the same purity and perfection as the Bride.
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THIS MYSTERY IS GREAT
In several of the Apostle Paul’s epistles he refers to what he calls a great mystery regarding the Body of Christ: He says that it is made up of every believer. Imagine that. This means that every real Christian, the only ones who qualify, are each a part of the Lord’s Body, which is also referred to as the Church. Of course, the Church is not a building. The Lord and the writers of the New Testament never refer to it in that way. Such an error arose a few centuries later as so many other errors have. No, the Church is the Community of the Lord. It is from the Greek word ekklesia which is defined by Strong’s as: A gathering of citizens called out from their homes into some public place; an assembly. Regarding its application to Christianity, the word refers to “The Community of the Called-Out Ones.” That is, each member has been called out from being a former sinful member of this fallen world to be a member of the Lord’s overall Community—His Church.
These words are therefore synonymous—Ekklesia (the Hebrew word is Qahal), Church, Called-Out Community, and Body of Christ. These are all terms which refer to the total collection of every real believer though there is yet another term—the Bride of Christ. Regarding the Lord’s Bride, Scripture states very clearly that His Bride will be perfect, pure, and holy:
Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless. [Ephesians 5:25-27]
She will be spiritually beautiful. She will be as Eve, the last of God’s Creation, the wife of Adam and the first woman, as she was in her perfect state before her fall into sin. She was, of course, originally beautiful and perfect in every way. And as the Lord Jesus is referred to in the New Testament as the Last Adam—an absolutely perfect and sinless Man and one who replaced the First Adam who fell into sin, so will the Bride of Christ be the perfect and pure Woman who replaces fallen Eve.
Since this is true (again, a great mystery), we must therefore consider how it is possible for the Bride of Christ to be pure and perfect since she is composed of seemingly imperfect human believers. Nevertheless, it must follow that each member thereof must also be pure and perfect:
“Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” [Matthew 5:48] [1]
And there you have it. The Lord commands His followers to be perfect. He raises the standard to the nth degree. He says each one of His real followers (believers, disciples, members of His Community) must be as perfect as God the Father. Now, how in the world is this possible, you may ask? No one can be like God! This word, however, does not mean perfection in our sense of the word but has a different connotation. It is from the Greek word τέλειος téleios (tel’-i-os) and is defined as “Complete (in various applications of labor, growth, mental and moral character, etc.); completeness:—of full age, man, perfect.” It is further defined as “brought to its end, finished; lacking nothing necessary to completeness; perfect.” The word essentially means to be fully spiritually mature.
Now, in light of all that Christianity in general has become over the last twenty centuries in that the vast majority of what is known as Christianity is nothing at all like the first-century AD original—the only correct and perfect version and the prototype—one must understand that all the corrupted impure versions put together in total worldwide comprises overall Unreal Christianity. This massive amalgam, of course, is also comprised of people who can only also be described as unreal Christians. And if you may be wondering how the New Testament defines a real Christian in the most simple of terms, it is one who has submitted completely to the absolute Lordship of King Jesus and does his or her best to honor and obey Him, to incorporate His full curriculum, to love Him with all one’s heart, mind, and strength and love one’s neighbor as oneself.
The real Christian is also a lifelong disciple seeking to become fully mature and complete, or “perfect” as the Lord commanded. This means any Christian who does not fulfill these basic precepts cannot be for real. I say this because any Christian who gives it his or her all will get there with the Lord’s help. The Lord will see to it. This means we are talking about a heart condition in which one’s heart must be circumcised to the Lord. One must be born again. One must become a new creation. No one can achieve these things without the Lord’s direct ongoing assistance, of course, and without all the work He did and fulfilled during His earthly ministry to make it possible.
Remember, the Lord was so committed to our salvation and welfare that He submitted to the brutality and suffering of the cross, without which we would all go to hell and have no chance. He was certainly perfect and had certainly been fully spiritually mature and because of this He had the greatest beneficial effect on this sinful world—the only One who ever did or ever will—which means every single person who ever lived is pretty much absolutely nothing by comparison no matter how great one may think one is, and each needs Him as Savior or else.
The relative few who do join up with Him actually achieve the greatness He created them for, become the persons He created them to be, and live lives of spiritual abundance and achievement per the Lord’s definition though not without successful spiritual warfare.
Each also finds his or her place within the Bride of Christ.
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued…]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE PROOF OF PERSECUTION
A certain proof of Real Christianity is real persecution. It always separates the real from the unreal. It clearly identifies those doing damage to the enemy.
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“A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a slave above his master. It is enough for the disciple that he become like his teacher, and the slave like his master. If they have called the head of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign the members of his household!” [Matthew 10:24-25]
ARE YOU FOR REAL?
This is a question every Christian must ask himself at one time or another, probably more often than one may think, if for no other reason than to find out if one is still on track with the Lord and has not strayed off on a tangent, such as a tangent of temptation in the recent or distant past or one induced through the acceptance of incorrect information perceived as true. It must be noted the Lord, because He is a loving Father, will always convict of sin and of teachings not His own. He will also confirm truth. If such conviction and correction is not present and one is allowed to exist in a deceived state, it is a good indication of a lack of real relationship with Him since His presence always exposes darkness.
In this regard one may wonder how it is possible that one may claim Christianity and one’s secure status with the Lord though lacking the basic elementary evidence defined by the New Testament as a proof test. Yet this is the nature of deception in that the deceived one does not know he is deceived. It is therefore always wise to check one’s lamp for oil, so to speak, and to keep one’s oil flask resupplied, to assure one’s actual standing with the Lord and the ability to work for Him, and to never cease making necessary trips to the oil supplier for refills if only to be topped-off. (See The Parable of the Ten Virgins in Matthew 23:1-13] The apostle Paul alluded to the actual outworking of this in the following:
For I am well assured and indeed know that through your prayers and a bountiful supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ (the Messiah) this will turn out for my preservation (for the spiritual health and welfare of my own soul) and avail toward the saving work of the Gospel. [Philippians 1:19 (Amplified Classic)]
Concerning spiritual deception and even self-deception, there are a great many Christians in the world who are not actually actual Christians according to the Lord’s definition and the example of Holy Writ. Also, such unreal Christians comprise the majority. (Selah Alert: Pause, and calmly think of that!) There are any number of reasons why such has happened but the primary one is the simple fact that such people have never actually surrendered their lives in total to the Lord Jesus. Therefore, the root cause is a simple act of will: They have never actually repented of their sin, renounced it, and turned away from it, and thus have never been cleansed from sin by the only method one can be according to Scripture. This entails an unlikely possibility of a relationship with a Holy God.
There is also no proof they have ever fulfilled the Scriptural command to be born again (from above)—a powerful, clear, dynamic, life-changing occurrence akin to actual physical birth—something the Lord Jesus placed in the MUST category. The evidence of a new spiritual birth is an entirely new spiritual nature predicated upon the teachings of the Lord. One thus effectively becomes an entirely new creation:
Therefore if any person is [engrafted] in Christ (the Messiah) he is a new creation (a new creature altogether); the old [previous moral and spiritual condition] has passed away. Behold, the fresh and new has come! [1Corinthians 5:17 (Amplified Classic)]
GOT PERSECUTION?
We are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ… [Ephesians 4:14-15]
In addition to “Christians” that never were who mistakenly think they are, there is also the case that many real Christians (maybe most, maybe all) stray off track from time to time and some, quite sadly, do this permanently, never finding their way back. There are, of course, New Testament examples of Christians who quit on God. This possibility is also elaborated upon in many of the Lord’s teachings in which He commands His followers to do all they must to maintain their walk with Him and warns of the many traps, deceptions, temptations, fleshly inclinations, and spiritual attacks designed by the enemy to defeat the one who would live for God. Of course, even after initial real repentance and genuine new birth, every real Christian must fight the battle of temptation and sin which is why the Lord has provided the means of ongoing spiritual cleansing, by the shed Blood of the Lamb of God, through the application of personal repentance as necessary. One should always allow for a personal altar of repentance.
Those who do fulfill the Lord’s requirements, consistently overcome, have the spiritual fruit in their lives as evidence, and gain a level of spiritual maturity, will also be subjected to perhaps the most difficult proof of Christian discipleship—the reared ugly head of persecution:
Now you followed my teaching, conduct, purpose, faith, patience, love, perseverance, persecutions, and sufferings, such as happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium and at Lystra; what persecutions I endured, and out of them all the Lord rescued me! Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. [2Timothy 3:10-12]
THE EVIDENCE OF REAL CHRISTIANITY IS REAL PERSECUTION
One proof that one is an actual real disciple of the Lord Jesus is suffering as He suffered. No one will ever come anywhere close to suffering as much and as long as the Lord did or receive the great level of persecution He did. But a few of His followers will certainly suffer the highest price. For some, dying for the Lord is part of His plan.
We see this clearly in the life of Stephen, the first Christian martyr, who gave His life for the truth of the Lord by exposing a wicked enemy that remains to this day. His inspiring testimony continues as one of the greatest in the Lord’s early Community. We also see the highest cost of Christian persecution rendered against James the son of Zebedee, perhaps the eldest of the original twelve apostles. He was killed by an evil local king to curry political favor with the wicked ones Stephen exposed.
When trying to figure out why the Lord allows such death and repeated injurious physical persecution against His children, as in the distinct example of the Apostle Paul, one may draw a blank. Such would appear to be a violation of the Lord’s promised protection. On the other hand, such deaths of His followers are relatively few and far between and account for a small percentage, and the persecution of many is never physically injurious though entail much suffering nonetheless. In searching for answers we must understand that real Christians willingly GIVE their lives to the Lord for His purposes to use as He desires. They no longer belong to themselves or another but to Him. This is a trust and faith issue. It also indicates that those saved by the Lord belong to Him since they were purchased by His great sacrifice on their behalf (See Acts 20:28).
This means every real Christian who gains actual real salvation was saved by the greatest persecution death in history, one in which a fully innocent Man unspotted by a single sin did what only He could do in the greatest act of love of all time. If not for Him every human being would end up in hell. The relative few who thus end up in heaven for eternity only do so because of His offering as a perfect payment of sin and because He granted access to the Door of Life.
Because of the Lord Jesus, and only because of Him, one can have their burden of sin removed, can have their hopeless addiction to sin destroyed, and can have their life record of sin expunged.
This allows for spiritual freedom and great joy! It allows a person the ability to live a good life and the strength to overcome whatever attack of the enemy may come forth. And it enables one to be a fruitful worker in the Lord’s Kingdom used of God for His purposes to help set others free and assist them in gaining spiritual maturity.
Therefore, if one is called to die for the Lord or to suffer much, we must know this all works together for God’s greater plan. So we trust Him and we submit. We work for Him and do our part. And we fight the good fight of faith.
Suffice it to say, however, the devil and his people do not fight fair. They are wicked and they are evil. Perhaps the most evil are those who once walked with God but betrayed Him and then betrayed others. There is nothing to be done about this. People are blessed of God with a free will. They may choose to do good or evil. But such good and evil is defined only by the Lord. It is therefore mandatory that one become extremely familiar with the Lord’s full teachings and do their best to understand and apply them. One must also obey the Acts directive and become filled with the powerful Holy Spirit of God. Those who do so will become strong vibrant soldiers in spiritual warfare doing much for the Lord and His kingdom. It is a high and blessed calling.
But spiritual warfare has a high cost in this sinful fallen world. The spiritual war raging all around us has casualties. Of such were the Lord Jesus Himself who paid the highest price for our salvation. Of such were Stephen and James. Of such was also the Apostle Paul who was executed by the Roman government under the auspices of Nero on false charges. The Lord allowed these casualties for His greater purposes. And, never to be forgotten, each of these faithful men managed to fulfill their callings.
May each of the Lord’s people be consistent overcomers and fulfill their callings as well.
“These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.” [John 16:33]
“These will wage war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those who are with Him are the called and chosen and faithful.” [Revelation 17:14][1]
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
JULY 4TH 2025
Today we celebrate the 249th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. This great document and the hope thereof appears in its entirety at the end of this post.
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America has been under attack for several years now. The ongoing planned destruction had previously been slow and steady. And though there are great sinister forces from without, the primary attack has come from within. The enemy hates individual freedom. The enemy hates strong well-informed individuals. The enemy hates Spirit-filled believers who have sided with the Lord Jesus 100% and are determined to do His will.
As I have mentioned often here, there were three types of American Colonists that existed in 1776. Each type comprised roughly one third of the colonial population. One type was fully on the side of the English king and Parliament. One type was fully disengaged, ignorant, apathetic, selfish, and completely unaware of the battle at hand and its future ramifications. And one type comprised the greatest generation, the great American Patriots who put everything on the line to fight for freedom.
These three types also comprise the Americans of the present. Whether or not America survives will depend on which type eventually wins. I encourage you to do your own research, make your own evaluations, and come to your own studied conclusions regarding these three types of Americans.
As of now, it appears that the forces of evil have gained the upper hand. But I must remind everyone that the same dynamic was in play 249 years ago. The American Patriots appeared to have no chance but that never stopped them from taking that chance. They knew they would have no chance at all unless they went all in. Their great victory proved again that good is greater than evil and that Light always overcomes darkness.
To date, American Christians have generally become spiritually weak, dumbed-down, compromised, and overcome by the culture. Many rarely or never read and study the Word of God and thus fail to apply it to their lives. Most American Christians are not dedicated disciples of the Lord Jesus. One may wonder how this could have happened but it’s actually quite simple: The majority of American Christians have rejected the total Lordship of the Lord Jesus, have refused to honor and follow His Word, have rejected the Book of Acts in particular, and have instead dedicated themselves to fruitless socially acceptable counterfeits including the leaders thereof.
However, there is a group on the rise that has been on the rise for several years now. I saw this at least thirty-three years ago when I began my initial research for my book Real Christianity. I saw that if real Christianity was to survive in America it must overcome the massive forces of Unreal Christianity. I certainly expressed the hope that this group of real Christians would continue to rise, and for that to happen there must be an Awakening. I mentioned this in the book.
However, it was not until late August of 2010 that I received the definitive proof. The Lord told me America was in the early stages of a national Great Awakening. That was almost fifteen years ago. It has proven to be true.
Since then the enemy stopped his slow gradualism approach and went full bore into the open, no longer all that concerned with attempting to hide his sinister plans or keep his subterfuge secret. Of course, it pretty much stayed secret anyway because the great bulk of Americans and American Christians remained absolutely clueless and ignorant with no desire to change for the better. It has made things very easy for the enemy. He now does his dirty work in plain sight and most Christians still do nothing about it.
Real Christians, however, back in the 1990s, did see. They had the Spirit of God. They had eyes to see and ears to hear. Sadly, they were by and large castigated and rejected by their own, those who could only manage to live in the present and chose the way of compromise and friendship with the world. If the real Christians could survive and manage to coalesce, real Christianity in America could be saved. Thus, SOMETHING profound must have happened in this country in the roughly fifteen year period of 1995-2010. This was a time when enough real believers, largely as mere disconnected individuals, remained dedicated to the Lord Jesus and doubled down on their dedication in the face of persecution from their own. The Lord was apparently greatly pleased. He needed this group and fought for this group. This was a Remnant group of His making that would be necessary for His future plans. It was these who would be used to bring forth the current Great Awakening.
After 249 years this country remains at a terrible crossroads. Most never saw what was coming during the good times but the few did. Presently, more can see it, if not by spiritual eyes then by experience. Empirical evidence always promotes clarity. Americans will experience more in the immediate future—dire circumstances from seemingly every direction—that will cause them to start waking up. They will see that all the warnings they previously rejected had great merit. They will see that those who had it right all along but had their names and lives destroyed should have been listened to and honored.
Perhaps the best verse of Scripture which perfectly illustrates what has happened over the last three decades is the following:
Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and among his own relatives and in his own household.” [Mark 6:4][1]
The Lord always has witnesses. One might recall what happened to His great and powerful personal witness. One might recall what the Lord’s own did to Him. What might recall what the unbelievers of His nation—the forces of antichrist—did to the members of the Lord’s Community. This same dynamic plays out every day in every nation. It has certainly played out in America.
Thanks to the Lord Jesus, however, we have great hope. Thanks to Him and His real followers, everyone will have the opportunity to gain the spoils that go to the victor.
249 years ago a group of American Revolutionaries openly declared themselves independent and free of corrupt government. They would go on to fight another five years to win the prize. When they won, and it was a GREAT victory, the spoils of war were shared by all Americans, even the traitors and cowards.
American Christians must therefore thank those who have been in the spiritual battle all along, those who were most usually never or rarely supported and who were forced into long term survival mode. It was the real Christians, the only ones the Lord was allowed to work through and with, who brought us to this time of opportunity and hopeful victory.
The Great Awakening is here. Whether it will be enough or not remains to be seen.
© 2022, 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
In CONGRESS July 4, 1776
The Unanimous Declaration of the Thirteen United States of America
When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and of nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any form of government becomes destructive to these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness.
Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security.
Such has been the patient sufferance of these colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former systems of government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute tyranny over these states. To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world.
He has refused his assent to laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.
He has forbidden his governors to pass laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.
He has refused to pass other laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of representation in the legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.
He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.
He has dissolved representative houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.
He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the legislative powers, incapable of annihilation, have returned to the people at large for their exercise; the state remaining in the meantime exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.
He has endeavored to prevent the population of these states; for that purpose obstructing the laws for naturalization of foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migration hither, and raising the conditions of new appropriations of lands.
He has obstructed the administration of justice, by refusing his assent to laws for establishing judiciary powers.
He has made judges dependent on his will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.
He has erected a multitude of new offices, and sent hither swarms of officers to harass our people, and eat out their substance.
He has kept among us, in times of peace, standing armies without the consent of our legislature.
He has affected to render the military independent of and superior to civil power.
He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his assent to their acts of pretended legislation:
For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:
For protecting them, by mock trial, from punishment for any murders which they should commit on the inhabitants of these states:
For cutting off our trade with all parts of the world:
For imposing taxes on us without our consent:
For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of trial by jury:
For transporting us beyond seas to be tried for pretended offenses:
For abolishing the free system of English laws in a neighboring province, establishing therein an arbitrary government, and enlarging its boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule in these colonies:
For taking away our charters, abolishing our most valuable laws, and altering fundamentally the forms of our governments:
For suspending our own legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.
He has abdicated government here, by declaring us out of his protection and waging war against us.
He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burned our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.
He is at this time transporting large armies of foreign mercenaries to complete the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of cruelty and perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the head of a civilized nation.
He has constrained our fellow citizens taken captive on the high seas to bear arms against their country, to become the executioners of their friends and brethren, or to fall themselves by their hands.
He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavored to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian savages, whose known rule of warfare, is undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.
In every stage of these oppressions we have petitioned for redress in the most humble terms: our repeated petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.
Nor have we been wanting in attention to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, enemies in war, in peace friends.
We, therefore, the representatives of the United States of America, in General Congress, assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the name, and by the authority of the good people of these colonies, solemnly publish and declare, that these united colonies are, and of right ought to be free and independent states; that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the state of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as free and independent states, they have full power to levy war, conclude peace, contract alliances, establish commerce, and to do all other acts and things which independent states may of right do. And for the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor.
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New Hampshire: Josiah Bartlett, William Whipple, Matthew Thornton
Massachusetts: John Hancock, Samuel Adams, John Adams, Robert Treat Paine, Elbridge Gerry
Rhode Island: Stephen Hopkins, William Ellery
Connecticut: Roger Sherman, Samuel Huntington, William Williams, Oliver Wolcott
New York: William Floyd, Philip Livingston, Francis Lewis, Lewis Morris
New Jersey: Richard Stockton, John Witherspoon, Francis Hopkinson, John Hart, Abraham Clark
Pennsylvania: Robert Morris, Benjamin Rush, Benjamin Franklin, John Morton, George Clymer, James Smith, George Taylor, James Wilson, George Ross
Delaware: Caesar Rodney, George Read, Thomas McKean
Maryland: Samuel Chase, William Paca, Thomas Stone, Charles Carroll of Carrollton
Virginia: George Wythe, Richard Henry Lee, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Harrison, Thomas Nelson, Jr., Francis Lightfoot Lee, Carter Braxton
North Carolina: William Hooper, Joseph Hewes, John Penn
South Carolina: Edward Rutledge, Thomas Heyward, Jr., Thomas Lynch, Jr., Arthur Middleton
Georgia: Button Gwinnett, Lyman Hall, George Walton
ISRAEL GOES NUCLEAR: A HISTORICAL RECORD OF LAWLESSNESS [AND UNCLE SAM BOMBS IRAN]
Israel is the only state in the Middle East with nuclear weapons. However, it developed and obtained its nuclear arsenal through secretive clandestine means.
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[Note: I began writing this article early Saturday, June 21, and completed the first full draft prior to final edits shortly before hearing the news of the U.S. bombing of Iran’s nuclear sites Saturday evening. Yet with so much happening so fast in the Middle East I have since added additional material and also explanatory Notes to this article (in red) regarding events that have happened in the meantime. With grave concern for the massive bombing raid perpetrated against Iran by the U.S. on Saturday evening, it must be noted that it was illegal according to international law and wholly unconstitutional according to U.S. law. Overall, though the successful mission involved highly skilled and professional U.S. personnel obeying orders, the operation was lawless in the extreme.]
LAWLESSNESS
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.” [Matthew 23:27-28][1]
Of course, the state of Israel has never admitted to possessing a nuclear arsenal. It prefers to play it coy. On the one hand such an attitude is derived from the general historical facts of the matter which point directly to the surreptitious process employed, which is something Israel obviously knows must be concealed. Under normal circumstances this would be akin to a national version of unrepentant hidden personal sin that causes shame, something better left in the shadows. In this case, though, because there is no shame but more of a smug pride in their accomplishment, it is because if such facts were to get out they would tend to subvert one’s carefully constructed false outer persona and just might lead to ripping the mask off completely. Regardless of such efforts, however, and that the modern state of Israel has been largely successful for many decades in hiding its true identity, the current Great Awakening is assisting in exposing it for what it really is.
“But there is nothing covered up that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known.” [Luke 12:2]
Israel’s deliberate cover-up of its surreptitious means of becoming a nuclear power also involves concealing the people and agencies utilized thereof, something deemed absolutely essential, not so much to protect national secrets and particular identities but to conceal a great evil, the evil ways in general that such clandestine efforts are carried out, and their real purposes. Suffice it to say there are thoroughly different agendas involved in such means and processes than what the public is propagandized to believe and by which, once revealed, it would be utterly shocked. That which occurs behind the scenes by such forces is truly the epitome of lawlessness.
Another primary reason that Israel has always refused to acknowledge its possession of nuclear weapons is due to the passage of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Act of 1978 which was signed into law by President Carter on March 10 of that year. This Act incorporated the Symington Amendment of 1976 which “barred U.S. economic and military assistance to any country that imported or exported spent nuclear fuel reprocessing or uranium enrichment equipment, materials, or technology but failed to comply with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) full-scope safeguards.”[2]
Israel has never complied with IAEA directives at their Dimona nuclear facility and still denies it access.[3] This portends that the hundreds of billions of dollars in “aid” that Israel has received from the U.S. is actually illegal and explains their hush hush attitude.
The reality is such that approximately 67 years ago the relatively new state of Israel (founded in 1948), with the assistance of France (which gained nuclear weaponry in 1960) completed the construction of their first nuclear reactor in Israel at Dimona in the southern Negev, as early as 1962. This was largely done in an undercover manner with origins dating to 1958. It was reportedly so secret that U.S. intelligence agencies did not know of its existence for three years. (It is since believed that this reactor supplied the fuel for Israel’s undeclared secret nuclear weapons program which came to fruition by approximately 1967.)
When President Kennedy, who was elected in 1960, became aware of their progress with the Dimona Reactor in 1961 he was reported to be surprised and likely stunned, knowing that the facility could easily be built out for military purposes. No President had ever been as concerned about nuclear proliferation. He then insisted that the state of Israel be subjected to the same official inspections by international nuclear governing bodies to both keep track of the progress but also to limit the process to strictly that of energy. (His concern was not unfounded since the establishment of nuclear power is a mere step toward the creation of nuclear warheads and he certainly smelled a rat regarding Israel’s future intentions.)
Of course, the President’s stance was cause for great concern by Israel since they had successfully avoided such inspection activity to that date and rather than being subjected to proper oversight protocols, were instead assisted by people and agencies in very high places. In President Kennedy, however, they found a stalwart American leader who refused to operate unlawfully in this area and demanded international transparency (for the sake of such trivial issues as world peace). By June of 1963, by official communication, he gave Israeli Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion an ultimatum. As a result, Ben-Gurion resigned. This sent shockwaves through the parties involved in the subterfuge.
According to the in-depth research of later select independent sources who pieced together the sordid back story and its implications, it was this event that played a major role in President Kennedy’s assassination only five months later.[4]
Therefore, Iran is an enemy of Israel for only one reason. It is because Israel is threatened by the possibility that Iran might someday develop nuclear weapons also. If this ever happened Israel would be compromised and essentially stalemated. They would no longer hold the great upper hand in the Middle East. It is why they always eliminate any threat in this regard long before such becomes possible by attacking even the benign nuclear energy projects of its neighbors. They had previously bombed both Iraqi (1981) and Syrian (2007) nuclear energy facilities for fear that such could be converted for military use. Such actions are beyond ironic and constitute pure hypocrisy.
IRAN IN THE CROSSHAIRS
Over thirteen years ago in February of 2012, I wrote and posted a five-part series here which I entitled Iran in the Crosshairs. In case you may be interested, these are well developed articles filled with relevant facts that pretty much perfectly align with the present. Most of the names are different but the agenda is exactly the same. The point here is that the state of Israel has been crying wolf about Iran’s purported nuclear weapons intentions about as far back as the Iranian Revolution in 1979.
The facts are, of course, that Iran has never had a nuclear weapon. Every pertinent certified agency and intelligence service confirms this fact and it was even recently confirmed in March of this year by the United States Director of National Intelligence. Conversely, Israel is constantly stating that Iran is only two years/a year/six months/weeks/any day now away from building a nuclear weapon. Again, they’ve been saying this for over forty years. Yet, when two years/a year/six months/weeks/any day now came to pass there was still no weapon. These were not, therefore (of course), actual warnings of an impending threat but mere ongoing propaganda and fear tactics to gain what they wanted, namely billions more in military aid and whatever else plus an eventual green light to attack Iran, something Israel has desperately wanted to do. I wrote about all of this in my series.
As we all know now, that long desired intention finally took place with Israel’s uncalled for surprise attack against the sovereign nation of Iran on June 13, only ten days ago. This happened after a softening up faux peace talk process involving the U.S. which Iran apparently did not perceive to be a charade. Now, regarding who could win such a fight between these two Middle East countries, the facts are that Israel could never win without much assistance from the U.S. and by engaging in the initial attack were either counting on such assistance to occur or the overall plan was always one in which it would occur. If the U.S. was not involved and would not be involved, and if Israel did not possess nuclear weapons, Iran would most likely be the victor. This is already proving true.
Therefore, if the recent two week decision period on whether or not the U.S. will attack Iran given on June 19 is for real the U.S. will continue building up in the meantime for inevitable war. [Note: Shortly after I wrote this and the following lines, of course, the world found out this two week interim was yet another ruse and a trust-busting continuation of the effective betrayal of diplomacy.] If by some strange chance the U.S. decides to not engage (After great intercessory prayer from American Christians? After yielding to the American electorate against such a war?), Israel would then be down to its final chance—it would invoke the Samson Option.[5] This is the alleged last ditch military option in which Israel would employ its nuclear weapons arsenal against whatever targets it warrants including those at a distance if you get my drift. For those knowledgeable of Old Testament history who understand invoking the historical character Samson and his final act, they should rightly perceive ominous overtones. One might readily ascertain, therefore, why the U.S. will likely get (more) involved in the Israel-Iran War very soon. [Note: My prediction here proved true.]
On the other hand, Iran is closely allied with such notables as Russia, China, India, and Pakistan, each of which possesses stores of nuclear weapons, and in the case of Russia, a vast store. Will these nations sit idly by if Iran is attacked with such sufficient force that its livelihood and perhaps very existence is threatened? And what might Iran do to protect itself and retaliate?
Such wars never go according to plan. There are always unintended consequences. Things quickly spin out of control which necessitates further action outside the scope of original objectives. Once started, they always involve happenings and occurrences that are unplanned and previously unseen. This particular war in the making has great potential to achieve that very thing and could easily result in an international Pandora’s Box scenario to the nth degree.
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
[2] ://history.state.gov/historicaldocuments/frus1977-80v19/d6
[3] ://apnews.com/article/iran-israel-nuclear-programs-iaea-94c0f87c357fd72169dee198cb6800a7
[4] One relatively early work (and possibly the best) is Final Judgment ©1995 by Michael Collins Piper. This book is subtitled: The Missing Link in the JFK Assassination Conspiracy.
[5] According to Seymour Hersh and Israeli historian Avner Cohen, Israeli leaders like David Ben-Gurion, Shimon Peres, Levi Ashkol, and Moshe Dayan coined the biblical term Samson option in the 1960s. See ://thesvi.org/deconstructing-israels-samson-option/
EXPOSING THE ANTICHRIST SPIRIT: THE HISTORICAL RECORD
The light of the real Gospel exposes all darkness. It shines upon all who lurk in the shadows of sin. It reveals every hidden enemy of the Lord Jesus to those with eyes to see.
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We live in a time of veiled opposition. Most people are completely unaware of the spiritual warfare raging all around them. There are times when this warfare flashes into the open. It happens whenever the real Gospel is properly presented by the power and anointing of the Holy Spirit. This is when sinners are exposed. Their sin becomes known to them. Many blessedly surrender unto salvation. When this happens on a large scale, Great Awakenings break forth. The kingdom of the Lord Jesus expands and advances.
ANTICHRIST AGITATORS
Parallel to this, the unrepentant enemies of the Lord are also exposed, often by their own hateful and rapid reactionary response which they most often cannot manage. We call this triggering or getting triggered. It often takes place in people with low or no impulse control. Some stimulus causes a reflex. Something sets them off.
That something is the truth of the Gospel. More so, it is the truth of the real identity of the Lord Jesus. When His real identity is veiled, obscured, watered-down, or removed, there is little reaction. His enemies are pacified. But when the real Gospel is brought forth and His real identity, authority, and presence are fully noted, His enemies suddenly become extremely upset and angry. They are instantly inflated with antagonism and rapidly rise up to fight. The more resentful they are the more reactionary they become. The more antichrist they are, the more they agitate.
It never changes. When the real Gospel is preached as it was in the beginning it happens. When the Lord Jesus is lifted up for who He really is it always occurs. His enemies cannot contain themselves. Their bitterness and hatred will not allow them to. They must fight back to defend their false paradigm and faulty construct to which they have dedicated their lives and in which they are fully invested.
THE EARLY CHURCH IN ACTS
The real time demonstration of this dynamic is entirely clear as plainly illustrated by the following compelling events from the Book of Acts, captured brilliantly by Luke. Many Christians are not aware of these passages and many others rebuff them as irrelevant and even inappropriate. Others, especially Christian Zionists, are embarrassed and discomfited by these historical recordings from the Word of God, as the Scriptural record does not fit their contrived religious and cultural narrative.
Though listed here as highlighted sections in a chronological format, I encourage everyone to also read these passages in full context and thereby gain even greater insight into the genuine outworking of the original Gospel presentation, why it applies to the present, and how it exposes the antichrist spirit. We are blessed to have this historical documentation.
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. [Romans 1:16]
THE BOOK OF ACTS HISTORICAL RECORD
But Saul kept increasing in strength and confounding the Jews who lived at Damascus by proving that this Jesus is the Christ. When many days had elapsed, the Jews plotted together to do away with him, but their plot became known to Saul. They were also watching the gates day and night so that they might put him to death; but his disciples took him by night and let him down through an opening in the wall, lowering him in a large basket. [Acts 9:22-25]
And he was with them, moving about freely in Jerusalem, speaking out boldly in the name of the Lord. And he was talking and arguing with the Hellenistic Jews; but they were attempting to put him to death. [Acts 9:28-29]
“You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. We are witnesses of all the things He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They also put Him to death by hanging Him on a cross.” [Acts 10:38-39]
Now about that time Herod the king laid hands on some who belonged to the church in order to mistreat them. And he had James the brother of John put to death with a sword. When he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. Now it was during the days of Unleavened Bread. [Acts 12:1-3]
When they reached Salamis, they began to proclaim the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews; and they also had John as their helper. When they had gone through the whole island as far as Paphos, they found a magician, a Jewish false prophet whose name was Bar-Jesus, who was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence. This man summoned Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God. But Elymas the magician (for so his name is translated) was opposing them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith. [Acts 13:5-8]
The next Sabbath nearly the whole city assembled to hear the word of the Lord. But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and began contradicting the things spoken by Paul, and were blaspheming. Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and said, “It was necessary that the word of God be spoken to you first; since you repudiate it and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles. For so the Lord has commanded us, ‘I HAVE PLACED YOU AS A LIGHT FOR THE GENTILES, THAT YOU MAY BRING SALVATION TO THE END OF THE EARTH.’”
When the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord; and as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed. And the word of the Lord was being spread through the whole region. But the Jews incited the devout women of prominence and the leading men of the city, and instigated a persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and drove them out of their district. But they shook off the dust of their feet in protest against them and went to Iconium. And the disciples were continually filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit. [Acts 13:44-52]
In Iconium they entered the synagogue of the Jews together, and spoke in such a manner that a large number of people believed, both of Jews and of Greeks. But the Jews who disbelieved stirred up the minds of the Gentiles and embittered them against the brethren. Therefore they spent a long time there speaking boldly with reliance upon the Lord, who was testifying to the word of His grace, granting that signs and wonders be done by their hands. But the people of the city were divided; and some sided with the Jews, and some with the apostles. And when an attempt was made by both the Gentiles and the Jews with their rulers, to mistreat and to stone them, they became aware of it and fled to the cities of Lycaonia, Lystra and Derbe, and the surrounding region; and there they continued to preach the gospel. [Acts 14:1-7]
But Jews came from Antioch and Iconium, and having won over the crowds, they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing him to be dead. But while the disciples stood around him, he got up and entered the city. The next day he went away with Barnabas to Derbe. [Acts 14:19-20]
But the Jews, becoming jealous and taking along some wicked men from the market place, formed a mob and set the city in an uproar; and attacking the house of Jason, they were seeking to bring them out to the people. When they did not find them, they began dragging Jason and some brethren before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have upset the world have come here also; and Jason has welcomed them, and they all act contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus.” They stirred up the crowd and the city authorities who heard these things. And when they had received a pledge from Jason and the others, they released them. [Acts 17:5-9]
But when the Jews of Thessalonica found out that the word of God had been proclaimed by Paul in Berea also, they came there as well, agitating and stirring up the crowds. Then immediately the brethren sent Paul out to go as far as the sea; and Silas and Timothy remained there. [Acts 17:13-14]
And he was reasoning in the synagogue every Sabbath and trying to persuade Jews and Greeks. But when Silas and Timothy came down from Macedonia, Paul began devoting himself completely to the word, solemnly testifying to the Jews that Jesus was the Christ. But when they resisted and blasphemed, he shook out his garments and said to them, “Your blood be on your own heads! I am clean. From now on I will go to the Gentiles.” Then he left there and went to the house of a man named Titius Justus, a worshiper of God, whose house was next to the synagogue. [Acts 18:4-7]
But while Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews with one accord rose up against Paul and brought him before the judgment seat, saying, “This man persuades men to worship God contrary to the law.” But when Paul was about to open his mouth, Gallio said to the Jews, “If it were a matter of wrong or of vicious crime, O Jews, it would be reasonable for me to put up with you; but if there are questions about words and names and your own law, look after it yourselves; I am unwilling to be a judge of these matters.” And he drove them away from the judgment seat. And they all took hold of Sosthenes, the leader of the synagogue, and began beating him in front of the judgment seat. But Gallio was not concerned about any of these things. [Acts 18:12-17]
After the uproar had ceased, Paul sent for the disciples, and when he had exhorted them and taken his leave of them, he left to go to Macedonia. When he had gone through those districts and had given them much exhortation, he came to Greece. And there he spent three months, and when a plot was formed against him by the Jews as he was about to set sail for Syria, he decided to return through Macedonia. [Acts 20:1-3]
From Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called to him the elders of the church. And when they had come to him, he said to them, “You yourselves know, from the first day that I set foot in Asia, how I was with you the whole time, serving the Lord with all humility and with tears and with trials which came upon me through the plots of the Jews; how I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you publicly and from house to house, solemnly testifying to both Jews and Greeks of repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. [Acts 20:17-21]
As we were staying there for some days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. And coming to us, he took Paul’s belt and bound his own feet and hands, and said, “This is what the Holy Spirit says: ‘In this way the Jews at Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.’” When we had heard this, we as well as the local residents began begging him not to go up to Jerusalem. [Acts 21:10-12]
Then Paul took the men, and the next day, purifying himself along with them, went into the temple giving notice of the completion of the days of purification, until the sacrifice was offered for each one of them. When the seven days were almost over, the Jews from Asia, upon seeing him in the temple, began to stir up all the crowd and laid hands on him, crying out, “Men of Israel, come to our aid! This is the man who preaches to all men everywhere against our people and the Law and this place; and besides he has even brought Greeks into the temple and has defiled this holy place.” For they had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian in the city with him, and they supposed that Paul had brought him into the temple. Then all the city was provoked, and the people rushed together, and taking hold of Paul they dragged him out of the temple, and immediately the doors were shut. While they were seeking to kill him, a report came up to the commander of the Roman cohort that all Jerusalem was in confusion. [Acts 21:26-31]
But on the next day, wishing to know for certain why he had been accused by the Jews, he released him and ordered the chief priests and all the Council to assemble, and brought Paul down and set him before them. Paul, looking intently at the Council, said, “Brethren, I have lived my life with a perfectly good conscience before God up to this day.” The high priest Ananias commanded those standing beside him to strike him on the mouth. Then Paul said to him, “God is going to strike you, you whitewashed wall! Do you sit to try me according to the Law, and in violation of the Law order me to be struck?” [Acts 22:30 – 23:3]
And as a great dissension was developing, the commander was afraid Paul would be torn to pieces by them and ordered the troops to go down and take him away from them by force, and bring him into the barracks. But on the night immediately following, the Lord stood at his side and said, “Take courage; for as you have solemnly witnessed to My cause at Jerusalem, so you must witness at Rome also.” When it was day, the Jews formed a conspiracy and bound themselves under an oath, saying that they would neither eat nor drink until they had killed Paul. There were more than forty who formed this plot. They came to the chief priests and the elders and said, “We have bound ourselves under a solemn oath to taste nothing until we have killed Paul. Now therefore, you and the Council notify the commander to bring him down to you, as though you were going to determine his case by a more thorough investigation; and we for our part are ready to slay him before he comes near the place.”
But the son of Paul’s sister heard of their ambush, and he came and entered the barracks and told Paul. Paul called one of the centurions to him and said, “Lead this young man to the commander, for he has something to report to him.” So he took him and led him to the commander and said, “Paul the prisoner called me to him and asked me to lead this young man to you since he has something to tell you.” The commander took him by the hand and stepping aside, began to inquire of him privately, “What is it that you have to report to me?” And he said, “The Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul down tomorrow to the Council, as though they were going to inquire somewhat more thoroughly about him. So do not listen to them, for more than forty of them are lying in wait for him who have bound themselves under a curse not to eat or drink until they slay him; and now they are ready and waiting for the promise from you.” So the commander let the young man go, instructing him, “Tell no one that you have notified me of these things.” And he called to him two of the centurions and said, “Get two hundred soldiers ready by the third hour of the night to proceed to Caesarea, with seventy horsemen and two hundred spearmen.” They were also to provide mounts to put Paul on and bring him safely to Felix the governor. [Acts 23:10-13]
After five days the high priest Ananias came down with some elders, with an attorney named Tertullus, and they brought charges to the governor against Paul. After Paul had been summoned, Tertullus began to accuse him, saying to the governor, “Since we have through you attained much peace, and since by your providence reforms are being carried out for this nation, we acknowledge this in every way and everywhere, most excellent Felix, with all thankfulness. But, that I may not weary you any further, I beg you to grant us, by your kindness, a brief hearing. For we have found this man a real pest and a fellow who stirs up dissension among all the Jews throughout the world, and a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes. And he even tried to desecrate the temple; and then we arrested him. We wanted to judge him according to our own Law. But Lysias the commander came along, and with much violence took him out of our hands, ordering his accusers to come before you. By examining him yourself concerning all these matters you will be able to ascertain the things of which we accuse him.” The Jews also joined in the attack, asserting that these things were so. [Acts 24:1-9]
Festus then, having arrived in the province, three days later went up to Jerusalem from Caesarea. And the chief priests and the leading men of the Jews brought charges against Paul, and they were urging him, requesting a concession against Paul, that he might have him brought to Jerusalem (at the same time, setting an ambush to kill him on the way). Festus then answered that Paul was being kept in custody at Caesarea and that he himself was about to leave shortly. [Acts 25:1-4]
After he had spent not more than eight or ten days among them, he went down to Caesarea, and on the next day he took his seat on the tribunal and ordered Paul to be brought. After Paul arrived, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him, bringing many and serious charges against him which they could not prove, while Paul said in his own defense, “I have committed no offense either against the Law of the Jews or against the temple or against Caesar.” But Festus, wishing to do the Jews a favor, answered Paul and said, “Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and stand trial before me on these charges?” But Paul said, “I am standing before Caesar’s tribunal, where I ought to be tried. I have done no wrong to the Jews, as you also very well know. If, then, I am a wrongdoer and have committed anything worthy of death, I do not refuse to die; but if none of those things is true of which these men accuse me, no one can hand me over to them. I appeal to Caesar.” Then when Festus had conferred with his council, he answered, “You have appealed to Caesar, to Caesar you shall go.” [Acts 25:6-12]
So, King Agrippa, I did not prove disobedient to the heavenly vision, but kept declaring both to those of Damascus first, and also at Jerusalem and then throughout all the region of Judea, and even to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, performing deeds appropriate to repentance. For this reason some Jews seized me in the temple and tried to put me to death. So, having obtained help from God, I stand to this day testifying both to small and great, stating nothing but what the Prophets and Moses said was going to take place; that the Christ was to suffer, and that by reason of His resurrection from the dead He would be the first to proclaim light both to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles.” [Acts 26:19-23]
When they had set a day for Paul, they came to him at his lodging in large numbers; and he was explaining to them by solemnly testifying about the kingdom of God and trying to persuade them concerning Jesus, from both the Law of Moses and from the Prophets, from morning until evening. Some were being persuaded by the things spoken, but others would not believe. And when they did not agree with one another, they began leaving after Paul had spoken one parting word, “The Holy Spirit rightly spoke through Isaiah the prophet to your fathers, saying, ‘GO TO THIS PEOPLE AND SAY, “YOU WILL KEEP ON HEARING, BUT WILL NOT UNDERSTAND; AND YOU WILL KEEP ON SEEING, BUT WILL NOT PERCEIVE; FOR THE HEART OF THIS PEOPLE HAS BECOME DULL, AND WITH THEIR EARS THEY SCARCELY HEAR, AND THEY HAVE CLOSED THEIR EYES; OTHERWISE THEY MIGHT SEE WITH THEIR EYES, AND HEAR WITH THEIR EARS, AND UNDERSTAND WITH THEIR HEART AND RETURN, AND I WOULD HEAL THEM.”’ Therefore let it be known to you that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles; they will also listen.” When he had spoken these words, the Jews departed, having a great dispute among themselves.
And he stayed two full years in his own rented quarters and was welcoming all who came to him, preaching the kingdom of God and teaching concerning the Lord Jesus Christ with all openness, unhindered. [Acts 28:23-31] [1]
© 2018 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
HAPPY FATHER’S DAY: SHOW US THE FATHER
The Lord Jesus taught in part by using parables. The greatest parable in His teachings is largely unrecognized. It regards His actual identity. Many Christians have yet to receive the full revelation.
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For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; and the government will rest on His shoulders; and His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness from then on and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this. [Isaiah 9:6-7]
“These things I have spoken to you in figurative language; an hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figurative language, but will tell you plainly of the Father.” [John 16:25]
WHO DO YOU SAY THAT I AM?
Real Christians believe that Jesus is God. Most Christians do not believe that Jesus is God the Father. Think about that.
We obviously have reams of New Covenant Scripture expressly proclaiming in no uncertain terms that Jesus is not only the Son of Man and the Son of God but God Himself. We also have reams of Old Testament prophetic Scripture expressly proclaiming the same thing. As a method to prove this, focusing only on one aspect of the Lord’s identity—that of Savior—are the following verses:
I have called upon You, for You will answer me, O God; incline Your ear to me, hear my speech. Wondrously show Your lovingkindness, O Savior of those who take refuge at Your right hand from those who rise up against them. [Psalm 17:6-7]
“You are My witnesses,” declares the LORD, “And My servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe Me and understand that I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, and there will be none after Me. I, even I, am the LORD, and there is no Savior besides Me.” [Isaiah 43:10-11]
“Declare and set forth your case; indeed, let them consult together. Who has announced this from of old? Who has long since declared it? Is it not I, the LORD? And there is no other God besides Me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is none except Me.” [Isaiah 45:21]
“Yet I have been the LORD your God Since the land of Egypt; and you were not to know any god except Me, for there is no Savior besides Me.” [Hosea 13:4]
Regarding who is referred to as Savior in the New Testament, we have additional Names and Titles:
And Mary said: “My soul exalts the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.” [Luke 1:46-47]
“From the descendants of this man (David), according to promise, God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, after John had proclaimed before His coming a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel.” [Acts 13:23-24]
For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; [Philippians 3:20]
This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. [1Timothy 2:3-4]
For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers. [1Timothy 4:10]
Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior. [Titus 1:4]
…Looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus… [Titus 2:13]
From these verses it is obvious that Scripture claims there is only one Savior, not two or several, and that this one Savior is God. Yet the preceding verses of Scripture also refer to this one Savior by several different Names and Titles:
- God (El)
- God (Elohim)
- God (Theos)
- LORD (Adonai—YHWH)
- Lord (Kurios)
- Jesus (Iesous)
- Lord Jesus Christ (Kurios Iesous Christos)
- Christ Jesus (Christos Iesous)
This obviously does not mean that these are different persons but the same Person with different Names and Titles.
KING OF KINGS
The OT prophets said an Israelite Messiah (Anointed One) was coming. Most Christians understand that. But the OT prophets also said the coming Messiah would not be as the culturally understood anointed ones of that time, primarily the Hebrew kings, but would be the greatest Anointed One: The final King, the everlasting King, and the King of kings. In ancient times, many centuries before the Messiah’s arrival, they proclaimed there would be a time far into the future when the Messiah would once again take His rightful place that He formerly possessed among His people prior to their rejection of Him.
This term King of kings was used three times in the Old Testament as a reference to the greatest earthly king on the planet. It referred twice to Nebuchadnezzar, the king of the Babylonian Empire and once to Artaxerxes, the king of the Persian Empire. King of kings also occurs three times in the New Testament, each time, of course, referring to the Lord Jesus. So again, the Messiah is referred to in Scripture as the greatest King of all with all authority in both heaven and earth (far greater authority than any earthly king or emperor).
With reference to the nation of Israel, historians refer to King Saul as Israel’s first king. He became king of Israel in 1050BC. In reality, Saul was Israel’s first earthly king. From the beginning, however, it was always God who was Israel’s King. The Creator became known to Israel primarily as YHWH, the “Self-Existent or Eternal.” Though the actual pronunciation of this Name is largely unknown, we have come to accept its pronunciation as Yahweh (´Yah way). A later constructed form is Jehovah, but there is no letter J in the Hebrew alphabet. The Hebrew scribes, due to their great respect and honor for God, rather than writing His Name and possibly profaning it, substituted another word in Scripture. The word they used to replace His Name is the Hebrew word Adonai which is translated in the English Old Testament as LORD (all caps). So whenever you see the word LORD in the OT, it would have otherwise been directly translated as YHWH.
The nation of Israel, however, due to its great rebellion and sin, often had a big problem with YHWH. This came to a head during the time of Samuel the prophet, the last of the Hebrew Judges. Israel had reached a point of such great sin it rejected its distinct calling as a light to the Gentiles and select of God, and insisted upon being as other nations. They demanded an earthly king. This was a total rejection of their God who had always been their rightful King:
The LORD said to Samuel, “Listen to the voice of the people in regard to all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me from being king over them.” [1Samuel 8:7]
In reading the Old Testament regarding the identity of the future Messiah and coming King of kings, many Christians don’t really make the connection that this Man, the Messiah, would also be God. Or they do, but they don’t. They get it maybe in part but not completely. They fail to see that the Messiah would be YHWH reclaiming His sovereignty. It is often simply too difficult a concept to grasp that a mere Man could be God, that the God of the Old Testament is the Son of God of the New Testament. I mean, if Jesus was God, why was He always praying to God? And yet, Jesus revealed Himself as God on multiple occasions. Many people state that He never said any such thing, but I will remind everyone that God speaks in different languages, such as by spiritual revelation, in parables or figurative language, and also “plainly” through words and grammar.
Others have turned the identity of the Lord Jesus into an unexplainable mystery. They have created mental constructs and counterfeit personas with apparent surface meaning that inevitably fail the test of wholly agreeing with Scripture. Some cop out of the discussion completely by weakly asserting that we’ll figure out the Lord’s identity when we get to heaven in that there is no way to know it otherwise. For such people there is no use in trying to go deep into Scriptural truth since they limit themselves to their shallow understandings. There is nothing in Scripture, however, that gives forth the idea that we cannot know God or that God is hopelessly mysterious, but the very opposite. It is a major part of why God became a Man. He arrived on these shores to reveal who He is and show what He is like. How else was He to do this toward human beings severed from communication with Him, dulled by sin, and spiritually distant unless He became one of us?
FATHER AND SON
The following passage is rich in meaning, so rich that many pass right over it without understanding its full import. It is parabolic in nature and again, involves direct revelation:
“All things have been handed over to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.” [Luke 10:22]
In this verse, the Lord Jesus states:
- The Father has handed over all things to the Son
- Only the Father knows who the Son is
- Only the Son knows who the Father is
- Others can know who the Father is but only if the Son wills to reveal Him to them
From this we know that no one will ever know who the Father is except by direct revelation. If the Lord Jesus wills to reveal the identity of the Father to a person, then that person will know. Otherwise a person will never know. This means the Lord chooses to whom He will reveal the identity of the Father. This also means that there must be some common denominator among those who receive the revelation of the identity of the Father. In other words, the Lord is not capricious or arbitrary in His choosing. He never plays favorites. It is therefore up to the individual on whether or not to be qualified to receive the revelation.
Take a look at these clues from Luke 10:22:
- The Father possessed “all things” but gave “all things” to the Son. This must mean the Father no longer possesses “all things.” It means the Son then possessed “all things.” The Father had “all things” and then no longer had them. The Son did not have “all things” and then took possession of them.
- Only the Father knows who the Son is? How can this be? Did not more than a few during the Lord’s time know who the Son of God was? Affirmative. But those who did only knew by divine revelation. That’s how Peter found out: “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 16:17). The point here is that the Son had always been hidden by the Father. Only the Father would know who He was. The Son was incognito in this sense. He would never look the part. He was likely the very opposite of a guy like King Saul who was tall, handsome, popular and specifically chosen by all the people.
- The Son is the only One who knows who the Father is and also the only One who can reveal Him. The Father revealed the Son to Peter. On the other hand, the Son revealed the Father to Philip. Both revelations pointed to the same Person.
One might recall (as I mentioned previously) that the Lord Jesus said, right before He ascended to heaven, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth” (Matthew 28:18). This is a very bold statement. Only God has that kind of authority. If one insists that God is someone other than the Lord Jesus then how can the Lord Jesus have all of God’s authority in both heaven and earth?
THE LANGUAGE OF SPIRITUAL REVELATION
The Old Testament patriarchs were noted for being relative loners and wanderers. They were seen as somewhat eccentric by the world at large because they were seemingly forever drifting around in a nomadic spiritual sense marching to the beat of a very different Drummer. They traversed the great quiet of deserts and wilderness areas raising their head to the winds and hearing voices.
It reminds one of Ray Kinsella in the movie Field of Dreams hearing a voice out in his corn field. On a trip into town one day after hearing “the voice” Ray tries to gain some understanding of what has happened to him. Seeking clues, he has the following conversation with a veteran farmer at the farm supply store:
Ray:“In all those years, did you ever… I’ve heard that sometimes farmers out in the field… hear things. Voices.”
Old Timer: “You’re hearing voices?”
Ray: “No. It’s just that I heard some farmers do, and… I, of course, don’t, so I was wondering if I was doing something wrong, or something. Did you ever hear voices out there?”
Cashier: “Who’s hearing voices?”
Old Timer: “Ray is! Out in the fields.”
Ray: “No! No, I’m not. Really. Noises! That darn tractor, it’s… Well, I’ll just get some 3-in-1 oil, that should… Nice talking to you.” [1]
One wonders if Abraham had a similar conversation with Sarah. Or anyone. The point, of course, is that if one is hearing voices out in the wilderness (or in a corn field near you), and in the case of the Biblical patriarchs, one particular voice, then one might be careful with whom one might share the information. This should not be a problem for Christians, however, since the entire Bible has the same theme running through it. Christians should not be embarrassed by this. All those who were close to God were hearing His voice, both in the Old Testament and New, and some were even seeing Him. Aghast.
These people were in the decided minority (understatement alert). There were only a few. Which means the vast majority probably thought those guys were nuts because they themselves never heard or saw anything. And they never hung out in the wilderness alone either. Prior to the coming of the Kingdom of God (of which He is the King) the Lord Jesus said the greatest man born of women who ever lived was a prophet who hung out in the wilderness alone, just like those eccentric patriarchs of many centuries past. But this guy John the Immerser was greater than all of them, which was quite astounding when you think about it. And he looked like a caveman. And the Lord spent much time in the wilderness alone also. And so did Noah. And Abraham. And Moses. And the apostle Paul:
But when God, who had set me apart even from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, was pleased to reveal His Son in me so that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with flesh and blood, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went away to Arabia… [Galatians 1:15-17]
Paul was out in the desert a long time. Some say three years. I have no doubt he went on a forty day fast at least once. It was where, hearing the Voice, that the Lord taught him one on one. It was where Paul received the revelation of the Father’s identity and where the Gospel was revealed to him:
For I would have you know, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. [Galatians 1:11-12]
So here we have yet again that spiritual marvel known as direct revelation. The only One who ever revealed to Paul the Gospel was the Lord Jesus Himself, out in the wilderness, alone. Imagine that. This is not how 99% of Christian ministers receive the Gospel. Perhaps this is why their various versions of the Gospel are different than the one Paul preached.
The direct revelation thread runs all through the Bible. It is God reaching out to man. It is God actually attempting to communicate with man. Why then, if God is talking, do so few hear Him? Apparently, Noah, Abraham, Moses, John the Immerser, and Paul were all listening. They were paying attention. They sought God. They had a hunger for Truth. So those who revert back to the tired argument that these men were simply special and chosen in some unknown arbitrary manner, which explains their communication with God, and that their spiritual status had nothing to do with a greater personal faith in God and an unceasing desire to seek Him, are being their usual shallow selves as part of a status quo faithless Christian majority. We even have otherwise brilliant Christians who have latched onto Cessationism and believe that Book of Acts happenings ended in the first century. What? Are the hundreds of millions of Pentecostals and Charismatics in the world all deluded or faking it?
Again, the greatest parable in the Bible is the true identity of the Lord Jesus. Without the actual revelation one reverts to any unspiritual and unscriptural natural understanding and interpretation, either by indoctrination or personal opinion. The tried and true among Christians in this regard is that Jesus must be a lesser entity than God even though some are forced to admit that Jesus is God simply because there are far too many verses of Scripture stating such. But how can Jesus be both God and less than God?
“If you loved Me, you would have rejoiced because I go to the Father, for the Father is greater than I.” [John 14:28]
“I and the Father are one.” The Jews picked up stones again to stone Him. Jesus answered them, “I showed you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you stoning Me?” The Jews answered Him, “For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy; and because You, being a man, make Yourself out to be God.” [John 10:30-33]
Some Christians think they must seek out God the Father because their relationship with the Lord Jesus is somehow lacking or limited. Of course, whoever does this has no actual relationship with the Lord Jesus. Some Christians pray to the Holy Spirit the same way one would pray to the Lord Jesus. Some teach that we must pray only to the Father “in the name of Jesus” but never directly to Jesus. Whatever the case, any effort to do an end around or bypass the Lord Jesus to get to God is a violation of His teachings:
“No one comes to the Father but through Me.” [John 14:6]
THE MESSIAH
The word Messiah is from the Hebrew word Mashiach which means “Anointed” or “Anointed One.” It is Christos in the Greek and transliterated into English as the word Christ. In terms of relative spiritual anointing, the Messiah is seen as He with by far the greatest anointing of God. One may recall that the Lord Jesus possessed the Spirit of God without measure (John 3:34). Prior to Pentecost, He would thus be the One who gave the Holy Spirit.
Speaking of which, there is an interesting word construct in two separate verses exactly a chapter apart in the Gospel of John regarding both the identity of the Father and Son and just who it would be that would send the Holy Spirit. One might think it to be a contradiction. Another will understand it as a clue to a revelation:
“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.” [John 14:26]
“When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me.” [John 15:26]
To be anointed is to be anointed with the Spirit of God. The Messiah was the Anointed One anointed with the Spirit. Yet the Messiah, the One who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, says He will also send the Holy Spirit. He says this after first being reported to say the Father would send the Spirit. Of course, before the Son could send the Spirit He would have to “go to the Father.” Therefore, the One who sends the Spirit is identified as both Father and Son.
On one occasion the Lord was off in a remote location away from the crowds. His close disciples were with Him. He chose this occasion as a teaching moment and to gauge their understanding of His identity:
And it happened that while He was praying alone, the disciples were with Him, and He questioned them, saying, “Who do the people say that I am?” They answered and said, “John the Baptist, and others say Elijah; but others, that one of the prophets of old has risen again.” And He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” And Peter answered and said, “The Christ of God.” But He warned them and instructed them not to tell this to anyone… [Luke 9:18-21]
The Lord’s time was one of Messianic expectation. It is said that the Israelites were the only nation that lived in the future, in that no matter what happened in the present there were prophecies telling of great times to come. Part of that was, of course, the arrival of the Messiah. He would be the One to lead them to victory at last, to assist them in overcoming their low stature and becoming who they were always meant to be. He would help them reach their destiny.
As times grew closer to His advent, starting about two centuries before in the early second century BC, several unprecedented events took place, one of which was the first successful Israelite uprising against the major powers. The Maccabees, a national Israelite political entity which began as a group of rebel fighters revolting against the Greek Seleucid kings, came forth throwing off the yoke for a time and created a new independent kingdom, the Hasmonean Dynasty. The spirit of the first century Zealots can be traced to the Maccabees. Presently, the Zealots have manifested as the Zionists of our time.
Also, the major religious parties got their start: The Essenes were created from a priesthood group breaking off from the temple priesthood and setting up shop in the desert out by the Dead Sea in a settlement known as Qumran. These were thus somewhat akin to the ancients but existed primarily as a fraternal communal brotherhood. They later expanded and segments were found in the populated areas.
The Pharisees, or separated ones, also began in this era, rooted in a group known as the Hasidim. Two central divisions of this major sect eventually arose about a century later based on its two greatest rabbis, Hillel and Shammai, who each began Pharisaic schools in the generation prior to that of the Lord Jesus. The apostle Paul (Saul) was a student of Gamaliel of the Hillel school. In New Testament times this Gamaliel, a respected member of the Sanhedrin, was the voice of reason against the murderous crazies of the court and essentially saved the lives of Peter and the apostles (See Acts 5:34).
The Sadducees emerged as a distinct party at this time as well. This group was the latest organized form containing the wealthy and those with large landed estates who had essentially ruled Judea in place of a king since the return from the Babylonian Captivity in the sixth century BC. The Sadducees were thus tied in closely with Seleucid, Ptolemaic, and eventually Roman wealth and politics. Choosing to live for this world, they had no concern or belief in the resurrection or a spiritual realm.
We can see this same general breakdown in parties and beliefs in Unreal Christianity. Much was coming together in those two centuries BC for the final conflict of the Last Days of the nation and they each had their own version of who the Messiah was and what He would do for them.
When at last, the Messiah arrived, in perfect accordance with Daniel’s prophecy of weeks (right on time), He was largely unrecognized. Indeed, according to the major parties and pretty much everyone in power with a stake in what He could and would do for them, He was unrecognizable. Incognito, as it were. This was their King, the One the nation had rejected over a thousand years before when they selected King Saul. And to show just how stiffnecked the proponents of these major religious and political parties still were after all those centuries and even more so, they did a lot more than just reject Him this time around.
They had invested everything in a false interpretation. When their version of the Messiah never showed up in the life of the Lord Jesus, even though He perfectly met all the applicable prophetic requirements, they continued looking elsewhere. How dense must people be to either not see and/or reject all the clues? How could they be so wrong?
As it turns out Christians have been just as wrong. God Himself is looking right at them and they still don’t see Him. They fail to see Him for the very same reasons the Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, and bloodthirsty Zealots never saw Him. This is especially surprising regarding the Essenes. They saw the times better than any of their major counterparts. Indeed, because they were out in the desert and away from the corrupt religious, monetary, and political activity of Jerusalem, one would think they couldn’t miss. They came somewhat close. Their Dead Sea Scrolls, discovered in 1947 in caves next to their ruined compound, contained many references to their “Teacher of Righteousness.” They wrote of The War of the Sons of Light against the Sons of Darkness. They knew what was afoot regarding the coming Messiah but from what we know, as a group, they never recognized the Lord Jesus as such.
The problem each of these groups shared was that their focus remained on this world instead of the spiritual world. They each wanted a Messiah within that context. Again, erring facets of Christianity, including major mainline bodies, make the same mistake. They refuse to accept the reality of the Lord’s spiritual Kingdom and create one of their own with their own respective version of King Saul.
With the exception of the Pharisees, the other three major Jewish parties each came to an end after the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in 70AD. The Sadducees faded out and dissolved shortly thereafter. The Zealots, the party eventually granted authority by the others who brought on the conflagration against Rome, ceased to exist at the tragedy of Masada in 74AD. The Essenes might have gotten an extinction head start on the others around 68AD when the Romans destroyed their settlement at Qumran. It is thought that this disaster is what precipitated the hiding of their cherished library in nearby caves before their final retreat and disappearance. They obviously never returned to reclaim them.
The nation of Israel also came to an end and was forever gone with the wind. The Pharisees reconstituted themselves from the smoking detritus and burned rubble in even greater stubbornness and rebellion to keep their party alive though barely breathing. Through many transformations and geographical movements over the centuries their party eventually became what we know today as Orthodox Judaism. And they still hate the Lord Jesus with a passion.
THE REMNANT
The only ones who did recognize the Lord were apparently part of an obscure unconnected group of nobodies known originally by the Scriptural term as the “Remnant.” We first hear of this idea of a surviving remnant in Genesis 45:7 when Joseph explains to his family that he was sent ahead as a slave to Egypt as a method to preserve them. Spiritually speaking, of course, he was assisting God in not only preserving his family and the future nation of Israel but also preserving the Messianic genealogical line. This line had suffered severe attack from the very beginning when Abel was killed by his own brother. Since the Lord Jesus was to descend from Abel his murder made that impossible. It was a victory for the devil. However, the line was reestablished over a century later with the birth of Seth, the third listed son of Adam and Eve:
Adam had relations with his wife again; and she gave birth to a son, and named him Seth, for, she said, “God has appointed me another offspring in place of Abel, for Cain killed him.” To Seth, to him also a son was born; and he called his name Enosh. Then men began to call upon the name of the LORD. [Genesis 4:25-26]
A few millennia later, this concept of the remnant is illustrated as follows in the times of Hezekiah, circa 700BC:
“The surviving remnant of the house of Judah will again take root downward and bear fruit upward. For out of Jerusalem will go forth a remnant, and out of Mount Zion survivors. The zeal of the LORD will perform this.” [2 Kings 19:30-31]
Two and a half centuries later, long after the Babylonian Captivity during the time of Ezra’s arrival in the land of Judah, approximately 458BC, we hear again of this surviving remnant of God’s people. In the ninth chapter narrative, the book of Ezra uses much descriptive and dramatic imagery filled with pathos and hope describing those few who remain of the once great nation of Israel, including clear prophetic undertones. Ezra is quoted wailing against the current great sin of his remaining people:
“O my God, I am ashamed and embarrassed to lift up my face to You, my God, for our iniquities have risen above our heads and our guilt has grown even to the heavens. Since the days of our fathers to this day we have been in great guilt, and on account of our iniquities we, our kings and our priests have been given into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity and to plunder and to open shame, as it is this day. But now for a brief moment grace has been shown from the LORD our God, to leave us an escaped remnant and to give us a peg in His holy place, that our God may enlighten our eyes and grant us a little reviving in our bondage. [Ezra 9:6-8]
“After all that has come upon us for our evil deeds and our great guilt, since You our God have requited us less than our iniquities deserve, and have given us an escaped remnant as this, shall we again break Your commandments and intermarry with the peoples who commit these abominations? Would You not be angry with us to the point of destruction, until there is no remnant nor any who escape? O LORD God of Israel, You are righteous, for we have been left an escaped remnant, as it is this day; behold, we are before You in our guilt, for no one can stand before You because of this.” [Ezra 9:13-15]
In the interim since the first return of the Hebrews from Babylon to the time of Ezra, a period of roughly eighty years, factions of this returned remnant in the land, including priests, had intermarried with local non-Hebrew women of various heathen peoples including Canaanites, Moabites, and Egyptians and produced offspring. This was no way to reestablish the Yehudi as a distinct people. As a result their racial mix was even further diluted. This same lack of discretion had occurred many times in the past going all the way back to the time after Joshua a millennia before. Ezra appears to have made a successful effort to correct the problem as much as one could but this departure led to the dedicated remnant becoming ever smaller over the next five centuries until the Lord’s arrival.
In its long history, the devil was constantly scheming and attacking the Messianic generational line because he knew he must keep the Messiah from arriving. And unlike so many Israelites and Christians, the devil and his minions knew very well who the Messiah was long before He came and who He would be when He arrived, and had great respect for Him. The following historical account is a great study in microcosmic terms of the ongoing spiritual battle from ancient times on this planet and a revealing depiction of what goes on daily all around us in the unseen spiritual world:
Then they sailed to the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee. And when He came out onto the land, He was met by a man from the city who was possessed with demons; and who had not put on any clothing for a long time, and was not living in a house, but in the tombs. Seeing Jesus, he cried out and fell before Him, and said in a loud voice, “What business do we have with each other, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You, do not torment me.” For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For it had seized him many times; and he was bound with chains and shackles and kept under guard, and yet he would break his bonds and be driven by the demon into the desert. And Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Legion”; for many demons had entered him. They were imploring Him not to command them to go away into the abyss. Now there was a herd of many swine feeding there on the mountain; and the demons implored Him to permit them to enter the swine. And He gave them permission. And the demons came out of the man and entered the swine; and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned. [Luke 8:26-33]
Why didn’t the demons attack the Lord? If the name of this hoard of demons within a single man was a correct indication of their numbers, the demons amounted to over five thousand. Empowered by internal demonic forces the man was able to break chains and shackles. But instead of going after the Lord, the man and his many demons voluntarily fell before Him! They begged Him not to send them to the abyss. There was never any Man of such great and powerful magnitude in all of Israel. Even demons were terrified of Him:
You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. [James 2:19] [2]
Down through the centuries, despite ongoing demonic attacks, and at last an attempt through King Herod to kill the baby Jesus, the Messiah arrived anyway. And the Lord always had a believing remnant who knew exactly who He was. They were there in the first century AD. Though initially very small in number, they served as a solid, tested, and unrelenting nucleus to build around. Their presence allowed for the eventual blossoming of the Lord’s Community into multiple millions of disciples worldwide.
SHOW US THE FATHER
It seems as though the Lord Jesus was often not openly admitting to His true identity. I think it is because He knew it was necessary for people to receive the spiritual revelation rather than hear mere words which could easily bring on refutation and anger. This happened anyway among the hard core religious unbelievers who often flew into a rage at the mere semblance of His actual identity. It can thus be difficult and otherwise impossible to overcome such flagrant religious indoctrination and programming and this includes, of course, the Christian kind which is often the absolute worst. Direct revelation is the only thing that works best. As Peter discovered, what works better than God revealing to one’s heart the Word of Truth?
Perhaps the best verses which address the revelation of the Lord’s true identity are found in the fourteenth chapter of John’s gospel. By this time the disciples had heard much of the Lord’s figurative language, especially regarding His discourses on the Father. He was attempting to lead them to the revelation portal that they may gain answers and understanding from a spiritual source. In the following passage, Thomas had sincere questions about the Lord’s statement, especially as it regarded the unseen and unknown Father. So did Philip. Both had matured enough to ask direct queries of the Lord. They were ready to graduate from the figurative to the clear revelation:
“Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also. And you know the way where I am going.”
Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, how do we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; from now on you know Him, and have seen Him.”
Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?” [John 14:1-9]
© 2021 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] © 1988 Field of Dreams Screenplay by Phil Alden Robinson
[2] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE PRESIDING AUTHORITY OF THE LORD JESUS [Part 2]
Whoever never acknowledges the overall authority of the Lord, whether due to simple ignorance or outright refusal, remains subjected to the flawed authority of others.
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AN OIL FIELD STORY
I spent several years working on oil and gas rigs in Texas. One time many years ago I was working on a lousy little rig in the far south part of the state in that early contested area between the Nueces and Rio Grande. This was not a high dollar rig and was thus staffed with lesser clientele. It was during my early days when I was still learning the various nuances of my profession before I moved on to the much newer and much better Cadillac rigs.
The old rig was located out in the relatively unpatrolled badlands. I can’t remember the particulars but it was a lower class operating company that could only afford a lower class drilling rig which could only afford lesser clientele. I think you may get the picture here though it is virtually impossible to explain working on a rig to someone that’s never been on one or worked on one. Starting out on such rig sites is a good education toward certain elements of the industry, one of which is that one better keep working up the ladder or probably just move on down the road. In my case I had no choice at the time and had to stick it out.
Another cost saving measure is the quality of the company man. Again, for those who don’t know, the company man is the on-site man hired by the operating company to ride herd on the rig. He is like the captain of a ship. In the oil field he is the absolute on-site boss. In later years I met and worked with some fine men who knew their stuff and knew how to treat other men. Those lesser company men were different. They were not good enough to work the better rigs. You get what you pay for, as they say. (Regarding such pay, the best company men were getting upwards of fifteen hundred dollars a day back then.) Even so, most of those lesser guys were alright but an observant man like myself quickly understood why they were working for lower pay on lousy rigs in not so great locations. I didn’t know it at the time because I had no frame of reference.
Anyway, proceeding with the story, on that one particular well, the company man was not just among the lower class of company men but also had a big screw loose somewhere in his fat cranial region. He wasn’t just a brick shy of a load but several pallets of bricks shy. Though somewhat subtle when all was cruising, one could see the brick deficiency a tad better not long after one’s initial acquaintance. When things were not going so well which always happens on a rig to varying degrees, especially on a rig of this kind with a clientele of that kind, this man’s cranial deficiency was soon on full display. One of his episodes came my way one night…
By the way, oil and gas rigs operate twenty four hours a day. The work never stops though there may be occasional delays. The days are usually divided into two twelve hour shifts starting at 6am and 6pm though some might break at midnight and noon. In the industry, though, these shifts are never referred to as shifts. They’re called “towers.” But this word is spelled tours. Even so, it has always been pronounced towers. In other words a man works his tower. It may be the day tower or the night tower. For those that can read, however, all the paperwork says tours. There are many things like this in the oil field that hearken back to the very early days of the industry.
This means there are two full crews working the rig, a day crew and a night crew. One crew works while the other crew sleeps. It works the same with other personnel. This sometimes includes company men. The usual protocol, though, was one company man on the site working a two week shift. He was allowed sleep time as he could get it but must always be available for whatever may occur.
On this particular lousy rig in the badlands of far south Texas the operating company could only afford so much for a rig boss so they had to dip into their bag of dregs. He was supposed to be always available but really wasn’t. He slept at night. He was supposed to be on call at all times but this particular individual paid no attention to that and slept through the night regardless of what was happening on the rig. Everyone learned to fend for themselves because he made it clear that he was never to be awakened under any circumstances.
But no one on the rig passed on this most important piece of information to me. Well, because I was still in the early days of learning my craft as what they called “third party personnel” and was working the night tower, something pretty serious happened one night that demanded the company man’s attention. Again, because I was not wise to the rig protocol though was otherwise well trained and knew the company man must be told of the occurrence, I went over to his office which also was his lodgings and knocked on the door (unless a man tells you otherwise you never just walk in). I guess you may surmise what happened next. Not only did I wake him up but I raised his dander to full tilt and he pretty much went native. I could then see very well that the man was a certifiable nutcase. No man ever treated me like that before but because I could not risk my job and was a Christian I could not take a chance on beating the ever living tar out of him though I think the Lord would understand and not hold it against me but the company I worked for probably not so much.
So I had to take his guff. It’s hard for a real man to take the guff of a lesser man only because he is higher on the totem pole. When I got off tower and went to my motel room I didn’t take long to inquire of the Lord just what I should do about this. That’s when I learned once again about THE PRESIDING AUTHORITY OF THE LORD JESUS. He told me something really cool during that prayer time. It was by His inspiration that I received the revelation. So I prayed a really great prayer:
“Lord, you know I am submitted to your authority. But I also have to be submitted to the crazy man’s authority. So I ask you Lord to take full authority over him so when I submit to him I am submitting to someone who is under full submission to Your authority even though he does not know that and this will allow You to take authority over him for my sake and work your will in the situation.”
The next day I went to work. The man’s attitude toward me had changed. It even appeared as though he was somehow better in the head. He was now treating me with the respect I deserved all along and even appeared to have a better nature. We actually began getting along just fine. I never had any problem with him again and completed the well.
This is why wise people submit themselves 100% to the Lord Jesus. When the authority structure is lined up the way the Lord wants it everything goes better and it all works out.
All praise to You, My Father. Amen.
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued…]
DOCTOR FRANKENSTEIN I PRESUME?
Who are the unknown concealed purveyors of various nefarious secretive agendas designed to condition, persuade, and convince the public at large to believe in and act on mere illusions presented as reality?
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IT’S ALIVE!
When one is presented with the unfortunate subject of brainwashing one usually pictures a run-down grubby quasi-scientific laboratory off on the gritty edge of an industrial district in a bad part of a dark metropolis staffed by nutcase goons with grimy lab coats, strange facial expressions often stuck in place, and a psycho determination to fulfill a wild and crazy theory or some such for the sake of wholesale societal change involving the transformation of people into automatons. Or programmed slaves. Or manipulated masses obsessed by wacked-out agendas. Or extremists extraordinaire unaware of being the victims of mass social engineering yet insisting their position and belief is good, right, and correct though otherwise obviously backwards, stupid, senseless, morally wrong, and thoroughly unsupported by facts.
OUTWITTING TOTO
The sure existence of brainwashing demands the existence of brainwashers. While the reality of the latter may be acknowledged on a small scale, this acknowledgment decreases as the scale increases. At some point early in the process of their latest brainwashing technique the manipulators behind the scenes have the decided ability to fade into perceived nothingness though their ongoing number of deceived subjects increases exponentially. This would otherwise not only prove their work’s effectiveness but also their presence.
Yet when their illicit strategy works according to plan no one beyond them even notices there is a plan and thus is correspondingly never aware of the brainwashers’ existence. That they escape detection is obviously due to the brainwashers not only controlling the narrative but also controlling the narrative disseminators which they created whose main function is to spew out incessant spurious falsities, untruths, and inaccuracies disguised as facts as part of an ongoing overall agenda. This successfully gives forth only a fabricated perception of reality. The narrative disseminators also act as an imperceptible façade behind which the brainwashers may not only hide but essentially cease to exist in the minds of their subjects.
Hence, we somehow arrive at having great masses of the brainwashed yet without existent brainwashers. This in turn puts forth the false notion that the brainwashed masses do not exist either, as being brainwashed that is, which allows the brainwashed to continue on in their brainwashed condition though not aware of it or aware of what they actually are, especially since most of the people they know personally or are friendly/familiar with are seemingly just like them. They all appear to share the same common beliefs, have the same general view of history, have the same relative overall view of the world, and in the main operate according to the same social and cultural conventions.
EXPOSING THE MASTER SHYSTERS
This further means that the remaining few non-brainwashed who are still in control of their minds and have a handle on truth and actual reality are perceived by the brainwashed masses as the real social deviants since such people refuse to get with the program and go along with the nefarious overall social agenda. What this really means is that there are some who are somehow not programmable and are seen by the brainwashers not only as bad subjects but enemies of their shrouded plan. Their greatest fear is that the non-programmable few will expose their shrouded plan.
Because of this the societal brainwashers do all they can to initially censor any truth-tellers who are determined to shine light and expose darkness. They know such good guys not only want to tell the truth but also—aghast!—free the brainwashed captives. If censoring fails they will then attempt to demonize the truth-tellers by making them appear incorrect, extreme, and even nuts in the eyes of the brainwashed in the hope that the brainwashed masses turn against the ones trying to free them. Sound familiar?
IT’S THE REJECTION AND SHUNNING OF VERIFIABLE FACTS AND OBJECTIVE TRUTH THAT PROVES SUCH PEOPLE ARE BRAINWASHED.
This further proves the existence of hidden Doctor Frankensteins.
And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. [2Corinthians 4:3-4][1]
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
HARD HEART VS. TENDER HEART: TWO MODELS FOR LIVING
One model is as the socially popular Broad Way though it leads to eventual ruin. The other appears counterintuitive yet is the bountiful Way of Life.
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A REJECTION OF THE REAL
There are many things about our world that are very difficult to deal with. There are a great many realities that force us to face such facts though we would usually rather not and may even wish such facts did not exist. As we grow out of childhood some begin to become aware of the existence of an upcoming forced change of course and one’s eventual coerced embrace of hard truths. While other young ones or maybe most do not perceive this early on it eventually becomes quite evident. Many children do not want to leave their innocent carefree childhood life behind and embrace such difficult truths and would greatly prefer to maintain their status quo as children.
But future adulthood beckons. Young children may never wonder so much about the great mystery of adults, how they came to be, and the far-out idea that they were once children also. It is simply too much to fathom and for the most part does not compute. Their reality is such that they must be protected from life early on yet also must slowly learn to incorporate that which allows them to handle the next steps they must make to attain the growth they need. But all in good time.
Therefore, parents must on the one hand shield and protect their children in the present but on the other prepare them for the future. There is a right and a wrong way to do this. Not enough shielding and protecting is not good. Too much is also not good. Some children are overprotected which essentially stunts their growth and disallows them from developing properly. Without a course correction this makes them incapable of being able to handle life and forces them to have virtually ongoing proactive assistance. It simply does not help their maturation to have a helicopter mom flying around them all the time, providing their every trifling need, and giving them ultra-shielding and protection by her constant presence. Yet many other children are subjected to far too much freedom and mature content at early ages at a time when they cannot properly deal with the subject matter. This inevitably gets them in trouble. Most would much prefer a loving parent close by.
OUR HEAVENLY FATHER
One would think the Lord does not engage in either of these extremes while raising His own children. Of course, He doesn’t. He will never spoil a child but He will also grant ultra-protection and shielding when required. Yet our Father obviously knows that children must grow to adulthood properly. The fact that there is a future adulthood which must inevitably be embraced is a simple hard fact of life and it does no good to shy away from it. Therefore, it is far better to prepare and be prepared rather than run from reality regardless of how cold and hard that reality may be.
For perspective, consider the Lord Jesus Himself. He was once a beautiful baby and a wonderful precious child. He truly was that perfect child we otherwise idealize. Yet He too had to grow out of childhood and begin the difficult trip to His destiny. I would say no one ever prepared as much as He did or was ever prepared to such a degree by His chosen parents. And then the day came when the former beautiful precious child filled with laughter and joy—God’s perfect spotless Lamb—had to endure the worst physical suffering any man ever endured and die an extremely difficult, painful, and traumatic death. When the time of His arrest arrived the onset evil to which He was suddenly subjected quickly advanced exponentially. His treatment grew worse by the minute and it appeared that His Father and all His friends and family had completely checked out on Him leaving Him vulnerable to a cast of the most wicked people who ever lived. This represented quite the contrast between the Lord’s former life as the holy Lamb of God and the Sacrifice Lamb who became sin on our behalf. It is also a genuine illustration of the fallen world in which we live.
We see then, that the existent hard world filled with potential sin and misery which every child must venture into must somehow be overcome. These are simply the cold hard facts of the matter. It is what it is. It is why good people who strive to be good parents of their precious children have great pause when considering the task before them. They want to shield and protect their children and they must, of course, but must also allow for the appropriate growth their children need to eventually become strong overcoming adults that can properly handle the world, stay on top of things, not be overcome by the sin and evil thereof, and also excel as subject-to-attack spiritual warriors.
THE SPIRITUAL SOLUTION
“Yet even now,” declares the Lord,
“Return to Me with all your heart,
And with fasting, weeping and mourning;
And rend your heart and not your garments.” [Joel 2:12-13]
Without the Lord’s presence in one’s life and His guidance people have a tendency to develop the very opposite of what the Lord prescribes such as a hard heart enveloped in a thick callus. This is due to the constant ongoing irritating friction and pressure one undergoes in attempting to make it in life and overpower the opposition one is subjected to. It is often the case that otherwise good-natured people become hardened due to what they must endure. This process also often causes people to have a “thin skin” in that one under the pressure of coping gives rise to raw emotion, is offended rather easily, becomes triggered at intervals, and on occasion even becomes ready for a fight. It is not because such intermittent displays are in their inherent nature but are due to the load of difficult things they have to bear at any given time. Again, it is an illustration of this fallen sinful world in which we live in that otherwise tender loving people become less so over time and are often hardened simply by the realities of persevering.
The Lord would rather things be the other way around. Rather than having thick hearts and tender skin, He would rather we have tender hearts and thick skin. Without a tender loving heart one is simply unable to communicate with God or understand Him. And without a thick skin which allows one to be protected and shielded from incessant offenses and ongoing pesky attacks, one cannot overcome such things and will succumb and be defeated. A tender heart also allows one to have close loving relationships with family and friends, of course.
We see then that it is an act of God that makes it possible for one to stay tender-hearted as a child but also develop great strength, a thick skin, a strong mind, a powerful attitude, and a spiritual backbone (like a saw log) toward defeating anything and everything that would hinder one’s vitally necessary ability, gifting, purpose, and destiny to overcome in life rather than be overcome by it. For this God has a plan in which He can maintain the pure and holy hearts of children within the mature spiritual warriors He must create both for His purposes and for our greater welfare and standing in Him.
VICTORY IN JESUS
He knows that His people must be victorious. We want to be victorious. This means gaining the victory, keeping the victory, and being the ongoing constant victor against all spiritual enemies demands tender hearts and thick skin yet there is only one way such can ever happen. It is never through our own efforts because such is effectively impossible. It can therefore only occur due to an act of God.
Trying to achieve this on our own develops the very opposite of what we want. It should be obvious that our own efforts only develop the hard heart-thin skin paradigm. Yet this world demands that we deal with very difficult issues and those who try to overcome and gain victory without the Lord, again, bring about the very reverse effect of that for which they are striving. It is a conundrum, no? An even bigger conundrum for those who otherwise rightly embrace taking responsible authority for their lives is the idea that one must surrender to God to gain the good life they seek. Many people recoil at such an idea because surrender is perceived as a bad word promoting weakness and irresponsibility that cannot possibly result in anything good.
So we come full circle. Though we may want to retain a childlike joyful heart and seek happiness in life we are instead conditioned and even coerced into rejecting such idealistic notions in order to grow up, develop a stiff upper lip, and achieve on our own doing whatever we must. Yet this results in an effective destruction of childhood innocence in which we end up far from God and really don’t appreciate what we become.
The Lord’s approach is just the opposite in that we must not only maintain the joyful attitude of a child but embrace it (which represents a tender heart) while also developing into full responsible adulthood (which represents a thick skin).
Such knowledge should clarify one’s perception of the Lord’s attitude toward His children. He is obviously Good. He is Love. No One has greater love. He gave His very life for His children. However, He also chastens those whom He loves. He subjects them to spiritual trials. He allows for tribulations and suffering. He demands a high level of obedient discipleship. All of these things are necessary for the removal of the old paradigm and application of the new one.
They are designed to tenderize our hearts and thicken our skin.
“I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit.” [John 15:1-2]
“These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.” [John 15:11]
…We have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light.
For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. [Colossians 1:9b-14][1]
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE RIGHT WAY WE’RE SUPPOSED TO DO “CHURCH” [Part 3]
If we are not following the example of the very first Christians as documented in the New Testament then we are not following the example of the Lord Jesus.
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“FOLLOW ME AS I FOLLOW CHRIST”
The preceding quote is a standardized version of a statement made by the apostle Paul in 1Corinthians 11:1. It is often referred to when discussing the appropriateness of following the example of a mature Christian in a leadership role. Since young, new, or immature Christians are ubiquitous and are frequently seeking answers from those who have attained an accepted and recognized position of respect, such as “official” Christian ministers, they are often told in lieu of the actual answers they seek to instead follow the example of one who has gone before.
This is all well and good, of course, as many mature Christian ministers have proven their established place in Christian ministry by their growth, maturity, and achievements, as well as in overcoming all the challenges and difficulties toward reaching such a place. As Christians, we honor such people. We especially honor them if they have achieved their position in one’s respective denomination or in accordance with particular beliefs or practices that one holds dear.
However, it is regularly the case that one accepts a current generational Christian leader without seeking forth his or her bona fides regarding the previous generation or what might have transpired in the past to produce such a leader. For example, it is usually the case that such a leader followed in the ministerial footsteps of his or her parents, denomination, or another central leader who acted as a mentor. This means the makeup of a minister is commonly derived through the influence of others or established Christian bodies rather than through the purity of Scripture.
In fact, there are two particular major Christian denominations in the world, truly international in scope with effectively and comparatively ancient origins going back multiple centuries, that refuse to honor an exclusive foundational belief in the New Testament writings first and foremost because such a belief cuts into their desire and necessity for supreme authority. This belief which places Scripture first is referred to theologically as Sola Scriptura in that the Bible in general and the New Testament in particular is honored as the only infallible source of authority for Christian practices and faith. In was the Protestant Reformation which began five centuries ago that brought this truth into the light and established the belief in Scripture as primary which overrode the authority of customary ecclesiastical leaders and “Christian” potentates.
The reason this issue is so important is because a belief in “Christian” authority over Scripture removes the mandatory overall authority of the Lord Jesus. This means His authority is reduced to a secondary position at best which is a blatant violation of His own teachings and the beliefs of those who followed and honored Him in the very beginning who contributed their inspired writings showcasing His teachings. In other words, casting doubt on the veracity of the New Testament Scriptures and refusing to honor them as our sole foundation for Christian belief and practice also casts doubt on the Lord’s supreme authority as the only legitimate Leader of the Church—His Community of Called-Out Ones.
One wonders then at the asinine attitude of those who believe their Christian authority overrides the authority of the Lord Jesus. This is actually pure heresy on their part. However, they counter that the actual heresy is placing the authority of Scripture above their own. How did they arrive at such a place? What prompted them to entertain such a ridiculous notion? By way of answer I will say this: If one were to cut through all the fog and go to the very source one will arrive at the following:
And there was war in heaven, Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon. The dragon and his angels waged war, and they were not strong enough, and there was no longer a place found for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.
Then I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down, he who accuses them before our God day and night. And they overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb and because of the word of their testimony…” [Revelation 12:7-11a]
Therefore, regarding the statement of the apostle Paul at the beginning of this article, Christians should only honor the authority of those mature Christians, such as Paul, if they follow the Lord Jesus. Such a condition is paramount. The apostle Paul would never in a million years attempt to supersede the authority of the Lord Jesus as so many traditional Christian leaders have done. Though it is obvious that some of these embrace Pharisaical pomp to the nth degree parading around as religious potentates and glorying in the honor and prestige associated thereof, many other Christian leaders downplay such an attitude somewhat while others are very subtle about it. These people don’t want you to know what they actually think of themselves and the position they’ve taken though it is otherwise obvious to those with eyes to see in that everyone knows who is actually in charge. And it’s not the Lord.
So Paul made it clear that one should only look to his example and accept his teachings if he indeed follows the Messiah, having recognized, honored, and submitted fully to the authority of the Lord Jesus:
Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ. [1Corinthians 11:1 NASB95]
Pattern yourselves after me [follow my example], as I imitate and follow Christ (the Messiah). [1Corinthians 11:1 Amplified Classic]
The English word “imitate” is from the Greek μιμητής mimētḗs (mim-ay-tace’). It is defined by Strong’s as: “an imitator:—follower.”
We know, of course, by what the Lord teaches as written in the Gospels, that to “follow” Him ultimately means that one must imitate Him, which means one must follow the Lord’s example, one must honor and obey His teachings, and one must do one’s best to represent Him correctly and properly. Now this is obviously a very tall order and the mind reels at the prospect of getting such an otherwise impossible thing right. But He said to do it which means it is not only possible and doable but mandatory. Or else one is not a real Christian.
This being said, and regarding the particulars of this teaching series, one must consider the following statements of the apostle Paul which appear in our subject Scriptural passage, 1Corinthins Chapter 14:
(1) Pursue love, yet desire earnestly spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy. [14:1]
(2) Now I wish that you all spoke in tongues, but even more that you would prophesy; [14:5a]
(3) So also you, since you are zealous of spiritual gifts, seek to abound for the edification of the church. [14:12]
(4) Therefore let one who speaks in a tongue pray that he may interpret. [14:13]
(5) I thank God, I speak in tongues more than you all; [14:18]
(6) So then tongues are for a sign, not to those who believe but to unbelievers; but prophecy is for a sign, not to unbelievers but to those who believe. [14:22]
(7) If anyone speaks in a tongue, it should be by two or at the most three, and each in turn, and one must interpret; but if there is no interpreter, he must keep silent in the church; and let him speak to himself and to God. Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others pass judgment. [14:27-29]
(8) Therefore, my brethren, desire earnestly to prophesy, and do not forbid to speak in tongues. But all things must be done properly and in an orderly manner. [14:39-40][1]
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued…]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE RIGHT WAY WE’RE SUPPOSED TO DO “CHURCH” [Part 1]
Most Christians would likely be shocked at what the New Testament presents as the actual way Christians are supposed to conduct their spiritual meetings.
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“WE NEVER TRIED IT THAT WAY BEFORE!”
The preceding quote is what prolific Christian author and minister Ralph Neighbor Jr. referred to as “The Seven Last Words of the Church.” These phrases were the dual title of one of his many books, published way back in 1976, though his visionary ministry has very early roots in at least the early 1950s. Mr. Neighbor, born in 1929, founder of TOUCH Outreach Ministries, is also known for attempting and succeeding in part at many New Testament format applications otherwise rejected by mainstream traditional Christianity. He is perhaps known most for his work regarding what came to be called cell churches which are relatively small groups based on the New Covenant model.
To illustrate his evangelistic attitude and strong desire to do whatever the Lord required to reach the lost, coupled with calling out the deficiencies of standard American Christian practices, he once wrote while ministering in Houston, Texas that “80% of Houston is unchurched and 80% would remain unchurched.” That is, until the New Covenant model could be applied successfully, something which would demand a big change in heart and process.
I had the pleasure of corresponding with Ralph for a time several years ago. He was living in Houston then. I looked to him as an older brother and father in the faith who was quite the innovator regarding his research and writing on actual New Covenant meeting practices and his assertive though joyful attempts at applying them. Though a very busy man, I was blessed that he took the time to briefly discuss such issues with me. He relayed that he was also blessed by my contributions and was pleased to hear about my then new book Real Christianity (2001).
BEYOND THE FORMAT
Though stodgy unwilling-to-change traditional American Christianity has always been more about maintaining whatever achieved status quo may have existed at various times in our history, even going as far back as our colonial foundings over 400 years ago, it has been as a cultural entity generally more concerned about societal acceptance and monetary enterprise than in actually replicating and applying the excellent and highly productive ministry example of the early first-century Church. It was obviously the Lord Jesus, our Founder, who originally set such an example and taught it to His chosen successors. This very clear fact, however, often has no impact whatsoever on those who insist on starting “churches” in a so-called traditional or institutional manner and applying the same non-New Testament format, the one everyone is familiar with and which obviously still exists, as the remaining most popular format at present.
This means Christianity as we know it exists primarily in a form FOREIGN to the New Covenant writings of those directly chosen by the Founder. This also forces the realization, for those who can see it, that there is a high level of resistance being displayed at the hands of Christian masters who have essentially shanghaied the overall operation for their own purposes and desires. If this appears as a harsh assessment it is likely due only to the fact that the false representation has long since become the overall standard representation, meaning that the majority has insisted on it however it has become convinced by it.
However, as we often see in the pages of Holy Writ, the majority, from a Biblical perspective, is often always wrong or lacking. We know this by using only two observable and easily recognizable examples:
(1) The Old Testament nation of Israel continued to exist as long as it did due only to a very small Remnant of actual faithful followers of God, which means the Lord preserved it for His necessary purposes regardless of the actions of the thoroughly unfaithful majority which would have otherwise destroyed it. This majority was a vast collection of spiritually adulterous, inconsistent, stiff-necked sinners always fighting and opposing God despite His great love and support for them. Their unrepentant attitude all came to a head with the final cessation of the rebellious nation of Israel when it came to an end forever in 70AD as directly prophesied by the Lord Jesus.
(2) Even though the Lord had a massive amount of followers throughout His ministry, likely in at least the twenty thousand range if not far higher, He only managed to collect 120 sincere ultra-faithful and obedient disciples for the initial Upper Room experience of Pentecost. These were people who would only do what He instructed them, even to the very letter, and certainly did achieve the objective.
Such people, if they lived today, would also be preaching against standard American church practice regardless of some of the spiritual benefits thereof, simply because they would know it was not what the Lord created in the beginning and would therefore be effectively non-effectual in that it would not work according to the Lord’s intentions. This means it is entirely unfit and thus unable to evangelize the people for salvation and cannot possibly create and develop the people under its authority as the Lord requires. In fact, this majority form of Christianity is much more interested in creating contented converts rather than making powerful Spirit-filled and Spirit-led disciples ready, willing, and able to storm the gates of hell.
We also know this form is wrong due to the way in which its supporters treat Christian reformers, those who are dutifully and obediently carrying out the Lord’s instructions. Such dedicated people are always persecuted by the majority and eventually rejected only because they insist on the easily verifiable teachings of the New Covenant writings regarding how we are supposed to do “church.” I will remind everyone that even though most Christians still believe to this day that the Church is a building they visit to hold “services” and that such Christians go to church in order to have church, the reality is that real Christians ARE the Church.
COMING UP NEXT…
The following verse is a brief excerpt from a New Testament chapter rarely read by many if not most. In fact, it appears the majority of Christians do not even know it exists. Judging by what goes on in the great lot of mainstream church services, this would prove to be true. Though benign, the verse in question holds the spark of a wildfire in that it contains just enough information to set the tone for the chapter which further sets the tone for the entire format for all original New Covenant spiritual meetings.
In it lies a conviction that most Christians would apparently rather do without and a great hint that they are simply not doing their Christianity correctly or at least are doing it in a decidedly incomplete manner. By way of introduction, however, I believe the Lord is only happy to reveal it and thereby use it to reveal so much more:
What is the outcome then, brethren? When you assemble,
Each one has a psalm,
Has a teaching,
Has a revelation,
Has a tongue,
Has an interpretation.
Let all things be done for edification. [1Corinthians 14:26][1]
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued…]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE GROUP OF ELDERS MINISTRY MODEL VS. THE RELIGIOUS AUTHORITARIAN MODEL [Part 2]
The Lord Jesus is a God of order. However, religious authoritarians are often people of ultra-order in which they and their religion take prominence over people.
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And there arose also a dispute among them as to which one of them was regarded to be greatest. And He said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who have authority over them are called ‘Benefactors.’ But it is not this way with you, but the one who is the greatest among you must become like the youngest, and the leader like the servant. For who is greater, the one who reclines at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at the table? But I am among you as the one who serves.” [Luke 22:24-27]
SCHOOL DAZE
I remember my initial experience as a kid in first grade. We had relatively large classes back then usually in the 35-40 pupil range. We had the old-fashioned desks in which each unit had the requisite desktop, a curved wooden chair seat, and a metal mini locker under the seat open at both ends to put your books and stuff in. They were constructed very well, made of lacquered wood and painted metal. There was even a little elongated depression rounded out of the wood at the top of the desktop to put your pencil. The desks were arranged in perfectly straight rows about six or seven across and six or seven deep. Everything in the classroom was orderly and clean.
Of course, every desk faced the front. At the front center was the big wooden desk of the teacher and behind the teacher was an entire wall of blackboards. When one first walked into such an arrangement one deciphered pretty quickly that the classroom was a place of ultra-order and decorum. This would not be a place where kids can be kids but one in which kids would be just the opposite in that only prescribed movements would be allowed and no one would ever be allowed to talk unless called upon. A kid would walk in silently, go to his or her desk silently, place their books and stuff in that place under the seat quietly and then sit down. One was usually only allowed to look toward the front. When the teacher was there and class was in session everybody looked only to the front and focused squarely on the teacher. The teacher would thus hold court.
For little kids just getting used to this process and trying to adapt, there was a high level of intimidation. One wanted to make sure he or she was doing everything right and fulfilling the requirements. There was a quickly constructed built-in attitude one was forced to adhere to which stated that the teacher was absolutely totally in charge. We knew this by her stern, no nonsense authoritarian demeanor. I say her because most of my teachers from first through eighth grades were of the female variety but policy dictated that such gender identity was played down in order to enforce rule, which meant the normal caring attitude of the female person was transformed into more of a dictator in chief in that every child must know that respect for authority was paramount.
Maybe you had a different experience, but I was one of millions of children across America that experienced school in this way. It was obviously not a public school. It was one of those denominational schools that wholly rejected such a label since it was the predominant universal “church” on the planet that looked down upon such inferior Christian bodies (actual denominations) of “departed brethren.” And this universal church did not arrive at their level of success across the world without a powerful authoritarian nature that demanded absolute control which bordered on a militaristic ethos.
Regarding personal decorum, the majority of the teachers belonged to a strict religious order and were attired in black from head to toe with only the face showing. Even their entire forehead had a wide white cardboard band across it to the eyebrows. Therefore, it seemed as though not only feminine nature and appearance must be greatly reduced but human nature as well. Also, to add to the militaristic control-oriented authoritarian you-are-a-nobody-only-a-part-of-the-dominant-religious-culture theme, all the boys wore the exact same khaki uniform and the girls wore identical white blouses and dark green skirts.
The overall effect of all this over-the-top religious propriety and order can be, as I’ve stated, quite intimidating for a little kid and such intimidation often gave way to outright fear if one mistakenly broke the rules or failed to show the proper respect for authority and the all-encompassing correctness. There were thus punishments put forth (and sometimes inflicted) which went anywhere from writing lines to that of the actual corporal variety. But the greatest tool in the punishment toolbox used expertly by all the teachers was shaming.
Shame was a powerfully effective weapon. It singled out the individual while everybody else gave silent assent since no one dared to question the process. The powers that be in this organization had learned centuries ago that they must gain control of people when they were very young impressionable children in order to brand upon their young minds respect and obedience to the order. In this process no one was allowed any form of dissent or resistance. One will note it is this same process used on young raw military recruits by hard core in-you-face screaming drill sergeants. The recruits must lose all sense of their prior selves and individual identities in order to be transformed into the necessary group dynamic killing machines they must become if war would have a good chance of victory.
Yet such discipline used on small defenseless children in which their minds are melded into an indoctrinated religious mass grouping before they ever have the chance to think for themselves is not good, especially since such is for the sake of an institution and the power and wealth of those who run it. Such a process not only constitutes a loss of the innocence of childhood but could very well also keep one from an actual relationship with the Lord Jesus.
It is also in direct opposition to His pure teachings:
Then some children were brought to Him so that He might lay His hands on them and pray; and the disciples rebuked them. But Jesus said, “Let the children alone, and do not hinder them from coming to Me; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” [Matthew 19:13-14]
Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it at all.” [Luke 18:17] [1]
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued…]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE REWARD OF HEAVEN [Part 4]
Heaven will be sparsely populated. Only few will find and successfully traverse the Narrow Way.
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“SEEK AND YE SHALL FIND”
The Greek word is ζητέω zētéō (dzay-teh’-o). Its primary definition is “to seek in order to find.” When the Lord Jesus stated this relatively simple truth He was not referring to a brief flippant attempt at possible discovery in which finding would be easy as if all one had to do was look under the first proverbial rock one stumbled upon and there it was. In reality, it is pretty much just the opposite. Why? Because on the one hand the enemy of humanity does his best to hide what must be found and do all he can to lead people away and astray. He has many means with which to do this including the creation of false doors that appear real by which most people are deceived. On the other hand the Lord also makes that which must be found a challenge in that only the dedicated devoted steadfast faithful committed give-it-their-whole-heart crowd will discover the otherwise seemingly secret entrance. And what is more, one must keep what one has found by maintaining a lifestyle toward that goal or else it could well be lost and even possibly become unrecoverable. As the Lord stated:
“I am coming quickly; hold fast what you have, so that no one will take your crown. He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he will not go out from it anymore; and I will write on him the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God, and My new name. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” [Revelation 3:11-13]
Most Christians understand the concept of the “one pearl of great price” (Matthew 13:46), the “treasure hid in a field” (Matthew 13:44), and the “lost piece of silver” (Luke 15:8-9). In each of these cases and many more, the Lord was teaching on both the need for discipline and perseverance in the act of “seeking in order to find” but also the great reward thereof when one at last finds what one was duly searching for. And one would think most Christians also understand that which is by far the greatest of all rewards given by the Lord, other than Himself, of course, who gave His very life for His sheep which is the only gift/sacrifice that makes heaven possible.
Therefore, let us look again at the following familiar passages and glean from them all we can regarding the process of salvation and finding the “secret” entry:
KEEP ASKING / KEEP SEEKING / KEEP KNOCKING
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.” [Matthew 7:7-8]
THE SMALL NARROW GATE / THE NARROW WAY
“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.” [Matthew 7:13-14]
THE “FEW” WORD
I still retain a very clear memory of an event I had at a church I was attending many years ago. I was a member in very good standing but that did not matter so much at the time. After a church service I was talking to a friend and the discussion had turned to salvation. I told him about how there would only be a relative few that would actually be saved. Now, this particular place was a mega church in the making and it eventually got there in a very big way but when I was there it was still relatively small according to such standards. The pastor was a man with a giant vision. He had started the church from scratch. He worked very hard. He was certainly a dedicated and gifted man. And everybody knew who was in charge.
As it happened, after my little discussion, no doubt because the person with which I was having the discussion was not so aware of the written Word, that the word had somehow gotten back to the pastor that I had used the otherwise dreaded “few” word. Such a word does not dovetail so well with the word “mega.” It is the only thing to explain what occurred. I think it was a midweek service. Picture a congregation of about four or five hundred. I was sitting not too far from the front. At one point in the service the pastor said something to the effect that some people want to limit God and believe such things as only “few will be saved.” He was looking right at me when he said it. And he was not happy.
With that being said we must take a look at the “few” word a little closer. The actual verse in which this word appears is Matthew 7:14. It is from the Greek ὀλίγος olígos (ol-ee’-gos). Strong’s Concordance defines it as such: “of uncertain affinity; puny (in extent, degree, number, duration or value); especially neuter (adverbially) somewhat:—+ almost, brief(-ly), few, (a) little, + long, a season, short, small, a while.”
Here it is according to The Outline of Biblical Usage:
- little, small, few
- of number: multitude, quantity, or size
- of time: short
- of degree or intensity: light, slight
I could go further here and cite additional sources but you get the idea:
THE LORD JESUS SAID ONLY “FEW” WOULD FIND THE SMALL GATE AND THE NARROW WAY AND BY IMPLICATION SUCCESSFULLY FOLLOW THAT NARROW WAY TO THE VERY END.
This means we as Christians in general and especially as ministers of the Gospel should preach and teach the Word that the Lord Jesus preached and taught because He had an extremely good reason for it, instead of watering it down and changing it into something more palatable and socially acceptable, perhaps for the purpose of gaining greater numbers and possibly also to create and build a much more “successful” Christian enterprise.
Now, if it happens that the Lord wants to collect a great many of the “few” and put them all under one big giant massive roof in which maybe a hundred thousand may fit then such is all well and good and proper. But He will never cut corners or water down or change His Word in order to do it and the people there are still going to comprise a portion of the relative “few” worldwide and heaven itself will ultimately still be relatively sparsely populated and the great bulk of humanity will still never find the door.
Also, I think if most of us had our way and our heart is right we would want EVERYONE to be saved, but this is simply never going to happen primarily because only a “few” will ever repent of their sins properly and fully and give their entire lives and all their heart to the Lord Jesus. This does mean we are to limit our witnessing or sit around waiting for the inevitable end as if we could not help the Lord seek the lost. We must remember that in His ministry He sought the lost sheep of the House of Israel (Matthew 15:24) and found them and saved them even though the majority of the nation rejected Him. In our case, however, we can never make judgments regarding who is “worthy” of salvation and therefore we must desire the salvation of all.
THE REWARD
As the apostle Peter wrote:
The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.
But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up. Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.
Therefore, beloved, since you look for these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless, and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation; just as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him, wrote to you, as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction.
You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, be on your guard so that you are not carried away by the error of unprincipled men and fall from your own steadfastness, but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen. [2Peter 3:9-18] [1]
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE REWARD OF HEAVEN [Part 3]
In addition to the misconception that heaven is the eternal default destination (rather than the hot place), there is another massive misconception among many Christians…
THE GREAT DIVIDE
A division occurred again among the Jews because of these words. Many of them were saying, “He has a demon and is insane. Why do you listen to Him?” Others were saying, “These are not the sayings of one demon-possessed. A demon cannot open the eyes of the blind, can he?” [John 10:19-21]
Everywhere one travels throughout the New Covenant writings, from the Gospels to Revelation, he will discover an ongoing underappreciated theme dealing with a thoroughly somewhat unpleasant topic. Whether the Lord is referring to sheep and goats, wheat and tares, or human subjects such as the rich man and Lazarus, He is often dividing by two. At times He is relatively subtle, such as through His expert use of particular parables to illustrate the fine nuances of the truth He wishes to convey. At other times, however, He charges ahead at a high spiritual decibel level to not only blast out a truth but also dispel false notions regarding it. The latter form of truth-telling is rarely heard in pulpits across the land, for otherwise obvious reasons, such as the following:
“Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and a man’s enemies will be the members of his household.” [Matthew 10:34-36]
Whoa. Sounds harsh. Sounds unchristian. And He’s not done…
“He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who has found his life will lose it, and he who has lost his life for My sake will find it.” [Matthew 10:37-39]
Again, we see division. We see Him dividing by two. On the one hand He does not appear to be getting with the unity-at-all-costs program, that which an apparent majority of Christians are obsessed with, but just the opposite. On the other hand, however, we discover by such “hard sayings” that He is actually on a much higher level of the standard unity/unifying program by establishing the creation of spiritual unity through division. And we see that such a program has an ultimate end.
Here is more:
“I tell you, on that night there will be two in one bed; one will be taken and the other will be left. There will be two women grinding at the same place; one will be taken and the other will be left. [Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other will be left.”] [Luke 17:34-36]
Therefore, according to these few noted passages and so many more throughout the written Word, the Lord Jesus, in reality, by creating the spiritual unity of His flock through His proficient means of separation by the sword, could rightly be classified as The Division King.
THE RESPONSE FROM EVIL
The use of the dividing sword will always bring a requisite retort that essentially solidifies the place of the unrepentant unbeliever as all-the-more willingly desirous of being apart from God. Such people do not realize that by their inability to control their anger and hatred by being called out and exposed for what they are, even though the intention is to bring them into the light, they play right into the hands of the division process. As we continue in this passage from John Chapter Ten, the Lord continues to cause division by simply revealing who He is. At the end, His detractors seal their eternal fate by going all in—100%—which proves conclusively the very necessity of the dividing sword in the first place:
At that time the Feast of the Dedication took place at Jerusalem; it was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple in the portico of Solomon. The Jews then gathered around Him, and were saying to Him, “How long will You keep us in suspense? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly.” Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe; the works that I do in My Father’s name, these testify of Me. But you do not believe because you are not of My sheep. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.”
“I and the Father are one.”
The Jews picked up stones again to stone Him. Jesus answered them, “I showed you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you stoning Me?” The Jews answered Him, “For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy; and because You, being a man, make Yourself out to be God.” [John 10:22-33] [1]
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued…]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE REWARD OF HEAVEN [Part 2]
The NT states it is impossible to gain heaven through our own efforts, but the Lord Jesus certainly gained heaven through His efforts—and also for potentially everyone.
He left heaven for our sakes with every intention of going back. However, the only way He could ever return is if He successfully completed His mission. (Keep this in mind regarding your own mission.)
What most Christians do not realize is that the Lord put absolutely everything on the line when He became one of us. He knew the only way to defeat the devil and death itself was to live a perfect human life without ever making a single miscue or misstep. If He committed only one sin He would have failed His mission completely, regardless of everything else He accomplished, and could no longer be the sinless Sacrifice Lamb of God. That would mean no one would be saved. It would mean every human being that had ever lived would be barred from heaven and end up in the dreaded default destination.
It would also mean the Lord Himself would never have a savior since He is the only possible Savior. And that would mean He would never return to heaven.
I know this may sound like sheer speculation of the off the charts variety, but it is actually sound from a New Testament perspective. It dovetails with what the Lord taught. It is not His fault that His authentic teachings have been so watered down and transformed over the centuries that most Christians think the real appears foreign while the gospel they are familiar with, whichever one of the many faux gospels it may be, looks correct and acceptable.
Additionally, some or quite possibly most Christians may believe it was impossible for the Lord Jesus to sin which renders what I’m stating here to be an essentially specious argument. In reality, however, if such a thing was true, how does one explain His extreme suffering, the great strength and determination He put into successfully overcoming temptation, the necessity of His initial forty day fast and who knows how many multitudinous fasts He endured throughout His ministry? How would one explain the exceptional discipline in His life and the same discipline required for every believer in order to be spiritually effective? And how would one explain this:
For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. [Hebrews 4:15]
It should be obvious, therefore, that the enemy knew exactly what everything hinged upon regarding God’s plan for salvation and is why the enemy focused so much effort on attempting to get the Lord to succumb to temptation and commit sin. It is true, of course, that the Lord overcame every effort against Him but is also true that it often took everything He had to do so and was very difficult. It was high level spiritual warfare. And in war there is always the possibility of defeat.
Now that we have established the proper perspective we should understand how difficult the Lord’s mission was. Nevertheless, it appears as though most Christians do not understand this and thus take heaven for granted. It is also likely that those Christians with such an attitude also take their own walk with God for granted as if the requirements are not all that demanding. This is likely due in part to the preponderance of fake ministers of the Gospel preaching other gospels containing false doctrines that not only do not tell the Gospel truth but also fail to illustrate the actual supreme difficulty of the Lord’s mission and all it entailed. Those who engage in this dishonorable travesty and all those who follow them have decided on taking another way which, not surprisingly, is relatively simple and easy, instead of the Way. And the people overcome by such a deception likely never realize they failed a temptation test somewhere along the way and as a result will never find their way to heaven. Their only reward is thus in the present.
THE PARABLE OF THE GOOD SHEPHERD
This parable is an excellent discourse explaining the truth of how to get to heaven. The Lord Jesus makes all the pertinent points in that regard and answers every question. He also does it using relatively easy to understand language and general terms familiar to his audience which are fundamental components of parabolic teaching. Nevertheless, as in all His parables, understanding them meant one must possess “ears to hear” and “eyes to see.”
The Lord begins by speaking of the evil ones who refuse to acknowledge the only Door and attempt to find another way into His sheepfold. Sound familiar? He then explains how the actual process works:
“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter by the door into the fold of the sheep, but climbs up some other way, he is a thief and a robber.
“But he who enters by the door is a shepherd of the sheep. To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he puts forth all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. A stranger they simply will not follow, but will flee from him, because they do not know the voice of strangers.” This figure of speech Jesus spoke to them, but they did not understand what those things were which He had been saying to them. [John 10:1-6]
Okay, we have a picture of the sheepfold. In the Lord’s time such folds or pens were usually created with stone walls which were just high enough to do the job. They were likely created in relatively crude but sturdy fashion using the ready rocks of the field. For greater protection and also requiring less material they were sometimes (or oftentimes) created when available against natural walls such as the edges of hills or rises or against cliffs. The shepherd would construct such pens to keep his sheep in for the night. If the fold was semi-permanent he would make one opening (a door) using stacked rocks or possibly one fashioned from wood. It was clearly important to make the enclosure safe and secure, primarily from predators.
Regarding the entry, the Lord taught that the shepherd always entered by the door. He stated that anyone trying to enter the fold any other way was a thief and a robber, meaning they had sinister intentions. He thus gives us the first clue at the very beginning regarding those to watch out for and how to identify them.
The sheep were generally penned up into the fold in the evenings. Such sheepfolds were usually created with minimum space requirements which resulted in somewhat cramped conditions. In the morning among the hustle of the sheep longing to get out and into the pastures the doorkeeper would begin taking down the rocks comprising the door. In their hurry to leave the somewhat impatient sheep would assist in this process by pressing against the egress and assist in knocking down the loose rocks on their way out finishing the opening and following their shepherd into the liberty of the free-range grazing fields.
In the next passage the Lord Jesus identifies Himself as the only Door. Additionally, He states His great love for His sheep and defines this love as that in which He is willing to give His life and due to which the sheep feel secure and protected. He also again teaches about the enemy who merely masquerades as the shepherd but is only a hired hand. Sound familiar?
So Jesus said to them again, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. “I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. He who is a hired hand, and not a shepherd, who is not the owner of the sheep, sees the wolf coming, and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. He flees because he is a hired hand and is not concerned about the sheep. I am the good shepherd, and I know My own and My own know Me, even as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep.
“I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will hear My voice; and they will become one flock with one shepherd. For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life so that I may take it again. No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This commandment I received from My Father.” [John 10:7-18] [1]
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued…]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
“THE LORD IS A WARRIOR; THE LORD IS HIS NAME”
Spiritual warfare is not optional. Battling the enemy is mandatory. The Christian spiritual warrior must do all in his or her power to FIGHT.
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The title of this article quotes Exodus 15:3 from the Song of Moses, a wonderful and worshipful testament to God’s greatness and faithfulness as our Saving Deliverer. In the original Hebrew, the word “Lord” is actually the second level revealed Name of God—YHWH—which, due to its great holiness, the scribes replaced with the written Hebrew word Adonai (Lord). God the Creator’s first level revealed Name—Elohiym—is found initially in Genesis 1 where it is used exclusively. We first see His Name YHWH in Genesis 2:4. His third level revealed Name first appears in Exodus 3:14. It was during the burning bush experience of Moses when he received his commission to go to Egypt to deliver his people. He asked for God’s Name:
God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM”; and He said, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” [Exodus 3:14]
THE LORD IS A WARRIOR
We see parallels to these Names of God in the New Testament, especially many instances of the Lord Jesus referring to Himself as “I AM.” In fact, there are a great many parallels in the NT matching up with the God of the OT. The final and greatest revelatory Name of God is, of course, YeHoshua (Jesus), the Name above every name, which combines the Tetragrammaton—YHWH (Yahweh)—with the Hebrew word Yasha, or Salvation. Hence the Name of Jesus means “Yahweh Sets Free” or “Yahweh Saves.”
As mentioned in a recent post, the Lord Jesus was and remains the greatest spiritual Warrior in existence. There is no one greater. During His ministry He knew more than anyone that He must fight every day or would have no chance whatsoever to win spiritual victories and complete His mission. Judging by everything He managed to accomplish—an absolutely perfect ministry in which He achieved every single predetermined goal—He proved Himself to be the greatest of all time.
His enemies greatly feared Him. And they still do. They know they have no chance. Remember, however, that when God took on the greatest challenge of His life in a be-all and end-all battle that would decide everything, He did not decide to take on His enemies by roaring from the sky and tossing down furious burning lightning bolts to obliterate His foes but chose to enter the battle as one of us. By this He not only greatly curtailed His overwhelming ferocious inherent ability to crush His wimpy foes like bugs but do it through an otherwise rebellious and cantankerous medium which NT Scripture refers to as the flesh.
Therefore, not only would He be taking on—
- The devil and the entire forces of hell
- A fallen evil kosmos constructed by multiple generations of errant and immoral human beings not only apart from and out of communication with God but in willful opposition to Him (the “world”), and
- Sinful flesh, that is, predisposed sinful human nature, our greatest enemy, and even wrapping Himself with it, as per the ancient prophecy in Psalm 40 written by His ancestor David, quoted here in the NT Book of Hebrews:
Therefore, when He comes into the world, He says,
“Sacrifice and offering You have not desired,
But a body You have prepared for Me;
In whole burnt offerings and sacrifices
For sin You have taken no pleasure.
“Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come
(In the scroll of the book it is written of Me)
To do Your will, O God.’” [Hebrews 10:5-7]
Now, think about this. It was always His plan to become a human but when the time came to engage in the greatest battle of His or anyone’s life He approached it in the most unconventional manner imaginable. Rather than getting physically ripped and bulking up by consuming mass quantities of grain-fed beef, equipping Himself amply with the normal warfare implements of physical weaponry and armor, and psyching Himself out to take on the equivalent of Roman Legions, He instead planned on a forty-day fast and ultimately using the Word of God as His chief weapon of choice. As Paul wrote,
For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds)… [2Corinthians 10:3-4 KJV]
This should cause all Christians believers to think a tad more seriously about the battle at hand, how we approach it, and get a better idea why American Christianity in general is getting beat to death, destroyed all over the battlefield, and humiliated by a scheming deceiver never hesitating to laugh in our faces over our collective unskilled ineptitude. Could it be that American Christianity in general is stubbornly clinging to methods that never work in the spiritual realm but are great in the natural since social standing, dead religious tradition, and buckets of money are far more preferable? Is this not obviously the case since the majority of Christians prefer this world to the next and would rather run alongside the sinful culture than stand against it and even rebuke it?
As James wrote:
Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. [James 4:4 KJV]
Again, this word “world” is translated from the Greek κόσμος kósmos (kos’-mos). It is the same in essence as that which the devil controlled/controls and which he offered to the Lord during the Lord’s temptation in exchange for worship. Can we not see then that this worldwide construct of sinful man apart from God is intricately connected to the tempter and that this tempter has obviously made great headway in successfully tempting all manner of Christian institutions and churches? Have not so many of these sold out and taken the deal? Have they not also been granted great success as the tempter promised?
We may often wonder how much of the success of American Christianity in general is the result of the Lord’s blessings and how much has come from the evil one but there is no doubt that at least some and quite possibly the greater percentage has been due to the latter. This should give us serious pause. It should also alert us to the clearest method of distinguishing the two: That which agrees with the ministry form and lifestyle of the Early Church of the first century AD is the standard to be embraced. They represented the prototype of all succeeding generations. Yet for some reason their example is often shunned and opposed as if one has taken another suitor.
Regarding the previous passage, James, the blood brother of our Lord, is adamant that spiritual adultery is a vile offense which makes a relationship with the Lord impossible. This was obviously the entire problem with ancient Israel in that it simply could not keep itself chaste unto God and was forever straying.
It is why only a relatively small Remnant of the nation, perhaps 10% if that (a tithe), stayed faithful. The surviving Remnant during the Lord’s time are the people He chose—all Israelites initially—and worked through to begin His ministry and wider movement spreading into and throughout the world of that time. They succeeded in great part because they were ferocious spiritual warriors who gave no quarter to the enemy and were determined with all their heart to fulfill the Lord’s directives.
The Lord’s people of our time are currently doing the same though are often working in obscurity. Many not only battle in the Spirit but also battle to survive. The devil hates them, the world hates them, and the flesh hates them. It reminds one of the following:
“You will be hated by all because of My name, but it is the one who has endured to the end who will be saved.” [Matthew 10:22][1]
I encourage you all to continue to fight for and with the Lord in the great battle against the enemies of God. Continue to be strong and consistent spiritual warriors. In the Lord’s time and timing we each will continue to have spiritual victories in the Lord’s service, that many will be saved, delivered, set free, and raised up to spiritual maturity in the Lord as His Kingdom advances.
The Great Awakening continues and is gaining ground. The Lord is winning!
FIGHT ON
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
CHRISTIANS MAKING NICE WITH THE ANTICHRIST [Part 4: Our Great Spiritual Warrior]
Though many Christians believe otherwise, the New Testament does not actually refer specifically to any individual as the antichrist but rather to a demonic spirit…
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OUTING THE ENEMY
When the Lord Jesus arrived on the scene, all of hell was put on immediate notice. The worst possible thing that ever could have happened, from their vantage point, not only did happen but did so in a manner in which the devil, his invisible demon minions, and all of his human compatriots became aware immediately that their time was just about up and also that there was not a thing they could do about it.
This was readily proven by the emotional fear-based responses of specific demonic entities the Lord Jesus dealt with during the course of His ministry. Consider the following:
When He came to the other side into the country of the Gadarenes, two men who were demon-possessed met Him as they were coming out of the tombs. They were so extremely violent that no one could pass by that way. And they cried out, saying, “What business do we have with each other, Son of God? Have You come here to torment us before the time?” [Matthew 8:29]
Just then there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, saying, “What business do we have with each other, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!” [Mark 1:23-24]
The “time” these demons were referring to was the occasion of their coming judgment. They always knew it was coming someday but when the Lord arrived they knew it was imminent. Remember, our Lord Jesus, the greatest and most powerful spiritual Warrior in existence, He whom even demons referred to as the Son of God and the Holy One of God, was on a mission to not only defeat and destroy demons and all of hell but also and much more profoundly to defeat and destroy the one at the top of the pyramid who had gained control of human death. The Lord therefore intended to defeat death itself. This was quite the substantial goal (understatement alert).
The following passages reveal not only the Lord’s eventual victory in this endeavor but the entire reason for His appearing and overall ministry:
“But God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power.” [Acts 2:24]
Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him. [Romans 6:8-9]
Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives. [Hebrews 2:14-15]
The last enemy that will be abolished is death. [1Corinthians 15:26]
“…I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades.” [Revelation 1:18]
DEATH AND THE ANTICHRIST SPIRIT
Whoever opposes Messiah Jesus also opposes their only chance at salvation. It is not possible for unrepentant adversaries of Messiah Jesus to overcome their sin. It is why those in league with the antichrist spirit actually embrace sin because there is no way to otherwise serve this evil spirit. Also, those people deluded by committed antichrist advocates (who don’t see them for what they actually are) may not embrace sin with the same fervor and commitment but will certainly be more prone to sin in general (regardless of any positive they attempt to apply otherwise) due to their inept spiritual condition brought on by weakened defenses and collaboration with the enemy. Like so many Christians who fail to understand why they cannot gain victory over sin or some particular sin as the Lord’s teachings promise, they are simply too deceived through their acceptance of false teachings to perceive their deception.
If they KNEW the New Testament they would also know the false doctrines they’ve been influenced by and even overcome by and would readily reject them. And if they KNEW the actual teachings of the Lord Jesus as clearly presented in the gospel texts they would never succumb to the antichrist spirit.
Those who decide to give their heart to the Lord and truly follow Him will be led by Him toward eternal life. As long as they continue to follow Him and stay on the path they will eventually get there. Yet those who do not follow Him per His teachings and allow the antichrist spirit the opportunity to influence and delude them will be led in the opposite direction toward eternal death. One must note that the longer one is misled the greater the odds are that they will be deluded and never break free. Because one can never serve two masters one cannot embrace both the Lord Jesus and the antichrist spirit at the same time. It is one or the other. Some Christians think they are right with God when they are not due to the spiritual deception they fall under because of a lack of full commitment to God.
The following is a great narrative of how this process works: The Lord had gone to the temple precincts early one morning and began teaching. Not long after, the raucous event with the accused adulterous woman took place in which all present were shocked by what happened. It set the tone for what would occur afterwards which perfectly illustrates the dichotomy of being pro-Christ or anti-Christ.
As the Lord continued teaching, some of the Judæans there came to believe in Him while others dug in their heels and refused to. The latter were comprised mostly of the strong religious Judæans including the Pharisees who had invested heavily in a contrary belief system opposed to God’s actual Word and also to Messiah Jesus. Watch closely how this process plays out as the action moves to the location of the temple treasury:
So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”
They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never yet been enslaved to anyone; how is it that You say, ‘You will become free’?” Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does remain forever. So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed. I know that you are Abraham’s descendants; yet you seek to kill Me, because My word has no place in you. I speak the things which I have seen with My Father; therefore you also do the things which you heard from your father.” [John 8:31-38]
The Lord goes on to state emphatically that these Judæans in covenant with the antichrist spirit who refuse to honor Him as the Messiah are children of the evil one:
“You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies. [John 8:44][1]
We understand then that the millions of Christians currently devoted to supporting the work of an otherwise obvious bad spirit and its international group of devoted human supporters/worshippers, characterized by a vast worldwide hoax, deceptive lying propaganda, and wanton murder and mayhem, cannot possibly be serving the Lord Jesus or following Him but have instead been overcome by the spirit of antichrist.
By their fruits you will know them…
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
WEBSITE ADDRESS: rjdawson.com
CHRISTIANS MAKING NICE WITH THE ANTICHRIST [Part 3: New Testament References]
Though many Christians believe otherwise, the New Testament does not actually refer specifically to any individual as the antichrist but rather to a demonic spirit…
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ANTI-MESSIAH
The word Christ (anointed one) is derived from the Greek Christos which is translated from the Hebrew Mâshîyach from which we get the English word Messiah. Therefore, the antichrist spirit is especially and specifically opposed to the Lord Jesus as Messiah and rejects the fact that He is the Messiah. Those possessed by, deluded by, or strongly influenced by this particular evil spirit act as stalwart adversaries to the Lord’s Messiahship.
Regarding Scriptural reference, there are only five occurrences of the word “antichrist” in the New Testament. They occur in four verses. One occurrence is in plural form. The original Greek word is antichristos (“the adversary of the Messiah”).
All five occurrences are found in the first two epistles of John, the only NT writer who uses this word (and might have coined it). These epistles (along with his third) were actually written just prior to the events of 66-70AD which he refers to as the “last hour.” By this designation John is echoing the Olivet Prophecy of thirty years before spoken by the Lord Jesus when He referred to the final end of the Israelite Nation. John was thus living at the very end of the “end times” when he wrote these epistles and was by that time extremely well aware, both externally and spiritually, of the parameters of the prophetic times in which he lived and that which was on the immediate horizon.
The five occurrences of the word “antichrist” and the four verses containing them are as follows:
ONE
Children, it is the last hour; and just as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have appeared; from this we know that it is the last hour. [1John 2:18]
TWO
Who is the liar but the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, the one who denies the Father and the Son. [1John 2:22]
THREE
By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God; and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God; this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world. [1John 4:2-3]
FOUR
For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist. [2John 1:7][1]
From these passages, we learn several things that assist in identifying this bad spirit. In 1John 2 we discover that the appearance of antichrist was expected, that many antichrists were already present, and that those who denied that Jesus was the Messiah are liars. We also discover that these liars denied Jesus as both Father and Son in that a person either honors both are honors neither. (The Father and Son cannot be separated—if one is denied so is the other. It is therefore impossible to honor the Father while denying the Son.)
In 1John 4 the author contrasts the Spirit of God from the spirit of antichrist and provides the clear identifying signs of both. The author also confirms that the antichrist spirit was then in the world. In 2John 1 the author specifically uses the word deceiver(s) as an additional descriptive of the antichrist spirit in that it not only fiercely opposes the Lord Jesus but also works to deceive people about Him. In this process this demonic spirit employs and works through a relatively homogenous group of its human supporters/worshippers, international in scope, to deceive the people of the world about the true Messiah.
This also signifies that the antichrist spirit uses its powers of deception to fool others about itself and its followers. It is said that the greatest trick the devil ever used is to convince people he doesn’t exist. We see a similar trick in that the antichrist spirit in concert with its human supporters/worshippers attempts to delude others about its actual evil nature. This trick of deception is especially used against naïve unsuspecting Christians and has been quite effective historically but perhaps never as effective as at present.
WATCH OUT!
The Lord warned His followers about great deception. He commanded that His followers give it their all and follow His example. He taught them many lessons about the power of sin and temptation and that they must overcome sin and master it in order to live spiritually fruitful lives which honor and please the Lord. Sadly, the majority of Christians in the world never do these things or fail to do them consistently and thus open themselves up to the deceiving power of the enemy.
Many Christians fall into the same trap Judas did. Others go so far as to follow the example of Cain rather than Abel. A large distinct faction of Christians even joins forces with the spirit of antichrist and its unbelieving anti-Lord Jesus cultists to the point of justifying the latter group’s gross violations of His teachings.
Such people are deluded by false prophecies, man-made religious doctrines, and cultural propaganda. They are much more familiar with and accepting of such aberrant indoctrination and the deceptive literature thereof than the actual New Covenant writings taught by the Lord Jesus and His early followers.
The beliefs of such Christians are thus not based on New Testament truth and facts but on mere unfounded false perceptions.
And sadly, their perceptions become their reality…
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
WEBSITE ADDRESS: rjdawson.com
CHRISTIANS MAKING NICE WITH THE ANTICHRIST [Part 2: Ancient Origins]
Though many Christians believe otherwise, the New Testament does not actually refer specifically to any individual as the antichrist but rather to a demonic spirit…
It is a spirit that relentlessly hates and opposes the Lord Jesus as all evil spirits do but does so in a more robust and formidable manner that includes a specific agenda and a well-organized human component.
BETRAYAL AND MURDER
The direct linking of evil spirits with human beings is, of course, nothing new, as the pages of the NT are literally saturated with such linkings though such unions usually involve the human unwilling. It seemed every day of the Lord’s ministry involved His delivering some poor soul from demonic possession or oppression. These people had no ability to free themselves but would if they could which proves a forced union by a higher power. The Lord Jesus showed that He had an even higher power—the highest power—and was determined to fulfill this particular plank of His mission statement for the sake of granting freedom to whosoever believed in Him, demonic spirits be damned.
Conversely, there were also human beings who entered willingly into covenant unions with demonic forces. Of such was the antichrist spirit organization. It combined the invisible “other dimension” bad guys of New Testament lore with visible boots-on-the-ground flesh and blood bad guys doing the bidding of the former. Such people are those who essentially sold their souls due to their abject hatred of the Lord Jesus and all He stood for as well as their ravenous personal lust for worldly power, wealth, and even fame. One wonders at the mindset of such people and their motivation but it is perhaps easier to comprehend once one understands that their illicit covenant union, international agenda, and unbridled lust go back multiple centuries, even likely to the very beginning:
And it came about when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him. [Genesis 4:8b]
Cain wavered in his focus on God. He was also having a problem with sin in his life. As a result he failed to discern the proper sacrifice unto the Lord. By his wholly incorrect offering which well-illustrated his spiritual cluelessness and indifferent attitude he showed great disrespect to God:
…Cain was a tiller of the ground. So it came about in the course of time that Cain brought an offering to the Lord of the fruit of the ground. [Genesis 4:2-3]
This was a problem due to a particular unfortunate result of his parent’s rebellion:
“Cursed is the ground because of you…” [Genesis 3:17]
When what he gave was not accepted Cain got very angry and his countenance fell (Genesis 4:5). The Lord explained to him that if he did well he would surely be accepted and his countenance would be lifted up. Yet because he had already proven he was not doing well it proved that “sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you” (Genesis 4:7). The Lord told Cain he must do better.
Regarding sin, He told Cain he must no longer give in to it (lose the temptation battle) but that “he must master it.” (Genesis 4:7). Having a good relationship with God demands this. Unrepentant sin and a good heart toward God never go together.
Now, Abel, on the other hand, had already gained mastery over sin. He had won the temptation battle that Cain had yet to win and Adam and Eve had lost. Abel overcame. Thus, he understood what God required and gave the Lord exactly that. It is why his offering was accepted:
Abel, on his part also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and for his offering… [Genesis 4:4]
Abel pleased the Lord. His countenance was lifted up already and was lifted up even more when the Lord gave him a good report. He was likely smiling from ear to ear! Cain could have easily learned from Abel’s example but was instead quite bitter. One imagines an intensely angry appearance and surly demeanor. There was obviously something else going on in Cain’s life that kept him from relating to God.
It is likely that Cain had issues regarding his self-worth and was unable to live up to his mother’s high expectations which probably caused him to deduce he would never be good enough. It is also possible that probable spoilage made him feel he was already entitled without achieving anything or obeying God. This unfortunate attitude worked havoc with his relationship with God and caused sin. It is why he did not put the required full effort into giving God “the first fruits.” He was likely too focused on self and the slights he felt he suffered. His attitude gave vent to sin and sin was dragging him down. After the Lord’s correction Cain could have given it his all to overcome sin and get right with God but he instead went the other way. You see, based on the name she gave him (possession, acquired, or “gotten one”), Eve had most likely thought Cain would be the promised Messiah per the prophecy of Genesis 3:15.
…and she conceived and gave birth to Cain, and she said, “I have gotten a manchild with the help of the Lord.” [Genesis 4:1][1]
THE MESSIANIC BLOODLINE
This momentous occasion had obvious consequential overtones. It was the first time a woman gave birth. Did Eve think it could ever happen again? Did she initially consider it a one-time event? She knew she was blessed and that the birth of Cain was a miracle in that it required the Lord’s providential assistance. Of course, all human births are miracles though most are never acknowledged in such a way. Eve also gave birth to the first firstborn son, an event that was somewhat rare but highly honored according to OT writ and one which was perceived as a special blessing and sign from God.
However, as was often the case in the ancient Hebrew historical accounts that became a somewhat regular pattern, the firstborn son himself was sometimes personally undeserving of such an honor in that he did not respect it or even acknowledge it. We see that especially in the life of Esau, the twin brother of Jacob, who had so dishonored himself and disrespected spiritual life that God replied: “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated” (Romans 9:13). Cain fell into this same category. In fact, he set the precedent.
Cain, of course, was not the Messiah. He would not even be in the bloodline of the Messiah. Ironically therefore, Cain killed the one who was the very next man in the early generational line of the Messiah after Adam. This would be righteous Abel who was an OT type of Christ. His cold-blooded murder, therefore, meant the Messianic line had been cruelly severed right at the beginning which demonstrates the dirty deed of Cain was not simply an act of uncontrolled anger and passion but one involving a demonic agenda.
A tale so sad proves the presence of an ultra-evil one who was not only in the garden previously but was still hanging around playing with Cain’s head not so long afterward. This “serpent” (nâchâsh) apparently deduced quite well what God was up to in that He intended Adam and his descendants (lowly humans!) to rule over this world, which included ruling over him, and he would not have it. The wicked and oh so shrewd night crawler consequently knew he must stop such a plan ASAP.
Once the devil gained dominion over Adam by successfully tempting him to sin all he had to do next was eliminate Abel and there would never be a future Messiah, Savior, and eternal King. The devil would thus maintain his dominion in perpetuity. There would also be no inglorious tossing of the hissing viper into future eternal hellfire. Thus, his success through Cain marked a win-win for his side and an escape from certain eternal judgment…
Therefore, what Cain did was essentially the same thing Judas Iscariot did. Although this man (Judah of Kerioth) was a disciple of the Lord in apparently good standing and one of the twelve (though a diabolos—John 6:70), he broke relationship with the Lord just before the end and was then actually possessed by satan (Luke 22:3, John 13:27).
With betrayal on his mind Judas quickly joined up with the wicked antichrist temple plotters who had formed a covenant with the antichrist spirit in a conspiracy to kill the Lord.
So we see that the Anti-Christ spirit has a very long history…
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
WEBSITE ADDRESS: rjdawson.com
CHRISTIANS MAKING NICE WITH THE ANTICHRIST [Part 1: You’ve Been Warned]
Though many Christians believe otherwise, the New Testament does not actually refer specifically to any individual as the antichrist but rather to a demonic spirit…
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FRAUD ALERT
In the Gospel accounts, the Lord Jesus often gave direct warnings to His disciples to prepare them for what was surely to come their way. He was obviously well aware of the tempter and his myriad ways of deception and knew His men would need future help in discerning the true from the false. Sometimes the difference between the two looks slight but depending on the observer can also appear as indistinguishable (there’s a scary thought). In the following passage from His Olivet Discourse the Lord told His disciples that the soon to emerge trickery of the enemy would be so effectively sly it would almost deceive His mature chosen followers:
“…For false Christs and false prophets will arise, and will show signs and wonders, in order to lead astray, if possible, the elect. But take heed; behold, I have told you everything in advance.” [Mark 13:22-23][1]
The operative phrase here is “in order to lead astray.” This is forever the plan of the enemy, to lead one away from the Lord and keep anyone and everyone from getting close to Him. The last three words of that phrase are from the Greek word ἀποπλανάω apoplanáō (ap-op-lan-ah’-o). It is defined as “to lead astray (figuratively); passively, to stray (from truth):—err, seduce. Further, it means “to cause to go astray,” “to lead away from the truth to error,” “to go astray, stray away from.”
Because the antichrist spirit opposes the Lord Jesus as Messiah and wars against the Truth, it is always his intent to deceive. According to the preceding passage of Scripture, the enemy will thus employ false Messiahs and false prophets to do what they do best regarding the deception game. Of course, if one is not aware that these people are false then one will not defend against them and will be much more likely to be taken in, as it were, and believe something entirely false as if it were true. We currently have many well-accepted and established ministers that qualify as such with large followings proving a great many Christians remain none the wiser which further proves they have been deceived.
Such deception among Christians by the faux bros has long since reached epidemic proportions over the many centuries of the Christian era in that there are many more deceived Christians in the world who believe and act on things that are false rather than those who successfully follow the Lord Jesus in the way of Truth. To simplify the reason why, it is due primarily to trusting authority figures far beyond the level of trust they deserve. Wisdom demands that every authority figure must be held to account and this cannot be done unless they are properly vetted. And if you want to know how to vet a Christian minister it is simple:
A real Christian authority figure ALWAYS yields to the ultimate authority of the Lord Jesus and will not knowingly teach something other than what the Lord taught or not teach something He taught.
Therefore, New Testament ministers are vetted by the New Testament itself since it is the written Word of God. There is always the additional possibility that the Lord may speak directly through spiritual means or revelation but if it is actually His voice whatever He says will always agree with His written NT Word.
Though such a vetting process may appear simplistic, it is actually not all that difficult to discover areas of transgression or straying from the Lord’s clear curriculum if one is well versed in NT Scripture. Consequently, this means all real Christians must acknowledge and accept the fact that it is their responsibility to make sure they know the New Testament and thereby be able to notice when Christian ministers veer off course or were never on course to begin with.
In the final analysis, since a Christian must vet ministers, it proves he or she must also be a minister (and also be subjected to proper vetting). And this in fact is what the NT teaches in that every real Christian is a minister of the Gospel. Remember, the Lord never invented a clergy-laity division. Therefore, any refusal to accept one’s responsibility as a Christian and as a Christian minister regarding knowledge of the Word means one will not have the necessary ability to remain above deception. This is exactly why so many Christians, the majority, have been deceived by false ministers and their false doctrines.
Such irresponsible and effectively lazy Christians—those who place their spiritual responsibility upon Christian authority figures and yield to their total unvetted control, especially those who are most happy with such an improper arrangement—cannot help but be used and reap a harvest of trickery.
This is also precisely why millions of Christians are presently making nice with the antichrist…
© 2025 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
WEBSITE ADDRESS: rjdawson.com
HAPPY THIRTEENTH BIRTHDAY REAL CHRISTIANITY
When I created this site on this date thirteen years ago America was in the early stages of a national Great Awakening. Yet, it has been an Awakening that the majority of American Christians have missed entirely.
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CHRISTIANS REJECTING JESUS
Oh, we love Him when He happens to get our religion right. We love it when He by some odd chance happens to agree with our take on Biblical interpretation. Notwithstanding that some such interpretations could not be more off and the Lord doesn’t seem to be on the same page with us most of the time we still appreciate it when He is.
Thank you Lord Jesus for affirming us and our ridiculous renderings and rejection of Your teachings. Oh sure, we do like some of Your overall curriculum but we would be hard put to accept all of it. I mean, some of the stuff You said was borderline wacky from our perspective and that is largely why we were forced to clean it up. We do this mostly by simply excising it from our Christian curriculum which we deem far superior. And that which we don’t excise in full (extract from our hearts and minds and never mention much less teach though we still carry around such written words of Yours anyway in our billions of unread Bibles), we reinterpret to fit our liking and tastes so as not to offend or be offended.
You must understand that giving offense is offensive. The majority of Christian ministers strive never to offend because it simply causes far too many problems. They have learned to try very hard to never offend their congregations, of course, because that would jeopardize their reputation, social standing, and most importantly, their paycheck. They know it is not fair to use You as an example here because You did not depend on a paycheck. You apparently did not care a whit about Your reputation either, and mostly, You never had an official “church” to pastor. All You did was roam about the countryside without even a home to call Your own. Your rules for ministry were thus much easier than ours.
You see, unlike Yourself in Your primitive times and Your strange primitive means, we live in a much more upscale rendering of Christian civilization at present which in turn forces an upscale version of Your teachings. Now, that certainly does not mean we will not honor Your full curriculum as contained in the New Testament writings, principally the gospels, but simply that we will ignore it otherwise. This may sound like a contradiction but from our perspective it is the only sane thing to do if Christian ministers, ministries, and church building enterprises are to survive. I’m pretty sure You must know that if we ever appropriated Your full curriculum—the whole catalogue—the whole nine yards—our present non-New Testament church building enterprises and ministries would blow apart in a nanosecond and most Christians ministers would find themselves in a bread line. In our most humble opinion these would be very bad things.
Thus, we must reject You for the most part but put forth the public perception that WE LOVE YOU! In this way we can have the best of both worlds so to speak. And because You are so willing to grant Your grace, mercy, and forgiveness we are confident You must understand. I mean, if You were to judge us for this or (aghast) get angry or upset about it, would not that be a violation of Your teachings?
JESUS IN CHAINS
Now concerning this so called Great Awakening which most of us have never seen and which is certainly not happening in probably 90% of our churches and ministries, it must be something other than what its adherents claim it to be. This should be evident because if such an Awakening actually was happening and was for real and was of You it would have to be happening among us first, right? Speaking of which, we don’t know where some people get the idea that spiritual truth strangely bypasses the most religious among us. How could that happen? Where in Scripture does it say that ultra-religious people miss God?
Furthermore, the vast majority of Christians like things just the way they are and have been for decades on end primarily because one cannot make the best any better except only in minuscule ways which could never drive a Great Awakening anyway. So all us Unreal Christians playing our unreal games that refuse reformation, regeneration, and even resurrection would appreciate it if those “hard sayings” of Yours would stay locked away and that Your great shining Light of Truth would not expose us or convict us because then all heaven would likely break loose and our cover would be blown. We would then be seen for what we are—Christian pretenders running an authoritative institutional false form of Christianity containing a hidden underground dungeon for those who refuse to go along.
PAST THE POINT OF NO RETURN
In these thirteen years I have written around 850 articles of good material designed mostly to teach the hidden truths of the New Testament but in a parabolic manner designed to promote critical thinking. Call it “putting things out there to reach those with eyes to see and ears to hear.” I have also engaged in a massive amount of further writings through comments and replies. In fact, I have saved every single comment made on this site by myself and each of you wonderful readers and have created an ongoing updated file that is now almost 1500 pages in length. The vast majority of reader comments have been positive. I thank you all and am much appreciative. It proves most of us searching for truth are teachable. Being teachable demands humility. But it also demands verifying everything one has been taught with Scripture. Therefore those Christians who are always in the Word with an open heart toward the Lord and are willing to become more knowledgeable of the Lord’s teachings are truly the heart of the Lord and at odds with the Christian status quo. And because of this they will be rejected by the majority just as the Lord was because such rejection and hatred is a byproduct of telling the Truth. This means that real Christianity is always defined by its received persecution, which means where there is no persecution, often of the extreme kind, then there is no actual legitimate Christian witness even though there may be a large outwardly “Christian” presence.
Well, after 124 years of the latter day Pentecostal Revival that has since gone worldwide affecting hundreds of millions, it is a decidedly SAD thing to see America fallen to such a degree that the country no longer has any hope of its own revival. In fact, I have already told you a few years ago that America is effectively DEAD. And this means that American Christianity in general is effectively DEAD. It does not mean that the Lord has not tried repeatedly to keep it from happening and attempting to send every form of revival He can including hardcore cardiopulmonary resuscitation defibrillation methods featuring multifunction electrode pads (CLEAR!) all to no avail. By this we know that the majority are not only spiritually dead but insist on staying that way. Judging by what the Lord had to go through for a great many centuries with His own rebellious, insufferable, and vilely sinful people (EXCEPT FOR THE FAITHFUL REMNANT!), it is sadly no wonder He has had to go through the same with American Christianity which has learned well how to look and act the part though mostly never doing the part (the definition of hypocrisy). Rather than allowing themselves to be judged by the Lord they judge themselves by each other and to that end strive to collect as friends and associates only those who judge them good by human standards. This makes such people think of themselves in good standing since they never subject themselves to the spiritual light of the Lord. Kind of like this:
Because you say, “I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,” and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked, I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me. He who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’” [Revelation 3:17-22]
THE FUTURE
I hope to continue. The last few years have been difficult as they have been for so many, but the Lord has remained faithful as always. I recently read something quite wise by Mary Carothers of Foundation of Praise in one of her last brief articles before going to be with the Lord about six weeks ago. She was 91. She had stated that God’s providence, though sometimes abundant and at other times limited is always sufficient. So whether we are living good times or facing difficult circumstances God is still God just as He has ever been God and God is still good as He has always been good and God still loves us all enough to die for us when we were yet sinners. And most importantly God remains ultra-worthy of receiving praise at all times regardless of our circumstances. In fact, praising God with a pure heart will actually change our circumstances for the better! By praising Him and thanking Him we empower Him to turn negatives into positives!
Regarding the present, those of you who understand Biblical numbers may identify with this: I have been seeing a lot of 8’s lately. This started several weeks ago and has been accelerating. 8 is the Biblical number of resurrection, regeneration, and new beginnings. Since I have been facing pretty much impossible circumstances, especially over the last year plus, it would make such 8’s seemingly inapplicable. And yet, though at this very moment I still have not received what I know I need and must have and am at a critical juncture in time, the many 8’s I have been seeing tells me very clearly that good times are coming. Actually, they are already here in part in the sense that morning light arrives before sunrise.
Therefore, even though those who now rule have pretty much reached that point of total corruption, all is not lost. The Lord is not done. The evil ones will be severely judged. However, those who will be true to the Lord Jesus must continue making difficult spiritual decisions to stay on the Path regardless of the immense pressure to do otherwise.
Thirteen years after I began this site and going on fourteen years since I received the revelation of the Great Awakening, an immense amount of truth and knowledge has been released into the world that had previously been hidden that reveals the sham construct (this wicked world) built up all around us that most still cannot see, largely because they have become a part of that infrastructure. But many others do see, though they comprise a Remnant, and have learned a great deal of new truth and knowledge though it has been difficult relaying that truth and knowledge. How strange it is then that some can perceive so absolutely clearly, learn so much because they are willing, humble, and teachable, and also see right through the evil deceivers and their deception while so many others can see absolutely nothing, remain clueless, and are consequently made use of and exploited by the Lord’s enemies.
If one truly understands this dynamic one will truly understand why the Lord used parables.
10 And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?” 11 Jesus answered them, “To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted. 12 For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him. 13 Therefore I speak to them in parables; because while seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. 14 In their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says,
‘You will keep on hearing, but will not understand;
You will keep on seeing, but will not perceive;
For the heart of this people has become dull,
With their ears they scarcely hear,
And they have closed their eyes,
Otherwise they would see with their eyes,
Hear with their ears,
And understand with their heart and return,
And I would heal them.’
16 But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. 17 For truly I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.” [Matthew 13:10-17][1]
© 2024 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
WHO KILLED THE LORD JESUS?
NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE 1995:
For you, brethren, became imitators of the churches of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea, for you also endured the same sufferings at the hands of your own countrymen, even as they did from the Jews, who both killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets, and drove us out. They are not pleasing to God, but hostile to all men, hindering us from speaking to the Gentiles so that they may be saved; with the result that they always fill up the measure of their sins. But wrath has come upon them to the utmost. [1Thessalonians 2:14-16] [1]
KING JAMES VERSION:
For ye, brethren, became followers of the churches of God which in Judaea are in Christ Jesus: for ye also have suffered like things of your own countrymen, even as they have of the Jews: Who both killed the Lord Jesus, and their own prophets, and have persecuted us; and they please not God, and are contrary to all men: Forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles that they might be saved, to fill up their sins alway: for the wrath is come upon them to the uttermost. [1Thessalonians 2:14-16]
NEW KING JAMES VERSION:
For you, brethren, became imitators of the churches of God which are in Judea in Christ Jesus. For you also suffered the same things from your own countrymen, just as they did from the Judeans, who killed both the Lord Jesus and their own prophets, and have persecuted us; and they do not please God and are contrary to all men, forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles that they may be saved, so as always to fill up the measure of their sins; but wrath has come upon them to the uttermost. [1Thessalonians 2:14-16]
COMPLETE JEWISH BIBLE:
For, brothers, you came to be imitators of God’s congregations in Y’hudah that are united with the Messiah Yeshua – you suffered the same things from your countrymen as they did from the Judeans who both killed the Lord Yeshua and the prophets, and chased us out too. They are displeasing God and opposing all mankind by trying to keep us from speaking to the Gentiles, so that they may be delivered. Their object seems to be always to make their sins as bad as possible! But God’s fury will catch up with them in the end. [1Thessalonians 2:14-16]
AMPLIFIED BIBLE CLASSIC EDITION:
For you, brethren, became imitators of the assemblies (churches) of God in Christ Jesus which are in Judea, for you too have suffered the same kind of treatment from your own fellow countrymen as they did [who were persecuted at the hands] of the Jews, Who killed both the Lord Jesus and the prophets, and harassed and drove us out, and continue to make themselves hateful and offensive to God and to show themselves foes of all men, Forbidding and hindering us from speaking to the Gentiles (the nations) that they may be saved. So as always they fill up [to the brim the measure of] their sins. But God’s wrath has come upon them at last [completely and forever]! [1Thessalonians 2:14-16]
DOUAY-RHEIMS 1899 AMERICAN EDITION / TRADITIONAL ROMAN CATHOLIC:
For you, brethren, are become followers of the churches of God which are in Judea, in Christ Jesus: for you also have suffered the same things from your own countrymen, even as they have from the Jews, Who both killed the Lord Jesus, and the prophets, and have persecuted us, and please not God, and are adversaries to all men; Prohibiting us to speak to the Gentiles, that they may be saved, to fill up their sins always: for the wrath of God is come upon them to the end. [1Thessalonians 2:14-16]
LIVING BIBLE:
And then, dear brothers, you suffered what the churches in Judea did, persecution from your own countrymen, just as they suffered from their own people, the Jews. After they had killed their own prophets, they even executed the Lord Jesus; and now they have brutally persecuted us and driven us out. They are against both God and man, trying to keep us from preaching to the Gentiles for fear some might be saved; and so their sins continue to grow. But the anger of God has caught up with them at last. [1Thessalonians 2:14-16]
NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION:
For you, brothers and sisters, became imitators of God’s churches in Judea, which are in Christ Jesus: You suffered from your own people the same things those churches suffered from the Jews who killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets and also drove us out. They displease God and are hostile to everyone in their effort to keep us from speaking to the Gentiles so that they may be saved. In this way they always heap up their sins to the limit. The wrath of God has come upon them at last. [1Thessalonians 2:14-16]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
CHRISTIANS ASSISTING THE ENEMY: SPIRITUAL TREASON AND GUILT BY ASSOCIATION
When Christians support entities clandestinely involved in sin and evil but do so unaware, are they just as guilty? Is their ignorance an excuse?
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JESUS IS GOD
One of the scribes came and heard them arguing, and recognizing that He had answered them well, asked Him, “What commandment is the foremost of all?” Jesus answered, “The foremost is, ‘Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is one Lord; and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’” [Mark 12:28-30]
Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?” [John 14:8-9]
“He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me, scatters.” [Luke 11:23]
THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
ARTICLE III. SECTION 3. CLAUSE 1:
Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying War against them, or in adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort. No Person shall be convicted of Treason unless on the Testimony of two Witnesses to the same overt Act, or on Confession in open Court.
GIVING AID AND COMFORT TO THE ENEMY: THE JUDAS KISS
Consider Disciple Iscariot. Some may think he was simply misguided. Maybe he got lost in the weeds while trying to dovetail what he had been taught as a good Pharisee with the fresh teachings of his new Rabbi Yehoshua which appeared to Judas to be somewhat foreign and difficult to grasp. In the end, however, he proved what he actually was and what his true intentions were by choosing of his own free will to lurk about in the shadows, secretly side with the Lord’s influential, formidable, and wealthy enemies, sell out for money, and join up with the devil. By this despicable act of treachery, he betrayed the Lord Jesus, destroyed God’s plan for his life, and thereby doomed his soul. He committed spiritual treason.
This one man, Judas, the son of perdition (John 17:12), of which David had prophesied a millennium before (Psalm 109), is also allegorically representative of all Messiah-rejecting antichrist Israelites (possibly specifically Judahites) who rebel against and hate their King, and thus mirror the treasonous apostle’s beliefs, intentions, and activities (Acts 1:16-20). His fate is their fate.
In my book, Real Christianity, I wrote the following:
Only Jesus is worthy of absolute power. Only Jesus can control it. Only Jesus cannot be adversely affected by it. When a human being is given power, he must be given checks and balances as well. In this way, he has a good chance of not being destroyed by power, or more importantly, not destroying others by it. This is why the concept of the “one-man show” church should be anathema to Christianity. This concept comes in many varieties. Other than a single individual, the “one man” could be a pastor with a sycophant board of elders, or even a worldwide hierarchy pledged to a single leader. In each of these varieties, individuals have no voice, no power, and simply do what they’re told.
We should never forget, however, what absolute power does to people. It corrupts the holders thereof and their yes-men, and in time alienates those subordinates who are passionate for positive change, inevitably causing rebellion against the abuse of power and the neglect of those under that power. If able to unite, the neglected will rise up to rightfully extract power from corrupt leadership. This rising up or rebellion against reprobate authority serves as a check on the flagrant mishandling of authority. A successful rebellion of this kind is called a revolution. A successful Christian rebellion is called a reformation.
The great Reformation of the sixteenth century was nothing more than a rebellion against corrupt, absolute power. The American Revolution of the late 1700s was exactly the same, though in a different arena. If the American Revolution had failed, George Washington would have been guilty of treason against the English throne and would likely have ended up with a rope around his neck. Many thousands were burned at the stake during the Reformation, not because they were heretics, but because they challenged corrupt leadership. Each of these celebrated, successful rebellions proved to be far-reaching, long-lasting remedies against the pox of nefarious authority that had come to be concentrated in the hands of one man. [Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church © 2001 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.]
In the Lord’s time, that one man appeared to be the high priest Caiaphas. This man outwardly controlled the Temple and was also president of the Hebrew legislative and supreme judicial high court, the Great Sanhedrin. He was overtly the most powerful man in the Israelite nation. Lurking behind Caiaphas, however, was the actual power behind the throne: His father-in-law and the former high priest Annas.
Though Annas was the actual high priest from 6-15AD and had been superseded by four others (Caiaphas being the fourth beginning in 18AD), this most powerful and influential man still covertly retained the title of high priest and is referred to as such in the Gospels and book of Acts, though the Law of Moses clearly states there must be only one high priest at any given time. Although one may deduce that these two men, Annas and Caiaphas, were joint-holders of the powerful office, it was actually the elder Annas who was the one man in which all the power—religious, political, and economic—was concentrated. Thus, Caiaphas was effectively a mere puppet obeying the dictates of his father-in-law.
Therefore, though Annas had not officially held the office of high priest for seventeen years at the time of the Lord’s trial, the extended House of Annas controlled essentially everything at that time and had held power for decades. Later, five of his sons and a grandson also became high priests. This notorious crime family would remain in power until overcome by insane militant Zealots toward the very end at the outbreak of the great Jewish Revolt of 66AD. The deal struck between these two parties to kill the Lord came back to bite both in the worst possible way when the rebellious nation of Israel was destroyed forever in 70AD.
The House of Annas, of course, greatly assisted in Israel’s destruction, primarily by its unyielding opposition, hostility, resistance, and hatred toward their own Messiah, His ministry, and very purpose, as well as principally participating in His rejection, betrayal, and death. Without any doubt, by keeping and honoring a long held national tradition, the Annas clan committed treason against God. It violated to the ultimate degree God’s first and foremost commandment. This ruling clique and the willingly wayward nation it controlled was constantly attempting to scatter all that the Lord was gathering. The early Community of Called-Out Ones thus had no greater persecutors than their Messiah-rejecting brethren.
One may say then, that the Lord Jesus had conducted His own revolution “against the pox of nefarious authority that had come to be concentrated in the hands of one man.”
BACK TO THE FUTURE
One does not have to look far at present to notice a similar circumstance. There is a hidden enemy in control that most Christians do not recognize. This enemy has invaded many spheres of international influence and has held such power and overarching sway for centuries. This deceitful influence extends even to the Christian realm, of course, in that many overtly Christian ministries, churches, and even entire denominations are controlled by a concealed power that is not of God.
Now, please do not misunderstand the structure of this evil arrangement and operation by relegating it only to the supernatural realm. One must recognize that just as the Lord operates through people, so does the devil. Just as the Lord has His own followers, so does the devil. Just as the Lord has those who are 100% dedicated to Him, so does the devil have those who are 100% dedicated to his authority. Therefore, because we know that much of Christianity does not actually subscribe to the full curriculum of the Lord Jesus, there must be a fake Christian contingent that only looks the part. It talks the talk but never walks the walk. I call this Unreal Christianity. Since the Lord does not have control of this massive worldwide contingent (since the controllers thereof do not want His control), it means the devil controls much of what is outwardly Christian whether one can wrap his head around such a thing or not. And the primary and most practical manner in which the enemy does this is through money.
“No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.” Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, were listening to all these things and were scoffing at Him. And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God.” [Luke 16:13-15]
In recent posts I have dropped clear clues regarding this. In my article of November 13, 2023, Christian Brainwashing is Real, I stated the following with regard to the present egregious war crimes and indiscriminate malicious murder campaign affecting multiple thousands of innocent non-combatant civilians, including tens of thousands of babies, children, and defenseless women of all ages—an otherwise bald-faced slaughter approaching genocide—by the state of Israel:
Unless one is 100% true to the Lord Jesus one will place their allegiance elsewhere and consequently be subject to deception. Also, major Christian ministries, including major Christian television ministries, have now been outed for what they are, at least in part. Until they stop supporting this ongoing wanton murder of innocents which thereby influences millions of Christians to also support it, and call out this evil for what it is, they are revealing themselves in part as veiled propaganda outfits with alternative agendas and hidden paymasters.
In other words, overt Christian ministries are being controlled by covert money masters. Such masters essentially control such “ministries” including the content of such ministries. For example, to this day, since the Israeli war against Hamas began on October 7, 2023, not one mention has been made by such Christian outfits of the blatant Zealot-like war crimes of Israel or the destruction of so many innocent lives. Instead, one is constantly barraged with the ongoing one-sided plight of Israel by any number of Israeli spokesmen who, of course, pay no homage whatsoever to the Lord Jesus and actually hold Him in contempt.
This begs the question, therefore: Why are the antichristers allowed such an influential platform on Christian television? Could it be because the antichristers are financing some or much of Christian television? And could it be that the antichristers are also financing other Christian ministries and even denominations? Is this why so many Christian ministries refuse to out the devil and his minions and break their relational connections thereof?
No matter how one looks at this it remains spiritual treason of the highest order. It is a pure betrayal of the Lord Jesus. After such clear violations of God’s commandments and demonstrations of pure evil on a massive scale as perpetrated by the Israeli state, the truth has come right out into the open. Therefore, unawareness of one’s friendship with the enemy is no longer justified. It is guilt by association. One will have to answer to God for it.
We know from the ancient legal maxim that ignorance of the law does not excuse— ignorantia juris non excusat—that Christians who claim to follow the Lord Jesus must have an awareness of His teachings and that a lack of such awareness will not excuse one of guilt if in violation.
It is therefore imperative, especially in these days of such high levels of deception and corruption, that all followers of the Lord Jesus read and study His teachings—His entire curriculum—as revealed in the four gospels, as well as the rest of the New Testament since it contains a record of the very working out of His teachings by mature spiritual disciples. For by this, and only by this, will one be able to (1) overcome deception, including demonic enchantment, and (2) gain the necessary clues to the grand masquerade now upon us.
And in case you’re wondering, the Lord Jesus, who has all authority in heaven and earth, remains in firm control and will destroy His enemies eventually. The only question remaining is the identities of those who will stand strong and fight with Him as loyal spiritual warriors to the very end and share in His victory. Treasonous sellouts who love this present world need not apply.
“ABIDE IN ME, AND I IN YOU”
The following passage of Scripture was written in the early 60s AD not long before the fateful end. John knew what was about to transpire. He was well aware of the enemy. May we also know what is coming in these days, including the identity of the Lord’s veiled adversaries lurking about in the shadows, and be rightfully prepared. I suggest getting as close to the Lord Jesus as possible. Praise His Holy Name.
Children, it is the last hour; and just as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have appeared; from this we know that it is the last hour. They went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out, so that it would be shown that they all are not of us. But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you all know.
I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it, and because no lie is of the truth. Who is the liar but the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, the one who denies the Father and the Son. Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father; the one who confesses the Son has the Father also.
As for you, let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the Son and in the Father. [1John 2:18-24] [1]
© 2024 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
A GREAT AWAKENING UPDATE: 12/31/23
It was 13 years ago this August that I received from the Lord the revelation about our current Great Awakening.
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HOW IT HAPPENED
It was the end of August in the year 2010. I was writing a paper. I had written many papers that year. They averaged about eight to twelve pages in length. The paper I was writing at that time was about former revivals in America. Suddenly, I heard the Lord speak, very clearly. He said, “We are in the early stages of a national Great Awakening.”
To say the least, it was a tad shocking. As I have told you often over the twelve years and eight months of this site, dear readers, that relatively short paper I was writing then grew larger. I continued with it through the fall and winter and completed the work in April 2011. What I thought would be a short paper of 8-12 pages became a book, my second book, of about 340 pages, saturated with footnotes and including three appendixes. The existence of the book proved the Lord was telling me something significant, that something very great and powerful was in the works.
One might recall that during that time in late August of 2010, there was absolutely nothing on tap concerning any Great Awakening. All the ministers and other Christians I sought out had heard nothing about it. It wasn’t until maybe five years later or so that the phrase itself started being used. We started hearing the term “Great Awakening” more and more but usually through secular sources. Christianity in general in America never used it except occasionally to refer to the distant past. Christianity in general in America still doesn’t use the term for what is happening all around us. Christianity in general in America remains absolutely oblivious. Still.
But others have been working extremely hard. Others have been doing mass amounts of difficult research. There is far too much to recount here. A relatively small part of the country has indeed awakened but this small part remains for the most part non-Christian and secular.
Maybe this is for the best. Of course, the reason the people involved are having so much success is because they work independently. They don’t wait around for official sanction. They don’t wait around for donations. They use their own money, what little they may have. They just plow ahead and leave others behind.
This is what I have done in my research. I have worked extremely hard throughout my life starting a long time ago, decades before I received the revelation of our current Great Awakening in 2010. I did the best I could. I had to make a living like everyone else but I was also called by the Lord to a ministry that I was determined to fulfill and still am. Except very rarely here and there, I have never been funded. I simply used what I had and still do. Life would have been much easier to have never answered the Lord’s calling and simply dedicated myself to making money like most people do but it would have been entirely less rewarding.
Whoever takes that path, the path of serving mammon instead of serving God, always comes to a sad awakening at the end of life. Though the person might have fulfilled all the social conventions and is spoken well of for obeying the dictates of the culture, there is an emptiness that no amount of money or material goods could ever satisfy. Such people are often struck with the emptiness of it all. What was their life for? What did they actually accomplish?
Remember, the Lord clearly stated the following:
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” [Matthew 6:19-21]
Most Christians in America, however, have been falsely taught to not follow such a principle. That is why most Christians in America almost always have their sights set on this world and this life rather than on heaven and eternal life. It is why most refuse to work for the Lord.
This is why so much of Christianity, like most of the country, remains oblivious to what is actually happening right now. They know nothing of any Great Awakening nor do they know America is done. On December 31, 2022, in my post 2022 In Review: A Synopsis of My Work and a Look Toward a Challenging Future (a year in which wrote more pages for this site than any other calendar year, trying my best to warn and teach), I stated the following:
AMERICAN ICHABOD
We now live in different times. We are way past the “times that try men’s souls” phase. America is now a different country. Some say it is no longer a country. The America many of us knew is long gone, with the wind so to speak, and is essentially dead. The Great Awakening was sent by God to wake people up and in part keep the fall from happening but most have stayed fast asleep and prefer it that way. It is much easier than facing the facts, doing research to prove the facts, and standing up for the Lord and against the devil, his henchmen, and a degenerate culture. At the end of the day it is every man for himself in the sense that you are the only one you can control.
There has been a great incessant effort over at least the last twelve years to find the truth, know the truth, and tell the truth but has done little good for the most part. Half the country will never change it seems. It is lost in a strange neverland. Another large percentage continues to hang out among the yellow stripes and dead armadillos taking far too long to decide and merely bickering over things that don’t matter anymore. This leaves about a third, maybe. Maybe 30%. In reality, though, even among the committed, many have only so much time and resources. What remains is a core group of Americans, a small group, absolutely dedicated to the Lord Jesus and determined to serve Him, work with Him, fight the spiritual war with Him, and shed the Light of His true Gospel.
Call it the American Remnant. They know they MUST be salt and light. They know they MUST fill up their oil lamps and keep them filled. Much more effort toward this is required than in the past because so much has been saturated with evil and said evil causes a greater drain on one’s batteries. The country as a whole continually ceased living for God by degrees and refused to stand up and fight against encroaching evil which gave evil an increasingly greater foothold. America, a once great nation, went from spirit to flesh to sin to death.
Therefore, it is no longer about saving the good that once was but is now about resurrection and the remote possibility thereof. But unless you’re the Lord, no matter how much you try you can’t revive a dead guy. America has thus become a national Ichabod. The glory has departed. I said this would happen twenty-five years ago. I put it in writing…
I then added an excerpt from my first book, Real Christianity, in which I predicted what would eventually happen to this once great country. (I will add the excerpt later in this article.) At that time, in the mid-1990s, there was no indication that any such thing could ever happen. America was robust and thriving. In fact, right at that time (something I only learned the details of several years later), the people running things had already given up on the country and began dutifully extracting the wealth. This commenced in the autumn of 1997. I knew something really bad was going on then but didn’t have the details. Few did. The only reason a few people know now is due to some extremely diligent researchers among us who worked extremely hard to discover the information.
Suffice it to say that a Great Awakening was certainly in its early stages in late August thirteen years ago. At this point it has grown quite a bit and I believe will soon grow exponentially. More and more people are becoming aware. Sadly, however, the majority has stuck its head in the sand. The majority has been co-opted by an opposing narrative created to deceive, obfuscate, lead astray, and capture. One wonders how it is possible that a couple hundred million Americans can be so deceived as to latch on to such a ridiculous narrative. But this is actually nothing new. The majority is always oblivious. It’s actually a wonder anyone wakes up at all. This is what I wrote in my book in roughly 1997:
IS AMERICA A CHRISTIAN NATION?
The price of compromise has been great. The United States of America is supposedly a Christian nation. Polls constantly show that at least ninety percent of the population refers to itself as “Christian” of some form or another. Yet, there is blood in the streets; there is an increasing number of kids who can’t learn; much of the population has discarded the idea of monogamy and have become so hedonistic in their relations they could learn morality from the example of numerous animal species; and diseases are coming out of the woodwork and running far ahead of treatments.
The country is enormously successful monetarily, especially compared to other nations, yet we are up to our ears in debt, and we fight from paycheck to paycheck to keep our head above water. For a Christian nation, something’s not right; someone’s dropping the ball. Illumined by the inescapable fact that we have churches on every street corner and airwaves saturated with Christian television and radio (these terms are used very loosely), we are in ridiculous shape if we are indeed a Christian nation.
I submit that we are not a Christian nation, not because we don’t consider ourselves Christian, but simply because we do not uphold the teachings of Jesus or live according to them. Instead, we live according to the twisted teachings of impostors, rogues, spiritual eunuchs, and pretenders. Professional clergymen are wholly responsible for bringing Christianity in America to this point since they are the ones who are largely responsible for teaching and interpreting the words of the Lord. If they were doing God’s will from such lofty places of authority, shouldn’t the effects show up in society as a whole if our society is indeed Christian?
If the ruling clergy class has been mandated by Jesus to be the movers and shakers of His teachings in this country, it has apparently messed up. Whatever guilt they do carry they steadfastly refuse to acknowledge, which makes correction impossible. This is why God is removing them—they refuse to act wholly on His behalf. And if you don’t think this is true, that they’re becoming history, check the stats. Their numbers are dwindling in this country, while the numbers of “nobodies” who simply want to do God’s will are rising dramatically.
Will America be saved? No. But when certain people get out of the way and other people mature en masse, hundreds of thousands of hungry souls will find salvation, and America’s greatest great awakening will take place. [Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church © 2001 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.]
WE MUST FOCUS ON THE LORD JESUS
Regarding America and American Christianity in 2024,
Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not be partakers with them; for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light (for the fruit of the Light consists in all goodness and righteousness and truth), trying to learn what is pleasing to the Lord. Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them; for it is disgraceful even to speak of the things which are done by them in secret. But all things become visible when they are exposed by the light, for everything that becomes visible is light. For this reason it says,
“Awake, sleeper,
And arise from the dead,
And Christ will shine on you.” [Ephesians 5:6-14][1]
© 2023 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
WINNING THE SPIRITUAL WAR FOR THE WRITTEN WORD OF GOD
What mysterious power compels one to shut off his mind to new truth? Why is this also true regarding many Christians and New Testament truth?
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THE NEW COVENANT WRITINGS
As currently known, constructed, and accepted, the New Testament is finite. If one reads it one knows all there is to know of it. If one studies it continuously one discovers greater spiritual truth which serves to open ever more doors of understanding. If one adds additional background information which aids his awareness, such as, for example, historical knowledge of the ancient first-century AD world in which our Lord Jesus lived, then one has greater ability to comprehend the New Covenant writings. This also aids in applying them.
We live in a time which is the greatest time for accessing such truths. If one wants to read the New Testament Scriptures it is a simple process. One can find many different Bible versions in most of the languages of the world and certainly the major languages. One can find these in print, digital format, or on the internet—pretty much any medium. Much of it is free. Some Bible translations are excellent and some not so much. Some purposely leave out particular words or add others or change the content subtly though deliberately which proves the authors thereof have a decidedly different agenda than revealing the truth of Scripture as given in the original. Thus, such versions only exist to deceive and lead one astray in order to fulfill a hidden agenda. This means one must be very careful of one’s choices and never assume “a Bible is a Bible.” This is simply not true. If one wants the actual full truth contained in the NT one must be selective and choose wisely.
Some New Testament versions are the very best we can do regarding word-for-word or literal translations (which is not easy with regard to the original Greek) such as the New American Standard 1995 Update. There is also a 2020 version though I personally have yet to use it and I do not think it necessarily adds much. I prefer the 1995 as it has been my go-to version since it first came out twenty-eight years ago. Prior to then I was primarily using the New King James Version but it is a lesser version by contrast though immensely better than the original KJV, which contains a decidedly authoritative bias. Still, the KJV is the one I cut my teeth on in the beginning of my walk and I know it well. It was the first Bible I read through completely and it did not take long.
At that time, after first getting saved, I used an old relatively tattered paperback KJV given to me by my original witness. It was already well-used and marked up and I probably added to it. I still have that Bible and treasure it. The next year I spent quite a sum for that time, over $40 (two days of warehouse worker pay) for a brand new leather-bound Thompson Chain Reference KJV which I still have in good condition. Later that year I also began using a hardback Amplified Version as an excellent supplement (I still have this also but it’s considerably the worse for wear.) Over the years since then and into the present I have also used any number of additional Bible versions (many!) to assist as supplements in my research, study, and writing as well as making good use of the original Hebrew and Greek.
We therefore have no excuses whatsoever as Christians to not read and know the New Testament. It is an absolute requirement for the person who actually follows the Lord Jesus. It is likely the case, however, that the majority of Christians are taught otherwise, or think only a few select “ministers” are supposed to read and study the NT. Again, such a belief is not Scriptural and arises due to ignorance of Scripture, because:
All true followers of the Lord Jesus are ministers, all are New Covenant priests, all are witnesses of the Gospel, and all comprise the fellowship of the saints.
Nevertheless, this is probably where the initial breakdown takes place for many Christians in that they neglect and/or refuse to read the NT in its entirety and thus never gain the spiritual knowledge within it as required. This greatly limits their effectiveness as Christians and makes it more difficult to live a Christian life. This neglect or refusal may also cause one to develop a closed-minded attitude toward Scripture in general in that one battles the conviction thereof by going in the opposite direction, in that one sinks to making excuses or even begins casting doubts on Scripture as a way to alleviate their conviction or assuage their conscience.
If one could only see this in terms of the New Covenant Writings being the actual written Word of God it would hopefully change their perspective. The Lord Jesus is the actual Living Word of God. By reading the NT one is showing his allegiance to the Lord by following Him and getting to know Him just as if one was following Him in the first-century. He said we cannot serve Him unless we follow Him and one cannot follow Him at a distance and also be a close disciple and develop unto maturity.
It is therefore actually quite the predicament and a crisis to have the vast majority of Christians in the world living in either a spiritually dead state, due to never being born again spiritually according the NT model, or they have been born again but remain stuck in an immature condition due mostly to being somewhat or wholly Biblically illiterate. We can gain more knowledge of this circumstance by studying the Parable of the Sower. In this story, only one person of four ever gains spiritual maturity and the Lord gives the reasons why. If one studies this and discovers the reasons, would he not then try hard to overcome whatever may be holding him back? But again, this would require reading the Parable and then studying it to the point of understanding which many Christians apparently will not do. So the conundrum is clear.
KNOWING THE WORD OF GOD
“You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me…” [John 5:39]
In a recent post, The Lord Jesus Demands Total Allegiance: What This Means for Every Christian, I had a great dialogue with my friend Susan who added much to a good discussion. You can access the discussion following the post as usual. At the end of our discussion she said my article and our dialogue connected somewhat with a post she recently read and she provided the link. For anyone interested I suggest reading the linked article also because the author refers to the aforementioned crisis at hand and adds much to the necessity of reading the Word as an initial way of showing the proper respect and honor of the Lord Jesus, growing closer to Him, and yes, demonstrating total allegiance.
Remember, the Lord Jesus needs Christians who know the Word of God, know it well, can apply it correctly, and by this serve Him in helping others receive salvation, teaching others toward gaining spiritual maturity, and showing others how to successfully fight and win spiritual victories.
The only way these can occur is if Christians know the Word of God.
But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.’” [Matthew 4:4]
But He answered and said to them, “My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it.” [Luke 8:21]
But He said, “On the contrary, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.” [Luke 11:28]
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. [John 1:1-5]
And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. [John 1:14] [1]
© 2023 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
REJECTED BY HIS OWN: SHARING IN OUR SAVIOR’S SUFFERING
Spiritual suffering is part of being a real Christian. There is sometimes much pain that must be endured for His purposes.
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We are commanded to love but loving makes one vulnerable. It involves trust and a lowering of defenses, otherwise others cannot be reached with the Gospel. The person who has already gone through the process of real repentance and surrendering to the Lord sometimes suffers from the actions of unrepentant sinners who do not follow the Lord’s teachings or obey the Golden Rule, and who also have little sense for mercy and compassion. This dynamic makes the spiritual work of real Christians often subject to personal attacks, a lack of respect, and a general mockery of all things New Testament, since such spiritual teachings are not appreciated or understood by the natural mind.
HEART PAIN
Though not exclusively Christian, this “heart pain,” which some refer to as the worse kind, describes well the process of necessary suffering. As for spiritual reasons why it must exist, one must suffer according to the Lord’s will, whose purposes may be temporarily unknown, for the betterment of one’s relationship with Him or to be more effective in His work. At other times it may be for the sake of others, for those whom Christians may minister to, and also for one’s ongoing spiritual maturation process and development. Here is a good illustration:
“I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit.” [John 15:1-2]
Though somewhat challenging to define, heart pain may be described in general as deep-set, like a nebulous rock, far within the core of one’s being and even somehow beyond it as if one’s being must expand to contain it. It is brought about by several possible stimuli, such as an unfortunate event or occurrence, negative treatment by others, misunderstandings, or having one’s hopes dashed. It may feel like an invisible floor or foundation collapses into nothing. The initial pain may arrive relatively fast and even be somewhat debilitating. Healing may take quite a while though in the interim the pain becomes somewhat lessened by the eventual onset of a general numbness, as though an internal medicated bandage has been applied or an imperceptible deadening drug administered.
A new Christian experiencing this for the first time may wonder about the purpose or necessity thereof—the big “why” question—and thus realize that he or she has signed up for more than originally thought. This pain may thus come as a somewhat rude awakening in that the new birth experience arrives with great joy and newness of life, what is described well as a “Holy Ghost” high. After one’s initial experience though, which might last a few months, there is the inevitable coming down from it and the realization that spiritual effort and means are required to gain it back and maintain it as one seeks a steady, ongoing, and effective walk with the Lord.
To gain a better understanding of spiritual suffering in general, it, like everything else, begins with the Lord Jesus. Scripture makes the clear implication that no one ever suffered to the degree He did. As our Founder and Leader, it was required that He experience all the pain His followers would later experience so there would be mutual understanding and that His followers would know He could relate to their pain and would be the One to go to for ministry and mercy regarding it. We see this process of the Lord leaving His perfect and holy estate, then being treated as essentially the last of all men, only to become victorious and rising to first across the board, as illustrated here:
He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything. [Colossians 1:17-18]
REJECTED BY HIS OWN
“The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed and be raised up on the third day.” [Luke 9:22]
“For just like the lightning, when it flashes out of one part of the sky, shines to the other part of the sky, so will the Son of Man be in His day. But first He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.” [Luke 17:24-25]
Rejection is something common to mankind and specifically regards particular individuals perceived as less significant or flawed or alleged as such by narrow, often prejudicial standards, and thus being unqualified for inclusion in a group. Such parameters are, of course, based on the necessity of exclusivity as a means of keeping the “riffraff” out for the purposes of group purity and superiority. Such rejection was also something the Lord suffered, which is really strange on the surface, since He is the greatest, most pure, and most loving and compassionate Person in world history. He was even a Man apart in His own family and among local kinsmen who considered Him “beside Himself” (KJV):
And He came home, and the crowd gathered again, to such an extent that they could not even eat a meal. When His own people heard of this, they went out to take custody of Him; for they were saying, “He has lost His senses.” [Mark 3:20-21]
In addition to being referred to as senseless/crazy, He was also falsely labeled by others as a drunkard (a winebibber), a glutton (though He fasted often, even for forty days), a friend of sinners, as demon-possessed (by the religious leaders—a clear case of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit), and even of illegitimate birth, a scurrilous charge against His heavenly origin and pure bloodline. Even unbelieving Jews of today still refer to Him as a “magician” and by other profane names which still appear in their “holy” books. These were and are gross mischaracterizations and pure slander which, however, would cause one to understand why He was rejected by those who believed such lies so readily. His rejection was also prophecy:
For I tell you that this which is written must be fulfilled in Me, ‘And He was numbered with transgressors’; for that which refers to Me has its fulfillment.” [Luke 22:37]
One wonders, then, what the hell kind of a group or society was it that excluded Him? It could have only been an evil, sinister group and one accepting of sin and rebellion against God. In fact, it was not just a group but effectively an entire nation. This, again, puts into perfect focus the kind of nation He was dealing with in that it rejected Him outright—and we are talking the majority here—of everything He was and represented. We must therefore see His rejection by His own people as foundational and definitive and that rejection in general is most often perpetrated by lesser people appearing as the greater.
This means that if the Lord Himself—the Creator of the Universe—is rejected by His own who were thus primarily an immoral people—then rejection is not necessarily a bad thing though it may feel that way.
It can actually be seen as a good thing in that one may not be evil enough, or sinful enough, or spiritually immature enough, or accepting of degradation enough, or has higher standards, or simply has a great desire to be close to God and walk with God. How then can the righteous not be rejected?
In the following definitive passage, the Lord quotes Psalm 118:22-23 and applies it to Himself. Though obviously familiar with it, His rejecters rejected His interpretation and application also:
Jesus said to them, “Did you never read in the Scriptures,
‘The stone which the builders rejected,
This became the chief corner stone;
This came about from the Lord,
And it is marvelous in our eyes’?
Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people, producing the fruit of it. And he who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; but on whomever it falls, it will scatter him like dust.” [Matthew 21:42-44]
Here we have a picture of not only those who foolishly reject the Lord Jesus but also what the Lord will do about it and to them as a result. It will not go unpunished. He will certainly suffer rejection as He must but in the end will also not only bring justice and retribution to punish the guilty but also restore and bless those wronged by the guilty.
May this be a comforting thought for all who are rejected with Him for the same reasons. Their sufferings, though relatively great, will never be for nothing if walked out according to His will and purposes, but will prove to be beneficial both for the one who suffers and for the spiritual purpose thereof. We perceive this clearly in His life:
But we do see Him who was made for a little while lower than the angels, namely, Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone. For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things, and through whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to perfect the author of their salvation through sufferings. [Hebrews 2:9-10]
Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation. If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. [1Peter 4:12-14][1]
Dear readers, if you’re going through it now, and I can certainly relate, it won’t last forever and will somehow, some way, eventually turn to joy and victory. For this we must praise the Lord and give Him glory. He always has the last word. Hold fast, proceed through the process with a good attitude, keep a good spirit, pray for spiritual strength, pray for your enemies, and trust the Lord. (Also, fasting helps.)
Though we may not understand initially what the purpose or end result of suffering and rejection may be, we know we can always trust Him to bring the victory.
© 2023 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
REMEMBERING JFK (2023)
The start of most of our present ills in this country can be traced to the cold-blooded murder of an American President on this date sixty years ago.
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In 2019 I started a new annual tradition on this site with a post entitled Remembering JFK. I’ve made a new post each year since with the same title. What follows is the fifth installment posted, as always, on the day America changed forever. I encourage you to read the prior articles and insightful reader comments.
A HIDDEN PLAN AND A CHANGE IN COURSE
Without getting into the deeper root causes that began in the 1890s and which eventuated in two world wars, a national depression, and the later creation of an entirely new country in the next stage of American Empire called Pax Americana, the most predominant changes to the country began in 1945. In our brief history lesson here, one may want to keep in mind that there is no such thing as the “accidental theory of history” in which transformative international events just happen by themselves and occur with no rhyme or reason or at the whim of obscure minor characters.
We are conditioned to see history this way because it is the manner in which the major news media has always presented it. Most people have no clue of the connecting undercurrents always in play and a powerful ruling elite calling the shots behind the scenes since they own the media. All most people know regarding the larger events in our world, for the most part, is that a newspaper headline suddenly jumps forth or a news bulletin hits the television airwaves and a seemingly disconnected-from-reality shocking event suddenly becomes reality before one’s eyes. Right after this, quick explanations come forth so the masses will know the “why” and the “who” and thus know how to respond. As on cue, the vast majority always responds in the same way according to the psychological suggestion given and accepts not only the explanation of who perpetrated the deed or caused the event and why but also how one must understand and adapt to it.
This is how the powers-that-be deceived early 1900s America, a sovereign nation of freedom loving people who would never have agreed to so much intrusion upon their liberty had they known any better or been aware of the sly doings behind the scenes. It is how America was tricked, for example, into accepting the creation of the Federal Reserve Act in late 1913 at the zero hour before the Christmas break which gave the control of the economy to a small cabal of bankers, which dovetailed well with the ratification of the 16th Amendment in February of that year giving Congress the legal right to impose a Federal Income Tax on American citizens.
It is also how the country was propagandized and tricked into supporting WWI in faraway Europe in which four million US soldiers were mobilized and almost 117,000 American military personnel died for no reason. The propaganda was such that the few Americans who were intelligent and aware enough to know what was really going on were castigated as unpatriotic cowards while those easily fooled and cowed by fear tactics were conned into embracing official disinformation supporting the war with no reservations and seemingly without a thought. It was likely the first time in American history the majority of the population revealed itself as an easy mark that fell without a fight, no pun intended.
The same process continued throughout the early to mid-twentieth century with each major event that transpired. None of these occurrences “just happened” or took place due to the official explanation but because of the rich and powerful pulling strings behind the scenes according to a master scheme toward world control which had been well-planned far in advance.
Of such was also the assassination of President Kennedy. He represented an unknown quantity with an independent mind and an apparent belief in the Constitutional process. Though there were immediate theories on what actually happened that day constructed by those who could see through the charade which were then followed by many more theories based on emerging truth since, most Americans still don’t know the truth and pretty much don’t care to find it. The vast majority of the generation that was of age in the 1960s quickly buried its head in the sand and accepted whatever they were told to accept and thus believed the false “official” story like the good children they were, though this sad attitude began changing in following decades.
In their defense, however, it was not easy for the everyman to gain the required information in a dig for truth at that time, since so many of the necessary clues were hidden behind doors most had no access to, though once a door or two did open it led to more data coming forth which a few authors successfully compiled and built upon. Once the internet happened, though, a veritable tsunami of information became increasingly available which reminds one of a certain Biblical prophecy:
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 KJV]
Consequently, at this stage of the game, the news is now out that most people paying even the slightest attention know that members of the intelligence community participated in the JFK assassination. It has even come forth quite recently, according to a nephew of JFK who happens to be running for President—Robert F. Kennedy Jr.—that the CIA was involved. Of course, this was suspected by some from the get-go sixty years ago. Another belief that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has reported which came out just a few years ago was that the actual killer of his father in June of 1968 was not Sirhan but a mysterious security guard. It has since been established that though Sirhan was there and did fire multiple shots he fired from the front and the senior RFK was hit from behind. There were also too many shots to have come from just one gun. There are other anomalies which end up refuting the official story.
CONTENDER PRETENDER
Regarding the death of our 35th President, however, the official story has long since been proven to be absolutely false and full of holes though most people are none the wiser largely because they have never taken the time to look into it, which is why such disinformation thrust forth by the major media always works with regard to the majority. It is in part why the majority is always wrong—it simply never has the full story or the complete facts and therefore bases its beliefs on what it is told to believe rather than the truth. One would think a person may say, “Well, I don’t really know what happened. I know what they said happened but I would not be very smart to believe it without verifying it.” And at that, if the person was truly interested in the truth, he would begin his research. Yet most people never do this simply because they believe the official story since they submit to the authoritarians pronouncing and promoting it.
This used to be, long ago, un-American. But because the American Constitutional construct changed radically with the events of the Civil War in the 1860s—the War of Northern Aggression—and continued down that path in succeeding decades, it is no wonder that so many Americans had become subject to deception and official propaganda by the turn of the century. There was truly a war on the Constitution by powerful people who refused to be restricted by its principles. And even though the twentieth century brought forth great scientific accomplishments and much of American life was improved, critical thinking skills in general have diminished substantially.
For example, if one were to compare the collegians of the 1950s and early 60s to those of later generations, one would see not only an ongoing lessening of personal strength, maturity, and awareness at a young age, as well as practicality and common sense, but also an increasing inability to perceive authoritative, manipulative social agendas and an increasing acceptance of official narratives, as if such were truth rather than the means to indoctrinate the masses into the formation of a veritable hive mind. This proves that the long-running psychological effort to dumb down the populace has worked and worked quite well.
Again, this hive mind concept was nothing new but the current manifestation of it is, in that it is the end result of a century’s work upon the minds of Americans. Most believe that which is not true as if it was and reject the truth that is. It calls to mind what William Casey, the director of the CIA, said in 1981:
“We’ll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false.”
Regarding who actually killed JFK and why doesn’t much matter because most Americans really don’t care and would never believe the truth anyway. But it had much to do with a certain entity’s resolute determination to become a nuclear power and JFK’s powerfully determined refusal to allow them to get there. It also had to do with the earlier forced selection of his replacement using egregious blackmail tactics with a future change of personal in mind that would serve the entity’s interests.
What this means, of course, is that in this fallen world of sin and evil the great ones with great wealth and power exist at the top as they always have and can do pretty much anything they want as long as they have a willing and complicit majority population of dupes. All one must do to achieve this is work to keep people ignorant and unschooled but obedient to authority, something which has always been the case throughout much of history. Dealing with an educated population, however, requires a different tactic, one the devil is great at—lies and deception. If such can be couched within the realm of knowledge and historical “facts,” and actual truth be subverted, then one can achieve exactly what William Casey envisioned.
Those of you who know the Old Testament know this construct has actually existed since the beginning and grew worse over time in that massive populations of the ancient world could be controlled by only a few and outwardly by only a solitary man sitting atop a pyramidal throne as it were. Such figures were Sumerian kings, Egyptian pharaohs, and Roman emperors. But they also included strictly religious leaders who used “the opiate of the people” to control minds and then wallets. Nevertheless, though only a relative few could see the solution by which to overcome such control, God certainly did before everyone else and sent independent, incorruptible, intelligent, and ANOINTED prophets to expose the false narratives put forth as truth, reveal the wicked hidden sin of the powerful few, and break the mind power inflicted on the masses.
And there was and is no greater Prophet than our Lord Jesus who was also put to death as a result of sinister intrigue and a conspiracy but whose death serves as the greatest purpose in the history of humanity. For by it we regain our spiritual freedom and life, and enlighten our minds to know and understand the truth as well as see right through the hidden machinations of evil ones intent on using humanity as slaves for their own purposes toward their own malevolent ends.
JFK died because he had the courage to rightfully challenge powerful men acting above the law and used the governmental authority he was given in the attempt to curtail their activity and even stop them. He only had relative middling success in his efforts but did more than his predecessors and much more than all those who followed him.
Think of him what you will but the only way to stop him was to kill him.
This meant he was on to something big.
© 2023 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
THE LORD JESUS DEMANDS TOTAL ALLEGIANCE: WHAT THIS MEANS FOR EVERY CHRISTIAN
The original NT definition has been blurred and undermined by centuries of erroneous Christian teachings, easy believism, and errant agendas.
ALL OR NOTHING
This is what He actually taught. This is what He demanded of His disciples. It was the only way His ministry could possibly work. It is in part why so many original followers turned away from Him. He kept speaking of the great demands their discipleship would require. He kept attempting to teach the deeper and greater truths they must learn but they were finding these difficult to comprehend. He also kept coming up with “hard sayings” that some couldn’t handle or understand, and which caused not a few to develop a problem with Him. Such pure teachings also served to weed out the pretenders, the half-hearted, and the rebellious—those which Christianity later became saturated with, which includes these present times, of course, as the clueless faux bros comprise the majority.
Unreal Christianity thus, by refusing to grant Him full fidelity, instead mocks the Lord and makes a mockery of His work. The Christians involved possess no true allegiance to the One they profess to follow. They may talk the talk but refuse to walk the walk and cannot be counted on. Their leaders expose themselves as mere men for hire (hirelings) in that they never or rarely work without a paycheck.
“WHY ARE YOU SLEEPING?” [LUKE 22:46]
“Awake, sleeper,
And arise from the dead,
And Christ will shine on you.” [Ephesians 5:14]
Though easy Christianity is more comfortable and acceptable it is also spiritually ineffective (understatement alert). That’s the tradeoff. Its lack of salt and light makes it wholly unproductive and largely fruitless in a fallen world growing darker and more sinful every day. In fact, the slow dissolution of American Christianity over the last quarter century into its current backslid, sinful, deceived, and wholly weakened condition is largely the reason the America that once was is now dead and no longer in need of restoration but resurrection. The majority of American Christianity remains locked in a deep sleep and shows no signs whatsoever of waking up. I have been preaching the WAKE UP sermon here on this site for twelve and a half years and the only change I have seen regarding the trending majority is deeper sleep.
Now, the Lord God was certainly successful early on in rousing a few and then later quite a few more though the percentage remains woefully low. This means many Christians have awakened and are doing their best to awaken others. Yet there are likely more awake non-Christians than awake Christians but that is certainly okay. Both are doing great work.
Nevertheless, the effect of the Christian deep sleep has been disastrous for the country. We are now in the exponential rise phase in which the enemy has accelerated his evil and is getting away with massive crimes with no remedy and corruption has run amok. America has suffered a spiritual coup d’état and those who wrested control are purposefully running the place into the ground. It is the end effect of serving mammon and not God. And to add to all of the above, real Christians not only continue being persecuted by the usual suspects but these now include, strangely enough, the deep-sleeping Christians, many of which act like the proverbial small child refusing to rise from slumber and get out of bed in the morning, even turning against those trying to rouse them.
WEIGHTY WITNESS
On the other hand, those Christians who are awake who go all out in service to the Lord make their presence felt. Others feel their weight. There’s something going on with them that causes sinners to feel uncomfortable in their presence. However, sinners searching for truth and trying to escape sin bondage are alerted by their presence in a positive way and see such people as a hopeful answer and seek them out. It is why transformed sinners so love the Lord and His real people. They get it. They know what it’s like to be under sin’s spell and delivered from it and will never go back. It is also why the relatively few dedicated disciples the Lord ended up with in the beginning transformed their world. Even the devil was afraid of them because he knew those people had the power and presence of God! This was their witness, the only real witness. It was all or nothing. It was total dedication or forget it. They were simple people, nothing special, just like you or I, yet their testimony was undeniable—they walked with God.
Now as they observed the confidence of Peter and John and understood that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed, and began to recognize them as having been with Jesus.
And seeing the man who had been healed standing with them, they had nothing to say in reply. But when they had ordered them to leave the Council, they began to confer with one another, saying, “What shall we do with these men? For the fact that a noteworthy miracle has taken place through them is apparent to all who live in Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. But so that it will not spread any further among the people, let us warn them to speak no longer to any man in this name.”
And when they had summoned them, they commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge; for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.” [Acts 4:13-20]
This was their profound and powerful effect on a sinful world but also upon a deceptive autocratic bad-natured contrary monetarily-rich religious authority construct that had much to do with the world, the flesh, and the devil but nothing whatsoever to do with God. You will know them by their fruits. It is the same with every manifestation of Unreal Christianity. You see, it was because the world was so far from God that He needed those willing early disciples to push hard and far with all their might in the opposite direction to get as many people in the world back on course, saved, and close to God. In this process false religion would have to be overcome, defeated, and hopefully destroyed so people under its influence could be free and no longer subjected to its evil wiles.
It is why the Lord Jesus, with this in mind, throughout His 3½ year ministry, had to put so much work and wisdom into: Selecting potential disciples, instructing them, guiding them, and developing them with the intention of bringing them to full maturity. The crowning finishing touch was their profound Upper Room experience at Pentecost when they gained the indwelling spiritual power necessary for their walk and work for the Lord. Otherwise such disciples would never have been able to perform His will for the great task at hand. They would never have been able to win spiritual battles. In essence, without such strong dedication they would have been spiritually worthless and would never have been able to operate as the Lord did. The devil would have held them in derision as spiritual sissies instead of shaking in his shoes at their presence. They would have otherwise appeared as the majority of Christians in our era who cannot fight their way out of a wet paper bag and are just fine with such a sorry set-up.
Whether these mile-wide and inch-deep Christians know it or not, their pathetic “Christian” lifestyle has made real Christians appear as something strange and foreign that must be mocked and rejected even by them. They treat allegiance to the Lord (the Man who gave His life for them) in the same manner in that any low level of partial commitment is perfectly okay and acceptable. Hence, they justify their anti-discipleship and deny their potential strength as not only unworkable but something to be shunned. They believe such real discipleship is humanly impossible with far too high a cost.
Those who actually did it then and do it now would beg to differ, however. These decided the great spiritual results were definitely worth the high cost. The originals, against great odds, proved what was possible. They showed every succeeding generation how it was done. This spiritual ability and what they accomplished did not end with that first generation but continued on with each succeeding generation. The road certainly got tougher, however, especially with the great rise of fake Christianity which joined and then surpassed unbelieving Jews as the chief persecutors of real Christians. That most Christians refused to enter and partake of the Lord’s actual kingdom in this world had no bearing on the relative few who did and succeeded.
Again, the Early Church suffered the same egregious treatment as those persecuted by the later fake Christians because their total obedience to the Lord appeared to those without as something strange and untoward even though it brought great spiritual benefits and freed hundreds of thousands from bondage to sin. Those who thought them strange were the actual strange ones in that they put personal comfort and social status above spiritual effectiveness. Their place in the new universal fake Christian religion was much more important in their eyes and the last thing such pretenders wanted was for people to think they were part of a strange minority caste of religious misfits who took God far too seriously.
ALLEGIANCE IN ACTION
The discipleship the Lord instituted, then, demanded that a believer honor their Master exclusively and totally. This is how it was done with itinerant rabbis of that time anyway, in that their students pledged themselves to their leader in order to gain the requisite teaching and wisdom desired for their schooling. Do we not see the same approach in our traditional teacher-student relationship? If a student fails to honor the teacher and believe what he or she is teaching then the construct will fail and knowledge will not be disseminated. This means that any doubt of the process including doubt regarding the teacher’s character, intentions, and material will cause a failure of the process but especially a failure of the student’s development which will not bode well for the student’s future.
This is why the Lord Jesus was so demanding of His disciple’s recognition of His standing—of His place of eminence as their sole Teacher and Shepherd—and of His disciple’s attitude in not only honoring Him but also properly respecting their spiritual vocation in order to excel toward their own proficiency and spiritual effectiveness. In this way, as He did, they could also be effective in making and developing disciples in the future. In other words, great teachers make great students who become great teachers (who make great students who make great teachers…)
So we see why the Lord demanded that one follow Him completely and sincerely or not at all. He would rather have three thoroughly dedicated disciples obeying Him and fully applying His teachings than three hundred or three thousand or three hundred thousand who fall short of this standard. Sadly, the vast majority of Christians in the world over the last two thousand years, especially at present, have always appropriated the latter underachieving class who fail to properly honor the Lord and His clear standard. This intransigence, laziness, compromising attitude, and ignorance of the Lord’s teachings, though primarily their refusal to honor Him as they should, has likely resulted in a much bigger mess in the world than if they had never become Christians to begin with.
For example, what good does it do to obey the Golden Rule only in part? What value is there in treating others the way we want to be treated in only a selective manner? How beneficial can it actually be if we only love the Lord Jesus short of 100% or become believers according to our own terms rather than His? How can one’s relationship with Him be viable if one refuses to give Him all of one’s heart or decline to have one’s heart fully circumcised? Is He not worthy? Is He not the Teacher? He is not the Shepherd? Is He not God?
PROVING A CHRISTIAN’S ALLEGIANCE
The following Scriptural passages reveal the actual truth of the Lord’s teachings and commands regarding our allegiance to Him. Remember, during His time here the Lord Jesus was a man’s Man with a powerful presence and bearing and not the false depiction we so often see of a long-haired hippie spouting fake peace and love with flowers in his hair. One can rest assured that those who initially put forth this false image in the distant past did so in an effort to denigrate Him while exalting themselves.
In reality, the Lord was a Carpenter and Builder engaging in hard manual labor every day until He was thirty years old in a rough environment with no modern conveniences or power tools. He was physically ripped, bronzed by the sun, and weathered by the elements. Many of the disciples He initially chose were also like Him in this regard. They were extremely tough men used to battling the physical world and the Lord then used their strong abilities and character for spiritual ministry purposes which also made great demands upon a man. In this they were perfect for the work they were called to do. They ended up performing admirably and put the devil on the run. None of it was possible, however, without full allegiance toward their ultra-worthy Lord and Master who set the precedent and showed them the way. May we all learn from His example and obey Him as follows:
“He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who has found his life will lose it, and he who has lost his life for My sake will find it.” [Matthew 10:37-39]
“He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters.” [Matthew 12:30]
“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me…” [John 10:27]
“If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also; if anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.” [John 12:26]
“If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.” [John 14:15]
“He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him.” [John 14:21]
Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.” [John 15:4-5][1]
© 2023 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
CHRISTIAN BRAINWASHING IS REAL
There are Christians so indoctrinated they will reject even the most elementary teachings of the Lord Jesus if His teachings violate their “Christian” beliefs.
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Rather than brainwashing, we may call it by less pejorative terms such as the aforementioned religious indoctrination or one of the following however it may apply: Training, conditioning, influencing, and even programming. Much of religion, if not all, uses such a process to gain low-denominator sycophants. It can go so far as to create mind-numbed robots who accept and believe things not because they are true but because they have been put forth as true for the sake of an ulterior agenda. Brainwashing/indoctrination is therefore a completely different process than what the Lord Jesus employs in making disciples—He is a Teacher. He teaches spiritual truth. He never uses coercion. He doesn’t force feed supposed facts and figures in a highly impressionable manner in the effort to stamp one’s mind. He doesn’t use manipulation or control tactics. He loves His disciples first and foremost and treats them accordingly. He obviously never violates His own commandments.
SEE IF YOU CAN FIGURE THIS OUT:
I was talking to a person once about the Bible. This person was a member in good standing of a particular Christian denomination. When the subject of the accuracy of the Bible came up this person said one can never believe what the Bible says overall which means all of it cannot still be true after all these years and that there must have been changes made to it since the beginning and it must contain errors.
There was nothing I could say.
It was not a matter of possible minor transmission miscues here or there in our Bibles, though some translations are better than others, but the fact that this person belonged to a Christian denomination based on the very Bible that was supposedly hopelessly flawed and which one could not put one’s faith in. This person just revealed belief in a flawed Bible yet belongs to a Christian denomination. Where is the logic in that? In other words, this person likely never read the Bible or very little of it and has little or no faith in its truth and accuracy but still wholeheartedly and faithfully belongs to a particular Christian denomination. If this is not the effect of pure religious brainwashing then what is?
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
By the way, my long time approach on this site has contained an effort at being parabolic with the truth in an effort toward promoting critical thinking. I want the teaching to be thought-provoking and stimulating. The Lord obviously did this and it worked great in that it drew out an understanding of otherwise hidden truths. He also used parables as a way to bypass religious indoctrination and mindsets set in stone. Rather than state otherwise plain truth and Scriptural truth in what some or many may perceive as being antagonistic toward personal beliefs (which happen to be incorrect) or see such teaching as too “preachy” (because it brings on conviction of sin and makes one feel uncomfortable), using the parabolic method compels one to ponder before emoting, the latter of which often causes one to reject truth.
Yet, though this method works well it cannot be used exclusively. There were other times, of course, when the Lord spoke the truth directly and very powerfully. He even told His disciples once that He would dispense with allegory altogether and would no longer teach them in such a way, probably because they reached a point of greater maturity and could handle it. He said He would do this primarily with regard to His true identity:
“These things I have spoken to you in figurative language; an hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figurative language, but will tell you plainly of the Father.” [John 16:25]
MY LATEST POSTS
This has been brewing for a while. There have been times in the past when I have been more direct and less allegorical. However, I have felt compelled to step it up this year, especially after what I went through in the spring when it appeared I would never write again. Such an occurrence can compel a different mindset. When the Lord blessed and I was able to resume writing again in mid-summer, three and a half months later, though not at my previous pace, I decided on being more direct. I am still dealing with the situation so my mindset has not changed. Some of you may have noticed that my posts as of late contain a higher level of Scriptural truth and even more general truth than usual and that I have been addressing topics which appear controversial (to put it mildly). When one does this he or she must know there will be a cost.
On a good note, however, I want to extend my sincerest thanks to one gracious reader who put a link to my site on hers. I greatly appreciate it. I also thank the few of you who are still here with much appreciation and also to new readers. Blessings to all.
BEHIND THE LOOKING GLASS
But when the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered themselves together. One of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And He said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.” [Matthew 22:34-40]
Regarding my previous post about the Israeli-Hamas war, which was apparently the post that caused the most negative reaction thus far (though the posts I wrote on The Real Chosen People did well in that area also), I had decided to begin shining some light on the goings on in the Middle East including mentioning the war crimes of the state of Israel (uh-oh). Talk about exposing sacred heifers.
You see, once a Christian decides to go all in with the modern state of Israel and support it blindly and unquestionably, there is absolutely nothing Israel can do in their eyes that is considered wrong or sinful even if it means murdering and maiming innocent babies and small children by the thousands—blowing them to pieces and crushing them beneath destroyed buildings and infrastructure.
Such look-the-other-way support demands a corresponding hardening of the heart.
Many thousands of innocent women have also been murdered and maimed in the ongoing Gaza campaign. I must assumed these include young women, married women with children, middle-aged women, older women with grandchildren, and even elderly and infirm women. Helpless women and children are being murdered but are only considered mere collateral damage. Some of these are Christians. YET, MILLIONS OF CHRISTIANS IN AMERICA SUPPORT THIS ONGOING MASSACRE UNEQUIVOCALLY.
How can this happen? It has not occurred, of course, without considerable assistance from the biased major media yet such does not absolve one of personal responsibility. It is otherwise obvious that such Christians are no longer considering or obeying the Lord’s teachings but have transferred their allegiance to another whether they know it or not. Perhaps the following may cause Zionist Christians to give a second’s thought to their allegiance:
“Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So then, you will know them by their fruits.” [Matthew 7:15-20]
It also reminds one of this:
And following Him was a large crowd of the people, and of women who were mourning and lamenting Him. But Jesus turning to them said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, stop weeping for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children. For behold, the days are coming…” [Luke 23:27-29]
Unless one is 100% true to the Lord Jesus one will place their allegiance elsewhere and consequently be subject to deception. Also, major Christian ministries, including major Christian television ministries, have now been outed for what they are, at least in part. Until they stop supporting this ongoing wanton murder of innocents which thereby influences millions of Christians to also support it, and call out this evil for what it is, they are revealing themselves in part as veiled propaganda outfits with alternative agendas and hidden paymasters.
And that brings the following to mind:
“He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much. Therefore if you have not been faithful in the use of unrighteous wealth, who will entrust the true riches to you? And if you have not been faithful in the use of that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own?
“No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.”
Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, were listening to all these things and were scoffing at Him. And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God.” [Luke 16:10-15][1]
So yes Virginia, there is such a thing as Christian brainwashing. Such Christians go to churches that don’t fully support the Word of God or even believe it is real, violate the teachings of the Lord Jesus, even the most elementary such as the Golden Rule, and most do not even bother to read His teachings or study them. They also support feigning insincere hypocrites doing vile things to innocents. They even go so far as to believe they must bless such people or God will never bless them and will even get them.
What about blessing real Christians—the Real Chosen People? Above all, what about blessing the Lord Jesus? Does God attach any great blessings to the one who blesses the Lord Jesus?
Now, in case you may be wondering, there is only one cure for such Christian brainwashing. Christians who know this know what it is.
Sadly, Christians who don’t will likely reject it (or already have).
© 2023 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE LORD WILL NOT HOLD CHRISTIANS GUILTLESS FOR SUPPORTING SIN AND EVIL
Those who know the least are often those with the most settled, unswerving, and unchanging incorrect beliefs. It is an otherwise clear sign of indoctrination.
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THE NEW TESTAMENT WRITINGS ARE THE CURE
The New Testament must be differentiated from the Old Testament just as the New Covenant supersedes the Old Covenant. The apostle Paul wrote about this often and the teaching exists throughout his many writings. Those who know the New Testament and believe it to be the Word of God also know that Paul was taught the Gospel directly by the Lord Jesus in a one-on-one spiritual encounter that must have lasted quite a while and probably happened during his desert sojourn. It is also not difficult to correctly surmise here that Paul attended to his own forty day fast likely at the same time:
For I would have you know, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. [Galatians 1:11]
The man Saul was not only naturally brilliant, of course, and fiercely determined, but as Paul, he also came to be extremely knowledgeable of spiritual things. The Lord Jesus chose him for a reason and made a point to make it a special occasion because of one of Paul’s (Saul’s) other natural attributes: He was magnificently bullheaded.
The only cure for such if one will walk in the Spirit and do the will of God is to be humbled, and in Paul’s case and others like him, greatly humbled. In other words, the Lord Jesus sees all and knows all. He knows what one will be thinking next Wednesday at 1:37pm. He knows everything about every one of us. It is why it is so ridiculous when one tries to hide from God or think God does not see one’s every move. It is why so many people steer clear of the Lord because they know in their hearts that He knows this and they feel strongly uncomfortable and awkward about a possible meeting as a result. They do not appreciate the thought of having to encounter a holy God because of their many unconfessed sins which will undoubtedly be revealed as will be their sinful thoughts and thinking as well as knowing their intentions and justification for questionable activity will likely never pass muster. Such was possibly going through Paul’s mind when the following occurred:
Now Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest, and asked for letters from him to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, both men and women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. As he was traveling, it happened that he was approaching Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him; and he fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” And he said, “Who are You, Lord?” And He said, “I am Jesus whom you are persecuting, but get up and enter the city, and it will be told you what you must do.” The men who traveled with him stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one. Saul got up from the ground, and though his eyes were open, he could see nothing; and leading him by the hand, they brought him into Damascus. And he was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank. [Acts 9:1-9]
BULLHEADED CHRISTIANS
Most Christians, of course, had not needed such a dramatic conversion experience. Prior to salvation they were not so full of themselves, their own worth, or filled with pride to such a degree, especially the kind Saul/Paul had—religious pride—which is about as difficult to extract as the giant back teeth of a living and very angry Tyrannosaurus Rex. Only God can do it. And He certainly knows how. But He will never waste much or any time and effort on people whom He knows will never repent. He knew Paul’s heart beyond his indoctrination and also knew he would make the right decision though not without some extra help.
All real Christians living in the world at present certainly had to go through an initial humbling process to gain their salvation that may certainly have involved some level of what Paul went through. It all depended on how much pride they had and how soon they were willing to give it up. Sadly, most people never do and it is why most people never make heaven but receive instead the eternal dumpster fire by their own choice. They simply consider themselves just fine and dandy and awesome and pretty and strong and together and well-liked and appreciated as one can be and therefore have no need of any (dread!) repentance. Adam and Eve’s first son Cain was like that. As the first man ever born into this world naturally, it was not so good an omen…
It is why those who would be saved from sin and from themselves must be like Abel. They must be transformed from Cains into Abels. They must be changed from Saul to Paul. In Biblical terminology it must be as follows:
And I will give them one heart, and put a new spirit within them. And I will take the heart of stone out of their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in My statutes and keep My ordinances and do them. Then they will be My people, and I shall be their God. But as for those whose hearts go after their detestable things and abominations, I will bring their conduct down on their heads,” declares the Lord God. [Ezekiel 11:19-21]
And of course the vast majority of God’s Old Covenant “Chosen People” had their wicked sinful bullheaded stiff-necked conduct come down on their own heads just as the Lord said would happen. And the same thing will happen with unrepentant and unreal Christians who cannot help but exhibit the same behavior though with a quite benign and cheery faux exterior.
We must never forget that anyone can be happy and self-assured in their sin until they are convicted of their sin. Then their happy self-assured cheery exterior quickly vanishes and the true person hidden within comes raging forth. Regarding the fake Chosen Ones as illustrated in the New Covenant writings, here is a good example of that:
“You men who are stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears are always resisting the Holy Spirit; you are doing just as your fathers did. Which one of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? They killed those who had previously announced the coming of the Righteous One, whose betrayers and murderers you have now become; you who received the law as ordained by angels, and yet did not keep it.” Now when they heard this, they were cut to the quick, and they began gnashing their teeth at him. [Acts 7:51-54] [1]
Gnashing their teeth? Have you ever seen anyone do this? Sounds demonic. Here’s the Greek:
βρύχω brýchō (broo’-kho); a primary verb; to grate the teeth (in pain or rage):—gnash. Usage: I. To grind, gnash with the teeth. II. To bite, to chew.
What kind of potent hateful psycho anger causes a person to do this? It is not unfair to say it relates to the behavior of wild or rabid dogs or a shark feeding frenzy. Of such are the natural excesses of unbridled human sinful behavior and an obvious case in point on why crucifying the flesh is a necessary and mandatory tenet of the Lord’s teachings.
SIDING WITH THE ENEMY
“You shall not murder.” [Exodus 20:13]
“Keep far from a false charge, and do not kill the innocent or the righteous, for I will not acquit the guilty.” [Exodus 23:7]
Which brings us back to the fact that the Lord will not hold Christians guiltless for supporting sin and evil. For example, one should know it is evil when multiple thousands of innocent toddlers and young bright-eyed children are being killed indiscriminately with a great many more to come toward a desired societal liquidation, and one would otherwise know such a fact clearly and absolutely if not for being taught that such is perfectly fine against certain people (but not others) and under certain conditions, because their kind are merely human animals anyway. Right? Speaking of which, rather than go through so much trouble trying to save and house and feed and find homes for so many hundreds of thousands of stray dogs and cats in America (probably more), why don’t they just shoot them? Then bulldoze them into unmarked mass graves? Wouldn’t that be easier and far less expensive? After all, it’s not like they have a soul and are going to heaven.
Therefore, in light of such, why is it that many Christians allow, support, and condone certain sins which the Lord teaches against and sometimes funds the people committing them? How is it that many Christians are so inoculated against proper conviction that they never think about such sins or attempt to stop committing them, or excusing others from the same and therefore tolerate and support evil behavior?
We should see that the Lord Jesus, who is PERFECT and NEVER sinned was always being falsely accused by his haters of some such offense that was never actually true. Why? They were operating under strong conviction and hated being outed for the evil people they were by One they couldn’t fool instead of being treated as righteous people the way they desired and were treated by the deluded and fearful due to their phony duded-up exterior and faux religious standing and behavior. It appears, then, that their sense of sin was contrary to His (understatement alert).
This being the case, what book or set of teachings were they being taught from and indoctrinated by? It was obviously not from the Lord’s superior, correct, and perfect teachings. And right there is your answer: Many Christians have been subverted by anti-Christian teachings and propaganda that they have accepted blindly and wholeheartedly even though such teachings violate God’s holy Word and such propaganda is used to manipulate them into siding with and giving aid and comfort to the enemy.
And even after being shown the error of their ways, many still refuse to repent, see the light, or change their way of thinking. They double down all the more, stick with their anti-Christian teachings all the more, believe the manipulative propaganda all the more, and attack those who are shining the light of Scripture all the more.
This is exactly what happened to Stephen. It is exactly what happened to the Lord. Both were innocent but both also spoke out very strongly against sin and evil. And both were attacked and killed by their own wayward countrymen—the stubborn, obstinate, stiff-necked, headstrong, and bullheaded (exactly as the attacks of Unreal Christians against real Christians)—those oblivious ones who find it impossible that they may possibly be wrong about anything and are determined to support their settled, unswerving, and unchanging incorrect beliefs, including religious beliefs that defy Scripture, even if it forfeits their place in heaven in order to remain in cognitive dissonance hell.
These types never do the proper research.
© 2023 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
WHO WILL SUPPORT THE LORD JESUS?
He gave everything He had to give. His love is total. He in turn asks exactly the same for those who would follow Him. Who will support the Lord Jesus?
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CHOOSE FOR YOURSELVES TODAY WHOM YOU WILL SERVE
“He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters.” [Matthew 12:30]
Serving the Lord Jesus is a 100% proposition. If one is to follow Him then one follows Him always. If one is to honor Him then one honors Him always. If one is to obey His teachings and commandments then one does not pick and choose but obeys His entire curriculum.
I coined the term Unreal Christianity many years ago. It refers to all the fake Christianity in the world and those fake Christians who claim to serve the Lord Jesus but do not. As it is in regard to the first two of the Ten Commandments, which text will follow shortly, the majority of Christians and their faux leaders believe in and serve the mere artificial religious constructs of men which exist as counterfeits and are only loosely based on real Christianity. It is a way to assuage one’s convicting conscience by engaging in a deception to fool it but one actually only fools oneself. Thus, Unreal Christianity in its many fake forms is nothing more than the creation of a deception to suit oneself and can never act as a true discipleship vehicle.
It is exactly the same when one attempts to create a god to suit oneself which is what the Second Commandment actually refers to. The real and only God will have none of it!
For greater spiritual light and understanding of the real meaning of this commandment, I wrote the following commentary and explanation of the Second Commandment in my book Real Christianity:
In Exodus 20:4–6, the second of the Ten Commandments flatly states: “You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and fourth generations of those who hate me, but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.”
The word “idol” is translated as “graven image” in many Bible versions. The Hebrew word is pecel, and implies an image of a man or animal made from metal or wood. The word “likeness” in the stated verses is from the Hebrew temuwnah. This word has a more general definition—“form, representation, likeness”—but suggests three dimensionality. Both of these words connote something fashioned or shaped to be worshipped or served.
Hence, image building is designed to cover inherent flaws and promote a false representation of reality—a three-dimensional fashioning of an object other than God to be submitted to, and thus, to serve. Therefore, the intention of the Second Commandment is to protect God’s people from the temptation of honoring another above Him and consequently losing or never establishing both one’s blessed relationship with the Lord, and one’s dominion in Him. The most fully evolved form of an idol today is a living human being.[1]
GOD MANIFEST IN FLESH [1Timothy 3:16]
In light of what I just stated, let us read the text of the first two of the Ten Commandments once again. While reading, try to look through the lens of the revelation of our Lord Jesus who revealed Himself to the world as the one God of the OT. More importantly, ponder His actual identity as He made Himself known to His own people:
1 Then God spoke all these words, saying,
2 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.
3 “You shall have no other gods before Me.
4 “You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth.
5 “You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me,
6 “but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.” [Exodus 20:1-6]
During His time on earth the Lord Jesus was the perfect representation of the Father. He was God manifest in flesh. We see then another clear reason why the unbelieving religionists and religious leaders of His time so thoroughly rejected Him. It was in regard to the following:
“If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.” [John 14:15]
By stating this, using the exact wording, the Lord Jesus was applying Exodus 20:6 to Himself.
He did such things often. Such statements exist throughout the four gospels. Therefore, as a few learned men had deduced in the past, this Man was either God or He was crazy. There is no in-between.
Of course, He continued to prove that He was God regardless of those who refused to believe then or refuse at present. This is why actual belief in the Lord Jesus has always been an all-or-nothing proposal. It is simply impossible that there can be anything in the middle. Hence we have this forced duality that continues to present itself as saint or sinner, sheep or goat, wheat or tare, and heaven or hell. We are either with Him 100% or we are not with Him at all. A real Christian must therefore give Him his or her entire heart. It does no good to only circumcise a mere portion of one’s heart.
This is why, in this temporary fallen world, we have either real Christianity or Unreal Christianity. There is no such thing as 50% Christianity or even 90% Christianity. There is only the real and the unreal. Regarding belief in and following God, it was exactly the same in the very beginning with all the patriarchs and prophets. It was the same with Moses. One was either with God completely and absolutely or one was not with Him at all.
The Lord Jesus said the same thing as applied to God, quoting the following words about Him by an OT prophet over 700 years before His time, which perfectly conjoin the truth of God’s true identity in the Old Covenant and the New and also reveals real believers and fake ones:
“Therefore I speak to them in parables; because while seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. In their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says,
‘You will keep on hearing, but will not understand;
You will keep on seeing, but will not perceive;
For the heart of this people has become dull,
With their ears they scarcely hear,
And they have closed their eyes,
Otherwise they would see with their eyes,
Hear with their ears,
And understand with their heart and return,
And I would heal them.’
But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. For truly I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.” [Matthew 13:13-17][2]
OUR CHALLENGING PRESENT
There was a time when Christians could get away with being halfway and partial or not at all in that it was relatively easy to keep up a Christian masquerade and still be accepted as legitimate. In the past, due to relatively good times in an apparent majority Christian nation, many faux bros could give forth the impression of being successful spiritually or appear that way enough to gain general acceptance and life success. Christians in general were simply less discriminating, less aware, and more easily deceived. In other words, doing one’s Christianity was easier. But though this former truth is far worse now in that the Christian masquerade has blown up like an exponential balloon with fake Christians everywhere emerging like sugar ants from the woodwork, the end result makes it that much more difficult for real Christians. This is why present times are such that successful spiritual warfare is now mandatory if a real Christian is to survive since a two front spiritual war has opened up featuring one’s usual obvious enemies but also one’s “Christian” enemies.
A quarter century ago during the “good times” I predicted in my book Real Christianity that Christian persecution in America would increase dramatically in the not too distant future. This is what I wrote then:
Christians have largely rejected the work of their most distant ancestors, and have lost due respect for the truths they taught, and the One who taught them.
Will we continue to be so blind and arrogant that we place the blame for this fact on them, rather than ourselves? They are the ones who built the foundation. They are the ones who paid in blood to set the example which all successive generations were to follow. If their very immature spiritual juniors of the present continue in this vein of quiet mockery and religious complacency, the Unreal Church of the Conformed will grow even larger with greater determination against truth. In fact, the bloody persecution of real Christians will expand from the present hell-holes of this world and will soon go international. Every nation will take part. The greatest enemy of the present day community of called-out ones, however, are not modern Herods and Neros, but modern religionists intent on protecting their turf.
And who are these chief persecutors? Who are the new Christian Pharisees? In what form do they exist today? Who are the ones influenced by the same spirit that gave Saul of Tarsus his commission to fight the Church? Such deceived ones are much closer to all of us than we think. Through their resolute and unwavering stand for their chosen form of Christianity, they have allowed themselves to become the very image of the unreal.
Our greatest enemy wears virgin wool.[3]
We are now there at that very place I predicted would come and actually have been for a while. But it is only happening for the most part to real Christians. (The devil is simply not afraid of Unreal Christianity. Why should he be?) Also, it is actually a lot worse than most Christians realize and this is proved by so many Christians essentially throwing in the towel and subverting themselves to the enemy’s playbook with very little if no fight left at all. Again, without successful spiritual warfare one cannot survive.
Unreal Christians, to their credit or discredit depending on one’s perspective, have therefore accomplished an excellent balance of being socially acceptable by both their respective Christian communities and the sinful decadent secular culture growing more degenerate by the day, and are thus compromised enough that Christian persecution has not and will not come to most of them. In fact, most of them are actually the chief persecutors of the real guys, which was the same dynamic in the first century.
Funny how that works.
© 2023 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church © 2001 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[2] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
[3] Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church © 2001 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
A GREAT AWAKENING UPDATE: AUGUST 2023
It was 13 years ago today that I received from the Lord the revelation about the current Great Awakening.
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HOW IT HAPPENED
It was the end of August in the year 2010. I was writing a paper. I had written many papers that year. They averaged about eight to twelve pages in length. The paper I was writing at that time was about former revivals in America. Suddenly, I heard the Lord speak, very clearly. He said, “We are in the early stages of a national Great Awakening.”
To say the least, it was a tad shocking. As I have told you often over the twelve years of this site, dear readers, that relatively short paper I was writing then grew larger. I continued with it through the fall and winter and completed the work in April 2011. What I thought would be a short paper of 8-12 pages became a book, my second book, of about 340 pages, saturated with footnotes and including three appendixes. The existence of the book proved the Lord was telling me something significant, that something very great and powerful was in the works.
One might recall that during that time in late August of 2010, there was absolutely nothing on tap concerning any Great Awakening. All the ministers and other Christians I sought out had heard nothing about it. It wasn’t until maybe five years later or so that the phrase itself started being used. We started hearing the term “Great Awakening” more and more but usually through secular sources. Christianity in general in America never used it except occasionally to refer to the distant past. Christianity in general in America still doesn’t use the term for what is happening all around us. Christianity in general in America remains absolutely oblivious. Still.
But others have been working extremely hard. Others have been doing mass amounts of difficult research. There is far too much to recount here. A relatively small part of the country has indeed awakened but this small part remains for the most part non-Christian and secular.
Maybe this is for the best. Of course, the reason the people involved are having so much success is because they work independently. They don’t wait around for official sanction. They don’t wait around for donations. They use their own money, what little they may have. They just plow ahead and leave others behind.
This is what I have done in my research. I have worked extremely hard throughout my life starting a long time ago, decades before I received the revelation of our current Great Awakening in 2010. I did the best I could. I had to make a living like everyone else but I was also called by the Lord to a ministry that I was determined to fulfill and still am. Except very rarely here and there, I have never been funded. I simply used what I had and still do. Life would have been much easier to have never answered the Lord’s calling and simply dedicated myself to making money like most people do but it would have been entirely less rewarding.
Whoever takes that path, the path of serving mammon instead of serving God, always comes to a sad awakening at the end of life. Though the person might have fulfilled all the social conventions and is spoken well of for obeying the dictates of the culture, there is an emptiness that no amount of money or material goods could ever satisfy. Such people are often struck with the emptiness of it all. What was their life for? What did they actually accomplish?
Remember, the Lord clearly stated the following:
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” [Matthew 6:19-21]
Most Christians in America, however, have been falsely taught to not follow such a principle. That is why most Christians in America almost always have their sights set on this world and this life rather than on heaven and eternal life. It is why most refuse to work for the Lord.
This is why so much of Christianity, like most of the country, remains oblivious to what is actually happening right now. They know nothing of any Great Awakening nor do they know America is done. On December 31, 2022, in my post 2022 In Review: A Synopsis of My Work and a Look Toward a Challenging Future (a year in which wrote more pages for this site than any other calendar year, trying my best to warn and teach), I stated the following:
AMERICAN ICHABOD
We now live in different times. We are way past the “times that try men’s souls” phase. America is now a different country. Some say it is no longer a country. The America many of us knew is long gone, with the wind so to speak, and is essentially dead. The Great Awakening was sent by God to wake people up and in part keep the fall from happening but most have stayed fast asleep and prefer it that way. It is much easier than facing the facts, doing research to prove the facts, and standing up for the Lord and against the devil, his henchmen, and a degenerate culture. At the end of the day it is every man for himself in the sense that you are the only one you can control.
There has been a great incessant effort over at least the last twelve years to find the truth, know the truth, and tell the truth but has done little good for the most part. Half the country will never change it seems. It is lost in a strange neverland. Another large percentage continues to hang out among the yellow stripes and dead armadillos taking far too long to decide and merely bickering over things that don’t matter anymore. This leaves about a third, maybe. Maybe 30%. In reality, though, even among the committed, many have only so much time and resources. What remains is a core group of Americans, a small group, absolutely dedicated to the Lord Jesus and determined to serve Him, work with Him, fight the spiritual war with Him, and shed the Light of His true Gospel.
Call it the American Remnant. They know they MUST be salt and light. They know they MUST fill up their oil lamps and keep them filled. Much more effort toward this is required than in the past because so much has been saturated with evil and said evil causes a greater drain on one’s batteries. The country as a whole continually ceased living for God by degrees and refused to stand up and fight against encroaching evil which gave evil an increasingly greater foothold. America, a once great nation, went from spirit to flesh to sin to death.
Therefore, it is no longer about saving the good that once was but is now about resurrection and the remote possibility thereof. But unless you’re the Lord, no matter how much you try you can’t revive a dead guy. America has thus become a national Ichabod. The glory has departed. I said this would happen twenty-five years ago. I put it in writing…
I then added an excerpt from my first book, Real Christianity, in which I predicted what would eventually happen to this once great country. (I will add the excerpt later in this article.) At that time, in the mid-1990s, there was no indication that any such thing could ever happen. America was robust and thriving. In fact, right at that time (something I only learned the details of several years later), the people running things had already given up on the country and began dutifully extracting the wealth. This commenced in the autumn of 1997. I knew something really bad was going on then but didn’t have the details, Few did. The only reason a few people know now is due to some extremely diligent researchers among us who worked extremely hard to discover the information.
Suffice it to say that a Great Awakening was certainly in its early stages in late August thirteen years ago. At this point it has grown quite a bit and I believe will soon grow exponentially. More and more people are becoming aware. Sadly, however, the majority has stuck its head in the sand. The majority has been co-opted by an opposing narrative created to deceive, obfuscate, lead astray, and capture. One wonders how it is possible that a couple hundred million Americans can be so deceived as to latch on to such a ridiculous narrative. But this is actually nothing new. The majority is always oblivious. It’s actually a wonder anyone wakes up at all. This is what I wrote in my book in roughly 1997:
IS AMERICA A CHRISTIAN NATION?
The price of compromise has been great. The United States of America is supposedly a Christian nation. Polls constantly show that at least ninety percent of the population refers to itself as “Christian” of some form or another. Yet, there is blood in the streets; there is an increasing number of kids who can’t learn; much of the population has discarded the idea of monogamy and have become so hedonistic in their relations they could learn morality from the example of numerous animal species; and diseases are coming out of the woodwork and running far ahead of treatments.
The country is enormously successful monetarily, especially compared to other nations, yet we are up to our ears in debt, and we fight from paycheck to paycheck to keep our head above water. For a Christian nation, something’s not right; someone’s dropping the ball. Illumined by the inescapable fact that we have churches on every street corner and airwaves saturated with Christian television and radio (these terms are used very loosely), we are in ridiculous shape if we are indeed a Christian nation.
I submit that we are not a Christian nation, not because we don’t consider ourselves Christian, but simply because we do not uphold the teachings of Jesus or live according to them. Instead, we live according to the twisted teachings of impostors, rogues, spiritual eunuchs, and pretenders. Professional clergymen are wholly responsible for bringing Christianity in America to this point since they are the ones who are largely responsible for teaching and interpreting the words of the Lord. If they were doing God’s will from such lofty places of authority, shouldn’t the effects show up in society as a whole if our society is indeed Christian?
If the ruling clergy class has been mandated by Jesus to be the movers and shakers of His teachings in this country, it has apparently messed up. Whatever guilt they do carry they steadfastly refuse to acknowledge, which makes correction impossible. This is why God is removing them—they refuse to act wholly on His behalf. And if you don’t think this is true, that they’re becoming history, check the stats. Their numbers are dwindling in this country, while the numbers of “nobodies” who simply want to do God’s will are rising dramatically.
Will America be saved? No. But when certain people get out of the way and other people mature en masse, hundreds of thousands of hungry souls will find salvation, and America’s greatest great awakening will take place.
[Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church © 2001 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.]
WE MUST FOCUS ON THE LORD JESUS!
Regarding America and American Christianity in 2023,
Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not be partakers with them; for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light (for the fruit of the Light consists in all goodness and righteousness and truth), trying to learn what is pleasing to the Lord. Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them; for it is disgraceful even to speak of the things which are done by them in secret. But all things become visible when they are exposed by the light, for everything that becomes visible is light. For this reason it says,
“Awake, sleeper,
And arise from the dead,
And Christ will shine on you.” [Ephesians 5:6-14][1]
© 2023 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
STATING THE OBVIOUS
(Apparently not.) The obvious is a tough sell with the oblivious. Obvious proofs appear foreign to them. Facts are confusing. Truth provokes anger.
.
THE RECEPTION OF DECEPTION
It is much easier to deceive people than convince them they have been deceived.
And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. [2Corinthians 4:3-4]
It is hard to understand how the oblivious can willingly reject truth and willfully embrace deception. This is easier to comprehend when one considers the great power of conventionality and traditional mindsets coupled with peer pressure and one’s desire to fit in to society. Adding intellectual laziness, little or no actual historical knowledge, a general lack of discipline, narcissism/vanity/pride, no interest beyond the moment (presentism), and the absence of a spiritual backbone to stand up for the Lord Jesus and the picture comes more into focus. Such people become much more accepting of prevailing shallow social norms, including cultural decadence, and fear any personal deviations so they can better “assimilate” and avoid being perceived as standing apart or “marching to the beat of a different drummer.” Historically, the vast majority has always chosen this path. It is that which the Lord Jesus referred to as the “broad way:”
“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.” [Matthew 7:13-14]
FLESH AND SPIRIT
“It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.” [John 6:63]
Those who choose the broad way put all their confidence and assurance in what the New Testament identifies as the “flesh.” This term refers to the human body and human nature, that which is external, as opposed to the spirit. The Lord Jesus referred to these two several times and taught the clear distinction between each, instructing His disciples that one must not be governed by mere flesh and the lusts thereof but by the spirit, and that one must submit both to His leading.
Of course, due to the fallen sin nature of all human beings prior to being born again from above and obtaining a spiritual nature, living in the flesh will always result in personal sinful choices and opposition to God. Though some people living according to their fallen human nature may work hard at disciplining themselves and limiting their sinful choices they are still living according to a non-spiritual standard based on that which is, according to the Lord Jesus, “weak” and “profits nothing.” It is therefore impossible to please God while living according to the flesh, since one is not living by faith, which can only be accomplished by living in the spirit. This has never stopped people, however, from creating religions in which people continue living in the flesh according to mere human religious standards dictated by authoritarian leaders who eschew the necessity of a new spiritual birth.
The following Scriptural warning thus also applies to the majority of that which is referred to as “Christianity,” that which I term Unreal Christianity:
Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the false circumcision; for we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh… [Philippians 3:2-3]
Those who choose the broad way do so not only because it is far easier than the correct path—the narrow way—but also because they prefer the flesh to the spirit. In New Testament terms this means relying on one’s own carnal abilities and fallen human nature and that of others. They prefer groupthink, that which seeks agreement at all costs, though always results in irrational dysfunction. They simply cannot handle independent thought which might lead them to question unproven and contrived consensus narratives and otherwise obvious deceptions (which the Lord warned would lead to destruction). Rather than take their comfort in the Lord, the people who choose the broad way take comfort in one another and follow their own accepted and chosen flawed leaders. Such people are much more comfortable surrounded by those who believe the same and adhere to the same general social construct and are thus reassured, incorrectly, that so many people, the majority they meld with, can’t possibly be wrong.
Such superficial social constructs are ubiquitous and may appear in several forms. Most are well aware of the secular variety but these also include the religious realm, which include the “Christian” realm, which feature offshoot Christian social constructs including major traditional denominations. These are merely based on real Christianity, in various limited arrangements, and which attempt to make real Christianity more palatable and acceptable (easy), to gain a larger market share and influence (allow for large masses), which effectively more closely resembles the “broad way” the Lord Jesus warned us about…
Thus, many Christian bodies et al, existing as yet another form of digression to divert one from the one narrow way the Lord Jesus taught must be followed if one is to gain salvation and eternal life, often mimic the spiritually dead secular culture and its many spinoffs and cults thereof. This includes, of course, the ever-present and powerful contemporary deception cult of these times, the Cult of Woke, which was created by the agenda masters to help counteract and head off the current Great Awakening. It exists essentially as an anti-awake and anti-aware sleep-fest designed to be a reactionary antichrist insurgency driving decadence and ignorance against the massive emerging truth and spiritual freedom movement of our national American Great Awakening which began at least thirteen years ago.
This irrational, illogical cult is promoted primarily by the zombifying corporate television mass media and big tech social media firms (which are supported by many Christians that may not perceive the overall agenda) by way of universal 1984-style telescreens of every size dominated by agenda-based platforms utilizing superficial collectivist dictums, controlling consensus narratives, and censorship of truth. Sadly, this strange but trendy belief system has fully captured the willing minds of multiple millions in America to the tune of possibly half the country which would otherwise stand a good chance of being awakened by the obvious.
This, again, includes Christians and explains the many woke churches. The Lord Jesus taught that one must either accept Him and His full teachings or not at all which also explains why so many “Christians” are deceived and become more deceived going forward. Such slumber-induced deception also occurs for the most part due to an inability or refusal to properly identify one’s greatest threat—that of pure unadulterated masquerading evil—and its thoughtless proponents are even brainwashed to unknowingly embrace an ancient folly:
Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil;
Who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness;
Who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!
Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes
And clever in their own sight! [Isaiah 5:20-21]
The deceived ones living in their dream world therefore lose their ability to perceive wickedness guised in holiness (Matthew 23:27), cannot comprehend wolves in sheep’s clothing (Matthew 7:15), and fail to recognize Satan appearing as an angel of light (2Corinthians 11:14). This results in a flippant disregard of unseen evil—a dismissal of malevolent spiritual reality—and amounts to actually joining it, completely unaware of its true nature and hidden proponents. It also obviously disallows one’s vital defense against evil as portrayed in the following:
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. [Ephesians 6:12-13]
ENTER THE KINGDOM
The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous runs into it and is safe. [Proverbs 18:10]
Remember, there is only one Community of the Lord—the one the Lord Jesus founded in the very beginning—which, unlike various Christian bodies, includes ALL the teachings of the Lord and in which the Lord Jesus and no other is the principal Instructor and personage and His full curriculum the focal point, not just a portion of His teachings or the emphasis on a few, with the following two commandments as the greatest:
“‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.” [Matthew 22:37-40]
These commandments are not honored, obeyed, and practiced outside the Lord’s Kingdom, which is a purely spiritual Kingdom, and is not of this world. Consequently, His Community needs no heavy-handed hierarchies, dictating religious authoritarians, and extra-Biblical enforcement doctrines to make it work and hold it together, as in the counterfeit Christian kingdoms, because the Lord Jesus makes it all work through His unconditional love, His presiding authority, His full curriculum, and His Holy Spirit. His followers make it work by trusting and obeying Him, working with Him and each other, and applying His Word.
Again, counterfeit Christian social constructs merely mimic the dead culture’s means and social mores instead of submitting fully to the Lord Jesus and granting Him complete authority, which would thereby establish His methods and measures. But this otherwise obvious spiritual solution is disdained as it portends a loss of religious control and status, resultant material benefits, and personal independence (which includes walking in the flesh). The following pretty much sums it up:
“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.” [Matthew 6:24]
THEY WILL BELIEVE ANY LIE—AND DEFEND IT
Also, to maintain such a low common denominator social construct, the committed advocates of such make anyone who differs from said construct pay, and pay dearly, for any apparent personal boldness and oppositional independence. Those who, without thinking and sans research, made the commitment and toed the mark and became just another nameless and faceless brick in the wall feel that those who don’t fully commit and become a fellow brick (a brainwashed brick), or do but then later question something about it, must have a problem with their perfect collective construct. They do not appreciate seeing that to which they invested in and gave their lives held in perceived low regard. In this they attempt to nip independent thought in the bud and set an example for any others so inclined.
And not stopping there, they become chief persecutors manifesting their hate and anger against those they persecute and discriminate against. Sound familiar? They will go so far as to destroy a person and his or her reputation and make it virtually impossible to continue living within such a construct unless that person apologizes and does penance, often to a grossly degrading degree, in order to continue partaking of the good there, which usually involves economic good and a better material life (Matthew 6:24), but primarily involves being accepted as a member in good standing. These submissive and submitted ones who care more about their social credit score than their place in God, by succumbing to the hive mind, thereby avoid being subjected to the infamous “third degree” of their overlords (their betters) and no longer have to watch their backs among their associates or worry about their wrath. They become fully conformed cult fellows having mastered doing all they are told and believing all they are taught.
Many of these people, likely most, unfortunately, by willingly subjecting themselves to such demeaning degradation and deception are never the same. They learn to toe the mark as they should and never again question anything in order to avoid the thought police, having their conscience seared with a hot iron (1Timothy 4:2). People do this because:
(1) They become greatly fearful; they give in to fear. They have no courage to walk in faith with the Lord.
(2) They don’t have enough self-confidence or knowledge to maintain an independent position or defend it (that which allows for additional information and truth) against the domineering crowd staring them down and threatening their social standing if they don’t conform.
(3) They do not want to appear as a deviant. They can’t handle the thought of being a social outcast.
The much better otherwise obvious course of action would be to get away from such a compromised band of mockers post haste as soon as possible. But most don’t. They’re too willingly unwise. They’re too willingly unwilling. Truth would assist their escape and make them free but obvious truth escapes them.
THE DOUBLE DOWN PRINCIPLE
Such choices thus eventuate in an overall lack of awareness, a dearth of knowledge, and common apathy. When these truths are revealed to them, through whatever means, it is not appreciated. In general, people don’t like it when they discover their ignorance. They don’t like it when their lack of knowledge is exposed. They don’t like it when their level of understanding is challenged. They don’t like it when what they believe to be true is proven to be false. They don’t like it when so much of what they believe is nothing more than the end result of successful propaganda campaigns. In the realm of religion such propaganda is often mere indoctrination and people don’t like having their belief systems challenged or exposed as not only incorrect but largely baseless. It throws them off. It rocks their boat. It craters their foundation.
Hence, the double down. Rather than calmly putting their ignorance, accepted knowledge quotient, level of understanding, concept of truth, personal religious beliefs, world view, and cult indoctrination TO THE TEST, they instead double down and consider any and all opposition as fighting words. This means ignorance is truly bliss but only until such a one’s ignorance is revealed. It is then that bliss often becomes anger. Quickly. And by doubling down against correction their ignorance becomes all the more set in concrete. Again, it is much easier to deceive people than convince them they have been deceived.
WHY CERTAIN PEOPLE INSTANTLY HATED THE LORD JESUS
But the Pharisees went out and conspired against Him, as to how they might destroy Him. [Matthew 12:14]
It mattered not that He did everything He could to not tick people off; many got ticked off anyway. For the Lord, the anger He aroused in others by His perfect teachings was not intentional, not usually anyway, but merely the byproduct of exposing that which was incorrect by teaching that which IS correct. Those that had already figured everything out, knew it all, constructed and/or supported a fake religion or cult and built their lives on such sand foundations were bound to clash with the Rock who actually did know it all.
And because such ignorant virtue-signaling hypocrites walked around in great fleshly pride while the Lord Jesus presented Himself as a humble servant, it made it all the more infuriating. It proved their sense of superiority had no actual place except in an external sense because one cannot be prideful if one is incorrect, especially in the religious realm, so whoever inadvertently exposes one to be incorrect must be made to pay. If, on the other hand, through hearing the preaching of the Gospel, one perceives himself as incorrect, and especially an incorrect sinner, and wants to be freed from his sinful condition, he will repent and do his best to get right with the Lord and be reconciled to Him. However, if one insists he and his religious social construct are superior to the Lord and refuses to acknowledge his sin and repent then the Lord must be made to pay.
To repeat these choices:
(1) One will recognize himself as a sinner in need of a Savior and repent properly and correctly which amounts to throwing himself upon an altar of repentance and destroying his lower temporary life within the realm of fallen humanity (that which Scripture states is one’s initial crucifying of the flesh), in order to gain salvation and therefore preserve his spiritual eternal life (one must be born again according to the Lord’s instructions), OR
(2) One will advocate for and participate in crucifying the Lord.
Hence, again, those who clash with truth and perceive the Lord’s teachings as fighting words reveal themselves as the unrepentant indoctrinated who cannot be reached by stating the obvious.
In the Lord’s time, such people obviously consisted of those within the primary Israelite religious parties as stated in the gospels and New Testament literature. That the religious elite of these parties were brainwashed is obviously evident and is one thing (and some or many of them were demon possessed). Unfortunately, it is also evident and another thing that the elite had religiously indoctrinated many if not most of the Israelite people which in part served to effectively keep as many Israelites as possible from receiving the Gospel. They did this primarily using fear and control tactics. Many Israelites were thus forever fearful they would, (1) be put out of the synagogue, (2) lose their place in society, and (3) suffer financial ruin. Such was the power the religious elites held. It has been true ever since. Sound familiar?
WHY CERTAIN PEOPLE INSTANTLY LOVED THE LORD JESUS
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Do not be carried away by varied and strange teachings. [Hebrews 13:8]
“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” [Matthew 11:28-30]
One will notice that those who appreciated the Lord Jesus and became His followers back in His time were most often humble and self-effacing. In essence, they were teachable. They had no problem having their ignorance and lack of knowledge pointed out because they were already well aware of it and wanted change for the better. They also knew they were sinners (though not necessarily by that term), in violation of their conscience, and burdened by shame, and wanted this to change also. However, interestingly enough, they were most often better informed and equipped than the unrepentant who falsely deemed themselves superior. They also already knew they were victims of false teachings or lack of teaching and wanted to be taught the truth. Though looked down upon they refused to do as so many others did, those who lived their lives by simply going along to get along. Those who loved the Lord had no regard for such low common denominator kindergarten knowledge levels—a child’s way of thinking—that so many adults incorporated without any thinking. Hence, those who followed the Lord were by and large critical thinkers. They wanted to know. By rejecting society’s false notions and its embraced general ignorance they were willing to be rejected by society in order to be accepted by the Lord. They loved truth.
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” [John 14:6]
“If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” [John 8:31-32]
In addition, new believers noticed right off that the bigwigs, both secular and religious, had rejected Jesus from the get go and, again, they personally identified with such rejection. Most of His followers were in some way solitary social misfits that somehow fit perfectly in the Lord’s band of spiritual brothers and sisters. When they found the Lord (when He found them), their lives suddenly made sense. Therefore, it was relatively easy for such people to put their acquired knowledge and level of truth to the test because whatever they had possessed to that point never got them much in life anyway. And they were also ready and willing to jettison anything that clashed with the Lord’s curriculum or stood in opposition against Him, including incorrect interpretations of His teachings, false doctrines, aberrant cultural traditions, fabricated social narratives and programming, religious indoctrination, or societal status:
For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, so that no man may boast before God. But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, so that, just as it is written, “Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord.” [1Corinthians 1:26-31]
Those original followers of Jesus were serious disciples-to-be who developed into mature effective disciples in good standing and were part of those who turned the then known world upside down (Acts 17:6). They were a major part of the very first Great Awakening. They accepted their callings with joy. They took what the Lord gave them and ran with it. They fought the good fight of faith. They were excellent witnesses. They effected great spiritual change for the better, allowing the Lord to work through them shedding His Light everywhere.
Most of all, they proclaimed incessantly from the housetops and high hills that the Lord Jesus was not only the long prophesied Anointed One, the Messiah—Yehoshua HaMashiach—and was not only our Good Shepherd, and was not only our only Savior, and was not only the Son of God, but was and is also God Himself—the Creator of the Universe—something the Lord Jesus had proved repeatedly during His ministry for all who had eyes to see.
And just as their Lord had done so brilliantly, our first-century forebears spent the rest of their lives STATING THE OBVIOUS.
And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up; and as was His custom, He entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, and stood up to read. And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He opened the book and found the place where it was written,
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,
Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor.
He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives,
And recovery of sight to the blind,
To set free those who are oppressed,
To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.”
And He closed the book, gave it back to the attendant and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on Him.
And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” [Luke 4:16-21] [1]
© 2023 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE LORD IS A WARRIOR
Original first-century Christianity was known for the spiritual power of the apostles and early disciples. They had a powerful Leader.
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LOVE INCARNATE
“You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.” [Acts 10:38]
There has never been any greater or stronger Man in all of history than the Lord Jesus. In the Hebrew language He is Yehoshua HaMashiach. The definition of His Name contains the Tetragrammaton—YHWH-Savior, or Yahweh sets free. And this is what He came to accomplish, to save people and free them from the evil power of sin and bless them with abundant life.
He is the Messiah, the Anointed One. No one was ever more powerfully anointed. He was both a man’s Man and a tender compassionate Man who loved and cared for others. He was a Leader of very strong men, men with independent minds and powerful bearing. He would build on their natural strength and transform them into stouthearted spiritual men, the greatest men, men unafraid to act, bold men willing to take the Good News into every hell hole of the nation and rescue those to be saved and redeemed among the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
They would not need just His training though. As a Coach and Mentor He would show them the ropes and teach them all they needed, but He must also impart a greater strength made possible only by His powerful Holy Spirit. In this He would be a spiritual Father imparting His indwelling Spirit and giving them both a personal strength of mind and manner as well as a spiritual strength far greater than that of dark sinister forces and demon-possessed rulers.
The Lord’s men must be trained and empowered to do spiritual battle against mighty spiritual enemies. They would have to take on the devil, the world, and their flesh and deal properly with the flesh of others. They must be powerfully equipped to do so.
They were. He saw to it. That’s what Pentecost was all about. Once Pentecost happened His people were off to the races. The evidence of their success is historically obvious and evident: They turned the world upside down. They upset the normal business-as-usual status quo order in a way no group of people had ever done. It was, of course, an extension of the Lord’s earth-shaking ministry as He continued working with them.
The Lord’s first intention was to set people free from slavery to sin, demonic influence, and evil authoritarians who used people as mere cattle. His success in this objective was off the charts.
THE WORLD, THE FLESH, AND THE DEVIL
Yet here we are in the present, living in a world far more wicked than that world of two thousand years ago. There are far more people needing salvation and spiritual freedom. Followers of the Lord Jesus must therefore be just as spiritually equipped as His original apostles and the first-century Community of believers in order to be as successful.
But sadly, American Christians in general have largely rejected the only means by which to do this and have substituted non-spiritual alternatives that do nothing to address our greatest need, that of winning spiritual victories and defeating spiritual enemies. This must change.
For starters, Christians will never be able to defeat the strong influence and temptation of this fallen world unless they effectively leave it, exactly as the Lord and His disciples taught.
“Do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. [James 4:4]
Exiting the “world” was clearly illustrated in the story of the Exodus. Egypt is a type of the world and the first major thing the Israelites were commanded to do when the time came was get out. This they did, en masse, in the dramatic event we call the Exodus. Their exit was sealed once they walked through the divided Red Sea on dry ground to the other side and watched as the sea came crashing back together as a slamming door. There would be no going back and that’s how it should be for all believers.
Then, from that point forward throughout the Sinai wanderings, the Lord did His best to get all the Egypt out of them but was unsuccessful with that first generation and it paid an eternal price. In our day, many Christians, a possible majority, have done the same. They have compromised their walk and made peace with a sinful world rather than flee as commanded. Having never left Egypt in their hearts nor allowed the Lord to get it out of them, they instead joined the equivalent of Pharaoh’s kingdom with no remorse. Such soft pretenders are filled instead with the spirit of the fallen culture. They are as worldly as the day is long and have no understanding or concern of the penalty which awaits. They will die out in the Sinai. They will never enter the Promised Land. Their choice disqualifies them from the following:
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; for you once were not a people, but now you are the people of God; you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. [1Peter 2:9-10]
Christians will also never be able to defeat the devil unless and until they can defeat their own flesh. Remember, the Lord was not shy in His instructions regarding this—He effectively stated we must crucify the flesh. He said we cannot properly follow Him unless we do so while carrying our cross. The cross is a constant reminder that our flesh must be defeated, it must be put down, and it must be ever-crucified. He showed us how to do it.
Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. [Galatians 5:24]
Prior to ministry, as a manual worker, the Lord was an incredibly strong and dynamic Man, working long and hard each day out in the elements, laboring as a skilled builder and carpenter. His skin was bronzed and tanned by the sun. He was Man of rippling tendon and sinew and muscle. And yet when the time came to begin His ministry, His purpose for being here, He gave it all up over the course of a 40 day fast. He transferred His natural strength, suited to His prior purpose, for spiritual strength suited to His new purpose. He became thin and likely somewhat drawn but only in the natural. In the Spirit he was heaving 500 pound boulders like baseballs. The fasting never stopped, of course, though He practiced it at intervals. Scripture does not say how far He went in this regard after His initial fast but along with mighty ongoing prayer which often came forth in solitary all night prayer meetings, fasting was an overall part of His spiritual lifestyle. And the results were historic (understatement alert).
Unless American Christians in general also embrace the spiritual discipleship and dynamic ministry of the Lord and His originals they may just as well quit altogether because their efforts are largely worthless. Such amounts to nothing more than going through religious motions in the natural, in the flesh that should otherwise be defeated and crucified. In fact, their flesh is for the most part coddled and embraced. Thus, many Christians of whatever stripe have no means to defeat spiritual enemies.
This denotes, of course, that their spiritual enemies are defeating them. It is why so much has been lost. It is why America has fallen. American Christians in general refuse to get equipped to fight. Most won’t even start the program. They are content to play church while everything goes to hell around them. They refuse to engage.
But when they are actually faced with the enemy—when he comes to their town, to their church, or to their very home—they will need to engage and want to engage but will be unable. It will be too late. They will have no means with which to fight. They had previously rejected spiritual weaponry and chose powerless religion as a worthless substitute. They made no plans for any such enemy assault upon themselves. They never prepared. Their wimpy defensive posture renders them defenseless.
Why? Here’s why: The Lord Jesus created a dynamic spiritual army, one that goes on the offensive, is proactive, and attacks the gates of hell. He thus provided no armor for our backside. However, once Christians accept living in an anti-spiritual-fight mode and at best adopt a purely defensive posture, withdrawing from the fight instead of going on the offensive, they will soon find themselves unable to defend anything. The devil will have a field day. Sound familiar?
THE NEW TESTAMENT MODEL
It could all be so much different. Real Christians serve a very powerful King. There is nothing He cannot do. His spiritual enemies greatly fear Him. They each know He has the means to destroy them. He can obliterate them and make them pay. He can send demons to the abyss. Yet the Lord has decided to make things interesting by not fighting from the advantage of heaven only but also through the veil of humanity. He defeated the devil as a Man, as a Human Being. But before that He had already defeated the world and illustrated the process of defeating one’s sinful flesh. His flesh was never sinful so He never had to defeat it but He illustrated what it takes to do so.
His sinlessness, of course, made Him the perfect and only candidate to be the Sacrifice Lamb who would take away the sin of the world but it took extremely great courage and powerful determination to face the cross. No human being can ever know how difficult it was for Him. No one can possibly relate. But He was willing to face the cross in part to give His people the means to defeat spiritual enemies also. Sadly and inexplicably, however, the majority of Christians in the world have largely wasted the Lord’s great sacrifice by never appropriating this spiritual power. The likely culprit is sinful flesh unwilling to die. Therefore, if one wants to fight against and defeat spiritual enemies one will never be able to do so until one defeats one’s own flesh. Sinful flesh is a potent enemy and does not go down easy.
As a test case imagine the following scenario: On a Monday morning, when a never or rarely fasting Christian decides to do a simple half day fast from midnight to noon on Tuesday, he will suddenly likely want to head to the grocery store and load up as if a natural disaster is coming and then chow down even possibly unto the midnight hour “in preparation” as if he’s on death row and it’s his last meal. Then when Tuesday comes he spends the longest and most dreadful few hours of his life having no idea how he will ever get through such a difficult and trying procedure.
Of course, if this person, on Monday, never thought about fasting and never intended to fast on Tuesday, then skipped breakfast on Tuesday morning for any reason other than spiritual, it would be no big deal, the morning would fly by, and he would probably never even be hungry.
This is how the flesh operates.
As long as it’s in control and thoroughly satiated the flesh will be relaxed and happy and even sassy and won’t go nuts and fight back having no need to. But the flesh WILL go nuts and fight back when:
(1) Its authority is challenged
(2) Its comfort level is threatened
(3) Spiritual means are suggested and are intended to be applied
(4) It’s confronted with its greatest dread—conviction of sin
Sinful flesh hates being reminded of what it is and equally hates and fears the idea of any opposition toward sin and especially fears and hates the process of repentance. It also hates the entire idea of the Gospel. Again, the flesh is a potent spiritual enemy.
Now, for a positive example made for those who desire to make the correct application and gain victory over sinful flesh, here’s a quick illustration you won’t find anywhere else of what overcoming the flesh looks like:
In the movie The Wizard of Oz, the wicked witch of the west (who is worse than the wicked witch of the east), at her very worst and most evil represents the flesh in its greatest strength (“I’ll get you, my pretty!”).
The wicked witch of the west frantically crying out while being evaporated toward nothingness is the flesh being fought against and overcome (“I’m melting! Melting!”).
The wicked witch of the east under a house with her stockinged feet sticking out and toes curled up is the flesh defeated. Likewise, the wicked witch of the west, after she was reduced to a flat steaming heap of black witch apparel, is the flesh defeated.
THE OLD TESTAMENT MODEL
When one walked in the fenced tabernacle enclosure, the first structure seen was the Altar of Sacrifice. This represents Repentance. It entails total destruction, death, and consummation by fire.
The next structure immediately after this was the Brazen Laver. It was where the priests washed after making sacrifice. It perfectly represents Water Baptism.
Right after this was the opening to the Tabernacle itself. This represents the infilling of the Holy Spirit. Before one could do the work required within the Holy Place (the first section of the tent), he had to be equipped and qualified. In the Holy Place was the large seven-branched Golden Lampstand, the Table of the Bread of the Presence (KJV: shewbread), and the Altar of Incense. Each of these has a spiritual meaning and represents the specific work of the Lord’s Community post Pentecost.
It is why the apostle Peter used the following exact words at the end of his initial message, the very first of the Church. In it, he portrayed the greatness of the Lord and His unprecedented accomplishment on the cross on our behalf. He explained how the Lord defeated His spiritual enemies and why His followers must follow in His footsteps. And He announced the arrival of the Promise, which was on full display that very morning, moments before, when the Upper Room was filled with the presence of the Lord and in which each person there was also filled and became spiritual warriors.
The greatest of Warriors won the greatest of victories and would pass on the spiritual means to do the same for whosoever was willing from that point forward. Remember, every single real member of the Lord’s Community—His Kingdom—is a spiritual priest. And just as it was in the Old Testament when only priests could enter the tabernacle and minister (an allegorical type and shadow of New Covenant ministry), each spiritual priest must also be qualified to enter the Lord’s spiritual tabernacle and minister (listed in four parts in the following passage). And each priest of the Lord is subject to the only King and High Priest and reveres His holy Name.
He is the Door through which one enters the Holy Place—the Lord Jesus Messiah:
“Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ—this Jesus whom you crucified.” Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren, what shall we do?”
Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.”
And with many other words he solemnly testified and kept on exhorting them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation!” So then, those who had received his word were baptized; and that day there were added about three thousand souls. They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. [Acts 2:36-42][1]
© 2023 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
2022 IN REVIEW: A SYNOPSIS OF MY WORK AND A LOOK TOWARD A CHALLENGING FUTURE
I hit the ground running in January 2022. It was a great start to my most productive year yet. And now, in these last hours of the calendar year, I will end with post #80.
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TO MY FAITHFUL READERS
Thank you for your spiritual support. I appreciate each of you taking this annual trip with me. A writer is not much without faithful readers. You have given me much of your time in reading and also added much with your valued comments.
It has now been twelve calendar years. I started this site on May 10, 2011. I also hit the ground running then and wrote 64 posts in less than eight months. By May of 2012 at the one year mark my total posts had grown to over 100. My total posts to date are right at 800 and exceed 2500 pages. I consider this quite a consistent accomplishment and proves my faithfulness to the work the Lord has given me to do though what I do here is only part of my overall work. Also, a great many of these posts required much research, multiple drafts and edits, and contain spiritually mature, sound Biblically-based and topical material which many Christians either cannot handle or don’t care for. This limits potential readership by a large margin.
Though the last twelve years have been good overall, for which I am most thankful, there were also several extremely challenging times. 2022 was one of those. We all go through such. Like many of you, though, I stayed faithful throughout my travels over the years and kept up my work regardless of circumstances.
Regarding my site, I have used the same WordPress Theme since the beginning. It’s old and outdated and whatever but still works for me. Some of you may recall the notice I put on some of my posts asking you to please not read my posts at the WordPress Reader but at my site. I work hard at trying to present the best posts I can (though my Theme will no longer allow me to justify the text) and the WP Reader does a very bad job of reflecting my work. So I ask again, please read my stuff at my site. On the far lower left is a widget containing your comments and additional material. There is also a long list of my current posts on the left. If new to the site please review. I also post my books for sale in the left hand column. At the top is access to all my posts.
Though I have no means of receiving funding on my site I do ask for your prayers toward an increase in income. There is much I need to do but have limited resources. This year was especially challenging in that area. Your prayers are greatly appreciated. Thank you.
AMERICAN ICHABOD
We now live in different times. We are way past the “times that try men’s souls” phase. America is now a different country. Some say it is no longer a country. The America many of us knew is long gone, with the wind so to speak, and is essentially dead. The Great Awakening was sent by God to wake people up and in part keep the fall from happening but most have stayed fast asleep and prefer it that way. It is much easier than facing the facts, doing research to prove the facts, and standing up for the Lord and against the devil, his henchmen, and a degenerate culture. At the end of the day it is every man for himself in the sense that you are the only one you can control.
There has been a great incessant effort over at least the last twelve years to find the truth, know the truth, and tell the truth but has done little good for the most part. Half the country will never change it seems. It is lost in a strange neverland. Another large percentage continues to hang out among the yellow stripes and dead armadillos taking far too long to decide and merely bickering over things that don’t matter anymore. This leaves about a third, maybe. Maybe 30%. In reality, though, even among the committed, many have only so much time and resources. What remains is a core group of Americans, a small group, absolutely dedicated to the Lord Jesus and determined to serve Him, work with Him, fight the spiritual war with Him, and shed the Light of His true Gospel.
Call it the American Remnant. They know they MUST be salt and light. They know they MUST fill up their oil lamps and keep them filled. Much more effort toward this is required than in the past because so much has been saturated with evil and said evil causes a greater drain on one’s batteries. The country as a whole continually ceased living for God by degrees and refused to stand up and fight against encroaching evil which gave evil an increasingly greater foothold. America, a once great nation, went from spirit to flesh to sin to death.
Therefore, it is no longer about saving the good that once was but is now about resurrection and the remote possibility thereof. But unless you’re the Lord, no matter how much you try you can’t revive a dead guy. America has thus become a national Ichabod. The glory has departed. I said this would happen twenty-five years ago. I put it in writing:
IS AMERICA A CHRISTIAN NATION?
The price of compromise has been great. The United States of America is supposedly a Christian nation. Polls constantly show that at least ninety percent of the population refers to itself as “Christian” of some form or another. Yet, there is blood in the streets; there is an increasing number of kids who can’t learn; much of the population has discarded the idea of monogamy and have become so hedonistic in their relations they could learn morality from the example of numerous animal species; and diseases are coming out of the woodwork and running far ahead of treatments.
The country is enormously successful monetarily, especially compared to other nations, yet we are up to our ears in debt, and we fight from paycheck to paycheck to keep our head above water. For a Christian nation, something’s not right; someone’s dropping the ball. Illumined by the inescapable fact that we have churches on every street corner and airwaves saturated with Christian television and radio (these terms are used very loosely), we are in ridiculous shape if we are indeed a Christian nation.
I submit that we are not a Christian nation, not because we don’t consider ourselves Christian, but simply because we do not uphold the teachings of Jesus or live according to them. Instead, we live according to the twisted teachings of impostors, rogues, spiritual eunuchs, and pretenders. Professional clergymen are wholly responsible for bringing Christianity in America to this point since they are the ones who are largely responsible for teaching and interpreting the words of the Lord. If they were doing God’s will from such lofty places of authority, shouldn’t the effects show up in society as a whole if our society is indeed Christian?
If the ruling clergy class has been mandated by Jesus to be the movers and shakers of His teachings in this country, it has apparently messed up. Whatever guilt they do carry they steadfastly refuse to acknowledge, which makes correction impossible. This is why God is removing them—they refuse to act wholly on His behalf. And if you don’t think this is true, that they’re becoming history, check the stats. Their numbers are dwindling in this country, while the numbers of “nobodies” who simply want to do God’s will are rising dramatically.
Will America be saved? No. But when certain people get out of the way and other people mature en masse, hundreds of thousands of hungry souls will find salvation, and America’s greatest great awakening will take place. [Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church ©2001 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.]
To refresh your memory regarding Ichabod:
Now his daughter-in-law, Phinehas’s wife, was pregnant and about to give birth; and when she heard the news that the ark of God was taken and that her father-in-law and her husband had died, she kneeled down and gave birth, for her pains came upon her. And about the time of her death the women who stood by her said to her, “Do not be afraid, for you have given birth to a son.” But she did not answer or pay attention. And she called the boy Ichabod, saying, “The glory has departed from Israel,” because the ark of God was taken and because of her father-in-law and her husband. She said, “The glory has departed from Israel, for the ark of God was taken.” [1Samuel 4:19-22]
You will become more cognizant of this in the coming year. Though most will never see spiritually, of course, those who grow closer to the Lord will gain greater spiritual eyesight and see things they never saw before. And it will all make sense. The Lord needs us to have spiritual eyes and ears. Our work with Him is impossible otherwise.
World War is now upon us. Great division is here. Corruption has erupted. We have a Christian Tower of Babel. The entities which once served to act as checks and balances have become derelict in their duty. The forces of Antichrist have gained great ground. The only hope now is ongoing unrelenting victorious spiritual warfare.
I suggested back in March the following: In light of what is coming, every church in America should be having 24 hour daily prayer meetings with all members on their faces before God. That has not happened. In fact, Christians in general have become even more lackadaisical. Like the other sellouts in control in secular realms, most Christian “leaders” in control have also sold out. And like the others, these Christians, a majority, have also done a great job of covering their great sins. Most Christian activity in America is now largely simply going through the motions with no true spiritual motivation toward great gains and big victories. Most churches and ministries are purely institutional status quo outfits intent on doing what they’ve always done, lost in greater ineffectiveness and bound by money and dead tradition. The majority of churches and church “leaders” are not living in the spirit but walking in the flesh. For these, again, the majority, there is no hope of saving the good or of revival. That leaves only resurrection. And the odds are greatly against that.
THE ALWAYS EVERY TIME SOLUTION
So what to do? As always, I suggest seeking the Lord Jesus. More than you ever have before. I suggest, again, that we thoroughly immerse ourselves in the Book of Acts. This historical account teaches us what the greatest Christian generation did, how astoundingly successful they were, and exactly what we must do to be like them and have the spiritual success they had.
I will warn you in advance, though, those of you who may not know, that you will get stiff resistance in doing this. The world and culture will fight you every step of the way as will the devil and his minions. The greatest fight, however, will be with Unreal Christianity and the flesh, both of which hate and reject what is presented in the Acts of the Apostles. Though our spirits cry out for salvation and freedom and love and joy and peace and spiritual victory, our flesh knows all those things come with a price and many simply won’t pay it. They would rather find easy counterfeit replacements to assuage their conscience and fool themselves into believing they’re obeying God or are right with God.
Regarding our immediate future, then, I say turn to the Lord Jesus all the more. He is the only one we ever had a chance with anyway though many discover this only after eliminating everything else after seeing that all of it fails to deliver.
2023 will thus be the worst of times and the best of times at the same time. You will continue to see evil things you never thought you would see and wonder how in the world we came to this. Some of you will also see the increasing miraculous happenings of the Kingdom of God. The Great Awakening will continue and force the enemy’s hand. The enemy will overact and accelerate his efforts. The Lord will bring victory where He can based on our compliance with His will.
Choose wisely.
WALK IN THE SPIRIT
“The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” [Matthew 26:41]
“That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” [John 3:6]
“It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.” [John 6:63]
For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God. [Romans 8:5-8]
So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh—for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. [Romans 8:12-14]
And you brethren, like Isaac, are children of promise. But as at that time he who was born according to the flesh persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit, so it is now also. [Galatians 4:28-29]
But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law. [Galatians 5:16-18]
For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. [Galatians 6:8]
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. [Ephesians 6:12]
For the gospel has for this purpose been preached even to those who are dead, that though they are judged in the flesh as men, they may live in the spirit according to the will of God. [1Peter 4:6][1]
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
A TRIBUTE TO THE DEDICATED ONES WHO WORK IN OBSCURITY (AND A STORY OF INTERCESSORY PRAYER)
There are dedicated Christians who go about their effective work for God in total anonymity. This post is about their ministries.
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They move mountains. They assist the Lord in maintaining lives and relationships. They do their work in secret. They are not in it for recognition or glory. They know that such an attitude would stymie their effectiveness. These are people who go about their spiritual work in such great dedication that they always plow ahead regardless of circumstances. They know the people they help need them and their work and are dependent upon them whether they know them, acknowledge them, appreciate them, or are even aware of what they do and have done. Recall the Lord’s teaching:
“When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.” [Matthew 6:5-6][1]
How many of us have been blessed by such selfless people and don’t even know who they are?
THE REMARKABLE POWER OF GOD
I remember a prayer story from my early days as a new Christian. I’ll get to that later. I was just a rookie but was absolutely enthralled at the prospect of God’s spiritual power working through human beings. In my short time to that point as a new believer I had already seen and experienced the undeniable outworking of His power. The greatest thing I saw at that early date was the magnificent transformation of a couple I knew who were instrumental in my salvation. What had happened to them?
I heard the stories. These were people I respected in my young life, people I hung around with. I hadn’t seen them in a short while but heard they had gone off the deep end. Something about a church. They had joined a church? I could hardly believe the reports. The next time I saw them, in a visit to my apartment, I saw two different people. I noticed right away that they were filled with some kind of happiness and energy. They were exuberant, smiling. It wasn’t due to the usual when a friend greets a friend. Something was decidedly different. Then, after a while, they began trying to explain what had happened to them. And they began witnessing. My great mood suddenly vanished…
The meeting didn’t end well. I basically told them to stop, to back off, or leave. They grew sad. And they left. Now, if this was just some sort of shallow sales job the way it is with some of those notorious witnessers who try to convince a person of the validity of their religious tenets it would have been different. Those kinds of people have no power with God. They thus have no real spiritual love. They essentially subsist on intellectual arguments or quote particular Scriptures to set the tone for a necessary choice to be made. They do this through stating their superior position juxtaposed with the lower position of the witnessee who stands in need due to his inferior condition. And while an aspect of this form of witnessing is correct, the attitude, purpose, and desire of those who “witness” this way are most often not.
I later discovered that those who the Lord worked through to bless me with my initial Gospel witness were undeterred and had decided to continue on in the fight. They were not satisfied with one short meeting that started out great but went bad. Though they were brand new to the faith and personally hurt by my negative response (though in my defense it was all so very strange and they were pressuring me to make a decision), they decided it wouldn’t end there. They went back to their church. They enlisted the big guns.
They told everybody to pray…
Their prayers proved to be my undoing. There were people in that little church who prayed for me but I never knew who they were. Though I knew later on that my friends were praying and maybe another one or two were, the subject was never addressed. Others had prayed some powerful prayers. There were strong collective prayers. They moved mountains. Long story short, after three months’ time their prayers worked to perfection. I came to full salvation in Jesus.
THE PRAYER STORY
After being settled in as a new Christian I began learning about historical New Testament happenings I was never previously aware of. I was raised in a Christian home but belonged to a denomination that didn’t put much or any emphasis on the Bible. As a result I had very limited knowledge of the New Testament. I certainly had no practical knowledge of how real Christianity actually worked so the things I began learning about the New Covenant Scriptures were somewhat shocking. Most Christians have a very limited understanding of the New Testament, usually confined to the basic Gospel story. When I began to learn what was actually contained in Paul’s letters regarding the operation of meetings, the gifts of the Spirit, and the actual history of the first-century Community of believers as told in the Acts of the Apostles, a whole new world opened up to me. I also experienced the actual operation of the gifts in our meetings. Then I learned about actual prayer and especially intercessory prayer. I learned how powerful the latter could be and how necessary it was. I became aware of the following story:
Somewhere in the mission field overseas some believers were driving a vehicle over relatively rough terrain. The car or truck, I can’t remember which, slipped off a bad mountain road. If not for some brush and mostly a particular tree stump the vehicle and the people in it would have suffered a terrible fate. As it began to slide down a steep descent just off the road the car immediately became temporarily lodged upon the tree stump. The Christians in the car could not exit safely. Of course, they began to pray.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the world, the Lord alerted a prayer warrior. This was a person used very often for intercessory prayer and knew the drill. The feeling came over her that it was time to pray. The anointing became very powerful. The woman, seeking relief, went to floor. She then grabbed the nearest table leg and held on for dear life while she prayed in the Spirit. In the midst of an extreme spiritual battle she prayed intently while holding on as if it was vitally important that she did so. After a length of time the anointing lifted and she knew the prayer time was over and whatever needed to be accomplished had been.
Meanwhile, in another part of the world, the occupants of the car hanging perilously, restrained by a mere stump which might or might not be able to continue gripping the ground, had also been praying. The car never fell. It stayed glued to the tree stump. The stump held. They had somehow managed, against all probability, to safely exit the car. It was later, when these people happened to meet up again, and in comparing notes, that the two parties discovered how the Lord had worked. The woman’s powerful intercessory prayer had assisted in the saving of the missionaries.
I have read of several stories like this. There are Christians who keep detailed prayer journals which also sometimes contain answers to their prayers. It is a wonderful thing to see such answers to prayer, some which come years later, as the Lord creates the circumstances for people to meet again after often “chance” encounters.
YOU MAY NOT BELIEVE WHAT JUST HAPPENED
A coincidence is when God wants to remain anonymous.
While writing the last section I received a message on my phone. It was from an old friend. A text from out of the blue. I had not been in contact with him for many years, over a decade. They live in a different part of the country and we had spent much ministry time together. As it turned out he still had my number on his phone which means he either still had the same phone which I would think would be highly unlikely or had transferred all his numbers. I no longer had his number. I‘ve been through several phones since the last time we had been in contact. I decided that his text wasn’t just a random event. I mean, here I am writing about such things when he happens to contact me after a dozen years?
Maybe half an hour later I decided to call him. He was doing some chores outside. We talked briefly, only a few minutes. It was great catching up and he said he would call me back later on after he completed the necessary chores. But in that brief chat he told me that his former pastor who I also knew very well had, in the interim, heard from God about three years ago to make a ministry move. He and his wife had left the fellowship they had served for many years and, are you ready? …They went into the mission field.
This was no run of the mill coincidence.
I ask those of you who like to pray, any of you who are prayer warriors, and those in intercessory prayer ministry, to pray for this couple in the mission field. I also ask that you would pray for my friend and his family. There is also an urgent unspoken need of someone I know that requires prayer. Thank you.
And thanks to all the dedicated ones who operate powerfully in obscurity for your vital service to the Lord and fellow believers, whatever it may be. You are MOST appreciated. Keep up the great work!
Later
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE REJECTED BECOME THE CHOSEN: SEPARATIST PILGRIM PIONEERS AND THE JOURNEY TO AMERICA
In the 1590s English Separatists and dissenters were finding life in England ever more difficult. Several were sentenced to hanging in an enhanced effort to kill off the movement toward spiritual liberty.
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Laws were passed that made exile to the European continent the punishment and death if one ever returned. England would thus stop at nothing to rid itself of unwavering Christian reformers. There was no going back for those who had gone so far with God. Queen Elizabeth was determined to wipe them out and the level of her persecution continued until her death in 1603. She had no heirs and her passing thus ended the generational line of the ultra-dysfunctional Tudor monarchs.
The new king was James Stuart I (1566-1625), the then present king of Scotland under the name of James VI. He had ascended the Scottish throne at a mere thirteen months of age in 1567 when his mother, Mary Queen of Scots (1542-1587), had abdicated. As “King of Great Britain” James I united England, Scotland, and Ireland under his leadership. Though his mother was a loyal Catholic, James was raised as a member of the Protestant Church of Scotland. The developing church was attempting to continue the reform movement began a decade earlier by essentially removing all things Catholic, but James obviously felt more comfortable with those men manning church offices whose ecclesiastical nature lent them to monarchial rule.
Of course, that’s what bishops and ruling prelates are by nature and why such offices were created. The Presbyterians were setting up a national polity in which churches would be administered by the Biblical model of elders and overseers, which simply does not mix with monarchy any more than does oil and water. The comfort level for kings had always involved close trusted ones, be they civil or clergy, and James was thus not prepared to get on board with the movement toward spiritual truth. In becoming king of England he had quickly embraced an anti-Puritan sentiment, which gives one an idea of his treatment of Separatists and other dissenters who continued pushing for reform and refused to conform to non-Biblical tenets. The Puritans still maintained membership in the Church of England and had consequently escaped the larger wrath of Elizabeth, but the heat began rising. Yet, regardless of the new king’s negative attitude toward them, it was their own compromise and apprehensive middle-ground approach that relegated them as unfit for the spiritual frontier. They were not of a mind nor possessed the strength of purpose to be used of God in the necessary major way as those Separatists who had given their all. The Puritans as a group had remained far too connected. They were unqualified as pioneers.
After Elizabeth’s reign of terror, it seemed there remained only one Separatist church community in all of England. Located in the hamlet of Gainsborough, most of its members had fled to Holland two years later. There remained a few holdouts of this group in the town of Scrooby, Nottinghamshire, and it is here the story gets interesting. In Scrooby there lived a man who became postmaster there in 1590. He had attended Cambridge in his youth and later became greatly interested in the new Christian reformation movements. By the early 1600s he had taken under his wing a young man from Austerfield while ministering in the Scrooby area as a reforming Puritan when persecution raised its head once again. A group of perhaps 50 were meeting secretly at Scrooby Manor, having managed to cobble together a small community from the remains at Gainsborough, when the decision was made in 1607 to break ranks completely with the Church of England and establish themselves as Separatists. Thence began the great adventure.
The two men were the postmaster William Brewster (c.1566-1644), who would become a leading Elder at Plymouth Colony, and his young protégé William Bradford (1590-1657), the future Governor thereof. These two were undoubtedly placed together by Providence. Bradford’s father died when he was only a year old and his mother when he was seven. The orphan was forced to live with several relatives in the interim. He met Brewster at the meetings of the Puritan Richard Clifton when only a young man of about twelve and at last found an appropriate father-figure. From this he received a better upbringing and someone to direct his already keen interest in the Reformation movement.
The restrictive spiritual atmosphere in England was such that the young congregation decided they must leave the mother country and sail across the channel to Holland to live according to their convictions. Yet, as another indication of the severe trials and fight to come their way, they were robbed of all their possessions by the officers of the ship they hired and imprisoned for attempting to leave England illegally. They remained undeterred, however, and were able to make their getaway the next year, finding peace and religious toleration in The Netherlands. After a year in Amsterdam amid the bickering of two other congregations, they moved to the city of Leiden, approximately 100 strong, and settled into a peaceable and productive life.
One can see by the trials they faced and tests they passed that God was preparing them for a much greater mission. Others had disqualified themselves for one reason or another, be it a lack of faith, selfish attitudes, inability to work together, or loyal connections to the state church, which prohibited a lack of complete loyalty to God. Those connected, as the Puritans, had not considered their inevitable betrayal through their association with ecclesiastical authority and the throne or the temptation of looking back. We see the same thing in the ancient history of the Israelites when God had to remove all Egyptian influence and fleshly nature from His people through their wanderings in the Sinai desert.
These Separatist future founders of the American Plymouth Colony had proved their loyalty to God by both their obedience to Him regardless of greatly challenging circumstances, and also their complete separation from the world.
In Leiden, Brewster began publishing books for sale in England and was soon under arrest by English authorities in 1619, who had accused him of the same crime as William Tyndale—printing up non-official religious works that did not toe the mark of the accepted Anglican confession. The Dutch government agreed with England in a political move and confiscated the printing equipment. Brewster was able to escape to England and hide out. It was during this time that plans were made to make the most radical move of all—securing a land patent from the London Virginia Company.
The community as a whole had become very concerned after ten years of relative comfort and security in Leiden that their children, if allowed to grow up and become established there, would lose both their English heritage and Christian beliefs. The Netherlands was a free pluralistic nation by comparison to England, but the resultant freedom also gave place to a more open mindset regarding moral values and sin. It occurred to the group that the time had come yet again when they must move on if they would maintain their walk with God. Their willingness to suffer so many trials for the sake of the real Gospel had undoubtedly impressed the Lord. Due to their relentless attitude toward holy living and walking in God’s new light, rather than fighting against the movement or holding back like almost every other group, they had become the chosen ones to take not only the Gospel to America, but a community form much closer to Scriptural intent.
The 180 ton Dutch cargo vessel Mayflower was hired in London and sailed to Southampton on the southern coast of England in late July of 1620. Most of the Pilgrim community remained in Leiden, Holland and bought a small ship called the Speedwell to take them to Southampton, from which both ships would sail across the Atlantic to Virginia. The second ship proved unworthy of the journey, however, having leaked on the trip across the English Channel, and after repairs, began leaking again at the start of the great voyage. Stopping at Dartmouth, repairs were made a second time. On their second attempt at the Atlantic crossing, as they reached the open ocean after having traveled roughly 300 miles, the Speedwell continued leaking once again and the Pilgrims were forced to return to England. Many of the passengers had become so tired and frustrated they decided to stay home. Here was yet another test of heart and a further winnowing of the passenger list, from about 120 to 102. Of these, approximately 40-45% were members of the Leiden congregation.
They decided to scuttle the second ship entirely and transfer all their goods and supplies to the Mayflower, making for very cramped quarters and a much less comfortable trip. After losing about forty days, the Mayflower finally set sail from Plymouth, England on September 16 (Gregorian calendar). The second half of the ocean voyage was very rough, having hit the severe northern Atlantic storm season, and piled yet more discomfort and trepidation upon the passengers. Imagine the battle these Pilgrims had with doubt and second thoughts, crammed together in a freezing ship tossed forth like a cork on the frigid seas.
After 66 long days, the sturdy ship arrived intact off the coast of America around November 21, 1620. During the long and fitful journey there was one death but also one birth. The colonists’ destination was the mouth of the Hudson River, part of Virginia at the time, but the captain first sighted land off the coast of Cape Cod. In the attempt to go south the elements were again against them, almost causing shipwreck. As if by divine hand they returned to Cape Cod and dropped anchor. With great courage and whatever stamina remained as the biting cold winds of winter descended upon them, parties were arranged to explore the land for a suitable settlement site. By the next summer, 50 of the original 102 passengers had perished, the majority over the harsh winter, and most of them from disease contracted during the voyage.
From these extremely difficult and humble beginnings Plymouth Colony was built upon the hope and grace of a committed people and the Lord Jesus. Having served as willing pioneers and taking the full brunt of the battle, many more parties were soon making the trip across the Atlantic and adding to the new colony. In time it became a routine crossing peopled primarily by English Puritans who began spreading out into the wilderness. In time the Separatist Pilgrims became greatly outnumbered, though their spiritual stand and way of life had a decided effect on later arrivals.
Happy Thanksgiving
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
REMEMBERING JFK (2022)
President John F. Kennedy was assassinated on this day 59 years ago at 12:30pm. It was the result of a conspiracy.
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I wrote the following on November 22, 2019:
I remember when it happened. As was my routine, I had gone home for lunch. My grade school was within easy walking distance.
It was getting close to the time when I should be heading back. I was sitting right in front of our small black and white television. My mother was a few steps away in the kitchen. Suddenly, whatever I was watching was interrupted. There was a news bulletin. One could almost sense the haphazard effort of the station in relaying the shattering news while trying to maintain professional decorum. A man with a strong and hurried voice began speaking. The president has been shot…
The United States of America changed forever on that fateful day. After 56 years, the majority of Americans know the official story is full of holes. This was proven early on. But a very strange thing happened. Though evil people were having their way, Americans insisted on supporting the official narrative. As more truth leaked out regarding what really happened, and as many knew in their gut something was not quite right, it became one’s patriotic duty to do the very opposite of what should have been done.
This let those in control know they were in good shape. The country was in their hands. They could do whatever they wanted and would not only get away with it but would never even be questioned. Everything changed at that point. Fast, dramatic change ensued. Regarding the country, it was all for the worse. In the space of less than four and a half years our president was murdered in cold blood right out in the open in the bright sunshine in a gruesome display. His brother, who surely would have become president in 1968, was also killed right after securing the Democratic nomination. Martin Luther King was also murdered by a sniper two months earlier. Each one of these cases involved much subterfuge and unanswered questions. Quick verdicts were reached in the official narrative. The vast majority of Americans went along with the official stories though many had private doubts. What happened to the country?
THERE WAS ONCE A REVOLUTION
Throughout the period of the 1760s to mid-1770s patriotic American colonists grew increasingly concerned about the great lessening of personal liberties and the increasing power plays of a distant British government. These people were a relatively small minority. Most American colonists were full-bore Tories who either supported the King and Parliament without question or were too apathetic and ignorant to care one way or the other. By the time independence was declared these three groups comprised roughly the same percentage. Only about a third of Americans were willing to commit themselves fully to the cause of outright revolution to secure their individual liberties which had been under severe attack for several years by those who saw their control weakening and who must strongly reassert its position of rule to overcome any notion of freedom from said rule.
How did only a third manage to overcome the other two-thirds? It is fully understandable that the third of Americans which fully supported the British overlords did so to protect their wealth and social standing. People like this are cowards at heart. They have little or no concern for others, those who make up the majority, who are on the outside looking in and do not share in their upper class stature. Their lives are not about higher ideals and ideas but merely a social position brought on by comparatively greater wealth and the desire to make friends with power—those who would advance them in their careers and protect their higher place in society.
Regarding that other third, the apathetic group, these people are also well-represented in history. They are those who never stay informed, don’t care about truth, will stand for nothing of any real importance, are willingly ignorant, and are basically only along for the ride. They like floating down lazy rivers. They find the whole idea of taking a stand for higher values and ideals ridiculous. They have no understanding for laying good foundations for future generations. They can barely see beyond the end of their nose. The present is what they care about, just like the Tory group, but they don’t care about it enough to make any attempt to excel.
REAL PATRIOTS
Back in the 1960s the generation in charge still held to the false notion, “My country right or wrong.” The most insane occurrences were taking place all around from day to day and it seemed that most would insist on keeping a stiff lip and hard face refusing to question anything. Had they been brainwashed? Why could they not see the evil? Why did they continue to support those in power who were violating the Constitution on a daily basis and doing whatever the hell they wanted to insure that the rich and powerful gained even more wealth and power?
King George III and the British Parliament never came close to the violations inflicted on America less than two centuries later. It has only gotten worse since. We now live in a semi-surveillance state in which our God-given rights and freedoms have been seriously curtailed by the very entity supposedly existing to insure them. Where are the real American patriots? How many are left?
Exactly 56 years ago powerful people conspired in the dark to remove the President of the United States because he refused to go along with an ongoing sinister plan to run roughshod on We the People. They were willing to kill him in broad daylight to achieve their goal.
And they got away with it.
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
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I wrote the following on November 22, 2020:
It has been exactly 57 years. An American President was brutally gunned down by an evil element in Dallas, Texas. That evil element gained great power that day. It has only increased in power since.
One can always tell when evil has gained a foothold: Evil unlawful acts not only proliferate but have no remedy. No matter what one may do to overcome the evil nothing works. It may be stopped temporarily. There may even be modest gains against it at times but such minimal losses are often quickly gained back. Exponentially speaking, evil continues on an upward trend.
At last a few bright people figure out that the reason for evil’s upper hand growing greater is because it is being fed. Somehow or another evil has gained access to great funding and support. These few bright people then figure out that evil is gaining this funding and support surreptitiously. In other words, otherwise good people have been deceived into supporting an evil element. Such good people are not so wise because only the unwise allow themselves to be fooled continually.
This is why, in Old Testament parlance, God always sent prophets. The prophetic voice was clean and clear. It was strong and unwavering. It was sent to shine a Light on TRUTH. It was sent to wake people from their spiritual slumber. Through the prophetic Word, the Lord Jesus identifies good and evil. He tears away the cloak of deception. He reveals the evil element behind the curtain.
When the unwise but otherwise good people then understand that which comprises the evil element, they cease supporting it. As its funding and support begins being cut back it no longer has the free ability to wreak havoc as before. In the effort to save itself it uses that much more of the only weapon it possesses: More evil. —More sin, more lies, more cheating, more obfuscation, and more dissembling. By this it only reveals itself all the more.
We are living in the days of a Great Awakening. Pay attention.
© 2020 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
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In 2021 on this date I posted a compilation of the preceding two posts from 2019 and 2020. Before proceeding with today’s 2022 post I will add a comment I made in the 2020 post:
Yes. Times have changed radically over these last 57 years. Regardless of President Kennedy’s flaws, he was aware of a great evil element and did all he could to successfully fight it. He saw that it threatened great evil for the country. He had limited success against it but was making progress. In the end he was simply overwhelmed by it with too few standing with him. And of course, evil being what it is, the evil element had no reservations about murdering him in cold blood if it came to that. And it did. Everything immediately changed for the worse that day. It was the end of America as we knew it. The American people in large part never caught on, but this is changing.
“You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he tells a lie, he speaks from his own nature, because he is a liar and the father of lies.” [John 8:44]
2022
As you can see, I established an annual tradition regarding our remembrance of our former President John F. Kennedy beginning in 2019. This will be the fourth year in a row. It was on this day, November 22, 1963, that JFK was murdered in Dallas, Texas. It was 12:30 in the afternoon. Though the day began with a dreary overcast and rain it slowly began to clear up as the morning progressed. By the time the President’s plane landed at Dallas Love Field the day was transformed into bright sunshine. There was much excitement and joy in the atmosphere. Little did the people know that an evil element, unseen to all, had been planning a brutal assassination for what was likely months.
Regardless of the various theories regarding the conspiracy that took the President’s life, the most plausible ones have much in common. There was certainly a secret cabal that had been cobbled together. Each participant had its own reasons and motives. As always, however, as I have often mentioned in these pages, the primary motive for such always boils down to power and wealth. The power and wealth of some very powerful and wealthy individuals, some at the state level, had been threatened. Such people operate largely in secret though their outer façade may be well known. Most people do not understand that there are always primary hidden agendas. That which is presented on the surface is mere cover for what lies beneath. What you see in the major media is mere window dressing designed to obfuscate and lead people off in the wrong direction. It is a deception game.
Remember, the greatest lie the devil always tells is that he doesn’t exist. Remember also that a major part of the Lord’s ministry was exposing the devil and his scurrilous hidden machinations. Evil always operates in the dark because it must. Otherwise its cover is blown. People catch on. Most people, sadly, never catch on and are easily deceived. It explains why the enemy gets away with his ongoing crime spree. We are talking multiple generations here. If you have never considered this side of history—actual history—you have work to do.
A great many authors have written a great many books about the assassination of President Kennedy over the last 59 years since the terrible event occurred. Some have gotten pretty close to the truth. When one reads these books and continues keeping up on the subject as new light comes forth it furthers one’s understanding of how and why it happened.
A CONSPIRACY
It is the same when one reads the accounts of the murder of the Lord Jesus. Of course, the word “conspiracy” and the term “conspiracy theory” have been branded by the perpetrators of such conspiracies as silly and foolish and used only by the screw-loose crowd. But the Lord Jesus was certainly murdered as the result of a conspiracy.
The religious leaders who controlled the synagogues, the Pharisees, wanted Him dead pretty much from day one. They hated everything about Him. This explains who they were working for and were aligned with. Remember, the Lord’s own people in Nazareth, the people who knew Him well and among whom he grew up, tried to kill Him the first day He preached there. (“Welcome home. Good to see you. Wait. What did you say?! It’s off the cliff with you! Let’s get Him!”) There’s a fine how-do-you-do.
Those who controlled the temple complex also came to hate Him once they understood more about Him. The wealthy Sadducees had become hopelessly corrupt by that time. They were closely aligned with the money power and Rome. It took them decades to arrive at such a place. The priesthood was also corrupt. It had become so corrupt that a large element of the Zadok priesthood, over a century before, had pulled up stakes and left Jerusalem entirely. These became the Essenes. They set up shop out in the wilderness by the Dead Sea, wanting nothing to do with the corrupt city or temple.
The deciding blow of the conspiracy against the Lord came when both the Pharisees and Sadducees, ostensibly religious but both great lovers of money, who had already conspired together, also conspired with the Zealot Party, which comprised the terrorist arm of the nation. The Zealots were murderous ideologues who would stop at nothing. They hated and despised Roman authority. They were pledged to throw off the yoke using any violent means possible. Once these people were brought on board the Pharisees and Sadducees were virtually assured of success. They did not realize at the time, however, that they had made a deal with the devil, so to speak, that would come back to bite them later on like an enraged rabid dog. It was primarily the Zealots who eventually caused the destruction of the nation.
How is it then, that these three great powers who conspired together, those that essentially possessed all the wealth and political power of the nation, could end up losing everything less than forty years later? It all came to an end in 70AD. The original city of Jerusalem and the great temple were both reduced to rubble. The entire place was wiped clean. The only structure remaining was the massive Roman Fort Antonia. The Roman emperor Hadrian built an entirely new city only sixty plus years later. Nothing that presently exists of the current city of Jerusalem, other than Fort Antonia, existed at the time of the Lord. It was a total annihilation, just as He had prophesied.
Thus, their great conspiracy ultimately failed. It succeeded in that they did conspire to kill the Lord Jesus and did kill Him, just as did the conspiracy to kill JFK had succeeded. The problem with the former conspiracy was that the Lord Jesus didn’t stay dead.
It could be that America won’t stay dead either.
© 2022 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
YES, THEY REALLY ARE THAT STUPID
I wrote this article over five years ago. Since then, things are now much worse in America. For the majority, the corrective continues to be rejected.
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All over the country millions of Christians are going through their usual church routines this morning having not changed one iota for the last five years, or the five years before that, or the fifty years before that. Are they blind? Lazy? Rebellious? Deceived? Hopelessly stuck on tradition? Under powerful authoritative religious rule and control that has robbed them of their spiritual identity? Whatever the case, I posted the following on October 23, 2017:
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The Lord gave us a wake-up call in 1906. What happened then illustrated how powerful the Lord can be when we get it right, even in the face of great opposition.
It was a powerful event. What was just as striking, however, was the usual resistance of the opposing authoritative Christians. The humble organizers, the good guys, those who were merely self-effacing enough to seek and obey the Lord, were hounded from the very beginning and eventually forced into using the most rudimentary building for services.
They began in a house, but the movement grew too big too fast and they couldn’t allocate enough houses fast enough, so they were blessed with a bigger building, though old and run down. It had much in common with the Lord’s actual beginning, something we lose the significance of over time. But there really wasn’t any room anywhere in Bethlehem for the Lord to be born. No residence, no inn, no nothing where people normally live. He ended up with the farm animals, something equivalent to our barns, but a small one. He apparently had no problem with this. He even expected it. He expected this world to treat Him in such a way. He was born anyway, in a place none of us would ever permit our own babies to be born, regardless of circumstances.
The same thing happens with His work. The apostle Paul said no people of higher bearing are chosen, in general, for the Lord’s work, largely because they deem themselves far too important. They are also ultra-pampered. There is no room for a pampered preacher in the Lord’s real work, but we are besought with pampered preachers everywhere you look. In fact, this has become the standard.
Where then, are the real preachers? Where are the real Christians? In general, you will rarely find them in the limelight. William Seymour was a one-eyed black man shunned by much of Christian society yet the Lord worked wonders through him. The apostle Paul has been wrongly relegated after the fact as some sort of high churchman or great theologian. Of course, he was certainly brilliant, but much more so in a spiritual sense. Prior to his own personal Pentecost he used his theological brilliance and high religious standing to do the very opposite of what the Lord had intended for him. How did he get so lost? How did he get so caught up with his own pride? How did he ever get so full of himself?
One might ask about 90% of today’s so-called pastors and preachers and priests and what have you. To show what must be done NOW to correct this is to show what had to happen to Paul—the Lord knocked him down, thoroughly humiliated him, showed him who the boss was, blinded him and made him helpless, and then completely revamped his life. He showed him how he was completely wrong and on the wrong path and had the wrong attitude. He could have just let him go to hell but He knew Paul would respond correctly to the correct stimuli, which in this case involved knocking him on his butt and destroying everything that he had previously held dear.
Paul responded properly. He quickly ascertained that he had been a giant jerk of the worst kind and was thoroughly embarrassed. After a few days his sight returned. He underwent full repentance, giving himself totally to the Lord for whatever purpose no matter how difficult. He went through further humiliation, from a religious view point that is, by immersing himself in water in the Name of Jesus, the name of his new Master and Savior, and he was soon filled with the Holy Spirit. It’s all right there in the Book of Acts. It was a complete changeover, beyond even a total remodel. The old Paul was DEAD. A new Paul was BORN.
RESISTING REAL CHRISTIANITY BRINGS GRADUAL DEPRAVITY
The same thing must happen to Unreal Christianity in America or it will continue the death spiral it brought upon itself and has engaged in ever since it rejected that which all must submit to for new life to come forth. It is not so much that the Lord cares all that much for trying to set right those Christian leaders who will never change or repent, like so many of the Pharisees of old. It is that He wants to rescue all those good-hearted Christians living in a lesser state, as Paul was, who are deceived and blinded by fake Christianity. They will never be set free from within. It must come from without, as the Lord must do so much from without since He has been rejected so much from within.
Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures. Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them. For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error. And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind… [Romans 1:22-28] [1]
© 2017 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
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The Lord Jesus will never stop trying to wake us up and turn us around, and talk sense to us, and break us from our dependency on religious rebellion, in order to save us and free us, because He loves us, enough to die for us, even if it means knocking us down while on our own personal road to Damascus.
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
CORRUPTION ERUPTION: THE ROT HAS SET IN
“The axe is already laid at the root of the trees; therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”
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THE FATE OF EVIL
All evil will be judged. Everyone and everything associated with it will be dealt with. Those who join up with evil and make the free choice to be connected to it and engage in its practices, whatever their reason, will suffer the same fate. The time will come when all evil and all evil people will be judged, sentenced, and cease to exist. Evil will never make the transition to eternity. It will be incinerated.
“Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” [Matthew 10:28]
TWO OPTIONS
“All the nations will be gathered before Him; and He will separate them from one another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats; and He will put the sheep on His right, and the goats on the left.” [Matthew 25:32]
The Word of God reveals a clear dualism. There is good and there is evil. There are the righteous and there are the unrighteous. There are sheep and there are goats. There is wheat and there are tares. Every human being who has ever existed or ever will is in one group or the other. There is no middle ground.
The Word of God also defines sin. No other definition matters. Any other definition is false. Therefore whoever makes the choice to live according to God’s commands knows that God is the sole Author of His commands and made them for a reason. A person has no choice, then, but to accept God’s parameters for living. One cannot make up his own rules and be right with God. He or she cannot choose some of God’s commands and reject others. His commands have already been established. Thus, it is simply a matter of a person living for God to the full or not living for Him at all. Again, there is no middle ground.
When God gave the Law to Moses He made no provision for alteration. There was no amendment process. He never allowed for the later “Oral Law” which corrupted His Word (and is still in effect today). His Laws were not suggestions. They were not experimental applications seeking personal and societal solutions. God already knew what worked and what didn’t. He already knew what was evil and what was good. He already knew what good and acceptable behavior was and what behavior was evil and unacceptable. He didn’t need anyone telling Him what He already knew. He didn’t need someone with an extremely limited level of knowledge and life experience telling Him what He had known for multiple centuries regarding the behavior of human beings. He created human beings. Every human being who has ever lived has an extremely limited level of knowledge and life experience compared to God. The same holds true for generations. Entire living generations of human beings existing at any one time are collectively grossly inferior to God. It is therefore laughable for anyone to suppose he or she knows better than God. An honest courageous person thus understands that the best way is God’s way, that God knows best, and that all one needs to do is do one’s best to trust God, obey His commands, and live for Him.
The dishonest rebellious person, however, refuses to accept this course of action. Such a one would rather submit to his or her own will or that of another rather than God. Consequently, he or she will question God and will question His commands. He or she will attempt to eliminate some or all of His commands, accept what he or she happens to agree with, and will refuse to accept the rest. He or she will desire to modify, alter, amend, change, or revise God’s commands to suit himself or herself not understanding or caring that such is a purely selfish course of action which can never be applied universally. The only universe such people care about is their own. The dishonest rebellious person, then, is not concerned with pleasing God but only pleasing him or herself. He or she does not care about an actual relationship with God. If the only way to be right with God and have a good relationship with Him is to obey His commands, such individuals would rather not be in relationship with Him at all. Their personal freedom, including the freedom to sin, is more important to them. They are thus contemptuous of God and His commands. They will violate any law, rule, or social more, usually to the degree they feel they can get away with (because most are cowards at heart), for personal pleasure and enrichment.
CORRUPTION ERUPTION
This is exactly where corruption originates. It starts small and grows over time. When a person commits sin for the first time, always at a young age, his or her future course depends on how the sin is dealt with. Though God has blessed humanity with a working conscience which convicts a person of sin and which assists in one learning right from wrong, some people learn to reject the conviction of their conscience and eventually deaden their conscience to the point that they have no problem with sinning and engaging in ongoing sin. This is an otherwise obvious form of mental illness but when everyone else is mentally ill the mental illness does not register. When everyone else in one’s chosen group rejects God and chooses sin, are they actually living in sin? From God’s perspective the answer is yes indeed, of course, but from the perspective of those within that sinful group, society, or culture, since everyone adheres to the same principles and beliefs and behaves the same way, there is no comparative by which to judge. The people therein are therefore unaware of any acceptable alternative since they reject the possibility of all others and remain smug and secure within their own group and are constantly confirmed of one’s rightness by each other.
In other words, if all the animals in a particular enclosed pasture are goats, then goat behavior is perfectly acceptable because no one there will ever challenge goat behavior because everyone there is a goat. Goat behavior thus becomes the norm and any animal not a goat is perceived as a vile deviant that must be hated, rejected, censored, cancelled, ripped off, run off, and/or murdered, likely with malice. (That will teach them to mess with perfection.)
As another case in point, Cain and Able had a difference of opinion. Abel loved God, obeyed God, honored God, and served God. Cain did none of those things. Since Abel had love in his heart, he had the ability to put up with Cain’s sin and bad attitude. He had no evil intent toward Cain. He knew it was not his place to do anything about his brother except do his best to remain positive about him and pray for him. Cain, however, had no such ability or attitude. He grew to despise his brother. He was jealous regarding Abel’s walk with God. His hatred for Abel’s excellent attitude and good behavior grew until it reached a boiling point. Rather than repent, change, conform to God’s will, and eliminate his bad attitude and sinful lifestyle as well as create a happy union with both God and Abel, Cain chose instead to violently murder his brother and thus eliminate him. He did this in part to create his own “pure society” playing by a different set of rules in opposition to God’s Kingdom.
He also did it to remove the source of his conviction.
This is how it always happens. Rather than accept and conform to God’s perfect universal commands for living, rebellious sinners who oppose God make their own set of rules which benefit themselves and force everyone else within the range of their influence or authority to conform to them. Since all such subsets of rules are insufficient and even immoral and fraudulent compared to God’s, and since any number of such societal subsets exist simultaneously, they cannot help but spawn greater hate and ever-greater division. Some such societies and cultures will gain greater traction and overcome others. This allows for a strongman or chieftain to arise who plays the part of God and battles other such chieftains. The end result is incessant killing and perpetual warmongering. It is the end result of rejecting God and His commands. It is Cain killing Abel on an ever-increasing scale. In time, eventually, the pack of evil, selfish, unrighteous cowards will wipe out all the good, unselfish, courageous, righteous ones. The evil will eliminate the good from the earth. The goats will win. Sound familiar?
Now the earth was corrupt in the sight of God, and the earth was filled with violence. God looked on the earth, and behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way upon the earth. [Genesis 6:11-12]
BEYOND THE POINT OF NO RETURN
I remember when I was a kid and learned about what happens when one flies an airplane too far out to sea with no opportunity to refuel. Once the pilot reaches the point of no return he will not have enough fuel for the return trip and is doomed. And I wondered why anyone would do that and not make sure it wouldn’t happen. I also remember a small factoid regarding the Japanese kamikaze pilots bombing American ships out to sea in WWII: They were only given enough fuel to make it to the target. Those guys were so dedicated, and they only chose the most dedicated, that they wouldn’t have turned back anyway. But just in case…
The same holds true for societies and cultures. Those who research the decline and fall of the Roman Empire, for example, become aware of certain societal signs to watch for which indicate the downward slope of a nation in decay. I studied this a long time ago and was certainly intrigued by seeing those exact early signs in my own country at that time. America was starting to look just like Rome in its declining phase. Things have grown steadily worse since then, much worse than most people would have ever thought, and we are now in the exponential days in which cultural decay is proceeding rapidly. There are no longer any sufficient societal checks to keep the inevitable from taking place. America has gone beyond the point of return.
People who used to have high moral standards have allowed their morals to slip. Many formerly strong people regarding societal mores have allowed themselves to be overcome by the upcoming lawless culture. They used to know what sin was and stood against it but stopped standing and laid down. Salt and light is at an extremely low ebb. Many in the older generation who had much better morals and a Biblical worldview have grown tired of standing against the incessant onslaught of sin and corruption. It is such that no one has escaped it. Evil has come against every segment of society. No one is immune.
Even many Christian ministries and churches have gone the way of the world. A majority have adopted whatever new cultural mores have come forth, mores which oppose real Christianity. A new agenda has replaced the former. Rather than living for the Lord and accepting, believing, and practicing the full Gospel, the new agenda calls for mere financial survival and ministry in general is now tailored toward making money and serving mammon. Sin, even egregious sin, is rarely or never addressed. This is just a fact. It cannot be denied. Money is now first. This means, according to the statement by the Lord Jesus, that most of Christianity is not serving Him but serving wealth. This means there is no longer any effective witness from American Christianity against the wicked traditional servers of money. These two used to be at loggerheads but now are joined at the hip. One has an infinite supply of ready cash and the other needs increasingly greater amounts. American Christianity has thus grown as corrupt as the corrupt ones it used to rebuke. There is no longer any effective rebuke. And this is in part why the evil ones are presently going in for the kill.
American Christianity in general grew weak and corrupted because it kicked out the strong honest Christians it could not control who were trying to save it.
The same thing happened in the secular and civic realm. Those trying to save the country clashed with those trying to destroy it. I revealed this destruction protocol in my prior post though few of you read it. I understand that such articles are not popular. I suggest to those who have yet to read it to take a look, though. I told you in advance. Yesterday marked another one of those points in history in which everything is made clear to those paying attention.
Regardless of this present darkness and the corruption therein, however, the Great Awakening continues. Praise God for that. May many more wake up and get right with God.
Otherwise, consider the following:
“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men.” [Matthew 5:13][1]
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
CLASHING COVENANTS AND THE DESTRUCTION PROTOCOL: THE LORD’S KINGDOM AND THE DEVIL’S DOMAIN
The Lord Jesus mentioned the devil often. He referred to him as a destructive force. The devil hates the Lord’s covenant. He is a covenant breaker and a covenant destroyer.
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“What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.” [Matthew 19:6]
Those who destroy covenants created by God are aligned with the devil. When the Lord Jesus brought forth His perfect covenant model the devil immediately went to work against it. He knew such a model meant death and destruction to him so he did his best to bring death and destruction to it. The apostle Paul stated what would happen at a certain point in history:
I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them. Therefore be on the alert… [Acts 20:29-31]
This is how the devil always works. And he must do it through humanity. What kind of people are these who pledge themselves to doing the devil’s business? We may imagine them to be a relative miniscule few, extremely abominable and evil. While this is true of those at the very top of the pyramid running the world vowed to the devil’s authority—in full covenant with him—most of the people involved appear as mainstream to the unaware sleepers and hide their evil status expertly through false façades, appearing as normal as anyone else and even as morally good and culturally superior. It is the ongoing masquerade of one’s visible betters in apparent control, but compared to their hidden higher ups, the talking head storefront jockeys are mere pawns in the devil’s hierarchy.
COVENANT AND UNCOVENANT
The world we are born into is made to appear as something other than it actually is. Starting at an early age, before anyone has the ability to correctly discern reality or even be aware of the world at large and how it actually works, people are deceptively instructed to make covenants with apparent innocuous entities that are not in covenant with God. This is obviously never spiritually beneficial for anyone but the lack of knowledge of the true intent of such covenants is beyond them and also beyond the lower level lackeys instructing them. In essence, we are made to make agreements with authoritative organizations, cultural beliefs, and religious practices while having no idea of their origins or agendas. People simply do not understand that they have been subjected to programming, that there are hidden programs and programmers, and that such programmers are subject to higher controllers with evil agendas. If this scenario sounds far-fetched we need only look to the gospels to verify it. The Lord reveals it right here:
And he led Him up and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said to Him, “I will give You all this domain and its glory; for it has been handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. Therefore if You worship before me, it shall all be Yours.” [Luke 4:5-7]
The existence of such a passage of Scripture causes many Christians to question Holy Writ. How could such a thing be true?
How could the devil control all the kingdoms of the entire world throughout time? And who was it exactly who gave all these kingdoms to him? And how is it exactly that he has gained the ability to give partial control of any or all of his kingdoms to anyone he chooses?
This was the deal he was offering the Lord. Maybe he never tried to make such a far-reaching deal with anyone else. Maybe he has only made much lesser deals to certain people throughout history in that they would control only continents or regions or large cities or other non-tangible kingdoms. In all of these, though, as it was with his proposed deal with the Lord, the one overall caveat would be that he, the devil, would be recognized as the supreme authority to which one has dedicated his or her life. The people making such deals would have to bow down and worship him and do anything and everything he tells them to do. This obviously speaks of covenant. It is making a deal with the devil to gain the power, wealth, and goods of this world which one would not otherwise be able to gain.
Imagine then, how many well-known people there are in history and at present who have signed on with such demonic deals and made such covenants. What was the Lord going to gain if He made the deal the devil was proposing? From this we can surmise those who existed who have made such deals. We can also surmise those currently living who have made such deals. Who are those ruling over large “kingdoms” whether tangible or not? Whether unseen or not? How did they gain such rule? How did they gain such great wealth and power? Who opened the doors for them? How else could they have gained it? If it all belongs to the devil, the one the Apostle Paul referred to as “the god of this world,” then it only follows that those in positions of great power with great means have only gained their exalted places and status by the devil gifting it to them in exchange for their acknowledgement of him as “god,” their worship of him, and their obedience of his dictates. They owe him everything because everything they have and have become is due to him.
The following is a good illustration of how this works:
Therefore Pilate entered again into the Praetorium, and summoned Jesus and said to Him, “Are You the King of the Jews?” Jesus answered, “Are you saying this on your own initiative, or did others tell you about Me?” Pilate answered, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests delivered You to me; what have You done?” Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm.” Therefore Pilate said to Him, “So You are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say correctly that I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.” [John 18:33-37]
…And he entered into the Praetorium again and *said to Jesus, “Where are You from?” But Jesus gave him no answer. So Pilate *said to Him, “You do not speak to me? Do You not know that I have authority to release You, and I have authority to crucify You?” Jesus answered, “You would have no authority over Me, unless it had been given you from above; for this reason he who delivered Me to you has the greater sin.” [John 19:10-11]
These passages reveal the nature of this world. Remember, the Word of God clearly states that we all live in a fallen world, on a sinful planet, and that while the Lord Jesus certainly has all authority in heaven and earth, He is not in covenant with those who oppose Him. He is not in spiritual fellowship with unrepentant sinners, with the rebellious, and with those who put their faith in sinful flesh, this world, or the devil. He obviously is in no covenant with those who have made unholy covenants with the enemy. And while there are a great many kingdoms in this world there is only one holy spiritual kingdom in this world and He is the sole King of that kingdom. He has instituted human government for obvious reasons but when such governments become corrupt they no longer function per His design.
How sad it is then when the majority of that which is called “Christian” in this world is also not in covenant with the Lord Jesus. The majority of that which is called “Christian” creates their own kingdoms and covenants and while they invoke His Name they do not fully obey Him, do not do His will, do not teach the real Gospel, and are not part of His spiritual kingdom. They look legitimate on the surface but are actually non-spiritual entities not created by Him. They are spiritual deep fakes. These false Christian entities are included with all those other earthly kingdoms existing in opposition to the Lord. We know this in part because they have acquired the same benefits as the other sellouts: Wealth (for some, great wealth), territory, worldly authority, control, cultural acceptance, and elevated status. The Lord Jesus never had any of these things. His early Community never had any of these things.
Consider the following:
Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, were listening to all these things and were scoffing at Him. And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God. [Luke 16:14-15]
“…For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. The eye is the lamp of the body; so then if your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness! No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.”[Matthew 6:21-24]
(Wealth: Greek: mamonas, from Aramaic mamon (mammon); i.e. wealth, etc., personified as an object of worship.)
This is why the faux bros within false forms of Christianity, like the original Pharisees, say one thing but do another. They talk the “talk” very well, enough to fool and deceive many people and even deceive themselves, and some are much better at the “talk” than others, but they simply do not walk the “walk.” They have not entered into the full covenant of the Lord Jesus. It should not be difficult to understand, therefore, that the ruling Israelite religious authority of the first century AD that opposed the Lord and His Kingdom was also one of the kingdoms belonging to you know who, who gave those religious authorities their rule and position. It is why they clashed so vociferously with the Lord and His people. These were two kingdoms at war. They are still at war.
CONSTITUTIONAL LIBERTY VS. WOKE SOCIALISM
These are kingdoms also at war. The ideology of Wokeism opposes everything about America’s original founding. It opposes the original colonists, particularly the Pilgrim Separatists who established Plymouth Colony in 1620. It opposes the American Revolution and the original Republic. It has no problem denigrating and defaming the Founders of this country. It opposes the very essence of what America is and what it stands for. Though aligned with classic Marxism, Wokeism is an entirely different and unique belief system which has presently risen upon this country. It stands in stark opposition against traditional America and is designed to become established and take over. It has spent years forming and gaining recruits by taking over former cultural institutions and transforming them into indoctrination centers. It has already made huge strides toward its ultimate goals. But the majority of all who invoke this anti-freedom destructive ideology do not understand that it is not organic but part of an agenda sent forth from on high which has deceptively captured their minds into believing they are engaging in something good and necessary. They do not understand they are actually assisting in destroying their country as part of an ongoing destruction protocol.
It is same with false forms of Christianity. In order to exist and gain power they must throw off the old. This means they must oppose the original Christianity of the Lord Jesus in order to establish their own. They deceive their people into making a covenant with the new “denomination,” whatever it may be, which means such people are not in covenant with the Lord Jesus. Constantine, in the 4th century AD, was the first to do this on a massive scale and it proved hugely successful. He created a syncretic religious kingdom in the guise of Christianity. All later Christian denominations do essentially the same to varying degrees. They prove by their very existence that they are different entities than original Christianity as created by the Lord Jesus.
Rather than create new religious kingdoms they simply could have joined the Lord’s existing Kingdom. See how that works?
So this again begs the question: How many of these Christian entities which comprise overall Unreal Christianity fall under the aegis of “the kingdoms of this world?” Are their leaders actually in full covenant with the Lord Jesus? How can we know who is actually in full covenant with Him? The following passages present clear clues, yet apparently hidden to many:
“But the testimony which I have is greater than the testimony of John; for the works which the Father has given Me to accomplish—the very works that I do—testify about Me, that the Father has sent Me.” [Matthew 5:36]
The Jews then gathered around Him, and were saying to Him, “How long will You keep us in suspense? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly.” Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe; the works that I do in My Father’s name, these testify of Me. But you do not believe because you are not of My sheep. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me…” [John 10:24-27]
Philip *said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus *said to him, “Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on My own initiative, but the Father abiding in Me does His works.” [John 14:8-10]
“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father. Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it. If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.” [John 14:12-15][1]
The Lord Jesus proved He was for real in part by the miraculous works done by Him. These works proved the Father dwelt in the Son which illustrated full covenant. Later, at Pentecost, the believers were also filled with the Spirit of God which signified their full covenant with the Lord as well. It is therefore not difficult, from a New Covenant Scriptural perspective and foundation, to name some key points which identify those in full covenant with the Lord Jesus, those who are actual members of His spiritual kingdom:
(1) They honor the Lord Jesus 100%. They strive to learn and follow His full curriculum. They obey “You shall have no other gods before Me.” They fulfill the instructions of the Apostle Peter in Acts Chapter 2. They are not in covenant with anything or anyone in which the Lord is not in covenant. They desire the Lord’s will.
(2) They are willing to deny themselves, carry their cross, and even go to the cross. They subject themselves to persecution.
(3) They are spiritual warriors. They oppose the devil and the devil opposes them.
(4) The Lord Jesus operates through them doing the works He did during His ministry, works that can never be empowered or facilitated by anyone else: And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them, and confirmed the word by the signs that followed. [Mark 16:20]
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
FASTING AND SPIRITUAL GIFTS
Our success as Christians must be defined in purely spiritual terms. Such success can never be gained without pure spiritual means.
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When I first came to the Lord many years ago and was filled with the Holy Spirit I immediately received an intense spiritual hunger for the Word of God. I was doing hard manual labor at the time, working in a massive warehouse distribution center. It was often the case that I would spend my lunch hour fasting and reading the Word.
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Fasting was something entirely new to my life but before my born-again experience I had already understood the need for organic food, proper vitamins, and etc. I even went so far as to become a vegetarian. That lasted about five weeks… Much new information had come forth by the 1970s regarding the chemical-laden junk food in the standard American diet, whether store bought or not, and that it was causing a multitude of health problems for a great many people, most of them unaware of the cause. I had read a lot on the subject of natural foods and still have one particular book from that time entitled Eating For Life. Such literature mentioned the benefits of periodic fasting so I was aware of the practice though had never applied it.
That changed with my new church. They believed in fasting though primarily for spiritual reasons. We were taught to fast at least one day per week, every week—a full 24 hours. I began practicing it, usually on a work day, and it became routine. We were also expected to go on a two-day fast every quarter which I also began doing. This was a bigger challenge. I noticed, however, that despite the difficulties presented the spiritual benefits were quite evident. One had better spiritual vision, clarity, and strength. The Holy Ghost within you was more pronounced since the Lord had less flesh to deal with. One’s witnessing was more empowered. Prayer was more powerful and effective. It was easier to hear from God.
Of course, the Lord fasted often and taught fasting. The original apostles and disciples fasted. It was a practice of the Early Church in the first century AD. And though there are only three men listed in Scripture who ever managed a forty day fast—Moses (twice), Elijah, and the Lord—there is no doubt the apostles and others must have done this as well.
It is not difficult to understand that fasting one day a week is a type of resting every seventh day as the Lord rested on the seventh day of Creation. Giving your system a break every seventh day is highly beneficial and allows for restoration and cleansing. We see this same practice in the Lord’s command to let the agricultural land lay fallow every seventh year. It allows the land to recharge and regenerate. It allows for a rebuilding of the nutrients in the soil. Whenever this form of land management is practiced consistently, in a natural environment, the soil never loses its ability to provide an excellent crop. It is the same for one’s physical body. Fasting is especially necessary in these days of ubiquitous toxicity in which environmental poisons have increased exponentially. But again, for the Christian, fasting is primarily for spiritual purposes.
Even though I was working hard on fast days I got used to it. When one has a regular fast day (same day each week) the body adjusts and though it can be a challenge it is simply not as difficult as one who doesn’t fast may suppose. Also, by reading the Word at the same time, one gains spiritual strength to make up the difference for a loss of physical strength. Incidentally, I was never very good at longer fasts but I have done them on several occasions. Yet, back then in the early days I worked with a guy once who was a master at it. I had become a professional carpenter by that time. A carpenter I worked and went to church with had, on one occasion, gone two weeks without food and never missed a day of work. That was impressive.
Though all new believers have a hunger for the Word of God I noticed early on that I had it to a much greater degree. It did not take me long to read through the entire Bible. I then began doing word studies. Back then, before computers, the general practice for those who wanted the fullness of study was to get a Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance which had every listing of every word in the entire King James Version of the Bible. One could look up any word from any verse and find its meaning. Of course, it contained only the root words and their definitions but it was plenty for general study. A Strong’s Concordance was likely the first study book I ever purchased. It had a light green hardback cover. I still have it. I spent untold hours going through that concordance for many years getting up to speed on Biblical words and meanings.
I soon branched out to other study material but could only afford so much. I didn’t have much to spare on a working man’s salary. However, no matter how much I studied and read it was never enough. I was always pressing on. Again, this was not normal. My fellow congregants all read the Bible, of course. We attended church services four times a week. We did much outside witnessing. We were very proactive in attempting to fulfill the New Testament commands of the Lord. But when it came to reading, study, and research, I outdid everybody else, even some ministers, as I had eventually discovered. I didn’t realize I had a gift.
I didn’t find that out until I took my first spiritual gifts test about six or seven years after becoming a Christian. I had never been aware of such tests before. I was absolutely blown away at the results. Romans Chapter 12 lists seven spiritual giftings of which every real Christian has one which is dominant:
Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly: if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith; if service, in his serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching; or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness. [Romans 12:6-8][1]
When I took the test I came up very high on Teaching. A close second was Prophesying. Whenever I took a test after this over the following years it always scored out the same. This explained everything. It explained why I had such a powerful desire to read and study the Word. You see, one cannot be a teacher unless he knows how and what to teach. I also discovered something else, however. Having the teaching gifting does not necessarily mean one will be a standup teacher with a class. What it actually means is that one is gifted to be as a spiritual detective to work hard at going where no one without this gift will go. The Lord gives a person this anointing and strength. The one with this gift will thus spend hour after hour studying the Word, searching out clues, and doing research not only to gain general knowledge but the hidden knowledge most Christians never gain.
Now, I am not talking about some esoteric nonsense but the “hidden” knowledge of the Word. It is not actually hidden but is effectively hidden since most Christians either don’t read the Bible enough or study it in-depth. Many Christians have a rudimentary knowledge of the Word of God but it is usually not very deep. Many ministers obviously have greater Biblical knowledge than most of their congregants but much of it usually has a denominational bias. It is therefore not so easy to be an independent Biblical researcher, which I developed into, because one eventually discovers false doctrines and bad interpretations of Scripture and has to deal with the societal implications thereof if you get my drift. One must always guard against extra-Biblical stuff masquerading as truth and such non-truth must be exposed for what it is. Otherwise the Christians taken in by the false will likely never be set free from it. They become deceived and stay that way. (When one is deceived he or she is not aware of it.) Such deception effectively cuts one off from a closer walk with God. Accordingly, false teachings are not good for one’s spiritual health for two reasons: They replace the truth the Lord taught and restrict one from gaining further truth.
SOUND FAMILIAR?
As our greatest example in this area, look at what happened to God Himself when He walked this earth trying to reveal truth and expose error. The religiously brainwashed didn’t take long to resort to outright hatred against Him because He revealed them as posers. Simply by shining His light He revealed their ignorance and sinful motives. It was a severe blow to their spiritual pride. They didn’t appreciate that. They didn’t think they were posers. They believed they were highly accomplished. They thought He was a poser. See how that works? This is where Christian-on-Christian persecution comes from.
All real Christians will be persecuted, of course, but some will be especially persecuted. Again, the reason why should be obvious. Christians who are never persecuted probably need to check their oil because something isn’t adding up. Also, one must remember the Lord Jesus had all seven giftings operating at 100%. He was filled with the Holy Spirit without measure. He is God. He is the Holy Spirit. Therefore, when He taught He was doing so with the highest and most pure form of spiritual light. His light would shine upon all darkness. Those fake religionists thus had no chance to hide. They managed to fool most of the people with their obtrusive costuming, smug manner, and societal standing, but the Lord performed what amounted to a spiritual X-Ray upon them which went right through their false façade and revealed to those paying attention exactly what they were.
The majority of Christian ministers do not do this. Why? Because rather than operating as an extension of the Lord Jesus they are actually doing the opposite. They cannot, therefore, shine a light on darkness because they are darkness or lack the light, though duded up to look otherwise. Many are mere Christian Pharisees. It is why they banish anyone who happens to reveal them for what they are. They are threatened by spiritual light. The only way they stay unexposed and in power, therefore, is to get rid of or silence those who would reveal them. It is the way all authoritarians stay in power.
The Christians who actually get what the New Covenant writings teach know that there is only one who must be in power and control. He is the one who has all authority in both heaven and earth. Sadly, of course, all of heaven and earth does not include many churches who are manned by counterfeits. The real Church has only one King. Everybody else in His Kingdom is not a king and are all on the same plane. When we structure our gatherings in such a way that the Lord Jesus is the only authority it eliminates the notion of a single “pastor” ruling a congregation. It supports the truth of the NT format in which a group of mature Spirit-filled elders oversee the operation from a secondary position to the Lord and in which the Lord is able to do anything He wants anytime He wants.
WE KNOW WHEN THE LORD JESUS IS IN CHARGE BECAUSE HIS GOSPEL DOINGS AND THE BOOK OF ACTS BREAKS FORTH.
Well, what self-respecting Christian minister wants that? The whole church would be in an uproar. The surrounding town or neighborhood would think he lost his mind. He would certainly lose his dignified status and pretty soon his job. He would quickly be knocked back to the Stone Age and have to start all over again (you know, like when one first comes to the Lord in real repentance). What Christian Pharisee would ever allow such a terrible outcome?
Remember, the fakers can last forever with their true identities hidden to the masses until the Light shows up. It is then when their cover is blown. Until Christians start waking up to the fact that many Christian ministers are simply not endowed by God, equipped, or gifted, and are not bringing the goods but are getting by on shallow non-spiritual blatherings that sound great but do nothing or little spiritually substantial, they will keep getting what they’ve always got: The needle won’t move and the creeping enemy will continue to take over until the local church looks exactly like the fallen world. The Lord Jesus did not give His life for that.
And such shallow Christians will also discover the biggest thing, something they REALLY don’t want: They will have to take upon themselves their own spiritual responsibilities, embrace discipleship, and do their spiritual work as the Lord commanded. It is no wonder then that most would rather maintain the status quo. The majority of the Israelites in the first century AD had the same attitude.
We must thank the Lord then, and show great gratitude and appreciation for those Israelites who saw it differently. They decided to give everything they had for the one who died to save them. Though in the minority, and though facing spiritual and cultural persecution, they didn’t hold back. They were great spiritual warriors who received the spoils of victory on a daily basis. Because of their foundational work way back then we have the opportunity today for every ability and gifting we need to do the work that must be done so that we can have the same outcome they had.
In future records, may it be written of our generation as it was for theirs:
“These who have turned the world upside down have come here too.” [Acts 17:6 NKJ]
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE JUDAS SPIRIT: TREACHEROUS BETRAYAL BY THOSE IN LEAGUE WITH THE DEVIL
Every real Christian is subject to everything experienced by the Lord Jesus, one of which is cold betrayal. This is always done by someone close, usually a trusted one.
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THE JUDAS KISS
The reason it works so well is because one’s defenses are down. One has no reason to put up a shield against friends, family members, or Christian associates. In this sense the victim is essentially defenseless. His or her sense of loyalty, good faith, and thinking and believing well of others, without which one cannot have good relationships, is the very thing taken advantage of by the Judas spirit and the person aligned with it. However, this does not mean the victim was not necessarily wise or watching. It does not mean the victim of betrayal was not being exactly what the Lord wanted him or her to be or was not walking with the Lord. One may wonder, then, is this is true, why the Lord did not warn them before the attack.
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In reality, there are often clues along the way that are certainly acknowledged but usually not taken as seriously as they should be, but again, to take them too seriously can damage the relationship, a relationship the victim appreciates and protects. There is thus a fine line. Potential Judases, as deceiving and conniving as they are, sometimes reveal themselves for what they are in relatively minor ways. Sometimes their outer packaging slips a tad. Sometimes their mask fails to hide completely. They may say or do something that arouses suspicion but because they are such excellent liars, something the victim can’t quite conceive of since it is so diabolical, they manage to stay above any suspicion that may otherwise reveal them for what they actually are.
Now, some people, a relative few, have their suspicion motors running at high speed much of the time. Others are never suspicious. Most people, however, with regard to close personal relationships, have a healthy mindset which allows for suspicion but are not focused on it. It kicks in when it is called for, when something appears off and when things don’t quite add up. But even then it is likely that these are mere general warnings that don’t have actual merit. Such warnings let a person know the system is running properly.
Those who are always suspicious have likely been burned to a high degree at some point, maybe several times, and feel they are forced to always be on high alert. Those who are never suspicious are those most vulnerable to attack and are often the kind of people who are easily taken advantage of. These may be placed in that general group that contains the naïve, the gullible, and those more easily prone to indoctrination. Interestingly, along with these are people of status so sure of their beliefs they believe it ridiculous to second guess their station in life. Why they are so trusting without testing is too broad a subject to discuss here but could be due to never seeing any reason to be guarded. It could even be because they perceive guarded people, even those only slightly such, as paranoid. Still, allowing for suspicion is a vital part of one’s defenses. Most people learn at a young age that some people can be trusted and others can never be. Defending oneself is a vital component of life and part of the way God made us.
Regarding the Lord’s betrayal, it may not be the best of examples in that it never surprised Him but He did allow for it. He did this in part to show what is possible and what one should watch for. He was obviously wise and knowledgeable enough to know all about the man Judas Iscariot, his makeup, and his motivations; he was never fooled by Judas. But the other disciples were, at least in part. One or some of them may have known Judas before the Lord chose him. Some of them didn’t take long to figure out that Judas was certainly a man to be suspicious of. They knew he was a thief, for example, though this knowledge may not have come until later in the Lord’s ministry. They knew he was a lover of money. They also must have known that he was highly religious in the Pharisaical sense. In fact, Judas was actually a type of the unbelieving Israelites who rejected the Lord Jesus as Messiah. Hence, the Judas spirit and the antichrist spirit are closely aligned.
I think he probably was a Pharisee though a stealthy one. Considering how he so easily met with temple insiders to betray the Lord suggests he apparently had close relationships with some who worked in the temple. These might have been long term or may have only arisen after he became a disciple by spies who desired to cultivate an inside spy. And Judas, due to his own concerns about the Lord and his lack of full commitment to Him likely granted him access to the intrigue of the evil inner circle where others had none. For example, no other apostle had any such relationship. All the others had given their hearts and lives wholly to the Lord and this cut them off from any worldly relationships on the outside.
So this is a clue. If one has a potential Judas in one’s life then one likely has an unhealthy friendship with the world to some degree manifested through friends or family. This may be hard to understand for many Christians but the student of the New Covenant Scriptures is very aware of such passages as the following:
“Therefore, come out from their midst and be separate,” says the Lord. “And do not touch what is unclean; And I will welcome you.” [2Corinthians 6:17]
You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. [James 4:4]
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; for you once were not a people, but now you are the people of God; you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. [1Peter 2:9-10]
According to the latter passage, whether or not we receive mercy is contingent upon leaving the world of darkness, joining up with the people of God, becoming God’s own possession, and serving as a spiritual priest of the Lord. (This must include real repentance.) According to the former passages we must be separate from the world, never be a friend of the world, and not touch what is unclean. Whoever fulfills these requirements will be welcomed into His kingdom by the King Himself, will be a friend of God, a member of His holy nation, and again, will receive mercy. One will never have to be concerned about being betrayed by such people.
One will not have to worry about being betrayed by non-Christians either because real Christians have no spiritual relationships with non-Christians. Therefore, the Judas people will appear somewhere in the middle. They are those who have one foot in the world and give the appearance of having the other foot in the kingdom. This may appear impossible but on the other hand some people are flakes. Some people are commitment-challenged. Some people are a mile wide and an inch deep. Unreal Christianity is rife with such people.
It kind of reminds one of the present condition of the Mississippi River. The Mississippi has not been this low in a very long time. There are vast stretches that are only about five feet deep. Stuff that has been forever under water is now being revealed. An old ferry barge over a century old has been exposed. Human remains have been found. There have been other discoveries. One can now walk across large swaths of exposed river bottom. Upstream barges cannot get their crops to market. What is more, there is little hope for the necessary rain beyond the immediate future. This sounds like those virgins who neglected to keep their oil lamps filled. It reminds one of the corruption of hidden sins never repented of or dealt with that hide beneath the surface waiting to be revealed when the masquerade comes off.
And this is reminiscent of the Judas spirit living within or around a potential traitor who keeps his or her treachery well-hidden by high enough water until the time of their strike. And though the river is muddy, it is up to his or her potential victim to see the signs, to look overboard once in a while, do some catfish noodling, and maybe partake of a scuba dive or two. Even then it is sometimes not possible to avoid attack because the devil is sly and Judases are good liars and very deceptive.
SOMETIMES CHRISTIANS GO SOUTH
Generally, people don’t lose their religion all at once. It is most often a gradual thing. It usually has something to do with not repenting of a certain sin and allowing it to fester and turn into a problem. When sins are small they can much more easily be dealt with. If not they have a tendency to propagate. It seems that sins have little seeds attached that grow into new sins. If not dealt with, such sins become a bumper crop and overcome the ability of the person to deal with them. Because the person likes the sin at least to some degree he or she thus coddles the sin instead of KILLING IT. Then the next phase kicks in when evil spirits are attracted to the darkness. Evil spirits love sin. They love darkness. They love corruption. This is why, when someone possesses such a ponderance of unrepented sin, they also open themselves up to demon oppression or possession. And according to the account of that tomb-dwelling demon-possessed guy in the country of the Gerasenes on the other side of the lake (see Luke 8:26-39), it is possible for a person to be possessed by thousands of demons at the same time, kind of like a mass of flies of a particular kind. (The term Beelzebul is actually a derogatory takeoff on the ancient deity of the Ekronites, the lord of the flies.)
Because Judas Iscariot never dealt with his minor sins they compounded and became major sins. Then, evil spirits were attracted to him. The temple insiders were also attracted to him and saw an opening to use him to murder the Lord. But guess what? Things got so bad and so out of hand within Judas due to his embrace of sin, his bitterness, his anger, and his frustration with his inability to change the Lord or manipulate Him that he not only attracted those guys but also attracted the devil himself:
And Satan entered into Judas who was called Iscariot, belonging to the number of the twelve. And he went away and discussed with the chief priests and officers how he might betray Him to them. They were glad and agreed to give him money. So he consented, and began seeking a good opportunity to betray Him to them apart from the crowd. [Luke 22:3-6][1]
Here is another clue: Betrayal of this kind usually involves money. It involves a payoff for causing either great suffering to the victim, eliminating the victim altogether, or both. Some people have no problem destroying a person’s life for a reward of some kind. Also, keep in mind that there is a natural form of manipulation that is purely of the flesh but is used in the same way. Some people are manipulators. They are devious tricksters who do their evil under the radar in order to change a person to his or her way of seeing things in order to use them for their own purposes. Those who are best at this are never or rarely perceived for what they are. It is often the case if not always that such schemers are too personally weak or outnumbered to get their way otherwise and must therefore resort to double-dealing and perniciousness. Or it could be that there are laws against such behavior, whether legal or moral, and the person must find a way to get around such laws without appearing to break them overtly in order to keep up appearances and not arouse suspicion.
However, when it comes to evil spirits, it is a different ball game altogether. When a person is betrayed with the assistance of such demonic entities he or she is dealing with a much higher level of strength which most often overpowers the person’s natural strength and ability to perceive what is happening. Accordingly, this also involves a much higher level of deception and manipulation. The person and the demon work together. Judas Iscariot, remember, would never have been able to betray the Lord without human help and demonic help. Of course, the Lord was aware of the entire scheme the entire time whereas all others are not though they may be suspicious to varying degrees. The early Christians were well aware of demonic entities and their machinations and knew they could only defeat them using the power of God. They were spiritual warriors. It is in part why they knew they must be Spirit-filled.
BE CAREFUL WHO YOU TRUST
As a final warning, one based purely on Scripture, one must be careful who he or she is in relationship with. In the Early Community of the Lord in the first century, believers were strictly instructed by the Lord and then one another to make only a 100% commitment to the Lord and nothing less once they decided to follow Him. One’s relationship with the Lord Jesus must be such or there is no real relationship. He will not accept anything less. Spiritual Covenant is impossible without a full commitment.
Then, when two believers have done this—when they have each done their part to create a vertical covenant relationship with the Lord Jesus—they can each create a horizontal spiritual relationship with each other based on the same covenant teaching. They then need not worry about betrayal from one another because both have fulfilled the entry level requirement (“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind.”) and both have fulfilled the second requirement as well (“And your neighbor as yourself.”). Again, both would also be filled with the Holy Spirit which greatly aids in being aware of or identifying potential Judases.
The same is true for a group of twelve or 120 as on the Day of Pentecost. It is also true for thousands. In fact, when one considers the many hundreds of thousands or millions of people which comprise the entire Body of Christ on the planet—the actual Body of Christ comprised of real Christians—one can see that one will always be safe with the Lord and mature real believers dedicated to the Word. One will never be betrayed by these, especially of course, by the Lord Jesus who has already proven His love and faithfulness a million times over. He will never leave you or forsake you. He gave everything for us He possibly could give. He did everything for us He possibly could do.
For other relationships, however, there is no guarantee. It is why each disciple must be their own watchman on the wall.
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
TENDER MERCY AND THE PROPHETIC WORD: FROM MALACHI TO JOHN THE IMMERSER
The ancient prophecy of Malachi said the next prophet to come would be a forerunner to prepare hearts and would announce the Messiah through the prophetic Word.
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The Messiah is always announced through the prophetic Word. That is why there is no Messiah wherever there is no prophetic Word.
JOHN
John the Baptist—I prefer to call him John the Immerser because this title is both accurate and illustrative in the original Hebrew—was a mere man. Yet he was a man with a powerful spiritual anointing. His anointing was so powerful that it was aligned with the anointing of the ancient prophet Elijah. This is what the prophecy in Malachi actually entailed. It did not refer to a mere man or to a return of Elijah but to a particular powerful prophetic anointing which would show up in the Last Days.
MALACHI
He was the last prophet of Israel before the prophetic Word ceased. For roughly four and a half centuries until John there was no prophet in Israel. Imagine that. For perspective, if we traveled back through time from now for 450 years we would arrive at the year 1572. This was way before anything America. It predates Plymouth (1620) and Jamestown (1607). It even predates the Lost Colony of Roanoke (1585-87). Hence, Israel was prophetless for an incredibly long time.
Malachi’s ministry occurred in the late fifth century BC and ended at some point prior to 400BC when he spoke his last and passed from the scene. His voice was stilled. Having no successor, the prophetic Word went silent. One may wonder how or why this happened but it likely had something to do with an age-old fight between two elements meant to work together but were often effectively at each other’s throats. This ancient battle between priest and prophet continues to play out in our day but’s that’s another story for another time. Suffice it to say that the priests won their battle against the prophets when Malachi breathed his last.
We get an indication of the timing by taking a closer look at Daniel’s prophecy of weeks. He speaks of a distinct division in time that occurred after forty-nine years (seven weeks) which coincided with the completion of the rebuilding of Jerusalem in approximately 407BC. One can easily read into this as a time when the priests had taken full control of the city of Jerusalem and the second temple. They had everything going their way though they achieved it in part (likely a major part) through guile, mammon, and self-serving determination. Now they no longer had to worry about that confounding variable of God speaking to His people and stirring them up against their dead religious order. They had finally eliminated their great nemesis the prophet who was ever exposing their corruption. Does this sound familiar?
The anti-prophet effort had been brewing especially during the time when what was left of the nation of Israel was in Babylonian Captivity almost two centuries before. The nation had been banished there due to its great sin and faithlessness. A defiant faction of the priestly element never did repent but grew further from God and more rebellious. They also picked up some bad demonic stuff while in Babylon and incorporated it into their teachings. When they finally returned to the land after their 70 year penalty phase it was only a matter of time before their evil hearts would overtake the dutiful priests honorably adhering to the Law of Moses and the pure honesty of the prophets and rid the land of not only the prophetic Word but the edifying and preserving influence of God Himself.
Thus, the words of Malachi have special import. Imagine a friend or relative at the end of life speaking his or her final words. This person would never be heard from again. One would therefore want to spend time with the passing one whose speech would soon cease forever. Whether Malachi knew this or not we may not ever know but I think he did. He was a prophet after all. Unlike the priests who performed routine quotidian tasks and ceremonial duties, prophets had to stay close to God at all times or would not be able to fulfill their callings. They could never fake it. Their lives were not composed of man’s order but the comparative wildness of spiritual warfare as reflected in nature when one may not know what may come next—crashing oceans, great thunderstorms, raging blizzards and the like—but had better be equipped and able to deal with it. They were given a most difficult task to achieve that demanded the crucifixion of flesh. They were often greatly humbled. It sometimes appeared that God had little concern for their welfare or physical comfort. They were driven to be the best and to achieve their calling against great odds. These were tough men. Very strong. God demanded of them a high level of spiritual discipline and the outworking thereof because the people needed to hear from Him for their direction and salvation and this could only happen through the prophetic Word delivered through humanity.
Obviously very few men qualified to be prophets, not necessarily because God was partial or particularly choosy but because He had a hard time finding those who would willingly submit to the rigors of the calling. I cannot imagine how hard this process must have been for the Lord but I get a pretty good clue whenever I think about the working out of my own walk and its hopeful effectiveness and how the Lord must be forever patient but also demand commandment-keeping, curriculum-learning, calling-achievement, and having something great to show in our lives for what He did for us on the cross. He built a great foundation which gave each real Christian a tremendous head start. I would think He expects us to strive to be the best we can be. This is how it was for the OT prophets, though to the nth degree.
The book of Malachi has been described as “a beautiful expression of God’s love for a nation that continues to disobey Him,”[1] and in one sentence: “The Great King will come not only to judge his people, but also to bless and restore them.”[2] It is composed of four chapters. The verses we are concerned with in this paper come from Chapter 4 and describe that distant time four and a half centuries from Malachi’s era into the future when the great closing prophetic events occur in the final generation of Israel in the first century AD. Here is Chapter 4, the last verses of the Old Testament, in full:
Final Admonition
1 “For behold, the day is coming, burning like a furnace; and all the arrogant and every evildoer will be chaff; and the day that is coming will set them ablaze,” says the LORD of hosts, “so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.
2 “But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings; and you will go forth and skip about like calves from the stall.
3 “You will tread down the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day which I am preparing,” says the LORD of hosts.
4 “Remember the law of Moses My servant, even the statutes and ordinances which I commanded him in Horeb for all Israel.
5 “Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the LORD.
6 “He will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, so that I will not come and smite the land with a curse.” [Malachi 4:1-6][3]
Those who are aware of the final conflagration of the nation of Israel will see in this passage the absolute accuracy of the prophetic Word of the Lord spoken through the prophet Malachi. This man was given a pure vision of the future by God and he captured it in written form. As I wrote earlier, the vision within this short passage directly refers to the final generation of Israel and the “Last Days” spoken of in the New Testament writings. They were the days of the next prophet after Malachi, a man named John, who the Lord Jesus referred to as the greatest man born of a woman. And of course, right after John arose the greatest Prophet, a Man excepted from the former description since He is truly the greatest, who was the long waited Messiah as referred to by Malachi in verse 5, “the coming of the great and terrible day of the LORD.” This day was great primarily because He would arrive and save all believers from their sin and grant them eternal life. But the day was terrible in that:
V1: It would burn like a furnace and all the arrogant and every evildoer would be chaff; the day that is coming will set them ablaze and leave them neither root nor branch.
V3: The wicked would be tread down and be ashes under the feet of the righteous on the day “which I am preparing.”
In the last verse the Lord speaks of one final chance for the nation. If not heeded He would “come and smite the land with a curse.” Of course we know it was not heeded. The prophet John was rejected. The Messiah was rejected. The prophetic Word was rejected. Every warning ever spoken was rejected.
The nation crashed and burned, as did the great city of Jerusalem, the city of David. And the brand new sparkling gold-laden and gold-filled third temple was also burned to the ground and every last trace of it vanished.
For the righteous believers who welcomed John and welcomed the Messiah and respected the prophetic Word we have:
V2: “But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings; and you will go forth and skip about like calves from the stall.”
We see this prophetic truth mentioned once again as reflected in the next passage from the Gospel of Luke when John’s father Zechariah spoke the following prophecy at baby John’s circumcision ceremony:
“Praise the Lord, the God of Israel, because He has visited and redeemed His people. He has sent us a mighty Savior from the royal line of His servant David, just as He promised through His holy prophets long ago. Now we will be saved from our enemies and from all who hate us. He has been merciful to our ancestors by remembering His sacred covenant—the covenant He swore with an oath to our ancestor Abraham. We have been rescued from our enemies so we can serve God without fear, in holiness and righteousness for as long as we live.
“And you, my little son, will be called the prophet of the Most High, because you will prepare the way for the Lord. You will tell His people how to find salvation through forgiveness of their sins. Because of God’s tender mercy, the morning light from heaven is about to break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, and to guide us to the path of peace.” [Luke 1:68-79 NLT]
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] city.org.nz/kit/bible-overview
[2] biblestudytools.com/books-of-the-bible/
[3] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE RISE OF THE ANTICHRISTERS
…the dumb ass speaking with man’s voice… [2Peter 2:16 KJV]
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Who is the liar but the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, the one who denies the Father and the Son. [1John 2:22]
OUR PRESENT CHALLENGE
By now the lines have been drawn. Most have chosen their side. America is divided. It is breaking apart. There is no going back. Unless, that is, Christians in America, the only possible potential unifying and positive force remaining to restore the country, get their act together. But of course, that will never happen because such Christians, in a general sense, have denied the fullness of the Gospel and consequently have no chance against the level of evil coming forth. Therefore, it will take the “church within the church” to stem the tide toward destruction. This group comprises that small steadfast percentage of American Christians overall, those who take the Lord absolutely seriously, who truly understand what happened at Calvary and how it applies to them personally. Only these possess the 100% dedication to the Lord Jesus, displayed by their pure discipleship and absolute honor of His full curriculum. Only these can be the required positive force to counteract and overcome the negative forces of hatred, rebellion, and destruction. Their pure moral loving nature, anointed by the Lord’s powerful Spirit, stands as a bulwark against the flowing immoral degeneracy of the current evil agenda.
And for any who think I am being far too concerned about saving the country rather than living for the Kingdom I will remind you that without a country with a Constitution of laws to protect and defend the innocent and law-abiding and their God-given rights for the good of all one will be forever on the defensive against marauding evil authoritarians ever on the prowl for taking a spoil and destroying the good. There will be nothing to stop them. Once Constitutional Freedom of Religion, Speech, and the Press is cut away to nothing it will be total war on Christians and Christianity with no possible corrective.
Therefore, there is a Great Awakening. Seeing what was coming, I have been calling for the need of one for decades. I have been speaking, teaching, writing about, and hoping for its arrival openly for the last quarter century. I have mentioned it in my book Real Christianity. And since I received the spoken revelation of its arrival over twelve years ago and have been proclaiming its presence since the beginning of this public blog in May of 2011 long before the vast majority of Christians in America had a clue I can tell you it’s been a lonely fight. The only question at this point is whether enough REAL Christians get involved and work with the Lord Jesus to bring about the desired outcome.
What we have then is a variation of the Lord’s statement, “However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?” In our case, will enough Americans and American Christians become REAL Christians? That’s the real question. It is not that we do not have a Great Awakening. We do. People are certainly waking up. It is happening right now. It’s been gaining steam from initial beginnings at some point just prior to August of 2010. The question remains, will enough American Christians join it to make a difference?
THIS PRESENT DARKNESS
The two sides in this spiritual war are based pretty much exclusively on Pro-Christ or antichrist.
There are intelligent and knowledgeable people in this country who are predicting much more than just Civil War (as some call it, somewhat inanely, a cold impassive term with no guts or feeling that does no justice to the actual terror of that historical bloody betrayal). They are predicting actual geographical division. They are saying the country will be broken up into groups of states. One man in particular foresees another North-South divide with the South including most of the western states but not including the three west coastal states which will compose a third region. Where the North-South border will be is not clear but one can probably figure it out. One thing is certain, however: America as we knew it is projected as gone forever (or with the wind) and those who hide from this reality are only making things worse.
In reality, of course, for the few remaining who can still see reality and actually handle reality, the war began long ago. It was a war waged on everything good, strong, and wholesome about America. It was a secret attack by secret forces who had secretly invaded with most American Christians none the wiser because they were ill-prepared spiritually and never prepared for an attack by the devil himself using his chosen duplicitous instruments who act like him and deceive, lie, hate, kill, steal, and destroy like him.
Now, if this was 2000 years ago the Lord Jesus would certainly have prepared and equipped them. He would have told His people all about the wicked wiles of the evil one and the backstabbing antichristers and the great evil such creatures do. But unlike real ministers of the Gospel, the wimpy DA’s we call pastors and priests who took control of American Christianity long ago never had the spiritual backbone to teach the real truth of the Gospel, part of which is teaching about the great enemy among us who only wants to destroy us. No, most did not do that. They were much more concerned about the cultural aspects of Christianity and the religious aspects of Christianity and were too clueless to understand that there were never any such things in the beginning because God is the antithesis of an idiot and His Kingdom is something far different from their desired kingdoms. Yet, even with the Biblical knowledge they did have they didn’t honor it and created out of thin air such counterfeits anyway. Why? Well, maybe because it worked out well for them.
But it worked out very bad for the poor dumb Christians who followed them. They never learned about how great our enemy is. They were taught that all is always well and God is in control regardless of human effort and participation and everything will be alright and there is a reason for everything and I know I don’t have any control but I trust the Lord as I watch my life get frittered away by the evil ones who rip me off that we just can’t stop because, you know, well, because. If this does not describe a Christian DA then nothing does. And these poor misguided people were not that way by nature but were taught to be that way and affect that attitude by guess who? By the very ones in control who pontificate their nonsense all the day long whether we are talking in the last century or the one before that or even right now when one must put up with the never-ending nonsense of the same defeatist and stupid attitude in which they master dancing all around the actual truth that would set people free but never go there for fear of upsetting the very one behind the gates of hell they are supposed to be attacking. And they side with the Lord’s enemies.
It is why America has descended into this present pit without the spiritual wherewithal to muster any gumption at all toward a slimy wicked enemy who would go down hard if only enough Christians would attack him the way the Lord Jesus and His men did. Those were the great ones. They were tough. They proved their toughness by the rigors of discipleship they subjected themselves to unlike the Christian wimps of the present who have about as much spiritual testosterone as a eunuch. Rather than attack the enemy they ignore him and hope he’ll go away. They refuse the great powerful spiritual strength they should have and would have to overcome him and defeat him and mop up the parking lot with him because they refuse the infilling of the Lord’s Holy Spirit and the powerful anointing thereof because they refuse real repentance and refuse to not be in control. It is why they created their fake versions of Christianity and also why their people suffer all the live long day unable to overcome and never become the mighty warriors they were meant to be. One can never be spiritually victorious with such an unaware and powerless collection of unreal Christians.
We are no longer accepting things we cannot change. It’s now time to change the things we cannot accept.
YOU MUST FIGHT BACK
I remember reading a book by John Eldredge and an account he put forth regarding his young son’s big problem in first grade which robbed him of a great joyous attitude and replaced it with downcast cloudiness. What happened? Well, as it happens to most Christians who get blindsided by the devil but lack the ability and strength to fight back because no “minister” ever told them about spiritual war so they simply take it on the chin and lose the victory and go through life as spiritual losers knowing they can’t possibly ever win a fight against the big bad devil—What happened to the kid was that he was accosted one day at school by a bully. His innocence, trust, and good nature was shattered.
Now, most Christians these days would likely tell their young son there is nothing you can do in such a situation because the bully is bigger than you and you must be nice and not add to trouble so we probably need to tell the authorities… Hogwash. As I continued reading the book to see what Eldridge would do about the unfortunate event I was both surprised and somewhat euphoric when he sat his young son down, looked him in the eye, and said:
“Look at me.” He raised his tearful eyes slowly, reluctantly. There was shame written all over his face. “I want you to listen very closely to what I am about to say. The next time that bully pushes you down, here is what I want you to do—are you listening?” He nodded, his big wet eyes fixed on mine. “I want you to get up . . . and I want you to hit him . . . as hard as you possibly can.” A look of embarrassed delight came over his face. Then he smiled.[1]
The kid was absolutely overjoyed. He had thought fighting back was somehow wrong even though he wanted to; he didn’t want to get in trouble. But all of the sudden he was beaming and his wonderful nature came back and the gloominess was gone. He looked forward to the next day when he would reclaim his place and position and restore his reputation and standing. And the moral of the story was that he never had a problem with that so called bully again and gained a great victory and felt great about himself.
For Christians in this day and age there is no way to gain the victory in this current battle without a committed, for the duration, spiritual fight. We must face the enemy eyeball to eyeball without backing down and without compromising. However, we must not engage until we’re properly equipped. It’s a spiritual war. The forces of evil are spiritually powerful. One must be spiritually powerful as well. The Lord never sends His children into open spiritual warfare without giving them the weapons and armaments they need. And what is His great weapon of choice you may ask? What makes one love everybody? What anoints our prayers with great power and might? What empowers our gifts, ministries, and witnessing?
IT’S HIS OWN HOLY SPIRIT. HIS OWN POWERFUL PRESENCE PRESENT IN YOU. THE ENEMY CANNOT STAND AGAINST IT. THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD WIPES HIM OUT. THE DEVIL IS DEATHLY AFRAID OF THE LORD JESUS. THE ANTICHRISTERS HAVE NO CHANCE AGAINST HIM REGARDLESS OF THEIR DEMONIC CONNECTIONS.
So, returning to the narrative, all those fake Christian ministers who were never Spirit-filled who taught their mostly willing congregants a false wimpy powerless gospel forced their congregants to be overcome by the greatest bully of them all. Rather than rear back and punch him squarely in the face they gave him the upper hand. They made a mockery of the powerful Gospel of the Lord Jesus. The majority of Christians in America have thus never been equipped for spiritual warfare, have never engaged the enemy, and apparently never want to and never will. This is especially true today. It is in part why the enemy has run roughshod over American Christianity and most American Christians. Their fear factor is far superior to their faith factor. In light of what the Lord can do and wants to do, their attitude is both defeating and disgusting.
It is why America has fallen.
DOES ANY OF THIS SOUND FAMILIAR?
But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned; and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.
For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to pits of darkness, reserved for judgment; and did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a preacher of righteousness, with seven others, when He brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly; and if He condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction by reducing them to ashes, having made them an example to those who would live ungodly lives thereafter; and if He rescued righteous Lot, oppressed by the sensual conduct of unprincipled men (for by what he saw and heard that righteous man, while living among them, felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by their lawless deeds), then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment, and especially those who indulge the flesh in its corrupt desires and despise authority.
Daring, self-willed, they do not tremble when they revile angelic majesties, whereas angels who are greater in might and power do not bring a reviling judgment against them before the Lord. But these, like unreasoning animals, born as creatures of instinct to be captured and killed, reviling where they have no knowledge, will in the destruction of those creatures also be destroyed, suffering wrong as the wages of doing wrong. They count it a pleasure to revel in the daytime. They are stains and blemishes, reveling in their deceptions, as they carouse with you, having eyes full of adultery that never cease from sin, enticing unstable souls, having a heart trained in greed, accursed children; forsaking the right way, they have gone astray, having followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness; but he received a rebuke for his own transgression, for a mute donkey, speaking with a voice of a man, restrained the madness of the prophet.
These are springs without water and mists driven by a storm, for whom the black darkness has been reserved. For speaking out arrogant words of vanity they entice by fleshly desires, by sensuality, those who barely escape from the ones who live in error, promising them freedom while they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by what a man is overcome, by this he is enslaved. For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world by the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and are overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first. For it would be better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn away from the holy commandment handed on to them.
It has happened to them according to the true proverb, “A dog returns to its own vomit,” and, “A sow, after washing, returns to wallowing in the mire.” [2Peter 2:1-22][2]
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Copyright © 2001 Wild At Heart by John Eldredge
[2] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 9)
Those who create their own versions of Christianity which differ from the original are MOCKING GOD. They have no respect or honor for the Lord Jesus, WHO IS GOD.
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Now the men who were holding Jesus in custody were mocking Him and beating Him, and they blindfolded Him and were asking Him, saying, “Prophesy, who is the one who hit You?” And they were saying many other things against Him, blaspheming. [Luke 22:63-65]
DENOMINATIONAL BLASPHEMY
All the major denominations of first-century Judaism were not just wrong; they were operated by blasphemous pretenders who mocked God by creating their own distinct religious belief systems, fleshly interpretations of Scripture, and mental constructs based on wrong thinking due to their great sin and distance from the Lord. Everything they created differed significantly from the original. Their desire was not to be in good relationship with God and not to preach Truth but to gain earthly power and prestige, unbridled authority over people through the medium of religion, and enrich themselves monetarily.
Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, were listening to all these things and were scoffing at Him. And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God.” [Luke 16:14-15]
“The first and the last, who was dead, and has come to life, says this: ‘I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich), and the blasphemy by those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.” [Revelation 2:8-9]
THE REAL AND THE UNREAL
He was also saying to them, “You are experts at setting aside the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition.” [Mark 7:9]
What possesses a person to make departures from Holy Writ? What causes Christians to reject the original teachings of the Lord and create their own? Why do they believe they have the authority to do this? Why do they think they can get away with it? What is so wrong with original real Christianity that they feel justified in rejecting it, or tweaking it, and changing it to better suit themselves? Don’t they know it is the responsibility of a follower of the Lord Jesus to conform to Him and His teachings rather than create offshoots merely based on His teachings?
There should be no Christian denominations. Every single one has departed from the original by their very creation. If all believers in the Lord would adhere to His curriculum there would be no need of another. Catholics fight with Protestants and Protestants fight among themselves and they both fight against the Pentecostals and Charismatics who also fight among themselves. There are even divisions within denominations. Churches split but so do denominations. Some of this is playing out right now. It is part of the reason they increase, at times exponentially. If they all abandoned their respective alternative Christian belief systems, slaughtered their sacred cow religious slants, and embraced the Lord’s curriculum only, Christian denominations would no longer exist.
OUT OF DARKNESS
On the other hand, Protestantism was progress. Some Protestant denominations progressed more than others. They were seeking greater Light. Most found some Light and were on a progressive spiritual track to gain more early on. Some continued. Some stopped at certain points. Wherever they stopped and set up permanent camp is when a denomination was formed. They deemed themselves in their own minds far enough down the road from Catholicism to justify discontinuing their spiritual progress. Instead of continuing onward through the fog toward the bright shining light of a new day they apparently still remained out on the vast plain of Shinar and proceeded to build their own Towers.
Here a Ziggurat, there a Ziggurat, everywhere a Ziggurat.
In essence, however, this was only an illusion. Roman Catholicism has long termed Protestants as “departed brethren.” If they truly departed, however, they would have departed completely and conformed to the Lord’s original. Most never did this. Maybe the Lord was leading them out. If so they should have kept going all the way—all the way back to the first century. But none of the major Christian denominations ever did any such thing. Therefore, did they really depart at all?
We know the Protestants retained some Roman Catholic doctrines. We know they maintained Catholic formats. They looked and believed different in part but they also continued to look very similar. The new Protestants felt more comfortable being “Catholic light” than embracing Acts Chapter 2. Sound familiar?
Keep in mind that the real Christians in the world, those who had forever remained faithful and true to the Lord Jesus, obviously still existed at that time five hundred years ago as they always had since the very beginning. But because they were obscure like their Master and preached the Truth like their Master and were never in it for power, prestige, authority, or money like their Master, they were also persecuted like their Master. They were looked down upon by this world like their Master. They were written out of perceived history like their Master. And they were rejected by denominational Christianity the same way their Master was rejected by denominational Judaism.
For those who may not know, I will say this again. The Lord Jesus will have nothing to do with halfway followers. He only accepts those who give their entire hearts to Him. What is the proof of this? How can anyone know who actually does this? What is the test? Here you go: They will believe and act exactly like the original first-century believers.
THE LOVE TEST
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” [John 13:34-35]
“If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.” [John 14:15]
“He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me;” [John 14:21]
“If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.” [John 15:10]
“Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends. You are My friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard from My Father I have made known to you.” [John 15:13-15]
“…Teaching them to observe all that I commanded you…” [Matthew 28:20]
By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; [1John 2:3-4]
So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” [John 8:31-32][1]
THE HATE TEST
One can discover the unreal by the way they treat the real. Unreal Christians are Christian persecutors. Real Christians never persecute anybody. Unreal Christians use fear, force, guilt, shame, anger, deceit, trickery, and insistence upon their various non-Scriptural traditional means, methods, and beliefs to get their adherents to conform to a common denominator. This creates their false unions (Towers). We know that great masses of people can be psychologically brainwashed, indoctrinated, conditioned, and programmed, even to their own detriment, in order to remain socially viable and accepted members within their group.
The Lord Jesus, however, never engaged in any of this and never taught such. He was forced by who He is to often remain a largely solitary Man even among His own. He also taught that His disciples would be treated as He was and they were. They had to learn to stand alone much of the time against the onslaught of those who bought into false paradigms and fruitless works who often resorted to force and hatred as means to compel conformity. The fearful always fell for such; they had no faith to counteract their fear. They found solace in joining such groups because they knew the leaders thereof would then leave them be and their social standing, low denominator as it was, would remain in place. Being part of such groups helped relieve anxiety and fear. It made them feel as though they belonged. They could thus relax within their faux social constructs, gain the support thereof, and not have to deal with their sin or the higher requirements of God.
The Lord Jesus, however, rejects such unrepentant cowards. He has nothing to do with these mulish misled mockers. He will not have in His Community anyone who refuses their entire heart.
He will never give His love to an unfaithful masquerading bride.
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 1)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 2)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 3)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 4)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 5)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 6)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 7)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 8)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 8)
Real Christians MUST understand that Unreal Christianity is a devious enemy. It is a false façade operating deceptively diverting Christians away from the full Gospel truth.
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RELIGIOUS FAKERS AND FAKERY
In case one has yet to get the memo, evil will do ANYTHING to get its way. We know from the way the devil tempted the Lord that he is a master manipulator and deceiver. If he would engage in such powerful tactics with God Himself he would certainly do it with anyone. We know from the way he successfully deceived Eve and how their transaction released sin into the world that he would stop at nothing. Evil is thus deceptive, cunning, and shrewd. Pageantry and symbolism serve as great tools. The devil is a specialist at presenting himself as perfectly legitimate and honest. He is a great actor.
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.” [Matthew 23:27-28]
Hypocrite: ὑποκριτής (hoop-ok-ree-tace’): An actor under an assumed character (stage-player), i.e. (figuratively) a dissembler (“hypocrite”):—hypocrite.
The first-century Pharisees had perfected the craft of religious playacting. They were insincere poseurs pretending to be effective stand-ins for God and an apparent majority of Israelites of the time were utterly fooled. A big part of their fooling was being blindsided by the majestic presence of such bedecked ones all fitted out in their religious finery and egress fenestrations. Secondly, their multi-credentialed résumés granted them superior status not to be trifled with. And thirdly was the fear factor, an egregious quality born of powerful presence and religious pride which disarms and instantly dispatches beholders to places of subservience. Theirs was a purely flesh creation designed to fool minds set on the things of the flesh. This deceptive process, however, opened them up to demonic influence. Their success, therefore, never came from God, nor does the success of today’s Christian Pharisees.
MAKING MERCHANDISE OF YOU
They provide the illusion-affirming attention religious people need to live the lie. They don’t care about anyone’s soul or eternal destination, only that their own status is confirmed and authority honored. In short, they pretty much do the opposite of the Lord Jesus but are such masters of illusion they appear to be outdoing Him. And if this is not true why are the majority of Christians in the world under their sway? We discussed in Part 7 how such an occurrence could happen and how it did. One wonders how so many still cannot see through the ruse but, as I’ve explained it in this article thus far, we are dealing with an extremely high form of deception.
For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Therefore it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their deeds. [2Corinthians 11:13-15][1]
IT BEGAN WITH A ROMAN EMPEROR
Constantine decided on wholesale changes. He went nuclear. He completely rejected the perfect original curriculum of the Lord Jesus. He rejected as well the clear historical record of the Book of Acts and created a new syncretic “Christian” religion. He established a post-Real Christianity institution and then claimed Christianity for himself and his rebellious agenda. He was otherwise obviously never a real Christian and actively opposed the Lord Jesus and His Community. He declared all religions illegal in the Roman Empire, completely eliminating any freedom of religion that existed before. He declared his new Universal Christianity as the only legal religion and forced everyone to join. This included grave penalties for anyone who may refuse. Those who refused exclusively were the real Christians who still honored the Lord Jesus and served Him only. Of course, real Christianity was also rendered illegal throughout the Roman Empire and all real Christians instantly became a persecuted people. This persecution never stopped. The real Church was forced to go underground.
While Unreal Christianity flourished above ground, entirely earthly, entirely of the flesh and not the Spirit, and became flushed with wealth, power, and worldly success, the real Christians only enhanced their position within the spiritual realm and secured all the more the truth that the Lord’s Kingdom is a spiritual kingdom. We know they survived and even thrived in a world of increasing darkness including that of the religious variety simply because the presence of the Lord Jesus never left and His positive impact and influence on the world remained. We know that though the devil continued his fight against the Lord, the truth, and the Lord’s Community, he was never able to eliminate his nemesis entirely because spiritual Light is eternal and forever shines against the darkness, always revealing it and exposing it for what it is.
The enemy can thus only gain and maintain a foothold and never succeed in making the darkness of his heart global among all humanity and nature. The presence of the Lord Jesus always disallows this and always will.
Therefore, just as was the case with the first one, the Christian Tower of Babel was never completed.
And never will be.
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 1)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 2)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 3)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 4)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 5)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 6)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 7)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 9)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 7)
The initial history of the Early Church occurred during 32-70AD. Afterwards, until the early 300s, real Christianity grew exponentially. Then the enemy made a masterstroke…
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The Christian Tower Builders had been preparing well. During a period of roughly 230 years after the destruction of the nation of Israel (70AD) and the establishment and great fruitfulness of the Lord’s spiritual Kingdom throughout the Roman Empire, the enemy had been stealthily at work. He had developed a plan to strike back at his hated nemesis even though its full effect would be long in coming. His first intention was to undermine the original teachings of the Lord by introducing familiar philosophical reasonings and standard ancient religious concepts which centered on idolatry. He would add Gnostic understandings which initially emerged during the apostle Paul’s time primarily in Asia Minor centered roughly at Ephesus, having likely originated in Alexandria, Egypt. In essence, the enemy would do what he had always done to lead people astray: Obfuscate their thinking, corral them into cults, and draw them into eventual worship of him whether such people knew it or not.
He would also begin the process of recreating and applying the accoutrements of tyrannical rule which would largely mirror the Roman emperor and his court and thus generate the means to rule over as many Christians as possible through as few as possible. This had always been a successful strategy in other cultures in prior times in that it created influential figureheads by which to control and manage the herds of humanity regardless of realm—government/politics, religion, the military, or even economics. Regarding Christians who had already adapted to following one Leader—the Lord Jesus—the enemy would have to make the attempt to introduce sub-leaders, those who stood between God and the follower and who would act as religious mediators. In this way he could cut off a believer’s direct communication with the Lord by making him go through a surrogate and compel him to become dependent on a stand-in—a hireling—and by this muddy the believer’s knowledge and understanding of the Word of God. Sound familiar?
One may wonder how the enemy thought he could be successful at any of this after the great triumphs of the Lord’s Community, the far-reaching application and successful results of its spiritual power and authority (greater than any other), and the prodigious number of born again believers to the tune of multiple millions. Why did he think his subterfuge may work?
To start with, one may consider all that God had done for His ancient people and what He equipped them with, starting from Adam to the nascent nation of Israel escaping Egyptian bondage, and onward to the full burgeoning of the nation, and then see what happened to each. How did Adam fare? How did the promising initial population of the world deteriorate so badly that it required the Flood of Noah to cleanse the land? What happened to that first generation after the Exodus? How did the conquest of Canaan go? What eventually happened to the promising nation of Israel? You see, the Lord was positively involved in all these efforts, had great plans, unlimited resources, and the spiritual power to see them through and grant success but they all botched it. How was any of this failure even possible?
So we see that they were not able to enter because of unbelief. [Hebrews 3:19]
Unbelief: ἀπιστία (ap-is-tee’-ah): faithlessness, disbelief, unfaithfulness (disobedience), want of faith, weakness of faith:—unbelief.
—Adam introduced sin into the world. The world population destroyed in the Flood had grown far from God, willingly distant from His will, exponentially evil, and characterized by the sin of murder. The first generation of Israelites after the astounding miracle of the Red Sea Crossing at the Exodus were wiped out in the desert and never entered the Promised Land due to unbelief, disobedience, rebellion, and obstinate opposition to the divine will. Joshua’s Conquest was great in part but the assignment was never completed fully per his instructions and far too many Canaanites remained which eventually assisted in corrupting God’s people.
So you see, the devil had much to be hopeful for. He felt assured that he could corrupt Christians as he had corrupted so many others in world history. He knew what he had assisted in doing to the nation of Israel, which no longer existed, and was confident he could do the same to the Lord’s new spiritual Community. Though this may have appeared inconceivable early on and certainly a daunting undertaking due to the Lord’s people being a much greater foe than past heroes of the faith, the enemy knew he was still dealing with human beings who had their flesh to contend with. They were imperfect. They may have chinks in their armor. They may be vulnerable to certain sins. Those Christians who failed to stay filled with the Holy Spirit, die daily, and crucify their flesh would be susceptible to a successful attack and such were those who would be targeted.
Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. [1Peter 5:8][1]
He would attack indirectly. He would make a play on the flesh. He would mess with people’s minds. He would conjure up the specter of religious pride. If these sound familiar they are exactly what He tried on the Lord Jesus with obviously no success whatsoever. But they had worked in the past. They worked with Adam and Eve and later Israelite kings, notably Solomon. They certainly worked with the Pharisees et al. It was a known strategy and a very familiar story. If he managed to make steady inroads during the second and third centuries he could eventually reach the plain of Shinar phase of the operation. Would the devil be able to foment a maneuver in which the spiritual reality of living stones could be transformed into a religion of fake rocks? Made of burnt mud brick? Could he gather enough faux believers to overcome the real believers and therefore institute a new Christianity, one based on syncretism and hybrid renderings, on ultra-ceremonialism, and authoritarian rule?
This was certainly his aim. Again, he knew the concept well and knew it worked well. The challenge would be furthering the notion that Christians need not obey the Lord Jesus exclusively or obey His directives of being Spirit-filled as per the Book of Acts model. It was the only model that worked, of course, at establishing a real Christian and equipping him or her to successfully overcome the world, crucify the flesh, remain properly subjected to the Lord, walk in the Spirit, and defeat spiritual enemies.
The devil knew he must thus construct his own oppositional monolith to counteract the real Church, his own vast “community,” and his own hierarchy through which to rule.
When the fourth century dawned, he decided the time was right. He had worked hard over two centuries to blur the lines of what Christianity was and had introduced damnable heresies as it were, an echo of ancient OT times when he raised up false prophets in the land of Israel. Peter wrote:
But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of. And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not. For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; and spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly… [2Peter 2:1-5 KJV]
The devil had convinced enough Christians to betray the Lord the same way the faithless Israelites had. He must now create an opposing force sufficient to engage in battle on equal terms. He had a means in mind. He had a particular man in mind. He would now foist it upon an unbelieving unaware world and do it quickly so as to deceive enough of the population to render them willing accomplices.
The Christian Tower of Babel was becoming a reality.
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 1)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 2)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 3)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 4)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 5)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 6)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 8)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 9)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 6)
As noted in Part 5, there are two Christianities. Both are united. Real Christianity is united spiritually with the Lord Jesus. Unreal Christianity is unified in opposition against Him.
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CLUES TO A MASQUERADE
1Now the whole earth used the same language and the same words. 2It came about as they journeyed east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. 3They said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and burn them thoroughly.” And they used brick for stone, and they used tar for mortar. 4They said, “Come, let us build for ourselves a city, and a tower whose top will reach into heaven, and let us make for ourselves a name, otherwise we will be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.
5The Lord came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built. 6The Lord said, “Behold, they are one people, and they all have the same language. And this is what they began to do, and now nothing which they purpose to do will be impossible for them. 7Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, so that they will not understand one another’s speech.” 8So the Lord scattered them abroad from there over the face of the whole earth; and they stopped building the city. 9Therefore its name was called Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of the whole earth; and from there the Lord scattered them abroad over the face of the whole earth. [Genesis 11:1-9]
TYPES AND SHADOWS
The preceding ancient passage is loaded with spiritual clues. Before we get into likely allegorical meanings within it we must first reiterate once again the existence of two Christianities: The real and the unreal. Regarding real Christianity we must remember that the Lord’s Kingdom is spiritual. Oppositional Unreal Christianity is not spiritual. Based on the following verse from Part 4 in this series there is only one other choice remaining:
For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. [Romans 8:5]
To this I will add to what we studied in Part 5 regarding the Lord Jesus being the one Foundation and Cornerstone of a “spiritual house” composed of “living stones” as the apostle Peter termed it in his first epistle. The apostle Paul calls it “the temple of the living God” (2Corinthians 6:16). He gives a better description of this spiritual temple in the following passage:
So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit. [Ephesians 2:19-22][1]
Based on these passages it is clear that the Lord is spiritual and His real followers are spiritual. We have an entire history book of the Early Church located between the Gospels and Epistles that tells us how this occurred. The Book of Acts contains one passage after another of individual believers getting filled with the Holy Spirit and all the signs that accompanied their transformation into Spirit-filled believers. We also have proofs located in the teachings of the Lord in the Gospels regarding the historical events in Acts. He instructed them about what would happen, how it would happen, and what to prepare for before it happened. Everything written in the epistles supports what happened in Acts. Paul even goes into greater teachings on the subject regarding spiritual gifts and manifestations.
Now that we have the preceding background information established we can go back to the Genesis Chapter 11 passage about the Tower of Babel and identify its allegorical significance:
AFTER NOAH
When the great flood was over Noah and his family remained in the general region where the Ark came to rest. We identified this region in Part 3. We know Noah lived another 350 years after the flood so his descendants had ample time to reproduce exponentially. Yet, instead of moving out into the world they remained all together in the same area. Now, there must be some reading between the lines here because it must have been the case that a small percentage of Noah’s descendants did obey the Lord and ventured out as pioneers and adventurers. Yet the vast majority did not. In this they were essentially just like those who were killed in the flood in that they were disobedient and rebellious toward God and likely very fearful instead of faithful. They were not the kind of people you could create a new spiritual civilization with.
LET US MAKE BRICKS
Here we have a direct opposite type of the spiritual temple of the Lord:
They decided to find a new location in which to live. It was relatively close. They moved in mass as a uni-culture. They all believed the same, thought the same, and spoke the same language. We discussed this in Part 1. They left the hilly and mountainous region and came upon the plain of Shinar. This is loaded with clues. The flat plain with no variation describes these people to a tee. There was no rock anywhere. It was most likely an alluvial plain, one built up over millennia by multiple layers of silt deposited by flowing waters. There were likely very few trees as well and only relatively low vegetation. Thus, the place they chose had no building materials. But not to worry. We’ll just make bricks from mud.
Okay, there’s another clue. Remember when we discussed Adam’s creation from the elements of the ground in Part 4? The ground does not represent spirit. It represents flesh. Over 99% of Adam’s flesh was made of only eleven elements. But Adam was also filled with the Spirit of God. Because the New Covenant describes the Lord Jesus as a Rock—a Living Stone—and His people comprising the spiritual temple as living stones, we can gather that stones represent spirit and mud bricks represent flesh.
So here we have these disobedient non-spiritual fleshly people leaving a place filled with building materials and settling in a place with none. They then proceed to use alluvial soils as their main building material. In order to insure the strength and durability of their bricks they burn them. They created fake rocks. Then, instead of using actual mortar which contained sand (ground up rocks/quartz) and limestone as a bonding agent, they used tar! This was likely some form of natural asphalt or bitumen but likely not as thick or concentrated as that around the Dead Sea. There must have been great pits nearby where this substance was available. There are indications that it could have been reddish in color, based on the Hebrew root word. Did you know Adam’s name comes from a root word that means red or ruddy?
To burn in this sense calls to mind what Paul wrote about those hypocritical apostates who fell away from the faith. In the KJV it is written: “…having their conscience seared with a hot iron” (1Timothy 4:2). These burned bricks represent the fully indoctrinated. Their minds are made up. You can’t build a tall religious edifice without making sure your members will never stray. This denotes the cultish nature of so much Christian indoctrination when such people never receive from the Spirit of God but must have their beliefs drummed into them.
LET US BUILD A CITY
Notice that they want to build a city first. The city represents their economic interests. It is an indication that they are putting money before God. The Lord Jesus said one cannot serve both. Flesh always puts money first. Spirit always puts God first.
LET US BUILD A TOWER
Rather than a desire for spiritual things these wayward people set their minds completely on the things of the flesh. Flesh doesn’t want God but it craves religion. Flesh also craves material representations of religion. Flesh never thinks in terms of the invisible spirit, or invisible faith, or invisible spiritual gifts, or the invisible Spirit of God. It must have only that which can be experienced through the five senses. Therefore, these people had to build a material representation of their religion which would thoroughly overwhelm and satisfy their flesh. And not only that, they would build it so high that it’s “top will reach into heaven” and overthrow the power and authority of God. Christian religionists have done this very thing on countless occasions over these many centuries of the Christian era. Regardless of the fact that the Lord Jesus, His original twelve, and His early Community never constructed any buildings “dedicated to God” but maintained everything on a spiritual level and met in private homes, it never stopped later Christians from engaging in the same practices as the Tower builders. This manifested powerfully for the first time in the fourth century by the Roman emperor Constantine when he began converting large Roman public buildings into “churches.”
LET US MAKE FOR OURSELVES A NAME
Have you ever heard of a church that doesn’t have a name? How about a denomination? Have you ever heard of a church that doesn’t have a single “pastor” in charge? Should not only the Lord Jesus be in Charge? Shouldn’t His Name be on the church sign out front? Quick question: When the apostle Paul was out establishing spiritual communities did he ever name them? We know Christian communities were identified by the city where they were located but this is merely referring to all the real believers in that particular city. There were no church buildings.
It is obvious that Christians who are obsessed with names and identifying their stuff never properly consider the greatest Name of all, the Name above all names. The majority of Christians rarely or never put the Name of Jesus first.
They are obsessed with building their own Stairways to Heaven.
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 1)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 2)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 3)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 4)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 5)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 7)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 8)
A CONFUSION OF BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS: OUR CHRISTIAN TOWER OF BABEL (Part 9)
BAPTISM OF OPTIMISM: REJOICE!
He was born to die. He always knew it. He planned it. But even at the very darkest hour He knew there was a call for unbounded optimism: He would soon open the Way to Life.
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Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. [Hebrews 12:1-2]
COUNT IT ALL JOY
Mature Christians of the real variety are very well acquainted with giving a message most will reject. As the Lord Jesus engaged in the greatest ministry of all time with a perfect message expertly delivered and a perfect teaching curriculum second to none, no one was more aware of the inherent difficulty of the task at hand than Him, in that His perfect message would be wasted on the majority.
It would seem, during His time, that all impartial hearers and personal witnesses of His love, compassion, mercy, mighty works, and incessant miracles would immediately join up with Him in a veritable heartbeat if for no other reason than that nothing they experienced could be denied. Denial of His extraordinary presence and perfection was impossible. His ministry was that clear. It was absolutely astounding.
And yet, as a stark testimony to the sheer impossibility of errant and immoral human beings besought with a sinful human nature—obstinate and unyielding at its core to any and all reform—recalcitrant and unruly—not only did the majority of His own people reject His message, they also rejected Him and drove His Name into the dirt.
His “own people” constituted not only His fellow Israelites in general but also the political leaders of His nation, the religious leaders of His nation, the foreign leaders in positions of authority in His nation, an untold number of His relatives, and even members of His own immediate family. One can only wonder at the great mental, moral, and emotional disconnect existing in the heart of the willfully lost and the message that could set them free. The Lord had effectively given everything He had, even acting as a supernatural electrician running miles of spiritual romex connected to the power plant of Heaven directly to their hearts and all they had to do was flip a switch. BUT NO.
And He came home, and the crowd gathered again, to such an extent that they could not even eat a meal. When His own people heard of this, they went out to take custody of Him; for they were saying, “He has lost His senses.” The scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “He casts out the demons by the ruler of the demons.” [Mark 3:2-22]
Rather than acknowledge the great Light that had arrived for their salvation and honoring Him and praising Him and being thankful for Him they instead said He had an illegitimate birth, that He was a drunk and a glutton, that He was crazy, and that He was demon possessed. If this does not reveal to an impartial observer the wickedness of humanity nothing ever will. These hell bound moral laggards, at that time the greatest DAs in the history of the world though perceived by the world as upstanding and trustworthy, were the epitome of deceived demon-influenced dunderheads which a sinful unseeing nation prostrated themselves before and trusted exclusively with no thought of thinking for themselves or even giving God a glance. The blind were truly leading the blind but only because the wimpy blind yielded to the authoritative blind because they were far too fearful to risk thinking for themselves.
And yet none of it took the Lord by surprise. No one was more aware of the utter depravity of humanity. He created humanity. He watched humanity fall. He saw humanity from the very beginning from the Garden up to His present and knew very well what He was dealing with. And He came to this earth anyway. He subjected Himself to the vast stupidity and hate anyway.
He knew most would reject Him. He knew most would find fault with Him. He knew most would count themselves better than Him. He knew most would trust their own inclinations or those of their betters. He knew most would not budge an inch from whatever their chosen belief system was. He knew the majority of the indoctrinated and brainwashed would willingly remain that way.
He knew, for most of the people He preached to, that facts would never matter. Nor would the truth matter. Most would not and could not appreciate the truth. For most there was simply no love for facts and truth if these in any way violated their chosen beliefs.
BLINDED BY SIN
And Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world, so that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may become blind.” Those of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these things and said to Him, “We are not blind too, are we?” Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but since you say, ‘We see,’ your sin remains. [John 9:39-41]
And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. [2Corinthians 4:3-4]
“Because you say, ‘I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,’ and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked, I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see.” [Revelation 3:17-18]
How spiritually blind must one be to indignantly and continuously reject the very Light that would heal their blindness and allow them to see spiritual reality? How dark are the hearts that refuse the Light which would otherwise brighten their being and deliver them from the eternal night?
THE JOY SET BEFORE HIM
Yet there were others, a decided and relative few, who took a completely different tack. They were personally bold enough to go against the grain of the fallen world and deceitful sinful culture. These were spiritual pioneers who would rather seek Light and salvation even it meant inviting the wrath of the wayward and cause ongoing personal suffering. They possessed a gravitas that strengthened them against all onslaughts from evil, both human and demonic, and allowed the Lord to greatly supplement their strength with a spiritual power none could resist.
These composed the Remnant. He would rescue these. He knew they would comply. He knew they would surrender to Him and obey. Why? Because they had already been communicating with Him through prayer and supplication for years, long before He ever arrived as one of us. They had been asking for His help. They knew He could help. They wanted Him. They longed for Him. They would do anything for Him. They knew He was and had always been the answer.
Of course, due to their excellent attitude and desire for actual spiritual reality they did not fare too well with other members of society who were impossible to communicate with on a spiritual level. These had a different mindset. They had very little in common with the unrepentant. The Remnant, with reference to this world, knew something was off. They refused to make peace with sin or accept the sinful ways of the world, though they also knew it would make life more difficult.
They knew the way of the Lord Jesus was the highest way, the most pure and righteous way, and they would do their best to follow it. Thus, they rejected the social relativism of the sinful culture which always sought an extremely low common denominator. Such relativism is, of course, the administered agenda of the controllers since dumbed-down masses all on the same drivel-inspired page of monotony are much easier to control and use to do their bidding. And the exact dynamic is present in Unreal Christianity.
OUR GLORIOUS PRESENT
People are waking up. People are gaining their sight. By allowing evil the upper hand and freedom to show itself in all its wickedness, that which had previously been hidden behind dark shadows has emerged into the open. They think the coast is clear. They think they are free to sin to their heart’s content with no ramifications or accountability. They have revealed themselves for what they are. And people are noticing. Those who desire righteousness are raising up a standard, first, in their own lives and then against the wicked. Many are coming to an understanding of repentance, what it is and why it is necessary.
Real Christians have always known from the time of their born again experience that a spiritual Rubicon must be crossed and that one can never go back. They know that when a person makes a commitment to the Lord Jesus it is an irrevocable commitment. There is no looking back or turning back or desire to do so. They know they have crossed a line of separation. The terms of the New Covenant demand it. Those who have recently been awakened know they can never unsee what they have already seen. They know too much.
They know the only remaining direction is forward.
The world of fakery, much of it media-inspired, whether cultural or religious, must be left behind.
BAPTISM OF OPTIMISM
The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters. He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. [Psalm 23:1-3]
But as for me, I am like a green olive tree in the house of God; I trust in the lovingkindness of God forever and ever. I will give You thanks forever, because You have done it, and I will wait on Your name, for it is good, in the presence of Your godly ones. [Psalm 52:8-9]
The righteous man will flourish like the palm tree, He will grow like a cedar in Lebanon. Planted in the house of the Lord, they will flourish in the courts of our God. They will still yield fruit in old age; they shall be full of sap and very green, to declare that the Lord is upright; He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him. [Psalm 92:12-15]
He who trusts in his riches will fall, but the righteous will flourish like the green leaf. [Psalms 11:28]
“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord and whose trust is the Lord. For he will be like a tree planted by the water, that extends its roots by a stream and will not fear when the heat comes; but its leaves will be green, and it will not be anxious in a year of drought nor cease to yield fruit.” [Jeremiah 17:7-8]
Do not fear, O land, rejoice and be glad, for the Lord has done great things. Do not fear, beasts of the field, for the pastures of the wilderness have turned green, for the tree has borne its fruit, the fig tree and the vine have yielded in full. So rejoice, O sons of Zion, and be glad in the Lord your God; for He has given you the early rain for your vindication. And He has poured down for you the rain, the early and latter rain as before. The threshing floors will be full of grain, and the vats will overflow with the new wine and oil. [Joel 2:21-24]
“I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” [John 10:10b][1]
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
JULY 4TH PRELUDE
Tomorrow we celebrate the 246th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Tomorrow’s post will contain the entirety of that great document and the hope thereof.
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America has been under attack for several years now. The ongoing planned destruction had previously been slow and steady. And though there are great sinister forces from without, the primary attack has come from within. The enemy hates individual freedom. The enemy hates strong well-informed individuals. The enemy hates Spirit-filled believers who have sided with the Lord Jesus 100% and are determined to do His will.
I have told you several times in recent posts of the three types of American Colonists that existed in 1776. Each type comprised roughly one third of the colonial population. One type was fully on the side of the English king and Parliament. One type was fully disengaged, ignorant, apathetic, selfish, and completely unaware of the battle at hand and its future ramifications. And one type comprised the greatest generation, the great American Patriots who put everything on the line to fight for freedom.
These three types also comprise the Americans of the present. Whether or not America survives will depend on which type eventually wins. I encourage you to do your own research, make your own evaluations, and come to your own studied conclusions regarding these three types of Americans.
As of now, it appears that the forces of evil have gained the upper hand. But I must remind everyone that the same dynamic was in play 246 years ago. The American Patriots appeared to have no chance but that never stopped them from taking that chance. They knew they would have no chance at all unless they went all in. Their great victory proved again that good is greater than evil and that Light always overcomes darkness.
To date, American Christians have generally become spiritually weak, dumbed-down, compromised, and overcome by the culture. Many rarely or never read and study the Word of God and thus fail to apply it to their lives. Most American Christians are not dedicated disciples of the Lord Jesus. One may wonder how this could have happened but it’s actually quite simple: The majority of American Christians have rejected the total Lordship of the Lord Jesus, have refused to honor and follow His Word, have rejected the Book of Acts in particular, and have instead dedicated themselves to fruitless socially acceptable counterfeits including the leaders thereof.
However, there is a group on the rise that has been on the rise for several years now. I saw this at least thirty years ago when I began my initial research for my book Real Christianity. I saw that if real Christianity was to survive in America it must overcome the massive forces of Unreal Christianity. I certainly expressed the hope that this group of real Christians would continue to rise, and for that to happen there must be an Awakening. I mentioned this in the book.
However, it was not until late August of 2010 that I received the definitive proof. The Lord told me America was in the early stages of a national Great Awakening. That was almost twelve years ago. It has proven to be true.
Since then the enemy stopped his slow gradualism approach and went full bore into the open, no longer all that concerned with attempting to hide his sinister plans or keep his subterfuge secret. Of course, it pretty much stayed secret anyway because the great bulk of Americans and American Christians remained absolutely clueless and ignorant with no desire to change for the better. It has made things very easy for the enemy. He now does his dirty work in plain sight and most Christians still do nothing about it.
Real Christians, however, back in the 1990s, did see. They had the Spirit of God. They had eyes to see and ears to hear. Sadly, they were by and large castigated and rejected by their own, those who could only manage to live in the present and chose the way of compromise and friendship with the world. If the real Christians could survive and manage to coalesce, real Christianity in America could be saved. Thus, SOMETHING profound must have happened in this country in the roughly fifteen year period of 1995-2010. This was a time when enough real believers, largely as mere disconnected individuals, remained dedicated to the Lord Jesus and doubled down on their dedication in the face of persecution from their own. The Lord was apparently greatly pleased. He needed this group and fought for this group. This was a Remnant group of His making that would be necessary for His future plans. It was these who would be used to bring forth the current Great Awakening.
After 246 years this country is at a terrible crossroads. Most never saw what was coming during the good times but the few did. Presently, more can see it, if not by spiritual eyes then by experience. Empirical evidence always promotes clarity. Americans will experience more in the immediate future—dire circumstances from seemingly every direction—that will cause them to start waking up. They will see that all the warnings they previously rejected had great merit. They will see that those who had it right all along but had their names and lives destroyed should have been listened to and honored.
Perhaps the best verse of Scripture which perfectly illustrates what has happened over the last three decades is the following:
Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and among his own relatives and in his own household.” [Mark 6:4][1]
The Lord always has witnesses. One might recall what happened to His great and powerful personal witness. One might recall what the Lord’s own did to Him. What might recall what the unbelievers of His nation—the forces of antichrist—did to the members of the Lord’s Community. This same dynamic plays out every day in every nation. It has certainly played out in America.
Thanks to the Lord Jesus, however, we have great hope. Thanks to Him and His real followers, everyone will have the opportunity to gain the spoils that go to the victor.
246 years ago a group of American Revolutionaries openly declared themselves independent and free of corrupt government. They would go on to fight another five years to win the prize. When they won, and it was a GREAT victory, the spoils of war were shared by all Americans, even the traitors and cowards.
American Christians must therefore thank those who have been in the spiritual battle all along, those who were most usually never or rarely supported and who were forced into long term survival mode. It was the real Christians, the only ones the Lord was allowed to work through and with, who brought us to this time of opportunity and hopeful victory.
The Great Awakening is here. Whether it will be enough or not remains to be seen.
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE TIMES THEY ARE A-CHANGIN’: NATIONAL ABORTION AND THE GREAT AWAKENING (2022)
Hello Friends. I posted the following highly relevant article as titled on July 3, 2015. In it I delve into the basics of “the worst decision ever rendered by the Supreme Court.”
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I wrote it about a week after the Alternative Marriage Supreme Court ruling. Many Americans believed that particular ruling to be incorrect, but it paled greatly in significance to the Roe v. Wade decision of January 22, 1973. It is estimated that 65 million babies have been legally aborted since Roe was made law. This constitutes roughly one third of the American population over the last 49 years.
The math is simple. The US population in January of 1973 was roughly 211 million. It is currently estimated to be 333 million. That’s an increase of 122 million Americans. This means the number of aborted babies over that time span constitutes the population growth of roughly a quarter century, which is astonishing. Essentially, one out of three people is not here. Of course, this does not take into account the children and grandchildren of these aborted babies who never were, which means the population would be effectively even higher and likely much higher. These are sobering statistics.
Now that Roe v. Wade has been overturned as of last Friday, I thought it would be good to revisit some of my past articles on the subject of abortion. In this article from 2015 I name the justices on the Supreme Court who participated in that ruling and how they became members of the Court. Independent Constitutional scholars have long held that Roe is bad law. The current Supreme Court agrees. One thus wonders how in the world such bad law has been allowed to exist for half a century. I will discuss this in future articles. As you read the following post, try to remember that time seven years ago in order to gain perspective:
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Happy July 4th.
On the eve of America’s 239th birthday from which we declared our independence from a tyrannical king, a new tyranny has come forth.
And it is no one’s fault but We the People.
Christians are upset about last week’s Alternative Marriage Supreme Court ruling but I would like to strongly remind everyone that the recent ruling, though a definite sign of decline, is merely a sign of further decline, a great decline that began many decades ago.
On January 22, 1973 the Supreme Court ruled with an iron hand in one sweeping decision that baby killing in the womb had become perfectly legal and the law of the land, overturning every state law against abortion. The vast majority of Americans were against this ruling but the will of the people did not matter. And innocent babies otherwise safely in the womb would now be targeted by heinous practitioners of depraved butchery.
These innocent babes had no voice. They lost all their rights. Barring later repentance that I can find no record of, the seven deceased justices that formed the majority opinion are now suffering a far worse punishment than the one they perpetrated upon the roughly fifty-five million innocent babies to date.
These men were heartless and cold. We have now learned, several years ago in fact, that these babies feel excruciating pain when being ripped apart and sucked out, unlike the mere glob of tissue they are purported to be, which means they suffer the double whammy of physical pain and a complete disregard, dismissal, and indifference toward their status as both human beings and free Americans.
The Roe v. Wade decision was the worst decision ever rendered by the Supreme Court, without question, and makes the one rendered last week look like nothing. The recognition and acceptance in America over the last 42 years of legalized baby killing should put the recent ruling in proper perspective. We should understand that the Supreme Court had already rebelled against God many decades ago and that such current decisions should not surprise us.
Regarding the weird White House color show of last week [President Obama bathed the White House in multi-color], perhaps the White House of early 1973 should have been bathed in blood red.
But evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. [2Timothy 3:13] [1]
Regarding America, just who are these evil men and imposters prophesied about by the apostle Paul so long ago?
Well, considering Supreme Court justices, they are in office by the will of the people. They are nominated by Presidents and must be confirmed by the Senate, which means both branches must work together to make the appointments final.
Presidents are elected by the people of the nation. Senators are elected by the people of their respective states. Therefore, such Presidents and Senators are elected by We the People, which means the ultimate responsibility is with the American voters who elected such people into office.
THE ALTERNATIVE MARRIAGE DECISION
If American Christians want to blame the Supreme Court justices for last week’s Alternative Marriage decision, they are blaming the wrong people. Those justices were placed in power by the America electorate. Here is how they got there:
VOTING AGAINST:
Justice Antonin Scalia (Catholic):
Assumed Office on September 26, 1986. Nominated by Ronald Reagan (Republican).
Justice Clarence Thomas (Catholic):
Assumed Office on October 23, 1991. Nominated by George H. W. Bush (Republican).
Chief Justice John G. Roberts (Catholic):
Assumed Office on September 29, 2005. Nominated by George W. Bush (Republican).
Justice Samuel A. Alito (Catholic):
Assumed Office on January 31, 2006. Nominated by George W. Bush (Republican).
VOTING FOR:
Justice Anthony Kennedy (Catholic):
Assumed Office on February 18, 1988. Nominated by Ronald Reagan (Republican).
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg (Judaism):
Assumed Office on August 10, 1993. Nominated by Bill Clinton (Democrat).
Justice Stephen G. Breyer (Judaism):
Assumed Office on August 3, 1994. Nominated by Bill Clinton (Democrat).
Justice Sonia Sotomayor (Catholic):
Assumed Office on August 8, 2009. Nominated by Barack Obama (Democrat).
Justice Elena Kagan (Judaism):
Assumed Office on August 7, 2010. Nominated by Barack Obama (Democrat).
The Alternative Marriage Decision was a 5-4 vote. Voting For were Kennedy, who wrote the majority opinion, Ginsburg, Breyer, Sotomayor, and Kagan. Each one of these justices was nominated by Presidents who were elected not only once, but twice. The American people cannot be clearer about their choice for President when they elect that President twice. Each one of these justices was also confirmed by elected members of the United States Senate.
Therefore, regarding last week’s decision, it can be argued that those who voted for Ronald Reagan (Kennedy), and especially those who voted for Bill Clinton (Ginsburg, Breyer) and Barack Obama (Sotomayor, Kagan) are the responsible parties. It must be noted though, that justices often go left after attaining office, which is certainly the case with Kennedy.
THE ROE V. WADE DECISION
Regarding the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion, if American Christians want to blame the Supreme Court justices of that time for that decision, they are, again, blaming the wrong people. Those justices were also placed in power by the America electorate—We the People. Here is how they got there:
VOTING AGAINST:
Justice Byron White (Episcopalian):
Served 4/16/1962 – 6/28/1993. Nominated by John Kennedy (Democrat).
Justice William Rehnquist (Lutheran):
Served 1/7/1972 – 9/3/2005. Nominated by Richard Nixon (Republican).
VOTING FOR:
Justice William O. Douglas (Presbyterian):
Served 4/15/1939 – 11/12/1975. Nominated by Franklin Roosevelt (Democrat).
Justice William J. Brennan, Jr (Catholic):
Served 10/15/1956 – 7/20/1990. Nominated by Dwight Eisenhower (Republican).
Justice Potter Stewart (Episcopalian):
Served 10/14/1958 – 7/3/1981. Nominated by Dwight Eisenhower (Republican).
Justice Thurgood Marshall (Episcopalian):
Served 10/2/1967 – 10/1/1991. Nominated by Lyndon Johnson (Democrat).
Chief Justice Warren E. Burger (Presbyterian):
Served 6/23/1969 – 9/26/1986. Nominated by Richard Nixon (Republican).
Justice Harry Blackmun (Methodist):
Served 6/9/1970 – 8/3/1994. Nominated by Richard Nixon (Republican).
Justice Lewis F. Powell, Jr (Presbyterian):
Served 1/7/1972 – 6/26/1987. Nominated by Richard Nixon (Republican).
Roe v. Wade was a 7-2 vote. Voting For were Blackmun, who wrote the majority opinion, Douglas, Brennan, Stewart, Marshall, Burger, and Powell. Each one of these justices was nominated by Presidents who were elected not only once, but twice, with the exception of Johnson who did, however, serve more than one term, and Roosevelt, who was elected four times. The American people cannot be clearer about their choice for President when they elect that President twice or more. Each one of these justices was also confirmed by elected members of the United States Senate.
And for those who think voting Republican will work to eventually end legal abortion, FIVE of the Supreme Court justices who voted for Roe v. Wade were nominated by two Republican Presidents.
Therefore, regarding the Roe v. Wade decision, it can be argued that those who voted for Franklin Roosevelt (Douglas), Lyndon Johnson (Marshall), and especially Dwight Eisenhower (Brennan, Stewart) and Richard Nixon (Burger, Blackmun, and Powell), are the responsible parties.
SLOW SUICIDE
The slow suicide of America will never be stopped without the intervention of the Lord Jesus. Every nation and empire in history has gone the way America is going now. No nation lasts forever. Not even ancient Israel. If God could not stop the slow suicide of His own people, how can He stop the destruction of any nation that does not want His help?
Enough Americans know better, however, and millions seek Him. But we should not be seeking Him to save America. We should be seeking Him to save souls, including our own.
Believers are coming together and getting wise, and are beginning to understand the problem. American churchianity as usual has brought us to this place of powerlessness and increasing persecution. We created and bought into the wrong “Christian” paradigm many decades ago, believed the false prophets in charge, and supported people who proved to be our enemies.
The Great Awakening is changing all that.
Regardless of American culture falling all around us and the advent of a new evil in the form of false freedom, those who know and love the Lord Jesus are truly free and will always be.
The lovers of this present darkness will not be so fortunate.
© 2015 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE ELEPHANT IN THE CHURCH BUILDING
The “Elephant in the Room” paradigm fits perfectly here, as almost everyone knows about the problem but next to no one admits it’s there or has the courage to do much about it.
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There still remain many successful churches in America, though an increasingly larger number over the last several decades are of the mega variety. You may be a member of a successful church and are thus blessed. Many are getting it right, seek the Lord every day, and are willing to do anything He says. There are also a great many unchurched real Christians, some of which are part of small organic groups or maybe even on their own. Many seek fellowship on the internet which has proven to be a great medium for sharing information and encouragement. Formerly silenced ones have found their voice. It can be a tough spiritual landscape but the Lord is always faithful. All things remain possible. Awesome things are getting done. However, there also exists a flip side…
PROVING MY THESIS
We live in a time when authoritarian, dishonest, sell-out politicians have skyrocketed into a high arc over the land, effectively spouting “catch me if you can,” as if trying to best all the crooked ones before them on what they can get away with, something one may think impossible, yet they achieve it day after day. These boys and girls are getting their marching orders from above, of course, and are only obeying their puppet masters who remain ensconced behind the curtain, out of view and out of mind of most. The puppets you see are not only controlled but likely forcibly controlled if you get my drift. And Americans in general, over and over and over again, do absolutely nothing about it.
Except talk. And vent. And gripe/complain/mumble—worthless ventures all. Except when some trustworthy Americans (including a few elected reps), do actual truth-telling with facts and research that cannot be denied or discounted, expose dishonesty, and give well thought-out solutions for every single problem. These Americans are, of course, most often denied and castigated, as any reformer knows, including those attempting to reform off-kilter Christianity, because the solutions therein put an end to in-house corruption, fraud, and graft and make it difficult for grifters and abusers to carry on their devil’s work. Sadly, such solutions are also rejected by those who would benefit most because the great many refuse to do their own research or question authority, stay glued to the TV, and keep trusting the word of the appearance-based shallow people instead of listening to the warnings of the good guys because the major media makes the bad guys look like good guys and the good guys like bad guys. Sound familiar?
Thus, the great stringed people know the majority won’t do anything to stop them. They used to have at least a modicum of fear and expectation of reprisal from voters but of course many don’t anymore because voting is often fixed at the national level. And if you think this coming November will result in appreciable change when a great red wave will supposedly replace all those evil blues, you will be gravely disappointed once again. Even if elections were not corrupted, these people (actors) are all on the same team. It is the Uniparty. Until the voting system is reformed your votes count generally for effectively nothing. It’s become far too easy to game the system. If people still cannot see this after what happened in 2020 then its lights out.
I wrote a post about the great election steal of 2020 exactly one month after it occurred on December 3, 2020. You can find it here: THE REPUBLICANS ARE COLLUDING WITH THE DEMOCRATS: THE SACRIFICING OF AMERICA. Well, guess what? After almost twenty months this collusion has only expanded exponentially in that Republicans are supporting virtually everything the Democrats are putting forth and not stopping most of it. This sacrificing of the country has continued unabated since that time, has accelerated, and is now accelerating greatly. I told you in recent posts about the ongoing destruction of the economy, the ongoing destruction of the supply chain (diesel anyone?), and the ongoing destruction of the food supply. None of this is happening by accident. It has all been planned. It is impossible for such things to occur unless some great outside force CAUSES it. Along with everything else, therefore, Americans must wake up. They must stop supporting the enemy. The enemy is no longer merely at the gates. He is inside. He is at the controls.
Regarding what could have been done and should have been done to stop this, even at such a late date, there was a duly elected gentleman in power not long ago that decided to stand down instead of stand up. As it turned out he was nothing but rhetoric at a time when action was demanded. You know what kind of leaders you have at the moment of crisis and at that moment, as the opportunity was still viable, he let it all drain out. He frittered it away. There were people with the goods on the enemy who tried to get him to act but to no avail. He now continues to speak in rallies in hopes of a return but that ship has sailed. His time has passed. Whoever is putting their hope in him is missing the mark. The time for action is NOW.
“I, only I, am the Lord, and there is no Savior besides Me.” [Isaiah 43:11]
All real Christians must now understand that the only remaining chance that exists is one far beyond any possible usual and tried and true. None of that exists anymore. It’s gone. No one is coming to save you in that area. I wrote about this a year ago in my post of May 10, 2021 on the occasion of the tenth anniversary of this site: HAPPY TENTH BIRTHDAY REAL CHRISTIANITY. That post received a relatively great response with many Likes and Comments. It was very well received. However, most of those readers are now gone. I have had several people say great things about my work and then they suddenly disappear. I have tried to engage them and discover the problem to no avail. What do you call it when one greatly appreciates you and your work, follows you for years, makes positive comments, reblogs your work on their sites, and then suddenly disappears?
This is sad. Really sad. I’m sure I’m not the only one this is happening to, of course. It is a time when we should be putting relatively minor differences aside and uniting against the enemy, but appreciable differences, apparently, still remain strong. The Divide and Conquer approach against American Christianity has had great success. Love is still the answer but appears to always be in short supply when needed most. Nevertheless, I am greatly appreciative of those of you still reading my work. Thank you. Christians may not agree or even not agree on much at all but can still love one another anyway.
A MATTER OF PERSPECTIVE
A few days ago I read a post by a friend. Part of it involved the story of a non-believer visiting a church at some point in the recent past. This person had dressed inappropriately on purpose. She was going to test the people there. If anyone said anything negative she would leave and likely turn her back on God. Everybody there ended up treating her well and she eventually gave her life to the Lord. They loved her into the Kingdom. I left the following comment:
That’s a great testimony of how it should be done. I have a massive amount of church experience so I’ve seen this kind of thing many times. Once, in the late 1980s, a young couple visited the church I was attending. I had never seen them before. They had a great attitude, were smiling and happy to be there. They sat right behind us. The young man had a dangling metal earring in one year. No big deal, right? Well, to my chagrin and great embarrassment, during the service the pastor called him out, rebuking him for the earring from the pulpit. I could hardly believe it. Needless to say, I never saw them again. I saw a lot of this.
Though there have always been rednecks in churches, I think most of this stuff began happening on a large scale in the 1960s to 1970s when so many young adults were coming to the Lord. The traditionalists often treated them like lepers. Granted, many simply didn’t know any better but the overreaction to their appearance was a gross violation of the Lord’s teachings and still is. One wonders how many quit on their pursuit of God based on the way they were treated.
When I first visited a church (traditional, conservative, but with a new group of young adults) in the mid 1970s at the invitation of a good friend I trusted who was recently saved, my hair was really long. Thank goodness I was among some cool understanding people, at a prayer meeting, some of whom were also recently saved or just knew how to treat people. Nobody cared about my appearance or said anything. They were happy I was there. A week or so later, my decision for the Lord made with no looking back, I got a haircut. A real one. No one ever told me to or even suggested it.
We MUST allow the Spirit of the Lord to do His work in bringing whatever conviction is necessary. We MUST trust Him and allow for His timing. In the meantime we MUST love people and not judge them.
Be Blessed
Since then (June 17), my comment has received seven Likes, most from readers I do not know, proving that the subject matter is something most identify with. It has historically always been a bad problem but has essentially never gone away. Christians in general remain committed to their sects and divisions. Too many still possess not so great attitudes. If we try to engage in any type of cross-communication we often get stuck with the ecumenical label. If a Christian questions the beliefs of another Christian offense takes place. If Christians judge other Christians or non-Christians, however, their judgments often stand and are supported. The people in charge should know when violations of the Lord’s teachings take place but apparently most do not or simply do not care. Protecting the “pastor,” church, denomination, or institution is much more important than addressing any wrongs. This prerogative trumps obeying the Lord Jesus. It trumps obeying the Golden Rule. In reality, anything that violates the Lord’s teachings should be thrown in the river but if some churches do this there won’t be much left, which likely explains the protocol.
I am saying all this to say that I have been involved in this fight for decades. I have pretty much always known what the problem was and discovered the solution long ago. (It is simply a matter of returning to our roots.) The bigger problem is that most Christians refuse to address the problem and would rather let the problem stand in order to protect themselves from having to change and get right with God. They see necessary positive and reformative changes as too all-encompassing.
We see the same approach to reforming the voting system. Those at high levels know this could reveal systemic corruption on a wide scale. It would reveal that a great many were never properly elected and that a great many more were denied legitimate victories.
Churches in general do not appreciate the idea that they might be engaging in something that is incorrect or teaching incorrect or incomplete doctrines. In general, much of Christianity hates the very idea of reform. Rather than repent and change for the better they effectively stone those the Lord sends to correct them. Yet, was not the Lord often forced to use this very method?
So, forget about trying to change existing churches, denominations, and institutions for the better. It will likely never happen. Their protection filters are so fine they also block out any possible corrections. The Christians thereof are far too invested. They do not know the Word of God as they should. They simply cannot see the forest for the trees. They will change, however, and do change. They change for the worse. They degrade over time. THIS IS OTHERWISE OBVIOUS. If one looks at history it is a no-brainer. Those who refuse to continue following the Lord Jesus into the fresh new green fields always end up dying out in the resultant spiritual famine which they brought on themselves. And because of this chosen spiritual famine there is currently a plan for actual famine in America gaining steam.
Most traditional Christians are thus pre-primed to reject the current Great Awakening. It doesn’t fit their paradigm.
I recall reading the works of Ralph Neighbor and communicating with him in the past. He is a great source if you’re interested. He often spoke of “The Seven Last Words of a Dying Church” which are “We’ve never done it that way before!”
Christians in America must understand that business as usual no longer works. Anything that deviates from the Lord’s teachings is a sign of disobedience and rebellion and is destined to fail. Christian leaders in general almost never get the memo that God begins warning of bad times coming when good times are happening. Christian leaders in general reject anything that seems to put a damper on their good times.
Imagine a farmer in the past who listens to the Lord, who is close to the Lord. He has been experiencing bumper crops and knows he is blessed of God. Then one day the Lord tells him to prepare for drought. The farmer doesn’t question the Lord. He doesn’t ask to bless him by arranging things to stop the drought. He knows that is an immature approach, something he had tried long before that doesn’t work. Instead, because he hears the Lord and knows His voice, he simply starts preparing for a drought. He knows that somehow or another the Lord will sustain him and his family and help him get through it. So he prepares. He prepares during the great times. He gathers in his bumper crop as usual but prepares for what’s coming. People think he’s an idiot. “Lighten up, man!” When the drought hits, those who never heard from God, either because they are not real Christians, because they grew cold spiritually, or because they continually rejected the warnings, were not prepared. When the drought hits, only those who began preparing during good times and continued following and obeying the Lord Jesus made it through. And though the farmer did try to help others there was simply not enough to go around. HE WAS BLESSED AND PROTECTED. They were not.
Over the last few decades many churches have failed and no longer exist. There are empty and repurposed church buildings in many locations all across the country. It is a trend that is not stopping. Those who got the memo long ago have long since made the proper adjustments. They saw what was coming. When they heard the Word in good times, and their warnings were rejected, it sealed the fate of those greatly “successful” ones who would meet a very challenging future unprepared. And those who obeyed God, who were rejected, made fun of, cast out, and cold-shouldered, who went through tough times due to their bad treatment by other “Christians” and were forced into survival mode, learned how to prepare.
“But many who are first will be last, and the last, first.” [Mark 10:31]
So, none of the current garbage taking place right now is a surprise to God. For those who insist on continuing to do things the way they always have and trust in the things they always have, they will find that what used to work no longer works. It has certainly never worked as good as the original. Most of it hasn’t worked for years but they either don’t notice or don’t care. They can’t see the big picture, don’t care about the big picture, and only care about what goes on in their respective closed-off bubbles. Because the majority of American Christians refused to prepare during good times and continually insisted on depending on their usual traditional way of doings things and not honoring the Lord Jesus or obeying His warnings, they have entered into a future, which is now upon us, unprepared.
One would think, with all the Biblical directives and Old Testament stories at our disposal on this subject, and the many teachings and warnings of the Lord Jesus (the Parable of the Ten Virgins, for example), that Christians in general would be the last to be unprepared for anything.
The opposite is often true.
Now on the same occasion there were some present who reported to Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. And Jesus said to them, “Do you suppose that these Galileans were greater sinners than all other Galileans because they suffered this fate? I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. Or do you suppose that those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them were worse culprits than all the men who live in Jerusalem? I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”
And He began telling this parable: “A man had a fig tree which had been planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and did not find any. And he said to the vineyard-keeper, ‘Behold, for three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree without finding any. Cut it down! Why does it even use up the ground?’ And he answered and said to him, ‘Let it alone, sir, for this year too, until I dig around it and put in fertilizer; and if it bears fruit next year, fine; but if not, cut it down.’” [Luke 13:1-9][1]
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
HAPPY FATHER’S DAY: SHOW US THE FATHER (2022)
The Lord Jesus taught in part by using parables. The greatest parable in His teachings is largely unrecognized. It regards His actual identity. Many Christians have yet to receive the full revelation.
.
For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; and the government will rest on His shoulders; and His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness from then on and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this. [Isaiah 9:6-7]
“These things I have spoken to you in figurative language; an hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figurative language, but will tell you plainly of the Father.” [John 16:25]
WHO DO YOU SAY THAT I AM?
Real Christians believe that Jesus is God. Most Christians do not believe that Jesus is God the Father. Think about that.
We obviously have reams of New Covenant Scripture expressly proclaiming in no uncertain terms that Jesus is not only the Son of Man and the Son of God but God Himself. We also have reams of Old Testament prophetic Scripture expressly proclaiming the same thing. As a method to prove this, focusing only on one aspect of the Lord’s identity—that of Savior—are the following verses:
I have called upon You, for You will answer me, O God; incline Your ear to me, hear my speech. Wondrously show Your lovingkindness, O Savior of those who take refuge at Your right hand from those who rise up against them. [Psalm 17:6-7]
“You are My witnesses,” declares the LORD, “And My servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe Me and understand that I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, and there will be none after Me. I, even I, am the LORD, and there is no Savior besides Me.” [Isaiah 43:10-11]
“Declare and set forth your case; indeed, let them consult together. Who has announced this from of old? Who has long since declared it? Is it not I, the LORD? And there is no other God besides Me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is none except Me.” [Isaiah 45:21]
“Yet I have been the LORD your God Since the land of Egypt; and you were not to know any god except Me, for there is no Savior besides Me.” [Hosea 13:4]
Regarding who is referred to as Savior in the New Testament, we have additional Names and Titles:
And Mary said: “My soul exalts the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.” [Luke 1:46-47]
“From the descendants of this man (David), according to promise, God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, after John had proclaimed before His coming a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel.” [Acts 13:23-24]
For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; [Philippians 3:20]
This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. [1Timothy 2:3-4]
For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers. [1Timothy 4:10]
Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior. [Titus 1:4]
…Looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus… [Titus 2:13]
From these verses it is obvious that Scripture claims there is only one Savior, not two or several, and that this one Savior is God. Yet the preceding verses of Scripture also refer to this one Savior by several different Names and Titles:
- God (El)
- God (Elohim)
- God (Theos)
- LORD (Adonai—YHWH)
- Lord (Kurios)
- Jesus (Iesous)
- Lord Jesus Christ (Kurios Iesous Christos)
- Christ Jesus (Christos Iesous)
This obviously does not mean that these are different persons but the same Person with different Names and Titles.
KING OF KINGS
The OT prophets said an Israelite Messiah (Anointed One) was coming. Most Christians understand that. But the OT prophets also said the coming Messiah would not be as the culturally understood anointed ones of that time, primarily the Hebrew kings, but would be the greatest Anointed One: The final King, the everlasting King, and the King of kings. In ancient times, many centuries before the Messiah’s arrival, they proclaimed there would be a time far into the future when the Messiah would once again take His rightful place that He formerly possessed among His people prior to their rejection of Him.
This term King of kings was used three times in the Old Testament as a reference to the greatest earthly king on the planet. It referred twice to Nebuchadnezzar, the king of the Babylonian Empire and once to Artaxerxes, the king of the Persian Empire. King of kings also occurs three times in the New Testament, each time, of course, referring to the Lord Jesus. So again, the Messiah is referred to in Scripture as the greatest King of all with all authority in both heaven and earth (far greater authority than any earthly king or emperor).
With reference to the nation of Israel, historians refer to King Saul as Israel’s first king. He became king of Israel in 1050BC. In reality, Saul was Israel’s first earthly king. From the beginning, however, it was always God who was Israel’s King. The Creator became known to Israel primarily as YHWH, the “Self-Existent or Eternal.” Though the actual pronunciation of this Name is largely unknown, we have come to accept its pronunciation as Yahweh (´Yah way). A later constructed form is Jehovah, but there is no letter J in the Hebrew alphabet. The Hebrew scribes, due to their great respect and honor for God, rather than writing His Name and possibly profaning it, substituted another word in Scripture. The word they used to replace His Name is the Hebrew word Adonai which is translated in the English Old Testament as LORD (all caps). So whenever you see the word LORD in the OT, it would have otherwise been directly translated as YHWH.
The nation of Israel, however, due to its great rebellion and sin, often had a big problem with YHWH. This came to a head during the time of Samuel the prophet, the last of the Hebrew Judges. Israel had reached a point of such great sin it rejected its distinct calling as a light to the Gentiles and select of God, and insisted upon being as other nations. They demanded an earthly king. This was a total rejection of their God who had always been their rightful King:
The LORD said to Samuel, “Listen to the voice of the people in regard to all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me from being king over them.” [1Samuel 8:7]
In reading the Old Testament regarding the identity of the future Messiah and coming King of kings, many Christians don’t really make the connection that this Man, the Messiah, would also be God. Or they do, but they don’t. They get it maybe in part but not completely. They fail to see that the Messiah would be YHWH reclaiming His sovereignty. It is often simply too difficult a concept to grasp that a mere Man could be God, that the God of the Old Testament is the Son of God of the New Testament. I mean, if Jesus was God, why was He always praying to God? And yet, Jesus revealed Himself as God on multiple occasions. Many people state that He never said any such thing, but I will remind everyone that God speaks in different languages, such as by spiritual revelation, in parables or figurative language, and also “plainly” through words and grammar.
Others have turned the identity of the Lord Jesus into an unexplainable mystery. They have created mental constructs and counterfeit personas with apparent surface meaning that inevitably fail the test of wholly agreeing with Scripture. Some cop out of the discussion completely by weakly asserting that we’ll figure out the Lord’s identity when we get to heaven in that there is no way to know it otherwise. For such people there is no use in trying to go deep into Scriptural truth since they limit themselves to their shallow understandings. There is nothing in Scripture, however, that gives forth the idea that we cannot know God or that God is hopelessly mysterious, but the very opposite. It is a major part of why God became a Man. He arrived on these shores to reveal who He is and show what He is like. How else was He to do this toward human beings severed from communication with Him, dulled by sin, and spiritually distant unless He became one of us?
FATHER AND SON
The following passage is rich in meaning, so rich that many pass right over it without understanding its full import. It is parabolic in nature and again, involves direct revelation:
“All things have been handed over to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.” [Luke 10:22]
In this verse, the Lord Jesus states:
- The Father has handed over all things to the Son
- Only the Father knows who the Son is
- Only the Son knows who the Father is
- Others can know who the Father is but only if the Son wills to reveal Him to them
From this we know that no one will ever know who the Father is except by direct revelation. If the Lord Jesus wills to reveal the identity of the Father to a person, then that person will know. Otherwise a person will never know. This means the Lord chooses to whom He will reveal the identity of the Father. This also means that there must be some common denominator among those who receive the revelation of the identity of the Father. In other words, the Lord is not capricious or arbitrary in His choosing. He never plays favorites. It is therefore up to the individual on whether or not to be qualified to receive the revelation.
Take a look at these clues from Luke 10:22:
- The Father possessed “all things” but gave “all things” to the Son. This must mean the Father no longer possesses “all things.” It means the Son then possessed “all things.” The Father had “all things” and then no longer had them. The Son did not have “all things” and then took possession of them.
- Only the Father knows who the Son is? How can this be? Did not more than a few during the Lord’s time know who the Son of God was? Affirmative. But those who did only knew by divine revelation. That’s how Peter found out: “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 16:17). The point here is that the Son had always been hidden by the Father. Only the Father would know who He was. The Son was incognito in this sense. He would never look the part. He was likely the very opposite of a guy like King Saul who was tall, handsome, popular and specifically chosen by all the people.
- The Son is the only One who knows who the Father is and also the only One who can reveal Him. The Father revealed the Son to Peter. On the other hand, the Son revealed the Father to Philip. Both revelations pointed to the same Person.
One might recall (as I mentioned previously) that the Lord Jesus said, right before He ascended to heaven, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth” (Matthew 28:18). This is a very bold statement. Only God has that kind of authority. If one insists that God is someone other than the Lord Jesus then how can the Lord Jesus have all of God’s authority in both heaven and earth?
THE LANGUAGE OF SPIRITUAL REVELATION
The Old Testament patriarchs were noted for being relative loners and wanderers. They were seen as somewhat eccentric by the world at large because they were seemingly forever drifting around in a nomadic spiritual sense marching to the beat of a very different Drummer. They traversed the great quiet of deserts and wilderness areas raising their head to the winds and hearing voices.
It reminds one of Ray Kinsella in the movie Field of Dreams hearing a voice out in his corn field. On a trip into town one day after hearing “the voice” Ray tries to gain some understanding of what has happened to him. Seeking clues, he has the following conversation with a veteran farmer at the farm supply store:
Ray: “In all those years, did you ever… I’ve heard that sometimes farmers out in the field… hear things. Voices.”
Old Timer: “You’re hearing voices?”
Ray: “No. It’s just that I heard some farmers do, and… I, of course, don’t, so I was wondering if I was doing something wrong, or something. Did you ever hear voices out there?”
Cashier: “Who’s hearing voices?”
Old Timer: “Ray is! Out in the fields.”
Ray: “No! No, I’m not. Really. Noises! That darn tractor, it’s… Well, I’ll just get some 3-in-1 oil, that should… Nice talking to you.” [1]
One wonders if Abraham had a similar conversation with Sarah. Or anyone. The point, of course, is that if one is hearing voices out in the wilderness (or in a corn field near you), and in the case of the Biblical patriarchs, one particular voice, then one might be careful with whom one might share the information. This should not be a problem for Christians, however, since the entire Bible has the same theme running through it. Christians should not be embarrassed by this. All those who were close to God were hearing His voice, both in the Old Testament and New, and some were even seeing Him. Aghast.
These people were in the decided minority (understatement alert). There were only a few. Which means the vast majority probably thought those guys were nuts because they themselves never heard or saw anything. And they never hung out in the wilderness alone either. Prior to the coming of the Kingdom of God (of which He is the King) the Lord Jesus said the greatest man born of women who ever lived was a prophet who hung out in the wilderness alone, just like those eccentric patriarchs of many centuries past. But this guy John the Immerser was greater than all of them, which was quite astounding when you think about it. And he looked like a caveman. And the Lord spent much time in the wilderness alone also. And so did Noah. And Abraham. And Moses. And the apostle Paul:
But when God, who had set me apart even from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, was pleased to reveal His Son in me so that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with flesh and blood, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went away to Arabia… [Galatians 1:15-17]
Paul was out in the desert a long time. Some say three years. I have no doubt he went on a forty day fast at least once. It was where, hearing the Voice, that the Lord taught him one on one. It was where Paul received the revelation of the Father’s identity and where the Gospel was revealed to him:
For I would have you know, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. [Galatians 1:11-12]
So here we have yet again that spiritual marvel known as direct revelation. The only One who ever revealed to Paul the Gospel was the Lord Jesus Himself, out in the wilderness, alone. Imagine that. This is not how 99% of Christian ministers receive the Gospel. Perhaps this is why their various versions of the Gospel are different than the one Paul preached.
The direct revelation thread runs all through the Bible. It is God reaching out to man. It is God actually attempting to communicate with man. Why then, if God is talking, do so few hear Him? Apparently, Noah, Abraham, Moses, John the Immerser, and Paul were all listening. They were paying attention. They sought God. They had a hunger for Truth. So those who revert back to the tired argument that these men were simply special and chosen in some unknown arbitrary manner, which explains their communication with God, and that their spiritual status had nothing to do with a greater personal faith in God and an unceasing desire to seek Him, are being their usual shallow selves as part of a status quo faithless Christian majority. We even have otherwise brilliant Christians who have latched onto Cessationism and believe that Book of Acts happenings ended in the first century. What? Are the hundreds of millions of Pentecostals and Charismatics in the world all deluded or faking it?
Again, the greatest parable in the Bible is the true identity of the Lord Jesus. Without the actual revelation one reverts to any unspiritual and unscriptural natural understanding and interpretation, either by indoctrination or personal opinion. The tried and true among Christians in this regard is that Jesus must be a lesser entity than God even though some are forced to admit that Jesus is God simply because there are far too many verses of Scripture stating such. But how can Jesus be both God and less than God?
“If you loved Me, you would have rejoiced because I go to the Father, for the Father is greater than I.” [John 14:28]
“I and the Father are one.” The Jews picked up stones again to stone Him. Jesus answered them, “I showed you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you stoning Me?” The Jews answered Him, “For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy; and because You, being a man, make Yourself out to be God.” [John 10:30-33]
Some Christians think they must seek out God the Father because their relationship with the Lord Jesus is somehow lacking or limited. Of course, whoever does this has no actual relationship with the Lord Jesus. Some Christians pray to the Holy Spirit the same way one would pray to the Lord Jesus. Some teach that we must pray only to the Father “in the name of Jesus” but never directly to Jesus. Whatever the case, any effort to do an end around or bypass the Lord Jesus to get to God is a violation of His teachings:
“No one comes to the Father but through Me.” [John 14:6]
THE MESSIAH
The word Messiah is from the Hebrew word Mashiach which means “Anointed” or “Anointed One.” It is Christos in the Greek and transliterated into English as the word Christ. In terms of relative spiritual anointing, the Messiah is seen as He with by far the greatest anointing of God. One may recall that the Lord Jesus possessed the Spirit of God without measure (John 3:34). Prior to Pentecost, He would thus be the One who gave the Holy Spirit.
Speaking of which, there is an interesting word construct in two separate verses exactly a chapter apart in the Gospel of John regarding both the identity of the Father and Son and just who it would be that would send the Holy Spirit. One might think it to be a contradiction. Another will understand it as a clue to a revelation:
“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.” [John 14:26]
“When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me” [John 15:26]
To be anointed is to be anointed with the Spirit of God. The Messiah was the Anointed One anointed with the Spirit. Yet the Messiah, the One who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, says He will also send the Holy Spirit. He says this after first being reported to say the Father would send the Spirit. Of course, before the Son could send the Spirit He would have to “go to the Father.” Therefore, the One who sends the Spirit is identified as both Father and Son.
On one occasion the Lord was off in a remote location away from the crowds. His close disciples were with Him. He chose this occasion as a teaching moment and to gauge their understanding of His identity:
And it happened that while He was praying alone, the disciples were with Him, and He questioned them, saying, “Who do the people say that I am?” They answered and said, “John the Baptist, and others say Elijah; but others, that one of the prophets of old has risen again.” And He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” And Peter answered and said, “The Christ of God.” But He warned them and instructed them not to tell this to anyone… [Luke 9:18-21]
The Lord’s time was one of Messianic expectation. It is said that the Israelites were the only nation that lived in the future, in that no matter what happened in the present there were prophecies telling of great times to come. Part of that was, of course, the arrival of the Messiah. He would be the One to lead them to victory at last, to assist them in overcoming their low stature and becoming who they were always meant to be. He would help them reach their destiny.
As times grew closer to His advent, starting about two centuries before in the early second century BC, several unprecedented events took place, one of which was the first successful Israelite uprising against the major powers. The Maccabees, a national Israelite political entity which began as a group of rebel fighters revolting against the Greek Seleucid kings, came forth throwing off the yoke for a time and created a new independent kingdom, the Hasmonean Dynasty. The spirit of the first century Zealots can be traced to the Maccabees. Presently, the Zealots have manifested as the Zionists of our time.
Also, the major religious parties got their start: The Essenes were created from a priesthood group breaking off from the temple priesthood and setting up shop in the desert out by the Dead Sea in a settlement known as Qumran. These were thus somewhat akin to the ancients but existed primarily as a fraternal communal brotherhood. They later expanded and segments were found in the populated areas.
The Pharisees, or separated ones, also began in this era, rooted in a group known as the Hasidim. Two central divisions of this major sect eventually arose about a century later based on its two greatest rabbis, Hillel and Shammai, who each began Pharisaic schools in the generation prior to that of the Lord Jesus. The apostle Paul (Saul) was a student of Gamaliel of the Hillel school. In New Testament times this Gamaliel, a respected member of the Sanhedrin, was the voice of reason against the murderous crazies of the court and essentially saved the lives of Peter and the apostles (See Acts 5:34).
The Sadducees emerged as a distinct party at this time as well. This group was the latest organized form containing the wealthy and those with large landed estates who had essentially ruled Judea in place of a king since the return from the Babylonian Captivity in the sixth century BC. The Sadducees were thus tied in closely with Seleucid, Ptolemaic, and eventually Roman wealth and politics. Choosing to live for this world, they had no concern or belief in the resurrection or a spiritual realm.
We can see this same general breakdown in parties and beliefs in Unreal Christianity. Much was coming together in those two centuries BC for the final conflict of the Last Days of the nation and they each had their own version of who the Messiah was and what He would do for them.
When at last, the Messiah arrived, in perfect accordance with Daniel’s prophecy of weeks (right on time), He was largely unrecognized. Indeed, according to the major parties and pretty much everyone in power with a stake in what He could and would do for them, He was unrecognizable. Incognito, as it were. This was their King, the One the nation had rejected over a thousand years before when they selected King Saul. And to show just how stiffnecked the proponents of these major religious and political parties still were after all those centuries and even more so, they did a lot more than just reject Him this time around.
They had invested everything in a false interpretation. When their version of the Messiah never showed up in the life of the Lord Jesus, even though He perfectly met all the applicable prophetic requirements, they continued looking elsewhere. How dense must people be to either not see and/or reject all the clues? How could they be so wrong?
As it turns out Christians have been just as wrong. God Himself is looking right at them and they still don’t see Him. They fail to see Him for the very same reasons the Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, and bloodthirsty Zealots never saw Him. This is especially surprising regarding the Essenes. They saw the times better than any of their major counterparts. Indeed, because they were out in the desert and away from the corrupt religious, monetary, and political activity of Jerusalem, one would think they couldn’t miss. They came somewhat close. Their Dead Sea Scrolls, discovered in 1947 in caves next to their ruined compound, contained many references to their “Teacher of Righteousness.” They wrote of The War of the Sons of Light against the Sons of Darkness. They knew what was afoot regarding the coming Messiah but from what we know, as a group, they never recognized the Lord Jesus as such.
The problem each of these groups shared was that their focus remained on this world instead of the spiritual world. They each wanted a Messiah within that context. Again, erring facets of Christianity, including major mainline bodies, make the same mistake. They refuse to accept the reality of the Lord’s spiritual Kingdom and create one of their own with their own respective version of King Saul.
With the exception of the Pharisees, the other three major Jewish parties each came to an end after the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in 70AD. The Sadducees faded out and dissolved shortly thereafter. The Zealots, the party eventually granted authority by the others who brought on the conflagration against Rome, ceased to exist at the tragedy of Masada in 74AD. The Essenes might have gotten an extinction head start on the others around 68AD when the Romans destroyed their settlement at Qumran. It is thought that this disaster is what precipitated the hiding of their cherished library in nearby caves before their final retreat and disappearance. They obviously never returned to reclaim them.
The nation of Israel also came to an end and was forever gone with the wind. The Pharisees reconstituted themselves from the smoking detritus and burned rubble in even greater stubbornness and rebellion to keep their party alive though barely breathing. Through many transformations and geographical movements over the centuries their party eventually became what we know today as Orthodox Judaism. And they still hate the Lord Jesus with a passion.
THE REMNANT
The only ones who did recognize the Lord were apparently part of an obscure unconnected group of nobodies known originally by the Scriptural term as the “Remnant.” We first hear of this idea of a surviving remnant in Genesis 45:7 when Joseph explains to his family that he was sent ahead as a slave to Egypt as a method to preserve them. Spiritually speaking, of course, he was assisting God in not only preserving his family and the future nation of Israel but also preserving the Messianic genealogical line. This line had suffered severe attack from the very beginning when Abel was killed by his own brother. Since the Lord Jesus was to descend from Abel his murder made that impossible. It was a victory for the devil. However, the line was reestablished over a century later with the birth of Seth, the third listed son of Adam and Eve:
Adam had relations with his wife again; and she gave birth to a son, and named him Seth, for, she said, “God has appointed me another offspring in place of Abel, for Cain killed him.” To Seth, to him also a son was born; and he called his name Enosh. Then men began to call upon the name of the LORD. [Genesis 4:25-26]
A few millennia later, this concept of the remnant is illustrated as follows in the times of Hezekiah, circa 700BC:
“The surviving remnant of the house of Judah will again take root downward and bear fruit upward. For out of Jerusalem will go forth a remnant, and out of Mount Zion survivors. The zeal of the LORD will perform this.” [2 Kings 19:30-31]
Two and a half centuries later, long after the Babylonian Captivity during the time of Ezra’s arrival in the land of Judah, approximately 458BC, we hear again of this surviving remnant of God’s people. In the ninth chapter narrative, the book of Ezra uses much descriptive and dramatic imagery filled with pathos and hope describing those few who remain of the once great nation of Israel, including clear prophetic undertones. Ezra is quoted wailing against the current great sin of his remaining people:
“O my God, I am ashamed and embarrassed to lift up my face to You, my God, for our iniquities have risen above our heads and our guilt has grown even to the heavens. Since the days of our fathers to this day we have been in great guilt, and on account of our iniquities we, our kings and our priests have been given into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity and to plunder and to open shame, as it is this day. But now for a brief moment grace has been shown from the LORD our God, to leave us an escaped remnant and to give us a peg in His holy place, that our God may enlighten our eyes and grant us a little reviving in our bondage. [Ezra 9:6-8]
“After all that has come upon us for our evil deeds and our great guilt, since You our God have requited us less than our iniquities deserve, and have given us an escaped remnant as this, shall we again break Your commandments and intermarry with the peoples who commit these abominations? Would You not be angry with us to the point of destruction, until there is no remnant nor any who escape? O LORD God of Israel, You are righteous, for we have been left an escaped remnant, as it is this day; behold, we are before You in our guilt, for no one can stand before You because of this.” [Ezra 9:13-15]
In the interim since the first return of the Hebrews from Babylon to the time of Ezra, a period of roughly eighty years, factions of this returned remnant in the land, including priests, had intermarried with local non-Hebrew women of various heathen peoples including Canaanites, Moabites, and Egyptians and produced offspring. This was no way to reestablish the Yehudi as a distinct people. As a result their racial mix was even further diluted. This same lack of discretion had occurred many times in the past going all the way back to the time after Joshua a millennia before. Ezra appears to have made a successful effort to correct the problem as much as one could but this departure led to the dedicated remnant becoming ever smaller over the next five centuries until the Lord’s arrival.
In its long history, the devil was constantly scheming and attacking the Messianic generational line because he knew he must keep the Messiah from arriving. And unlike so many Israelites and Christians, the devil and his minions knew very well who the Messiah was long before He came and who He would be when He arrived, and had great respect for Him. The following historical account is a great study in microcosmic terms of the ongoing spiritual battle from ancient times on this planet and a revealing depiction of what goes on daily all around us in the unseen spiritual world:
Then they sailed to the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee. And when He came out onto the land, He was met by a man from the city who was possessed with demons; and who had not put on any clothing for a long time, and was not living in a house, but in the tombs. Seeing Jesus, he cried out and fell before Him, and said in a loud voice, “What business do we have with each other, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You, do not torment me.” For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For it had seized him many times; and he was bound with chains and shackles and kept under guard, and yet he would break his bonds and be driven by the demon into the desert. And Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Legion”; for many demons had entered him. They were imploring Him not to command them to go away into the abyss. Now there was a herd of many swine feeding there on the mountain; and the demons implored Him to permit them to enter the swine. And He gave them permission. And the demons came out of the man and entered the swine; and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned. [Luke 8:26-33]
Why didn’t the demons attack the Lord? If the name of this hoard of demons within a single man was a correct indication of their numbers, the demons amounted to over five thousand. Empowered by internal demonic forces the man was able to break chains and shackles. But instead of going after the Lord, the man and his many demons voluntarily fell before Him! They begged Him not to send them to the abyss. There was never any Man of such great and powerful magnitude in all of Israel. Even demons were terrified of Him:
You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. [James 2:19] [2]
Down through the centuries, despite ongoing demonic attacks, and at last an attempt through King Herod to kill the baby Jesus, the Messiah arrived anyway. And the Lord always had a believing remnant who knew exactly who He was. They were there in the first century. Though initially very small in number, they served as a solid, tested, and unrelenting nucleus to build around. Their presence allowed for the eventual blossoming of the Lord’s Community into multiple millions worldwide.
SHOW US THE FATHER
It seems as though the Lord Jesus was often not openly admitting to His true identity. I think it is because He knew it was necessary for people to receive the spiritual revelation rather than hear mere words which could easily bring on refutation and anger. This happened anyway among the hard core religious unbelievers who often flew into a rage at the mere semblance of His actual identity. It can thus be difficult and otherwise impossible to overcome such flagrant religious indoctrination and programming and this includes, of course, the Christian kind which is often the absolute worst. Direct revelation is the only thing that works best. As Peter discovered, what works better than God revealing to one’s heart the Word of Truth?
Perhaps the best verses which address the revelation of the Lord’s true identity are found in the fourteenth chapter of John’s gospel. By this time the disciples had heard much of the Lord’s figurative language, especially regarding His discourses on the Father. He was attempting to lead them to the revelation portal that they may gain answers and understanding from a spiritual source. In the following passage, Thomas had sincere questions about the Lord’s statement, especially as it regarded the unseen and unknown Father. So did Philip. Both had matured enough to ask direct queries of the Lord. They were ready to graduate from the figurative to the clear revelation:
“Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also. And you know the way where I am going.”
Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, how do we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; from now on you know Him, and have seen Him.”
Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?” [John 14:1-9]
© 2021 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] © 1988 Field of Dreams Screenplay by Phil Alden Robinson
[2] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
CRITICAL THINKING VS. LIVING IN FEAR
Critical thinking and the questioning of authority allows for accountability and exposes corruption. The only force that blocks these two vital components of freedom is fear.
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FAITH VS. FEAR
This is why the event that began 27 months ago was so successful: They began by scaring the hell out of everybody. Or tried to. It worked against most, apparently. At least in the beginning. Anyone who was already predisposed to being affected by anxiety and influenced by fear tactics bought into the false narrative and sans exiting are now controlled by it. They remain incapacitated due to their fear.
Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives. [Hebrews 2:14-15]
One may notice, then, a direct correlation between fearful people and their blind obedience to authority. Because they bought into a false paradigm which they believe is true, they continue to obey the dictates of the paradigm. They continue to honor their investment. They remain controlled by their leaders.
[One simple way to test this is by introducing the concept of choice. Shouldn’t people be allowed to choose? If a person is sane, thinking correctly, not controlled, supportive of personal rights, and believes in freedom, he will answer in the affirmative. Otherwise he will not. When someone is brainwashed (or indoctrinated) one perceives the freedom to choose as limited or eliminated altogether according to the parameters taught by their chosen authority figures. Such people merely parrot the narratives and allowed allowances of their higher-ups.]
They believe whoever is in authority is legitimate. They see them as forever honorable. They apparently believe (against all odds, of course), that whoever is in authority is upstanding, trustworthy, and above reproach. Because they believe this absurdly false idea they never question authority. They have no need to; in their view authority is always right. It is also why such people likely have no critical thinking ability. What little they may have is applied incorrectly.
Critical thinking is the intellectually disciplined process of actively and skillfully conceptualizing, applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and/or evaluating information gathered from, or generated by, observation, experience, reflection, reasoning, or communication, as a guide to belief and action. In its exemplary form, it is based on universal intellectual values that transcend subject matter divisions: clarity, accuracy, precision, consistency, relevance, sound evidence, good reasons, depth, breadth, and fairness.[1]
PERCEIVING THE BEAST
Thank goodness the greatest American generation of the mid-to-late 1700s didn’t have a living-by-fear attitude. If they did there never would have been an original USA. There never would have existed a nation with constitutionally protected freedom and legal liberty, set forth in an ethical context to create a habitation for morality, for free thinking, as a powerful bulwark against tyranny, and where Christians can exercise their beliefs without constraint, a place that had never before existed. Of course, it is the Lord who grants freedom and liberty to each, not governments. The Constitution simply supports God-given rights legally.
It should go without saying, however, that the forces of evil will not be stopped by the mere invocation of rights. They will always test. They will always bring a fight against God-given rights. Such tests must be answered. Such battles must be joined. The enemy must be made to know that people will stand and fight, will never give in, and will expose his chicanery. Otherwise he will do all he can to chip away at freedom. This is why people must be aware of the enemy. They must know there is an enemy. They must know this enemy is also the enemy of the Lord. They must know this enemy stealthily rises to positions of authority and uses such positions to gain advantage. They must know the enemy cloaks himself in false righteousness through both his outward deceptive costuming and faux manner in the effort to affect a benign exterior. And they must know that behind this seemingly friendly false façade lies a snarling sneering vicious beast wanting to tear a person to bloody shreds.
The greatest American generation knew this. They had seen the enemy. They recognized the beast. They saw him clearly. They realized who he was and what he was after, and that he must be defeated at all costs. This is why they never held back in questioning their governmental authority (the English Crown, Parliament, and financial backers thereof) when they knew their authority was corrupt because they had personal experience of said corruption used against them: They were cheated. They were defrauded. They were used. They were lied to. They were treated like chattel.
And they said this wouldn’t do. They knew if they didn’t fight against the enemy of their liberty to live as free people while they had the chance, the opportunity would pass and all that could have been would be lost. Because they had never given in to fear they saw the enemy and knew they were the only responsible party remaining to defeat him. And defeat him they must.
In early 2020 very few people in America had this exceptional attitude. Most were quickly scared so significantly and became so fearful they quickly laid down, surrendered, and did whatever they were told regardless of what it cost them. There were millions of others who did fight, or tried to. But because the apparent majority had agreed with the enemy, it turned against them and never came to help. Many of these Americans lost everything. It was and remains a sad state of affairs in a supposedly free country and is a great wrong that has yet to be made right. The home of the brave had become the haunt of cowards.
Maybe most of the squeamish majority had no critical thinking skills to begin with. Maybe most never questioned authority figures in their entire life. But there were likely quite a few that did who were scared into compliance anyway. It is hard to take a stand when everyone around you is putting their hands up and surrendering to the enemy. The social peer pressure of that time was off the scale. There was intense pressure to conform. It remains amazing that a likely majority never did the slightest bit of research into that which was turning the entire country sideways and setting a course to not only transform it significantly but destroy it.
CHRISTIAN CORRUPTION
All that said, it was only one more episode of the usual in that area. It was not at all different except to a much greater degree. The bigger issue is how what began twenty seven months ago exposed the corruption in organized official Christianity. The full story on this has yet to be revealed but we know enough to know much of American Christianity was in bed with non-Christian authority and that it chose to go along with the program and did. Those at the top would benefit from the crisis just as it was in the secular world. Some of these Christian leaders received great amounts of special funding (bribes). This large subsection of Christianity was also scared into compliance. The Christian leaders thereof who obeyed their hierarchical masters quickly told their congregations what to do regarding the same and they all followed suit. As usual. It was a wicked combination of mammon sellouts and the blind leading the blind. It should be obvious that these American Christian leaders, a probable majority, and their millions of followers, were not serving the Lord Jesus.
“No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.” [Luke 16:13]
“Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if a blind man guides a blind man, both will fall into a pit.” [Matthew 15:14]
THE GREAT AWAKENING
Though Americans must constantly be reminded but shouldn’t have to be, our country was founded on a Great Righteous Revolution against corrupt authority, and those who won the Revolutionary War never gave in to the fear which would have disarmed them and removed their fight. And though the fear did work on two-thirds of the Colonists who never fought for freedom, it never worked on the third that did.
There is presently a rising “third” of Americans who have Awakened to the Truth.
I must also remind all American Christians that the Lord Jesus, our great Founder, also never gave in to fear of corrupt authority and He always knew exactly how greatly He would have to suffer at its hands.
During the last twenty seven months a massive amount of previously hidden information has come out and more is coming out every day which proves the deception. But those who gave in to fear still cannot see it, will never consider it, and will fight hard against those revealing it. Why didn’t they fight so strongly on the right side in the beginning?
It is because, by their own choice, they have no critical thinking skills. It is because they always believe, support, and never question authority. It is because they are greatly affected by social peer pressure. They cannot afford to take a stand and alienate others. They must defend and honor their social reputations. They know they could never make it on their own apart from their family, social, and business connections. It is because they do not believe or understand that they are individuals who are actually supposed to be in authority in a free country but have surrendered their authority to others unworthy of it.
It is the same with Christians who surrender all their God-granted authority as Christians to a false Christian authority that is not even supposed to exist. This was and is also done through fear. Powerful religious authority figures scare Christians into giving up their individual authority. Such fearful ones can then be very easily controlled, manipulated, and used to feather the nests of their betters and build their mini-kingdoms.
Real Christians, on the other hand, know they have been granted freedom and authority by the Lord Jesus and are to use both for His purposes. One cannot be an actual Christian and obey the Lord’s teachings otherwise. We are each responsible for our own soul and where we will spend eternity. One will not be able to blame those who were in authority that led them astray. Those who chose wrongly to serve mammon and follow blind guides will have no defense. Those who squandered and surrendered their spiritual freedom and authority to others will not fare well at the Judgment.
At the Judgment we will each have to answer directly to the Lord Jesus. There will likely be no one else in the room save maybe angels. The Lord will have to tell each person who doesn’t make it exactly why. He will explain their error. He will reveal their sin. It will be a perfect judgment for each person.
And He may remind those who lost their souls of the following passage:
But for the cowardly (fearful KJV) and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.” [Revelation 21:8][2]
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] criticalthinking.org/pages/defining-critical-thinking/766
[2] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
A GREAT AWAKENING UPDATE
I’ve been telling you about the current Great Awakening for over eleven years. In this article I will explain why it is so extremely important for both your present and future.
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FIRST, A NOTE ABOUT MY CURRENT SERIES
I appreciate those of you who are keeping up and have read each of the 6 Parts of Three Types of Christians in America. I encourage the rest of you to take the time to get caught up. I would rather not barge ahead and proceed with the next installment until the right time, part of which is based on waiting for my valued regular readers to read the current post. You must understand that I approach my work as a teacher. Teaching is my Romans 12 gifting. It is my desire to reveal Biblical information, primarily of the New Testament variety, which you may not have. Within the scope of this is additional material for context and illustration purposes. You can access the post links from the left hand column as well as that of my recent article I posted last Sunday that seems to have gotten lost: The Day of Pentecost 2022 (June 6).
Thanks. Your prayers are always appreciated.
THE REAL GREAT AWAKENING OF THE 21ST CENTURY
The preceding is what I originally chose as the title for my second book which I completed in 2011. This book began as a short paper I wrote in August of 2010. It was while writing this, at the end of August, that I suddenly received the revelation that a national Great Awakening was coming to America. In fact, the Lord told me it had already begun. He said we were in the early stages. I proceeded to continue with the paper which I thought would be like all the other ones I wrote that year, somewhere around eight to twelve pages. But it kept going. I kept writing. The Lord kept downloading. He continued with increased anointing. It demanded a great amount of research.
I continued through the fall and winter and completed the work in April 2011. What I thought would be a short paper of 8-12 pages became a book of about 340 pages saturated with footnotes and including three appendixes. The existence of the book proved the Lord was telling me something significant, that something very great and powerful was in the works.
WHAT’S HAPPENING NOW
Regarding the Great Awakening at present, it is necessary to utilize current events and general news to assist in gauging where we are on the Lord’s timeline. It is necessary to do this so we will know what is currently happening that effects our lives and the future plans of those controlling world events who are not aligned with the Lord and often oppose Him directly. They have their own agendas.
The Lord spoke often of “the signs of the times” during His ministry. He arrived as a baby in Bethlehem at the exact time for His purposes. He revealed to His disciples the implications of the times in which they were living. He spoke of Old Testament prophecy coming to pass at that very time. He prophesied about the immediate future and the not too distant future. His disciples did not understand some of it at the time, or maybe much of it, but it came to them later. Part of this was due to the great change that occurred in their lives once they were filled with the Holy Spirit. Their minds were enlightened. They received new spiritual eyes and ears. They had access to the mind of Christ.
Therefore, the Lord is constantly attempting to reveal to us what we must know. Remember, I am only referring to real Christians—fully dedicated disciples who have decided to follow the Lord Jesus 100%. There is actually no other way to follow Him. It is not possible to be a part time disciple. In that light, it is most appropriate to do our best in obeying the Scriptural directive to strive to be the best disciples we can be. A big part of that is our spiritual education. It is why we are blessed to have so much material easily available to us. However, we need not look only to official Christian authority figures and major works of Christian literature but also to one another. It is a great thing to have so many Christian blog sites authored by dedicated Christians like yourself doing your part. There is much to choose from. We end up teaching one another and adding to our spiritual education in the effort to excel for the Lord.
In order to counteract what is coming and to be properly prepared, it is always a part of the Lord’s instruction to reveal to His children the plans of the enemy. For example, I remember something years ago that I learned in my early research that assisted in dispelling the notion that whatever happens in the world other than obvious accidents is usually the result of random chance, a notion we are often ingrained with from our youth. It is known as the accidental theory of history as if nothing is prearranged. This is likely based on how we get our news and the nature of news, which is most often elementary and disconnected. The truth about world events is the virtual opposite. It was a simple quote I found made by Franklin Roosevelt that revealed how things actually work: “In politics, nothing happens by accident. If it happens, you can bet it was planned that way.” This can obviously be expanded upon to include nearly all historical world events that happen through political leaders large or small, heads of state, and their financial backers behind the curtain. Almost everything you know in this regard was thus a result of planning.
This especially includes everything that has happened over the last 27 months that has transformed society. It was all planned far in advance.
THE LORD PROVIDES FOR HIS OWN
It is therefore very important to do our best to know what’s coming. I’ve told you previously, something you have likely only heard from me, that the Lord Jesus financed His own ministry. This included taking care of His twelve originals and their families. He would not otherwise have called them from their existing lives and left their families alone without an income. The twelve are most often referred to in Scripture without a title but were originally known as disciples, which comes from the Hebrew word talmidim. Here is a good definition of this word:
תלמידם talmidim (tal mee DEEM): A plural Hebrew noun meaning “disciples” in its truest sense: Those who leave family to study and follow the ways of their teacher [rabbi]. They study not only to learn what their teacher knows but to become the type of man their teacher is. From the Hebrew root word “limmud” meaning “instructed.” Strong’s #8527. Singular: talmid. [1]
This means He will always take care of His children and provide according to His will and timing, but this must include our own cooperation and we must walk by faith and trust in Him. If He called us to salvation, if He called us to follow Him, if He called us to learn from Him and be His disciples, and if He called us into ministry, then He will provide for us, always, at every step of the way.
THE PLAN OF THE LORD
His plan always comes first. His plans were already planned out before the foundation of the world. He already decided on and knew what He would do before He ever began His act of Creation. This includes us. He never did anything, from what we know, without planning for it. He drew up plans. He figured it all out. He had incredibly intricate blueprints loaded with details large and small. His plans were absolutely perfect. Then He created. His original Creation was absolutely perfect. We know the story.
Then other plans were made counter to His. These other plans opposed the Lord’s plans. They were negative, opposing, rebellious, vile, and sinful. They were as imperfect as could be. Again, we know the story. For our purposes in the here and now we must know He has plans to counteract the plans of the enemy. This means no matter how powerful the enemy may appear and how many human beings actually buy into the evil plans of the enemy, such evil plans can be overcome. People can also buy into the Lord’s plans if they so choose. Those who do continue to receive the blessings and benefits of their Father who loves them. Remember, the original talmidim had no observable chance at the time in going up against the world. And remember further, it all began with only one Man which no one thought would have ever had the chance to achieve what He did. Almost two thousand years of the history of the Lord’s Kingdom proves the love, grace, and ability of the Lord to bring forth great change for the better.
And this is partly why He has brought forth the current Great Awakening—to counteract the evil plans of the enemy whose plans He knew very well. He knew them long before they were implemented. He began leading His children in such a way that they would not be overcome or hurt by them. Isn’t it always this way in Scripture? Shouldn’t we know we serve a loving Father? Don’t we know He will protect us and defend us?
THE TRUTH IS OUT THERE
With respect to the current evil plans of the enemy, the Lord would certainly want us to know all about them to prepare us for having to deal with their implementation, not be affected by them, and overcome them. He would never want us to be surprised by the outgrowth of evil plans used against His children. This is why formerly secret plans and sinister agendas that were never supposed to see the light of day have been exposed.
It is easy to dupe the ignorant, but the enemy can’t deceive someone who sees everything he’s doing.
“The people who were sitting in darkness saw a great Light,
And those who were sitting in the land and shadow of death,
Upon them a Light dawned.” [Matthew 4:16] [2]
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] psalm11918.org/References/Glossary/talmidim.html
[2] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THREE TYPES OF CHRISTIANS IN AMERICA (Part 6)
Having identified two of the three types in Parts 4 and 5, one can detect the Christians responsible for assisting the enemy in bringing the country to its present condition.
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MEDIA MANIPULATION
God does not own the major media. Those who do keep pumping out their garbage and a probable majority always gets duped into believing whatever they present. It’s a sad state of affairs getting worse by the day. The Word of God is the ONLY original written material on the planet that exposes the enemy. God says the devil is a liar. Most people don’t know this because they never read the Word. Most Christians don’t read the Word. It is why most Christians are just as deceived by the major media as non-Christians and anti-Christians. The only way to overcome this deception is to stop consuming the output of the major media and start consuming God’s media. Once one starts to do this the blinders start coming off, one starts noticing Truth they never noticed before, and the Truth starts setting them free. If one continues on this course they cannot help but eventually become aware that they’ve been supporting the enemy to their own detriment rather than serving the Lord Jesus to their benefit. Once the spiritual benefits start to flow into one’s life the enemy loses a supporter and gains an enemy which is the way it should have been all along. Then the Lord has a greater opportunity to help others. This is the spiritual battle we face. It is not an unfamiliar kind of war.
And though we all face difficult times in our lives to varying degrees, some more difficult and trying than others, America, overall, for many reasons, has never faced a more difficult time than the present, not only because of the immediate current events but also because of what is surely on the way. There’s a big ugly monster in our rear view mirror and it is closer than it appears. For precedent, and to illustrate where we stand regarding difficult times, including what some are projecting as the future, the one possible exception of a worse period and event in our history more challenging and ultimately detrimental was that of the Civil War (1861-65).
GONE WITH THE WIND
That war, which is grossly misnamed, destroyed not just the South but effectively destroyed the original America created by our greatest generation, that which lived in the middle to late 1700s. From 1787 when the new Constitution for the United States of America was written—1788 when it was ratified (June 21) and the late winter of 1789 (March 4) when the new government of the United States began its operations—until the outbreak of the Civil War in the spring of 1861, America was a better reflection of what the united States stood for and agreed to when they formed the union compared to what came later. The central government was supposed to remain small and respectful of the rights of the States rather than enlarge itself and rule over them. This period of time when the country expressed greater fidelity to its founding principles lasted a mere 72 years. During that initial era, the Constitution was still fully in effect. It was still honored as the Law of the Land. It was still supported as the agreed upon and legally ratified foundation of how Americans would live. The freedoms and liberties expressed therein had survived every challenge and test up to that point. Each State retained its sovereignty.
But again, this all changed with the Civil War. A better term for this conflict would be The War of Northern Aggression. Whoever has done in-depth research into the actual causes of that war understands that it was in many ways a carbon copy of the Revolutionary War (1775-1781). It was the Southern economy that was paying the most into US government coffers. The South’s contribution to the US Treasury was approximately upwards of 70% but the Southern States—free and independent States—were not receiving the appropriate recognition for this nor were they treated fairly by the central government which had greater influence from Northern interests. It was the Northern banking and industrial interests with foreign connections that had essentially taken control through strong lobbying efforts and influence peddling just as the equivalent interests which held sway over the King of England and Parliament had dictated the war against the American Colonists roughly two generations before.
This article is much too brief to get into the particulars but the facts are there for anyone who may wish to do the research. And whereas the American Colonists actually defeated the world’s preeminent super power of the time in the Revolutionary War, the Southern Confederacy was not as fortunate. It was a war that obviously never should have been fought and any number of means should have and could have been advanced to gain the desirable solutions. The country has suffered ever-greater degradations since by the precedents set at that time and we are now at a place in which whatever America once was that still remains is going fast. A massive amount of freedom and the great benefits thereof has been lost but most Americans don’t know this because they have nothing to compare it to. It is not only the case that ignorance is bliss in the sense that people don’t know any better, it is also because dumbed-down lazy people don’t want to do the work that would otherwise set them free and make them strong for the task at hand. And again, many of these are Christians who prefer their “leaders” doing the work for them.
That’s why doing research into actual history is so important. And we know from history that though nations and empires degrade over relatively protracted periods of time, they collapse very fast. Sadly, no matter how many warnings are given that a people must remain morally strong and spiritually sound in order to exist in continuous freedom and liberty from generation to generation, far too many people never make the connection. They do not understand that individual freedom is tied directly to their moral nature. Once one’s morals are compromised it is only a matter of time before their liberty will be diminished. Perhaps this is why the devil keeps trotting out the deviants, which far too many Americans embrace rather than stand against, and continues coming up with more forms of deviancy every day. He and his minions have been doing their best to destroy the moral fabric of the nation for over a century. We are now in the latter stages.
At present, the level of sin and depravity in America is probably at an all-time high. This is not so difficult to discern. Along with the depravity has come the predicted loss of freedom. The Constitution and the expressed citizen’s rights therein have been under attack for many years but especially so in recent years. There is an unseen exponential curve in effect here which, if Americans could see it, would cause them to express much greater alarm and do something to overcome it. Instead, half the country saved their greatest fears and alarm for another recent unseen enemy that was projected to kill multiple tens of millions. And while so many were so fearful they failed to notice or care about their greatly diminishing independence and curtailed liberty brought about by that effort.
We know by the manner in which much of the country responded to the event which began in March 2020 that the nation had been primed for takeover. Otherwise the response of that time would have been as it had always been before on such occasions when fear was ramped up as part of a desired hidden agenda: A small percentage of people would have reacted in great fear, willing to give up its freedom, while the vast majority would have responded in the direct opposite manner, kept their head, and stood their ground. Two years ago, however, we discovered that the previous small percentage had grown to about half the country. This should not have been surprising given that Americans had continually voted into office those who would be tyrants over the previous couple of decades or so.
Those people who should never have had the reins of government then laid the foundation and built the infrastructure of further depredations set to be continually loosed upon the country into the future.
THE CREATOR’S CHALLENGE
From the Lord’s point of view, He always has the means to keep people morally strong and free, and transform the unrighteous, if willing, to righteousness, but can do little against human will when people are disposed to choosing against Him. He never uses force or coercion to get us to be right and live right. He will use love, gentle persuasion, encouragement, and urging, however, because He cares for and respects the people of His Creation. This is why one must be allowed to choose. The Lord Jesus is a choice. He must be chosen. His means must be chosen. The unregenerate clay must look to the Potter to gain redemption.
But when people become so deceived and arrogant they think they know better than the Lord there is not much to be done. People can reach a point of no return. When people of this kind become the majority rather than the former salt of the earth majority, the end comes relatively soon. The entity which arrives at its end, whatever it may be, in this case America, then ceases to exist. If one cannot see American crumbling at this very moment then one is simply unaware of reality.
Those with power who are doing the damage and destruction are determined, depraved, or deranged to varying degrees, and some are simply deceived. It doesn’t take a genius to see this.
The deceived people can still be awakened but the other three are most often too far gone and simply love sin and are captured by their alternative agendas and will usually never change. If there are not enough righteous people—the salt and light—to overcome the unrighteous people, then simple math tells us the bad guys will win.
As real Christians, we identify sin and evil by the Word of God. Real Christians believe in the Lord Jesus. They believe in His teachings. They do their best to follow His entire curriculum. They do not pick and choose from it. They decide they will follow the Lord Jesus regardless. They give Him their entire heart. It is therefore not difficult to understand that though a probable majority of Americans identify as Christians, only a decided minority are actually real Christians.
During the Civil War—The War of Northern Aggression—the South was greatly outnumbered. The North had greater material resources, greater industry, and much greater amounts of ready money. The North could have kept their supplies in force indefinitely. The South never had much of a chance but it almost won anyway. They knew if they were going to win it would have to be relatively fast. Except for a few blunders here and there, the South actually would have won. They almost did. There was a time when the North was on the run. The aggressor was being beaten back. The South could have been victorious just as the earlier American Colonists had been seventy plus years before and original America could have been preserved.
But it was not to be. They didn’t fully understand that the Constitution for the United States of America was no longer being honored by their Northern enemy. It had been violated by a powerful few who would never allow themselves to be restrained from their evil pursuits by “a mere piece of paper.” They wanted to take a spoil. They saw the South as easy pickin’s. Their great power and influence over the government caused it to act the same. After the war broke out, honored Constitutional principles were routinely trashed. Lincoln became a veritable tyrant. The real history is there for those who wish to seek it out. Many fairly recent books have been written on the subject.
As the war progressed the North continued to reveal its true nature. At the end its evil nature came clearly to the fore through the gross atrocities of Sherman’s March to the Sea. Northern Americans did despicable evil to Southern Americans. How people can be so revoltingly evil to an already beaten foe—their fellow Americans!—is beyond the understanding of most. And when they were through with the South those very same people later went after the American Indians and did the same thing to them, wiping them out or subjugating them all the way to the Pacific Ocean. And after that they never stopped. They went beyond borders. It is how the empire was built.
But all empires have their stages—they rise, they fall. Where is ancient Sumer? Egypt? Babylon? Medo-Persia? Macedonia/Greece? Rome? The Mongols? They all rose up very high and subjugated any and all they possibly could within their range of conquest. And then time passed, their immorality and evil caused them to reap what they sowed, and they ceased to exist. The story never changes. One gains the upper hand, uses their gain for selfishness and sin, grows fat, lazy, and unable to maintain dominion, and then another stronger and more strident force puts him down and takes over. One tyrant loses to another tyrant who loses to yet another tyrant, ad infinitum. It’s the ongoing pumping heart of the universal subjugation process.
SURE FOUNDATIONS
Just as the Constitution for the United States of America is the Law of the Land for American citizens, so is the total curriculum of the Lord Jesus the foundational belief system of real Christians. And regarding the Lord’s teachings, keep in mind that He never opposed the Law of Moses but fulfilled it. He began His ministry in the autumn of 28AD going on two thousand years ago. All must agree His teachings and the fruit thereof has stood the test of time. His spiritual curriculum is hands down the greatest of all time. Nothing else comes remotely close.
The Constitution will be 235 years old on September 17 of this year with respect to the date it was completed and signed. It was formulated and written over the long hot summer of 1787 starting on May 25 when the Constitutional Convention at Philadelphia was initially convened. That which our Founding Fathers formulated is by far the best founding document regarding a system of government that has ever been written.
However, the people who can only see as far as the present and have little or no concern for higher eternal principles will always dishonor such to “get theirs” in the here and now, legally or not. They essentially sell their birthright, as Jacob’s twin brother Esau did, for an effective bowl of stew. They are willing to sin to whatever degree they must to gain whatever it is they covet. They just don’t care. They want it now. ASAP. They don’t think long term or consider the reality of eternal life. They may appear as upstanding citizens who merely engage in some antiquated “sin” unrecognized as such by an increasingly deviant culture, though Moses said the worst of these unrecognized sins were actually stoning offenses which demanded capital punishment.
As the deviancy progresses and more people buy into it, the concept of sin melts away as does the need for justice. Steadfast believers in the Lord are gradually targeted because they appear as old school holdouts toward the new downgraded cultural norm. Then, when the morally deviant people become the majority, the minority of righteous people will begin undergoing greater forms of persecution. The latter understand that it is spiritual war and are doing their best to stand firm for righteousness.
But the deviants from the righteous norm don’t care. They only care about the present. They are intent on using their freedom in whatever manner they want regardless of any sin and moral degradation. They may or may not characterize their actions as such, however. In order to stave off conviction, they redefine sin in such a way that they can practice it without regret or shame: Immoral behavior is redefined as moral. They call evil good. They call good evil. They do this because they have no knowledge of or respect for the Word of God which defines righteousness and sin. It may also be because they have damaged their conscience which would otherwise inform them. They thus fight against that which they term evil which in reality is good. They may be deceived but are likely willingly self-deceived in that they have given themselves over to evil for personal gain. Such an attitude, of course, is not new. The following passage of Isaiah the prophet dates from about 700BC:
Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil;
Who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness;
Who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!
Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes
And clever in their own sight!
Woe to those who are heroes in drinking wine
And valiant men in mixing strong drink,
Who justify the wicked for a bribe,
And take away the rights of the ones who are in the right!
Therefore, as a tongue of fire consumes stubble
And dry grass collapses into the flame,
So their root will become like rot and their blossom blow away as dust;
For they have rejected the law of the Lord of hosts
And despised the word of the Holy One of Israel. [Isaiah 5:20-24]
The Word of God contains many historical occurrences explaining and revealing the preceding. Great evil, like that being revealed and displayed at present, has been on earth for a very long time. When it gains hold destruction is not far. Salt and light always preserves but such must be resident in people. The Lord made this possible through the infilling of His Holy Spirit. When the salt and light people become greatly outnumbered by the sin and evil people who think they are righteous but are not it becomes less likely that the good will continue to overcome the evil. When one considers the greater implications with reference to the last five thousand years it is a wonder humanity ever made it this far.
The reason it has is because spiritual salt and light, like matter itself, never ceases to exist. The enemy can never fully eliminate goodness and love. And whereas the enemy can certainly create wars, destroy nations, subjugate populations, murder millions, steal everyone’s wealth, and create tyrannical empires, he can never defeat the Lord Jesus, who is Love and Truth incarnate. The Lord’s Kingdom of righteousness and His righteous people will exist forever. His Kingdom is eternal.
In the meantime, the present is in play. Temporary evil has advanced. It may win or it may not. It all depends on the Great Awakening. It depends on how many righteous people will engage. It depends on living according to higher eternal principles. It depends on more and more people getting right with God. It depends on fake Christians quitting the masquerade and getting real. It depends on real Christians banding together and demonstrating the Love of God. It depends on applying the teachings of the Lord Jesus wherever they must apply.
And while the Lord’s righteous Kingdom is advancing as it always has and always will, and is now composed of multiple millions worldwide, it is sadly evident that the collective seeds of evil sowed over many a year in this country have presently escalated into a rapidly expanding bumper crop of sin with no end in sight.
America’s karma chickens have now come home to roost.
Seek the Lord while He may be found;
Call upon Him while He is near.
Let the wicked forsake his way
And the unrighteous man his thoughts;
And let him return to the Lord,
And He will have compassion on him,
And to our God,
For He will abundantly pardon. [Isaiah 55:6-7] [1]
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THREE TYPES OF CHRISTIANS IN AMERICA (Part 1)
THREE TYPES OF CHRISTIANS IN AMERICA (Part 2)
THREE TYPES OF CHRISTIANS IN AMERICA (Part 3)
HAPPY ELEVENTH BIRTHDAY REAL CHRISTIANITY
It has been a privilege and blessing to do this work here over the last eleven years. I am thankful to the Lord. With your help I look forward to year twelve…
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So they went on their way from the presence of the Council, rejoicing that they had been considered worthy to suffer shame for His name. And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they kept right on teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ. [Acts 5:41-42]
As Christians, suffering is often a difficult concept to grasp. It is hard to make sense of in light of the fact that the Lord said He came that we may “have life abundantly.” Abundant life and suffering don’t seem to go together. These two appear to be at opposite ends of the spectrum. How can such opposites have fellowship? The Scriptures are clear, however, that real Christians are also called to share in His sufferings.
I’ve written about 750 posts in my time here at WordPress. Most of these are teaching posts of two to four pages. I have also written many longer articles, however, which means my total count here is probably approaching three thousand pages. That’s approximately ten to fifteen books.
Please excuse me for personal reference but I think we need times of such accounting. These annual birthday posts are one of two times during the year when I allow a tad more personal reference in order to give you, my dear readers, a better understanding of who I am and what the Lord has called me to do. In that light, we should all be glad that His standards of judgment are not those of the world.
The world, and yes, even the Christian world, judges ministers on their success, how big their church or ministry is, whether or not they’re on television, and whether or not they have millions of people, millions of dollars, and many church higher-ups backing them. I am not saying that all of such people have drifted off and do believe that some of them are where they are supposed to be, but I am saying that the standard of what a real minister of the Gospel is was established in the very beginning and that it is FAR different from modern standards.
Of course, though most Christians and most ministers thoroughly reject it, the greatest and only standard is that of our Lord Jesus. Prior to official ministry He worked tirelessly and obscurely preparing for it. He also worked for most of His life to that point as a builder. Though the Scriptures refer to Him as a carpenter, the meaning of the term extended beyond what one may think a carpenter was in those days. He was actually involved in larger construction projects though to what degree we do not know. Suffice it to say that He learned His craft from His stepfather Joseph and served him honorably while growing up. There is no doubt the Lord had great success as a builder though such success is relative. At some point Joseph passed away and the Lord had to take responsibility for His mother and siblings. He also had to prepare for future ministry which included earning enough money to finance it. He would have to earn enough not only for Himself, which amounted to next to nothing, but mainly to take care of His twelve and their families. This measure of a minister of the Gospel is therefore, truly, pretty much the opposite of Christian ministers in general, who are more concerned with their own bottom line rather than that of their congregants.
During His ministry, the Lord Jesus, a Man accustomed to having much more, one whom the apostle Paul said was rich and became poor, pared Himself down to the use of only the barest of the bare essentials. He had no house. He had pretty much no possessions whatsoever other than the clothes on His back. This was the model He set. He taught this model to His men. He taught them to travel light. Therefore, the idea that He would involve Himself with something so spurious and foreign as building “church buildings” and doing His best to look like a Pharisee is ludicrous.
It was the Pharisees and those like them who were obsessed with religious externals. They had to have their synagogues and their high places therein, their own equivalent of platform thrones, from which they could rule and make sure everyone knew who was in charge. They also loved their extravagant clerical costumes and their highbrow religious attitudes that would gag a maggot. The Pharisees were also lovers of money (as were the Sadducees, Scribes, etc.). Their religion was entirely external. The Lord, on the other hand, had no need of such ridiculous externals. His was a spiritual ministry. He was a spiritual King of a spiritual Kingdom. From without, He had nothing by which to command respect according to sinful religious standards. This is obviously why the religious leaders had no respect for Him and why they treated Him with such contempt.
It was the same for the twelve apostles. It was the same for all the Lord’s disciples. It was the same for all of His true followers. And it is the same for all real Christians ever since.
SPEAKING OF EXTERNALS…
Over the last several years church buildings in America have been closing at an alarming rate. Until a person takes a look at this phenomenon he is completely unaware of it and doesn’t understand either side of the issue. A great church-building campaign was implemented throughout the last century. Protestant churches of all major denominations engaged in the practice once they had the money to spend, and they obviously had gained a lot. The Roman Catholic Church had always been flush with cash and power, so building church buildings everywhere was relatively easy for them also. However, what goes up must come down. That many of these church buildings no longer exist or have been sold and transferred into something else is yet another sign of the times. Sadly, for the most part, much of the money that these religious leaders possessed and had access to was used improperly. THE MONEY SHOULD HAVE BEEN SPENT ON PEOPLE.
This is what the Lord did. Unlike the grifting Christian religious leaders who refuse the Lord’s example and appropriate that of the Pharisees who have no problem asking for and demanding money all day long because they are worth it though “their people” are obviously not, the Lord worked very hard in His early life earning the money He would need for ministry and for supporting His ministers. He never called them forth from their life’s work at earning money for their families, whatever their trade may be, such as fisherman, without also providing for them. Imagine all those guys just dropping their nets and following a poor preacher all of the sudden and leaving their families in the lurch. This is apparently what most Christians must believe.
In reality then, one can see that the object of highest value in the Lord’s eyes was never external religious stuff but PEOPLE. The Lord Jesus loves PEOPLE. The Lord Jesus died for PEOPLE. He lives for PEOPLE. He rose again from the dead so that PEOPLE dead in sin can be saved and also rise again. His entire focus was always on PEOPLE. And He loves every single PERSON exactly the same because one cannot exceed the fullness of one’s heart and the Lord always gives His full heart to “whosoever will.”
Thus, practical externals are okay if necessary but are always far down the priority list. Regarding places to meet, why build external “church houses” when so many homes are available for use? How many times do we see the Lord using someone’s home, such as Peter’s, as not only a place to stay but a place to meet? The Book of Acts, early on, reports that they went “house to house.” And how many times do we see this standard throughout the epistles? There was always someone’s home here and there used as a meeting place. The houses of the early Christians thus served a dual purpose. They were following the Lord’s example.
As we continue on we will see more and more church buildings shuttered forever, especially after so much of American Christianity bought into the scam of the last two years and began worshiping “remotely.” One wonders what happened to these people. The bigger question, however, is how American Christians in general also bought into the hate toward those Christians who refused to engage in the false narrative. This is obviously a terrible development but what is done is now done. There is no going back. It was a big test and many if not most American Christians failed it.
ON THE EVE OF DESTRUCTION
Over the last eleven years I have done my best to warn you and keep you informed. I have always worked very hard at gaining information and truth because it is what I do. It is my calling. The Lord anointed me for this. I mostly get rejection, however, which is roughly par for the course. And I often prefer a parabolic approach. I don’t want to insult anyone’s intelligence. (The Lord used parables for a reason. They force people to think and become engaged.) However, Americans, and people in general, who refuse to consider the Lord’s gracious offer to become real Christians, usually do not make this decision based on what but on will. In other words, most people know the Lord Jesus is someone very special and have little or nothing against Him. With just a little introductory witnessing people quickly understand what is what. Their problem is thus not one of facts and truth but one of will, in that if they acknowledge the truth about the Lord they know they will have to submit to Him and quit their free-to-sin lifestyle. They don’t want to do this. Carrying a cross is no fun. They would rather keep their independence from God so they can maintain their authority to live in whatever way they choose. They are therefore forced to reject truth which forces them to cast aspersions upon the Lord’s Truth in order to be comfortable in the unworkable place they have chosen.
It is interesting that many Christians have the same attitude. In their case, New Testament facts do not matter. If New Testament facts clash with the doctrines of their denomination most will always choose the false or incomplete doctrines of their denomination. It is a religious thing. It is a cultural thing. It is a social thing. It is a lowest possible common denominator thing. Rather than choose the Lord’s full Truth and likely lose fellowship and social standing (and money and power and prestige and honor and self-congratulatory plaques on the wall and trophies in one’s case) they would rather keep on keeping on and keep the Lord and His hardcore Christianity at a distance. They would rather not be confused by facts. Again, especially in these days when so much truth and information is available, it is not because disobedient Christians do not know it but because they don’t want it. So they gather among other Christians like themselves and support one another in their disobedience. It gives them a warm glow or something and makes the conviction go away.
Tradition is a hard taskmaster to break free from.
Speaking of houses, did you know vast swaths of housing in America are being bought up at this very moment? Did you know that entities worth trillions of dollars are buying entire neighborhoods and plan to continue until they own as much housing as possible? And that they are buying houses above market rates to insure that owners will sell? And that they plan to turn all of these into rental properties and raise the rents astronomically? Money is not a problem for them. All they have to do is keep raising the sale price until the sellers sell.
Did you also know that the American homeless problem is growing by leaps and bounds? Did you know that renters are being priced out by being presented with massive rent increases they simply cannot afford? And that these responsible hard-working Americans can now not afford to live anywhere in their areas because the cost of housing has risen so dramatically? It is one thing to be homeless because one may be lazy or has given up or is mentally unstable or is addicted to drugs or alcohol. There has always been a percentage of the populace that fits this category. But many homeless people as of late are homeless because their salaries no longer allow them an affordable place to stay. Many of these continue working their jobs while living in their car or on the street. This is an entirely new phenomenon. And it is beginning to explode.
Did you also know there is war against your food? That bad actors are buying up all the farm land? That a great many food processing plants are mysteriously being destroyed all across the country? That multiple millions of chickens, etc. are being willfully destroyed because of possible bird flu? In other words, in order to protect the people we must starve them. Famine is thus coming to America as is increasing poverty. Destruction is upon us and most people are not even aware of it. I humbly suggest you do your own research to confirm this. You will then see.
We must also work harder at researching Scripture. The Lord rebuked the Pharisees in part because they knew the Scriptures but refused any understanding of Him as the Messiah. To do so would put too much pressure on them to change and get right with God. For them there was simply too much to lose. Our attitude toward Scripture thus reveals the condition of our heart.
“You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me; and you are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life. I do not receive glory from men; but I know you, that you do not have the love of God in yourselves. I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, you will receive him. How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and you do not seek the glory that is from the one and only God?” [John 5:39-44][1]
The Lord said the Scriptures tell all about Him. But how many “Christians” are willing to do the simple work of reading and studying the Scriptures, especially the pure teachings of the Lord Jesus, to get to know Him better and pattern their lives according to His will? If we want to know Him and know about Him, this is how to do it. Of course, the Lord was talking about the Old Testament in the preceding. We have so much more! A great way to get to know the Living Word is by reading the written Word. Those who do are much better prepared for any eventuality including that of the present.
At the end of the day we were all properly warned. Many Christians have been warning for a long time. It is mostly a failing cause which reminds one of Jeremiah’s work. Next to no one heeded his warnings or considered his teachings. Most of the Lord’s own people even rejected all of His warnings when only a very short time was left to repent. Most refused. Israel, Jerusalem, and the Temple were destroyed forever. Is this America’s fate? Unless something dramatic happens very soon it certainly is to whatever degree. As of now it appears that no one is doing anything to rebuke the devourer. The Devourer is running roughshod over the country and Christians are still doing and believing what they always have which is exactly how we arrived at the present. Unless one is doing what the Lord requires, the same old same old will no longer work. It is not working and hasn’t been for a while now. Also, the spiritual void created by the fake Christians is now being filled up by the fakest of fake ministers and most are none the wiser. It is all happening right before us. For many it is hidden in plain sight. American Christianity has largely been taken over by imposters.
SOMETHING MUST CHANGE. CHRISTIANS MUST DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT. CHRISTIANS IN AMERICA MUST INCREASE THEIR SPIRITUAL PRESENCE AND ABILITIES HIGH ENOUGH AND STRONG ENOUGH AND POWERFUL ENOUGH TO MAKE THE DIFFERENCE. CHRISTIANS MUST START STANDING UP AGAINST ALL THE DECEPTIVE COUNTERFEIT GARBAGE.
The tide of this greatest spiritual war in this country must be turned. I believe it will be. But it also looks like it’s going to get a lot worse before it gets better. Maybe this is the only way to make Christians wake up. Maybe they cannot be properly motivated while relatively free and financially comfortable and must be enslaved and suffer great lack before they get the big idea. (Experience is the best teacher.) When they do the Lord Jesus will be there to meet them.
MY WORK
I have written more new material and longer articles this year than in any previous year. I remain very thankful for those of you who read and follow. Words cannot express how much I appreciate it. But it’s not about me, of course, but the material. If you want to further support my work, say a prayer. There are many things I need to accomplish. Your prayers may help move some mountains. I continue to do what I can to direct people to the Lord’s pure teachings. When we apply them correctly we no longer support lesser teachings and false interpretations of His Word, maintain false ideas and formats, or focus on religious externals. Real Christianity is about the heart. The Lord knows your heart. He knows everything about you. This would normally cause a person to simply give up and surrender to Him knowing he or she cannot hide. But again, it is not about what but will. One must engage one’s will in the process. One must surrender one’s will to Him. Whoever does gains the greatest benefit which is a close relationship with the Lord and secondly, is blessed with specific fulfilling spiritual work to further His Kingdom.
Remember, the last member of the human body to surrender to the Lord Jesus is the tongue. When this most rebellious member fully submits the Holy Spirit enters and heavenly speech pours forth. This is the clear record in Acts. It is the same when we surrender our will. His will then becomes dominant in our lives and everything begins to change for the better. We must know He loves us with all His heart and will bless us with abundant life if only we allow Him to do so. He is a benevolent God of mercy and compassion. It is very important in this regard that we embrace His full curriculum. This process will drive out any false or incomplete teachings resident in our minds which means such things will no longer be a burden or a drag on our spiritual lives. His Truth also puts an end to confusion and cognitive dissonance.
WHAT ABOUT AMERICA?
I have been telling you for eleven years now through this medium that a national Great Awakening is upon us. I got the word from the Lord in late August of 2010, going on twelve years ago, that we were in the early stages at that time. The term Great Awakening was not at all in use then. Roughly five to seven years went by as I continued to labor in obscurity before the term then burst upon the scene in America. Now, probably half the country is well aware of the term Great Awakening. Millions know what it means. Millions are seeing the light and gaining more truth daily at an exponential rate. The Lord is seeing to this. HE IS EXPOSING EVIL LIKE NEVER BEFORE. But the perpetrators are still getting off scot free. Facts no longer matter. It reveals who is in control at that level. But the Lord’s Light will keep shining. Sin will continue being revealed. There is nothing anyone can do to stop this juggernaut let loose by the Lord. The devil wanted to amp it up and the Lord essentially said, “Fine. Now watch what I can do.” Whenever the enemy comes in like a flood the Lord will have the last word if we submit to Him and allow Him and will bring an answering flood of goodness and abundant life for His people. The Lord always takes care of His people but this works best when we fully cooperate.
Therefore, regarding the country, all nations and empires eventually come to an end. The only entity existing in the world at present that will never come to an end is the Kingdom of the Lord Jesus. This Kingdom has existed on this planet since the first century AD. It was designed to continue growing and expanding until it fills the earth. It is constantly clashing with the temporary kingdoms of this world controlled by you know you. The Lord, however, said the gates of hell will not prevail against it.
Currently, spiritual warfare in America is off the charts. It will be up to the relative few to continue fighting this battle. Most Christians are not engaging and will not engage. It is because most are not really Christians anyway. They have false conversions. They are Christians in name only. These are the people who comprise Unreal Christianity. They cannot fight their way out of a spiritual paper bag. It’s just the way it is.
OUR PRESENT
Though things look pretty bad and times are growing darker, and it appears as though all sin ever known to man is being freely exhibited all around us with no apparent remedy, and that those who are supposed to honor the rule of law and enforce the law are doing the opposite, always remember that the Lord Jesus is in charge. And even though He is not in effective charge in that He gave us free will and honors it and will never force anyone to do anything, He is in charge in that He can answer effectively at any time. It greatly helps Him when we pray properly and sincerely. I have the faith that He can do anything whenever He wants to. I have seen great miracles in my time and in my own life. We should all know what the Lord can do.
So be strong! Believe Him! Believe in Him! He keeps winning! The enemy has been throwing everything he has at us but keeps failing and thus continues resorting to different tactics. If the Lord’s relatively few people stay with Him the Lord will continue defeating anything the enemy might try. But again, we must put all of this in the context of the Lord’s invisible spiritual Kingdom. He puts all of His efforts into saving PEOPLE not things.
Outside of His Kingdom, everything in this world is temporary with an expiration date. We must occupy and be responsible but know our spiritual responsibility must be paramount.
Consider His perfect example. Consider the example of our Christian forebears in the first century. Study them. Read their accounts. Do what they did.
This is the answer.
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
ALL BECAUSE THEY REFUSE TO REPENT
To repent means to change one’s mind. It means one must allow for new Truth to update one’s mindset. Unfortunately, this demands a commitment many cannot make.
.
Gonna change my way of thinking
Make myself a different set of rules
Gonna change my way of thinking
Make myself a different set of rules
Gonna put my good foot forward
And stop being influenced by fools
Bob Dylan [1]
LAST DAYS ARCHETYPE
The Lord Jesus taught that real salvation demands radical change. He expressed a true turn or burn message. He actually stated this literally. He said His own nation would eventually burn due to its refusal to repent. He did everything He could to get this message across.
And following Him was a large crowd of the people, and of women who were mourning and lamenting Him. But Jesus turning to them said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, stop weeping for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children. For behold, the days are coming when they will say, ‘Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that never bore, and the breasts that never nursed.’ Then they will begin to say to the mountains, ‘Fall on us,’ and to the hills, ‘Cover us.’” [Luke 23:27-30]
This prophecy points directly to the Sixth Seal of Revelation:
Then the kings of the earth and the great men and the commanders and the rich and the strong and every slave and free man hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains; and they said to the mountains and to the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the presence of Him who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb; for the great day of their wrath has come, and who is able to stand?” [Revelation 6:15-17]
One might say the Lord failed in His warning. In reality, though He knew the nation was at an end and would cease to exist forever in forty years, and that it would actually involve destruction by fire, He never came to His people to save the nation itself. Why would He try to save a nation that was already destined for destruction? He certainly wanted His nation to be saved and preserved. Again, He did everything He possibly could to gain that outcome.
It must be remembered, however, that He had been fighting that battle of preservation for multiple centuries. He was the one who created the nation in the first place. It was His nation. It began with Abraham. He called out Abraham for this very purpose. He created the miracle child Isaac to exist as the first generation of His nation. Thus, the future nation of Israel was founded on a miracle. And there were untold miracles performed by God to preserve the nation throughout its long history. No one was more involved in creating, preserving, and blessing the nation of Israel than God. He loved Israel with all His heart.
Therefore, no one was more saddened by what ended up happening to His nation than the Lord. His heart was broken. You can see this in the words He spoke to those women lamenting Him. They were words drenched in pathos. He had done everything He could over the many centuries of its existence to keep what ended up happening from happening, but to no avail. He lost the battle. Ironically, those who won the battle against Him destroyed their nation. They destroyed His nation.
And He began to tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard and rented it out to vine-growers, and went on a journey for a long time. At the harvest time he sent a slave to the vine-growers, so that they would give him some of the produce of the vineyard; but the vine-growers beat him and sent him away empty-handed. And he proceeded to send another slave; and they beat him also and treated him shamefully and sent him away empty-handed. And he proceeded to send a third; and this one also they wounded and cast out. The owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my beloved son; perhaps they will respect him.’ But when the vine-growers saw him, they reasoned with one another, saying, ‘This is the heir; let us kill him so that the inheritance will be ours.’ So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. What, then, will the owner of the vineyard do to them? He will come and destroy these vine-growers and will give the vineyard to others.” [Luke 20:9-16]
And it was all because they refused to change their minds. They refused to allow for new Truth to update their mindset. They had already committed to a different mindset which they adhered to totally which left no room whatsoever for the introduction of anything else. Though absolutely nothing the Lord Jesus taught was ever refuted by His enemies according to the Law of Moses and objective truth, they rejected Him anyway. Why? Because their minds were made up. They were stubborn as mules. Not even the Lord could get through to them. They were obstinate, hard-headed, religious rednecks. At one point their off-the-scale close-mindedness caused the Lord to exclaim the following:
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, and say, ‘If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ So you testify against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. Fill up, then, the measure of the guilt of your fathers. You serpents, you brood of vipers, how will you escape the sentence of hell?” [Matthew 23:29-33][2]
Even then the Lord was thinking of their souls and their eternal destination. Again, He knew they were lost and many were filled with the devil. He knew they were the religious leaders of the most wicked generation of Israel to date. And that is saying a lot in light of so many evil generations of the past. Their world class obstinacy was one thing, but something even greater was the abject weakness of all those who submitted to them. Almost everybody in Israel was scared to death of those guys. There was such rampant fear in the nation drummed up by its leaders, next to no one was willing to challenge them. They knew they would be destroyed if they did. They knew their evil leaders controlled pretty much everything and could make their lives a living hell. How did such an outcome ever transpire in a nation created by God? How could a nation founded on spiritual freedom devolve into such a hellhole? To save their nation, all the people had to do was turn to God and repent. All they had to do was change their sorry way of thinking and get right with God, and then God would have taken care of the rest.
BUT NO! This proved there was something more than simple fear of religious leaders going on. It proved the majority of people actually preferred being led around like a bunch of stupid morons by idiots in charge. Otherwise they would have to do what God required. And what God required was crucifixion of the flesh. He required an elimination of sin from their lives. He required that they quit engaging in sinful practices. He required a total clean up on Aisle One. He required a circumcision of the heart. And though the sins of the average Israelite was less than that of those who led them, they still preferred a life of sin (though often sins of omission) to making the necessary changes that God required.
INSISTENT INSINCERITY
Keep in mind most of these people went to church every week (synagogue). They did what they were told by the leaders thereof. They bought into the program. For many, however, they never actually gave their hearts to God. They only obeyed because they were required to do so. To do otherwise would put them on the outs in society. Doors would close. They would be looked down upon. They would no longer be welcome at the cool kids table. Their popularity would plummet. They would be cancelled. They would get stuck with a low social credit score. Yet as long as they continued to surrender to the religious leaders in charge and obey the main prerequisites they could otherwise sin to their hearts content. The main prerequisites were based on:
(1) We are in control here and you must surrender to our control. (2) What we teach is what you must believe. You are to have no other teachers or doctrines before you. You must have no independent religious or spiritual thought. What we say is what goes. If you don’t understand it you must believe it anyway. (3) In order to be in good standing you must make a full commitment and dedicate yourself fully to our program. If so, all will go well with you. (In other words, you will avert our wrath and the possible disfellowship which could break your back socially.)
The people of the nation thus discovered that as long as they paid the proper obeisance to the religious leaders they could be free to do what they wanted within the set parameters. Some freedom was better than no freedom. As long as they deferred to them, genuflected before them, and essentially kissed their ring then all would go well. Whether they saw themselves as religious sellouts is another issue. There were certainly some who were completely brainwashed and actually believed all the tripe presented to them. Maybe this was the majority. It probably was because over time the constant pontificating from those who dwelt on high would have had an effect. The total lack of any alternate viewpoints would also serve to cause most to become indoctrinated. The fact that no one could ever stand up to the idiots in charge would eventually remove the backbone of the nation and cause it to become docile and subservient toward them. Once the big boys were successful at eliminating any testosterone directed in their direction, the men of the nation were made impotent toward them. They thus couldn’t change their nation for the better if they wanted to.
All the ultimate testosterone and manliness was thus reserved only for the religious elite in charge. Only they were allowed to throw their weight around. Only they could do whatever they wanted and get away with it. The law didn’t apply to them. Only they had no accountability except to themselves which was a circle to nowhere. Sound familiar? And because they controlled the rage factor they could draw up a rage response among those they controlled at any time. Because the men were held in estrogen prison they were ever-burning to get out and allowed the opportunity to vent. Then, whenever they got the word from on high they could be easily directed to enter into instant rage response mode and attack whoever they were directed toward, which were always those with the audacity to question “the elders” and “our tradition” or (aghast!) whoever may preach or teach a different message.
The Lord Jesus had managed to subvert this demonic process much of the time because the people in general were overcome by His great love and compassion, and His willingness to do miracles in their midst to help them. He would heal blind eyes, eliminate their illnesses in a flash, bless them with everything their souls were longing for, forgive and remove their personal sin, assist the poor on a grand scale, and even raise their dead on occasion. He was a force! He was winning hearts and minds!
In the end, however, everyone realized they would also have to change their ways, repent, change their way of thinking, love their enemies, change their hearts, submit fully to God, change their minds, and stop engaging in dead religion.
It was simply too much. There would be way too much to change. Their entire lives would be affected. They would have to start over. It was just too much. It would require way too much faith and too much effort. It would be much easier to simply continue on as before. And that’s the choice they made. They declined the great spiritual power the Lord offered them to make changes for the better.
THE REMNANT
This was not the case for the Remnant. There were some, many untold tens of thousands of Israelites, who actually did obey the Lord Jesus. They recognized Him as their Messiah. They saw that He was the great I AM. They became aware of just who this Man was and the great privilege they were allowed to know Him, be with Him, and honor Him. This brought forth the very first Great Awakening! For forty years the Lord’s new born again Spirit-filled people continued to work toward the salvation of as many of the people of their nation as possible. Many were saved, taught, and made secure. Many developed and came to full spiritual maturation. It was the greatest thing that had ever happened to Israel in all its history, even though the good guys, those who believed in love and loving, were outnumbered and always had to face the incessant hateful wrath of the bad guys.
But the wrath, rage, and hate of the rebellious religious tyrants along with those under their control—the unrepentant majority of insincere, spiritually lazy, surrendered silent sellouts who chose to continue being influenced by fools—caused them all to be without the one thing they needed to save the country: None of them were saved. How could they therefore save the nation or anything else? Their lack of salvation and lack of saving ability left only one other outcome: Their national rebellion and sin content insured they be destined for destruction.
And it was all because they refused to repent.
They refused to change their way of thinking.
They refused to allow for new Truth to update their mindset.
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Copyright © 1979 by Special Rider Music
[2] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
SPIRITUAL ASSASSINATION (AND A TIMELY RESURRECTION)
Just as in the case of the Lord Jesus who was marked for assassination by His enemies (who succeeded but failed), so is every dedicated real Christian likely marked.
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Some of these spiritual assassination attempts will succeed (we have Scriptural examples). The vast majority will not. But no matter. Physical death is not the end of the story. Every real Christian so marked is also marked for resurrection just as our Founder was marked. He was destined to die for a great purpose but was also destined to rise again not long after. In His case it happened on the third day after His death. (This also happened to be the third day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.) For the vast majority of real Christians, however, their resurrections will come much later. There will be a day in the future when all will rise again together. Old-timers referred to it as “that great gettin’ up mornin.’
I say “the vast majority” because there were some who actually received their resurrections from death in the first century AD. In this, I am not referring to Lazarus or others whom the Lord or the apostles raised up because those people had to die physically a second time. I am instead referring to those mysterious resurrections which took place soon after the Lord’s resurrection referred to in Matthew’s Gospel:
And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit. And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth shook and the rocks were split. The tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the tombs after His resurrection they entered the holy city and appeared to many. [Matthew 27:50-53]
One wonders if there were others elsewhere in various locations who were also raised at that time. The city of Jerusalem was not the only place saints of old were buried though it is possible more might have been buried in its environs than elsewhere. One wonders further just who these saints might have been. What qualified them to be resurrected at that time? Were they Old Testament saints from centuries past? Or were they first-century believers who died at some point during the Lord’s ministry? What if some of the well-known national figures were included in this group, such as David, who was buried in Jerusalem?
THE PRIVILEGE OF RESURRECTION
Because there is so much misunderstanding or lack of information about the future resurrection of those who have passed, the subject must be put into context. We know the Scriptures are clear that all will be resurrected, both the saved and unsaved:
“Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. For just as the Father has life in Himself, even so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself; and He gave Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son of Man. Do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, and will come forth; those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment.” [John 5:25-29]
In addition to this, the Lord makes it clear that the future resurrection unto Life is a privilege not given to everyone or just anyone but only to those who are worthy:
Jesus said to them, “The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage, but those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry nor are given in marriage; for they cannot even die anymore, because they are like angels, and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection.” [Luke 20:34-36]
It is likely the case at most funerals that the person who died is assumed to have gone to heaven. Imagine all the funerals (term used very loosely) worldwide for all time. The dearly departed was likely loved by someone or maybe a great many. To question his or her eternal destination at such a time is probably the height of protocol-breaking or certainly awkward. According to the teachings of the Lord and the entry requirements He mandates, most of these people went to the opposite place they were assumed to have gone.
The point, of course, is that “going to heaven” and participating in a future resurrection unto Life is not automatic or a right but a great privilege and blessing reserved only for a relative few. It is something, in the words of the Lord Jesus, to attain. The Greek word means “to hit upon, meet, happen, obtain.” It is something to strive for, to work toward, and to make oneself worthy to receive. This does not mean we can earn our salvation, which is impossible, but that we must work within the context set forth by the Lord Jesus to be “considered worthy to attain to that age and the resurrection of the dead.”
WHY THE LORD JESUS WAS A MARKED MAN
We are in a war. It is a spiritual war. The devil is a mighty foe. He is very powerful. He attacks his enemies. His aim is to eliminate anyone attacking him or his kingdom. Those who do the most damage are at the top of his list. But the Lord Jesus, on the other hand, is so much more powerful He could squash the devil like a bug any time He felt like it. And He will protect His children in this world who work for Him the same way He protected Himself from the many assassination attempts upon His life before He surrendered to His destiny as the Sacrifice Lamb.
A close friend told me the other day something a pastor had recently preached. The pastor said to the effect, “Don’t ever let anyone tell you that the Lord was killed or murdered. He laid down His life willingly…” I said “Well, the pastor is wrong. It is in fact, both. The Lord certainly laid down His life and made Himself vulnerable, but He was also murdered. The apostle Peter said this very thing in the first anointed message of the Church on the Day of Pentecost.” Here is the passage:
“Men of Israel, listen to these words: Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know—this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death. But God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power.” [Acts 2:22-24]
It is often said that Stephen was the first martyr of the Church but this is not true. It was the Lord Jesus who was the first martyr. He had to be first. He was indeed greatly persecuted by evil unbelievers and eventually suffered physical death at their hands. He was the first to die and also the first to rise. It had to be this way. Nothing else could have possibly worked otherwise. The Lord Jesus is both the Door and the one who opened the door to Life. He is the only spiritual Warrior who could defeat death, hell, and the grave. He had to go first to do this because He was the only one worthy. It would have been impossible with anyone else because everyone else has sin but He never did. He was thus worthy to attain His resurrection and eternal life.
And because He did attain it He makes it possible for His followers to attain it as well. They must be cleansed of all sin, however, or forget it. But He has the power to do that. He has the power, with His own Blood, to cleanse a person of all of his or her personal sin. He also has the power to raise one up to new life in this world, fill one with His Holy Spirit which enables one to be properly equipped for service and the spiritual battlefield, live an overcoming life over sin, and also to work for Him within His kingdom doing works that He did. THESE are the people, in general, who are the worthy ones.
Thus, heaven is not nor has it ever been automatic, the only condition met being death. It is reserved only for those who submit to the salvation method of the Lord Jesus. Now, granted, there will be those who are also judged by Him to be worthy who do not fit the apparent conditions within the context of His teachings. Paul alluded to this possibility in the following:
For there is no partiality with God. For all who have sinned without the Law will also perish without the Law, and all who have sinned under the Law will be judged by the Law; for it is not the hearers of the Law who are just before God, but the doers of the Law will be justified. For when Gentiles who do not have the Law do instinctively the things of the Law, these, not having the Law, are a law to themselves, in that they show the work of the Law written in their hearts, their conscience bearing witness and their thoughts alternately accusing or else defending them, on the day when, according to my gospel, God will judge the secrets of men through Christ Jesus. [Romans 2:11-16][1]
It is thus possible that one may never hear the Gospel and still go to heaven. (Consider all those who died prior to the Lord’s ministry or who lived at great distances away on other continents long before the Gospel ever reached their lands.) But this can only be possible if the preceding qualifications are met. How many millions, and indeed, billions of people who have ever lived on this planet lived in such a way that they did their best to honor their conscience, strove to do good and shun evil, and reached out to a Creator they knew must exist. These are things beyond the realm of human judgement or knowledge. No one can see such things but the Lord. Only the Lord Jesus knows all hearts. He is the best possible Judge of one’s soul. He will make the right decisions. He will always render perfect judgments.
THERE IS LIKELY A CONTRACT ON YOUR LIFE
If you are a big enough threat, expect to be attacked. But know also that the Lord has means to grant you victory. I knew someone several years ago who was attacked severely and his entire life was essentially destroyed. The devil’s aim was to do even more. His original goal was to destroy everything including the person’s life. But it didn’t work out quite that way. Because this man had walked with God the Lord allowed his former life to be destroyed but preserved the man’s spiritual life. He preserved the man’s ministry and life purpose. He worked with the man over several years to sort out all the ramifications which resulted from both a diabolical Jezebel attack and also a Judas betrayal. The enemy meant total destruction and it should have been such in that he threw everything he had at him. It was a pure assassination attempt in the first degree.
But it failed. Rather than be overcome by the severe repercussions of the spiritual attack, this man worked with the Lord over several years to work everything out. He patiently crossed all the t’s and dotted all the i’s. Everything was settled above board and properly. And it was done with no evil intent toward his human attackers who assisted in the plot. This man had what might be termed an ongoing resurrection. Though the enemy tried with all his might and though he succeeded at destroying much, he failed at destroying all. This is always a dangerous outcome. It made the man who was marked for death an even greater threat than he was before.
It also meant he survived the worst. This man will never have to go through such again. You may know people like this. Their experience is noted for something many have gone through over the last quarter century or so. There are people who represented a threat to the enemy who for all practical purposes should not have survived the attempt against them who then later became a greater threat than before.
Those who are forced to go toe to toe with some gnarly Goliath, who face otherwise certain death and destruction, and live to tell the story of a great victory are the kind of people you want on your team. They have already experienced a type of resurrection, reminiscent of their future one, and rejoined the Lord on the battlefield. The assassination they were marked for is what they mark the enemy with and have greater power and ability given by God to achieve that objective.
All praise and glory to the Lord Jesus.
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE “LAST DAYS” DECEPTION: A Brief History of Misapplied Prophecy (1)
We have been convinced we are living in the “Last Days,” that there is no remedy for the growing evil of these times, and that we must surrender apathetically without a fight.
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“THIS GENERATION”
“Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.” [Matthew 24:34]
The Lord Jesus frequently and consistently referred to a single generation throughout His ministry. Throughout the Gospel accounts He refers to it specifically as “this generation.” There are a total of seventeen such references, five in Matthew, three in Mark, and nine in Luke. He also described it. He referred to “this generation” as “evil, adulterous, unbelieving, perverted, sinful, and wicked.” In Acts 2:40, Peter also refers to it as “perverse.” In Philippians 2:15, Paul agrees with Peter and adds another fitting adjective—“crooked.” So here we have seven quite descriptive adjectives describing the generation the Lord referred to as “this generation.”
GROSS ERROR
There is a very strange occurrence that takes place when Christians refer to prophetic content within the Gospel accounts. They almost always have a tendency to refer to the generation the Lord referred to as “this generation” as their own generation. This phenomenon became more common after the advent of the Protestant Reformation five hundred years ago. It happened before then as well though the instances are far less due to a lack of access to the Word of God, attributed to general illiteracy, and also because the Roman Catholic Church had purposely hidden the written Word behind a wall of Latin.
Thus, in the 1500s, as more Christians began reading the few emerging Gospel accounts in their own languages, and apparently due to their limited understanding of the phrase “this generation,” they had the decided tendency to think it meant their generation. The same thing happened in successive generations since, from the 1500s to the present. This became especially true beginning in the early to mid 1800s in America with the advent of Dispensational Theology, a spurious construct invented out of thin air. By the time the 20th century dawned in the year 1900, the phenomenon became much more pronounced. It gained great steam by mid century, especially by the 1960s when America began being inundated with so-called Christian “prophecy teachers.”
Strangely enough, though these “prophecy teachers” had relatively slight differences which got blown out of proportion (such as the pre-trib, mid-trib, and post-trib nonsense), they generally agreed very closely on what they termed Biblical prophecies coming true in our time. This does not mean that they were right but that their interpretations were coming from the same original source.
Then, in the mode of Space-based science fiction popular at that time, the phenomenon broke out into the secular culture with the publication of a seminal Christian prophecy work entitled The Late Great Planet Earth in 1970. According to the New York Times, this was the “bestselling nonfiction book of the 1970s.” [1] All of the sudden, Biblical prophecy not only became a popular topic in America, it was also said to be coming to pass in real time. According to the author, the prophesied future was now upon that generation of fifty-two years ago. Due to its nature and claims, the book was also publicized through high circulation mainstream newspapers and magazines. Many more prophecy books were published by various authors. The top prophecy teachers were touring the states speaking at churches, colleges, and conferences. With the advent of Christian television in the early 1970s they were suddenly selling their wares through that medium. It truly was a burgeoning phenomenon. And the one astounding constant those guys all had in common was that our time (the 1970s) was the specific time referred to in the New Testament when the “Last Days” prophecies of the Lord Jesus were actually coming to pass.
In essence, the prophecy teachers made the declarative persistent claim that the American generation of the 1970s was the New Testament “this generation” referred to by the Lord Jesus.
THE DECEPTION PERSISTS
Remember, pretty much every generation over the last five hundred years has, to varying degrees, believed their generation to be the one that would see the culmination of prophetic events and the second coming of the Lord Jesus. This was more pronounced on scattered occasions here and there especially during times of revival. But as I stated previously, the phenomenon became a flowing stream with no discernible interruptions beginning about 120 years ago. This had never happened before. That generation was convinced we were at the end of time. When WWI broke out it appeared all the more believable. The same thing happened during WWII. The belief that we were in the “Last Days” gained force and notoriety for seventy years until it burst onto the scene in the 1970s reaching an apogee that carried on into the 1980s and 90s.
Of course, the year 1900 or thereabouts was not the end of the world, nor did the prophesied end come in the 1900s, 1910s, 1920s, 1930s, or 1940s though many in those two generations were convinced otherwise. A third generation then came upon the scene and gained age in the 1950s and 60s. This generation was also fully convinced it must be the last one on earth due in part to the advent of nuclear weapons which were said to have the firepower to effectively destroy the planet. The 1960s saw great social change not only in the secular but also within Christianity which for the first time was visited throughout with the Holy Spirit outpouring within all major denominations. This occurrence definitely had an effect on the “Last Days” theme.
Then, with the initial emergence of the fourth generation beginning in roughly 1970 the phenomenon blasted into outer space. One could not escape such news if one tried. The Christians of that time knew the “Last Days” had certainly arrived. Regardless of what any previous generation had thought prior to the 1970s, those people were simply wrong, it was said, and they were only seeing the earliest glimpses of the future in their time. The previous generations had made the mistake of attributing the future to their time, it was said, while the emerging generation of the 1970s, having been shown so clearly by the prophecy teachers “that one can see prophecy coming to pass simply by reading the newspapers,” were convinced their days were truly the “Last Days,” the time when Jesus would definitely return. Well, He didn’t return fifty years ago in the early 1970s. Maybe He was “tarrying.”
When nothing changed in the 1970s the new mantra was based on the state of Israel. The prophecy teachers insisted the Lord must return within a generation of the founding of the state of Israel, which took place in the spring of 1948, as wrongheaded as that contention was. Their reasoning was thus: Since a Biblical generation was thought to be forty years the Lord will return by 1988. And of course, because there must be a seven year “Tribulation” period within this construct, this great time of turmoil and suffering which the world has never before seen would have to begin by 1981. That was forty-one years ago. Of course, the “The Great Tribulation” never happened. The Lord did not return in the 1980s.
The prophecy teachers made more adjustments. They were absolutely right all along you see and never admitted to being off, so they simply added more to the mix. They continued to make the rounds and make money. They continued writing best sellers. They continued pontificating on Christian television. Everyone, it seems, kept believing them. As time went on, however, they started sounding that much more incorrect. They could no longer come up with adequate explanations. But giving credit where credit is certainly due, these guys were masters at their craft. And Christians in general remained Biblically uninformed regarding New Testament Scripture as usual and thus extremely gullible. As time continued to pass the entire prophecy timelines and constructs of the prophecy teachers simply started to fade away. There was no sense pushing them anymore. They could no longer be made to fit.
Then a new generation began to rise in roughly the mid-1990s. Christians were still aware of these so-called prophecies somewhat but no longer emphasized them. Nevertheless, from then until now the deception has remained. Christians still insist we are in the “Last Days” referred to in the New Covenant literature. Christians still believe we are in the days directly preceding the Second Coming.
As it turns out, the “Last Days” last a long time, much longer than prophecy says they should. They have now lasted over 120 years. The state of Israel is almost 74 years old. That’s almost two Biblical generations. Every generation from roughly 1900 until now believed they would see the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus. Each generation was obviously wrong.
THIS PRESENT DARKNESS
We are now at the beginning of the sixth generation. The entire construct of the prophecy teachers of the recent past has been proven absolutely wrong though a probable majority of Christians and even great millions of non-Christians still believe it. Though it has no rhyme or reason from a New Testament perspective, it has become accepted religious theology. We have seen this play out once again over the last few weeks in the Russian war with Ukraine in which prophecy is once again being applied to the actions of Russia as it always is when Russia makes a perceived major move of one kind or another.
The major problem which arises from this prophecy heresy is the idea that evil will continue to grow worse and worse in the world and that there is absolutely nothing Christians can do about it. Though the Lord Jesus has all authority in heaven and earth there is nothing He can do about it either. If Christians have been convinced that prophecy says the world is lost then the current Kingdom of the Lord Jesus existing in this world lacks the power to overcome evil which indicates evil is the greater power.
I submit that this idea is pure unadulterated garbage and that the reason evil is overcoming good is because many potential proponents of spiritual good have been erroneously taught to stand down and go about their Christianity in such a way that they represent no threat to the devil. This absurd attitude based on the “Last Days” deception may best be described by the Lord Himself in the following:
“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men.” [Matthew 5:13][2]
Sound familiar?
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued]
[1] Wikipedia
[2] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE “LAST DAYS” DECEPTION: “This Generation” (2)
THE “LAST DAYS” DECEPTION: New Testament References to the “Last Days” (3)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (8)
They have created an Ishmael—an illegitimate counterfeit. Most Americans are none the wiser (sleeping). This illicit replacement imitation is wreaking havoc on what’s left of the country.
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ISHMAEL
His name was Ishmael. He was the product of an unholy and faithless union. Ishmael was conceived because the great patriarch abandoned his faith in God and did the unthinkable. He had illicit relations with a foreign woman not his wife. Yet this great sin was not characterized as the adultery it surely was because Abraham performed this unholy deed at the behest of his wife Sarah. She convinced him to do it. It was a strange love triangle born of spiritual infidelity and outright rebellion against the Lord God. The good man was overcome by the incessant pleadings of his faithless barren wife. Sound familiar?
What Eve did to Adam is what Sarah did to Abraham. However, what these two women did obviously reverberated far, far beyond their respective significant others though they never saw that at the time. Both men knew better but both failed in their faithfulness to God. Had these two men stayed faithful to their overriding spiritual covenant as God had highly advised and counseled them, the great evil that resulted which continues even until this day would never have happened.
Both men made a spiritual recovery later on but the great damage had already been done. There was nothing that could stop the ongoing burgeoning of sin and evil in this world which has grown exponentially ever since. We are currently seeing evil shooting upward as never before like a proverbial rocket, as so many explosive and fiery launches over the last sixty plus years has enthralled a rapt but clueless audience beholding the wonder though never understanding the means and motive.
We see that the serpent was responsible in Eve’s case. Was the serpent also not responsible in Sarah’s case? God had promised Abraham a son, a very special son. He had made the promise to Abraham and Sarah roughly fifteen years before. This childless couple had kept the faith throughout those years. Sarah had always been barren. For all they knew it could have been Abraham’s problem also. The point is that this couple called by God could never have children yet God promised them a very special child who would have an immense and immeasurable beneficial effect on the world.
But they wavered. They grew tired of waiting. This was especially pronounced in Sarah. Her hopes were raised to the heavens when she first heard the promise many years before but then nothing ever came of it and her hopes were dashed. Abraham held on but only in a weakened state. He did his best. There was less and less to sustain his faith. Once Sarah quit and returned to her faithless condition, which barrenness portends, it would only be a matter of time before Abraham’s little remaining supply of faith in God regarding the promise would drain away. And it did.
A surrogate wife was found. The surrogate would be the mother of the promised child. Sarah decreed this. Sarah was just as wrong as Eve, of course, but because the correcting voice that had authority over her was effectively silenced—the voice of Abraham—as Adam’s voice was also silenced by his wife, Abraham proceeded to engage in the unholy, faithless, adulterous union. Again, Sarah did not merely suggest he do this or tell him to, she insisted upon it. Abraham was waylaid. Perhaps he was also tempted in his own right with forbidden fruit that was pleasing to the eyes and flesh. Perhaps he thought of his future great patriarchy and enjoyed the prospect of having another mate for such a purpose. Whatever the case, these two chosen ones messed up really, really bad. Being born into this world wasn’t Ishmael’s fault but the replacement boy later proved to be what he was—the fruit of an illicit union of which God had never approved.
Thirteen years went by. Abraham and Sarah apparently kept up the ruse the entire time, at least in part, and treated young Ishmael as the promised one. Hagar, the boy’s real mother, had something to say about this however. She likely never bought into the narrative and didn’t care. She only knew Ishmael was her boy and she couldn’t help but fight in the tug of war instigated by Sarah. Abraham thus had two wives and they were at odds always and he had to play the referee always, and as his faith had waned which brought forth Ishmael so had his good nature waned, being caught between two warring women, and he must have grown seriously weary as a result.
He also knew in his heart that Ishmael was not really the promised child. He was forced to engage in the deception initially to please his wife and was also forced to continue the charade to stay in her graces. As far as Sarah was concerned Ishmael was her son and anything contrary to this was forbidden. There is thus no possible way she could have had a relationship with God during the entire time for if she had she would have been convicted of her sin and changed her way of thinking.
It is quite interesting how the Word of God gives us clues that bypass most Christians, likely because most Christians are also stuck in false narratives as Sarah was and cannot see them. We know in Adam’s case he lived another 130 years after his initial sin and banishment. At that point he finally repented and did what was required to get right with God. Eve also repented and got right. Their third son listed in the Genesis account—Seth—was the result. He was the fruit of their return to God and effectively replaced Abel who the devil had eliminated by the murderous hand of the abominable Cain.
The point here is the 130 years. It is ten times thirteen. Ten is the Biblical number of ordinal perfection and thirteen is the number of rebellion. Once the rebellion ended, the Messianic generational bloodline was reestablished. For 130 long years there was no hope of a future Savior. If Adam had never gotten right with God there would have been no Lord Jesus. We would all end up in hell with no remedy. The devil would have won the universe. It is therefore no surprise that the number thirteen entered the picture once again in the case of Ishmael:
Now Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. And Ishmael his son was thirteen years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. In the very same day Abraham was circumcised, and Ishmael his son. [Genesis 17:24-26]
It was imperative that Abraham be circumcised prior to the birth of the promised child. Should he not have known that Isaac was impossible until he had done this? That Isaac would not only be the product of pure faith but also, by implication, the circumcision of the heart? How often do we as Christians make claims upon God’s promises but remain unwilling to fulfill the terms thereof? Circumcision portends spiritual cleanliness. It portends pure seed. It was the cutting off of the flesh. Though Ishmael was conceived while Abraham was uncircumcised (flesh), Isaac, the promised son, must be conceived in circumcised purity (spirit).
Also, the outward end of Ishmael’s development as a son of flesh must be officially stopped and was stopped at thirteen years. The big picture, of course, illustrates the nature of Abraham and Sarah’s sin in that, like Adam and Eve, it was a sin of disobedient faithless rebellion. Abraham’s faithlessness and rebellion against God ended, fully, with his circumcision. In fact, everyone in his entire household was also circumcised. God does not merely suggest spiritual purity if an Isaac is to come forth—He demands it.
Perhaps this is why much of Christianity never brings forth an Isaac but can only ever manage an Ishmael.
ISAAC
Immediately after this wholesale repentance/circumcision event when Abraham returned to rightness with God, he was paid a visit by God and God confirmed the initial promise He had made many years before. Keep in mind that God never would have shown up if Abraham did not fulfill what he must. God always has more time than us and will wait forever if need be. Also, the wholesale repentance/circumcision event of Abraham’s household broke the power that Sarah had gained over Abraham and to which he had fallen victim to when he obeyed her in forcing him to bring forth an Ishmael. As long as her power over the situation remained, Isaac could not possibly be born because he must be born of Sarah and not a surrogate. His birth would never happen as long as Sarah was in charge. Sarah would never have an ounce of faith as long as she was in charge. She would never be fertile. She would be unworthy of receiving spiritual seed. Of course, in her case, she was also unable of bear children in the flesh. She was barren both physically and spiritually. She was also faithless. The only way this could change is if she submitted to God. Fully. Why was Sarah so hardheaded and stubborn in this regard? Why did she demand to have her own way? Was this not the vestige of fallen Eve in her nature? (Abraham had also partaken of the vestige of fallen Adam by weakly complying with the demands and/or manipulation of his wife.)
The process toward spiritual life and away from fleshly rebellion, as it was in the exact case of Adam and Eve, started when Abraham took back control from Sarah and then submitted total control to God. (As long as Sarah was in authority she would never submit to God and there would never be an Isaac.) This is why there was such an immediate dramatic change for the better once Abraham repented and was circumcised. The change was so dramatic that even Sarah herself would be blessed with pure faith and her newfound faithfulness to God would result at last in spiritual fruitfulness. God had initially told them Isaac was coming 29 years before. The time had now arrived for Him to tell them again, this time face to face:
Now the Lord appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre, while he was sitting at the tent door in the heat of the day. When he lifted up his eyes and looked, behold, three men were standing opposite him; and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth, and said, “My Lord, if now I have found favor in Your sight, please do not pass Your servant by. Please let a little water be brought and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree; and I will bring a piece of bread, that you may refresh yourselves; after that you may go on, since you have visited your servant.” And they said, “So do, as you have said.” [Genesis 18:1-5]
Then they said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” And he said, “There, in the tent.” He said, “I will surely return to you at this time next year; and behold, Sarah your wife will have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent door, which was behind him. Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in age; Sarah was past childbearing. Sarah laughed to herself, saying, “After I have become old, shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?” And the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh, saying, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, when I am so old?’ Is anything too difficult for the Lord? At the appointed time I will return to you, at this time next year, and Sarah will have a son.” [Genesis 18:9-14][1]
THIS PRESENT DARKNESS
Though an Ishmael has taken over and gained great power at the behest of evil forces he will not and they will not have the last word. Regardless of their success to date in establishing a counterfeit which appears to be legitimate, there remains much more to this story. We see many forms of attack against this Ishmael but none have worked so far nor will any other work. Except one.
As I have faithfully reported over the last eleven and a half years, primarily through this medium, a Great Awakening had always been in the plan of God for America. Just as He has done on countless other occasions, if we as His followers fulfill the terms of the promise, the present illegitimate Ishmael in control will not only be stopped but circumcised. Its evil fleshly power and connection to the devil will be cut off. This will happen when the rebellion is complete, when the perpetrators thereof have spent themselves in an ultimately losing cause. And every real Christian in America has a vital part to be engaged in toward that end. The Lord Jesus will do this, as He always has, through His people, His spiritual kingdom-minded Community of Called-Out Ones who bow the knee to Him, confess His holy Name, and circumcise their hearts.
In the interim, get faithful and stay faithful.
Isaac is coming.
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (1)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (2)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (3)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (4)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (5)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (6)
A NOTE ABOUT OUR DIGITAL COMMUNITY (AND A BIT OF HUMOR)
Hello my friends. Hope all is well! The following is a brief note regarding how we operate as bloggers and the interaction thereof which you may find helpful and interesting.
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Like some of you I’ve been doing this a long time. I’ve “met” some really great people here over the years. Like you, I have also had readers come and go. It is always great to get new readers who like your stuff and believe it to be edifying. On the other hand, we sometimes lose readers. Some stop reading your stuff. Some stop blogging altogether. Some delete their sites. New bloggers come on board. It is all very fluid. When I look at some of my posts from just a few years ago I wonder what happened to those readers. If you do this blogging thing long enough you will have a turnover of supporters several times. This is all completely normal.
A NOTE ABOUT THIS MEDIUM
Attention spans have generally become very short. When I started out here going on twelve years ago my posts were usually in the range of one to two pages and occasionally three. Anything exceeding that was broken into two to three parts and very rarely did I write a series longer than three parts. From time to time after that I occasionally wrote a four page post. Due to the nature of the medium I realized that relatively short posts work best and if I wrote a series, three parts at the most would work best. If one uses the same title in a series, readers have a tendency to drift off and lose interest. This is perfectly understandable.
This has happened in my current series, but the title of a series cannot change unless one scraps the entire series. The writer usually never knows if a reader doesn’t read or stops reading due to the unchanging title in a series, the content of articles, or the length of articles. It could be all three or a combination. (My posts have become longer as of late.) We are therefore continually looking for what may work best to (1) Honor the Lord who has called us to this work to do what He wants, and (2) Strive to make our posts as readable, informative, interesting, and edifying as possible.
Here are a few other things of note: I learned early on that there are bloggers out there who desire to be helpful and point out things about this medium that may have escaped our notice. We always appreciate helpful hints and ideas. I had one particular blogging friend whose site I followed who liked doing this and I did learn a few things. Also, if we have a good well-rounded blog roll we cannot help but learn a great many things that will assist us in our walk, which is in essence the entire purpose of being here and doing this. My thanks to all of you for the content you post and your distinctive style.
To go along with the good, however, there’s a tad bit of bad. I want you all to know that I will never Like a post unless I read your post in its entirety. There are some who do not do this. They may not read a post at all or only read a portion but will still leave their calling card. I remember the first time many years ago when I got blasted with Like spam. I suddenly received a ton of Likes on many of my posts and, of course, knew the other blogger had never read any of them. I also learned you cannot do anything about this. It just happened again a few days ago. I suddenly received many Likes from one individual who never read the many posts he or she referenced and apparently only wanted to post his or her icon. This is not good.
Again, most of us never do this. I never do it. It is therefore difficult to know for sure how many people actually read your posts and Like them for what they contain. Regardless of such not so great behavior, we learn who our solid readers are by their great behavior and attitude, and their ongoing consistent support. At the end of the day we are all family, those of us who have given our lives to the Lord Jesus. We are each fallible, however, and need one another. We also obviously need the Lord. Always.
I remember one occasion when I was a rookie Christian. I was attending one of those churches in which we had a time of testimony. We could stand up and share with everyone there some wonderful thing the Lord did. We had a great song leader guy who also did the testimony service, as we called it back then. I’m sure some of you are familiar with the format. He would ask whoever had a testimony (a short account of something great the Lord recently did in our lives) to stand up. Then he would call on us in turn. At that time I had been engaging in some spiritual warfare and was learning, as a rookie, that sometimes God has some serious enemies. I decided to let fly with something on my heart regarding this which may or may not have fit a testimony service. I stood there in the small congregation and said something to this effect, that sometimes living out our Christianity can have serious repercussions in that the enemy can hit pretty hard. And we want to hit back but know that isn’t right and we must simply take the hit and then figure out how to fight in the Spirit. So the punchline to my brief “testimony,” delivered with a not so bright and cheery attitude, was, “And if the Lord was not watching over us and protecting us, we’d all be sitting ducks!” It got pretty quiet…
So again, we need the Lord. Without Him the enemy would treat us like little duck targets at a circus sideshow knocking down one after the other. And we need each other. Each of us has our part to engage in to help one another. Keep up the great work!
PS: I remember a brother from that time years ago telling a story about another rookie Christian. It seems somebody actually had a successful witness with some big dude who happened to be a longshoreman. The guy was your typical hard-working brawler. He ended up giving his life to God and was gloriously saved and filled with the Holy Spirit. Nevertheless, he was still a brand new Christian and had much to learn. He was excitedly witnessing to one of his buddies at work one day and his buddy wanted no part of it. The guy being witnessed to began getting upset and angry, and belligerent toward his former friend. He even began disparaging the Lord. The brand new Christian doing the witnessing had no way to process this and thus reverted to known behavior. As he told a friend later, “Then all of the sudden the Holy Ghost came on me and I whipped the socks off him!”
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (7)
They’ve been violated. It has already happened. There is no use, therefore, in being fearful of what’s coming because it’s already here. It’s been here in stages a long time…
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THIS PRESENT DARKNESS
The deceived don’t know this. They have been unaware of this hidden reality in general ever since it was first brought forth. They have no idea they are being played. Some may have a clue or two momentarily but usually reject the idea of sinister planning behind closed doors by hidden higher-ups as the fruit of the nut brigade. By this they prove their membership in the latter by discarding the very possibility of gaining the required insight toward being released from deception.
Anyone with adequate Biblical knowledge knows the enemy is a deceiver. He deceived Eve in the very beginning. What thus took place in The Garden of Eden was certainly a conspiracy. It was a planned assault formulated in secret and expertly managed to deceive our first parents toward surrendering their high spiritual status and gaining authority over their lives. It worked like a charm, as they say.
The enemy has done the same masterful job to date by bringing along a long term plan very slowly but surely. As in the beginning, he has a lot riding on its success. Part of the reason for the long gradualism approach was waiting on the technology to catch up with the plans. The plans, of course, have always been there. The specific plans for our generation were made long before our generation existed. One must go back four or five generations to discover the original source of the river now upon us.
Because people are created by God to be Strong and Freedom-Loving, one of the first things that had to be done was pare down the inherent strength of human beings and remove their freedom in as many areas as possible to the greatest degree possible to make them more pliable, conforming, and weak. An insecure weakened foe with less freedom and confidence is more easily defeated. An ignorant unaware foe disconnected from the reality of his or her inherent potent nature is much less likely to make a stand and fight. For the most part, through surreptitious and deceptive means undetected by the victim, the battle is often over before it ever starts.
SPIRITUAL AUTHORITY AND DISCIPLESHIP
Big rocks are not pliable. There are big rocks in big rivers that can withstand indefinitely the ongoing powerful effect of raging waters. It will take a very long time to wear them down. Most of the time the only thing that happens to them is ongoing smoothing and polishing. They become more rounded and less sharp-edged. This is the exact process that takes place when the Lord’s people subject themselves to real discipleship. The rough edges are slowly removed. But the great Strength of the Freedom-Loving rock not only remains but grows even Stronger and more Freedom-Loving. Their smoothed out and polished nature allows opposing forces to flow past with little feeling or discomfort.
Christians who have been brainwashed by religion and religious idiots into thinking that God is against freedom obviously do not know God. That a likely majority of Christians believe this and surrender their lives accordingly proves that a likely majority of Christians are not clear on the concept. They’ve got their minds stuck on submission to authority, submission to authority, submission to authority. The idea isn’t necessarily wrong but they submit inappropriately to the wrong people. They become slaves to those they submit to whether they understand it or not. Slaves have little or no freedom.
And as I have said forever, the teachings of the Lord Jesus never advocate for such beyond one’s complete submission to Him. If the Lord wants us to obey others under His authority we only do so because we obey Him first. Real Christians place themselves first and foremost under His umbrella of authority. In this way whatever we may do is under His authority which means He has complete control over anyone else He may want us to submit to and if such people exceed their authority we can immediately cease to obey them just as the apostles Peter and John explained in the following:
And when they had summoned them, they commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge; for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.” [Acts 4:18-20]
In other words, those who command Christians to do something against the will of God that grossly violates their entire reason for living can be effectively told to go stick it in their left ear and jam it in all the way until everyone knows they’re as much a moron as they appear. Christians with such an attitude will always have the full 100% support of the Lord Jesus in doing such. ¿Comprende?
Therefore, all real Christians know they must submit to the Lord Jesus entirely or there cannot possibly be a real relationship with Him and His authority will never work in their lives. The unreal Christians do not understand this or have lost sight of the fact that all real Christians have been bought with a price. Our spiritual freedom was paid for by His horrific torture and death as the only possible Sacrifice Lamb who paid for our sins and set us free from its power.
Now, after the Lord Jesus has willingly paid the greatest price that could ever possibly be paid to buy us back from the forces of evil and the evil power of sin, why would He then violate our new freedom by making us slaves all over again?
It is true that real Christians are effectively His bond slaves. In fact, the English word “servant” in the Gospels referring to the Lord’s people is best translated as slaves and is translated that way in some versions. But this fact must be put into the proper context. The Lord Jesus is also obviously a loving Father. Again, did He not die for us? And is not that the greatest love? This being the case, He is obviously wholly trustworthy, loving, kind, merciful, and compassionate. Why then, must real Christians go through such a tough process which seems to violate this affection to become Strong Freedom-Loving disciples?
There are several reasons. We live in a broken, dysfunctional, sinful, fallen world filled with evil ruled over by powerful evil forces. If one is to have any effect against such evil then one must be very strong and powerful otherwise one will have no chance. To become spiritually strong and powerful one must work very hard at it and allow the Lord to assist in the process. This is in part why there must be growing pains and spiritual trials.
And in case you’re wondering, it impossible to possess this kind of powerful spiritual strength unless one is filled with the Holy Spirit. The Lord Jesus Himself was filled with the Holy Spirit without measure. The Early Church of the first century was filled with His Holy Spirit and this is what made it so powerful. They had greater power than the devil. It wasn’t their power. It was His power. The evidence of His power within them is illustrated throughout the New Covenant writings.
Remember the Roman centurion who believed in the Lord? He stated the authority paradigm very well. By considering the military we better understand the need for growing pains, spiritual trials, and necessary discipleship. The military takes young raw recruits and transforms them into strong, disciplined soldiers who obey orders. One could never have an effective military otherwise. We can also see this in the realm of sports in which the very best players work extremely hard over many years to become the best they can be. Both of these examples illustrate the necessity of submitting to strong training and discipline. It is how the largely worthless and weak become powerful and great. Some may have great natural talent but such still must be properly subjected to the process. For real Christians, it is absolutely mandatory that they get their flesh under control and never allow their lower human nature to subvert their higher nature and violate their true character. The addition of the Lord’s Spirit to our spirit makes this possible.
But the one who joins himself to the Lord is one spirit with Him. [1Corinthians 6:17]
Real Christians understand real discipleship. They know they are greatly loved and supported by the Lord Jesus but also know they are in a spiritual war against powerful evil enemies. They know that pacified, compliant, soft, wimpy, conformed-to-the-sinful-culture non-Spirit-filled Christians won’t have much impact whatsoever against such evil forces. They know that those who insist on such an attitude are actually working for the enemy. Keep this in mind when religious rulers insist that one must submit to them rather than the Lord Jesus. It is exactly the same when such Christians weakly submit to the secular variety of such rulers. Those who submit to either of these without ever submitting fully to the Lord are doing the same thing Adam and Eve did when they rebelled against God. They are effectively submitting to the devil.
This is why it is vitally necessary to submit to the Lord fully and properly. His teachings tell us how this is done. The history of the first-century Christians reveal to us how they did it. However, much of what the Lord taught and what the original Christians did in obedience to His teachings has been thoroughly rejected by the majority of Christians ever since. Now, why would they do that? Hmmm… This should tell one all one needs to know about Unreal Christianity. It is just another of the devil’s evil and deceptive hell holes. Rather than being Strong Freedom-Loving rocks as created by God, such Christians are mere spiritual wimps led around by the nose, broken and violated. And they don’t even know it. They are deceived.
THE LAST TWO YEARS
The Lord told me eleven and a half years ago in late August of 2010 that we were in the early stages of a national Great Awakening. He revealed this to me long before the term “Great Awakening” became popular. Starting maybe five years ago at the most this term began being appropriated by a few and then grew to massive acceptance. Curiously, however, it has rarely been used in Christian circles, Christian media, or churches. It is as if Christians are completely unaware of what is actually going on in these times. In reality, this is exactly the case. The majority of Christians are clueless because their chosen official leaders are clueless, because such official Christian leaders for the most part are not serving the Lord Jesus and have different agendas. They serve someone else. They desire something else.
Yet, how is it then that many non-Christians in America know a great deal of what’s going on behind the scenes, do an incredible amount of research, work very hard to stay informed and aware, filter out all the mis and disinformation, and do their best to inform others (for free!) while most Christians don’t know squat? Could it be because such Freedom-Loving people are doing a much better job obeying their Creator and being what He wants them to be even though they likely don’t know Him or know Him very well? And could it be that they have refused to submit to brainwashing of either the secular or religious variety?
For when Gentiles who do not have the Law do instinctively the things of the Law, these, not having the Law, are a law to themselves, in that they show the work of the Law written in their hearts, their conscience bearing witness and their thoughts alternately accusing or else defending them, on the day when, according to my gospel, God will judge the secrets of men through Christ Jesus. [Romans 2:14-16]
“But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, ‘Son, go work today in the vineyard.’ And he answered, ‘I will not’; but afterward he regretted it and went. The man came to the second and said the same thing; and he answered, ‘I will, sir’; but he did not go. Which of the two did the will of his father?” They *said, “The first.” Jesus *said to them, “Truly I say to you that the tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the kingdom of God before you. For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him; but the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe him; and you, seeing this, did not even feel remorse afterward so as to believe him.” [Matthew 21:28-32]
Even though the last two years have likely been the worst ever experienced in America though many Americans don’t know this or believe it because they are, well, you know, and though the devil has made great strides toward his master plan, the Lord Jesus has also had a plan. His plans always predate the devil’s plans. The Lord knows what the devil will do before he does it and has a plan to counteract it. But the Lord can only implement His plans through fully submitted disciples—loving sons and daughters pledged to Him and His work—those who not only say they will do the work but actually go out and do it. Thus, we now perceive much more clearly the real Christians and the fake ones based on what each has done over the last two years. Some Christians merely did everything they were told to do without ever seeking the Lord and therefore were exactly like the wayward son who told his father he would obey but never did. And because these Christians obeyed someone other than the one they claim to follow it proves they don’t really follow Him. The last two years have revealed the unreal Christians for what they are.
The last two years have also revealed the real. The real are those who acted as big rocks in a raging river who refused to move but got that much more smoothed out and rounded and polished during a greatly difficult time. By staying with the Lord Jesus and one another and doing their best, they preserved who they are and got even stronger and more aware of the devil’s tricks.
…so that no advantage would be taken of us by Satan, for we are not ignorant of his schemes. [2Corinthians 2:11] [1]
Because the enemy was arrogant he became vulnerable. The Lord Jesus drew him out. The Lord depended on His people to withstand the process and remain faithful though it looked as though all was done and over with and the enemy had achieved a great victory. Thank the Lord that so many of His children did remain faithful. The enemy will never quit, of course, and has already brought the next phase of his plan out, but, as always, the Lord Jesus has His own plan to counteract this one as well. His people must be faithful to the current plan of the Lord as well. It is why real Christians must be forever faithful and obedient. It is how they remain Strong and Freedom-Loving.
Anything less proves spiritual adultery.
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (1)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (2)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (3)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (4)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (5)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (6)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (6)
As objects in your side-view mirror are closer than they appear, so is the encroaching evil rapidly bearing down upon us. It is likely much worse than you may think.
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A DEEP SLEEP PANDEMIC
I do not write the following to frighten but to awaken. If a person is determined to remain asleep and oblivious regardless of ongoing attempts to rouse him from listless slumber he will eventually tune out the lifesaving alarm bells to the point of no longer hearing them at all. He will effectively mute the warning. He will destroy his spiritual ears. He will become spiritually tone-deaf.
By means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron… [1Timothy 4:2]
Once seared, the damage is pretty much irreparable. If a person is hopelessly indoctrinated, completely programmed by false narratives, filled to the saturation level with propaganda—brainwashed, he will almost always react in one of two primary ways against the truth that attempts to rescue him:
(1) There will be anger. But it will be a strange incoherent anger. It is similar to the anger of one who got severely burned by enemies disguised as friends. Such fooled ones who were played as fools, upon realizing they were greatly deceived and ridiculed by evil forces, have a tendency to grow very angry very fast. It is an explosive anger. So it is with the brainwashed, except in their case, instead of realizing or accepting that they are brainwashed, they will angrily stand their ground as if they are not.
And in case you’re wondering, facts will not matter. Facts actually become the enemy. Truth is the enemy. Why? Because truth acts as an aggravating, incessant alarm that never stops. The brainwashed are angry in the face of truth in part because they have invested heavily in falsehood without necessarily knowing it was falsehood when they invested so heavily in it (believing it was truth) and do not appreciate being confronted with the difficult fork in the road now before them. Repentance leads to a doable tear down and rebuild:
“Whoever seeks to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it.” [Luke 17:33]
The lack of repentance thereof leads to their lives eventually crashing down as the proverbial house built on shifting sands:
“Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great was its fall.” [Matthew 7:26-27] [1]
So in order to keep their mock lives intact, if that is the foolish choice they make, they must flee from truth. They must reject the facts that prove their lives are mere artificial constructs. They must preserve their faux lives and fabrications. They must protect their simulated realities in order to protect themselves. Though what they’ve spent years embracing and nurturing may make them feel very comfortable, may look very pleasing to the eye, may greatly satisfy one’s sinful flesh, and may make one socially acceptable and maybe a social standout (because seemingly everybody embraces the same), it is still a lie.
(2) The other reaction is on the opposite end of the spectrum. When confronted with truth, the brainwashed often react with ongoing ceaseless yawning. They fight falling asleep. Of course, what is actually happening is that they are already asleep and doing their best to stay that way and safeguard their sleep status. It could be they have already rejected such truth and such truth does not only not interest them but bores them.
This is what the rejecting of facts that don’t fit one’s overall desires, personal narrative, or belief system does. Such people exhibit the extreme opposite of love and hunger for truth. They do not so much possess a hatred of truth but a complete indifference toward it. We see this in common reactions to such warnings as: “Engaging in that immoral activity, ingesting that excuse for food, and partaking of such chemical poisons is causing you great harm,” and “Whether you believe it or not or accept it or not, sin is real and the wages of sin is death.” These essentially have no effect whatsoever because the person has long since decided they WANT to engage in such sinful activities regardless of the harm and pain they will cause.
And while they must acknowledge such undeniable truth on a head level, they remain hopeful against such facts on a heart level, convincing themselves to be unconvinced in hopes of dodging the otherwise inevitable. They are thus bored by truth alarms and fight hard to stay asleep. In fact, their immoral activities and bad habits often increase in order to maintain their chosen rebellious state and condition.
PHARMAKEIA INC
Perhaps this is why America—a drug state with a pronounced drug culture of both the legal and illegal variety (two wings of the same bird if you will that has existed for multiple decades now)—is currently engaged in a drug epidemic of such immense proportions. And what is more, the legal drugs and pharmaceuticals now arguably outrank and outnumber those of the illegal variety. The wicked little seedy drug pusher of decades past has now graduated to elite status and wears his white lab coat proudly. Perhaps as many as 200 million Americans now run to him unswervingly without equivocation for their ongoing fix. And it could be that these required fixes exist in the first place because their wholesale embrace of fear and lack of courage to face the truth demands their use and abuse.
The enemy of our souls has everything to do with this. A drug and alcohol-addled population of pseudo-Christians is of course no threat to him. He is the great drug pusher par excellence after all, sitting at the top of the pharmakeia pyramid, sending out directives through his henchmen and their billionaire human agents. There is great profit in this trade on many levels. The greatest is the ongoing propagation of evil that has now captured the very soul of the nation in that a great bulk of the warriors that should be and should be fighting for God have been brainwashed by the serpent and have defected to the enemy camp. Rather than stand against the flood of evil and engage in the spiritual fight they have weakly surrendered and willingly entered soul prison, closing the cold steel doors behind them.
Where they’re safe.
And you’re wondering when this evil will end…
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (1)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (2)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (3)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (4)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (5)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (7)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (4)
God is forced to put up with never-ending willful sin and outright rebellion against His authority every second of every day in this fallen world. HE HAS HIS LIMITS.
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THE REAL VS. THE UNREAL
In this magnificent day in which we live, when long time sleepers are being stirred awake to varying degrees and unaware “normies,” as they are called, are finally starting to see through so many false narratives that had previously captured their minds, we must take note that the Lord will hold everyone responsible, regardless of their sleeping or awake condition, because of the massive effort over many years that was put forth to get us here.
Anyone who has spent years doing manual labor of some sort knows the cost of which I speak. Hard work gets things done. It can be tiring and draining, as we all know, but greatly rewarding. It gives us a great sense of accomplishment. Such effort demands the required rest afterwards to regain one’s health and ability to function properly. This normally comes with a good night’s sleep, of course, but many people who do such labor don’t often get the sleep they need and the labor takes a cumulative toll. Spiritual work involves the same dynamic.
For a brief synopsis on spiritual work and how things operate and get done in the spiritual world, it kinda goes like this: Some nobody real Christian somewhere of no reputation or notoriety labors intensely in total obscurity for pretty much forever in a determined ongoing effort to turn things from darkness to light. It may be someone engaging in heart-rending intercessory prayer, often not even aware of what or who they are praying for. They pray incessantly until the Lord says stop. Prayer of this kind costs. It costs a great amount. But what is gained from such prayer makes a massive difference for something or someone. Our prayer warrior may thus move mountains in answer to God’s call who uses such a method to accomplish His will in the earth.
Most people, including Christians, are never aware of such things. Great things happen and they appear to have just happened on their own. Imagine someone who engages in some kind of secret blessing ministry in which they give to others in such a way that no one knows who the giver is. Some of the recipients know exactly what happened and are extremely grateful. Others simply accept their gift, whatever it may be, as if they were somehow entitled to it with little or no thought of thanking the giver or even knowing there was a giver. They accept the gift without understanding or caring about the great effort that went into appropriating the gift to give. Sound familiar?
THE WAY THE KINGDOM WORKS
“Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven.
“So when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be honored by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving will be in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.
“When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.” [Matthew 6:1-6]
It can never ever be overstated what the Lord Jesus has done for us. He did it all with the most humble self-effacing attitude. His greatest work was done in secret in that no one knew by observation that He was the Author. During His ministry, He spent hours in prayer pretty much every night and there must have been times when He pulled all night prayer meetings all alone. The results of His prayers showed up in His ministry work the next day. Keep that in mind when you see so much “Christian ministry” going on all across the country while New Covenant miracles are pretty much non-existent among such people. If the results are not there it should be obvious that the spiritual work was never there either.
The Lord has His reasons for keeping a very humble and obscure low profile and for commanding that His followers have the same. One cannot help but notice that the Lord Jesus always gave the credit and glory to the Father. He would not allow the glorification of flesh or mere humanity in the spotlight, even if it meant His own humanity, perfect and pure as it is. This should give all the glory hound in-the-spotlight Christian ministers great pause. Those who stand in such a place had better deliver or there will be consequences. Most such ministers, of course, never deliver. Their efforts remain squarely in the natural flesh realm. Not only do their ministries never see miracles many don’t even believe in miracles. And Christian ministry without miracles is NOT Christian.
Again, a great amount of behind the scenes spiritual effort by hard-working obscure nobody Christians has gone into the current Great Awakening. It is certainly the Lord Jesus who is bringing it but He must work through His people and He can only work through those who fully surrender to His will and are willing to be used in whatever way He desires. So, just as the Lord Jesus, as our example in this regard, gave all the glory to the Father (even though He later explained that He is the Father), so must all real Christians give the glory for the accomplished work to the Lord Jesus. He is the One with all the authority in both heaven and earth. There is nothing He cannot do. Once Christians actually see and understand this and apply His methods for achieving the work He has commanded must be done, they gain effective understanding that truly, all things actually are possible with God. They shift over into believing in miracles. They see that the help the Lord wants to give MUST include the supernatural.
OUR GREATEST OPPONENTS ARE NOT HUMAN
The devil is a powerful spiritual entity. This is simply fact. The majority of Christians don’t know this, don’t acknowledge it, lose sight of it, refuse to address it, or are much too fearful toward addressing it. Yet, the New Testament states this very plainly. The devil is in fact so powerful that he has gained control over the entire world. The only place he doesn’t have control is in the Kingdom of the Lord Jesus. There is a huge disconnect here among Christians, however. The Lord Jesus acknowledged this fact. The Early Church in the first century was well aware of it. To refresh our memories there is this:
And he led Him up and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said to Him, “I will give You all this domain and its glory; for it has been handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. Therefore if You worship before me, it shall all be Yours.” Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.’” [Luke 4:5-8][1]
How did the devil gain control of all the kingdoms of the world? Why do we think this passage of Scripture does not apply to the present? Do Christians really believe that the devil controls all the kingdoms of the world at present? How many Christians actually acknowledge this?
It must be few. The few who do are most likely the real Christians of the world. They know this to be true because they are Kingdom-minded. They know when they were born again of the Spirit that they left the sinful world and entered the Kingdom of God. They know they were previously bound by sin and living in the devil’s prison. They know the Lord Jesus busted them out of jail. They thus know how this world really works. They are not unaware of the devil’s power and authority in his own realm. They also know, however, that the Lord Jesus has much greater power than the devil. They know that the Lord’s spiritual power is vitally necessary because the devil is a spiritual being and uses spiritual warfare against us. We MUST in turn use spiritual warfare against him. The Lord Jesus taught all about this and demonstrated clearly how such spiritual warfare must be done.
Therefore, though the great bulk of “Christians” in the world have no spiritual power by choice because they are not filled with the Holy Spirit and don’t want to be, though many convince themselves they are when they are not, and though these Christians represent little or no threat to the enemy, the relatively few real Christians in the world are the ones who work with God and are actually getting the work done and accomplishing the works of their Father. It is the few real Christians who have the courage to actually attack the enemy. The devil has created a prison planet with most of his subjects in jail, unknowingly, and God is intent on busting as many people out of the devil’s jails as possible. That takes effort. It takes great spiritual power. It takes the Lord having actual strong disciples intent on doing His will and being used of Him so He can work through them. Every time someone is actually busted out of the devil’s jail and brought into the Kingdom of God IT IS A GREAT MIRACLE.
THE GATES OF HELL SHALL NOT PREVAIL
Therefore, if you’re wondering when this evil will end, it is ending in part as you read this in that great spiritual work is being accomplished behind the scenes as it were and we see the evidence in part every time someone gets saved, set free from sin, and busted out of the devil’s prison.
Someone paid a great price for such to happen. Someone paid it forward with His very life. Moreover, we know great miracles are happening worldwide and the Lord’s Kingdom is growing larger because the devil is being exposed. The Lord’s LIGHT is shining on the great darkness in this world. His TRUTH is exposing all the lies and false narratives. This combination of spiritual Light and Truth means the enemy must be on the run from both.
He and his minions, including those of the human variety, can run for a while and hide for a while but will never be able to outrun the Lord Jesus or hide forever.
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (1)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (2)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (3)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (5)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (6)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (7)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (3)
We live in a finite and temporary world. These two facts portend that evil will achieve a point of allowed maximum growth and will then be terminated.
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I wrote in Part 1 of this series that Sin is Progressive. According to the dictionary definition, this means it is “moving forward or onward: advancing,” and “increasing in extent or severity.” [1]
The Word of God states that sin had a clear starting point in this world. There was a time here when there was no sin. The first two human beings on the planet initially existed in a state of pure innocence. They had no experiential concept of sin. Adam was certainly warned of it and Adam warned Eve of it. He taught her what God had taught him. But they only knew sin as a concept. The only thing that continued to protect them from it was their faith in God and obedience toward Him. More than these, though, it was Adam and Eve’s great love for God that compelled them to obey. Their love generated trust. They believed God and believed in Him.
This love was more pronounced in Adam, however. There was a period of time in Adam’s early life when he was blessed with much alone time and fellowship with God. Their Father-son relationship was undoubtedly very close. Eve never experienced this. It appears as though Eve spent little or no time as God’s daughter apart from Adam. She was created to be Adam’s wife. This created a dynamic that demanded even greater attention to their relationship with God. Just as we do not know how long Adam spent alone with God before Eve was created, we also don’t know how long Adam and Eve existed in innocence before they sinned. It would appear, though, that it was a relatively short rather than long period of time regarding the latter.
ADAM’S EZER KANEGDO
God stated: “It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him.” (Genesis 2:18). The Hebrew word for good in this verse is defined as “pleasant, agreeable, good.” [2] It was not good that something not good existed in the Garden. It is my belief that this “not good” only lasted a short time. I explain it this way: God created Adam and breathed His own life-giving Spirit into him. Adam became a living being. His first relationship was that of a son to his Father (See Luke 3:38). We do not know at what age Adam was created but it was likely young enough for God to be a good Father to him and teach him all he must know. When the time came for Adam to seek a wife he entered into the “not good” phase. Adam arrived at a time when he needed close human companionship beyond his perfect companionship with God. His need denoted lack. The lack was “not good.” It was initially not good because there was no such helper suitable for him. She had yet to exist in all of Creation. God would have to create her. God knew He must create Adam’s ezer kanegdo. And it appears as though God saved His best for last.
It was up to Adam to teach her. He had to show her the ropes. Adam had the best Father and Teacher possible but now he would have to step into this role for Eve. It appears as though he did a very good job because we later see that Eve was well-versed in spiritual knowledge when she had her fateful conversation with the trickster serpent. She held up very well for a while. The serpent knew her every weakness, however, and took full advantage. There is no doubt that Eve wanted more than she had. She apparently did not understand fully that she already had it all. Her desire for more, wherever it came from, is what caused her to listen attentively to the serpent’s counter attack.
Remember, God had commanded Adam that he must never eat the fruit from one particular tree in the Garden. That was it. Just one thing he must never do. Only one negative command. Adam always obeyed. He taught Eve exactly as he had been taught. She undoubtedly knew the command. But whereas Adam had no longing for the forbidden fruit Eve apparently did. Adam did not think he was missing out but Eve apparently did. There can be no doubt that Adam had been tempted this way, maybe several times, all without giving in to temptation. What happened to Eve?
For starters Adam had somehow allowed her to be alone with the serpent. Even though Scripture seems to report that Adam was with her during the temptation this could not have been true. The words “with her” in Genesis 3:6 do not appear in the Hebrew. The conversation only involved Eve and the serpent. Though she had always obeyed up to that point, she did so because she feared death. She knew death was the penalty for violating the one negative command.
The first thing the serpent did to throw her off was ask her directly if God had ever actually made such a command. Eve said He did. She also told the serpent that whoever ate the forbidden fruit or even touched it would die. Adam had taught her this. But again, it appears as though God taught Adam better than Adam taught Eve. It looks as though Adam respected God more than Eve respected Adam. Adam had full confidence in God but Eve apparently did not have the same confidence in Adam. She must have questioned this command in her heart. This could be because she essentially got the message second hand. Because Adam was the go-between and because Eve never heard this directly from God she possessed a weakness the serpent could take advantage of.
(1) The serpent asked her if God had actually ever made that particular command. This put doubt in her mind. This pretty much proves that she never heard the command from God.
(2) When Eve told the serpent the command and the penalty for breaking it the serpent simply lied to her. She had never heard a lie before. The serpent told her, “You surely will not die!” Then he lied to her again and told her if she ate it she would be like God.
(3) Eve was now disarmed. She was no longer sure that God had ever made the command and then began believing that if God did make it He only did it because He wanted to keep her down. She must have thought God was holding out on her, that He did not want her to be fully blessed and fulfilled. She also probably thought that Adam had gone along with the ruse. How could someone so blessed living in Paradise actually think that the two most important ones in her life who both loved her were actually lying to her and holding out on her?
(4) Then the devil went in for the kill. He had managed to get her completely confused and off-balance. She could no longer properly discern the veracity of God’s command or the penalty thereof. Was it actually true? Is there something much better for me that I didn’t know about before?
She eventually succumbed to temptation.
THE THREE SOURCES OF SIN
In the first epistle of John the apostle, he warns his readers to “not love the world nor the things in the world.” The Greek word is kosmos and there are several definitions. In this context John is referring to the world of sinful man existing apart from God in opposition to Him containing “the whole circle of earthly goods, endowments, riches, advantages, pleasures, etc, which although hollow and frail and fleeting, stir desire, seduce from God and are obstacles to the cause of Christ.” [3] John then tells us that all sin originates from only three main sources:
Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever. [1John 2:15-17]
These three sources of sin are aligned with the three main temptations to sin. We may call them Door #1, Door #2, and Door #3. The three sources are three portals. The portals are presented by the enemy as Portals to Paradise. Whoever may enter through these doors is guaranteed to experience a paradise on earth. One is also promised a place of ruling authority. One can have whatever one’s heart desires. This should sound familiar:
When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate. [Genesis 3:6][4]
Here we have the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and lastly, the boastful pride of life in which “your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil” (Genesis 3:5).
The Lord Jesus Himself had to be tempted with these three and pass the test before He could start His ministry. He succeeded where Adam failed. But it must be remembered that Adam and Eve repented of their great sin and got their act together with God 130 years later. They produced a righteous son named Seth, a replacement for righteous Abel who was murdered. Abel was the original beginning of the Messiah’s generational line. Adam started the line anew through Seth (See Genesis 4:25).
This tells us that any and all sin, no matter how heinous or egregious (except the unpardonable sin), even that as far-reaching as the sin of Adam and Eve, can be forgiven and washed away by the Blood of the Lamb. But this only happens if one exits “the world.” Adam and Eve were banished from the Garden and cast into the wild world. Everyone since was physically born into “the world.” In a reversal of fates, the last Adam makes it possible “for whosoever will” to exit the world of sin and enter the Kingdom of God on earth.
Nevertheless, the world of sin, since it was created many millennia ago, has grown worse and worse over time. It is because Sin is Progressive. It will continue progressing until it maxes out. We will look into this process further in Part 4…
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued]
[1] © 2022 Merriam-Webster, Incorporated
[2] Strong’s Concordance
[3] Strong’s Concordance
[4] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (1)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (2)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (4)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (5)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (6)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (7)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (2)
For the most part humanity goes through life with blinders on. Life being what it is, the vast majority are always in the process of oblivious survival and reality denial.
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FACING REALITY
Indeed, survival has been the main preoccupation of the great mass of humanity throughout history. Life in this world is difficult in general but the gradients thereof can rank from just this side of impossible on a daily basis to being stalwart enough to keep two or three plates spinning at once for long enough stretches. The relentless attention to staying alive, however, must at some point be supplemented (to do it justice) by achieving relatively good health with minimal food and shelter for greater advancement to be possible. Yet, striving further, the struggle is then not only about the attempt at gaining the hard-won fruit of difficult toil, but also overcoming the incessant forces forever trying to keep one from getting to better places, and once getting there staying there.
As great feats of architecture must be engineered to overcome all manner of often unacknowledged natural stresses and forces arriving through moving winds, rushing water, and quaking earth, so must human beings learn to cope with forces and stresses which seem intent on fighting every step one makes toward a better life. Survival portends overcoming these relentless attacks and establishing small beachheads from which one can expand outward and upward. One’s first camp in life, with the rudimentary basics, in most often the hardest. From there it gets more doable but only because one has established a rough home of sorts to resort to when the going gets so tough it demands a break to rest and recharge. Without such an established starting point protected from the elements one can never sustain a drive toward breaking out of mere survival and remains forever at the mercy of those opposing forces intent on keeping one from rising up over them.
For the relative few who do manage to escape ceaseless survival mode, their new found freedom, diminutive as it may be, is immediately used for hopeful progress and they become preoccupied with improving their basic station in life. If actually succeeding against most odds at their lofty goal of bettering living beyond staying alive, the next pursuit is even loftier in that the attempt to excel enters the realm of possibility. There are some who do excel though the definition of such is fluid and depends on perception. At each hardy, difficult step of going-against-the-grain accomplishment and overcoming, one establishes a solid foundation from which to build the next advance. As long as said foundation remains strong and secure and one proceeds with correctly engineered plans and construction, one can keep building with confidence.
“Everyone who comes to Me and hears My words and acts on them, I will show you whom he is like: He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation on the rock; and when a flood occurred, the torrent burst against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built.” [Luke 6:47-48]
The foundation part of one’s overall edifice is the decidedly tricky part. If not careful in building and securing one’s spiritual foundation the right way to the proper level of bearing strength, one finds out the hard way that one’s architectural life was actually a big game of Jenga just waiting to return to a disassembled natural state.
This unfortunate and all too common outcome experienced by a probable majority was inevitable once one’s faux foundation and the edifice upon it failed to hold at bay the straining-at-the-leash evil howling dogs of omnipresent stresses and forces determined to discover overlooked architectural error and slipshod work exceeding the parameters of allowable sound building practices which fatally compromised construction integrity.
“But the one who has heard and has not acted accordingly, is like a man who built a house on the ground without any foundation; and the torrent burst against it and immediately it collapsed, and the ruin of that house was great.” [Luke 6:49][1]
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (1)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (3)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (4)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (5)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (6)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (7)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (8)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (9)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (1)
From one of the first anointed preaching messages I ever heard when I was a rookie Christian years ago I remember the clear and haunting words, “Sin is progressive…”
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I’ve visited this theme several times over the course of this blog. It is not an easy thing to face. Sin begins at a single point. It then grows. It rides along a rising wave gaining strength. In time it proliferates. In further time it rises higher and then suddenly starts shooting upward exponentially as on the right side of an intangible graph. If nothing stops its advance, and nothing often does, it goes forth and it conquers. Sin is truly progressive…
For the overly fearful among us, the notion of sin and evil running so out of control that next to nothing can be done about it can be petrifying. It is why most don’t want to touch the subject. Such an approach is not necessarily a rejection of such facts but akin to hiding them away in a far corner of a dank and dusty immaterial attic or burying them out somewhere in a nondescript field without a marker. The idea that an evil so great and powerful lurks in our midst taking precedence over our lives regardless of benign exteriors to the contrary is simply too much to deal with for most.
When one actually does look into it, even for a brief few seconds of consideration, seeing the distinct possibility, and maybe even venturing to the edge of the shocking reality though still at a presumably secure distance, it often causes a gut reaction and an instant recoil back to safety, as one may force a waking state from a nightmare to escape the spine-chilling terror thereof.
This is why most people have succumbed to ignoring the great hidden evil or claiming its non-existence. It is due both to being either unable or unwilling to face it for the great fear factor involved because of the shock such fear does to one’s system, or because they know inherently they have no means of battling it, fighting successfully against it, overcoming it, and thus eliminating it. They know the evil is simply too great and they are not strong enough to duke it out as one may win fights against far-lesser foes, or that they do not have the necessary tools of warfare, as one is well aware of the futility of bringing a dull butter knife to a gun fight.
Humans know this. Or, they used to. Maybe the vast majority has run so far away as yellow-striped cowards over the last several decades and more that such a weak-response attitude has become embedded in the DNA of present generations. Maybe the blindness that has thus ensued has reached a point of mass all-encompassing willful sightlessness that most could never see it no matter what obvious facts are presented or even if the Sacred and Holy written Word of God is used as potent searchlight.
I remember once, at a deer hunting lease, our small group of men, all family, had to go out one late afternoon right before the season started to check on some feeders or something. Among our group was one young man who had never been out in the deep woods that far. It was his first hunting venture. As we dealt with the last tasks in the growing evening it quickly grew almost dark. Being heavily overcast in mid-autumn with little or no moon, the recognizable was fading fast. The sunlight through the deep clouds had drifted off surreptitiously rather quickly and it was soon night.
Anyone who has experienced this scenario knows of what I speak. Normally in such conditions one would already have a fire going in camp and the dark/light ratio is not noticed so much, especially amid the usual supper activities and whatnot of that time. Out in the brush, however, there was no fire and no light other than our small handheld flashlights which work good at seeing the immediate surroundings but not so much that the enveloping shroud of deep darkness all around doesn’t have the clear upper hand.
Then someone thought it would be cool to douse them for a while. We turned off our lights. The great darkness of the deep woods out in the middle of nowhere instantly invaded our immediate presence and let us know who the boss was, at least in that moment. It was total blackness. Then, as our eyes adjusted somewhat, the distant starlight muted by the dark overcast unseen clouds above filtered in, at least toward a point of seeing enough to know we were at a supreme disadvantage. The eyes of the wild were on sudden alert and we must have surely appeared as easy targets. We beheld the wonder momentarily.
The two older men, though with necessary respect and a positive appreciation, thought nothing of it having experienced it many times. Deer hunting is such that you enter your blind or climb a tree in the pitch black darkness of cold mornings and leave them the same way after the evening hunt. The two younger men probably thought it was an interesting experience but was, of course, nothing new. But the young lad had never been in such a situation. We stood there briefly in the great darkness of the wild world and allowed ourselves a chance at natural reality and spiritual perception. All was quiet.
The young one, however, was a tad shaken. Knowing full well he was fully protected and had the security of strong company and family ties did little to stop the deep impression on his young heart of just what this world is apart from our technological advances and artificial surroundings.
He felt relieved when we turned our flashlights on and headed back…
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued]
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IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (2)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (3)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (4)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (5)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (6)
IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHEN THIS EVIL WILL END… (7)
DENOMINATED MASS FORMATION GROUPTHINK
You foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you…? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? [Galatians 3:1, 3]
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Most Christians continually embrace the status quo, as in “I’m a (insert name of denomination here) and I’ll always be a (insert name of denomination here) and that makes me just fine and dandy.” But what about the new birth? (John 3:1-21). Have we all been born of the Spirit as Jesus said we must be? Again, most of us reply with a snappy Biblical comeback such as, “Say what?”
And therein lies the problem. Most of those who call themselves Christians have been repeatedly told by their religious authority figures that the station of their spiritual life is basically as good as it’s ever going to get. They were never told of any new birth, and have therefore never sought it. This keeps them from ever entering the kingdom of God. (Off in the distance, one can hear that famous old choir hymn refrain, “The kingdom of what?”) We are a nation largely comprised of Biblically illiterate, multi-cultural quasi-Christians who have been sold a false bill of goods, and our first reaction to hearing such news comes from page 31 of the Ignorant Pulpiteer Manual—“Stick it in your ear!”
The second reason the Lord lacks full authority within our churches is because, by and large, it has been our choice. We don’t like to be told we are wrong and it is often simply our own human nature which compels us to protect whatever ignorance and bias we are associated with. The nature of the real Christian, the one who has been born of God, is to expose ignorance and prejudice. Could this be why the institutional clergy is growing ever more concerned about its standing? Could this be why some in its membership are starting to get the idea that Jesus is quite upset with their Pharisaical practices and that their gig is just about up? There is a gigantic hook reaching out across the stage which is about to yank the clergy spirit out of its stealthy position of prominence in the Church so that God’s people can be free to learn the truth from Him and receive His righteousness. When the enslaved Christians are set free, truth and righteousness will flourish.[1]
I penned the preceding 25 years ago in Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church. I wrote the bulk of this book in the mid 1990s and eventually published it in 2001. I began receiving the revelation of the book in 1992. I know this may sound as though the book is likely dated and therefore essentially worthless for our time but the opposite is true. My book was ahead of its time, maybe way ahead. The corrective has yet to be applied as it should and those entities which rejected the message and dug in their heels against the new move of God which was surely coming have grown all the more obtuse, inbred, and obstinate ever since.
We are told that doing the same thing repeatedly but expecting a different result is effective insanity. Thus, since this form of insanity has fallen upon or been appropriated in general by the major Christian denominations in America, it easily explains why they are generally a mere fraction of what they once were, spiritually speaking. Because they rejected the fullness of the Lord’s teachings they have been overcome by the sinful culture. This is what happens when a Christian or Christian entity rejects God—they no longer have the strength or ability to fight the good fight. They can no longer resist sin and temptation. Thus, in order to stay intact and keep their head, so to speak, they must make friends with the enemy. They must make friends with sin. If they go to war they know they will be destroyed in battle. They are not equipped and are ill-trained. Their generals are spiritual sissies. They are afraid of the devil. They reject the Spirit of the Lord and embrace the world. Again, this is what happens when one denies the Lord Jesus, the Lion from the Tribe of Judah:
“The Lord is a Warrior; the Lord is His Name.” [Exodus 15:3]
Because they feel the Lord is too strong in demanding discipleship and is restricting their lives and desires, they move on to be “free” but eventually discover they have far less freedom than before. Their blessings and favor go out the window. They have no choice but to embrace mammon since they rejected God’s providence. They put the full burden on themselves. This causes stress and often great stress. Such stress must be drugged. Such minds must be pacified. Godless religion works well at doing this. (Just do what we say and nobody gets hurt.) No wonder Marx said religion is the opiate of the masses. They foolishly abandon real freedom and subject themselves to spiritual slavery. They either never accepted the following or at some point rejected it:
It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery. [Galatians 5:1]
They had thought the great things they accomplished and were doing were largely due to their own good sense and hard work, not acknowledging the great role the Lord was playing. They made a god of themselves. They rejected the original and created a new fellowship in which they were the boss. Their pride caused them to walk away from the Lord because they felt they were being held back. After a fling without the Lord’s authority in their lives and the new fun and “freedom” they gained as a result, and likely a rise in income and influence due to making friends with the world and non-believers, they started experiencing adverse consequences they never foresaw or wanted. Gone were the productive crops and in came the weeds. Sin grew exponentially. They could no longer control it. Because they could no longer keep the invasion of sin at bay they renamed it and transformed into non-sin. They opened their doors to it. Suddenly, the vilest sins became not only okay but commendable. The worst abominations became praiseworthy.
Professing to be wise, they became fools… [Romans 1:22]
There is a way which seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death. [Proverbs 16:25]
The only reason the major denominations still exist is because, over time, they were stealthily transformed into something else. They are actually only mere shells of what they once were. And some were never that close to God to begin with after their early productive formative years. As long as the members keep supporting what is left, what is left will remain but in name only. They are essentially no longer Christian. They only appear that way. They are the denominations and churches of Ichabod (1Samuel 4:21). The glory has departed and they like it that way. If the Lord did bring a spiritual revival most of them would be greatly upset and would fight it all the more. Many of the major denominations, including those of the Pentecostal and Charismatic variety, have been resisting the Great Awakening from the beginning. They are rebellious children toward the corrective. Some have brought an excessive fight. It proves the Lord is no longer among many of them.
Twenty five years ago the situation with wayward Christianity was not at all that bad. There was still a good chance of making the proper corrections. When the directive came, however, designed to stave off what was surely coming without the necessary repentance, the “successful” blind guides rejected it. It likely sounded preposterous to them. Next to no one then foresaw our present day of depravity and spiritual famine among the ultra-organized world-embracing sellouts. Back then, in the mid 1990s, there was a booming economy nationwide and many ministries were flush with cash, especially the majors. Rather than needing repentance, the big boys considered their wealth and prestige a sign of blessing. I’m sure it was for some, but only those who were humble and obedient. Many were neither and still are not.
The Lord told me what was coming and about how we must prepare. I wrote an entire 330 page book encapsulating the message in great detail. It remains amazing to me that those who have read the book appreciate the message, find no fault with it, and have benefited from it, while others in influential positions who needed to read and support it refused. The results of such refusals and of the message in general are now all around us. The enemy has come in like a flood. We have been invaded by Midianites.
“But many who are first will be last; and the last, first.” [Matthew 19:30]
My book is still as topical and fresh as it ever was. It still contains a great message that, if applied, will bring spiritual success. There must be hunger for spiritual success, however, and this demands we stop supporting dead structures and rebellious compromised Christian leaders and their entities. This is in part what the Great Awakening is all about. Those who are awake get it. Those who remain sleeping never do.
I challenge all who read this article to do some research regarding past revivals and awakenings. Whenever the Lord opened doors into the Light of His Word and attempted to bring Life the main resisters were almost always initially the existing status quo “church leaders” of the time. They, their authority and authoritative positions, and their comfort level were threatened by the truth. The new moves of God exposed them as mere hirelings at best and workers of evil at worst. It was, of course, exactly the same in the first century. The most rabid enemies and persecutors of the early Church, composed only of Israelite descendants of Abraham for about the first nine years before Gentiles began being added, were fellow Israelites of the extreme unbelieving variety, the same who brought so much trouble to the Lord. This remains the case. The greatest persecutors of real Christians are unreal Christians.
THE GREAT AWAKENING
It has now been over ten years since I got the revelation, since the Lord spoke those words to me—“We are in the early stages of a national Great Awakening.” That was at the end of August in 2010. Well, we are no longer in the early stages. Massive amounts of truth have come forth. Massive amounts of hidden sin and iniquity have been exposed. The majority of denominational Christians still cannot see it which proves their continued resistance against it. They would rather have the old wine and the old wineskins. They would rather keep propping up something that died long ago. And though it may look like the best thing to do is obey the tyrants and surrender, and that those who comply will be treated best, the opposite is true. The Lord Jesus will never reward cowards, those that know better but instead embrace evil and look for the weasel way out. He will actually support and stand with those who resist evil and give them greater strength, ability, and means to do so. This is where the real blessing is and always has been.
Therefore, rather than chicken out and continue to beat a dead horse, it would be better to embrace resurrection and hope one’s karma chickens die of bird flu.
It would be much better to repent, get right with God, plead for His mercy, and ask sincerely for His Life. It would better to cease preaching false gospels, end the masquerade, and join the real Church, the one the Lord Jesus created, and the only one in which He has the rule and is King. It would be better to Arise, shine; for your light has come.
But many won’t.
They’ve gone mental.
They’ve embraced entrenched consensus denominated mass formation groupthink.
WHO HAS BEWITCHED THEM?
For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you bite and devour one another, take care that you are not consumed by one another.
But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law.
Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. [Galatians 5:13-25][2]
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] © 2001 Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[2] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
REAL CHRISTIANITY HAS THE ONLY CURE FOR THE SIN DISEASE (BEWARE THE BLIND GUIDES)
Sin generated a maelstrom of evil upon God’s perfect Creation. Every time someone sins evil is released. Sin is the real deadly virus. Sin is the real pandemic.
.
WHAT HAPPENED TO ALTAR CALLS?
Much of Christianity, that which refuses the Lord’s full authority, and that which I have long termed Unreal Christianity, has, in recent years, especially the last two, become that much more obvious regarding its true nature. There is no greater proof of this than its outright refusal to preach and teach the truth about sin.
If you don’t preach sin there is no conviction of sin experienced by the hearer. It is conviction of sin which tells a sinner he is one, is in possession of sin, and must do something to eliminate it from his account and be cleansed. The sinner is then drawn to the Lord Jesus, who paid for his sins, to have his sins eliminated, gain power over sin, and receive salvation. This is clearly a vital component of the Gospel message.
However, instead of telling sinners they are sinners and attempting, per the Lord’s New Covenant teachings, to bring them to real salvation and transform them into disciples, the proponents of Unreal Christianity do the very opposite. They don’t want to bring it up. They are afraid of the negative reaction from unrepentant sinners. They are afraid people will leave their church. They are afraid of losing their social standing in the local community. They are afraid it will negatively affect their market share. They know it’s bad for the bottom line. They might even go out of business. They would thus rather coddle sinners and bless them on their way to hell. They are fearful and faithless. The New Testament reveals them as deceptive imposters.
THE HEART OF THE MATTER
One may note the strong and unwavering Biblical directive on correctly measuring up to God’s righteousness standard in this statement:
For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all. [James 2:10]
In this declaration, the brother of our Lord states clearly that anyone who does not keep the Law of Moses in full is guilty of violating the entire Law. It does no good to keep as many as nine of the Ten Commandments, for example. One must keep all ten or one stands in violation. God doesn’t grade on the curve. He demands 100%. We must score an “A.” Of course, there are actually a total of 613 commandments in the entire Torah. Imagine acing that test. Seeing as how it appears to be an impossible task, how can one actually attain God’s standard of righteousness?
In addition to the Law of Moses which lists and defines sins, and which primarily concerns “the mere performance of externals,”[1] the Lord Jesus goes even further in His teachings to incorporate “the inner stirrings of motives.”[2] He obliterates the idea of a religious checklist in which one can outwardly appear to keep the Law (or church protocol) while possessing an uncircumcised heart filled with sin and corruption. His teachings expose the false standing of the likely majority of Christians in America who only pretend to be Christians, hide their true nature, carry hidden sin, and compromise with the enemy. In mining the depths of the following example of the Lord’s teaching in this regard, in which He insists on getting to the very root of the problem and leaving no stone in a stony heart unturned, one can see just how far one must go to live a truly righteous life:
“You have heard that the ancients were told, ‘You shall not commit murder’ and ‘Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, ‘You good-for-nothing,’ shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell.” [Matthew 5:21-22]
From this, it is apparent that violating the sixth commandment involves much more than Thou Shalt Not Kill. In the Lord’s Community, we are supposed to love our brothers and sisters as true family members. If one becomes angry with his brother to the point of a break in relationship and refuses any attempt to make peace, he is guilty of a relationship trespass violation and becomes “liable to the court” the same as one who commits murder. Now, keeping in mind that murder was a stoning offense (the death penalty), being angry with one’s brother is a much worse offense than we may realize. Anger itself is not the problem because anger in itself is not a sin. The apostle Paul, quoting Psalms 4:4, taught this:
“Be angry, and yet do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger.” [Ephesians 4:26]
We know the Lord was angry on occasion as was Paul, but what both are getting at is continuous anger with no forgiveness. This not only results in a break in relationship, which the Community of the Lord must never have, but causes the object of the anger to be falsely characterized as unworthy of relationship, essentially meaning he is evil and beyond redemption. To make sure anger does not lead to such a separation, one must deal with it before the sun goes down so it won’t gain power and eventually become set in concrete.
The Lord then goes further and speaks of the highest court, the Sanhedrin, which had the greatest earthly authority among the Israelites to pronounce sentence. Here, the Lord says whoever says to his brother “You good-for-nothing,” (Raqa) will also be guilty of violating the murder commandment. This is probably an Aramaic word. It means “empty” or “good for nothing,” One authority (Bruce) says, “Raca expresses contempt for a man’s head=you stupid!” The Lord says this is a great offense against one’s brother, even greater than being angry with him. Even so, the Lord does not stop at this point because there is yet a greater offense than these two that also deserves the same sentence as murder. However, it appears that the first two contain the possibility of redemption. The third does not. What could be so bad that is not actual murder but would cause one to be in grave danger of hell? –“You fool!” Yes, calling your brother a “fool” will do it. The Greek word is Moros, defined as “dull, stupid, or foolish.” Bruce says it “expresses contempt for his heart and character=you scoundrel!”[3]
Thus we see that, though a man be not guilty of actual murder, he can still violate the sixth commandment by having murder in his heart. This evil condition starts with unresolved anger and a refusal to forgive. It grows into accusing one’s brother of being empty headed, good for nothing, and stupid. Beyond that one expresses utter contempt for his brother’s heart and character and accuses him of being a fool and a scoundrel. Note that the accused brother in question, probably originally guilty of a minor infraction that caused his brother’s anger, is most likely none of these things but has been subjected to character assassination and had his good name slandered, all because someone was offended at some slight and then built up the offense into a bonfire. The sixth commandment does not spell out these details but the Lord Jesus sure does. If the willfully sinning unrepentant angry man is able to convince enough people of these lies, the innocent man could actually lose his place in the Community by being effectively convicted by false charges and innuendo, have his reputation destroyed, and suffer greatly in life as a result.
Consider this while you consider the existence of so many Christian “denominations” and how the extreme disunity they caused ever happened in the first place. Each denomination exists because it diverted from the original or diverted from another denomination but stopped before it advanced to honoring the original.
REAL CHRISTIANITY
The Lord Jesus started only one Church (Ekklesia)—the Community of the Called-Out Ones. He has only ever had one Church. He still has only one Church. It is composed only of real Christians. A real Christian is defined as one who is 100% under the Lordship of the Lord Jesus. Regarding sin, real Christians fully obey the Lord’s teachings regarding being completely freed from sin. They do this through initial repentance as a type of sacrifice on the altar of burnt offering in which the cleansing Blood of Jesus is applied coupled with full immersion in water invoking the Name of Jesus for the remission of sins per the command in Acts Chapter 2, and ongoing repentance of sin as required:
Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.” [Acts 2:38-39]
The entire purpose of real Christianity is to free people from their manifold sins, from the destruction their sins cause to themselves and others, and from the deadly disease of sin which wracks their souls, and then bring them into the New and Living Way:
Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. [Hebrews 10:19-22]
Our great Founder, the One who created His Creation—all that exists around you sans sinful man’s additions to it—decided on His own before He ever created anything that He would have to one day pay a visit here, walk among us, teach us the truth and the proper way of living, and then, in the greatest act of love anyone could ever possibly make, and in His case, the greatest act of love of all time, actually surrender His perfect life as a perfect sacrifice to make payment for our sins and to save and deliver humanity.
His sacrifice works because He never committed any sin, not a single one, in His entire life as one of us. He obeyed the Law of Moses to perfection, never violating a single proviso. Obviously, no one had ever done this before or since. His perfection was in part unequivocally proven upon His resurrection from the dead. He actually defeated death. Death could not hold Him. “It was impossible for Him to be held in its power” (Acts 2:24). He was and remains the only perfect antidote or cure for all sin for all time.
WHY UNREAL CHRISTIANITY FAILS THE LEGITIMACY TEST
It doesn’t properly address the sin problem.
Again, the whole point of Christianity is to address what we must do about sin, which is defined as “missing the mark” or violating the laws and teachings of God which exist to lead one to righteousness. Christianity is supposed to have the means to allow people to be cured of and released from their deadly disease that will cause them to struggle through life, lose their souls, and go to hell. The teachings of the Lord Jesus perfectly address this. He tells us what sin is, how it got here, and how to get rid of it. His teachings instruct us on how to stop sinning, overcome the hold that sin has on one’s life, and cease being slaves of sin. If this central teaching of the Lord Jesus is not being properly and correctly addressed by a minister, church, or denomination (and many ministers, if not most, no longer preach about sin), then it should be obvious that those ministers, churches, and denominations are frauds. They may be clueless brainwashed frauds in that they are too deceived to know it or more likely, they know they are frauds but don’t care. They don’t care because they are not in it for the right reasons. They are merely using the platform for their own purposes.
Note: It is impossible for those hungry in heart searching for truth to hear the real Gospel and not be convicted of sin. This conviction is designed to activate faith, which leads one to repentance, which then leads to salvation. Unless one’s temple is thoroughly cleansed through proper repentance by washing away all sin with the Blood of the Lamb, the Holy Spirit of the Lord will not take up residence within it. The same is true for churches. This is why it is imperative to preach and teach about the disease of sin. Refusing to address sin and expose it allows for its destructive hidden presence to remain and allows the enemy a place of residence and a foothold from which to operate.
THE PRESENCE OF THE DEVIL
The Lord Jesus saw fit to give us a perfect allegory in His time of false shepherds in action which can be applied to any time or geographic location. The first century Hebrew/Israelite major religious parties, the Sadducees, Pharisees, and Essenes, had control of almost all religious thought. Almost every Israelite of the first century AD identified with one of these three parties, mainly, of course, the first two.
One of the reasons the Essenes are not addressed in the New Testament Scriptures is because they were not involved as movers and shakers in the overall society at that time. The original group of them had long since left town in the middle of the second century BC. Happiness for them was Jerusalem in their rear view mirror as it was the only way to appease their conscience regarding the sinister machinations transpiring in the City of David. They took up residence out in the wilderness to the east, close by the northern edge of what the later Romans called the Mare Asphaltum. Scholarship consensus maintains these Essenes were the monastic group inhabiting the ruins of Qumran associated with the Dead Sea Scrolls, the ancient writings discovered initially in 1947. As former members of the viable Zadok priesthood, this group of men left the temple and Jerusalem because they grew disgusted with what became the official priesthood of that time—a shady group placed in power through political means.
Over the next two centuries this illicit priesthood in Jerusalem became staffed through political appointments which had nothing or little to do with God’s original intent. The political had merged with the religious. Sound familiar? Rather than the priesthood addressing sin as the Torah commanded, the appointees thereof merely went through religious motions appearing as real while saturated with sin and fraud, not the least of which was masquerading as being legitimate. This corruption started a fight for control which eventually congealed into two main religious parties that controlled Jerusalem, Judea, and Galilee, and also the temple and the synagogues: The Sadducees, who worked hand in glove with Rome and had authority over Jerusalem and the temple, and the Pharisees who controlled the local synagogues.
These two parties made a mockery of God, the prophets, and Moses the lawgiver, by appropriating their own versions and wrongheaded interpretations of God’s Word, which even included mass exclusions of Holy Writ (the Sadducees) and a wholesale rewriting of Scripture through ultra-interpretive, casuistic, and specious renderings, the so-called Oral Law, which, in the words of the Lord Jesus, invalidated the Word of God! (the Pharisees). Think about that. These religious leaders were so wicked they both trashed Scripture and rewrote it while pretending to teach it! This is exactly what Unreal Christianity has done and is doing.
Also, keep in mind that the prophetic word had ceased 250 years before that time, in the late 400s BC, so there were no Hebrew prophets correcting these ultra-erroneous shysters. At present, of course, in American Christianity, we have a parallel condition. It explains why most ministers and churches get away with their multitudinous errors. They are all non-Prophet organizations.
KNOWING THE TREE BY ITS FRUIT
The majority of that which is referred to as Christianity in America is incomparable to the original. It refuses the truth of Scripture regarding sin, refuses to teach it, and thus refuses the actual teachings of the Lord Jesus. It has rejected God. It merely uses the Lord and Scripture for its own purposes without actually submitting to Him. Again, maybe the majority of those engaged in this are completely duped, but if so it is the greatest duping ever known to mankind. Why? Because they have the Word of God. They read it. They teach from it. They claim to honor the Lord Jesus. And all in all, they disregard and refute anything in His curriculum they do not feel comfortable with or agree with. Remember, one both strives to follow the Lord fully and obey His teachings fully or one is in violation of not following Him at all. This halfway walk of the false ministers who pick and choose what they believe and teach, and make a god to suit themselves, is the height of ministerial evil but it is an evil couched in faux righteousness. It is an evil that leads people toward the pure and holy stream but never gets them there. They would never allow anyone under their jurisdiction to partake of it. They only want to get close enough to appear real without actually being real. This means they are exactly the same as the ancient Israelite Pharisees and Sadducees though with simulated Christian clothing.
In other words they are mere actors. On a stage. Loving the limelight and place of honor. The Lord called them false stage players or hypocrites. And all unreal Christians deceived and captured by Unreal Christianity are living in a controlled simulation. It appears to be real but is nothing more than a choreographed program in which people go through spiritually meaningless motions which have no effect on their eternal soul and their personal sin. They enter church services as sinners and they leave church services as sinners. They substitute false religious rituals heavy on surface connotations with little or no spiritual effect. The vast majority have never repented of sin properly or had a real born again experience, both of which the Lord Jesus said was mandatory for all. This is deception of a very high order.
BLIND GUIDES
There is no new thing under the sun. The world has never been devoid of religious charlatans. No matter what the righteous may do expose their trickery and eliminate their influence they always somehow manage to creep back in and establish a foothold. In closing, the following passage is a great refresher on this recurrent “goats as sheep” problem that presently exists as a nationwide mainstream false representation of Christianity. It gives a great explanatory illustration of these pretenders in action. It exposes those of today just as it did those of yesterday. Read, watch, and pray:
Then some Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem and said, “Why do Your disciples break the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread.” And He answered and said to them, “Why do you yourselves transgress the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother,’ and, ‘He who speaks evil of father or mother is to be put to death.’ But you say, ‘Whoever says to his father or mother, “Whatever I have that would help you has been given to God,” he is not to honor his father or his mother.’ And by this you invalidated the word of God for the sake of your tradition. You hypocrites, rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you: ‘This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far away from Me. But in vain do they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the precepts of men.’”
After Jesus called the crowd to Him, He said to them, “Hear and understand. It is not what enters into the mouth that defiles the man, but what proceeds out of the mouth, this defiles the man.” Then the disciples came and said to Him, “Do You know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this statement?”
But He answered and said, “Every plant which My heavenly Father did not plant shall be uprooted. Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if a blind man guides a blind man, both will fall into a pit.” [Matthew 15:1-14][4]
© 2022 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] ISBE
[2] ISBE
[3] See A.T. Robertson’s Word Pictures of the New Testament
[4] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE TEARS OF GOD
For all the senseless sins of humanity
For all the hate
For all the children
Whose lives are snuffed out
By their parents.
And other beautiful children
Born deaf or blind
Who love their lives
And give their might to prove their worth
While privileged ones
Throw theirs away
For so many so rebellious
No one can reach them
Intent on evil
Who deceived them?
And on it goes
Century after eon
Nothing ever changes
Man’s inhumanity to man
Brings untold misery
And hard, hard work for nothing
Destroyed in a day
Lifetimes achieving
She said it wasn’t worth it
And darkness descended
But what of another choice?
What of beauty?
What of kindness and love
And compassion?
What of joy?
Why the hate and discontent?
When air can be so pure
And nature so rich?
How can creatures so bright
Descend into such a pit?
Day after day after day
Misery upon misery
And evil people in power
Will no one ever stand to save?
Will we let it all slip away?
Day after day, tears fall
Year after year, tears fall
Century after…
The dry void receives the wet
Salty, salty tears
The levels rise
Overflowing banks
And continuing upward
So much sin
So much pain
So much flat out rejection
Of the cure
Of the means to stop it
To live right
To get it right
To stop the bleeding
But they would not
And the levels rise
More tears, flowing daily
Won’t you stop?
Won’t you try to live right?
Won’t you take care of one another?
I’ve given all I can give
I can give no more
And the levels rise
Drowning continents
Filling the earth
Overcoming all bounds
An unending stream
Of the Creator’s anguish
Oceans of tears
Jesus Wept
.
© 2020 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
HAPPY THANKSGIVING 2021: FIGHT FOR YOUR COUNTRY
I wrote the following post one year ago. Today is the 400th anniversary of the first Thanksgiving in 1621. What I wrote last Thanksgiving holds true. We are making progress. Many have fought hard over the last year and continue fighting. There is no longer any doubt that the devil’s dirty work over the last two years was to stop the Great Awakening which continues to advance. It is sad that so many American Christians have joined the enemy, are still sleeping, or refuse to fight as they should. A great many non-Christians certainly understand, however. Sometimes those who do not profess the Lord Jesus do His will while those who do do not. The apostle Paul wrote about this. I encourage you, dear readers, to continue doing your best to do His will for your life, attend to your callings, continue showing His love, and most of all, continue to praise, honor, and obey the Lord Jesus, our loving Creator and Savior. He gave His all so we could have Life. We are most thankful for Him on this wonderful day.
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We have much to be thankful for. Though American liberty and freedom is under severe attack at present, it remains strong, which is quite a feat after 400 years.
Earlier this year I decided to take a research dive into the founding of Roanoke Colony, the first English colony in America. This was the so-called “lost colony” founded on the Carolina coast in the 1580s, which then somehow disappeared. I discovered it never actually disappeared but simply moved down the coast several miles away. The colonists had joined up with a native tribe but this was largely unknown to the outside world for over a century. There is much about this story that nobody knew for the longest time but an archaeology project began a few years back that is filling in some blanks. It’s a fascinating tale.
In 1607 Virginia Colony was founded and it suffered some serious setbacks and almost came to ruin. It was for the most part a mercantile colony founded for profit, and fully supported the Anglican state church. And though it certainly has its place it never captured the hearts of later colonists and modern day Americans the way Plymouth Colony did. The latter was founded for a distinctly different and very rare purpose. Its English Separatists founders, known as the Pilgrims, were seeking not monetary profit or greater territory, but religious and political freedom.
I wrote an article about these stalwart, wonderful people several years ago and reposted it this past Saturday on the 400-year anniversary of their landing. It’s a good article with much history, focusing primarily on the backstory and the incessant trials and persecutions these people suffered beginning long before they ever left England. Real Christians of the present can certainly relate to their story in these times, when it appears that religious and political freedom is just about done. Indigenous evil forces that hate America have been on the prowl for decades and they stand, as I write, on the very threshold of taking over. If we let them there will only be a brief segue remaining before America is done.
I have hope that it will never happen. I have hope that these indigenous evil forces will be defeated. Anyone paying attention over the last several years noticed that these guys no longer cared about hiding their evil practices. Much evil came forth from them, mostly because they knew no one could stop their evil deeds. They got pretty bold and lowered their guard, and as a result not only engaged in greater degrees of evil but did so more openly. And now, with this election, they obviously either did not care whatsoever about the level of lawbreaking they would engage in, in their desperation to regain power, or actually thought they could get away with it. Their effort was a clear in-your-face attack against freedom, liberty, justice, and fair play, and showed all the more their abject hatred of American ideals and the Constitution.
I’ve been following this election fraud story very closely and I can tell you that many small victories have already happened. But much greater victories are about to come forth. I am also encouraged that so many Americans already know much of the truth about the stealing of this election. And I am encouraged that a few great fighters have already risen to the fore and are manning the battlements. It will get a lot worse before it gets better and I have hope that it will get better. Who knows how many times something like this was done in the past and most Americans were none the wiser. But this time is far different. The scale is off the charts. Nothing so blatantly evil has ever happened in American history before.
There is no guarantee, of course, that the forces of good will end up winning. The odds are greatly against it. Many have already thrown in the towel. I am thankful that the major players have not. I have not. And I trust you have not. The case is being made as I write. It is a great case. The fraud is growing ever more obvious. The good news is that a fight of this kind reveals all the shysters and Judases. All those people you thought were good guys have revealed themselves as evil grifters in love with money, power, and prestige. They appeared to change teams pretty fast but in reality were only faking people out all this time. They only cared about themselves and never about you.
Regarding this great day, this Thanksgiving Day 2020, I am thankful that real Americans, though in apparently short supply, still exist, and that enough still exist to make this a viable and winning fight. You must mark all those that have already quit or joined the other side, or refuse to fight for the country. You must also mark those who are putting their lives, reputations, and sacred honor on the line. Sound familiar?
Also, the enemy, though apparently in full control and about to win it all, likely underestimated his opponents. He also made the mistake of thinking he covered enough bases to get away with it or that there would never be enough time to overcome his great advantage. He also either doesn’t know about a little something called The Great Awakening or knows about it all too well and has gone to these great lengths of evil in a last ditch desperate effort to overcome it. I don’t think it will work. I believe there remains way too much good, way too much strength, and way too many real Americans who will never surrender. It certainly looked that way for much of this year, however. Far too many allowed themselves to be deceived by this false pandemic and were far too willing to lay down at the feet of evil authoritarians who have nothing but contempt for America and Americans. This is likely why they thought they could pull it off.
As it turns out, America is not quite ready to give up. More are waking up every day. This Thanksgiving Day must be different. We must return to our roots. We must stop seeing ourselves as the other bookend to the Pilgrims of 400 years ago, ready to die. Instead, we have to allow the natural fight God put within us to come forth. We must immediately stop putting up with garbage and take a stand. We must rally the troops. We must not only consider the Pilgrims but match their powerful resolve. They didn’t lay a great foundation only for us to allow it to be destroyed.
Roanoke was rough and Virginia almost didn’t make it. But Plymouth Colony opened up a massive highway of freedom that has blessed this country for four centuries. The first Thanksgiving was celebrated the next autumn in 1621. That makes today Thanksgiving Day #400. Rather than it be the last Thanksgiving, we must make it like the first, in that we have a whole new birth of freedom.
Whatever you believe the Lord Jesus has called you to do, now is the time to attend to it like your life depends upon it. Don’t hold back. Don’t stop short. Don’t be cowed. Encourage one another. Build each other up. Be strong. KEEP THE FAITH. Engage in spiritual warfare like you never have before. Make the Lord proud. We can still win this thing.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone.
© 2020 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
© 2021 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
NATIONAL REPENTANCE MUST BEGIN IMMEDIATELY
Though the following Psalm obviously applies to ancient Israel, there are many parallels within it which relate to our present. Seek the Lord.
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PSALM 106: Israel’s Rebelliousness and the Lord’s Deliverances
1
Praise the Lord!
Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good;
For His lovingkindness is everlasting.
2
Who can speak of the mighty deeds of the Lord,
Or can show forth all His praise?
3
How blessed are those who keep justice,
Who practice righteousness at all times!
4
Remember me, O Lord, in Your favor toward Your people;
Visit me with Your salvation,
5
That I may see the prosperity of Your chosen ones,
That I may rejoice in the gladness of Your nation,
That I may glory with Your inheritance.
6
We have sinned like our fathers,
We have committed iniquity, we have behaved wickedly.
7
Our fathers in Egypt did not understand Your wonders;
They did not remember Your abundant kindnesses,
But rebelled by the sea, at the Red Sea.
8
Nevertheless He saved them for the sake of His Name,
That He might make His power known.
9
Thus He rebuked the Red Sea and it dried up,
And He led them through the deeps, as through the wilderness.
10
So He saved them from the hand of the one who hated them,
And redeemed them from the hand of the enemy.
11
The waters covered their adversaries;
Not one of them was left.
12
Then they believed His words;
They sang His praise.
13
They quickly forgot His works;
They did not wait for His counsel,
14
But craved intensely in the wilderness,
And tempted God in the desert.
15
So He gave them their request,
But sent a wasting disease among them.
16
When they became envious of Moses in the camp,
And of Aaron, the holy one of the Lord,
17
The earth opened and swallowed up Dathan,
And engulfed the company of Abiram.
18
And a fire blazed up in their company;
The flame consumed the wicked.
19
They made a calf in Horeb
And worshiped a molten image.
20
Thus they exchanged their glory
For the image of an ox that eats grass.
21
They forgot God their Savior,
Who had done great things in Egypt,
22
Wonders in the land of Ham
And awesome things by the Red Sea.
23
Therefore He said that He would destroy them,
Had not Moses His chosen one stood in the breach before Him,
To turn away His wrath from destroying them.
24
Then they despised the pleasant land;
They did not believe in His word,
25
But grumbled in their tents;
They did not listen to the voice of the Lord.
26
Therefore He swore to them
That He would cast them down in the wilderness,
27
And that He would cast their seed among the nations
And scatter them in the lands.
28
They joined themselves also to Baal-peor,
And ate sacrifices offered to the dead.
29
Thus they provoked Him to anger with their deeds,
And the plague broke out among them.
30
Then Phinehas stood up and interposed,
And so the plague was stayed.
31
And it was reckoned to him for righteousness,
To all generations forever.
32
They also provoked Him to wrath at the waters of Meribah,
So that it went hard with Moses on their account;
33
Because they were rebellious against His Spirit,
He spoke rashly with his lips.
34
They did not destroy the peoples,
As the Lord commanded them,
35
But they mingled with the nations
And learned their practices,
36
And served their idols,
Which became a snare to them.
37
They even sacrificed their sons and their daughters to the demons,
38
And shed innocent blood,
The blood of their sons and their daughters,
Whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan;
And the land was polluted with the blood.
39
Thus they became unclean in their practices,
And played the harlot in their deeds.
40
Therefore the anger of the Lord was kindled against His people
And He abhorred His inheritance.
41
Then He gave them into the hand of the nations,
And those who hated them ruled over them.
42
Their enemies also oppressed them,
And they were subdued under their power.
43
Many times He would deliver them;
They, however, were rebellious in their counsel,
And so sank down in their iniquity.
44
Nevertheless He looked upon their distress
When He heard their cry;
45
And He remembered His covenant for their sake,
And relented according to the greatness of His lovingkindness.
46
He also made them objects of compassion
In the presence of all their captors.
47
Save us, O Lord our God,
And gather us from among the nations,
To give thanks to Your holy name
And glory in Your praise.
48
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
From everlasting even to everlasting.
And let all the people say, “Amen.”
Praise the Lord! [1]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
ONLY THE FULLY AWAKE SEE HIS GLORY: A GREAT AWAKENING UPDATE
Now Peter and his companions had been overcome with sleep; but when they were fully awake, they saw His glory… [Luke 9:32]
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Yes, it was about the Transfiguration. But the Transfiguration is about a Great Revelation. Only the fully awake can see this. Christians who do not see this are not awake.
I can’t tell you exactly when the majority of American Christians went to sleep but it was fairly recent—about a quarter century ago. Prior to the present Great Awakening there was the Great Sleep. The Great Sleep stretched all across the country. It affected all denominations and independents. Of course, many of these have always been asleep so there was no change among them and no frame of reference to discern the times. Most Christians are still asleep.
We were in the early stages of the Great Awakening eleven years ago. I received this revelation from the Lord directly in late August of 2010. I knew of no one else at the time that had received it. I received no confirmation from others I knew at the time but within a few years I did start receiving some. People I knew were seeing breakouts here and there.
Recently, I was watching an interview of a prophetic believer, an older man with a solid record. At one point he said the prophetic people he knew had been saying we entered into the beginning of an awakening around eight to ten years ago. This interview was conducted in the summer of 2020. His statement would make the beginning of the Awakening, according to them, in 2010-2012. This was more confirmation. The Great Awakening likely began only a short time before the year 2010, maybe only a few years at the most. That settles the time frame.
There is obviously no need for a Great Awakening unless there has been a Great Sleep. As a country, America has been sleeping a very long time. It is why so much evil was allowed to happen during the 1900s. The Christians in official high places with most of the influence were not minding the store, were sleeping, and were actually in cahoots with the enemy whether they knew it or not. There were always voices of truth speaking forth because the Lord always has witnesses but these were drowned out by the unseeing sleeping majority. It’s impossible to speak truth to a sleeping man. They must wake up first. Most don’t want to wake up. They like the faux world. They like the fantasy world between their ears and not only don’t know they are deceived but don’t care. They enjoy sleeping.
However, during the last 120 years, despite the official Christian gatekeepers and all their followers being zoned out and snoring away, there were Christians who were absolutely serious about serving the Lord Jesus and made a full effort at being real disciples. These people were fully awake. It began at midnight on January 1, 1901 in Topeka, Kansas. The next huge spiritual wave hit in 1906 in Los Angeles, California. From then it was off to the races. The entire Christian landscape began to change for the better. Around 1960 Pentecost began happening all across the country. By the mid-1960s all denominations were touched powerfully by the Spirit of God. In pretty much every Protestant denomination and even the Roman Catholic Church people were getting filled with the Holy Spirit and speaking in other tongues per the Book of Acts experience.
The movement continued unabated well into the 1970s. By the 1980s the movement began going into overdrive all across the world. It began in China in roughly 1976. Today it is estimated that over 100 million Chinese people are filled the Holy Spirit and having a massive impact. The same has happened in South America and many other places.
Something bad happened in North America, however, at some point in the 1990s. The movement subsided. Christians in America who should have known better began appropriating a Laodicean attitude. Churches were flush with money. Christian television had gone into the stratosphere. Somehow or another it all went off track. The enemy was able to gain much influence. Spiritual pride set in. A spirit of narcissism rose up. What was once a purely organic movement much like the initial movement of the Early Church was raided and invaded with the same revival killing practices that end all moves of God. A clergy-laity divide enshrouded the Community. Celebrity Christianity rose dramatically. Prosperity preachers and motivational speakers became the standard. Everyone else returned to form and became mere spectators and clergy worshippers.
What had made the 1900s movement great was the participation of every believer and the equality of all believers. This was lost. It was thrown out the window. If an honest anointed man didn’t have the false credentials of the faux leaders who had gathered together as a bloc he had no influence or open door for ministry. Christians were conditioned to trust only those with false résumés who stood on high taking the place of both the Lord Jesus and His people. They had the money, the power, and the prestige. They wrested control from the Lord and their people supported it. Together, they effectively killed the movement. Christians all across the country lapsed in their devotion to the Lord and simply went along with the program. This allowed for an influx of sin which remained unaddressed.
People who were once fully awake seeing the glory of the Lord fell asleep and no longer saw Him for who He is. They stopped serving Him. And then the devil had a field day. Though the outer structure remained intact and Christian routines continued the glory had largely departed. American Christianity became the Church of Ichabod.
PAY ATTENTION:
Now Eli was ninety-eight years old, and his eyes were fixed and he could not see. The man said to Eli, “I am the one who came from the battle line. Indeed, I escaped from the battle line today.” And he said, “How are things, my son?” Then the one who brought the news replied, “Israel has fled before the Philistines and there has also been a great defeat among the people, and your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas are also dead; and the ark of God has been taken.” When he mentioned the ark of God, Eli fell off the seat backward beside the gate, and his neck was broken and he died, for he was old and heavy. And so he judged Israel for forty years.
Now his daughter-in-law, Phinehas’ wife, was pregnant and about to give birth; and when she heard the news that the ark of God had been taken and that her father-in-law and her husband had died, she kneeled down and gave birth, because her pains came upon her. And about the time of her death the women who were standing by her said to her, “Do not be afraid, for you have given birth to a son.” But she did not answer or pay attention. And she named the boy Ichabod (no glory, or where is the glory?), saying, “The glory has departed from Israel,” because the ark of God had been taken and because of her father-in-law and her husband. So she said, “The glory has departed from Israel, because the ark of God has been taken.” [1Samuel 4:15-22] [1]
Thus, when American Christians started waking up 10-15 years ago they had no effect on the great shell of spiritual emptiness which is what became of the outer expression of much of American Christianity. Though it looked great on the outside it was empty on the inside. Those in control had already given themselves over to mammon since the Spirit of the Lord was no longer there. Mammon became their lifeline. They connected with the secular holders of mammon. They became mammon addicts.
The real Christians who never went to sleep soldiered on through it all looking forward to the day when the Lord would be invited back. The Lord, of course, never left the lives of those who stayed awake but they were largely rejected as He was. Those who were awake and working didn’t fit in with the sleeping. Imagine the God of all Creation being shut out of His own movement and relegated to the sidelines. Sound familiar?
The Great Awakening continues. Such happenings always start with repentance. Those who serve the Lord want to be right with Him! But the last to repent are the controllers. Their lives are good. They really don’t need or want the Lord. Or they want Him only as a lesser Lord Jesus. They don’t want Him in His power. They don’t want His power. It would mean giving up their power. You see, when a Christian exalts himself the Lord Jesus is dethroned and those sitting on their thrones have an extremely hard time giving it up. We know from history, however, that unless they do a time will come when the Lord will take it away from them. For His own sake, for the sake of His people, and for the sake of His movement in the world, He will take it away from them and give it back to His children who want Him and recognize Him. It allows Him to rise again.
As more sleeping Christians begin to awaken, rubbing the sleep from their eyes, they will somehow manage the strength to get out of bed. They will break free from the false dreams and entranced state into which they had succumbed. They will start to see the Lord for who He really is. If, after a good jolt of spiritual coffee, they are able to fully come to their senses, a great thing will happen. Their sleepy visions from enchanted dreams of an alternative Jesus which never existed will suddenly vanish:
FOR THE FULLY AWAKE THE LORD JESUS WILL BE TRANSFIGURED BEFORE THEM.
Only the fully awake see His glory.
© 2021 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
BLOG UPDATE! ANNOUNCING NEW POST
THE GREAT ERROR OF TRUSTING DUPLICITOUS HIRELINGS AND POMPOUS PUPPETS
KICKING AGAINST THE GOADS
I wrote my first book, Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church, in the 1990s in part to show the clear distinction between real and unreal Christianity. It released a sword of separation.
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All Christians must understand that the New Covenant writings contain contrastive material. The Word of God is designed to draw clear distinctions, cause sharp divisions, and assist one in making positive decisions. It presents Light and darkness, good and evil, sheep and goats, wheat and tares, and righteousness and sin. Real repentance is challenging (understatement alert). Personal sin, false beliefs, contrary attitudes, and uncircumcised hearts all must be addressed. It is not an easy process nor should it be. The Light shines on the darkness and everything hidden in the darkness gets exposed. Whenever one comes to the Lord he or she is exiting darkness and entering Light.
THE SWORD OF SEPARATION
“Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace but a sword. For I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in law; and a man’s enemies will be the members of his household.” [Matthew 10:34-36]
Over the last quarter century, the spiritual climate in organized American Christianity has radically changed. Previous errors have been compounded. It is apparent that American Christians in general have consistently rejected the fullness of the Gospel. Most have certainly rejected the Book of Acts. The instructions and warnings of my book went unheeded. One might recall that the 1990s were considered the good times. Does not the Lord always warn during the good times that bad times are soon coming if one does not stay right with Him?
Real Christianity is based firmly on the full teachings of the Lord Jesus and the New Covenant writings. Our Lord is the Master. What He says goes. He instructs us to build our entire lives upon His foundation. Most of what we term “Christianity” has never done this. This means most “Christians” are actually not on the Lord’s side at all. Maybe most are deceived. It is more likely most simply refuse to follow the Lord as He said we must.
A Christian’s bullheaded balking at the Lord’s direction becomes evident, as kicking against the goads (Acts 26:14), when he or she reaches a point of refusal to go any further or in the right direction, though the Lord gently applies pressure to do so, and he or she insists on staying put wherever personally anchored or wander off wildly on a course of his own choosing. From the Lord’s perspective, those who have pledged their lives to Him have no call to refuse Him. But not only does an apparent majority of Christians refuse Him and decide on their own how far their discipleship will go, some are also guilty of persecuting the Lord (Acts 26:15). This is not something to have on one’s Christian résumé.
The Lord has never needed large numbers of followers to have a great impact in the world. I have consistently reiterated this point in all my writings going back decades. What He actually needs are fully obedient followers who trust Him fully and make a stand as He did. It is easy to discern a Christian who is not standing properly with the Lord because they do not put His teachings first. Instead, they will appeal to church leaders or teachers or writers or speakers or whoever else that has an alternative perspective and agenda which most often includes false and opposing denominational doctrines. They cannot understand that they have been compromised. Rather than put their trust in the Lord Jesus they put it in others and in themselves though outwardly insisting otherwise. This likely explains the great amount of Cognitive Dissonance among Christians.
The best way to break free from any accepted “Christian” belief that is contrary to the Lord’s teachings is to simply pray for direction and then dive in to His teachings. Don’t pick and choose. Have no agendas other than learning His full curriculum. Read the gospels focusing on all of His statements. Get familiar with everything He taught. Do your best to apply it. We are all a work in progress in this area in one sense. In another, however, we must understand that the early members of His initial Community immediately hit the ground running from the very start. They didn’t know everything as individuals but were always open to instruction; they acted on what they knew and continued. Also, the Community as a whole did know pretty much everything and it is why every voice mattered. They believed and practiced the adage, “Nobody is as smart as all of us.” What one didn’t know another did. When one was not operating correctly or speaking fullness of truth another lovingly corrected him. Fellow believers were never censored. It was an organic fellowship of the Spirit. They never waited to become “perfect” disciples in knowing and applying everything the Lord said before doing their Christian duty, though they certainly believed in everything the Lord said. They preached and taught the most foundational and important teachings first and went from there. They put first things first.
The first thing is salvation from sin and establishing trust and faith in the Lord Jesus. This requires a complete change and transformation of one’s life, initially through repentance of sin and walking away from all sinful practices. Ongoing obedience must follow. And because the Lord would never leave us powerless or defenseless against powerful spiritual enemies He commanded we be filled with His Holy Spirit. Those filled with His Spirit in the first century turned the world upside down. Every real Christian has the same influential impact.
Most Christians, however, are not filled with His Holy Spirit as the originals were and are thus not much of a threat to the enemy. This is largely why the enemy has come into America like the proverbial flood. It is why the enemy now controls pretty much everything.
The majority of American Christians insisted on being spiritual wimps, biblically illiterate, and embarrassed by the Lord Jesus.
The enemy has taken full advantage and likely couldn’t believe it would be so easy. And now, after a quarter century, much of American Christianity, compromised by sin and enslaved to mammon, has gone over to the enemy.
THE SPIRIT OF JUDAS
The problem arises from a consistent refusal to do what the originals did and instead substitute their own various forms of “Christianity” which look nothing like the original. The most reprehensible consequence of all the false gospels and False Teachers is their rejection of the Lord Jesus and His teachings and those who truly follow Him. Therefore, long before such disruptive times as these when so much hate and division is being openly presented, real Christians in America have had to deal with such throughout their entire walk. They are used to it. They are quite familiar with betrayal. Such negativity is not necessarily coming from non-Christian Americans, however, most of whom really don’t care all that much what real Christians believe, or even from secular authority which has most often been neutral and even supportive of religious freedom. No, the worst battle has always been with the various forms of what I term “Unreal Christianity.” This is where most of the hate and rejection has consistently come from. This can only mean the devil has an established presence there.
It was no different in the first century. The very worst and most extreme persecution of the Lord’s followers came from among their own. It came from religious leaders and family members. It was brother against brother. Even the Lord’s own family were against Him for a time. Some within the nation saw the Light and received the Lord as the long hoped for Messiah. Others hatefully rejected Him. This dynamic remains in place. Some Jewish people, a relative few, the Messianic Jews, have embraced the Lord Jesus. The rest reject Him, hate Him, and mock Him. It was the relatively small group of unbelieving Messiah-rejecting Israelite/Judean religious and political leaders and those indoctrinated by them that led the effort in murdering the Sacrifice Lamb. They turned against their own blood, against vast numbers of their own nation. Remember, as I have always pointed out, the entire original Community of the Lord Jesus, every single one of the 120 in the Upper Room, and all twelve apostles were also composed only of Israelites/Judeans, including the Apostle Paul. For some of you, such a betrayal might be familiar.
The movement started by the Lord Jesus which later became termed “Christianity” was originally an entirely Israelite/Judean movement for roughly nine years. There were no Gentiles until the time the apostle Peter was sent by the Lord to preach to and preside over the salvation of the Gentile Cornelius and his family/associates (See Acts Chapter 10). Those people all received the infilling of the Holy Spirit in the exact manner of those on the Day of Pentecost. Peter was initially shocked by this. In time, Gentile believers far outnumbered Israelite/Judean believers. Regardless of nationality, the Lord Jesus always consistently did the exact thing on every occasion of a new spiritual outpouring and it is all recorded in the Scriptural history book of the Early Church. Each occasion was an exact repeat of Pentecost.
However, from that time to the present, scads of false or incomplete gospels have been presented and the majority of “Christians” have believed and accepted something very different or incomplete compared to that of the originals. Those Christians who are participating and having a positive effect in the current Great Awakening have one primary thing in common: They are fully dedicated to the Lord Jesus. They have pledged to do His will. They do their best to know and obey His teachings. They identify with the Early Church of the first century. They will not stay in a place where He is not fully supported. They want the full curriculum of the Lord. They want to excel. They have become aware of the difference between the real and unreal. If the Lord directs them to, they will walk away from the faux bros.
COME OUT FROM AMONG THEM
It is why so many have walked away. They are tired of sleepy time Christianity and less than the best Churchianity. They are tired of hanging around the willing sleepers and pew droolers. They want the whole catalogue. They want to be exactly like the originals. THEY WANT EVERYBODY TO WAKE UP. They are tired of all their spiritual efforts pretty much going nowhere because only watered-down common denominator stuff is accepted so the stragglers won’t be offended. (We must never offend; it keeps the money from rolling in.) Things keep getting worse, the people in charge still refuse to change and get right with God, and those who see know the Titanic has struck an iceberg and is going down.
The great Ark of the Lord, however, sails on unimpeded. It’s got this cool Upper Room that keeps going 24 hours a day. There is much joy! The Lord guides His ship expertly and anyone and everyone is welcome aboard, though a few New Covenant papers will have to be signed.
Remember, according to the Gideon Paradigm and the Upper Room 120, all it takes is a comparative few to have great success and rout the enemy. It is not necessarily the big crowds that make the difference but the obedient few separated from the rest and united in heart and Spirit. The Lord proved this with Gideon’s 300. He proved it with the 120.
And He proves it every day when as few as two or three are gathered together in His Name.
Those who have insight will shine brightly like the brightness of the expanse of heaven, and those who lead the many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever. [Daniel 12:3] [1]
© 2021 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
GIDEON’S 300: WHY A SMALL GROUP OF REAL CHRISTIANS IS ALWAYS BETTER THAN 32,000 PRETENDERS [Part 6: Christian Qualifying Tests]
God ran two qualifying tests upon 32,000 prospective warriors. The vast majority failed. What are God’s qualifying tests regarding the New Covenant?
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There are Christians in the world who believe being a Christian is no big deal. The vast majority of Christians have never done much to differentiate themselves from the world. They are Christians only in the cultural sense. Their parents were likely Christians of a particular denomination and they merely became adherents of the same only because it was the group their parents and family belonged to. They were simply raised that way. It is often the case that these denominational connections go back several generations.
Some denominations are more authoritarian than others and thus engage in greater enforcement through the application of greater religious control, indoctrination, intimidation, and even fear. These methods have always worked extremely well and are in part why the most populous Christian denominations have such great numbers. And it also helps, of course, to have been around a very long time.
The major Christian denominations have been around for centuries. One would like to think their great numbers must be due to their acceptance of the Gospel and its propagation. Their success, however, is not necessarily because they have historically stood for the original teachings of the Lord Jesus but because they have stressed certain teachings to the exclusion of others, watered down His teachings, and even appropriated different “gospels” to suit their cause. One should think, regarding this, that their cause should have been serving the Lord Jesus and honoring His Gospel:
I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed! As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed! [Galatians 1:6-9]
When one particular denomination gained the upper hand many centuries ago it did so largely through executive fiat and forced conversions. It became illegal to belong to any other Christian denomination than the one they set forth as the “legitimate” one. In other words, only one denomination was ruled the official one and all others were forced to disband or they would be persecuted until they did. This meant that not only the then existing few Christian offshoots that gained a following but also contained gross error were declared illegal, it also meant real Christianity was declared illegal. Why? Because the real Christianity of the early to middle first century created by the Lord Jesus and embraced by the first Christians had come to look so different from what became the mainline syncretic denomination of three centuries later that both could not possibly exist together in harmony. There were far too many differences. It was also impossible to achieve their goals using the Lord’s methods.
Hence, the real was rejected and a form of the unreal was embraced. Whereas the Lord Jesus instructed His disciples to take the real Gospel into the entire world and allow each person the freedom to arrive at a personal decision one way or the other, the predominant Christian denomination went into the world as a conquering religious juggernaut with a decided imperialist character often in direct competition against the Lord.
The great Protestant Reformation, peopled by those who protested against the gross illegalities, false doctrines, rampant authoritarianism, and rejection of the pure teachings of the Lord Jesus and the early church by “official” Christianity, made great strides toward reform and correction. A great part of their success was due to the relatively new Gutenberg Printing Press, invented circa 1450, that made it possible to get the written Word of God into the hands of individual believers. The Word of God had been completely unavailable to Christians for a great many centuries and these believers had no choice but to trust the extremely few ecclesiastics in power that had access to it. Rather than make the Word available they had done the opposite. They closed it off to all and used the lack of the Word of God as a control mechanism. They made sure it was never translated into the native tongues of all those “conquered” by forced conversions. The written Word of God was retained only in the official language of the denomination. In order to have access to it, one would have to be a member in perfect standing, have the proper education, and participate in every initiatory and maintenance rite demanded. This, of course, eliminated 99% of the population. An ignorant, illiterate, and fearful population was absolutely perfect for controlling and dictating to and the masters of such were able to maintain “Christian” religious control for a very long time.
Sadly, the new Protestant denominations eventually also engaged in some of the same corrupt practices of the former to varying degrees. They also discovered it was impossible to control people according to the Lord’s teachings and if they would have any success in the world they must make allowances for authoritarian control also. Those Christian denominations which have existed for so long have thus done an excellent job of growing and maintaining their organizations. This, of course, does not mean they are right according to the Lord’s standard. It only means they have excelled in gaining religious market share, kind of like the successful ministers on Christian TV.
CORRUPTION IS PROGRESSIVE
The Lord’s standard is perfect. His standard perfectly agrees with His teachings and the early historical record. The application of His standard allows for Truth and spiritual purity, and keeps incorrectness and corruption at bay. But as in everything else, if not subjected to ongoing correcting and cleansing, corruption only grows and metastasizes over time. The reason why is otherwise easy to understand but cannot be grasped when one is deceived or under the heavy thumb of religious potentates. If corruption is never properly addressed or allowed to be opposed, and if righteous opposition forces are continually overcome, then corruption will not only remain but flourish. It will increase. It will eventually reach a point of full corruption and darkness. And because the hubris and arrogance of the leaders within it grows as well, corrupt organizations become, in their own estimation, bulletproof and beyond censure. They feel they are so superior and powerful they can never be defeated.
They then begin to lower their guard. They fail to understand that initially buying into corruption for whatever reason allows for corruption to spread unchecked throughout the entire organization. The corruption extends to a corruption in decision making. The organizational unifying adhesive begins to fail. Then communications start to break down. Fissures appear. Light shines into the fissures. Light exposes the corruption. And just as sunshine is the best disinfectant, Light begins its cleansing action. A few insiders previously under the entrancement of the outwardly legitimate organization start seeing the oozing gunk leaching out in fissures everywhere and reach a point of great awakening. The blinders come off. They see the masquerade for what it is. They wake up to the ruse and become animated toward correction. They cease being part of the problem and become part of the solution. This is why most of the great Christian reformers were previously members of corrupt Christian denominations.
This is the world we live in. Despite its fallen nature it is still a world of both darkness and light and not darkness alone. Though darkness may thrive for a time, the light will eventually expose it. Great people, those who act as did the Lord, understand that the Truth of the real Gospel must go forth and are willing to take on the spiritual fight and do the will of God. These people are always grossly outnumbered in the beginning. Many of them pay dearly. They will lose their good reputations. They may lose their earthly goods. They may even pay the ultimate price. This is what happens when the corrupt majority turns against them. Sound familiar? But the only other choice is to let darkness prevail.
That the majority of the world is wimpy in this regard and refuses to fight the enemy does not mean the enemy cannot be successfully fought. The Lord Jesus proved this. The Early Church proved it. Untold millions were saved from sin and the dominance of evil. They kicked demonic backsides and took their names. This was and remains the Lord’s approach. But for those Christian organizations that refuse the Lord’s full program and have no desire or ability to fight the enemy, but instead have a lust for control, power, worldly wealth, and prestige, they simply join up with the enemy. And the enemy accommodates them.
Remember, it is the Gideon Paradigm. The Lord always proved the majority is wrong. The majority is always fearful. The majority will always oppose Him. The majority chooses the broad way that leads to destruction. Thus, if one is not willing to face off against the majority then one simply cannot be His disciple. And if one looks the other way and refuses to bring the necessary reforms and corrections to oneself and one’s own Christian denomination and would rather exist as a nameless nobody within a fearful, compliant, corrupt majority, then one can call himself a Christian all he wants to. As long as he stays within his member denomination as part of the non-reform corrupt majority and maintains the support of the majority as his proof of right standing with God, he may prolong the charade but will never fool the Lord.
Reasonable people would agree that it would be far better to actually get right with God in the here and now according to God’s requirements than face Him at the Judgment unprepared, even though one may have been falsely granted full commendation and approval by his member denomination. It should be obvious that trusting the Lord and His teachings regarding one’s soul is better that trusting one’s Christian guru. Christian denominations cannot dictate right standing with God and cannot confer righteousness by one’s mere good standing within them. Nevertheless, the majority of Christians would rather have right standing within their Christian social circles and overall culture than have right standing with God. And in case there is any confusion on this matter, actual spiritual righteousness is a gift. It cannot be falsely appropriated or earned. It was bought with a price. It was obtained by a great Sacrifice. The only way one will ever receive actual righteousness is by submitting 100% to the Lord Jesus. Substitutes will never qualify.
CHRISTIAN QUALIFYING TESTS
Rather than spell this out I will direct your attention to Acts Chapters 2. I stated in Part 5 of this series that of the many thousands who heard His teachings and followed Him during His ministry, He only chose 120 for the Upper Room. These 120 individuals had to be qualified for the honor. That only 120 did qualify suggests costly requirements. It further suggests that many desired to be disciples and tried to be disciples but were unwilling to be the disciples the Lord needed them to be. When one considers the absolute miracle of Pentecost one must also consider the absolute miracle that the 120 not only obeyed the Lord Jesus in full but got along with one another perfectly. They demonstrated the love of God. They were each willing to become brand new solid and strong empty vessels to be filled with the Lord’s Holy Spirit.
Based on Luke’s historical record, the 120 Upper Roomers passed the following universal tests:
1. 100% faithfulness and obedience toward the Lord Jesus, their recognition of His atoning death as the complete and only payment for all sin, their acceptance of His full teaching and discipleship curriculum, and their absolute belief in His resurrection from the dead.
2. 100% repentance of personal sin and a full turning away from sin and their former life to their new life in the Lord.
3. 100% immersion in water invoking the Name of Jesus the Messiah, their only Master and Savior.
We know these were the initial tests in part because it is exactly what Peter preached by the anointing of the Holy Spirit right after he and the 120 were filled with the Holy Spirit. Whoever would thus become a member of the Body of Christ must do as they did and meet the standard the Lord put forth. This standard was consistent throughout the early historical record in the Book of Acts and New Covenant Scriptures and all the early believers held it in common and were also filled with the Holy Spirit in the same manner.
Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” [Acts 2:38] [1]
© 2021 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
GIDEON’S 300: WHY A SMALL GROUP OF REAL CHRISTIANS IS ALWAYS BETTER THAN 32,000 PRETENDERS [Part 5: Make Your Calling and Election Sure]
The Gideon Paradigm was invoked by the Lord Jesus. He claimed that only a relative few would gain salvation. The same is true for “Christianity.” Only a small percentage of “Christians” will be saved.
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“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.” [Matthew 7:13-14]
“For many are called, but few are chosen.” [Matthew 22:14]
Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: for so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. [2Peter 1:10-11 KJV]
DEFINING THE NEW COVENANT AND THE NEW COVENANT BELIEVER
In the beginning every believer knew that becoming a real follower of the Lord Jesus was a life-changing event. He demanded that every candidate for inclusion in His Community must effectively destroy his former life. He demanded that every candidate must undergo complete repentance, which amounts to sacrificing oneself on an altar of burnt offering. It means everything about one’s former life must be subjected to destruction in order for a complete new life to come forth.
The Lord taught on this theme always. It was a vital component of the new birth. He said there MUST be a new birth. He said one must be “born of the Spirit.” Is this not a commandment? A new birth demands an end of whatever existed before. The new life demands the death of the former life. There is the first birth that every person experiences as a baby being born into this world. Every human birth is a momentous miraculous event, especially, of course, for mother and child. It is an event that demands total participation of both and no mother ever forgets the experience. Family and friends mark the great event and honor the annual anniversaries—birthdays—with celebrations. Nevertheless, the Lord referred to this event as being born “from below.”
It is exactly the same regarding one’s new birth. It is a momentous, miraculous event. Being born again spiritually is actually a much greater event than one’s natural birth. When the early believers were born again they were totally changed. They had surrendered their old life. It ceased to exist. Each of them then became a new person, a completely new creation, with new spiritual desires, new intentions, and new ambitions and aims. They became totally dedicated to their Lord and Master and sought only His will for their lives. Each became real disciples. Each was born “from above.”
There was clear separation between the old and the new. There was a sharp line of demarcation between one’s old life and new life. This was illustrated perfectly in the historical record of those early initial days of real Christianity. There was no blurring of the lines or gradual transformations. Lives were changed quickly and completely. Bridges were burned. They never looked back. They had no rearview mirrors. There was no possibility of returning to one’s old life since it had been destroyed. Putting Him first meant replacing whatever was previously first. The early believers loved the Lord Jesus so much there was never any thought of not giving Him their entire hearts. This is the very definition of the New Covenant.
Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’” [John 3:5-7]
Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. [2Corinthians 5:17]
“Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven.
“Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and a man’s enemies will be the members of his household.
“He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who has found his life will lose it, and he who has lost his life for My sake will find it.” [Matthew 10:32-39]
THE EXAMPLE OF PENTECOST
The greatest case in point regarding the Gideon Paradigm was what happened on the initial Day of Pentecost when the New Community of the Lord was birthed. This Community, otherwise known as the Ekklesia (Greek), or Church, or Qahal (Hebrew), or spiritual Temple built with living stones, was brought forth with the simultaneous new births of 120 people. Though this might be characterized as a large group, especially since they were congregated in a single Upper Room, it was actually an extremely small group compared to the multiple tens of thousands that heard the Lord’s teachings, and the likely thousands of those who followed Him.
If the 120 in the Upper Room represented Gideon’s 300, which was chosen from 32,000, then the total from which the 120 were chosen was 12,800.
It is entirely possible that there were 12,800 people who followed the Lord during His ministry. They were dedicated enough to follow Him to varying degrees but the vast majority were not chosen for Pentecost.
The powerful impact the initial 120 made is still being made today. They were the initial seed of the entire worldwide Body of Christ of which the Lord was the initial seed of them. Just as He was planted into the ground in death to bring forth new life, so were the 120 planted in death, characterized by their absolute repentance and sacrificial offering, to bring forth new life.
Regarding the Great Awakening in America, it is no different than what happened in the beginning or at any other spiritual awakening in history. It began small, behind the scenes. It grew in strength and numbers. It is not connected to Christian business as usual, in which there is no spiritual power or dedication toward great change for the better.
Unlike Unreal Christianity, which refuses to fully submit to and honor the Lord Jesus, has made friends with the world and declines to engage in spiritual battle, is complacent under the ever-restrictive yoke of the enemy, serves money rather than serving the Lord, and embraces spiritual pride to the nth degree (sound familiar?), the relative few real Christians in this country have been chosen “for such a time as this.”
DESTROYING THE ALTAR OF BAAL
When we last left off with Gideon in Part 4 of this series, he had overcome his fear, obeyed the Lord, and destroyed his father’s altar of Baal and accompanying wooden Asherah, a female goddess totem. This altar and graven image obviously was honored by the entire village which chose to serve Baal and his consort rather than God. As the Lord had done so many times before and afterwards with specific chosen ones, he directed Gideon to the location where the devil had made an outer monument to lay claim to that particular territory, which was both physical and spiritual. One might recall the Lord did the same with Abraham when He first brought him to Canaan. Abraham effectively placed a spiritual flag in the ground on the very spot of the devil’s seat of power and spiritual war for the rights to that land was inaugurated. This is exactly what the Lord called Gideon to do, as follows:
Now on the same night the LORD said to him, “Take your father’s bull and a second bull seven years old, and pull down the altar of Baal which belongs to your father, and cut down the Asherah that is beside it; and build an altar to the LORD your God on the top of this stronghold in an orderly manner, and take a second bull and offer a burnt offering with the wood of the Asherah which you shall cut down.” Then Gideon took ten men of his servants and did as the LORD had spoken to him… [Judges 6:25-27] [1]
An Altar of Baal has been established in America for a very long time. It has grown more pronounced and powerful. What is much worse, however, is that this altar has been extended to exist within the realm of American Christianity in general. Large numbers of Christians have accepted this demonic altar, whether they know it or not. Most have likely been entranced, unaware that their leaders, who they have pledged themselves to, are compromised. Because most of these reject the actual new birth, they do not possess the “eyes to see” what is actually transpiring in the spiritual world and are thus deceived.
To counteract the enemy, the Lord Jesus brings forth new spiritually born-again believers to do as Gideon did. He begins the process of reformation by destroying the altars of Baal belonging to “their fathers.” Before Gideon acted, however, he had to experience his own personal Great Awakening. It is the same with all such new believers.
VALIANT WARRIORS
Like these new believers before their born again experience, Gideon had been convinced that he was worthless and inferior, that he was a totally ineffective and obscure nothing of a man. He was in the same fight for survival as everyone else and had no clue what he really was. His true identity, that of a valiant warrior, had been attacked by an unrelenting vociferous enemy—possibly beginning in childhood—the same enemy that attacks all real believers and real believers to be. What is probably the most important point here is that Gideon was likely made to feel this way about himself by his own father Joash and members of his household, society, and sect. They forced and browbeat him into compliance with their socially mandated dead religion and threatened disfellowship and abandonment if he wavered.
It is often the fear of social rejection that keeps people bound to groups that oppose the Lord Jesus or pretend to be Christians. When God called Gideon out and raised him up, He also called him to expose and oppose his former errant religious affiliation and all others in contention against the Lord.
Indeed, it takes a valiant warrior to do that.
Then the men of the city said to Joash, “Bring out your son, that he may die, for he has torn down the altar of Baal, and indeed, he has cut down the Asherah which was beside it.” But Joash said to all who stood against him, “Will you contend for Baal, or will you deliver him? Whoever will plead for him shall be put to death by morning. If he is a god, let him contend for himself, because someone has torn down his altar.” Therefore on that day he named him Jerubbaal, that is to say, “Let Baal contend against him,” because he had torn down his altar. [Judges 6:30-32]
© 2021 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
GIDEON’S 300: WHY A SMALL GROUP OF REAL CHRISTIANS IS ALWAYS BETTER THAN 32,000 PRETENDERS [Part 4: Destroying Spiritual Strongholds]
Now on the same night the LORD said to him, “Take your father’s bull and a second bull seven years old, and pull down the altar of Baal which belongs to your father, and cut down the Asherah that is beside it…” [Judges 6:25]
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The official United States population as of today is approximately 332.67 million. According to the Gideon paradigm, in which Gideon’s prospective army to be used against the Midianites starts out at 32,000 but is reduced by God to 300, the reduction in percentage terms is over 99%. Imagine that. God reduces a sizable force of 32,000 warriors to a microscopic 300.
Thus, the actual percentage of the people who made the team—Gideon’s 300—is less than 1%. Technically, it is only .9375%. In terms of the United States population, this greatly reduced force would be equivalent to roughly 3.1 million people (3,118,781.25). In other words, if the Lord wanted to perform another Gideon power play to rout the forces of invading evil, and if He started with the entire U.S. population, He would make such a drastic reduction to arrive at those who qualified for His team that He would only have the equivalent of a mere 3.1 million Americans remaining.
This makes one wonder, of course, what the remainder would be if He started with only those who qualified at the onset as warriors. In other words, after eliminating children, the too young, the too old, and all the others who do not qualify for various reasons, He might start with only a fraction of the U.S. population. Americans between the ages of 20 and 40 are approximately 25% of the populace. If, let’s say, only 75% of these qualify, the Lord would start with about 62 million. Reduced according to the Gideon paradigm, the final fighting force would be only about 600,000. This represents less than a fifth of 1%. Could a minuscule 600,000 Americans perform the necessary work to do what Gideon did?
WICKED EXCEEDINGLY
This reminds me of Abraham’s prayer regarding Sodom and Gomorrah. When the Lord told Abraham that judgment might certainly befall the dwellers of those cities Abraham asked Him, “Will You indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked?” (Genesis 18:23).
“What if fifty righteous people dwell in Sodom?”
“I will spare it.”
“What about forty-five?”
“I will spare it.”
“How about forty?”
“I will spare it.”
“Thirty?”
“I will spare it.”
“Twenty?”
“I will spare it.”
“What if only ten righteous people dwell there?”
“I will spare it.”
It is difficult to gauge what the population of Sodom was but ten people would have to be an extremely small percentage. As it was, God was able to rescue only four people and help them escape. No one else cared. Nobody else wanted to leave. One wonders if even those four wanted to leave. It is safe, to say, therefore, that Sodom had reached a point of total depravity with absolutely no hope of redemption. If the four that escaped represented 1%, then the population of Sodom was 400. If the four represented a fifth of 1%, the total population was 2,000. Of course, it was likely larger than this, maybe much larger. But God never would have destroyed Sodom if only ten righteous people lived there. He would never release His wrath on His own people. He would make a way for them to escape before judgment fell.
These two Biblical accounts tell us two things: (1) Righteous people have a much bigger impact on society than is otherwise supposed or acknowledged. (2) The Lord can do great things with only a few.
AMERICA 2021
Christians have been predicting great judgment upon America for a very long time. It is not any different today. Is it true, however, to say that the country is more depraved now that at other times in the past? Not necessarily. The real history of America involves massive amounts of unreported sin, much of it in very high places. It is often the case that gross sin is legitimized or even recategorized as not sin at all. Sometimes people at the top make decisions that negatively affect millions of people because they have a different agenda that benefits them and no one else. They must thus use excellent propaganda to eliminate suspicion. This is sin of the worst kind but if people don’t recognize it as such the perpetrators go unpunished and are never stopped. The Lord sees it all, however. That’s why He raises up spiritual Gideons.
Much of the sin at various points in history was not seen as sin at the time. Much of past sin is still not seen that way. In reality, God could have judged America many times already. Maybe He has in part. But those calling for outright destruction due to sins of the present are not only out of their tree, they are not considering God’s mercy and compassion, His abundant grace, and the fact that large numbers of righteous people have always lived here and still live here today.
If we define the righteous as those who do the will of God, who can be used of God, who strive to please the Lord, who have 100% trust and confidence in the Lord, and who are spiritually effective in making a positive difference for the better, then it is probably a small number of people percentage wise. But what if it was, as I mentioned previously, only 600,000? Could a mere 600,000 righteous people make a big difference in a nation of 332.67 million?
To answer that we need only look at what Gideon’s 300 did. We can look at the extremely powerful impact Abraham had both in his time and that of his descendants. These men and those comprising the ongoing remnant of Israel were righteous. They acted as the salt of society, as a preservative, and an antiseptic force that enabled a flowing distribution of righteousness throughout society against ubiquitous rot. If not for the righteous it would have been all over when the last of the righteous died off, but Israel never reached that point. No matter how far the nation strayed into sin there was always a faithful portion that stayed true to God. It was because God always found someone to stand up for Him to do the hard thing—the difficult but victorious task—against the forces of evil that always caused evil to be checked and allowed righteousness to make a comeback.
Consider what the young obscure Gideon did in the following passage. Get inspired.
Now on the same night the LORD said to him, “Take your father’s bull and a second bull seven years old, and pull down the altar of Baal which belongs to your father, and cut down the Asherah that is beside it; and build an altar to the LORD your God on the top of this stronghold in an orderly manner, and take a second bull and offer a burnt offering with the wood of the Asherah which you shall cut down.”
Then Gideon took ten men of his servants and did as the LORD had spoken to him; and because he was too afraid of his father’s household and the men of the city to do it by day, he did it by night. When the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was torn down, and the Asherah which was beside it was cut down, and the second bull was offered on the altar which had been built. They said to one another, “Who did this thing?” And when they searched about and inquired, they said, “Gideon the son of Joash did this thing.” Then the men of the city said to Joash, “Bring out your son, that he may die, for he has torn down the altar of Baal, and indeed, he has cut down the Asherah which was beside it.” [Judges 6:25-30] [1]
© 2021 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
SHOW US THE FATHER
The Lord Jesus taught in part by using parables. The greatest parable in His teachings is largely unrecognized. It regards His actual identity. Many Christians have yet to receive the full revelation.
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For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; and the government will rest on His shoulders; and His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness from then on and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this. [Isaiah 9:6-7]
“These things I have spoken to you in figurative language; an hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figurative language, but will tell you plainly of the Father.” [John 16:25]
WHO DO YOU SAY THAT I AM?
Real Christians believe that Jesus is God. Most Christians do not believe that Jesus is God the Father. Think about that.
We obviously have reams of New Covenant Scripture expressly proclaiming in no uncertain terms that Jesus is not only the Son of Man and the Son of God but God Himself. We also have reams of Old Testament prophetic Scripture expressly proclaiming the same thing. As a method to prove this, focusing only on one aspect of the Lord’s identity—that of Savior—are the following verses:
I have called upon You, for You will answer me, O God; incline Your ear to me, hear my speech. Wondrously show Your lovingkindness, O Savior of those who take refuge at Your right hand from those who rise up against them. [Psalm 17:6-7]
“You are My witnesses,” declares the LORD, “And My servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe Me and understand that I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, and there will be none after Me. I, even I, am the LORD, and there is no Savior besides Me.” [Isaiah 43:10-11]
“Declare and set forth your case; indeed, let them consult together. Who has announced this from of old? Who has long since declared it? Is it not I, the LORD? And there is no other God besides Me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is none except Me.” [Isaiah 45:21]
“Yet I have been the LORD your God Since the land of Egypt; and you were not to know any god except Me, for there is no Savior besides Me.” [Hosea 13:4]
Regarding who is referred to as Savior in the New Testament, we have additional Names and Titles:
And Mary said: “My soul exalts the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.” [Luke 1:46-47]
“From the descendants of this man (David), according to promise, God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, after John had proclaimed before His coming a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel.” [Acts 13:23-24]
For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; [Philippians 3:20]
This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. [1Timothy 2:3-4]
For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers. [1Timothy 4:10]
Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior. [Titus 1:4]
…Looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus… [Titus 2:13]
From these verses it is obvious that Scripture claims there is only one Savior, not two or several, and that this one Savior is God. Yet the preceding verses of Scripture also refer to this one Savior by several different Names and Titles:
- God (El)
- God (Elohim)
- God (Theos)
- LORD (Adonai—YHWH)
- Lord (Kurios)
- Jesus (Iesous)
- Lord Jesus Christ (Kurios Iesous Christos)
- Christ Jesus (Christos Iesous)
This obviously does not mean that these are different persons but the same Person with different Names and Titles.
KING OF KINGS
The OT prophets said an Israelite Messiah (Anointed One) was coming. Most Christians understand that. But the OT prophets also said the coming Messiah would not be as the culturally understood anointed ones of that time, primarily the Hebrew kings, but would be the greatest Anointed One: The final King, the everlasting King, and the King of kings. In ancient times, many centuries before the Messiah’s arrival, they proclaimed there would be a time far into the future when the Messiah would once again take His rightful place that He formerly possessed among His people prior to their rejection of Him.
This term King of kings was used three times in the Old Testament as a reference to the greatest earthly king on the planet. It referred twice to Nebuchadnezzar, the king of the Babylonian Empire and once to Artaxerxes, the king of the Persian Empire. King of kings also occurs three times in the New Testament, each time, of course, referring to the Lord Jesus. So again, the Messiah is referred to in Scripture as the greatest King of all with all authority in both heaven and earth (far greater authority than any earthly king or emperor).
With reference to the nation of Israel, historians refer to King Saul as Israel’s first king. He became king of Israel in 1050BC. In reality, Saul was Israel’s first earthly king. From the beginning, however, it was always God who was Israel’s King. The Creator became known to Israel primarily as YHWH, the “Self-Existent or Eternal.” Though the actual pronunciation of this Name is largely unknown, we have come to accept its pronunciation as Yahweh (´Yah way). A later constructed form is Jehovah, but there is no letter J in the Hebrew alphabet. The Hebrew scribes, due to their great respect and honor for God, rather than writing His Name and possibly profaning it, substituted another word in Scripture. The word they used to replace His Name is the Hebrew word Adonai which is translated in the English Old Testament as LORD (all caps). So whenever you see the word LORD in the OT, it would have otherwise been directly translated as YHWH.
The nation of Israel, however, due to its great rebellion and sin, often had a big problem with YHWH. This came to a head during the time of Samuel the prophet, the last of the Hebrew Judges. Israel had reached a point of such great sin it rejected its distinct calling as a light to the Gentiles and select of God, and insisted upon being as other nations. They demanded an earthly king. This was a total rejection of their God who had always been their rightful King:
The LORD said to Samuel, “Listen to the voice of the people in regard to all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me from being king over them.” [1Samuel 8:7]
In reading the Old Testament regarding the identity of the future Messiah and coming King of kings, many Christians don’t really make the connection that this Man, the Messiah, would also be God. Or they do, but they don’t. They get it maybe in part but not completely. They fail to see that the Messiah would be YHWH reclaiming His sovereignty. It is often simply too difficult a concept to grasp that a mere Man could be God, that the God of the Old Testament is the Son of God of the New Testament. I mean, if Jesus was God, why was He always praying to God? And yet, Jesus revealed Himself as God on multiple occasions. Many people state that He never said any such thing, but I will remind everyone that God speaks in different languages, such as by spiritual revelation, in parables or figurative language, and also “plainly” through words and grammar.
Others have turned the identity of the Lord Jesus into an unexplainable mystery. They have created mental constructs and counterfeit personas with apparent surface meaning that inevitably fail the test of wholly agreeing with Scripture. Some cop out of the discussion completely by weakly asserting that we’ll figure out the Lord’s identity when we get to heaven in that there is no way to know it otherwise. For such people there is no use in trying to go deep into Scriptural truth since they limit themselves to their shallow understandings. There is nothing in Scripture, however, that gives forth the idea that we cannot know God or that God is hopelessly mysterious, but the very opposite. It is a major part of why God became a Man. He arrived on these shores to reveal who He is and show what He is like. How else was He to do this toward human beings severed from communication with Him, dulled by sin, and spiritually distant unless He became one of us?
FATHER AND SON
The following passage is rich in meaning, so rich that many pass right over it without understanding its full import. It is parabolic in nature and again, involves direct revelation:
“All things have been handed over to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.” [Luke 10:22]
In this verse, the Lord Jesus states:
- The Father has handed over all things to the Son
- Only the Father knows who the Son is
- Only the Son knows who the Father is
- Others can know who the Father is but only if the Son wills to reveal Him to them
From this we know that no one will ever know who the Father is except by direct revelation. If the Lord Jesus wills to reveal the identity of the Father to a person, then that person will know. Otherwise a person will never know. This means the Lord chooses to whom He will reveal the identity of the Father. This also means that there must be some common denominator among those who receive the revelation of the identity of the Father. In other words, the Lord is not capricious or arbitrary in His choosing. He never plays favorites. It is therefore up to the individual on whether or not to be qualified to receive the revelation.
Take a look at these clues from Luke 10:22:
- The Father possessed “all things” but gave “all things” to the Son. This must mean the Father no longer possesses “all things.” It means the Son then possessed “all things.” The Father had “all things” and then no longer had them. The Son did not have “all things” and then took possession of them.
- Only the Father knows who the Son is? How can this be? Did not more than a few during the Lord’s time know who the Son of God was? Affirmative. But those who did only knew by divine revelation. That’s how Peter found out: “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 16:17). The point here is that the Son had always been hidden by the Father. Only the Father would know who He was. The Son was incognito in this sense. He would never look the part. He was likely the very opposite of a guy like King Saul who was tall, handsome, popular and specifically chosen by all the people.
- The Son is the only One who knows who the Father is and also the only One who can reveal Him. The Father revealed the Son to Peter. On the other hand, the Son revealed the Father to Philip. Both revelations pointed to the same Person.
One might recall (as I mentioned previously) that the Lord Jesus said, right before He ascended to heaven, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth” (Matthew 28:18). This is a very bold statement. Only God has that kind of authority. If one insists that God is someone other than the Lord Jesus then how can the Lord Jesus have all of God’s authority in both heaven and earth?
THE LANGUAGE OF SPIRITUAL REVELATION
The Old Testament patriarchs were noted for being relative loners and wanderers. They were seen as somewhat eccentric by the world at large because they were seemingly forever drifting around in a nomadic spiritual sense marching to the beat of a very different Drummer. They traversed the great quiet of deserts and wilderness areas raising their head to the winds and hearing voices.
It reminds one of Ray Kinsella in the movie Field of Dreams hearing a voice out in his corn field. On a trip into town one day after hearing “the voice” Ray tries to gain some understanding of what has happened to him. Seeking clues, he has the following conversation with a veteran farmer at the farm supply store:
Ray: “In all those years, did you ever… I’ve heard that sometimes farmers out in the field… hear things. Voices.”
Old Timer: “You’re hearing voices?”
Ray: “No. It’s just that I heard some farmers do, and… I, of course, don’t, so I was wondering if I was doing something wrong, or something. Did you ever hear voices out there?”
Cashier: “Who’s hearing voices?”
Old Timer: “Ray is! Out in the fields.”
Ray: “No! No, I’m not. Really. Noises! That darn tractor, it’s… Well, I’ll just get some 3-in-1 oil, that should… Nice talking to you.” [1]
One wonders if Abraham had a similar conversation with Sarah. Or anyone. The point, of course, is that if one is hearing voices out in the wilderness (or in a corn field near you), and in the case of the Biblical patriarchs, one particular voice, then one might be careful with whom one might share the information. This should not be a problem for Christians, however, since the entire Bible has the same theme running through it. Christians should not be embarrassed by this. All those who were close to God were hearing His voice, both in the Old Testament and New, and some were even seeing Him. Aghast.
These people were in the decided minority (understatement alert). There were only a few. Which means the vast majority probably thought those guys were nuts because they themselves never heard or saw anything. And they never hung out in the wilderness alone either. Prior to the coming of the Kingdom of God (of which He is the King) the Lord Jesus said the greatest man born of women who ever lived was a prophet who hung out in the wilderness alone, just like those eccentric patriarchs of many centuries past. But this guy John the Immerser was greater than all of them, which was quite astounding when you think about it. And he looked like a caveman. And the Lord spent much time in the wilderness alone also. And so did Noah. And Abraham. And Moses. And the apostle Paul:
But when God, who had set me apart even from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, was pleased to reveal His Son in me so that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with flesh and blood, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went away to Arabia… [Galatians 1:15-17]
Paul was out in the desert a long time. Some say three years. I have no doubt he went on a forty day fast at least once. It was where, hearing the Voice, that the Lord taught him one on one. It was where Paul received the revelation of the Father’s identity and where the Gospel was revealed to him:
For I would have you know, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. [Galatians 1:11-12]
So here we have yet again that spiritual marvel known as direct revelation. The only One who ever revealed to Paul the Gospel was the Lord Jesus Himself, out in the wilderness, alone. Imagine that. This is not how 99% of Christian ministers receive the Gospel. Perhaps this is why their various versions of the Gospel are different than the one Paul preached.
The direct revelation thread runs all through the Bible. It is God reaching out to man. It is God actually attempting to communicate with man. Why then, if God is talking, do so few hear Him? Apparently, Noah, Abraham, Moses, John the Immerser, and Paul were all listening. They were paying attention. They sought God. They had a hunger for Truth. So those who revert back to the tired argument that these men were simply special and chosen in some unknown arbitrary manner, which explains their communication with God, and that their spiritual status had nothing to do with a greater personal faith in God and an unceasing desire to seek Him, are being their usual shallow selves as part of a status quo faithless Christian majority. We even have otherwise brilliant Christians who have latched onto Cessationism and believe that Book of Acts happenings ended in the first century. What? Are the hundreds of millions of Pentecostals and Charismatics in the world all deluded or faking it?
Again, the greatest parable in the Bible is the true identity of the Lord Jesus. Without the actual revelation one reverts to any unspiritual and unscriptural natural understanding and interpretation, either by indoctrination or personal opinion. The tried and true among Christians in this regard is that Jesus must be a lesser entity than God even though some are forced to admit that Jesus is God simply because there are far too many verses of Scripture stating such. But how can Jesus be both God and less than God?
“If you loved Me, you would have rejoiced because I go to the Father, for the Father is greater than I.” [John 14:28]
“I and the Father are one.” The Jews picked up stones again to stone Him. Jesus answered them, “I showed you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you stoning Me?” The Jews answered Him, “For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy; and because You, being a man, make Yourself out to be God.” [John 10:30-33]
Some Christians think they must seek out God the Father because their relationship with the Lord Jesus is somehow lacking or limited. Of course, whoever does this has no actual relationship with the Lord Jesus. Some Christians pray to the Holy Spirit the same way one would pray to the Lord Jesus. Some teach that we must pray only to the Father “in the name of Jesus” but never directly to Jesus. Whatever the case, any effort to do an end around or bypass the Lord Jesus to get to God is a violation of His teachings:
“No one comes to the Father but through Me.” [John 14:6]
THE MESSIAH
The word Messiah is from the Hebrew word Mashiach which means “Anointed” or “Anointed One.” It is Christos in the Greek and transliterated into English as the word Christ. In terms of relative spiritual anointing, the Messiah is seen as He with by far the greatest anointing of God. One may recall that the Lord Jesus possessed the Spirit of God without measure (John 3:34). Prior to Pentecost, He would thus be the One who gave the Holy Spirit.
Speaking of which, there is an interesting word construct in two separate verses exactly a chapter apart in the Gospel of John regarding both the identity of the Father and Son and just who it would be that would send the Holy Spirit. One might think it to be a contradiction. Another will understand it as a clue to a revelation:
“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.” [John 14:26]
“When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me” [John 15:26]
To be anointed is to be anointed with the Spirit of God. The Messiah was the Anointed One anointed with the Spirit. Yet the Messiah, the One who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, says He will also send the Holy Spirit. He says this after first being reported to say the Father would send the Spirit. Of course, before the Son could send the Spirit He would have to “go to the Father.” Therefore, the One who sends the Spirit is identified as both Father and Son.
On one occasion the Lord was off in a remote location away from the crowds. His close disciples were with Him. He chose this occasion as a teaching moment and to gauge their understanding of His identity:
And it happened that while He was praying alone, the disciples were with Him, and He questioned them, saying, “Who do the people say that I am?” They answered and said, “John the Baptist, and others say Elijah; but others, that one of the prophets of old has risen again.” And He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” And Peter answered and said, “The Christ of God.” But He warned them and instructed them not to tell this to anyone… [Luke 9:18-21]
The Lord’s time was one of Messianic expectation. It is said that the Israelites were the only nation that lived in the future, in that no matter what happened in the present there were prophecies telling of great times to come. Part of that was, of course, the arrival of the Messiah. He would be the One to lead them to victory at last, to assist them in overcoming their low stature and becoming who they were always meant to be. He would help them reach their destiny.
As times grew closer to His advent, starting about two centuries before in the early second century BC, several unprecedented events took place, one of which was the first successful Israelite uprising against the major powers. The Maccabees, a national Israelite political entity which began as a group of rebel fighters revolting against the Greek Seleucid kings, came forth throwing off the yoke for a time and created a new independent kingdom, the Hasmonean Dynasty. The spirit of the first century Zealots can be traced to the Maccabees. Presently, the Zealots have manifested as the Zionists of our time.
Also, the major religious parties got their start: The Essenes were created from a priesthood group breaking off from the temple priesthood and setting up shop in the desert out by the Dead Sea in a settlement known as Qumran. These were thus somewhat akin to the ancients but existed primarily as a fraternal communal brotherhood. They later expanded and segments were found in the populated areas.
The Pharisees, or separated ones, also began in this era, rooted in a group known as the Hasidim. Two central divisions of this major sect eventually arose about a century later based on its two greatest rabbis, Hillel and Shammai, who each began Pharisaic schools in the generation prior to that of the Lord Jesus. The apostle Paul (Saul) was a student of Gamaliel of the Hillel school. In New Testament times this Gamaliel, a respected member of the Sanhedrin, was the voice of reason against the murderous crazies of the court and essentially saved the lives of Peter and the apostles (See Acts 5:34).
The Sadducees emerged as a distinct party at this time as well. This group was the latest organized form containing the wealthy and those with large landed estates who had essentially ruled Judea in place of a king since the return from the Babylonian Captivity in the sixth century BC. The Sadducees were thus tied in closely with Seleucid, Ptolemaic, and eventually Roman wealth and politics. Choosing to live for this world, they had no concern or belief in the resurrection or a spiritual realm.
We can see this same general breakdown in parties and beliefs in Unreal Christianity. Much was coming together in those two centuries BC for the final conflict of the Last Days of the nation and they each had their own version of who the Messiah was and what He would do for them.
When at last, the Messiah arrived, in perfect accordance with Daniel’s prophecy of weeks (right on time), He was largely unrecognized. Indeed, according to the major parties and pretty much everyone in power with a stake in what He could and would do for them, He was unrecognizable. Incognito, as it were. This was their King, the One the nation had rejected over a thousand years before when they selected King Saul. And to show just how stiffnecked the proponents of these major religious and political parties still were after all those centuries and even more so, they did a lot more than just reject Him this time around.
They had invested everything in a false interpretation. When their version of the Messiah never showed up in the life of the Lord Jesus, even though He perfectly met all the applicable prophetic requirements, they continued looking elsewhere. How dense must people be to either not see and/or reject all the clues? How could they be so wrong?
As it turns out Christians have been just as wrong. God Himself is looking right at them and they still don’t see Him. They fail to see Him for the very same reasons the Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, and bloodthirsty Zealots never saw Him. This is especially surprising regarding the Essenes. They saw the times better than any of their major counterparts. Indeed, because they were out in the desert and away from the corrupt religious, monetary, and political activity of Jerusalem, one would think they couldn’t miss. They came somewhat close. Their Dead Sea Scrolls, discovered in 1947 in caves next to their ruined compound, contained many references to their “Teacher of Righteousness.” They wrote of The War of the Sons of Light against the Sons of Darkness. They knew what was afoot regarding the coming Messiah but from what we know, as a group, they never recognized the Lord Jesus as such.
The problem each of these groups shared was that their focus remained on this world instead of the spiritual world. They each wanted a Messiah within that context. Again, erring facets of Christianity, including major mainline bodies, make the same mistake. They refuse to accept the reality of the Lord’s spiritual Kingdom and create one of their own with their own respective version of King Saul.
With the exception of the Pharisees, the other three major Jewish parties each came to an end after the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in 70AD. The Sadducees faded out and dissolved shortly thereafter. The Zealots, the party eventually granted authority by the others who brought on the conflagration against Rome, ceased to exist at the tragedy of Masada in 74AD. The Essenes might have gotten an extinction head start on the others around 68AD when the Romans destroyed their settlement at Qumran. It is thought that this disaster is what precipitated the hiding of their cherished library in nearby caves before their final retreat and disappearance. They obviously never returned to reclaim them.
The nation of Israel also came to an end and was forever gone with the wind. The Pharisees reconstituted themselves from the smoking detritus and burned rubble in even greater stubbornness and rebellion to keep their party alive though barely breathing. Through many transformations and geographical movements over the centuries their party eventually became what we know today as Orthodox Judaism. And they still hate the Lord Jesus with a passion.
THE REMNANT
The only ones who did recognize the Lord were apparently part of an obscure unconnected group of nobodies known originally by the Scriptural term as the “Remnant.” We first hear of this idea of a surviving remnant in Genesis 45:7 when Joseph explains to his family that he was sent ahead as a slave to Egypt as a method to preserve them. Spiritually speaking, of course, he was assisting God in not only preserving his family and the future nation of Israel but also preserving the Messianic genealogical line. This line had suffered severe attack from the very beginning when Abel was killed by his own brother. Since the Lord Jesus was to descend from Abel his murder made that impossible. It was a victory for the devil. However, the line was reestablished over a century later with the birth of Seth, the third listed son of Adam and Eve:
Adam had relations with his wife again; and she gave birth to a son, and named him Seth, for, she said, “God has appointed me another offspring in place of Abel, for Cain killed him.” To Seth, to him also a son was born; and he called his name Enosh. Then men began to call upon the name of the LORD. [Genesis 4:25-26]
A few millennia later, this concept of the remnant is illustrated as follows in the times of Hezekiah, circa 700BC:
“The surviving remnant of the house of Judah will again take root downward and bear fruit upward. For out of Jerusalem will go forth a remnant, and out of Mount Zion survivors. The zeal of the LORD will perform this.” [2 Kings 19:30-31]
Two and a half centuries later, long after the Babylonian Captivity during the time of Ezra’s arrival in the land of Judah, approximately 458BC, we hear again of this surviving remnant of God’s people. In the ninth chapter narrative, the book of Ezra uses much descriptive and dramatic imagery filled with pathos and hope describing those few who remain of the once great nation of Israel, including clear prophetic undertones. Ezra is quoted wailing against the current great sin of his remaining people:
“O my God, I am ashamed and embarrassed to lift up my face to You, my God, for our iniquities have risen above our heads and our guilt has grown even to the heavens. Since the days of our fathers to this day we have been in great guilt, and on account of our iniquities we, our kings and our priests have been given into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity and to plunder and to open shame, as it is this day. But now for a brief moment grace has been shown from the LORD our God, to leave us an escaped remnant and to give us a peg in His holy place, that our God may enlighten our eyes and grant us a little reviving in our bondage. [Ezra 9:6-8]
“After all that has come upon us for our evil deeds and our great guilt, since You our God have requited us less than our iniquities deserve, and have given us an escaped remnant as this, shall we again break Your commandments and intermarry with the peoples who commit these abominations? Would You not be angry with us to the point of destruction, until there is no remnant nor any who escape? O LORD God of Israel, You are righteous, for we have been left an escaped remnant, as it is this day; behold, we are before You in our guilt, for no one can stand before You because of this.” [Ezra 9:13-15]
In the interim since the first return of the Hebrews from Babylon to the time of Ezra, a period of roughly eighty years, factions of this returned remnant in the land, including priests, had intermarried with local non-Hebrew women of various heathen peoples including Canaanites, Moabites, and Egyptians and produced offspring. This was no way to reestablish the Yehudi as a distinct people. As a result their racial mix was even further diluted. This same lack of discretion had occurred many times in the past going all the way back to the time after Joshua a millennia before. Ezra appears to have made a successful effort to correct the problem as much as one could but this departure led to the dedicated remnant becoming ever smaller over the next five centuries until the Lord’s arrival.
In its long history, the devil was constantly scheming and attacking the Messianic generational line because he knew he must keep the Messiah from arriving. And unlike so many Israelites and Christians, the devil and his minions knew very well who the Messiah was long before He came and who He would be when He arrived, and had great respect for Him. The following historical account is a great study in microcosmic terms of the ongoing spiritual battle from ancient times on this planet and a revealing depiction of what goes on daily all around us in the unseen spiritual world:
Then they sailed to the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee. And when He came out onto the land, He was met by a man from the city who was possessed with demons; and who had not put on any clothing for a long time, and was not living in a house, but in the tombs. Seeing Jesus, he cried out and fell before Him, and said in a loud voice, “What business do we have with each other, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You, do not torment me.” For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For it had seized him many times; and he was bound with chains and shackles and kept under guard, and yet he would break his bonds and be driven by the demon into the desert. And Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Legion”; for many demons had entered him. They were imploring Him not to command them to go away into the abyss. Now there was a herd of many swine feeding there on the mountain; and the demons implored Him to permit them to enter the swine. And He gave them permission. And the demons came out of the man and entered the swine; and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned. [Luke 8:26-33]
Why didn’t the demons attack the Lord? If the name of this hoard of demons within a single man was a correct indication of their numbers, the demons amounted to over five thousand. Empowered by internal demonic forces the man was able to break chains and shackles. But instead of going after the Lord, the man and his many demons voluntarily fell before Him! They begged Him not to send them to the abyss. There was never any Man of such great and powerful magnitude in all of Israel. Even demons were terrified of Him:
You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. [James 2:19] [2]
Down through the centuries, despite ongoing demonic attacks, and at last an attempt through King Herod to kill the baby Jesus, the Messiah arrived anyway. And the Lord always had a believing remnant who knew exactly who He was. They were there in the first century. Though initially very small in number, they served as a solid, tested, and unrelenting nucleus to build around. Their presence allowed for the eventual blossoming of the Lord’s Community into multiple millions worldwide.
SHOW US THE FATHER
It seems as though the Lord Jesus was often not openly admitting to His true identity. I think it is because He knew it was necessary for people to receive the spiritual revelation rather than hear mere words which could easily bring on refutation and anger. This happened anyway among the hard core religious unbelievers who often flew into a rage at the mere semblance of His actual identity. It can thus be difficult and otherwise impossible to overcome such flagrant religious indoctrination and programming and this includes, of course, the Christian kind which is often the absolute worst. Direct revelation is the only thing that works best. As Peter discovered, what works better than God revealing to one’s heart the Word of Truth?
Perhaps the best verses which address the revelation of the Lord’s true identity are found in the fourteenth chapter of John’s gospel. By this time the disciples had heard much of the Lord’s figurative language, especially regarding His discourses on the Father. He was attempting to lead them to the revelation portal that they may gain answers and understanding from a spiritual source. In the following passage, Thomas had sincere questions about the Lord’s statement, especially as it regarded the unseen and unknown Father. So did Philip. Both had matured enough to ask direct queries of the Lord. They were ready to graduate from the figurative to the clear revelation:
“Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also. And you know the way where I am going.”
Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, how do we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; from now on you know Him, and have seen Him.”
Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?” [John 14:1-9]
© 2021 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] © 1988 Field of Dreams Screenplay by Phil Alden Robinson
[2] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
OUTING EVIL, RESISTING TEMPTATION, AND DODGING DESTRUCTION: A SPIRITUAL VICTORY PRIMER
Someone is causing a problem. But you don’t know who it is. At first, you actually don’t even know what it is.
.
God created a perfect world. Much of His original Creation still exists to a great degree, continues uncorrupted, and remains extremely beneficial. One thinks of the great outdoors, fresh fields, an isolated seacoast, clean air, and soft breezes. In such places one is much closer to the heart of the Creator because there is so little interference. In such a setting, one can quickly be saturated with good—with natural and spiritual benefits effectively raining down upon one’s presence—with no personal effort whatsoever.
Someone once said the best things in life are free. While this is a seemingly noble sentiment, though not actually true, the point is that much of what we require for good health in every respect truly is free, such as our aforementioned pure natural settings and the natural gifts thereof God has bestowed.
AND THEN CAME EVIL
Evil arises in many forms from apparently unknown invisible origins. It has a decided presence on the planet. It reaches out from a ubiquitous unperceived darkness not so far away from each of us. Some locales are darker than others. Its desire is to corrupt, infect, and distort. It hates purity and innocence.
Where does it come from? Rather than get into a far-flung exegesis, relegating the subject to the unexplainable, or addressing the philosophical problem of evil as it were, God goes right to the heart of the matter and makes it all very simple. He clearly identifies evil. He reveals its exact starting point. He shows us how it operates. He identifies a single source.
This source is extremely beguiling. It has its best results by operating through humanity. God tells us how this first occurred. It has been occurring that way ever since.
But how so? How does the source of evil cause people to listen to it and then convince people to obey it? Again, God makes it very simple for us by revealing the only three avenues the source of evil uses to tempt people to do its bidding. These three methods of temptation were revealed in the very beginning when the source of evil convinced the very first person in history to go over to the dark side. Before then humanity was absolutely good and pure. Afterwards every human being became familiar with evil and subject to the dark side. An iniquitous force had entered into the realm of humanity that it could not throw off. It could not purge itself of this evil. No matter what humanity attempted to do in ridding itself of immoral inclinations toward shameful behavior and undesired aftereffects that many members wanted no part of, it could not find a cure.
THE THREE TEMPTATIONS
Though it may appear that evil uses a wide array of schemes and procedures, and though this is true on an elementary level in which one is initially unaware of evil’s presence, objectives, and essential means of operation, its technique actually breaks down to only three principle methods. There is Door #1, Door #2, and Door #3. Sound familiar? All sin originates from behind these three doors. These are the three connecting points the source of evil uses to corrupt humanity. Each is one of the only three foundational means of temptation. These doors are presented as ways for evil to enter into a person.
Of course, an otherwise innocent naïve person does not comprehend that the entity attempting to cause one to enter such doors is the source of all evil, is pure evil, desires to spread its evil, and make yet another disciple of evil. Nevertheless, the person being tempted has a predisposed inherent interest in answering said door due to long held resident tendencies passed on by hundreds of generations in part because he or she never fully understands how malevolent, malicious, and wicked evil actually is or what will become of him or her as evil takes effect.
This makes one essentially defenseless. For the most part, a human being is no match for the great deceptive powers of the source of all evil. The devil is a superior actor. He pretends to be the opposite of what he is. This is how he takes advantage of simple-minded humans. He presents himself as innocent and good, a being no one should fear:
Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. [2Corinthians 11:14]
Therefore, one must first be aware of fakes. Almost everyone knows to fear obvious evil, but many do not protect themselves against those who merely pretend to be good, who wrap themselves in faux innocence, who adorn themselves with fake righteousness, who know how to put forth fake smiles, fake attitudes, and fake presentations. This is the devil’s game. It is the devil at his best. And since this is the ultimate manner of disguising himself in order to fool even the best and brightest among us, one should pay much more attention to getting up to speed in this area. One should study hard to gain the proper education in differentiating between the real and the fake so as not to be overcome by smiling shysters and glowing fraudsters wrapped up in faux decorum attempting to take advantage of you, gain authority over you, rip you off, and steal your soul.
This is where to start:
Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever. [1John 2:15-17]
These are the three temptations:
- The lust of the flesh
- The lust of the eyes
- The boastful pride of life
This is how the devil got Eve:
When the woman saw that the tree was good for food (the lust of the flesh), and that it was a delight to the eyes (the lust of the eyes), and that the tree was desirable to make one wise (the boastful pride of life), she took from its fruit and ate… [Genesis 3:6]
This is how the devil tried to get the Lord:
Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led around by the Spirit in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And He ate nothing during those days, and when they had ended, He became hungry. And the devil said to Him,
“If You are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.” And Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘MAN SHALL NOT LIVE ON BREAD ALONE.’”
And he led Him up and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said to Him, “I will give You all this domain and its glory; for it has been handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. Therefore if You worship before me, it shall all be Yours.” Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘YOU SHALL WORSHIP THE LORD YOUR GOD AND SERVE HIM ONLY.’”
And he led Him to Jerusalem and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here; for it is written, ‘HE WILL COMMAND HIS ANGELS CONCERNING YOU TO GUARD YOU,’ and, ‘ON their HANDS THEY WILL BEAR YOU UP, SO THAT YOU WILL NOT STRIKE YOUR FOOT AGAINST A STONE.’” And Jesus answered and said to him, “It is said, ‘YOU SHALL NOT PUT THE LORD YOUR GOD TO THE TEST.’”
When the devil had finished every temptation, he left Him until an opportune time. [Luke 4:1-13]
NO REPRESENTATION WITHOUT TEMPTATION
Whoever chooses to follow the Lord Jesus will be tempted by the devil in the same way. Whoever chooses to become a mature disciple of the Lord Jesus will be tempted by the devil in the same way. Whoever chooses to serve and work for the Lord Jesus will be tempted by the devil in the same way. Our spiritual success comes in part by successfully resisting temptation. This is obviously not an all or nothing proposition, however. There will be times of failure. Failure is when we disobey the Lord and obey the devil. There will be times of success. Success is when we obey the Lord and disobey the devil. The more we obey the Lord the greater the chances of spiritual success. The more we succeed the more spiritually mature we become. The more mature we become the better we are able to resist temptation.
The proper representation of the Lord on our part then, as disciples of His, depends on staying victorious in the temptation war. Whatever may cause us to be defeated must be defeated. We must live in spiritual victory and this demands overcoming the devil’s temptation and thus defeating him in spiritual battle. In order to insure victory, the Lord has made available the gift of His Holy Spirit.
A TALE OF TWO CITIES
For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, and we are ready to punish all disobedience, whenever your obedience is complete. [2Corinthians 10:3-6][1]
The devil has constructed strong military forts and fortifications with thick walls and armaments. He has many weapons at the ready trained and focused upon his enemies. Paul speaks here of the necessary spiritual attack upon the devil’s fortresses and strongholds. He tells us the Lord Jesus has supplied powerful spiritual weapons for His people that are very effective in blasting holes in the devil’s walls and even leveling the devil’s military forts. The Community of the Lord Jesus even has the power to blow the devil’s fortifications off the map.
Those who are actually doing this are the real Christians. They are those who have overcome temptation. They do not submit to the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, or the pride of life. They are not lovers of money. Christian Pharisees, however, are indeed lovers of money. They must have it in very large amounts. They cannot live without it. It helps them gain whatever they need to fulfill their lust of the flesh, their lust of the eyes, and their boastful pride of life. Rather than resist temptation, they serve the devil in order to receive all he can give them. How then is it possible for Unreal Christianity to fight a successful spiritual war? Those who not only fail repeatedly in the temptation wars to the point of surrender but also assist the devil in building and maintaining his military fortifications are the antithesis of the real Christian. However, things have become so clouded and deceptive within overall Christianity in general only a comparative few can see through the deception.
The original church community at Corinth was composed not only of the usual immature believers but also some who were still being heavily influenced by the particular evils of that city. The apostle Paul was working to help the congregation gain the necessary spiritual maturity all believers need but it was initially a tough fight. We may think of a similar circumstance regarding the nation of Israel after the Exodus. It was very tough for God to get the Egypt out of them. It was somewhat the same for Paul and his mature spiritual associates in getting Corinth out of the Corinthian believers. They were tempted with “speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God.” As residents of a powerfully sinful city, these believers previously had a big problem with the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. It was difficult for them to overcome spiritually but they did. The gift of salvation, God’s grace, and the infilling of the Spirit of God made all the difference. The devil could not compete with the Corinthian Pentecost.
When the congregation became mature, “taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ,” Paul was then ready to punish all disobedience. The remaining vestiges of demonic and fleshly control were singled out for defeat. The Christian Community at Corinth and other Gentile cities thus became powerful and strong toward defeating the devil’s authority in their respective locations. They may not have had complete success but each had various levels of success where none existed previously.
On the flip side, Jerusalem was a city where the devil’s authority was never defeated spiritually. Evil maintained its presence there to the point that the only remaining option was physical destruction. This is what awaits every collection of human beings large or small. Each will either change its ways and submit to the Lord Jesus or will face certain destruction. It is only a matter of time. And if you may be wondering, the Lord really doesn’t even have to be materially involved. They usually do it to themselves. This is what happened in Jerusalem in 70AD. Having rejected their Messiah who would have brought peace and victory, they chose leaders who ended up fighting one another and the vastly superior Roman forces who never wanted such a fight. This was a repeat performance of Israel’s ancient enemies who used to be subjected to the same, such as Midian during the time of Gideon when the Midianites turned against one another and destroyed themselves.
ON THE EVE OF DESTRUCTION
Whoever opposes the Lord Jesus is allied with the antichrist spirit. This can be a single individual or a vast metropolis. Destruction will always come to such people. It is inevitable. It may come through a series of destructive actions on the part of those in control, intentional or not. Whoever rejects the Lord Jesus will face destruction because He is the only cure against it. He is God. He is the Creator. It should be obvious that whoever opposes the Creator will also oppose anything and everything associated with His goodness. That leaves only one remaining choice and that choice has a time stamp. Why? Because God will not allow evil to exist except on a temporary basis. The same holds true for anything built that does not have His direct involvement or sanction.
Have you noticed that ancient builders were sometimes so good at their work that portions of it still stand? Other than the obvious massive structures that still remain, such as the Egyptian pyramids, we still have a few remaining structures from ancient Greece and the Roman Empire. The Romans were especially proficient at architectural design and developed a great understanding of natural forces and the requisite engineering to overcome them. To this day we have massive multilevel valley-spanning aqueducts, for example, that have withstood all natural earth movements and weather forces since first constructed. Imagine having that on your resume. And though earthquakes have destroyed many structures and even cities of the ancient world into the present, such aqueducts and other structures were built so well they remain victorious, though in ruined form, against the forces that would destroy them.
At the top of the list of destructive forces however, are entities of the non-natural and effective non-temporary form. These entities predate humanity. They were here before us. They are masters at their craft. They oppose God and always have. Most human beings are aligned with them whether they know it or not. Such people have been overcome by deception—“speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God.” They exist for a while, as do their cities and structures, maybe a long while, but all is temporary. Every world empire was seemingly invincible in its time. This was especially true of Rome. It was without question the greatest empire the world had ever seen, but was eventually overrun and completely destroyed. Other lesser forms of it arose but no other empire existed at the same level until the present, which too will cease to exist at some point in the future. One must understand, therefore, that those whose mission is destruction sow the seeds of their own destruction.
Whoever engages in the opposite of what the Lord taught us will thus receive the opposite of what He died to give us.
In the meantime, other forces are at work to give the destroyers a run for their money. We live on a planet with a moving, shifting surface that often shifts greatly and violently. Sometimes powerful explosive volcanoes burst forth. Massive floods happen. Disastrous hurricanes and tornadoes spin forth. Whatever lies in the vicinity of these purely natural destructive wonders is leveled. But earthquakes are perhaps the most deadly, largely because they happen with no immediate warning whatsoever. This is especially true even in areas of previous earthquake activity along moving, shifting tectonic plates and those containing known fault lines. Experts in the field are good at identifying where but not so much at when. They speak in terms of decades or perhaps centuries. Since many of these areas are monitored they only know when the big one hits right before it hits or as it hits, meaning actual warnings remain ineffective.
Regarding America, two locations of particular notice are the San Andreas Fault along the west coast running through California and the New Madrid seismic zone in the eastern Midwest located at the junction of Missouri, Kentucky, and Tennessee stretching into Arkansas. The experts say both areas are not only due but overdue. I recently read a book about the great San Francisco earthquake of 1906. It was published in 1971. The authors not only went into great detail of what happened in that event but also strongly warned against the next one which would surely come. According to expert predictions of that time an even greater earthquake should have already happened by now and is actually long overdue. I remember very well the San Francisco-Oakland earthquake of 1989. I also remember the Northridge, California quake of 1994. These were actually relatively minor, 6.9 and 6.7 on the Richter scale, while the quake of 1906 was a much larger and much more destructive 7.9. The later two may be seen as mere wake-up calls but it appears most people have gone back to sleep.
ETERNAL LIFE MATTERS
I find it extremely interesting that people so easily lose sight of these coming hugely destructive events. It reminds me of Noah. He warned everybody what was going to happen. He preached and built the Ark over a 120 year period. The more he preached the more they laughed. The more he warned the more they scoffed. The closer the time came for the great Flood to begin, the more the people collectively disbelieved and/or refused to pay attention. Noah eventually became a complete laughingstock, a madman. All the newspapers and social media of the time constantly portrayed him as an absolute moron. The peer pressure was so intense that anyone who may have otherwise heeded Noah’s warning chose instead to surrender to the will of the cultural narrative setters and religion hustlers as a false form of survival. To do otherwise would cause the complete destruction of their livelihoods and social standing. They knew they would suffer the same persecution as Noah but also knew they would never be able to handle it. The doomed were thus much more concerned about their reputations and current comfort level than righteousness and eternal life.
They did not want to be put out of the synagogue. They did not want to be perceived as crazy by their church friends. Still, one would think there would have been at least a few individuals who didn’t care what the great unthinking majority thought and joined Noah anyway. But no. They all went to their deaths believing the lie and rejecting a providential place of safety and survival.
Only Noah’s immediate family believed him.
Maybe that was the miracle.
© 2021 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
HAPPY TENTH BIRTHDAY REAL CHRISTIANITY
Today is my site’s ten year anniversary. I appreciate all of you who have read my posts over the years and have contributed. Thank you.
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It’s been a long haul. Like many of you, I have had roughly a million other things to attend to over the last decade but have always been faithful to this site. I have written posts from several locations. There have been interruptions, major changes, a few seriously tough times, and all the usual getting-on-with-life adjustments. I have written and posted roughly 700 blog posts so far, most in the two to four page range which amounts to thousands of pages.
There have been times when circumstances forced me to leave off writing but I always returned and hit it hard again. I have built up the site with many faithful readers only to lose most due to inactivity and then started over again. This has happened quite a few times, the most recent being the spring and summer of 2019. That is, until this year.
It is impossible to not be seriously affected by all that has happened in America over the last fourteen months. After the events of last autumn and especially at the beginning of this year I started sensing that we as Americans had been taken for a ride, yet again, and that the very worst was on tap. Rather than continuing to have hope I saw that no one was actually coming to the rescue. All those who appear to have tried got nowhere. Many who appeared to be for real have been proven to be frauds. A great many Christian “prophets” were dead wrong about what would happen. Many people trusted them. As usual, I would guess that most of these people explain it all away and keep on trucking.
There is no use getting into specifics at this point but everything has changed. I said fourteen months ago that nothing would be the same again. I spent a difficult summer writing many long posts revealing much truth. At the end of the day, did it matter? Have enough people really paid attention? I told you in my last post of 2020 on the last day of December last year what would happen in 2021: 2020 IN REVIEW AND A LOOK INTO WHAT’S COMING NEXT…
For all those Christians in America and their “churches” and denominations which have once again thrown in the towel and did what they were told, dumbing themselves down to an even lower level and surrendering whatever semblance of spiritual reality they had left, I can only say at this stage of the game that I have been warning of this very outcome over the life of this blog. But I started my warnings much, much earlier than that. I’ve been advertising a book here that I wrote in the 1990s. It hasn’t done any good. I had hoped to be a successful author so I could keep writing but the former never happened. I have kept writing however, though under more difficult circumstances, and plan to continue at some point.
At the moment I am inundated with practical matters that must be attended to and am making progress in that regard. My writing and teaching will have to wait. It might wait long enough that I will lose most of you. I don’t know. It is likely that few will even see this post or read it. For those of you who do I am thankful.
Regarding the Great Awakening, I will remind everyone that the Lord Jesus is God and He is still very much in control. He still lives to save. He still needs our help. For all the Christians in America who got sidetracked over the last year, they must simply be added to all the others who have done the same throughout history. At the moment it appears the goats and tares have the upper hand. Remember, I am only talking about “Christians” now. Forget about everything else. The devil has taken control over what the Lord has allowed him to. What’s done is done. Don’t engage in false hope.
When the Lord referred to sheep and goats, and wheat and tares, He was not talking about the world at large. He was referring to real believers and false believers. What happened in the first century obviously proved that. As we continue on, the unreal believers will become that much more closely aligned with the bad guys. You will have to use your own spiritual eyes to see this. This world is not what it appears to be. “Christianity” is not what it appears to be. But again, the Lord Jesus is very real and in control. He has all power and authority in both heaven and earth. If you want your life to really count you must join Him all the more. His kingdom is the only reality. The rest is mere illusion.
Going forward, those segments of Christianity which refuse His full will and direction will fall by the wayside, as always. I said many years ago that if every leadership team in every church in America were presented with a form pledging themselves 100% to full obedience to the Lord Jesus most would refuse to sign. It has always been this way. The goats have always outnumbered the sheep. There is likely a Judas for every twelve Christians.
Be careful. Get close to the Lord and stay there. If you are close get closer. Ask Him for all the spiritual power and strength you need. He has an unlimited amount available. Believe in the Lord! Trust Him! Great days are ahead. Many victories await. All things are possible.
Every story He writes has a happy ending.
© 2021 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
THE MINISTRY OF RECONCILIATION: SPIRITUAL RESURRECTION (4)
Every person who ever lives and dies will be resurrected one day. Soul will be reconnected with body. The majority, however, will then undergo the second death…
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RESURRECTION CONNECTION
We were never meant to die. God did not create us for death to overtake us. Nevertheless, due to His foreknowledge, He knew Adam would inevitably choose incorrectly and open Pandora’s Box. He knew Adam would sin.
And He made provision for it. Still, it was not inevitable that Adam would choose incorrectly. This man had the best Teacher. He was prepared for any and all events. He was warned. Adam, the first man, a type of Him who was to come, knew everything he needed to know and had an exemplary record of obedience and wisdom until that one fateful day in the garden. Though certainly tempted on that day, as he likely was any number of times before, he was never deceived. He knew full well what was going on. And when he decided to sin and break fellowship with his Father it was only because of one reason: He chose Eve, the first sinner, over God.
At that point perfection ended. Then the ultimate plan of God kicked in. The last Adam would have to come and fix what the first Adam did. Paradoxically, somewhat, the last Adam would also die. But unlike the first Adam he would not stay dead. And He arranged things in such a way that whoever applies His perfect sacrifice for sin to their own life will not stay dead either.
“Do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, and will come forth; those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment.” [John 5:28-29]
Thus we see that souls will be reunited with bodies. And just as sin caused a disconnection between Adam/Eve and their perfect garden, so does it also cause an inevitable disconnection between body and soul. In essence, because of personal sin, every human soul is eventually separated from its body. The animate is disconnected from the inanimate. One part goes to the grave and the other part goes to a nebulous netherworld of which we don’t know much about.
But there is more to this resurrection story.
THE DEATH CYCLE
The LORD God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.” [Genesis 2:16-17]
They surely did die. But they were still walking around. From without, at a certain distance, one could not have ascertained a change. But from within, Adam suddenly felt a coldness, a spiritual draft as it were, a cold wind blowing upon his innards. He was suddenly empty. He was lost. He didn’t know which way to turn. What had happened? He couldn’t think. His brain no longer worked as it did before. He was a mere fraction of his former self. Eve, feeling the same, clung ever closer to her mate, but neither felt the slightest bit of relief. Something had gone terribly wrong.
Scripture reveals that the human being is actually composed of three principle parts and not only two. Adam and Eve had died but remained animate, meaning that there remained an animate life force within them that was still alive. What, then, had died? And this is where the entire human question gets really tricky really fast. From Adam’s original perspective, before he sinned, he possessed some form of higher strength, ability, and intelligence. He was also a spiritual being because he communed with God. He was actually born of God:
God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. [Genesis 1:27]
Then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being. [Genesis 2:7]
Hence, Adam was originally, by this world’s standards, not a normal human. Of course, this world’s standards are based on a worldwide sinful consensus created by people with a sinful perspective whether they know it or not or know they are sinners or not. I would think that the vast majority in this world would agree, however, that the very idea of actual communion and communication with God is perceived as the haunt of the weird and the wacky. It gets laughable when one considers the fact that most Christians in the world also hold this view. They never talk to God and nobody they know in their awesome circle of friends and associates talks to God. Therefore, the notion of talking to God is strange. But God talking back is even stranger.
Anyway, getting back to the narrative, Adam was created of the Spirit of God. He had the same spirit within that God has, or that God is. God is a Spirit. When He breathed into Adam’s nostrils the breath of life He wasn’t just exhaling air into Adam’s lungs but was filling Adam with His very Spirit. Sound familiar? Also, when Adam was formed, before receiving the breath of life, was he simply an inanimate slab of beef lying on the ground? Or was he already animate the way all other creatures are animate? How is it possible to create a human being without animation? Babies are conceived in the womb, in the very beginning, by the connection of an animate seed with an animate egg. Both of these pulse with life and animation. Each must be alive. Therefore, Adam must have been alive once the Lord formed him but the life he possessed was a lesser form. At that point he was the crown of Creation but was essentially the same as all other earthly creatures. When he received the Spirit of God, however, he became both a person of this lower world and also a person of the higher world. He became a spiritual man. Again, Scripture clearly states this:
Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the offense of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come. [Romans 5:14]
Adam was a type of the Lord Jesus. He was not simply a soul man but a spirit man. Some animals are what we might term soulish and some are more soulish than others, such as dogs and horses. These animals have a higher propensity toward communicating with human beings. These kinds of animals can relate so closely to humans they can actually love people and people can love them. We can see then, that just as animals can communicate with people and vice versa, that humans can communicate with God and vice versa. But why is it the case that most people do not communicate with God? Is it not for the same reason that Adam and Eve could no longer communicate spiritually with God after their fall into sin? Once they sinned, the only remaining communication with God was on a merely soulish level. This descent from the spiritual realm to the soulish realm is what happened right after they ate the fruit.
Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings. They heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden.
Then the LORD God called to the man, and said to him, “Where are you?” He said, “I heard the sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid myself.” And He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” The man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me from the tree, and I ate.” Then the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” And the woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” [Genesis 3:7-14]
And that, my friends, is the entire human story in eight verses. It plays over and over again every day in this world as the only song on a 24 hour radio station. Translated, it becomes:
“I’ve messed up!” “I keep trying to fix it but I can’t!” “Now I’m afraid of God!” “I must hide from Him!” “It’s that woman’s fault!” “The devil made me do it!”
The preceding is not spiritual communication (Duh). These people go from having a close loving relationship with God involving who knows how many in-depth conversations and wonderful fellowship to actually being afraid of God and wanting nothing to do with Him. They were far too fearful to have any relationship with Him. Their entire concept of God changed. This is what they passed on to everybody else until now. Their spirit within them died and Adam and Eve became mere soulish individuals likely finding it far easier to communicate with animals than with the Lord. Every human is initially infected with the same attitude.
When humans die physically in this condition further separation takes place. Where there was once in Adam’s case a perfectly intact person composed of spirit, soul, and body, there eventuates after the first death only a mere fearful soul floating around in an undefined nebulous netherworld likely in the heart of the planet (See Matthew 12:40). The soul’s separated body is decaying somewhere up on the surface. The soul’s spirit had never been alive to begin with. And if that soul’s body died while the soul was in sin then the time will come when the soul will die also, completing the celestial strikeout.
But before being called out by the celestial Umpire some final business will have to be attended to. God will resurrect that person’s body and rejoin the soul within it. Then that person will stand before God in judgment. Then that person will suffer the second death by taking a one way trip to the hot place. So much death! Sin is a killer! The spirit dies, then the body dies, then the soul and resurrected body die together.
“Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” [Matthew 10:28]
SPIRITUAL RESURRECTION
There had to be a way to fix the mess Adam and Eve created. Logically, it would simply be a matter of creating a way for the human spirit to be regenerated. But how does one go about doing that unless the candidate involved agrees with the process and submits to it? Every human on the planet is composed of body and soul but also possesses a “dead” spirit somehow existing in seed form. There must be a way to reactivate this spirit. There must be a way to bring it back to life. In the beginning God breathed His own Spirit into Adam. Eve was then created from a part of Adam and also possessed a living spirit. How must God go about trying to implement this plan for anyone else, as a kind of Garden of Eden do over? Wouldn’t it be logical to simply breathe the breath of life into anyone willing as He did with Adam in the beginning?
“If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?” [Luke 11:13]
Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’” But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified. [John 7:37-39]
So you see, God wanted to give His Spirit and reanimate our spirits but the only way to do that was to first become one of us so He could have a pure Spirit originating from His humanity to give. The Spirit of God must first become resident in a human being before it can be transferred to other human beings. The Holy Spirit is therefore the form of God’s Spirit that can safely become resident within people. The Holy Spirit is obviously still very powerful but also able to reside within relatively fragile human bodies. (Think of the way electricity must be transformed down to a safe level before entering our dwellings and electrical devices so it will not cause harm.)
Regarding the chosen candidate who must be the last Adam, there was obviously no human being in existence who qualified for such a Spirit-through-humanity mission so God would have to do it Himself. The process of God becoming a human being and living a life without sin would thus allow Him to share His Holy Spirit. Remember, the Lord Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit. Unlike everybody else, His human spirit was always alive, animate, and active. Also, the Lord Jesus had the Spirit of God without measure (John 3:34).
To sum up, the Lord said whoever believes properly and correctly would be eligible to receive His Spirit. His Holy Spirit is a gift. How hard can it be to simply receive it? Ah, but there is spiritual battle involved. Evil entities exist to censor this Good News and keep people ignorant of it. The devil fights the process. The world makes fun of it. Fake Christianity denies and opposes it. And human flesh, perhaps the worst enemy, is all too often so caught up in pride (including the religious variety) and the promotion of oneself, though the Lord called such people “evil” (which denotes an otherwise obvious incongruity) that people are themselves often their own worst enemy. Then when one considers that the new birth could end relationships and one must make the relational choice that corrects Adam’s huge relational miscue, one can see that receiving the Lord’s Spirit can be quite challenging with reference to one’s residence in this fallen world and the resistance thereof.
You see, Adam chose Eve over God. Before he joined her in sin Adam could have simply refused. She would have been banished but he would remain sin free in the garden with God. So in order to reverse what Adam did, a person must be willing to embrace relationship with the Lord at the possible loss of every person in one’s life. One must be willing to want the Lord’s Spirit and the resultant animation of one’s human spirit more than any other relational connection. Adam made the wrong choice. We must make the right one. The Lord Jesus must always be first.
If one chooses to live for Him and believe in Him the way He said one should, his or her spirit will be resurrected from death. Again, such a spiritual resurrection is and should be a powerful experience demonstrating a great transformation. One will for the first time in his or her life become whole, composed of body, soul, and spirit with sin removed and be filled with His Holy Spirit. And it will not be some innocuous by osmosis not sure when it happened occurrence but a powerfully memorable event just as the Day of Pentecost was an event:
“It is this Jesus whom God raised up, a fact to which we are all witnesses. Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear.” [Acts 2:32-33]
“For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.” [Acts 2:39]
FIRST DEATH / SECOND DEATH / ETERNAL LIFE
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?” [John 11:25-26] [1]
By His sacrificial atoning death for our sin the Lord Jesus makes it possible for us to be rescued from the second death and be given spiritual life. It cost Him everything to do this. It will cost us everything to receive it. This is the definition of the New Covenant. It is a covenant between two members giving their all to bring forth new life and it includes the promise of the Holy Spirit, an advance security toward our eternal inheritance.
Thus, the Ministry of Reconciliation demands the greatest love.
© 2021 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission
IMPORTANT NOTE: The actual anniversary date for the Lord’s resurrection this year is Tuesday, March 30. This date is Nisan 17 on the Hebrew calendar. Nisan 17 is the day of First Fruits and the THIRD day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
THE MINISTRY OF RECONCILIATION: RESTORING RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD (1)
THE MINISTRY OF RECONCILIATION: WORD STUDY AND APPLICABLE VERSES (2)
DESTROYING DECEPTIONS THAT CAPTURE THE MIND
The Words of Jesus are Spirit and Life that overcome ingrained mental falsehoods. Knowledge of the written Word leads to greater relationship with the Living Word.
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My people go into exile for their lack of knowledge… [Isaiah 5:13]
“If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” [John 8:31-32]
The Lord has made access to His written Word extremely easy. The essential purpose for initially accessing the written Word of God is to discover God. One learns who He is, how much He cares for us, and also what He requires on our part to facilitate a lasting relationship. By acquiring knowledge of the Lord’s pure teachings one can break free from misleading false narratives, lies masquerading as Truth, and disabling deceptions imprisoning one on the other side of an otherwise bridgeless chasm.
OVERCOMING GUIDELINE GRIDLOCK
One must remember that the Early Church of the first century had no New Testament. Many did not even have access to the Old Testament Scriptures. Even at that time, people often believed and practiced not that which derived from the pure Word but from some religious leader’s interpretation of it, whether his intentions were noble or otherwise. There were scads of rabbis, doctors of the Law, synagogue leaders, and most notably, casuistic Pharisees who went so far as to essentially rewrite the OT through their endless oral traditions filled with Truth-debilitating minutia. The more they attempted to explain the Word of God the more they took their listeners away from God. Moses never did this. The prophets never did this. Moses, who was himself a prophet, and all the other real prophets in those ancient times simply delivered what God told them to deliver. If anyone got the message and understood, great. For those who did not it was their problem.
It is no different in our day in that so much of what Christians believe about the Word of God is actually not what is written right there in black and white but interpretive slants delivered by questionable Christian practitioners who often merely parrot denominational precepts, much as the Pharisees did, and overlay them upon the written Word in such a way that they have precedence and gain priority. All one must do to verify this, short of actually reading and studying the Word of God on one’s own (a novel concept for a probable majority of Christians), is visit a few other denominational churches.
Rather than cementing oneself in one place forever and hearing ad infinitum the same old same old that everyone there believes is the verbatim veracious version of the Lord’s teachings as if delivered from on high, one must at least occasionally visit the weirdos in other locales who beg to differ. One will discover that those Christians are also burdened with the same attitude of budgeless caution which was inflicted upon them, again, with good intentions or not, by interpretive teachers doing interpretive word dances as the conservative counterparts to the strange artsy folk who engage in odd expositions of poetry and dance.
Some churches put forth what are essentially emotionless drones who must think God requires them to be religious robots and otherworldly autocratic automatons appearing as ecclesiastically-cloaked talking statues. Emotion with these guys is verboten. Other churches at the other extreme have moving, walking, emotive talker-shouters who appear as fidgety née ferocious hyperactives which may or may not be under God’s actual spiritual anointing. In between are all manner of speakers-forth delivering various shadings of the same Word of God though emphasizing some parts and neglecting others (and often violently rejecting others).
And God looks down on all this duded-up strangeness and wonders how such strayings have taken hold in the minds of apparent believers because the very opposite of His intentions have been established in that He came here to unify His children rather than Tower of Babel them into impossible religious divisions which were also all the rage in His day. He did come to separate, of course, but only the sheep from the goats. What Unreal Christianity has done is to separate, at least on the surface, the sheep from the sheep and in that process created a construct for the invasion of conquering goats who seek to rule the sheep and effectively shroud the Word of God rather than share it. And instead of assisting the Lord to create open green pastures of luxuriant spiritual richness containing much more sustenance than enough for all, we have the equivalent of a barbwire kingdom of sectioned off partisan neoranches each sternly guarded by hardened shotgun-wielding cowhands intent on maintaining division and hatred for those unlike themselves. Rather than a dude ranch it’s a rude ranch. There’s a vast ponderosa of non-ponderable opposing pardners.
A CONFUSION OF LANGUAGES
Like their ancient contemporaries though in reverse, Christian dissemblers have confused God’s one universal language into a multitude of languages and rejected His one Gospel for many counterfeit variations thereof. Rather than joining and supporting the Lord’s single Community created at Pentecost they have created thousands of non-relational communities each with its own distinct language. And they continue with ongoing multiple subdivisions. Rather than “accurately handling the word of truth,” [1] they inaccurately mishandle it and thereby create doctrinal divisions which further divide the people.
The only cure for all their resultant multitudinous nonsensical wordfare permeations is entirely bypassing the faux bloviaters pontificating from fixed pulpits and lecterns of luxation and going straight to the Word of God. When the middleman does not assist us correctly under God’s authority, eliminate the middleman! Christians must learn, on so many levels, to show some spiritual spine, but most of all through the simplest, most profound, and potentially abundant fruitful process of reading the Bible.
I know, it’s tough. It’s pretty much impossible. It’s so big! It’ll take forever! Working one’s life away to old age for money is much easier. Going to a million church services to hear mere drips which never get collected into so much as the bottom half of a bait bucket is far preferable to wrenching open a fire hydrant and flooding one’s soul with life-giving Word water from which one will never thirst again. Better to drag oneself through a religious desert and occasionally suck out the moisture from a dead cactus, thorns be damned, than float upon and dive within an endless bottomless fresh water ocean filled with nutritive spiritual plankton satisfying all hunger, answering every question, and fulfilling every need.
THE GREAT AWAKENING DEMANDS GREAT DISCIPLESHIP
We must be disciples. Considering what is now upon us, as I have been warning of for the last quarter century (it’s all mapped out in my book), fence-sitting not-clear-on-the-concept don’t-confuse-me-with-facts Christians in general will either get it together finally at last or never gain the required closeness to the Lord, spiritual strength and stamina, eyes to see, and knowledge of God’s Word to overcome. We are way past the watch out for weirdos stage and the I’m too cool for school cred demanded by the social media acceptance wokesters. The enemy is here. He’s not hiding anymore. He’s determined to get you. He’s no longer playing the long term deceive you gradually into oblivion game. Instead of slowly boiling the frog he is now simply stomping on it. If you are not ready for the fight you must get there quick. The battle is upon us whether we know it or not or acknowledge it or not. This is not a drill.
In the meantime, here is an encouraging word that applies forever in every instance on every applicable occasion and illustrates the Lord’s great love for His children and ability to kick the devil’s backside always:
The seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.” And He said to them, “I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning. Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing will injure you. Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.” [Luke 10:17-20] [2]
Upgrade your New Testament reading plan now.
© 2021 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] 2 Timothy 2:15
[2] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
LIAR LIAR PANTS ON FIRE
Pleased to meet you
Hope you guess my name
But what’s puzzling you
Is the nature of my game
Rolling Stones
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The secret to the devil’s success is keeping people dumb and deceived by lying his sorry head off, beguiling, distorting, and misinforming constantly and incessantly in an ongoing attempt to create a false narrative and a bizarro world of opposites in place of each other, through willing dupes who see and appreciate the sham rather than the truth.
(Sound familiar?)
And once such people have been brainwashed they will fight to their last breath and final drop of blood for the idea that their perceived version of events and conceptual understandings are the correct version, and that it’s not a mere “version,” but absolute truth from which they will never retreat.
But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons, by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron… [1 Timothy 4:1-2]
You gotta love Paul’s to-the-point ultra-descriptive exposé of liars. They lie because they’re convinced by the lie and believe in the lie and live by the lie and honor without question the original wearer of the flaming hot pants who was himself torched in mind by rebelling against God and all truth, and was thereby forced to embrace FICTION as a belief system.
And every person who rejects The Truth does exactly the same. Their life and everything about their life is a spiritual fabrication and a complete fiction, though it appears otherwise in the here and now. “Success” in the world of man has absolutely no bearing on success in the afterlife. Those who only live by what their senses tell them have no chance.
This is the true nature of real deception: The deceived do not know they’re deceived.
Thus, the devil’s curriculum is nothing more than a pack of lies encased in a faux intellectual construct that gives arrogant narcissists, high minded nitwits, fighters for self whether or not self is completely stupid and asinine, and the willingly deceived exactly what they want to make them feel superior and seemingly in charge of what they think is a good fate.
“Indeed, HAS God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?” [Genesis 3:1]
This is deception of the highest order and whoever plays the devil’s game will be totally outclassed. And the devil knows this, of course, and continues to nurture the giant pus pockets of pride inherent within any and all who refuse to honor the Lord and thus be set free and healed.
In other words, all those who will be thrown in the lake would never repent anyway, never in a million years, because they love the devil and his deception rather than the Lord Jesus who is the Truth. And they love the fact that they can indulge their flesh to the nth degree with the devil’s hearty approval without any trace of guilt or second guessing.
“Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot hear My word. You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
“But because I speak the truth, you do not believe Me.” [John 8:43-45]
Well, here’s an interesting conundrum: They cannot understand the Lord’s teachings, cannot receive His Word, and thus do not believe Him or believe in Him.
Why?
Because they bought into a false paradigm. They programmed their computers with a counterfeit operating system they thought was the real thing, and believe is the real thing, and thus, the truth is perceived as nonsense and a fable. And because their hard drive is full, there is no room for the truth in their thinking.
But some are more susceptible to this than others. The devil knows very well those who are easily deceived. They are most often lovers of themselves, the self-appreciators of the world who use either their brains or good looks to get by and excel. They have no focus whatsoever on the fact that such things were gifts that they had absolutely nothing to do with but claim full credit for anyway and consequently rate themselves superior—especially when the big money comes flowing in, that is, the payoff for selling their eternal soul for a bowl of nano-second rot soon gone with the wind.
As they say, rich guys don’t have a Brink’s truck following their hearse on the way to the sweet by-and-by and beautiful movie stars that make it to their elderly years usually fail to keep their babe status intact though some give it the old nip and tuck Hollywood try.
Clothes make the man! And possessions convey status. But the dead body of a rich jerk lying on cold steel with a toe tag looks curiously the same as that of a poor righteous man.
The story of the rich man and Lazarus is also the story of a sell-out Satan appreciator and a poor man who wanted nothing to do with Beelzebul, even though this “Lord of the High Place” made the life of Lazarus a living hell.
However, his resultant suffering did not stop Lazarus from answering his call and fulfilling his mission to be a light to the purple-wearing pinhead who could only see as far as his mirror and bank account. Had he shown any concern for the sores-ridden starving man laid at his gate his frozen evil heart might have melted and God would have been able to save his soul. But no! He wouldn’t give Lazarus squat and thus he deserved to spend time with his idol in the hot place and suffer his sorry backside off.
He could have hired a doctor to help Lazarus get healed and healthy.
He could have fed Lazarus so he would no longer be so hungry day after day.
He could have given Lazarus some spare clothes.
He could have built Lazarus a little shelter so he wouldn’t be laying in the street scorched by the sun and freezing at night and in the winter.
He could have at least given Lazarus some water “to cool off his tongue.”
But no. He was a self-worshiper which made him a devil worshiper and he considered Lazarus a lowly piece of trash not worth his time or the least investment.
This is what “looking good” and having big money does to a lot of people. Such things cause them to fall headlong into the devil’s trap.
Many years ago there were big billboards all over the place advertising a certain brand of cigarettes. The only thing the ads contained was a picture of some physically attractive unsmiling woman or man staring straight ahead at the viewer. A friend of mine said, “You know? That’s the devil. People think he’s some ugly little guy but he’s actually the opposite…”
For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Therefore it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their deeds. [2 Corinthians 11:13-15]
Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. [Galatians 6:7-8]
Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before stumbling. [Proverbs 16:18]
The seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.” And He said to them,
“I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning.
“Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing will injure you. Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.” [Luke 10:17-20]
But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.” [Revelation 21:8][1]
But I’m getting ahead of current events. Before the day the liars are thrown away, their phony colossal construct must be revealed so people can see what’s really going on in the event they want to break out of their deception penitentiaries, especially religious ones.
For the most part, the world of mankind is a Grand Illusion.
It’s a Fake World.
And the majority can no longer perceive the difference between the Real and the Unreal.
Sinful, unregenerate, rebellious humanity working in close consort with the devil himself and obeying his lead has built a worldwide illusory “city” and “tower” permeating the entire planet, extending even into houses of worship (reaching into heaven), on the backs of the unsuspecting deceived.
It’s all around you. You’re surrounded.
And it is absolutely no different than your standard movie set or false backdrop. Except for the fact that it appears to be incredibly real, and one still bleeds real blood, and real souls are lost every day.
Kind of puts a whole new spin on this place we’re living in, huh?
Beware the fake and steer clear of liars.
You might catch on fire.
© 2013 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
NOTE: I wrote the preceding article over seven years ago. It not only remains topical and relevant at present, especially regarding current events, but even more so, and reveals the sad fact that the liars and fraud hustlers among us have increased “sevenfold.” Lying, deception, and selling out to mammon have now shot up exponentially far into the stratosphere like a massive Saturn rocket.
The evil ones still fail to understand or care that there is a holy God in heaven who will only put up with so much. The more they cheat and deceive the more truth God reveals. The more truth is revealed the more they are exposed. The more they are exposed the more vulnerable they become.
Those who work in evil are playing a losing game. Their victories are weighted toward the early going but justice catches up and overtakes them in the end. They may be winning big in the first half building what appears to be an insurmountable lead but then get destroyed in the fourth quarter, just as the Lord said: “But many who are first will be last; and the last, first” [Matthew 19:30].
Stay faithful.
© 2021 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
2020 IN REVIEW AND A LOOK INTO WHAT’S COMING NEXT…
An intelligent, wise, and well-informed person opined recently that America no longer has a federal government. In the place where it once was is a giant pile of money.
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I have been writing at this location for going on ten years. In my first year, in 2011, I wrote an annual review on this date including what to expect next and how we must perform. The few readers I had at the time liked it. I did the same three years ago in 2017. I also wrote another annual review one year ago in 2019.
Last year’s review was right on. Regarding what was expected for the infamous year of 2020, here are some excerpts:
“2019 was a year of warning. The enemy, brimming with confidence, showed his hand. I did my best to keep you posted. As we head into the future, your life as a Christian will be more challenging.”
“Regarding trends, 2019 was the year when the attacks on the First Amendment went into overdrive. There are anti-American forces in America that will do anything they can, legal or not, to eliminate Constitutional guarantees of freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and freedom of religion.”
“Real Christianity is under attack like never before. Christian persecution is rapidly advancing in the world and is now manifesting very powerfully in America. Most ministers and churches never talk about this. It proves they are either ignorant and unaware or remain a big part of the problem. The Lord does not appreciate Judases, money-firsters, and those who water down His powerful Word for social acceptance, and American Christianity is saturated with these at present. Believe me, it will only get worse.”
“Lies, misinformation, and disinformation are being exposed for what they are. The lies that hide the truth are being torn away. It will no longer be possible for these to remain hidden and includes exposing the perpetrators, some of which are fake and/or compromised Christian ‘leaders.’”
Some have described what is currently happening in the world as “The Great Reset vs. The Great Awakening.” The entire narrative of 2020 was based on a worldwide banking reset moving toward the implementation of a new digital currency which is actually not a currency at all. Though planned for many years, actual hands-on planning for what rose to the surface in March of 2020 began in the late summer of 2019. The Covid narrative was a mere subset of the plan. The rich got richer and greatly benefited, but Main Street was decimated. Big Media, Big Tech, Big Pharma, Big Box, and Big Gov made a massive power play and, in a hugely successful devious effort, managed to get the majority of America to go along. Extreme violations of the Constitution did not matter. Most concerning of all, of course, is that American Christianity in general has proven itself to be, without any doubt whatsoever, as I have been saying all along, absolutely weak and compromised.
When they demanded a closure of churches, almost all ministers complied with the complete blessing of their congregations. Many remain closed. This has obviously never happened before and has been a great success for the enemy. This does not mean that all American real Christians, which number in the multiple millions, have also surrendered. It only means your basic 501c3 chartered churches and ministries, thoroughly compromised by their absolute dependence on large material outlays, tax breaks, and massive amounts of money, had no choice but to comply or risk going out of business. Congregants who insist on supporting these shell churches are getting what they pay for.
And even though millions of small businesses have complied to the exact letter of the law, many have gone out of business anyway and many more will join them.
Those who read my book know I not only predicted all of this but that I also gave solid Scriptural solutions on how to operate correctly in order to remain largely unaffected by what was coming. Very few listened. In fact, I received much more indifference and outright persecution, rather than any support, for stating the truth by these very same Christians who insisted on church as usual. Christians who still insist on church as usual, even though church as usual has now largely ceased and in many cases has been destroyed, will obviously never get it. They are not only unwilling to change to better serve the Lord but would rather go down with their traditional church ship.
BUYING INTO A FALSE PARADIGM
Experts claim the great majority of face masks don’t work against viruses any more than a chain link fence works against mosquitoes. Covid tests are often unreliable. Social distancing is an absolute failure in large part because it is selectively enforced (officially approved crowds are fine, other crowds are forbidden). Members of the elite, as usual, can pretty much do anything they want because the new rules don’t apply to them.
These are all signs of a weak and fearful population being ruled over and dictated to by mini-tyrants. Sound familiar? It is an exact representation of church as usual. It is a perfect description of the clergy-laity divide. The Christians who have consistently and fully bought into this false church paradigm now have it coming down solidly on their heads. (See my post from July 1 of this year: CANCELERS GETTING CANCELED: TRUTH-REJECTING CHURCHES REAPING WHAT THEY SOWED.)
Remember, the early first century church had NO church buildings (for 300 years), they had no clergy-laity dual class system, they had no institutional paid located single pastors running churches, they had no government-approved 501c3 church charters, they had no New Testament, they faced great ongoing persecution from their “brothers” who rejected the Messiah, and real Christianity was ILLEGAL according to Roman law. In other words, they had it roughly a million times worse than us even under the new 2020 rules and still managed to turn the world upside down and largely convert the Roman Empire. The bulk of American Christians remain spiritually out-of-touch wimps and juvenile rebels by comparison.
Which brings us to our present reality. In the same way the in-your-face major propaganda media gets the bulk of attention, so do your major media Christian ministries and churches. Most are all compromised by money and are a mere shell of what they could be otherwise. They all talk a good game and sometimes a great game. They cannot, however, walk the walk. But there are millions of obscure Christians who do. There are real Christians in America who are severely disadvantaged but walk tall in the Lord anyway doing the best with what they have.
As what I believe is a perfect example, there is my blogging friend Bill. He was diagnosed with ALS at 36 years of age, about 24 years ago. They said he would die long ago but continued to live anyway. As his body continued to fail, he continued to live for God and keep the faith anyway. He reached a point when he could no longer move or speak. He started a blog anyway. He was blessed with a computer rig that allowed him to communicate using his eyes. He wrote a great number of posts in this condition and if you did not know his circumstances you would never have known his circumstances by his writing because it was no different than a fully healthy person’s work. He was cheery and often funny. He told the truth. He faced his condition like a man. He remained ever faithful, never using his condition as an excuse not to work for God and attend to his calling. He has been a great inspiration to many, doing better work than many pulpit ministers, but Bill was largely obscure and unknown. However, he was certainly known to the Lord.
He graduated yesterday. And he has left a great witness. Multiply Bill by a million. Think of all the “nobody” Christians doing their job steadily and consistently. These people are the true salt and light of Christianity in America. Most of them are lacking in some area or areas but they continue on. Many have been rejected but they remain true to God. They are not compromised by anything and certainly not by money. They have a relatively small circle of associates but are effective nonetheless. The Lord knows all of these His children and supports them though it may appear meager by comparison. These are the people making a difference. They tell the truth, get blasted for it, and continue telling the truth anyway.
This is the central difference between real Christians and unreal Christians. The real guys follow the playbook. They study it and know it. The fakers live in their own compromised worlds operating according to a different gospel, of which are a great many that are not of the Lord. The real Christians produce real spiritual fruit and operate according to real spiritual gifts. They don’t discount, remove, or neglect the Book of Acts or treat it as no longer applicable. They know what works and reject that which doesn’t. They know the solutions to our current predicaments and work toward applying them in the best way they can. They know the Lord Jesus has ultimate power and authority and still works miracles. They know all things are always possible with Him and therefore have a never-say-die attitude.
STEPHEN ON STEROIDS
If you want to know what the future holds for America in 2021 and beyond, imagine Stephen on spiritual steroids. He exposed the frauds for what they were. He did this by forcing their hand. This is what the Great Awakening has done to the powers that be. It forced them to act against it to protect their turf. This in turn exposed them. There will be much more of this going on.
We will call it the Discovery Procedure…
“Our fathers had the tabernacle of testimony in the wilderness, just as He who spoke to Moses directed him to make it according to the pattern which he had seen. Our fathers in turn received it, and they also brought it in with Joshua upon dispossessing the nations that God drove out from our fathers, until the time of David. David found favor in God’s sight, and asked that he might find a dwelling place for the house of Jacob. But it was Solomon who built a house for Him. However, the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands; as the prophet says:
‘Heaven is My throne,
And the earth is the footstool of My feet;
What kind of house will you build for Me?’ says the Lord,
‘Or what place is there for My rest?
Was it not My hand that made all these things?’
“You men who are stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears are always resisting the Holy Spirit; you are doing just as your fathers did. Which one of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? They killed those who had previously announced the coming of the Righteous One, and you have now become betrayers and murderers of Him; you who received the Law as ordained by angels, and yet did not keep it.”
Now when they heard this, they were infuriated, and they began gnashing their teeth at him. But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, looked intently into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God…” [Acts 7:44-55][1]
© 2020 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
IT’S HAPPENING: DARKNESS AND ITS VEILED MINIONS ARE BEING EXPOSED
Greater light is shining on the Judases, their nefarious deeds, and their criminal connections. Those aligned with evil are becoming ever more obvious.
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CHOOSE FOR YOURSELVES TODAY WHOM YOU WILL SERVE
Whoever is not standing up and fighting against the fraud is a part of the fraud. Whoever is supporting the faux elect is for the fraud and consequently against the truth, against justice, against We the People, and effectively against America. If one has no problem with egregiously violating the Constitution of the United States it then explains perfectly why so many of these people do what they do. They will not let the mere letter of the law stop them but will simply find a way to get around it. They will make under the table deals, obey their lobbyist masters, and sell out to the highest bidder even if it involves a foreign country and even if that foreign country proves to be an enemy of America.
Isn’t it interesting that one person may have a conscience in such good working order that even the slightest infringements upon it set off clanging alarm bells while another person can commit the most heinous crimes, including the white collar variety (which is often the very worst form since so many people are negatively affected) without even registering a single decibel?
Regarding one’s relationship with God, if one is not fully on board with the Lord Jesus 100% then one is against Him. There is no middle ground. One is either for Him or one is against Him. One will either acknowledge, believe, and apply the fullness of His teachings or one stands in direct opposition to Him. If one does not know the fullness of His teachings one must learn. This means one must be teachable. Being teachable demands humility. This is how one becomes and remains a good disciple. Good disciples are those who follow the Lord Jesus exclusively and refuse to honor replacements, substitutes, or counterfeits. Good disciples are those who also refuse to honor teachings and doctrines that did not originate with the Lord Jesus.
“The one who is not with Me is against Me; and the one who does not gather with Me scatters.” [Luke 11:23]
THE HUMBLE MAN ON THE DIFFICULT ROAD
Regarding the Lord’s full curriculum and His absolute leadership, real Christians learn that if you want to get something done regarding one’s calling and life’s mission, and what the Lord Jesus commanded all of us to do, one will ultimately have to depend exclusively on Him and likely forego enlisting any possible assistance from those in positions of high religious authority. Why would they help you expose them? Almost all of them are sold-out. They would have never reached their exalted positions otherwise. They are only there because of the money, the authority, and the prestige. Their job is to convince one to seriously consider the beneficial aspects of the organization (club) and join their side. This is always a conscience test and is no different than the devil’s temptation of the Lord. The following is an example of making the right choice even though it has serious costs attached:
By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to endure ill-treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the temporary pleasures of sin, considering the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; for he was looking to the reward. [Hebrews 11:24-26]
Here we see the contrast that exposes the frauds. What a disgusting thing it is to see the Lord’s perfect humble example completely trashed by high religionists who affect the opposite demeanor and fake their way through their sold-out religious existence. They look like Pharisees, they act like Pharisees, they talk like Pharisees, they love money like Pharisees, and when exposed they hate like Pharisees. The Lord’s teachings fully address this issue. He also addresses the sad reality of so many so-called Christians getting faked out by these pretenders even to the point of refusing the spiritual reality revealing them. It proves they are not following the Lord but follow instead mere posers and hirelings. And this explains perfectly why so much Christian “work” and effort goes nowhere toward solving major spiritual problems and why so many churches and America itself has descended into a deep abyss of depravity. Busyness does not necessarily equate to being about our Father’s business. It should be obvious that much of what is done in the Name of the Lord is not authored by Him.
BURSTING NAÏVE BUBBLES
What you see is what they project. If you cannot see past their projection then they are doing a great job of deceiving you. As Christians, perceiving deception is Christianity 101. Yet here we are, a nation infested with faux preachers and dirty politicians appearing as angels of light. They despise you, they take advantage of you, they rip you off, they laugh behind your back, they take you for granted, and they continue as always with their masquerade. A rookie politician with little money or power eventually becomes extremely wealthy and authoritative. He pads his own nest and removes your freedoms. And you voted for him. The people put him in power. He used that power to exalt himself and lower you. And he keeps getting reelected.
It has now been proven beyond any shadow of a doubt that the 2020 election was not just rife with fraud, it was fraud. The whole thing was a fraud. This was a clear-cut stolen election. And now we know such election fraud has been in place on a nationwide scale for at least 15 or 20 years. It was somewhat subtle before this year. There were certainly some in the past who were chosen and given the votes to insure their place in power just as there were those who were denied. How many candidates actually won but were made to lose?
Again, you can easily identify the shysters by their response to the 2020 election: Those who are relentlessly rooting out the fraud and the fraudsters, reporting this news incessantly, and the millions who support them are the honest ones, the good guys. Those who insist that nothing illegal happened and those who have already surrendered to the fraud including making deals with the fraudsters are the dishonest ones, the bad guys. There is absolutely no doubt about this. It is simple to see. Clear lines of spiritual battle have been drawn. For those who love and desire the truth, the evidence for the fraud is massive, substantial, colossal, and immense. And it keeps getting worse. For those who love money, authority, and prestige at the expense of truth, however, there is nothing to see here. You will never convince them otherwise. They are beneficiaries of the fraud. They hate anyone who exposes their darkness. They will try to destroy anyone who reveals their fraud and hinders their illicit cash flow. Mexican drug cartels have nothing on these guys and are mere kindergartners by comparison.
DETESTABLE IN THE SIGHT OF GOD
“The one who is faithful in a very little thing is also faithful in much; and the one who is unrighteous in a very little thing is also unrighteous in much. Therefore if you have not been faithful in the use of unrighteous wealth, who will entrust the true wealth to you? And if you have not been faithful in the use of that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own? No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.”
Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, were listening to all these things and were ridiculing Him. And He said to them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the sight of people, but God knows your hearts; because that which is highly esteemed among people is detestable in the sight of God.” [Luke 16:10-15][1]
© 2020 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
EMBEDDED CLUES TO THE GREAT AWAKENING: MY LATEST ARTICLES SINCE ROSH HASHANAH (9/18/20)
Sometimes we need a big picture perspective. We need to step back from our immediate detailed focus, take a break, and expand our horizons.
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Those who pay attention and do their research gather puzzle pieces on a daily basis. These puzzle pieces act as clues. Soon, several pieces put together give us bigger clues to the completed puzzle. Though the picture may be far from being seen in toto, there is enough to perceive direction and eventually enough to gauge trends. And every now and then a major clue is discovered that opens up larger doors.
One of those major clues presented itself on September 18, 2020. At sundown of that particular day, one of the most important days of the Lord’s ancient calendar began. It was the start of the Jewish New Year. This was Rosh Hashanah. It began the “Ten Days of Awe,” a time of great introspection, repentance, and getting right with God. These ten days would culminate with Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. In Jewish tradition, the state of a person on that date would dictate his or her condition and position for the entire year to come.
On this year’s particular Rosh Hashanah, at some point before sunset, long time Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died. She passed away on the last day of the civil year. She died just prior to the advent of the New Year. This set in motion a series of events that brought us to this day. The story, of course, is far from being complete. There are still many puzzle pieces to come.
I’ve done my best to keep track of things and report to you my findings in every post I’ve written since then, which I list here, including the one I wrote that very evening of September 18 a full twelve weeks ago. My loyal readers may recall reading some or all of these posts. Others may see something here that appears curious. Whatever the case, and whether we call these articles “Clues to a Masquerade” or “A Picture of Unfolding Revelation,” there is much material here to assist one in seeing the current bigger picture. Blessings to all:
09.18.20:
REPLACING RUTH BADER GINSBURG WITH AMY CONEY BARRETT: EPIC BATTLE BREWING?
09.19.20:
ROSH HASHANAH 2020: A CURIOUS PORTENT
10.02.20:
THE REAL BIRTHDAY OF JESUS: ENTERING THE SEASON OF OUR JOY (2020)
10.09.20:
FORCED VACCINATIONS? COMPULSORY MASK-WEARING AS MERE PRELUDE
10.16.20:
HIDDEN WEALTH TRANSFER [1]: YOUR FUTURE IS BEING STOLEN
10.17.20:
HIDDEN WEALTH TRANSFER [2]: A BRIEF HISTORY OF GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTING (AND REFORM?)
10.20.20:
HIDDEN WEALTH TRANSFER [3]: “FEDERAL FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING STANDARDS 56, CLASSIFIED ACTIVITIES”
10.23.20:
HIDDEN WEALTH TRANSFER [4]: THE MISSING TRILLIONS
10.28.20:
THE MIRACULOUS DRAFT OF FISHES
10.31.20:
EVIL’S FRENZIED RETORT IN COUNTERING THE GREAT AWAKENING
11.03.20:
ELECTION DAY 2020: TRUTH AND THE GREAT AWAKENING
11.21.20:
THE REJECTED BECOME THE CHOSEN: SEPARATIST PILGRIM PIONEERS AND THE JOURNEY TO AMERICA
11.22.20:
11.26.20:
HAPPY THANKSGIVING 2020: FIGHT FOR YOUR COUNTRY
11.30.20:
THE HEAVENS DECLARE THE GLORY OF GOD
12.03.20:
THE REPUBLICANS ARE COLLUDING WITH THE DEMOCRATS: THE SACRIFICING OF AMERICA
12.09.20:
THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE MAJORITY TURNS ITS BACK ON THE LORD JESUS
© 2020 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE MAJORITY TURNS ITS BACK ON THE LORD JESUS
Those who refuse to be led by the Lord, who always has our best interests at heart, will instead be led by people who only have their best interests at heart.
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The current Judas in the headlights is a collection of spineless establishment Republican leaders, otherwise thought of as good guys by many Americans, in high positions of controlling political power. They refuse to stand up for what’s right because they will likely be exposed for participating in a clandestine money and power grab associated with the stolen election, or they are deathly afraid of political attacks from the minions of the opposing party. Rather than stand and fight for what’s right they would rather hide out and wish the whole thing would go away. These shirkers were at first amused that a few patriots would actually attempt bringing light to darkness, then became somewhat incensed that these few patriots had no intention of halting their course. As the light began shining brighter and more people came on board, they then began growing fearful.
Funny how that happened. There were a great many ordinary Americans who were eyewitnesses to the fraud but were too fearful to come forward. They were well aware of the nefarious character of the people they were dealing with. A few brave souls came forward anyway and have paid a great price. As is always the case, once the few courageous ones step forward, despite the threats, and tell their story, it emboldens others to come forward as well. These few bold ones have now transformed what would have otherwise been a story never told, fully suppressed by mainstream media outlets and major social media platforms, into a nationwide news event exposing the fraud and shining a light on the fraudsters (including the media). If this evil effort is not defeated by being fully subjected to the Constitutional law of the land and proper justice there will never be another honest election in America. This means the will of We the People will be gone forever and with it individual freedom and liberty. It means the end of America as we know it.
KNOWING THE WORD OF GOD IS VITAL TO AVOIDING PERSONAL DECEPTION
The great thing about such current happenings, and what makes our day much different from so many previous occurrences of great evil, is that there are enough individual truth-tellers with the means to “shout it from the housetops” that they cannot all be suppressed, even by an extremely powerful MSM sold out to lies and misinformation constantly repeating false narratives. If one does not think this is true, that the media is a vast colluding propaganda outlet, here is a simple test to prove it: Turn off your TV. Quit watching any and all news channels whether broadcast or cable. They pretty much all repeat ad nauseam the same talking points now anyway so you won’t be missing anything. In this way they won’t be able to keep you misinformed and deceived. It might be a hard bridge to cross and it might be difficult to believe at first that what I’m saying here is true, but you’ll figure it out eventually.
Then replace the time spent there with time in the Word. The same dynamic takes place when you make Bible reading your main reading activity. It may be hard to accept but most people who call themselves Christians have never read the Bible. Those Christians in this category are at an extreme disadvantage. Not only are they unaware of God’s Word, they have filled the place in their hearts that should be occupied by it with knowledge that largely originates from non-spiritual sources, and much of it is not even based on fact. Of course, this remains unknown to the holder and believer in the knowledge because they have no higher reference point to confirm it.
This is what the Word of God does. One must understand that the Word of God as contained in the Bible is actually the WORD of GOD. Because it is the Word of God it takes precedence over all other knowledge. This is especially true in the New Covenant Scriptures. The New Testament contains the actual teachings of the Lord Jesus, His full curriculum. How can one be a Christian and not have a great hunger for His Word? All real Christians read and study His Word when they first become real Christians. They want to know all the teachings of their Lord and Master. Their desire is to study His Word and know it, and this goes for all believers not simply the few who desire some form of called-out ministry. Of course, all real Christians are ministers of the Gospel called into His service. Most never attain to any position of prominence or respect and remain obscure, but this means nothing whatsoever to the reality of their walk. It only means that some are put in the spotlight by God for His purposes, such as the original apostles, for example, or that many others put themselves in the spotlight for their own purposes.
We have seen how this works in the natural world throughout history. Strong men insist on their way, desire great wealth and power, and don’t care what they must do to attain it. They will commit any sin to get there. They simply don’t care. The majority always has to put up with such narcissistic morons. Most people would rather just live their lives in peace and walk in freedom, but for the majority this has never happened. They are always subjected in some way to an evil ruling class, even within many forms of organized Christianity. Again, many people are not aware of this but if the few evil people controlling things against the will of God at any time in history, who gained power because the majority allowed it, would have somehow vanished, the rest of humanity could have suddenly walked in much greater freedom and possessed a veritable abundance compared to their usual meager rations allowed by the ruling class. Such an event would have shined a light on all the great wealth that had been stolen from the people of the world and how much more there would be for everyone otherwise. Is not the same dynamic applicable in our times?
AMERICA FADED FROM FREEDOM TO FEAR
I posted an article on November 21 about the arrival of the Pilgrims on the 400th anniversary of the great event. I mentioned them in another article I posted on Thanksgiving. They had taken a long hard road to gain religious and political freedom. They escaped the evil hand of wicked political and religious authority. Once they arrived here they were far enough away that the evil hand couldn’t reach them. They created a great foundation of future freedom. A century and a half later the greatest generation of Americans paid an even greater price for future freedom in the Revolutionary War. Of course, since then, the same evil controllers who were at one time too far away and too unable to take over have since taken over. This has happened in a step-by-step process. They run the country now. America has long since been captured. It never had to happen and would not have happened if Americans had stayed true to God as they once did. Our great forebears were not perfect but were certainly much better than us. They would not have put up with a fraction of what Americans now routinely weakly accept.
The majority has succumbed to fear. This also apparently includes the majority of Christians. Once one falls into fear one can be coerced into doing things previously unthinkable. They become easily controllable. If the majority knew the Word of God and walked with God it would never have surrendered. God is very clear on this subject. Throughout His Word He is forever telling us to steer clear of fear. God tells us that fear is a killer and a thief. He also tells us that faith in Him is a life-giver, that being filled with His Spirit fills one with courage, and that evil is always forced to surrender and flee in His presence. The Word of God states that God dwells in the presence of His praises and that He is only a prayer away. Whatever the problem may be He has an answer for it. But one thing is certainly clear: He will never allow great evil to have the upper hand if His followers support Him. He will protect and bless His children. But we know from the example of ancient Israel that when the majority succumbs to evil the nation eventually falls.
So now we know why all of this has happened. We know how very powerful evil people have essentially taken over the country. Some of the lower minions in positions of power are being exposed for engaging in evil deeds as so many others have of late but nothing is ever done about it. They are all getting away with it. Man’s justice does not apply to them. It is because they are connected to the powerful evil people running things who protect them. Such are the benefits of belonging to the right clubs. Nevertheless, these people have sold out. They have sold their souls. They made the decision to live for this world. Evil has risen to the top in America and now controls pretty much everything. And it all happened because lazy Christians allowed it. It happened because Christians allowed themselves to be led by spiritual morons who are actually not spiritual at all. It happened because most Christians surrendered to the enemy rather than fully submit to the Lord Jesus.
“BRETHREN, WHAT SHALL WE DO?”
American Christians in general must first take off their dark glasses of deception. They must cease insisting on their weak traditional ways which no longer work. They must understand that they can no longer avoid the fight, that the fight is upon them, that this should be obvious, and would be obvious if they were right with God. The level of evil is off the scale. We are on the verge of losing everything. The people wielding this well-planned evil laugh at Christians every day and have absolutely no respect for us. And it is little wonder. The battle before us is such that we must be stronger spiritually than ever before. There is a growing Remnant standing with God who give it their all but more MUST join in. More MUST wake up. What are they waiting for? Are they simply afraid?
With John the Immerser the corrective began with a powerful call to national repentance. It was the same with the Lord when He began His ministry. It was the same on the Day of Pentecost when the first thing Peter said was “Repent!” Christians on the fence must turn from their sins and unfruitful ways and turn to the Lord. They must rededicate their lives to the Lord Jesus. Removing sin from one’s life alone is a huge benefit but is only a starting point. The cleansed residence must then be filled with the Holy Spirit. If one is not sure what this means study the Book of Acts intently. Ask the Lord for the fullness of the same experience they had. Next, one must begin reading the New Testament and not stop until completing it. The Lord’s teachings shed great light upon our souls, strengthen us, make our path clear and clean, and expose the enemy. Rather than giving in to worry and fear, nominal Christians will instead gain strength and purpose and join the spiritual fight. Going 100% for God makes all the difference.
Doors will open. Favor will happen. Blessings will ensue to a greater degree. One will gain spiritual maturity. One will be equipped for spiritual battle. Whenever enough Christians do this the enemy flees in terror. The entire dynamic is turned completely around. Rather than the enemy taking authority over the Lord’s people, the Lord’s people, through His great power and presence, take authority over the enemy. The Lord showed us how this is done. We MUST follow His example.
It is the only way to victory.
© 2020 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
THE REPUBLICANS ARE COLLUDING WITH THE DEMOCRATS: THE SACRIFICING OF AMERICA
When the nation of Israel made the fateful decision to eliminate their Messiah, it demanded that all parties and factions work together to that end.
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The three major religious parties in first century Israel were the Sadducees, the Pharisees, and the Essenes. Another emerging party, gaining strength and support, was mainly political. These were the Zealots. There were other lesser factions. One may wonder how this religious and political splintering could have happened since the Lord created a single nation of people in the beginning.
It took many years and much spiritual rebellion. It took a wholesale turning away from God. It took putting selfish interests first. It took putting money first. It took developing a hatred for one’s brother. After so many centuries of such gross sin and revolt, and the embracing of demonic deities, it is a wonder that the nation of Israel lasted as long as it did.
Prior to the first century AD, the Lord had done everything He could. At last the time came for the Lord God Himself to arrive in person. The gospels present this history. In the end He was even willing to sacrifice Himself for His people, and He did. But for the nation itself it did no good.
Then He created a new nation, a spiritual nation, one in which, as in the beginning, He was in charge and everyone honored Him as such. Physical Israel failed due to the rebellion, sin, and spiritual intransigence of its people. They preferred the ways of pagan nations. They wanted to be like them. They surrendered the courage it required to be a lone spiritual beacon in the world and a great witness for the Lord. Save for the very small Remnant of righteous within it, they doused their light.
The spiritual nation would not revert to the worldly ways of physical Israel. Spiritual Israel would thrive and has thrived ever since. Physical Israel ceased to exist forever in AD 70. Again, the Lord did everything He could do to avert the disaster they brought upon themselves. Having a splintered nation was actually a good thing because it kept the people as a whole from uniting together against Him as well as allowing truth to exist among at least some.
One may recall the Tower of Babel incident when all the people united together against God. They came extremely close to achieving their secular dream of bringing all cultures and peoples under one umbrella with their own anti-God belief system. Sound familiar? But God had the final say. He simply caused them to be divided by introducing many new languages. They could no longer communicate.
THE UNIPARTY
I have been stating for decades that there are actually not two major political parties in America but one. They are Republican and Democrat on the surface. They do have ideological differences. But at their heart, they are both sold out to power and wealth. Both are compromised. Both are beholden to the great money powers of the world. Their god is money. This is why you very rarely see any mention of the Lord Jesus among them, whether Republican or Democrat. They both serve money.
Depending on one’s point of reference and overall knowledge, one may not see these facts at all. It is true that Christians in general feel more comfortable in the Republican Party. Real Christians who follow the Lord, obey Him, and believe in and stand for the Lord’s teachings would rather support a political party that stands for issues important to them, but if one steps back and takes a long look, one will notice that most of the Christian beliefs Republicans advocate for never get too far. It may look otherwise but this is only due to accepting far less than what is otherwise required. Republican politicians know all they must do is talk a good game and their supporters will support them. They can say they always try to make progress but those dastardly Democrats always stop them.
This, of course, is grossly incorrect. There were many times when the Republicans controlled both houses and the presidency but failed to take full advantage of the situation. We could have had sweeping reforms on several occasions but it never happened or did not last very long. Those who were paying attention got the big idea that both parties were colluding together at the top. They played their cards well, however, through their political theater antics to make Americans believe they opposed each other. It was actually the opposite. Both parties love money, love enriching themselves, love selling out to the great money interests and even other nations, and serve money with abandon. Through their law-breaking in acquiring wealth at the expense of We the People, they prove what they actually are. Rather than honor the Constitution they honor themselves.
COLLUSION OF THE RELIGIOUS SECTS
The Lord Jesus was so powerful the nation of Israel had only two choices: It could surrender to Him wholesale, repent, get right, cease their sinful love affair with money, power, and prestige, end their filthy sinful practices, and do what it should have been doing all along. Or it could simply kill Him. We all know the path they chose. They could not have achieved this, however, unless each of the major religious and political factions came together in perfect unity. Regardless of massive differences they actually achieved the great miracle of ceasing their constant bickering and fighting amongst themselves. They actually quit hating each other and came together in full agreement to hate the Lord Jesus. They redirected all the hate for one another and the world toward Him. They even demanded that His blood be upon them. All of them insisted they were doing this dastardly act of sound mind and will, wanted to do it, and wanted full credit for doing it. They wanted no one to misunderstand their objective.
Of course, they were too stupid to understand that by killing Him they were killing themselves—they were committing national suicide. This is why the story of Judas Iscariot was the story of Israel in the life of one man. Judas sold out to money, sold out the Lord, and then killed himself. It took almost forty years for what was left of the nation of Israel to kill itself. Call it slow suicide. They planted the suicide seed and that seed came faithfully to the fore, grew up into a big ungodly tree, and reached full manifestation in AD 70.
The nation was destroyed forever. The third temple was destroyed. Everything associated with it was destroyed. There was no longer any need for the temple and sacrificial system. The city of Jerusalem was absolutely destroyed and sowed with salt. The only structure remaining was the massive Roman fort of Antonia. Out in the wilderness near the Dead Sea, the Essene community was destroyed. The Sadducee party was destroyed. The lone holdout Zealots, who had taken control of everything, were eventually destroyed, first at Masada, and then during the last revolt of AD 132-35.
The only entity remaining was the greatly weakened vestige of the Pharisee party. Elements of this party eventually retooled and began a long process of reinstituting itself. By AD 200 or so they had committed their oral law to writing. They still fully rejected their Messiah and were determined to buckle down and be reestablished in the same hatred for Him they had always possessed. Regardless of the rest of the world’s opposition they managed to grow stronger and unified over time. They perfected a method of gaining wealth from the nations. Today the almost defeated Pharisee party has risen into great prominence in the world. And it is still powerfully and dutifully opposed to the Lord Jesus.
THE CURRENT CRISIS IN AMERICA
“No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.” [Luke 16:13][1]
We now know, and there is no doubt, one full month after the 2020 election, that this election fraud and theft was not just the work of the Democrats. It was the work of Democrats and Republicans colluding together. Both parties are, of course, sold out to wealth, power, and personal enrichment at the expense of the country. In this case it is America itself that is being sacrificed. The leaders of these parties and many influential members among them had decided they must stop the current trend toward a rebirth of America. They must stop the greater freedom and liberty coming to pass for individual Americans. They must stop the Great Awakening. They knew if they didn’t they would lose their place. They would lose the promise of greater wealth and their current prestige. Because they had already sold out long before this, it was not at all a difficult decision. The trick would simply be fooling the American people on what it actually was they were doing. All the major wealth centers were involved, whether perceived as right or left. The major corporate media was obviously involved. Major government departments were involved. And I could go on. The entire narrative of 2020 beginning back in March was all part of the same plan to achieve this end. Many Americans have suffered greatly so far but it is nothing compared to what they plan after their hoped-for great victory: This time they will at last achieve invincibility. No one will ever be able to touch them again.
We know the ones involved in this great swindle in part by their supreme inaction. Those in positions of power doing nothing are the guilty ones. Those advocating for allowing the theft to be officially certified are the guilty ones. As I wrote in my previous post, these people and organizations, including both major parties, at least at the highest federal levels, are the current equivalent of the pro English Parliament and King party of American Revolutionary times. They are the ones who would rather sell out than stand for freedom and liberty for all. Rather than fight for it, those American Tories of the 1770s slinked away into the shadows. Some left the country. Others aided and abetted the enemy when it arrived here in force. They had no care or concern about the coming birth of America. Nor do the current Tories of today. They love themselves more than they could ever love the country. They are beholden to another king, an evil one. They actually despise real American patriots.
We are seeing this now. They are being exposed.
© 2020 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE HEAVENS DECLARE THE GLORY OF GOD
On July 4th of this year, a penumbral lunar eclipse began which crossed the entire American continent. Early Monday morning at 3:42am (CT), America experienced another.
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This second penumbral lunar eclipse also crossed the entire continent. These two lunar eclipses are the only ones affecting America in this most difficult year of 2020. They may be considered as bookends. They may also be considered as spiritual signs:
The heavens are telling of the glory of God;
And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands.
Day to day pours forth speech,
And night to night reveals knowledge.
There is no speech, nor are there words;
Their voice is not heard.
Their line has gone out through all the earth,
And their utterances to the end of the world. [Psalm 19:1-4][1]
A penumbral lunar eclipse takes place when the Moon moves through the faint, outer part of Earth’s shadow, the penumbra. This type of eclipse is not as dramatic as other types of lunar eclipses and is often mistaken for a regular Full Moon.[2]
The July eclipse had a penumbral magnitude of 0.355. This means only 35.5% of the moon’s surface was covered by the Earth, and for many it was barely perceptible. Tonight’s eclipse had a much greater magnitude of 82.9%.
GOD ALSO SPEAKS THROUGH NUMBERS
It is obviously quite interesting that the first eclipse began on July 4th, the 244th birthday of America, which happened to occur during the 4th month since the beginning of spring. In case you’re wondering, 4 is the Biblical number of Creation. It refers to God’s created works and is the number of material completeness. For whatever ultimate reason, we were inundated at that time with the number 4. When the July 4 eclipse began, it denoted the completion of America’s first 244 years since Independence was declared.
However, the multiples comprising the number 244 are not good: 4 x 61. The number 61 is the 18th prime number, which is comprised of 2, the number of division, and 9, the number of finality or judgment. There has certainly been growing division in America and this past summer marked a high point at that time. It also looked as though judgment had fallen and many thought it portended the end.
But there is good news! The July eclipse also denoted the beginning of year 245. This number’s multiples are 5 x 7 x 7. The number 5 is the Biblical number of grace and 7 denotes spiritual perfection. So we have spiritual perfection to the second power (72) times grace beginning on July 4, 2020. Also, it is exactly five lunar cycles since then until now. This also clearly indicates a time of grace with two lunar eclipses traversing the entirety of America as bookends.
And here’s something also pretty cool: From Saturday evening July 4 until Sunday evening November 29 is 148 days. This means the next day, the actual night of the eclipse on November 30, is day number 149. This is a prime number. It is actually the 35th prime number. And here we see again the two numbers of 5 and 7, or grace and spiritual perfection. This is what these last five lunar cycles have represented for America, since our country’s birthday until now.
KEEP THE FAITH
What follows this time of grace? Keep in mind that anything the Lord does the enemy tries to counteract it. The greater the work of God the greater the enemy’s response. The apostle Paul taught us that there will always be more grace than sin. The Lord Jesus taught us that His Light will always overcome any and all spiritual darkness. Though courage has been generally lacking in America since the spring when this great attack began, a relative few courageous ones have been here since the beginning. In fact, some very courageous Americans began sounding the alarm very powerfully back in March. Their witness began gaining ground all year long. More and more people heard the truth that overcame the false narrative but lacked the courage to act. Now that we see how far the enemy would take it, even to the point of stealing the election which was all part of the original plan, it allowed a greater percentage of Americans to get the big idea.
Americans in general are like a good man under attack who tries all he can to not engage or commit to a fight even though the fight is upon him. He will do this until backed into a corner when he no longer has the luxury of putting it off. At this point the “flee or fight” response becomes reduced to the “fight or surrender” response. We are seeing this very clearly now. People who we thought were good fighters have revealed themselves as mere chickens. They’ve already thrown in the towel. In fact, the few who are currently leading the charge and fighting with all they have on the front lines are people most Americans had never heard of until now. On the flip side, many of those they thought would lead the charge are nowhere to be found.
COURAGE IS CONTAGIOUS: WAKING A SLEEPING GIANT
The courageous ones throughout this entire ordeal have been sowing the seeds of courage. And now we see courage spreading, coming forth, and rising up. More Americans are getting baptized with courage. Righteousness in America has been cornered and backed up against a wall. We will now see what America is actually made of. Will American patriots weakly surrender or will they fight? There is no more opportunity to flee.
I am reminded of what Marshall Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, the commander-in-chief of the Combined Japanese Fleet at the beginning of WWII after the attack on Pearl Harbor supposedly said: “I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve.” What he actually said, a month later, was the following:
“A military man can scarcely pride himself on having ‘smitten a sleeping enemy’; it is more a matter of shame, simply, for the one smitten. I would rather you made your appraisal after seeing what the enemy does, since it is certain that, angered and outraged, he will soon launch a determined counterattack.” [3]
THE CURRENT GREAT AWAKENING
America, the sleeping one, the one slumbering, dreaming, and refusing to face up over the last several decades against an ongoing attack against her freedom, liberty, and very substance, has now been backed up against a wall for which there is no retreat. The only thing left to do is either fully surrender or fight back with great courage. Remember, this is a spiritual war. We must use spiritual means. We must fight with spiritual weapons.
The enemy is indigenous. It is an enemy within. It is Judas slinking away in the night. It is two-faced people who sell out to money and prestige. Over the last month we have seen these people more clearly. They refuse to fight. They refuse to engage. If you wait on them to lead the charge you’ll be waiting until it’s too late. As it was during the time of the American Revolution, we see the three kinds of Americans revealing themselves from the shadows yet again:
- The establishment status quo Tory cowards fully supporting a distant “parliament and King George”
- The selfish, illiterate, clueless ones with no resolve and no willingness to get involved whatsoever
- Patriotic courageous individual Americans who still stand for Freedom and the Constitution
245 years ago, it was the latter group, only consisting of about 30-33% of American colonists, who decided they could no longer live under the thumb of increasing oppression and decided to risk it all. It was a long hard fight in which they lost more battles than they won. But they discovered that as long as they did fight and continued to fight, they could not be defeated. There were many times when it looked as though all was lost but in the end THEY DEFEATED THE GREATEST MILITARY POWER ON EARTH AND WON THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR. They created the greatest country on earth and allowed for the freest people who ever lived.
Their back was certainly up against the wall in the beginning, but they acknowledged their courage, took possession of it, were built up by it, displayed it over and again, and absolutely refused to quit regardless of circumstances. The coming weeks will reveal what America is made of.
Regarding the future, we’ve been given celestial clues, as the Psalmist stated: “The Heavens Declare the Glory of God.”
© 2020 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
[2] https://www.timeanddate.com/eclipse/penumbral-lunar-eclipse.html
[3] https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/2018/12/29/pearl-harbor-the-sleeping-giant-awoken/
HAPPY THANKSGIVING 2020: FIGHT FOR YOUR COUNTRY
We have much to be thankful for. Though American liberty and freedom is under severe attack at present, it remains strong, which is quite a feat after 400 years.
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Earlier this year I decided to take a research dive into the founding of Roanoke Colony, the first English colony in America. This was the so-called “lost colony” founded on the Carolina coast in the 1580s, which then somehow disappeared. I discovered it never actually disappeared but simply moved down the coast several miles away. The colonists had joined up with a native tribe but this was largely unknown to the outside world for over a century. There is much about this story that nobody knew for the longest time but an archaeology project began a few years back that is filling in some blanks. It’s a fascinating tale.
In 1607 Virginia Colony was founded and it suffered some serious setbacks and almost came to ruin. It was for the most part a mercantile colony founded for profit, and fully supported the Anglican state church. And though it certainly has its place it never captured the hearts of later colonists and modern day Americans the way Plymouth Colony did. The latter was founded for a distinctly different and very rare purpose. Its English Separatists founders, known as the Pilgrims, were seeking not monetary profit or greater territory, but religious and political freedom.
I wrote an article about these stalwart, wonderful people several years ago and reposted it this past Saturday on the 400-year anniversary of their landing. It’s a good article with much history, focusing primarily on the backstory and the incessant trials and persecutions these people suffered beginning long before they ever left England. Real Christians of the present can certainly relate to their story in these times, when it appears that religious and political freedom is just about done. Indigenous evil forces that hate America have been on the prowl for decades and they stand, as I write, on the very threshold of taking over. If we let them there will only be a brief segue remaining before America is done.
I have hope that it will never happen. I have hope that these indigenous evil forces will be defeated. Anyone paying attention over the last several years noticed that these guys no longer cared about hiding their evil practices. Much evil came forth from them, mostly because they knew no one could stop their evil deeds. They got pretty bold and lowered their guard, and as a result not only engaged in greater degrees of evil but did so more openly. And now, with this election, they obviously either did not care whatsoever about the level of lawbreaking they would engage in, in their desperation to regain power, or actually thought they could get away with it. Their effort was a clear in-your-face attack against freedom, liberty, justice, and fair play, and showed all the more their abject hatred of American ideals and the Constitution.
I’ve been following this election fraud story very closely and I can tell you that many small victories have already happened. But much greater victories are about to come forth. I am also encouraged that so many Americans already know much of the truth about the stealing of this election. And I am encouraged that a few great fighters have already risen to the fore and are manning the battlements. It will get a lot worse before it gets better and I have hope that it will get better. Who knows how many times something like this was done in the past and most Americans were none the wiser. But this time is far different. The scale is off the charts. Nothing so blatantly evil has ever happened in American history before.
There is no guarantee, of course, that the forces of good will end up winning. The odds are greatly against it. Many have already thrown in the towel. I am thankful that the major players have not. I have not. And I trust you have not. The case is being made as I write. It is a great case. The fraud is growing ever more obvious. The good news is that a fight of this kind reveals all the shysters and Judases. All those people you thought were good guys have revealed themselves as evil grifters in love with money, power, and prestige. They appeared to change teams pretty fast but in reality were only faking people out all this time. They only cared about themselves and never about you.
Regarding this great day, this Thanksgiving Day 2020, I am thankful that real Americans, though in apparently short supply, still exist, and that enough still exist to make this a viable and winning fight. You must mark all those that have already quit or joined the other side, or refuse to fight for the country. You must also mark those who are putting their lives, reputations, and sacred honor on the line. Sound familiar?
Also, the enemy, though apparently in full control and about to win it all, likely underestimated his opponents. He also made the mistake of thinking he covered enough bases to get away with it or that there would never be enough time to overcome his great advantage. He also either doesn’t know about a little something called The Great Awakening or knows about it all too well and has gone to these great lengths of evil in a last ditch desperate effort to overcome it. I don’t think it will work. I believe there remains way too much good, way too much strength, and way too many real Americans who will never surrender. It certainly looked that way for much of this year, however. Far too many allowed themselves to be deceived by this false pandemic and were far too willing to lay down at the feet of evil authoritarians who have nothing but contempt for America and Americans. This is likely why they thought they could pull it off.
As it turns out, America is not quite ready to give up. More are waking up every day. This Thanksgiving Day must be different. We must return to our roots. We must stop seeing ourselves as the other bookend to the Pilgrims of 400 years ago, ready to die. Instead, we have to allow the natural fight God put within us to come forth. We must immediately stop putting up with garbage and take a stand. We must rally the troops. We must not only consider the Pilgrims but match their powerful resolve. They didn’t lay a great foundation only for us to allow it to be destroyed.
Roanoke was rough and Virginia almost didn’t make it. But Plymouth Colony opened up a massive highway of freedom that has blessed this country for four centuries. The first Thanksgiving was celebrated the next autumn in 1621. That makes today Thanksgiving Day #400. Rather than it be the last Thanksgiving, we must make it like the first, in that we have a whole new birth of freedom.
Whatever you believe the Lord Jesus has called you to do, now is the time to attend to it like your life depends upon it. Don’t hold back. Don’t stop short. Don’t be cowed. Encourage one another. Build each other up. Be strong. KEEP THE FAITH. Engage in spiritual warfare like you never have before. Make the Lord proud. We can still win this thing.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone.
© 2020 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
THE REJECTED BECOME THE CHOSEN: SEPARATIST PILGRIM PIONEERS AND THE JOURNEY TO AMERICA
Dear Readers: Today is the 400-year anniversary of the Pilgrim’s arrival in America, one of the greatest events in history. What follows is the real story. Please keep this event in mind during this current time of American crisis. Be encouraged to keep up the fight for righteousness and the defeat of great evil. The Pilgrim’s faced astronomical odds against success but regardless of years of religious persecution, rejection, and great personal hardship, they overcame it all and made their righteous dream of spiritual liberty and freedom a reality.
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In the 1590s English Separatists and dissenters were finding life in England ever more difficult. Several were sentenced to hanging in an enhanced effort to kill off the movement toward spiritual liberty.
Laws were passed that made exile to the European continent the punishment and death if one ever returned. England would thus stop at nothing to rid itself of unwavering Christian reformers. There was no going back for those who had gone so far with God. Queen Elizabeth was determined to wipe them out and the level of her persecution continued until her death in 1603. She had no heirs and her passing thus ended the generational line of the ultra-dysfunctional Tudor monarchs.
The new king was James Stuart I (1566-1625), the then present king of Scotland under the name of James VI. He had ascended the Scottish throne at a mere thirteen months of age in 1567 when his mother, Mary Queen of Scots (1542-1587), had abdicated. As “King of Great Britain” James I united England, Scotland, and Ireland under his leadership. Though his mother was a loyal Catholic, James was raised as a member of the Protestant Church of Scotland. The developing church was attempting to continue the reform movement began a decade earlier by essentially removing all things Catholic, but James obviously felt more comfortable with those men manning church offices whose ecclesiastical nature lent them to monarchial rule.
Of course, that’s what bishops and ruling prelates are by nature and why such offices were created. The Presbyterians were setting up a national polity in which churches would be administered by the Biblical model of elders and overseers, which simply does not mix with monarchy any more than does oil and water. The comfort level for kings had always involved close trusted ones, be they civil or clergy, and James was thus not prepared to get on board with the movement toward spiritual truth. In becoming king of England he had quickly embraced an anti-Puritan sentiment, which gives one an idea of his treatment of Separatists and other dissenters who continued pushing for reform and refused to conform to non-Biblical tenets. The Puritans still maintained membership in the Church of England and had consequently escaped the larger wrath of Elizabeth, but the heat began rising. Yet, regardless of the new king’s negative attitude toward them, it was their own compromise and apprehensive middle-ground approach that relegated them as unfit for the spiritual frontier. They were not of a mind nor possessed the strength of purpose to be used of God in the necessary major way as those Separatists who had given their all. The Puritans as a group had remained far too connected. They were unqualified as pioneers.
After Elizabeth’s reign of terror, it seemed there remained only one Separatist church community in all of England. Located in the hamlet of Gainsborough, most of its members had fled to Holland two years later. There remained a few holdouts of this group in the town of Scrooby, Nottinghamshire, and it is here the story gets interesting. In Scrooby there lived a man who became postmaster there in 1590. He had attended Cambridge in his youth and later became greatly interested in the new Christian reformation movements. By the early 1600s he had taken under his wing a young man from Austerfield while ministering in the Scrooby area as a reforming Puritan when persecution raised its head once again. A group of perhaps 50 were meeting secretly at Scrooby Manor, having managed to cobble together a small community from the remains at Gainsborough, when the decision was made in 1607 to break ranks completely with the Church of England and establish themselves as Separatists. Thence began the great adventure.
The two men were the postmaster William Brewster (c.1566-1644), who would become a leading Elder at Plymouth Colony, and his young protégé William Bradford (1590-1657), the future Governor thereof. These two were undoubtedly placed together by Providence. Bradford’s father died when he was only a year old and his mother when he was seven. The orphan was forced to live with several relatives in the interim. He met Brewster at the meetings of the Puritan Richard Clifton when only a young man of about twelve and at last found an appropriate father-figure. From this he received a better upbringing and someone to direct his already keen interest in the Reformation movement.
The restrictive spiritual atmosphere in England was such that the young congregation decided they must leave the mother country and sail across the channel to Holland to live according to their convictions. Yet, as another indication of the severe trials and fight to come their way, they were robbed of all their possessions by the officers of the ship they hired and imprisoned for attempting to leave England illegally. They remained undeterred, however, and were able to make their getaway the next year, finding peace and religious toleration in The Netherlands. After a year in Amsterdam amid the bickering of two other congregations, they moved to the city of Leiden, approximately 100 strong, and settled into a peaceable and productive life.
One can see by the trials they faced and tests they passed that God was preparing them for a much greater mission. Others had disqualified themselves for one reason or another, be it a lack of faith, selfish attitudes, inability to work together, or loyal connections to the state church, which prohibited a lack of complete loyalty to God. Those connected, as the Puritans, had not considered their inevitable betrayal through their association with ecclesiastical authority and the throne or the temptation of looking back. We see the same thing in the ancient history of the Jews when God had to remove all Egyptian influence and fleshly nature from His people through their wanderings in the Sinai desert. These Separatist future founders of the American Plymouth Colony had proved their loyalty to God by both their obedience to Him regardless of greatly challenging circumstances, and also their complete separation from the world.
In Leiden, Brewster began publishing books for sale in England and was soon under arrest by English authorities in 1619, who had accused him of the same crime as William Tyndale—printing up non-official religious works that did not toe the mark of the accepted Anglican confession. The Dutch government agreed with England in a political move and confiscated the printing equipment. Brewster was able to escape to England and hide out. It was during this time that plans were made to make the most radical move of all—securing a land patent from the London Virginia Company.
The community as a whole had become very concerned after ten years of relative comfort and security in Leiden that their children, if allowed to grow up and become established there, would lose both their English heritage and Christian beliefs. The Netherlands was a free pluralistic nation by comparison to England, but the resultant freedom also gave place to a more open mindset regarding moral values and sin. It occurred to the group that the time had come yet again when they must move on if they would maintain their walk with God. Their willingness to suffer so many trials for the sake of the real Gospel had undoubtedly impressed the Lord. Due to their relentless attitude toward holy living and walking in God’s new light, rather than fighting against the movement or holding back like almost every other group, they had become the chosen ones to take not only the Gospel to America, but a community form much closer to Scriptural intent.
The 180 ton Dutch cargo vessel Mayflower was hired in London and sailed to Southampton on the southern coast of England in late July of 1620. Most of the Pilgrim community remained in Leiden, Holland and bought a small ship called the Speedwell to take them to Southampton, from which both ships would sail across the Atlantic to Virginia. The second ship proved unworthy of the journey, however, having leaked on the trip across the English Channel, and after repairs, began leaking again at the start of the great voyage. Stopping at Dartmouth, repairs were made a second time. On their second attempt at the Atlantic crossing, as they reached the open ocean after having traveled roughly 300 miles, the Speedwell continued leaking once again and the Pilgrims were forced to return to England. Many of the passengers had become so tired and frustrated they decided to stay home. Here was yet another test of heart and a further winnowing of the passenger list, from about 120 to 102. Of these, approximately 40-45% were members of the Leiden congregation.
They decided to scuttle the second ship entirely and transfer all their goods and supplies to the Mayflower, making for very cramped quarters and a much less comfortable trip. After losing about forty days, the Mayflower finally set sail from Plymouth, England on September 16 (Gregorian calendar). The second half of the ocean voyage was very rough, having hit the severe northern Atlantic storm season, and piled yet more discomfort and trepidation upon the passengers. Imagine the battle these Pilgrims had with doubt and second thoughts, crammed together in a freezing ship tossed forth like a cork on the frigid seas.
After 66 long days, the sturdy ship arrived intact off the coast of America around November 21, 1620. During the long and fitful journey there was one death but also one birth. The colonists’ destination was the mouth of the Hudson River, part of Virginia at the time, but the captain first sighted land off the coast of Cape Cod. In the attempt to go south the elements were again against them, almost causing shipwreck. As if by divine hand they returned to Cape Cod and dropped anchor. With great courage and whatever stamina remained as the biting cold winds of winter descended upon them, parties were arranged to explore the land for a suitable settlement site. By the next summer, 50 of the original 102 passengers had perished, the majority over the harsh winter, and most of them from disease contracted during the voyage.
From these extremely difficult and humble beginnings Plymouth Colony was built upon the hope and grace of a committed people and the Lord Jesus. Having served as willing pioneers and taking the full brunt of the battle, many more parties were soon making the trip across the Atlantic and adding to the new colony. In time it became a routine crossing peopled primarily by English Puritans who began spreading out into the wilderness. In time the Separatist Pilgrims became greatly outnumbered, though their spiritual stand and way of life had a decided effect on later arrivals.
© 2020 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
EVIL’S FRENZIED RETORT IN COUNTERING THE GREAT AWAKENING
They spent decades preparing for this day. They have accomplished much and continue with their universal plan. Yet there remains a gritty opposing force, refusing to surrender, and giving them fits.
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It was never part of the original plan. Once they decided to stray from the script and enter the emotional realm, allowing the unreliability of passion to be factored in to a previous hardline discipline, it exposed their vulnerable underbelly. Whether this was due to simple exasperation from heightened warfare, or from weariness of waiting—of shrewdly maintaining a marathon pace—or sensing the finish line so close the need for speed overcame their reason, and being unable to pull back the reins for want of finally achieving the long sought goal, they threw down the gauntlet for a full bore all-systems-go sprint, as if sucked ahead by lateral gravity, which eliminated their former mastery of strict impulse control, which in turn tarnished their former clandestine station behind the veil and revealed them for what they are: These were not high masters whatsoever, other than of guise and guile—but mere Halloween actors dressed to deceive and disappear, and shroud their demonic nature.
ONCE UPON A TIME UNDER A TREE FAR, FAR AWAY
The assumption had been, with every base covered and each of a million different possibilities exhaustively vetted and deduced, that ultimate victory was not only inevitable but thoroughly predictable. An assured smugness had arisen among the perpetrators. The vast intricately detailed planning would surely bring about the desired outcome. How could the powerless possibly overcome it?
In the beginning it was wholly cerebral. They had the means and money. They knew it would take time. They knew it might not work exactly as they envisioned but had hope it would function in some form or semblance to the same effect. In the meantime, they would continue extracting wealth, appropriating political power, and generating the vast propaganda apparatus, which could only increase their chances.
It was a gradualist approach, a multi-generational effort. Nothing could stop them. They existed above all laws and restrictions. As the capstone group atop the pyramid, no one told them what they could or could not do. They were held back only by (1) cultural decorum, (2) an indigenous natural morality shared by all humans to varying degrees, (3) an unwillingness to sully themselves or their perfect plan with unnecessary sleaze and low-level filth which kept the more sordid forms of evil under wraps, and (4) established social barricades beyond the which they preferred not to travel.
The moment arrived when they perceived that such cultural barriers had been imperceptibly holding them back from fuller and faster progress. They had a sudden insight that their plan would never actually work as envisioned as long as such limits were allowed. Due to a better understanding of such mores and why they existed in the first place, and had existed from time immemorial in higher cultures—as hedges against corruption and the very plan they were attempting—they had come to an inevitable fork in the road. Would they recognize themselves as being completely out of line and even against the God of creation and not only moral but natural law and forget the whole thing? Would they care enough about their wives and children and grandchildren and family relations and friends to refrain from subjecting them to association with the evil they were planning? Or would they plow ahead anyway with all caution to the wind, endangering not only their own faint moral compass (essentially trashing what was left of it) but that of humanity as well?
Whether they saw that their plan was actually evil and could never be achieved by a moral people or that ethics were in themselves somehow evil and a mere abstract construct restricting progress—whichever one of these arose first in their minds—it ultimately did not matter because attaining the ultimate prize was of paramount importance and therefore the greater good. In other words, these parasitic creatures disguised somewhat as human beings who had already overcome in large part the dictates of their God-given conscience in attaining their wealth to that point had finally decided they would cross a bridge too far. They had decided that the end justified the means.
Therefore, they would henceforth, from that time forward, do anything whatsoever with no regard for any concepts of good or evil, to gain absolute control and capture the planet. They would own and control everything and no longer cared how they achieved it. This was the new plan, a furtherance of the former, and they were sticking with it. And the people be damned. Each generation of this upper crust clan thus engaged in greater forms of evil by degrees. They no longer called it by such, of course, but merely as the cost of doing business. They were the best. They deserved it. The rest of humanity were essentially nothing more than simple morons—cattle and swine, bovine and porcine—to be herded and processed by their superiors. They would do whatever they wanted with such people, though they numbered in the multimillions and billions. Such human detritus were no different than any other species of animal. It would never matter how many there were since the whole lot were insufferably stupid and could never mount an effective challenge even with the advantage of mass numbers. They knew a miniscule few had historically always ruled the masses which proved the sub-humans comprising the masses may as well be sheep led to the slaughter.
GOD’S PARALLEL PLAN
From the time Adam rebelled and was bounced from the perfect Garden planted by the LORD God, toward the east, in Eden, his future multi-generational progeny, for the most part, remained disassociated from God and resorted to their own devices. Survival was the name of the game my man, and whatever one had to do to survive was fair game, including making other humans fair game. Without the Lord’s overall protection and spiritual order, and the order of everything under His control for the benefit of His creation and humanity, and the sweet fellowship derived thereof, there was nothing but hardship and criminality. Devoid of laws to keep one another civil and to honor the needs, lives, and loves of others, humanity in general had fallen into a brute beast mentality. It is what happens when one rejects a benevolent higher order and closeness to the divine. One is on one’s own and those of his immediate group. Survival portends putting oneself and one’s group above all others.
Though the earth was large and stretched out forever, fear often kept them relatively close. And they always clashed at the borders—those intangible barriers that presented themselves when one group was threatened by another traveling upon it. The wandering group, chancing upon the other’s rude camp and possible spoils, depending on their mood and sizing up of the situation, would turn and travel on or decide to fight. Then the two nomadic groups would engage in yet more bitter battle, happening there as elsewhere, and shed each other’s blood. They would kill each other and add to the ongoing, incessant misery, a far cry from the Creator’s original plan.
And so it went. You could never trust a foreign group. You could only trust your own. But even within one’s own, rebellion would rear its ugly head. There would be power struggles. Beyond fighting for turf against evil interlopers one must also battle the threat from within—that a lesser young buck might throw off his restraints against established authority and take the group off in another direction with no concern for the people in it. That partners in marriage would turn upon the other, and sow yet more hate in the next generation, whose only future hope was more wandering, more searching, more looking for a place to rest, to simply stop and build, and be rid of constant threats from without and despair from within. But there was none to be found and no peace for the weary. Without the Lord it was every man for himself.
But soon, by heaven’s intervention in those dark ancient days, there would be a man of peace, birthed suddenly upon the scene, a compensation given from above. He would restore the way to God.
© 2020 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued]
HIDDEN WEALTH TRANSFER [4]: THE MISSING TRILLIONS
In the spring of 2017, a research study was initiated to determine the facts regarding the possibility that untold multiple trillions of dollars had gone missing from government accounts.
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THE DAY BEFORE 9/11
You might recall video of an event that took place at the Pentagon on September 10, 2001 when Donald Rumsfeld, the Secretary of Defense in the new Bush Administration, stunned the buttoned-down sensibilities of honest accountants and bookkeepers everywhere with the following matter-of-fact statement:
“According to some estimates we cannot track $2.3 trillion dollars in transactions.” [1]
After a Pentagon audit, this massive amount of Department of Defense spending was unaccounted for. It had somehow gone missing. For perspective, the DOD budget for the year 2001 was $313 billion.[2] The equivalent of roughly seven years of Pentagon budgets had vanished. On that day, Rumsfeld was declaring war on financial waste and possibly fraud as he announced a new plan to “save” the Pentagon. The next day, those plans, whether legitimate or not, were forgotten.
THE 2017 MISSING MONEY REPORT
As the years went by more huge sums appeared to vanish. In the Inspector General Report for the Department of Defense for 2015 the amount was $6.5 trillion.[3] Keep in mind that these two reports from 2001 and 2015, which served as the catalyst for the missing money research study, only involve the DOD and not any other government departments.
It was Catherine Austin Fitts, former assistant secretary of Housing and Urban Development in the first Bush administration, who brought the $6.5 missing trillion to the attention of Dr. Mark Skidmore, a Michigan State University economist, in early 2017. Because the figure was so ridiculously huge he initially thought she was mistaken. Over that summer they continued the project with the assistance of two graduate students to help with a larger study and by September of 2017 had accounted for many more missing funds, officially termed “unsupported adjustments.” The total monetary amount in their report, in researching and compiling documents for only the Department of Defense between the years of 1998-2015, was a whopping $21 trillion. They found an additional $350 billion missing at HUD.
To put these numbers in proper perspective, the entire Gross National Product of the USA in the year 2019 was 21.429 trillion.[4] Where does such money go? How is it possible that the DOD cannot account for a number effectively matching the entire 2019 GDP of the nation? It is impossible that these numbers are mere government accounting errors. How would such errors originate? How would such errors continue to progenerate?
ACCESSING THE 2017 MISSING MONEY REPORT
The report is entitled: Summary Report on “Unsupported Journal Voucher Adjustments” in the Financial Statements of the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Defense and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
You can access the history and documentation page of the report at The Solari Report website, published by Catherine Austin Fitts, containing an embedded link of the five page report, here.
ADDITIONAL SOURCE MATERIAL
For further reading and to get better acquainted with the facts and history of this monumental work, I suggest the following:
MSU Scholars Find $21 Trillion in Unauthorized Government Spending; Defense Department to Conduct First-Ever Audit (© Michigan State University, December 11, 2017)
Is Our Government Intentionally Hiding $21 Trillion In Spending? (© Forbes Magazine, July 21, 2018)
EPILOGUE
After Catherine and Mark authored their report and posted it, including the many links and documentation, it was soon discovered that government report and document links had been disabled, which suggested a purposeful response by parties who may wish to keep the information concealed. In Part 3 of this series I informed you that as of October 1, 2018, there was no longer any guarantee that government accounting and budget figures could be verified. One wonders if that FASAB change was also made in response to the missing $21 trillion. These actions are largely unprecedented and all Americans should be rightfully concerned. Why did elected officials sign off on this? Why are next to no elected officials shining any light on this? The President and leaders of the Senate and House have approved of the processes resulting in multiple trillions of dollars gone missing. Where did it go? What are they using it for? Someone must be held accountable.
I hope you have enjoyed this series and that it added to your knowledge on the subject. I would appreciate it if you would share my site, continue your own research, and spread the news.
All of us must continue to be better informed.
© 2020 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [Part 4]
[1] https://youtu.be/NkgQ4GpIalI (Quote located at 7:54)
[2] https://www.macrotrends.net/countries/USA/united-states/military-spending-defense-budget
[3] DODIG-2016-113-1.pdf
[4] https://www.statista.com/topics/772/gdp/
HIDDEN WEALTH TRANSFER [1]: YOUR FUTURE IS BEING STOLEN
HIDDEN WEALTH TRANSFER [2]: A BRIEF HISTORY OF GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTING (AND REFORM?)
HIDDEN WEALTH TRANSFER [3]: “FEDERAL FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING STANDARDS 56, CLASSIFIED ACTIVITIES”
HIDDEN WEALTH TRANSFER [3]: “FEDERAL FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING STANDARDS 56, CLASSIFIED ACTIVITIES”
Two years ago, while America was captivated by the contentious Kavanaugh hearings, a new government accounting statement, much more significant in scope was issued, essentially in secret.
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Dear readers: If you haven’t yet, I highly recommend reading Part 1 and Part 2 of this series before proceeding with this article. Part 2 is especially necessary as a prerequisite to set the tone for understanding and receiving the full scope of the information contained here.
GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTING GONE DARK?
Many Americans were closely following the Congressional hearings regarding the Supreme Court nomination of Brett Kavanaugh two years ago in September and October of 2018. In what became a showboating ridiculous political circus charged with posturing and innuendo at the expense of one man’s reputation and the nation’s as a whole, another event took place behind the scenes out of the public eye. Whether or not it was planned that way, the reality show-esque hearings certainly gave great cover to the announcement of a new government accounting statement of great import and vast ramifications. FASAB [1] released the statement on October 4, 2018 and made it retroactively effective after Sunday, September 30, 2018.
Entitled Statement of Federal Financial Accounting Standards 56, Classified Activities,[2] it has apparently transformed what was previously and ostensibly the normative practice of transparent government-wide accounting procedures into one in which exact details and amounts of publicly available financial reports are potentially in whole or part subjected to classified status for the sake of national security.
Of course, it is not stated exactly that way but such is the apparent effect. It thus appears that Americans can thus no longer know the exact truth about any department or agency budget or expenditures. For the sake of national security the numbers we are given may be correct or may be adjusted. There is now, seemingly, no way to know. The likelihood is that most Americans are still not aware of this and never will be.
I found out about it not long after it happened through simple research and following the work of a few key people online who keep an eye out for such open source information available to everyone. Perhaps you may be discovering this for the first time.
POLITICAL THEATER?
It will also interest you to know that two years ago, while the Republicans and Democrats were at each other’s throats and presenting to the world a picture of absolute hatred for the other during the wacked-out Congressional hearings, the top Republican and Democrat leaders, including the President, were cheerily signing off on the new FASAB accounting statement. You may wonder why there was no Rose Garden ceremony or large press conference before the Capitol building to announce this far-reaching and all-encompassing change. Could it be due to the nature of the statement?
In Part 2 we learned that a better overall government accounting method was initiated back in 1990 due to admitted problems in prior times, intended or not. Whatever became of the full extent of that effort regarding actual positive change will probably never be known, and now, with the onset of Federal Financial Accounting Standards 56 a mere twenty-eight years later, it likely no longer matters. Any accounting errors that may exist may be unknowable. Any need for internal reform would seem to be pointless. Do Americans still have access to where their tax money goes and what it is used for? I’m sure financial statements of such will continue to be produced but due to the nature of the new statement, how will anyone know if such are actually accurate?
Is government accounting now unaccountable?
© 2020 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [Part 3]
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For more information on this subject, I would like to first introduce you to a brilliant person of sterling reputation and prolific work from which I first received this news two years ago—Catherine Austin Fitts. I am sure some of you are already familiar with her writings and interviews. Her website, which I highly recommend, is The Solari Report available here.
An excellent in-depth Solari Report article on this subject is available here.
[1] The Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board. See Part 2 of this series for introductory information.
[2] files.fasab.gov/pdffiles/original_sffas_56.pdf
HIDDEN WEALTH TRANSFER [1]: YOUR FUTURE IS BEING STOLEN
HIDDEN WEALTH TRANSFER [2]: A BRIEF HISTORY OF GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTING (AND REFORM?)
HIDDEN WEALTH TRANSFER [2]: A BRIEF HISTORY OF GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTING (AND REFORM?)
Americans assume the government has always kept good books. We assume that since the very beginning of the Republic, government accountants have kept strict written financial records of all transactions accessible to all.
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“And when He calls me to account, what will I answer Him?” [Job 31:14]
GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTING
I confess this is an area I have never delved into or have any interest in and therefore have no idea what the facts actually are regarding historical government accounting practices. And, due to the nature of such an all-encompassing subject that would appear to take several lifetimes to get a handle on, I will leave it to others to research the subject as I’m sure many already have.
All of us have a need for accounting. We all must keep financial records. I would think the record keeping of most people is likely not so complicated but can always present a challenge. Small businesses must have extensive accounting departments to keep track of everything. Two hundred years ago it was obviously much simpler. Over the course of the prior century keeping proper financial records grew much more burdensome due to an exponential increase in mandatory compliance toward new government agencies on every level including massive new infrastructures to support, but also as the monetary byproduct of a higher standard of living. In other words, simpler times when much less was required to live were also simpler to account for and document.
I’m sure there’s a graph out there illustrating government growth over the last 245 years, and I would think it shows a low steady climb from the bottom of the left side (1776) to maybe the mid-1800s as we move toward the right when it probably has a small upward jolt (The Civil War) and continues on a slightly higher steady climb until about the magical year of 1913 at roughly the middle of the graph. At this point there would be a higher climb until a huge jump during the 1930s and into WWII. After this one would hope the paper on which the graph was printed was tall enough because government spending likely grew beyond a 45-degree ascent and continued unabated exponentially toward dizzying heights until the present. As of now we are precariously balanced on a sharp nearly vertical pinnacle shooting majestically off the graph on the far right side into government accounting oblivion.
Did federal accounting manage to keep up in its transition from millions to billions to untold trillions? Is there an actual honest record of all expenditures? Is such a record available to every American taxpayer/investor? Could someone choose a particular year of our history and access all accounting records? The answer, of course, is a resounding no. And even if one could, one could never know about any money spent that was officially “off the books.” Known in some circles as dark money, there is certainly a need for utilizing such for various reasons, especially national defense, primarily regarding the comprehensive though indeterminate reason of national security. Therefore, one must assume that there must be at least two sets of books and also the possibility in some cases of no books at all. And in this we must conclude that no, there can likely never be any actual accounting for of all monies appropriated and spent by government agencies.
Again, being pretty much the opposite of an expert in this field with no desire to research it out, I cannot say when or if attempts first began to possibly rectify poor accounting procedures so I will simply start with fairly recent developments.
THE FEDERAL ACCOUNTING STANDARDS ADVISORY BOARD
Mission Statement:
The FASAB serves the public interest by improving federal financial reporting through issuing federal financial accounting standards and providing guidance after considering the needs of external and internal users of federal financial information.[1]
According to its website, FASAB had its initial origins in 1990 when Congress passed the Chief Financial Officer’s Act (CFO Act), requiring audited financial statements, in accordance with applicable standards, for selected federal reporting entities. It was a step toward the comprehensive requirement for audited financial statements established in 1994 by the Government Management Reform Act. Congress passed the CFO Act in part due to concerns about highly publicized financial management problems at various federal agencies.[2]
One must assume this meant there was a serious systemic accounting problem prior to that time. Low level problems and basic accounting fraud in general would not have registered as a great enough offense to require the new law. The CFO Act must have therefore had not mere elementary reform in mind but something much more substantial. And how does that happen? How do the heads of the aforementioned federal agencies allow for such highly publicized management problems? A great many accountants, auditors, and congressional staff [3] were aware of major problems. It must have been exceptionally bad with so many government workers from various agencies blowing the whistle.
By this time you may be getting the big idea that government accounting in general has historically not been so accountable. An effort was made for reform in 1950 with The Budget and Accounting Procedures Act but this was apparently not deemed mandatory and did not involve anything close to full participation. Indeed, some questioned whether it was constitutional for a legislative agency to define accounting standards for an executive agency.[4]
One can only imagine the depth of government accounting incompetence and a total lack of proper oversight and standards that took place over the next forty years (1950-1990). Again, you are getting this information not from government critics but from the government itself. All the information in italics is from the FASAB website. The very creation of FASAB was due to the government itself answering the call to implement system-wide reforms. How much this was driven by concerned American taxpayers in general is not specified but I would think it was not much of a factor, especially during that time period. It was an era when Americans so fully trusted its government most people were completely unaware of any number of scandals and secrets which have since been revealed. Remember, the majority of the country fully supported the Vietnam War (1965-1973) and that tells us pretty much everything.
It was not until 1990 that the government finally decided to get a handle on the accounting “problem” by instituting corrective reform of general accounting procedures with the specific provision of utilizing both the executive and legislative branches working together. Imagine that.
On October 10, 1990, then Secretary of the Treasury Nicholas Brady, Director of OMB Richard Darman, and Comptroller General Charles Bowsher jointly agreed to create and sponsor the Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board (FASAB) by signing a “Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) Among the General Accounting Office, the Department of the Treasury, and the Office of Management and Budget on Federal Government Accounting Standards and a Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board.” FASAB would consider and recommend the appropriate accounting standards for the federal government. For the first time, the legislative and executive branches agreed to work together in an agreed framework, with an open, public process, to determine the accounting standards that federal agencies should follow.[5]
In our next segment we will discuss a recent relatively unknown but extremely serious development within FASAB that takes government accounting on an unaccountable magical mystery tour.
© 2020 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [Part 2]
[1] https://fasab.gov/about-fasab/mission-objectives/
[2] https://fasab.gov/about-fasab/fasab-history/the-history-of-fasab/
[3] https://fasab.gov/about-fasab/fasab-history/the-history-of-fasab/
[4] https://fasab.gov/about-fasab/fasab-history/the-history-of-fasab/
[5] https://fasab.gov/about-fasab/fasab-history/the-history-of-fasab/
HIDDEN WEALTH TRANSFER [1]: YOUR FUTURE IS BEING STOLEN
HIDDEN WEALTH TRANSFER [3]: “FEDERAL FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING STANDARDS 56, CLASSIFIED ACTIVITIES”
HIDDEN WEALTH TRANSFER [1]: YOUR FUTURE IS BEING STOLEN
Once a person declares absolute support for the Lord Jesus and a total commitment to Him, it forever transforms every aspect of his life. It is a 100% proposition. The Lord becomes one’s ultimate authority.
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MANY CHRISTIANS REMAIN ASLEEP AND UNAWARE
A probable majority of people simply do not believe in the idea of hidden overlords ruling the world. Most dismiss any idea of a few great ones, swelled by stolen wealth and power, orchestrating world events for their own benefit and in the process using human beings as mere chattel to meet their nefarious goals. And what are their goals? Very simply, it is obtaining possession of enough power and wealth to direct world events according to personal desires. Wealth grants power. Power allows for the obtaining of wealth. Each allows for more of the other. Great wealth and power allows for greater freedom to do whatever they want. Ultimately, they want to control the entire world and thereby profess themselves as effective deities.
GONNA HAVE TO SERVE SOMEBODY
Honest people realize early on that if they choose to attempt to acquire wealth it will be much more difficult to do so honestly than to do so dishonestly. They value honesty more than wealth. They decide they would rather be honest than wealthy if the only way to be wealthy is to be dishonest. This forces them to appropriate a much more difficult task and a longer road with no guarantee they will ever succeed, especially since they must compete with cheaters. By putting morality above wealth, wealth, if gained, will never control them. Thus, wealth is not necessarily evil in and of itself as long as one never falls under its spell.
“No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.” [Luke 16:13]
On the other hand, once a person decides that honesty will have no deciding role in his attempt to acquire wealth, it makes wealth accumulation much easier. This should be obvious to all. If one decides to lie and cheat one’s way to the top, so to speak, there is no end to the grease one can appropriate for proverbial wheels and palms. Dishonest people, when very young, are somewhat dumbfounded at how easy it is to deceive people. If a person with great drive and determination decides to deceive to get ahead there is a wide open door for success. If such a person also happens to have a certain charisma and charm all the better. And better yet, if a person learns how to lie and cheat while appearing for all intents and purposes to be forthright and honest, his or her dishonesty will remain hidden to most. Once such a person gains enough wealth to afford the services of such people who are masters at eliminating his dirty footprints that would otherwise be easily traceable, making it virtually impossible for most people to follow his trail, the majority are none the wiser that any evil is associated with such a person or that any nefarious activity has ever taken place. This has allowed the true character of the most wicked human beings on the planet to become effectively invisible. Not only to they hire valued dirt scrubbers but also disinformation agents to create a false public persona as well as false fronts hiding their evil power and wealth accumulation practices.
THE DEVIL WAS ONCE A GOOD GUY
He was perhaps the most bright and shining of all the angels in heaven. We can trace his origins in the Book of Revelation and his subsequent great fall when he allowed his own pride and arrogance to overtake his good sense and reason. He convinced a third of the angels of heaven to join him in rebellion against their Creator and revolt in a thoroughly ridiculous and misguided attempt to overthrow God. It was no doubt a great war but a lost cause from the start. Their initial penalty was being cast out of heaven and to Planet Earth where they have been ever since. Satan’s ultimate penalty will be the Lake of Fire and total destruction.
His human counterparts will eventually suffer the same fate. Remember, the angels who joined with Satan had no natural antipathy toward their Creator but were deceived into believing He was deficient in some way and not actually concerned about their lives and welfare, but existed only as a tyrant keeping them down and unable to fulfill their true fate. It was all a lie and came forth from the father of lies who, once leaving the spiritual Light and taking on darkness, acquired the great ability, as transformed from his former ability to shed light, into a dark being with a pronounced power of darkness. This included great deception which he utilized on his captured fellow angels, having bewitched them into doing the unthinkable.
He does the same to human beings. Those who would naturally never even think of betraying God or those they may be in covenant with will turn on a dime once convinced through the powers of deception to betray former friends and join what is essentially a mind cult in subservience to lies and misinformation. It is the only way the devil could create an army and is the same way wicked human beings in positions of great power create armies to serve them and do their dirty work. And anything in opposition to God and His goodness is dirty work.
MASTER SELLOUTS
“For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” [Matthew 16:26][1]
It has always intrigued me the way otherwise intelligent people can be overcome by greed and the quest for supreme power. How can they not understand that their time in a human body is limited? Why do they think it a prudent thing to cast all reason to the wind for whatever they may gain in a temporary world? Even if they live to the century mark and acquire the equivalent of billions or in a few cases even trillions of dollars they must leave it all behind at death. Maybe their lack of belief in an afterlife is their most compelling of reasons to grab all they can while they can, in their belief that only a fool would forego present pleasure for an unproven future hope. However, their greatest reason for living a life of wickedness (though couched in respectability) in pursuit of power and wealth is due to the spiritual blindness they have brought upon themselves through a rejection of spiritual light. Since one cannot sin without conviction while in the light and in possession of a healthy working conscience, the desire to seek great wealth and power through evil means forces the leaving behind of light and the embracing of evil forces toward evil gains, as well as killing one’s conscience—a blessed built-in arbiter of right and wrong.
Again, Satan is the prototype for such behavior, as one so strong he would challenge God. Every human being who implements this sordid behavior is essentially engaging in the same rebellion in that God is seen as an opposing force keeping one down and from achieving his rightful destiny. Eve fell for this lie like a rock. She had no capacity, understanding, or experience to know she was being played. Her salvation was in her deference to Adam who was certainly aware of the devil and his tricks and as long as she stayed loyal to him all would have remained well.
It is the same with real Christians and the Lord. We don’t often know the whys and wherefores but we do know our close relationship with the Lord must be gained and maintained at all costs, no matter what they may be, because without His guidance, direction, providence, spiritual strength, and love we will have no more than a snowball’s chance in hell. Refusing one’s relationship with Him for temporary pleasure, even if it means being one of the richest and powerful few on the planet, works only as long as one draws breath. This is not a good bargain. Intelligent people with a working conscience in good order know this. Hence, the powerful people running the world have obviously been willingly overtaken by evil and are deceived regarding the actions and chosen purpose of their lives. They must believe something contrary to the truth regarding what happens after death and that it somehow will be personally beneficial, and thus have no fear of future justice.
To sum up, dishonesty breeds dishonesty. Sin creates spiritual blindness. Those who choose evil against humanity for the sake of personal gain, especially on a massive scale, must be exposed and held to account.
© 2020 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [Part 1]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
HIDDEN WEALTH TRANSFER [2]: A BRIEF HISTORY OF GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTING (AND REFORM?)
HIDDEN WEALTH TRANSFER [3]: FEDERAL FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING STANDARDS 56, CLASSIFIED ACTIVITIES
FORCED VACCINATIONS? COMPULSORY MASK-WEARING AS MERE PRELUDE
America was deceived at the onset of the virus narrative. And while it appears this deception is currently being exposed worldwide, it is apparent that it provided cover as part of the larger ongoing plan.
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DAY SEVEN
We have reached the seventh day of Sukkot—the seven day Feast of Tabernacles or Ingathering celebrating the Lord’s great providence. I trust things are going well for you during this eventful time. Sukkot is the last of the three great feasts of the calendar year. It is a time to honor the Lord’s ongoing presence, protection, and providence and remind us that we dwell in temporary shelters in a temporary land. The old hymn says:
This world is not my home, I’m just a-passing through
My treasures and my hopes are all beyond the blue;
Where many friends and kindred have gone on before
And I can’t feel at home in this world anymore [1]
Every real Christian knows this. The ancient Hebrews knew it. Abraham certainly knew it. The Lord Jesus instructed His followers that this present world is quite temporary. Whoever signs up with the Lord knows they are not to strive to make this world our home on anything other than a transitory basis. We are also instructed, however, to “Occupy till I come.” [2] This means we are to do the work we are called to do on His behalf for the sake of His eternal spiritual Kingdom. Such work is not possible without His direct involvement, guidance, and equipping. His work is specific to each individual believer.
EXPOSING SECRET EVIL
“This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.” [John 3:19-21]
Some Christians are called primarily to teach the truth. Their vocation, of course, involves much work, study, reading, and research to find the truth and report it. Their satisfaction comes from knowing they obeyed the Lord in this regard. Whoever believes the truth they report also adds to their ministerial fulfillment but is of a secondary nature in that, for the real Christian, presenting truth never involves any force toward accepting it.
Those who use force are not in the business of teaching but in that of indoctrination. Many Christians, of course, have been indoctrinated. Many have been so indoctrinated they are unable to see anything beyond their indoctrination. When Scriptural truth which opposes their indoctrination is presented it is often rejected, in part because they must seek relief from the resultant cognitive dissonance in that two opposing views presented as apparent truth cannot exist together in harmony in the same cranium. Such Christians also feel a strong attachment to their traditional religious beliefs and feel they must remain true to them regardless of their suspect Scriptural authenticity. To do otherwise would involve too much discomfort especially when coupled with social displacement. Another strong arbiter is the choice to support one’s Christian guru rather than anyone else who may appear as an interloper. Strangely, though the Lord taught He is our only Teacher in the ultimate sense, one’s “pastors” and spiritual “leaders” often have precedence even over the Lord Jesus. This obviously proves such people put less faith in Scripture and the truth therein which means they had better have good accident insurance:
And He also spoke a parable to them: “A blind man cannot guide a blind man, can he? Will they not both fall into a pit? A pupil is not above his teacher; but everyone, after he has been fully trained, will be like his teacher.” [Luke 6:39-40]
Our great Teacher exposes hidden evil. No secret can ever remain hidden in His presence. This does not mean that the world is not under great deception, however. The god of this world, as Paul described him, is in the very business of deception. It is his central calling. Since he is pure evil he must remain hidden. All those who work for him also must remain hidden. Their evil deeds must remain hidden. Anything done in secret is most often evil, otherwise why is it secret? At present there are many plans in place to engage in great evil but very few know about such plans. Back in March, when the plandemic first presented itself, there were people who immediately knew the overarching worldwide response to a simple virus was an elaborate hoax. It was planned for several years. Some knew about the plan in advance. Others were informed when the time came. They were told what to do. The vast majority of the world was clueless. A few quickly understood what was happening and did their best to report the truth but it was too late. Great fear had already taken hold. A killer virus was on the loose, something the world had never seen before, and millions upon millions would die, stacked up like cordwood in the streets.
It was all a ruse. Virtually everyone in authority quickly got on board, including the President, who shares the guilt, though not to the degree of certain governors. He had previously said the whole thing was a hoax. Then the next thing you know he’s got the big Pharma versions of Barbie and Ken right in our face every day telling the country to do the very opposite of what it should have done. He absolutely yielded to their authority and cannot live this down. As a result the thoroughly evil ones with great control had a field day. Many people died that never needed to die. The so-called authorities kept lying about the death totals also. They needed, in military parlance, a large body count to substantiate their illicit actions. Though every life lost was a precious life lost, many lives were lost needlessly and would not have been lost if those in charge had followed the usual proper medical protocols.
The CDC finally admitted in late August that the actual number of Americans who died only from the virus was obviously not the millions and millions it had initially projected or even the two hundred thousand most continue to insist upon, but only a mere nine thousand, an extremely minuscule fraction of reported casualties. I reported this right away in my article The Plandemic Truth Was Revealed Here Back in March: Now Confirmed. America was locked down, the economy was destroyed, and many more lives were lost not from the virus but from the evil and false response to it. We now know that the survival rate of those who actually contracted the virus for those under 70 years of age is 99.8%:
Age 00-19: 99.997%
Age 20-49: 99.980%
Age 50-69: 99.500%
Age 70 plus: 94.60% [3]
A great many never even contracted it. Also, the tests have been proven to be erroneous. The multiple thousands of tests conducted on many college campuses across the country recently, for example, revealed what appeared to be a raging pandemic. Guess how many of the 70,000 students who tested positive in that time frame were hospitalized? THREE. Guess how many died? NONE. [4]
As one more case in point regarding this particular magic virus, it now appears that it is quite possibly so elusive it often escapes detection. John Rappoport, a leading researcher and writer on the subject from the beginning, has revealed this distinct possibility in an article he posted yesterday: The Smoking Gun: Where is the Coronavirus? The CDC says it isn’t Available. [5]
But none of this really matters anymore. Once fear took hold and the majority was properly indoctrinated, truth and facts no longer registered. They still don’t. Those who revealed the truth in March and even before March continued telling the truth. Many more did the same. It was all to no avail because the public had been thoroughly cowed. I knew this back in March and wrote a post about it entitled The Control Test: Proving the Majority Compliant. It was due to the great emerging fearful duped and indoctrinated majority that everyone had to suffer, including all those who knew better. But this only means the evil planners knew they already had control of the majority prior to the plandemic and could play the majority like a drum. And they did. They knew exactly what to do and what buttons to push.
What about Christians? The same thing. The same majority not only fell for the whole thing but many were actually involved in the hidden secret and did what they were told like all the others. They revealed themselves for what they are. In fact, all the evil minions with smiling innocent faces and outer upstanding character who took part in the ruse revealed themselves for what they are. Many more are seeing this now. But it’s likely too late.
SOMETHING FAR WORSE IS COMING
The masks everyone have been forced to wear were only a prelude. They only involved Phase 1. The mask mandates were designed to confirm the compliant majority. They were a test to see how many Americans would actually submit. They were designed to soften up the populace and cause everyone to willingly forego their natural independence and constitutional rights. Again, fear was the primarily tool used in this regard. Real Christians know, however, that fear is the great enemy of faith. These two are polar opposites. In a time of fear the Lord instructs us to never give into it but remain in faith. Of course, if one has no faith, including Christians, fear is always the default position. Once the majority was overcome by fear back in March, it became silly putty in the hands of the great controllers.
And now there is something even greater upon us. Again, our President, whom many Christians trust implicitly, signed off on a new program back in the spring, a program that could act as Phase 2 in this ongoing drama. Though officially introduced in April of this year, its initial planning actually predated the lockdown, which further reveals the long-term prior scheduling of the overall strategy.
Called Operation Warp Speed,[6] its far-reaching agenda using various clandestine government alphabet agencies working in concert with big Pharma corporations is veiled in secrecy in no small part by granting undisclosed contracts to vaccine companies. [7] The covert goal, other than great monetary profit, is not to force every American to obey life-defeating overtures such as needlessly wearing masks which do more harm than good and shuttering churches and local businesses, but to coerce everyone to submit to a scheduled 300 million doses (for starters) of a fast-tracked vaccine with unknowable and highly suspect content. With a wink and a nod our President revealed that the military would be predominantly involved to administer this secretive program all across the country. Why do so few see the obvious red flags here?
It is quite apparent that no one will have a choice in the matter. Everyone will be forced to submit to a mandatory unsafe vaccine that will most likely not help the majority against Covid-19 at all, since most flu vaccines have at best about a 40% success rate but often do irreparable damage to one’s body. This is especially true since the normal approval and testing process has been fast-tracked. The Covid-19 vaccine must only be 50% effective. Regarding Covid-19 specifically, there has never been a safe and effective vaccine for coronaviruses. Trying to create one under such auspices is therefore highly problematic. Also, the current virus has appeared to have run its course. It never resulted in a pandemic or anything close to one, unless one considers that it was a successful mental pandemic. Oh, and in case you may be wondering, as it is with other vaccines, everyone involved in creating and administering the vaccine will have absolutely no liability whatsoever. [8]
The President should immediately clarify where he stands on this. Up until now he has dodged any question regarding the mandatory nature of the operation and its underlying objectives. In fact, the entire operation is being swept under the rug at the exact time it is gearing up for its massive nationwide overture.
So while we are going through this very heavy news month of October 2020, many nefarious hidden secret dealings are taking place and there is much outer political activity also taking place to act as cover for the other. The original plan was to administer the vaccinations before the election but this is presently looking unlikely. It did not help that human volunteers involved in the vaccine trials were getting very sick and injured, which assisted in delaying the process. It’s amazing this news even came out. Of course, millions have been suffering from such vaccine injuries over the last several years, especially defenseless children. [9] Nevertheless, after the brouhaha of the 2020 election finally settles down and is sorted out, be prepared to roll up your sleeve.
Of course, it is unlikely that you will be manhandled and held down while they stick a needle in you. It will be just as the preliminary in Phase 1: You generally cannot enter a grocery store or place of business or stay employed without being forced to wear a mask. It doesn’t matter if you work in a grocery store or make a million dollars a year as an NFL coach. In other words, without a mask you cannot buy or sell or earn a living. So will it be with what is coming. You won’t take the vaccine? Okay, no problem. Just let me get your name for the permanent record…
And he causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free men and the slaves, to be given a mark on their right hand or on their forehead, and he provides that no one will be able to buy or to sell, except the one who has the mark, either the name of the beast or the number of his name. [Revelation 13:16-17]
Of course, as regards anything else, the Lord Jesus has supreme overall power and authority, and with enough prayer, fasting, telling the truth, and successful spiritual warfare, these secret hidden plans can be exposed and mitigated. But Americans in general MUST stand up for their rights as free people. We MUST work hard to get informed. Many more Christians MUST quit playing around, stop giving into fear, and get serious with God.
And rather than prioritizing and succumbing to the strong deception of nefarious controllers and their hidden agendas, we must obey the holy mandate of the Lord.
“He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me, scatters.” [Luke 11:23] [10]
© 2020 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] © A.P. Carter
[2] Luke 19:13 KJV
[3] CDC
[4] https://thefederalist.com/2020/10/07/the-covid-campus-plague-that-never-came-university-deaths-remain-virtually-nonexistent/
[5] https://blog.nomorefakenews.com/2020/10/08/the-smoking-gun-where-is-the-coronavirus-the-cdc-says-it-isnt-available/
[6] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Warp_Speed
[7] https://www.thelastamericanvagabond.com/operation-warp-speed-is-using-a-cia-linked-contractor-to-keep-covid-19-vaccine-contracts-secret/
[8] https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/04/15/2020-08040/amendment-to-declaration-under-the-public-readiness-and-emergency-preparedness-act-for-medical
[9] https://childrenshealthdefense.org/
[10] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
ROSH HASHANAH 2020: A CURIOUS PORTENT
The Jewish New Year, known as Rosh Hashanah, the “Head of the Year,” started Friday night, September 18, at sunset. Those who take it seriously know that God still uses His calendar. Pay attention.
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A NEW BEGINNING
Again the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘In the seventh month on the first of the month you shall have a rest, a reminder by blowing of trumpets, a holy convocation. You shall not do any laborious work, but you shall present an offering by fire to the Lord.’” [Leviticus 23:23-25]
There are actually two general traditional Hebrew calendar beginnings. The earliest is the sacred or festival calendar which begins in the spring with the first month of Nisan. The later civil calendar begins in the autumn with the seventh month of Tishrei. The first day of Tishrei—today—is Rosh Hashanah. It is a traditional time for a new beginning.
Rosh Hashanah is also known as the Feast of Trumpets. This is taken from the blowing of the shofar or ram’s horn to announce the beginning of the New Year. Since days begin at sunset, based on the Genesis account, Rosh Hashanah began on Friday night (last night) at sunset and ends tonight at sunset. As an example, sunset in Washington DC occurred last night at 7:10pm EDT.
This is also the first day of the ten “Days of Awe.” It is time to seek the Lord, to consider one’s spiritual condition, and to repent. It is a time to prepare for the coming year and make sure one is right with God. Traditionally, one’s spiritual condition at this time sets the tone for the entire coming year.
This is especially applicable, I would think, for the year 2020. The next month and a half will be incredibly intense, even more so than this past summer. This intensity will likely remain until the end of the year and probably into January. Major decisions must be made. Everything is heading into a massive funnel and the vortex created by the pressure will create outcomes possibly never seen before. There is intense pressure from several scenarios topped off by the plandemic, the great worldwide financial reset, the presidential and congressional elections, and tremendous social unrest. Millions of people are extremely angry and cannot seem to contain themselves whatsoever.
For Christians, our spirituality, walk with the Lord, and personal interactions will be greatly tested. It is most necessary to be properly prepared. The tenth day of the “Days of Awe” is Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. It begins at sunset on Sunday evening, September 27. The following passage gives an indication of the importance of this day:
The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “On exactly the tenth day of this seventh month is the day of atonement; it shall be a holy convocation for you, and you shall humble your souls and present an offering by fire to the Lord. You shall not do any work on this same day, for it is a day of atonement, to make atonement on your behalf before the Lord your God. If there is any person who will not humble himself on this same day, he shall be cut off from his people. As for any person who does any work on this same day, that person I will destroy from among his people. You shall do no work at all. It is to be a perpetual statute throughout your generations in all your dwelling places. It is to be a sabbath of complete rest to you, and you shall humble your souls; on the ninth of the month at evening, from evening until evening you shall keep your sabbath.” [Leviticus 23:26-32][1]
A CURIOUS PORTENT
The passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg yesterday is quite the coincidence. She was obviously a very important American and high profile person, greatly admired and respected. She died before the sun went down on the last day of the civil year right before the onset of Rosh Hashanah. It goes without saying that such is an incredibly rare occurrence and must signal something quite profound.
Pay attention.
© 2020 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
“WE ARE IN THE EARLY STAGES OF A NATIONAL GREAT AWAKENING”
It was ten years ago when I first heard the preceding words. The Lord spoke to me clearly and directly. There was absolutely no doubt regarding what He said. I’ve done my best to relay the message ever since.
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For those of you following the site over the years, you know I have brought this up before, several times. It has, however, like so many other truths I have received, largely fallen on deaf ears. Sometimes truth is not accepted because people simply cannot hear it. They don’t get it. It could be they have no frame of reference. One might as well be speaking another language. Others cannot receive it because there is something in the way, something is blocking transmission. The something, of course, is in their minds. A strong signal goes out. They cannot help but be in the direct path of the frequency, so to speak. But an unseen or unacknowledged obstruction disallows their reception like a mountain might block radio waves. They have no ill intent, necessarily, to block it, but something is blocking it.
In the majority of cases, however, at least according to my experience, which is extensive over many years, the truth is openly rejected. People hear it. They understand, at least to a degree, what is being said. There is not necessarily any obstruction in their minds blocking transmission.
Some reject truth out of hand, almost immediately, simply because it appears far too foreign for their chosen narratives which they live by or because it sounds too far out for any further consideration. These people are often in a hurry with maybe many irons in the fire. They keep their personal beliefs on the surface for the most part. Regarding the big picture they are shallow thinkers. They put most of their effort into making a living and living life, including their down time, which is filled with other pursuits. They give very little or mostly no thought to higher things that might allow them a brief glimpse into spiritual reality.
Many people, however, reject truth because they have already adopted their form of truth. If it’s religion or spirituality of some form or another, they already have that base covered. Their beliefs are set. They were either born into a particular traditional belief system and have accepted it wholly with no desire whatsoever to seek anything else, or they chose another at some point along the way, usually early on in life, and made it a foundation upon which everything else is built. Their thinking is such that they rarely or never question their beliefs or how their traditional religion came to be. All they can muster in this regard is unconditional deference to those in authority who pronounce it and they trust them wholeheartedly. They never look behind the curtain. Most don’t even know there is a curtain. They are also greatly supported by others in their group/clan/religion who believe exactly the same and it is from this well that they primarily draw from when questions might arise. Rather than do any serious research on their own they are content to be in union with a great many others who believe as they do and this is what they use for support. Whether they fully understand it or not, they are thus bound by a religious culture.
This dynamic is especially true regarding Christianity. Though the Lord Jesus has only one curriculum this has not stopped Christians over the centuries from rejecting it and creating their own, even though they still draw from His teachings in general. They acknowledge certain passages and verses and reject or neglect others. Another church down the street has their own favorites. Once you consider all the churches over the world you see that their respective constructed dogmas amount to a mishmash of various religious principles, some of which have no Christian basis at all. Their particular Statements of Faith include, of course, obligatory grabs and segments from the Lord’s original curriculum, as if they only had a limited supply of papyrus fragments or scroll segments to choose from, but also a rejection of much of His teachings because they don’t fit their perception of what Christianity is or what it should be.
I have always been somewhat astounded at this. When it comes to pretty much anything else, especially as it regards their means of making a living, these same Christians will do the opposite and adopt the full instruction manual. Earning money means they must know their product or the elements of the service they perform to the fullest extent in order to perform their best and engage in all that is required to procure success or maximum success. These Christians also have authority figures of some sort breathing down their neck to get their jobs right and perform correctly. It is how one gets in good standing and remains there to keep getting a paycheck or the necessary remuneration which they need to live and upon which their lives are built. The better they get at their profession, which obviously includes as much knowledge of it as possible and the experience to perform within it toward possible excellence, the better off they will be. This is what we all work at to varying degrees in order to receive maximum compensation which makes for a better life.
But strangely, this dynamic is rarely applied by Christians toward the Lord’s teachings. We have a billion Bibles largely going to waste and many appear as pristine as the day they were published. We have a full accounting of the Lord’s extant teachings in written form in pretty much every language known to man. We also have a great many works referencing His teachings that lend excellent support to our further understanding of it as well as any number of technological tools for assisting deep study. The material is there. The knowledge of how it got here is there. This is not simply a slow well to draw from but an ocean eclipsing the Pacific.
Why then are so many Christians, a probable majority, content with so little knowledge of the Lord? Why are they content with trusting their Christian education to one or a few religious authority figures? Why are they content with so little, even with purported degrees from “accredited” Christian schools? Many Christian “pastors” are only knowledgeable of their own Christian perspectives and can therefore only speak from what they know within their limited environment, which is often limited by design, especially if particular outside teachings appear strangely foreign regardless of Scriptural pedigree. Thus, their narrow approach regulates and imposes limits on “acceptable” Biblical truth, rejects that which they don’t feel comfortable with, and creates restricted parameters rather than allowing for access to the effective limitlessness of spiritual knowledge and the written Word of God.
Now, if they need a miracle in their lives, which can only come from the supernatural world, notably the Lord’s miracle realm, and can only involve supernatural miraculous means, well then, the supernatural in this case is suddenly not so odd and becomes agreeable. For anything else, however, especially everyday living and getting along, and making sure they do nothing to appear weird to friends and family, they reject the supernatural. I mean, come on, everyone must save face don’t you know.
AUGUST 30, 2010
I had hoped to write this article sooner so I could present it on the exact ten year anniversary of having received it. It was on the preceding date, so I’m close. One might consider that time ten years ago. I can still see it clearly. There was very little or nothing then that suggested any such thing as a Great Awakening would happen. Though a few Christians have believed in a coming great revival for perhaps a few decades, it seems as though their beliefs were presented in a general inarticulate sense in which the belief of revival outweighed any efficacy toward it.
To set the scene of hearing this message from the Lord, I was in the process of writing a paper presumably to be posted on my former website. During the previous year and a half, starting in early 2009, I had begun to write again and continue my research. Previous to then I had been inundated with practical necessities for a few years which restricted my time and opportunities. In that year and a half from early ’09 to August of 2010, I had created a relatively large amount of work including much research. The papers I created for posting averaged maybe 8-12 pages. I assumed the paper I began writing in late August ten years ago would be the same. The one thing that was different about it however was the unique subject matter. My relatively brief paper, over the next six months, became a book of well over 300 pages. I considered that a confirming sign.
One of the central purposes of the initial paper was to reveal fake revivals. One was occurring at that very time. It was mainly in the political realm but such often has strong Christian overtones. An event had very recently taken place in Washington DC at that time which involved the contribution of many religious leaders. It was supposedly about American patriotism associated with Christianity and included several national Christian personalities and church leaders. At one point the outdoor stage included a large group of these people in a lateral file from left to right. There was a call to lock arms together. However, intermixed within the mostly Christian leaders, both Protestant and Catholic, were several other leaders of various religious backgrounds, including Jews, Muslims, and Mormons. It was not simply another ludicrous ecumenical display but one absolutely antithetical to real Christianity. All those so-called Christian leaders, supposedly pledged eternally to the Lord Jesus, were locked arm in arm to those absolutely hostile to the Lord Jesus.
It was a perfect illustration of what would be ongoing deceptive efforts designed to stop what was coming.
© 2020 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued]
THE PLANDEMIC TRUTH WAS REVEALED HERE BACK IN MARCH: NOW CONFIRMED
The news is now out that only 6% of COVID-19 deaths were attributable to COVID-19 alone. This is a shocking admission of truth.
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As of 8/22/20, 161,392 people were reported to have died from the virus in the United States. The actual number was approximately 9,210. [1]
Americans have been forced to participate in this. What will be the fallout? Will anyone be held accountable? Will Americans at last come to their senses? What about the millions of Christians who participated from the beginning and are still participating at present? Will they ever wake up? Who are the real leaders of American Christianity at the moment? Who are the few telling the truth?
I wrote the following posts back in March:
MARCH 16, 2020:
PANICKED OVER A TRICK PANDEMIC
MARCH 22, 2020:
THE CURRENT SHUTDOWN: AN OPPORTUNITY TO DISCOVER AND PRACTICE ORIGINAL CHRISTIANITY
MARCH 31, 2020:
THE CONTROL TEST: PROVING THE MAJORITY COMPLIANT
© 2020 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
AND STILL THEY DO NOTHING
For the few who are keeping up, you now have all the evidence required to prove traditional institutional Christianity in America has become largely willingly ineffective in the current spiritual war.
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This is the price of compromise, of holding on to cherished notions that what worked yesterday can still work today. It can’t. Yesterday is gone forever. Those who know what real spiritual war is know this is true. Those who have fought valiantly with their entire being know it was the only means to victory but also that victory is not necessarily guaranteed. The days of playing church as a means of overcoming a determined enemy out to destroy them only worked in the minds of the deceived. As always, it was the largely hidden frontline spiritual soldiers keeping things as intact as possible while the majority looked the other way, not comprehending spiritual reality and not willing to be bothered with the Lord’s call to spiritual arms.
Such real believers continue to take the Words of the Lord very seriously. They don’t pick and choose from His curriculum what they will believe and act upon. These are real disciples who understand that His full teachings have never been a mere suggestion or some quaint repository from which to draw to maintain the mere semblance of duty. They give it everything they have as the Lord requires.
Compromised Christians are people who simply don’t get it or won’t. They do not understand or care that, according to the Lord’s teachings, the only way to win spiritual victories is through a 100% commitment. Maintaining the spiritual high ground works only through the same process. The Lord did not teach full commitment as only a last stand gesture to be utilized as a last resort when the enemy comes in like a flood, but as the only means of ongoing victory through its consistent daily application. Why? Because the enemy never takes a day off. Slackers and rebels thus side with the enemy through their inaction and refusal to obey the Lord.
We should now know the majority of Christians were playing church all along because of what has now transpired in America. Whatever they were doing did not prevent it. We should now know it is still doing it even in the face of the current dire circumstances. I have been arguing for decades against the wrongheaded notion of restricting ministry to official church tradition as usual for several reasons, but primarily because it stands as a stubborn opposing force to the actual powerfully effective means the Lord taught and practiced. We currently have insistent traditional Christians still insisting on traditional Christian means even though they are no longer practicing traditional Christian means because they have been ordered to cease practicing their traditional Christian means by their traditional Christian leaders who have succumbed to secular mini-tyrants.
Remember, in times of peace and prosperity many never notice or care about real Christianity. But when peace and prosperity goes south in part due to Christians not honoring their commitment to the Lord they start paying more attention. A few get the message. A few get the big idea. A few repent. A few rededicate themselves to God. A few rise to the occasion. A few stand up for the Lord Jesus. Those who do make all the difference. Remember Gideon’s 300.
“He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters.” [Matthew 12:30][1]
© 2020 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
AMERICA’S DESCENT INTO CHAOS: IDENTIFYING THE RESPONSIBLE PARTY
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Darkness enters the void vacated by the light.
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Those of you who follow my work know I am an advocate of the Early Church. Regardless of what that term may conjure up in the minds of Christians (and it is likely to invoke quite dissimilar notions), allow me to define it from a New Covenant perspective, the only one that matters.
THE FINAL GENERATION
We must look at the period of roughly forty years between the resurrection of the Lord Jesus and the cessation of the former nation of Israel (the little that was left of it) in AD 70. On Av 9 of that year, which occurs on our calendar in approximately late July to early August, Israel’s third and final temple was destroyed. The great city of Jerusalem was also largely destroyed. Judgment had fallen on a rebellious people, a people with a long track record of violating God’s covenants. Everything that could possibly have been done by the Lord to avert such a disastrous outcome had been done, but to no avail.
Sixty-five years later, in AD 135, after yet another uprising by rebellious Zealots, what may be termed the final termination of what was once Jerusalem occurred, when whatever was left was razed to the ground. There was nothing remaining of the former city except the imposing Roman army camp known as Fort Antonia. Jerusalem had become history. A completely new Roman city was built on the former site of Jerusalem which the Emperor Hadrian named Aelia Capitolina. Hadrian improved and expanded Fort Antonia and it served as a powerful Roman military base of operations and bulwark against her enemies in that treacherous geographical location for many decades into the future. The new Roman city of Aelia Capitolina maintained its name for over 200 years until time of Constantine.
DIVISION AND DESTRUCTION FORETOLD
When He approached Jerusalem, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, “If you had known in this day, even you, the things which make for peace! But now they have been hidden from your eyes. For the days will come upon you when your enemies will throw up a barricade against you, and surround you and hem you in on every side, and they will level you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not recognize the time of your visitation.” [Luke 19:41-44]
Just as the Lord Jesus had predicted during His ministry in AD 32, the temple was gone forever and so was the original city of Jerusalem. The ancient Jebusite city captured by King David in 1003 BC and all its later additions is long gone. There are no intact ruins. What exists of the old city at present after the time of Hadrian was built by later peoples through the centuries, including the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman, known notably for the walls he built in the sixteenth century.
So there you have the two bookends which define the time of the Early Church, from AD 32-70. This roughly 40 year period was the time that the vestiges of ancient Israel existed side by side with the new Kingdom of the Lord Jesus. He took His rightful place as the only possible next king and the final King of Israel, the King of kings and Lord of lords. There had not been an actual king in the Davidic line for over six centuries until His time. A great percentage of Israelites accepted His kingship and honored the Lord as Messiah, King, Savior, and God. A larger percentage rejected Him.
In approximately the first nine years since the Lord’s resurrection, the Early Church (Ekklesia) of the Lord—the Community of Called-Out Ones—consisted entirely of Israelites. There were no Gentiles until the time of Cornelius in roughly AD 41. This made the Early Church strictly a family affair. Spiritual war broke out among two factions of the same family, the believers and unbelievers. Those who believed possessed “eyes to see” in which everything was perfectly revealed. The OT prophecies referencing the Messiah were made clear to them and they taught all who would hear who had a desire to know the truth.
But the unbelieving faction descended into further hatred. What they did to the Lord they also did to many of their believing brothers. The believing Israelites obeyed the Golden Rule and treated their unbelieving brothers with pure spiritual love. The unbelievers in turn responded with pure hatred and murder. It appeared as if there was no way the believers would survive. The unbelievers held all the positions of power and authority. The believers were looked upon as filthy dregs and nothing but heretics and blasphemers.
This was the Early Church. These were the people, in that time frame, who produced the original writings of our New Testament. They were the ones who were most faithful in the face of great persecution. Rather than fade out or die out they grew stronger and more numerous. Despite the rejection and censoring, the hatred displayed by those in power had no effect on stopping them. From the time the Lord rose from the dead and that first great Day of Pentecost until the time of the final destruction of Jerusalem, two distinct camps had formed. The nation was absolutely polarized. However, even with all their political and religious authority, the camp of unbelievers never came close to putting down what they termed a vile rebellion. The real rebels, of course, were not those who were castigated as heretics, but their accusers who had appropriated the side of evil. They chose it. They were the agents of antichrist.
And rather than seek God and align themselves with the Lord’s Community, with rationality and proper conduct, and attempt to make any kind of compromise to gain some semblance of mutual care, they instead gravitated in the opposite direction and began aligning themselves with the Zealot Party, which had previously been only a relatively small segment with little power. Why did the Pharisees and Sadducees do this? Why did the two leading parties, one primarily religious and the other primarily governmental, align themselves with the one group whose only desire was throwing off the Romans even if it meant destroying their country in the process?
The Zealots were nuts. They were crazed revolutionaries who actually believed they could overthrow Rome. Their great passion and martial mentality is unquestioned, but inbred irrational and grandiose beliefs, based in part on a false identification with historical Hebrew leaders, proved to be their downfall since they possessed not the relationship with God of the former and continually proved their opposition to Him by their reprehensible conduct and vicious persona. And as time continued throughout those forty years, as the commingling and entangling grew more complete, the people of the other Hebrew sects began undergoing the same transformation. Did they think by embracing the Zealots they would increase their chances of success?
In the final analysis, all it did was further their demise. When the Great Revolt, otherwise known as the predicted apostasia referred to by Paul, began in the summer of AD 66, it was instigated by the Zealots. The Zealot Party eventually gained ruling control of the temple and the city. Some Pharisee and Sadducee leaders were aghast at the development. A few of them had seen it coming but were powerless to stop the juggernaut. The power of God which they could have had was rejected long before. Because they killed their Messiah, the only One who could have saved them, they killed the possibility of salvation. They had no ability to stop the coming carnage and destruction.
ABSOLUTE FAITHFULNESS IN A TIME OF GREAT TRIAL
The believers continued on through all of this. Jerusalem had remained largely Israelite. The Lord’s brother James, referred to as James the Just, the longtime leader of the local Community in Jerusalem, had done a masterful job of keeping things intact and no doubt remained hopeful of a good outcome, but his mind was primarily set on salvation for his Israelite brothers. As evil continued to grow, however, and became concentrated around and within the city of Jerusalem, events became all the more heinous. This evil reached a pinnacle when the leaders of the unbelieving faction in the city murdered James in cold blood. This rabid faction had years earlier killed Stephen and later James the apostle, but failed in killing Peter. The martyrdom of James the Lord’s brother in AD 63 was the key event that marked the beginning of the final seven years.
Notice, once again, that the Jerusalem Community of Spirit-filled believers had been greatly successful in leading untold thousands of Israelites to salvation during those final forty years. They held the spiritual fort in the face of overwhelming persecution. Though rejected by many family members and friends, nothing could stop them. This was their witness. It is a powerful witness that shouts mightily from the ancient recesses of time into our present and reveals American traditional Christianity as, in general, representing much more so the unbelievers rather than the good guys. This dichotomy has played out all over the world, of course, but is especially apparent in a Christian nation whose many denominations and offshoots have historically revealed division instead of unity, especially that between sincere followers of the Lord faithful to His Word and those with opposing agendas.
The Early Church never sold out. They never demanded authority or walked in it unless it was granted by God. They possessed the proper spiritual fruit and anointing thereof. They were always engaged in spiritual war. The conditions were often unbearable but they soldiered on and kept their powerful witness and reputation intact. In the end they won.
TWO JERUSALEMS / TWO TEMPLES
Regarding the aforementioned spiritual dichotomy between real believers and mere religious posers, the early Christians had understood long before the final conflagration that there were actually two temples and two Jerusalems. One of each represented spiritual bondage, and the other of each represented spiritual freedom. There was the existing city of Jerusalem, on its last legs, under the sentence of destruction, and aligned spiritually with evil forces—a veritable Babylon:
And their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which mystically is called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified. [Revelation 11:8]
And then there was the New Jerusalem, above, the spiritual home of real believers, as explained by Paul:
Tell me, you who want to be under law, do you not listen to the law? For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the bondwoman and one by the free woman. But the son by the bondwoman was born according to the flesh, and the son by the free woman through the promise. This is allegorically speaking, for these women are two covenants: one proceeding from Mount Sinai bearing children who are to be slaves; she is Hagar. Now this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery with her children. But the Jerusalem above is free; she is our mother. [Galatians 4:21-26]
Then, back to Revelation, the Lord, through John, gives greater insight on both the new temple and the new city:
“I am coming quickly; hold fast what you have, so that no one will take your crown. He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he will not go out from it anymore; and I will write on him the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God, and My new name. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” [Revelation 3:11-13]
In contrast to the temples of stone, the first of which was built by Solomon a thousand years before the Lord’s time, the second being an entirely new temple constructed from 521-516 BC, and Herod’s third temple completed not long before the Lord’s birth, there was another temple, one built without human hands, which serves as a perfect complement to the New Jerusalem, as revealed in the following passages by Peter and Paul:
And coming to Him as to a living stone which has been rejected by men, but is choice and precious in the sight of God, you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. [1Peter 2:4-5]
For we are the temple of the living God; just as God said, “I will dwell in them and walk among them; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. Therefore, come out from their midst and be separate,” says the Lord. “And do not touch what is unclean; and I will welcome you. And I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to Me,” Says the Lord Almighty. [2Corinthians 6:16-18]
So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit. [Ephesians 2:19-22][1]
The Early Church also knew the third temple of Israel that then existed prior to AD 70 was destined to fall as well, as did the previous two. But the real temple was comprised of spiritual stones, and each one of those early believers was such a stone, fitting in perfectly beside the other. Thus, our original forebears saw the two temples at the same time. They lived in the roughly forty year period when both Jerusalems and both temples existed simultaneously. It was the only time it would ever happen. This was the true Early Church, the faithful witness, and the spiritual prototype of every Christian Community to come.
SUMMER SOLDIERS AND SUNSHINE PATRIOTS
One hopes that what we are experiencing in America at present is not equivalent to what happened in the first century. Nothing lasts forever on the physical plane of existence. Nations rise and fall. Great world empires which appeared impossible of failure have long since come to absolutely nothing except the cold detritus of ruins. One thing I can say with absolute certainty is that if this is the beginning of the end of America, it was an end that did not necessarily have to be, if the Christians in this nation had stayed true to the Lord, and if all the halfway Christians had decided to get right with God.
The majority of those who call themselves Christian leaders in this nation have utterly failed us. And if you may be thinking I just thought of such a thing you may be interested to note that I have been speaking and writing of this sad dynamic for several decades. My book is filled with such rational discussions on how this happened and what we must do to stop it. I warned all who would listen and still am. But my message was initially met primarily with overwhelming rejection and indifference from guess who. And still, after all we have suffered so far this year, the majority of Christian leaders are still acting like the world-loving, weak-willed, spiritual pansies they’ve always been. They’ve always known how to talk the talk. They have also appeared to be walking the walk. The test of the latter, however, never comes in the good times. The test arrives in times like these, when Christians expect their leaders to act like spiritual men rather than crawl that much further into the cloister of careless negligence, deny their responsibilities, blame others, and surrender to petty tyrants who would never otherwise get to first base. Their behavior is a far cry from past spiritual giants and not even in the same galaxy as the Early Church.
“THESE are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value. Heaven knows how to put a proper price upon its goods; and it would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated” [Thomas Paine]
It becomes exasperating to see so many still refuse to gain a backbone. Times like these tell us all the more who the real believers are and who has the fruit of a proper spiritual witness. To all of you who have maintained a strong witness and kept up the spiritual fight, even in the face of really tough circumstances, not just this year, but over the last ten or twenty or thirty or forty years, I salute you as real brothers and sisters in the Lord. For all the rest, it is never too late to get right with God and fulfill one’s destiny.
For all the Christian leaders out there who have no problem stepping into the limelight, claiming funding to feather their own nests while often rejecting assistance to so many of their own, taking authority over well-meaning and sincere Christians who are at a disadvantage for not attending to their due diligence in identifying wooly wolves (because they are taught that holding ministers accountable is wrong), such leaders presently exist on the horns of a very serious dilemma.
There are two roads before them: They must either repent (totally and absolutely) for their excess, their watered-down obfuscating doctrines unaligned with the Lord’s teachings, their abject spiritual wimpiness, and most especially, their rejection of the Lord’s full leadership, a process that will likely transform their current lifestyles into something not so recognizable. Or they will simply continue head long into fully linking hands with the enemy, just as those ancient Pharisees and Sadducees did by joining the Zealots, whose present equivalent grows more brazen and influential on the world scene by the day.
Either way, their compromised Christian kingdoms must eventually crumble.
© 2020 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
WHEN YOUR BELIEFS ARE WRONG BUT YOU INSIST ON THEM ANYWAY
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Can you say cult?
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OBLIVIOUS OF ORIGINS
It is a strange phenomenon. People become convinced of certain things they think are correct and true. They never look at where such beliefs came from or where they originated. To them, the beliefs they espouse are just there. They were always there. They have no creation point. Apparently, somewhere in the distant past (as ascertained in their limited understanding, but likely relatively recent), a particular belief came to be in some otherworldly strange manner and slowly began spreading among a small populace somewhere like an unseen cloud and began entering minds, as a foundational fact, as intangible truth, and took hold on brain cells like a burr on a sock.
No defense was offered against it. No defense was apparently possible. A person had set beliefs, was going about his business one day, and then—boom—a new thought. A new belief. Did they even acknowledge it at the time? No. The person suddenly stopped in his tracks for a second, knowing something happened but not sure what, stared straight ahead at nothing, eyes slightly gazed, with maybe even a slight quizzical look and a cock of the head, and almost as quickly went right back to whatever he was doing, blissfully unaware of what just happened and totally apathetic to the process.
Is that how it happened? Is that how some ridiculous lie got planted in his brain? And how do we know it’s a ridiculous lie? For starters, long before we ever get into testing it against Scripture, and such an approach would not work anyway, because an increasing number of people are becoming all the more illiterate regarding Scripture on the one hand and absolutely hostile to it on the other, the better approach is to compare it against nature. But it appears that won’t work either because so many of these people are disconnected from nature and have no inkling of what nature is and how it works. But if one is able to do this one will see that nature itself often rejects such so-called truth. It doesn’t work there, or likely even exists there. If one applies it there it will either have little or no effect or cause harm, and sometimes great harm. Nature will tell us what works and what doesn’t, though only on a rudimentary natural level.
MENTAL STRONGHOLDS DELETION TREATMENT
For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, and we are ready to punish all disobedience, whenever your obedience is complete. [2Corinthians 10:3-6]
Humans must eventually grow beyond the law of the jungle and low life living and aspire to higher concepts. But any such higher concept must be beneficial to all or else it is simply a Trojan Horse benefiting a few. Once one puts the brain cells together to figure this out, that there is one standard for a few and another standard for everyone else, then one should be able to eventually comprehend the concept that whatever beliefs become attached within one’s not so bright willing minds which causes one to accept such beliefs as true without question, and act on them continually though the results are either always bad or never work as stated, then one will see that such deceptive beliefs, which start as tiny seeds, arrived surreptitiously straight from the bad guys in control who live according to a standard that always benefits them but hurts, uses, confines, and deceives everyone else.
Whoever can finally see this and get it realizes they must immediately stop believing and acting on such false beliefs with bad or fruitless results, do their best to get all the garbage out of their minds, and start looking for beliefs that are beneficial, good, sound, and loving—beliefs that actually propose we treat other people well, as we would like to be treated—and open our eyes to see the positive benefit of such for all. Unless a person is really messed up he or she will always appreciate being treated with love. Loving is not a means to a specific end necessarily but an action for any moment without an agenda other than blessing another person and helping them in a positive way.
Therefore, a good result that is beneficial to all proves a good belief. Rather than believing stuff that either doesn’t work and never has, is it not far better to believe and act on beliefs that prove beneficial for all, both for individuals and also for communities of individuals? No one can argue against this if they possess a sound coherent mind.
If one is brainwashed, however, or overcome with some false belief that does harm masquerading in the guise of being beneficial, one will never relent until their brainwashing is cured and they are set free from its effect. If they are not actually brainwashed at all but have latched on to a bad belief system and engage in evil behavior of some form to some degree for money, then there’s your second answer regarding why they do it. Sellouts are as seemingly ubiquitous as the willingly deceived.
“No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.” [Luke 16:13]
To summarize: (1) False beliefs are sent from controlling evil ones into unsuspecting minds possessing no appropriate defense in order to get them to believe a lie and act on it because it primarily benefits the evil ones, and (2) False beliefs are sold to people for money. The first benefits the bad guys and the second benefits the bad guys and the sold-out lackeys under their control. So whether one sells out to evil by accepting, believing in, and acting on false beliefs which produce bad results because one is too fearful to stand against them and would rather weakly follow the herd as social lemmings over a cliff, or one accepts false beliefs and acts on them because he gets paid for it and in a few instances some are greatly enriched, the same result happens against those who refuse to abide by or buy into either one.
It used to be that a greater number of people were both smart enough and strong enough to test any strange belief before accepting and acting on it. They wanted to know whether such a belief was good for themselves and their families. Many already know what has always worked and they knew treating people right, being honest, and engaging in good productive work always worked to bring good ends. But over the last few decades an entirely new mass of people have come upon the scene that have foregone their natural intelligence and strength and replaced positive, wholesome, and nurturing foundational beliefs with ridiculous nonsense philosophies spawning corrupt, immoral, and depraved outcomes. Many are too young to see the long term bad results, likely involving exponential growth, which will arrive later more so than at present, though immediate consequences are right before them. They see the bad consequences of the actions, however, not so much as directly tied to the beliefs they espouse and act on, such as their own hate, negative emotional outbursts, and manic attacks against those who oppose them, but the result of resistance by those who refuse such beliefs, which causes the young ones to fight all the more.
Not so long ago, we used to call young people ideologically naïve because they desired a good world where everyone got along. They did their best to practice love and peace as they knew it. This present generation, however, contains a large element engaging in the very opposite. This element engages in collective hate, destruction, evil, extremely foul language, the inability to control their impulses, and an apparent desire to stop at nothing toward the furtherance of their cause. They are much more concerned with strictly adhering to their negative beliefs and cultish practices which refuse any compromise, and attempting to destroy any and all unlike them, rather than engage in positive acts toward their fellow man such as assisting and loving other people.
For example, rather than attempting to right the wrongs of society by, let’s say, doing something good somewhere for one individual, they would rather lash out in evil against a mythical collective group which is causing, in their minds, all the harm. But they never seem to connect that mythical group with the actual group lurking behind the scenes. Instead they take out their wrath on regular people being subjected to the same evil from the high hats running the world. They also accept payment from intermediaries, unable to perceive their upward connections, and sell themselves to do evil. It should be clear that many of these people are suffering from severe cognitive dissonance. They are expending their rage on the wrong people.
LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR
Imagine all the completely unknown and essentially invisible people who never make the headlines that spend their lives doing little acts of love here and there to help others. This group actually comprises the majority. The evil group of wealthy controllers is actually exceptionally miniscule with regard to the earth’s overall population. Those who do evil at their behest, whether they know it or not, for money or not, are still a small percentage regarding the world’s population.
The great majority of the world’s population are simply obscure people trying to survive and do well who mean no harm and actually help one another, though for many it may be understated and maybe not so hands-on. How do we know this? Because this world is still being held together. If the evil people doing all the destruction of the present comprised the majority it would be the end the world. It would likely mean the end of humanity. This has come relatively close to happening before in ancient history. But the cause was not necessarily natural events but man’s inhumanity to man, which was driven by hate and followed with destruction. There is a perfect example of this in modern times when an American president gave the go ahead to use atomic weapons to obliterate 130,000 defenseless Japanese civilians comprised mostly of women, children, and old men who presented no wartime threat. Due to radiation sickness and many of the injured dying later, deaths doubled by the end of that year. Many of the survivors suffered greatly the rest of their lives. It was pure barbarism on a massive scale. These unfortunate people were seen as evil and worthy of destruction. Anyone venture to guess where the real evil resided?
Whenever one sees such hatred for other people and great destruction in immense proportions, one must know that very evil forces are causing it and that includes those in overt positions of great power. These people know how to murder millions (and have) and cause destruction in the trillions (and have) but are also excellent propaganda artists who know exactly how to put a good face on their evil work and transform it into something noble and honorable in the minds of men. It is not. It is neither noble nor honorable and the only way they get away with it is by convincing good people to accept phony explanations, adopt evil beliefs disguised as culturally acceptable, and act on their behalf to do their bidding. It’s a confidence game. They are con men. Historically, they are always able to deceive and thereby convince the majority, largely through simple fear. It’s easy when one controls the major media. They will also use force, of course, on the few strong and freedom-loving willing to make an initial stand, but only enough to make their schemes work. It often does not take many threats to force compliance and the few stragglers are dealt with in the usual ways.
However, they would much rather indoctrinate people and get them to act on such deceptions on their own, and turn their evil enterprises into counterfeit noble causes seemingly benefitting all, when the implementing of such causes actually only benefits the ruling cult and its sycophants, and institutes an obliteration of freedom for everyone else.
Why are people so uninformed and fearful that they keep falling for this? Why do so many religious leaders, politicians, and academics ostensibly preach love and peace, and push all-encompassing plans to supposedly help the masses, but always end up supporting hate, destruction, and murder as a necessary component of such plans? How can they do both at the same time?
The answer is they can’t. In their duplicitous minds, any means justifies their end goals. They have become brainwashed that they are good, that they do good things, and that they support good causes, but in reality, though they may engage in such on the surface or within their small social circle, they also stand with the evil ones doing evil. The evil in their lives is thus far bigger and more real, though existing beyond a fake-out curtain which serves well to hide their true intent, than any hypothetical good they project, whether they are intelligent enough or honest enough to see it. What matters more, of course, is how many others see it. And what has now been made quite obvious, based on the great evil they not only get away with, but convince an apparent plurality to agree with and support, the majority never sees it. And not only that, the majority has been conditioned, primarily through fear, to never acknowledge it.
PRACTICE WHAT YOU PREACH
If one is going to actually believe in love and practice it, one will have to rid his mind of all hate. We know what hate is. It is easy to spot. We know it by hateful actions. Love is the same. We know love by the actions of love. One cannot hate and love at the same time. One must choose to do one or the other. There is no “I hate a little but mostly I love.” No. If one hates they have been consumed by it and it drives out the actual ability to love. One has to work at being loving. It is not easy, not because it doesn’t possibly come easy, but because the world is so filled with hate anyone who loves and strives for a loving world is seen as strange. It also make haters feel personally uncomfortable because they know they are not like that (loving) and don’t want to be made aware of it. It is personally convicting to such people when they see others doing good and striving for good outcomes. Love always starts with the individual.
But again, for those who are simply trying to make their lives work the right way, those who comprise the majority in this world, they show naturally that love is not so hard. Quick question: How many people do you know who do evil to others in order to get by in the world and how many do you know who are doing their best to live right without doing evil to others in order to get by? Most people can see that good people in the natural sphere are those who do the latter. This comprises the majority. This means it is only an evil few who live evil lives and use others for their wealth and power. They are liars, cheats, murderers, and thieves. In time they rise to higher positions of power and control in the world through these very means. They do it by stepping on others. As they rise they have less concern for others. Most people, however, are not like that so they never rise to such heights. Most people want no part of engaging in such evil practices just to gain high control and power and receive the monetary and material benefits thereof. They would rather try to do good. They would rather never give themselves over to such evil so they choose not to engage in such behavior. Their consciences are in good working order. Also, they seem to have eternity on their minds.
It should be clear then, that the unknown humans at the very top of this world in possession of most of the wealth, power, and control are evil. This explains the great evil in the world. This great evil does not come from regular people of sound mind who strive to do the right thing. It comes from only a few who have dedicated their lives to serving the devil.
They hate the Lord Jesus with all their heart.
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.”
And He who sits on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” And He said, “Write, for these words are faithful and true.” Then He said to me, “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost. He who overcomes will inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My son. But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.” [Revelation 21:1-8][1]
© 2020 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
SHOWCASING THE FORTITUDE OF GOD’S CHOSEN VESSELS
Why did the Lord choose physically strong, tough-minded men, most of whom were hard-working blue collar workers, as His first apostles? For starters, because that’s exactly what He is.
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WILDERNESS WILD MAN
When the messengers of John had left, He began to speak to the crowds about John, “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? But what did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? Those who are splendidly clothed and live in luxury are found in royal palaces! But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and one who is more than a prophet…” [Luke 7:24-26][1]
Many years ago I was talking to a guy at church. It was a great place with a mix of many different people and professions. We somehow got on the subject of being impressed by our dads when we were kids and he recounted a short story about his father. He said his dad, who was much older then, had been a plumber. As an illustration of his dad’s imposing stature and physical strength, he remembered as a young man that his dad once picked up a standard bathroom scale, the kind you stand on, and holding it with both hands, fingers at the back and thumbs on top, squeezed it until the needle went all the way to the end. I thought that was really impressive.
On bathroom scales, back then at least, “all the way to the end” was 250 pounds. That was pretty heavy and any man who had the strength in his hands to duplicate that weight was exceptionally strong. Also, men were generally tougher and leaner then, and more active, and topping the chart at 250 was relatively rare. Today, most men who exceed that figure are generally carrying excess weight. If they got down to their proper weight and body mass index most of them would be like men of fifty years ago.
Naturally, after hearing that story about my friend’s dad, I had to try it out when I got home. Being only of average stature but making my living in construction, I thought I could make a pretty good dent in my bathroom scale. So I went for it. Using all my manly might, I squeezed the life out of it. If I remember correctly, I didn’t come anywhere close to 250. I didn’t even break 200. It was pretty demoralizing. Of course, converting that figure to future considerations, using the principle of “the older I get the better I was,” it actually was 200. But still not close to 250. I obviously did well by becoming a carpenter and not a plumber.
PHYSICAL STRENGTH DOES NOT DEFINE TOUGHNESS
When I was twelve years old I discovered professional sports. I loved baseball and football and began reading the sports pages every day in our local newspaper. Papers back then in smaller markets were really bad compared to what came later. The type was tiny and all the columns were squashed together. Box scores had the smallest type they made, I would think. The writing was mostly pedestrian. Everything was black and white with no color. It was all I had until I started subscribing to sports magazines not long after. I also began collecting baseball and football cards. Those cards had the height and weight of players. Regarding football players, the biggest guys, usually the defensive lineman, topped out at 270 pounds. Of course, most of them were also pretty tall, averaging maybe 6 foot five or six. When you look at old NFL films from the 1960s, you won’t see many fat guys. Most of them were lean, wiry, tough, and cat quick. There were also a lot of average-sized players under six feet tall. A few were actually pretty small.
The game of football was also much different back then. It was war. They didn’t mess around. It was an extremely tough sport in the professional ranks and they often played on dirt fields and wore poor protective equipment in comparison to later standards. It was also a job and players needed the money. They would often stay silent on whatever injuries they might have incurred so as not to jeopardize their place on the field or team. Someone always waited in the wings to replace you, so you had to be tough. The game was hard enough but playing injured, which almost all of them did to varying extents, made it that much tougher. And no one could afford any sympathy, for many reasons.
In this cauldron, however, arose an even tougher kind of man, one who made most of the other players look like less than the men they were. This wasn’t true; they were all tough as nails. But some exceeded that standard and a few obliterated it. They were tough as, what? Steel girders? What a sight it was to see some otherwise tough guy, much tougher than the average man, look like a comparative pansy being showed up and manhandled by the baddest of the bad.
“GOD HAS ALWAYS LOVED FISHERMEN AND JAILBIRDS”
The preceding was a quote by a preacher I once knew. He had a rough upbringing, coming of age in the 1950s. He got tougher as he got older and soon became engaged in all the bad stuff that guys like him got into. He was a really tough guy and a good fighter, was a biker and drug addict, and generally had no concern for anyone. Beneath all of that, implausible as it sounds, he still had a tender side. He told a story of the JFK assassination, when so many Americans were cheering his death. He said when he found out he began crying like a baby.
Somehow or another, against all odds and probability, this man later received a witness from a brave Christian and actually gave his heart to the Lord. I know. It makes no sense. It makes you wonder about all the evil people in the world at present. How many of them are this guy waiting to get saved? How many are the apostle Paul who was notorious for being a powerful persecutor of Christians before His Damascus Road experience? How many are Simon son of Jonah, otherwise known as Peter—the rock? Speaking of which, I’m convinced that prior to his conversion nobody messed with Peter.
Regarding my preacher acquaintance, he soon started his own storefront. He gathered a small group of faithful congregants and conducted services. While preaching one day, a big giant dude burst into the room. It seems this man was really ticked off because his wife had become a member of the congregation. The guy marched to the front and told the preacher he was gonna whip him, right then and there. What did the preacher do? Drawing on his past and knowing this man did not scare him in the least, but also knowing he had a duty to the Lord and must act properly, he looked right into the big dude’s eyes and said: “Look. I think I have enough Holy Ghost to let you whip me, but if I don’t, you’re in trouble buddy. I’ve gone through bigger men than you just to get into where the fight was at!” The big guy backed down. And that was that.
REAL MEN OF GOD
So what does the average Christian think of when he or she thinks of the original apostles? This depends on one’s denomination, of course, but sadly, because so many have been told nothing but mischaracterizations by moron church leaders, most probably think the apostles were “saintly” pushovers. And how is this derived? Most likely because many Christians have been taught that the Lord Jesus was a “saintly” pushover, a pallid sissified non-man representing no threat to anybody. It is anyone’s guess how this false depiction arose, the very opposite of His actual character. We can blame it on old artist’s renderings or maybe a severely unbalanced portrayal using various verses of Scripture showcasing the Lord’s mercy and love but neglecting His unquestioned manliness in the face of vile enemies. But it is most likely due to the affected nature of later ecclesiastics who actually fit that profile quite well, because that is pretty much exactly how they were. And many still are. And this false portrayal of the Lord has invaded many denominations and caused many pastors to invoke it in their “imitation of Christ.”
My preacher friend could have cleaned that guy’s clock. It didn’t matter how big he was. But he didn’t. He could have but he didn’t. He was more concerned about the man’s salvation. That’s the point. It was the same with a guy like Peter. There was a reason the Lord chose him and it was the same reason the other apostles recognized Peter’s authority and standing. Most of them knew Peter and his past. And the apostle Paul, who was not even five feet tall, might have been even tougher. Could those guys have played in the NFL? If they were any good at football, I would answer in the affirmative. They had the heart and toughness for it. And it’s a good thing because they had to fight the devil and his minions every day. Their real strength, however, the one that made the difference, was their ability to take a punch and not return favor. They knew full well that people were not the enemy.
Sadly, many of today’s ministers couldn’t have done what my old preacher friend did even if they wanted to because they don’t have a blue collar bone in their body. They aren’t tough enough. Real Christians do their best to maintain their witness and hold back. But when a man has nothing to hold back it’s a different story.
WILL THE LOCKDOWN PASTORS EVER OPEN THEIR CHURCHES?
Probably not until they’re allowed to. Maybe a few courageous ones will in the interim. I read yesterday that one well-known church leader in California, where a statewide total church lockdown is in effect including home bible studies and everything else, has taken a stand. Good for him. What took you so long? But on the other hand, I take that back. Pastors must be given a pass the first time around. This nonsense had never been tried before. It came out of left field. Who could have ever thought they would use a flu virus in an attempt to eliminate Christianity? Most were unprepared for such an attack and never saw it coming. Maybe the devil knew many were no threat, would wimp out, and could be had for the taking. But once is it. If a church leader has yet to figure out what’s really going on, then maybe it’s best to just stay closed and quit. Forget about taking a stand. Concentrate instead on getting saved.
If such pastors/reverends/priests et al were actually living for God they would certainly take a stand and basically say: To hell with this. Come one come all. WE’RE OPEN. If every pastor did it all the churches would be opened immediately. No one could stop them. That’s not going to happen, of course. The sad fact is that one could never gather enough churches together in a united front on a large enough scale, which shows one more broken aspect of current American Christianity. Why can’t the high hats in a single denomination, for example, especially the very large “united” kind, just send down a directive to open up?
But even if a mere Gideon’s 300 took a stand things would change for the better. Those were the best warriors in all of Israel. Another thing that would change, however, would be the enemy. The principle enemy would switch from the Midianite lockdown state governors to the Midianite lockdown pansy pastors who would suddenly begin attacking the stalwart 2020 Black Robe Regiment like the original tory traitors did in colonial America. As it is they’ve already revealed themselves as unworthy of the call of God, though many are not actually called of God to begin with and are simply filling a position.
Most of them also don’t have the Holy Ghost. This is being proven every day.
Which makes one wonder, is this entire virus nonsense being used by God as a test to show which Christians are for real? Is it an opportunity to showcase spiritual toughness? Does it reveal those few with the backbone and fortitude to press 250 on a spiritual scale?
BUT AS FOR ME AND MY HOUSE…
If this is all it takes—unconstitutional orders by government leaders of both parties who essentially hate Christianity and despise the Lord Jesus—then what are all these so-called Christian leaders going to do when real persecution breaks out? And the answer to that should be obvious. And that’s also why persecution is a good thing.
It separates the men from the boys.
© 2020 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
HOW UNREAL CHRISTIANITY SET ITSELF UP FOR SPIRITUAL RUIN
This year’s Lockdown revealed the lowdown on the state of Christianity in America. The hidden truth long since discovered by real Christians was exposed to everyone paying attention.
Church leaders all over the country were notified this past March that they must shut down their churches. They said it would likely be for only a short time. Rather than ask the right questions or even attempt to take a stand, the majority weakly complied without a fight. Once the brief interval of closure passed they were told in no uncertain terms that conditions had changed. The church lockdown would be permanent until further notice. And just like that American Christianity changed forever.
There will be no recovering from this. The enemy that hates Christianity was allowed to dictate the terms. There were certainly a few who fought the order and they were made to pay. They were made examples of and shown what will happen to those who don’t toe the mark. Some of those who invoked their Constitutional rights did everything right in obeying the dictates of the order but were attacked anyway. Local governments and police were quickly on the scene to enforce “the law,” which was actually a violation of the law. Fines were issued, force was used, ministers were abused. And all the other Christians and church leaders looked on in shock that some actually refused to comply. The majority, ensconced in their homes, watching church online, were embarrassed. Don’t these people know we must always obey?
REAL CHRISTIANITY WAS FOUNDED ON SPIRITUAL REVOLT
Now as they observed the confidence of Peter and John and understood that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed, and began to recognize them as having been with Jesus. And seeing the man who had been healed standing with them, they had nothing to say in reply. But when they had ordered them to leave the Council, they began to confer with one another, saying, “What shall we do with these men? For the fact that a noteworthy miracle has taken place through them is apparent to all who live in Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. But so that it will not spread any further among the people, let us warn them to speak no longer to any man in this name.” And when they had summoned them, they commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.
But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge; for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.” When they had threatened them further, they let them go (finding no basis on which to punish them) on account of the people, because they were all glorifying God for what had happened; for the man was more than forty years old on whom this miracle of healing had been performed. [Acts 4:13-22]
Some people study history. Some people study church history. Some people make themselves aware through much hard work and prayer of not only New Testament truth but the background of the times that birthed it. This is a vital component of understanding real Christianity. Knowing at least the general timeline of the Old and New Testaments is absolutely necessary for knowing what is expected of a follower of the Lord Jesus.
As I stated in my prior post, the Lord arrived among His people during a time of national darkness. It is very important to understand this in context. Though the land was shrouded in a mysterious and sinister dark gray undulating spiritual cloud, brooding and foreboding, as before the onset of a great storm than never seemed to fully arrive, the nation was also captured by life-sucking religious entities intent on dominance and submission. The people were the host.
Then, suddenly, it was Genesis 1:3 all over again:
‘The people who were sitting in darkness saw a great Light, and those who were sitting in the land and shadow of death, upon them a Light dawned.’ From that time Jesus began to preach and say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” [Matthew 4:16-17][1]
The people had been told by those in charge what to believe, how to conduct themselves, and what they must do to support the official organization. Individuals did not matter whatsoever. There was no love here. Whoever might resist such encroachments were targeted with abuse. The majority knew their social standing and ability to earn a living demanded compliance to the dictates of the order. Some managed to make it on their own. Most were far too fearful of the prospect.
If there had been a prophet the truth would have been shouted from the housetops and every high hill. The Hebrew prophets were sent directly by God with a powerful spiritual anointing sufficient to overcome the dominance of the religious and secular hierarchies when they strayed (which was often). Their voices were always heard. But the establishment hated prophets. The prophets revealed the rebellion of the controllers and the disgusting personal lifestyle sins hidden behind the walls of false piety. Why do you think the fakers had to dress up in such outlandish costumes and affect such fake religious attitudes? They had to hide what they really were. They had to fake the people out to gain and remain in power.
But there hadn’t been a real prophet in the land for centuries. There were likely individuals here and there that had some semblance of diffused spiritual light but such was obviously not enough to stave off the rise of evil disguised as holy. Some could see the pretenders for what they were but had no power to fight or stop them. This is what always happens when the strong, powerful correcting voice of God is not around to speak spiritual truth and light, and counteract the perpetrators of evil.
When there were prophets the evil ones did their best to oppose and defame them, and often resorted to murder. They saw the latter means as the only reliable solution. Many prophets were killed. As their voice was eliminated it allowed for evil to rise exponentially.
If the nation prayed earnestly for deliverance and brought forth the fruits of real repentance God would respond.
He would send another prophet, as pure salt and light, not necessarily to defy the idiots who had wrested control but to save the nation. If the nation didn’t care there was nothing God could do other than be there for the remaining faithful Remnant. The people composing the Remnant had the double whammy of standing for God in a Godless society but also being under constant attack by the despots in charge.
Understanding this dynamic should cause one to get the big idea regarding our present circumstances. In the not too distant past, if the government sent out a directive to shut down all the churches, Christians would have fought back with holy fervor. Such a directive would never work. Other directives did, however. There are many ways the sly ones can force compliance to their will, the central tenet of which involves compromising and diluting the strength of Christianity, if not causing its outright destruction. Sadly, Christians in general were too dumb to understand the ulterior motives utilized to neutralize them.
As the great compromise advanced, the day arrived when church leaders made a deal with the devil, so to speak, and aligned themselves with governmental monetary dictates, such as the 501c3. This worked out great for both parties, except for the simple fact that free speech in the pulpit was erased. Ministers could no longer speak out against the government (you know, like a prophet), or speak the will of the congregation regarding candidates for government office.[2] The congregants weakly complied with the plan also because if they didn’t, their social and monetary status would likely suffer. Couldn’t have that.
I KNOW WHAT YOU’RE THINKING
Somebody would have stood up and said something. Oh yes, they did. And they were eventually showed the door. If Mr. Big Bucks in the front pews did this it would be different, of course. He had money. Preachers have always traditionally listened to money and would generally back off. If you don’t see this happening outwardly it’s because both are already in it together. No, the one who would stand up and oppose the non-New Testament garbage being spouted would most often be a man of no means, exactly like the Old Testament prophets. He stood no real chance of being effective toward actual reform without the support of the people and would be silenced or removed. Therefore, even when God sent a corrective it was most often rejected. Sound familiar?
Some went out and started new churches. They had no choice. They knew too much. They would likely only be accepted elsewhere if they kept their mouths shut. Why this strange attitude toward New Covenant truth? Why were the big boy controllers so afraid of the real teachings of the Lord? Because it exposed them as frauds.
THE HIGH COST OF DISCIPLESHIP
I remember, a long time ago, a certain church leader, who appeared to be a good guy and sincere, was talking about how easy it was to live for God. There is no doubt this man had mastered some of the requisites for discipleship. He was Spirit-filled and had a good attitude. He had a good record. But he was also on the payroll. Guess what percentage of solid real disciples are on a ministry payroll? We have this strange tradition in Christianity that only very few believers are qualified to gain monetary compensation for their Christian service. 99% of Christians are thus on their own. It’s a good thing some are with the Lord while on their own. They are forced even among believers to seek a secular means for making a living. Now, I’ll be the first to admit that if it came down to the apostle Paul getting paid or pretty much anyone else in church, including the majority of preachers, I would go with the apostle Paul. Why? Because most preachers could not perform like the apostle Paul in a million years. They are not there to “follow Paul as he follows Christ.” They don’t even pretend to be like Paul.
But guess what? There were a great many believers in Paul’s day, a large percentage, who were doing the same spiritual things Paul was doing. They were certainly not the evangelistic teaching apostolic dynamo Paul was, but if that’s the criteria for getting paid then most preachers and church leaders in America must go off the payroll immediately. That was not the criteria, of course. The Lord always took care of His people and still does. Yet, I submit that if the majority of Christians, the very ones who make Christianity work and supply the lion’s share of money and effort, are deemed officially unworthy of compensation then so are the majority of Christian ministers. There are enough ministers who do the same work sans donations or paychecks and work like anyone else and should be commended for it. And there are certainly ministers who do the will of God and should be supported financially. But the Lord in general only obligates Himself to support those who do His will and not those with mere titles who pretend to be something they are not.
Regarding the first century AD, there was simply not that much money to go around back then among believers. It never meant the Lord did not provide for His own but that a higher level of discipleship was necessary. They had relatively hard lives. Real Christianity was illegal. Rome could be brutal. Unbelieving gentiles thought Christians were at least strange if not lawless cultists. The unbelieving Jews were constant threats for open attack. Who do you think killed the Lord Jesus? And instigated the death of James the apostle? And Stephen? And almost Peter? Who was trying to kill Paul every day of his Christian life? Each of these men were Israelites who were deemed “strayed” and “heretics” by the Sanhedrin. The greatest persecution ever faced by the Early Church was by the unbelieving anti-Christian Israelites who saw Christianity as a vile heresy.
Despite this and all the rejection, the believing Israelites held on, continued honoring and working for the Lord Jesus, were later joined by great numbers of believing gentiles, and both together eventually prevailed against great odds. However, there was no way it would have been possible without the game-changing indwelling Holy Spirit of God. The devil got in his licks but could not stop the juggernaut.
OPENING THE GATES FOR DEMONIC INVASION
But what about the persecutors? What happened to those opposing the Lord? —The same thing that is happening to Unreal Christianity at this very moment. This overall entity has traditionally rejected real believers who do their best to know and comply with the Lord’s teachings, even if they clash with church doctrine, until many churches have none left. Without them there is no spiritual salt and light. Without the presence of the Lord it becomes easy for the devil to invade the premises. Their lack of spiritual strength makes it impossible to make a stand for God. In the effort to keep themselves in control and honor a different gospel, they have set themselves up for ruin by having no one left to come to their rescue.
The only choice remaining is to accept the terms of surrender.
© 2020 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
[2] President Trump promised to change this but the ministers involved probably decided against it because it might wreck their funding.
THE EMPIRE OF DARKNESS STRIKES BACK
The Lord Jesus came to His people during a time of profound national darkness. There had been no prophetic word for over four centuries and the resultant void was filled by religious pretenders.
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BIG BAD JOHN
John the Immerser was an absolute phenomenon, a sensation. No one had carried such an anointing since the times of Elisha, the man who took the mantle from Elijah. One will notice, however, that though Elisha was given a double portion of Elijah’s powerful spiritual anointing, it was still Elijah’s spirit. These two men lived in the ninth century BC, and it was approximately a full 900 years from the beginning of Elijah’s ministry to that of John’s.
Malachi, the final Hebrew prophet before John, ceased his ministry in the late fifth century BC. This is what he wrote at the end of his book concerning John the Immerser:
“Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the Lord. He will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, so that I will not come and smite the land with a curse.” [Malachi 4:5-6]
Those wise with understanding would have known that this personage who was to come would not be the actual man Elijah. The man himself mattered little in that he was but a vessel. It was the Spirit of God that rested upon Elijah. The great prophet is certainly to be commended for his magnificent discipleship, obedience, and determination, but he would be the first to tell you that the mantle (garment) upon him was the mantle of God.
GOD’S MANTLE IN ACTION
I watched a preacher recently on video. I had never heard him preach before but his name was vaguely familiar. He was a veteran preacher, having already spent many years as a willing vessel. He was filled with the Holy Spirit. One night in prayer, the Lord suddenly spoke to him and said He was going to heal everybody in the church the next night. One obviously does not often hear that. The man believed it right off and began looking forward to the next night’s service with much expectancy.
The next day he started telling some members of his congregation what to expect. It would be a great night! By the time the meeting began, however, all was dead. There was a heaviness. It felt empty. The man started wondering why but being a mature minister and knowing what he had heard the night before, he understood that darkness was fighting back. They all began to pray and worship. They fought through it. Later, when the time came for the healing service to begin, he had people line up in the main aisle. The first two in line were women who had been battling relatively severe health issues. The preacher thought, “Oh Lord, why couldn’t You have started this out with something easier?” But he got his little vial of anointing oil and began walking toward the steps of the platform to go down and begin praying for people.
However, something strange happened before he ever got there. He felt something on his back. He thought a fellow minister on the platform behind him had placed something upon him that felt like a coat. He wasn’t amused. He turned around but there was nobody there close enough. He felt his back and there was nothing there, at least nothing he could see. But he felt a tangible presence of something that could only be explained as the mantle of God.
While still on the platform he turned to the front to begin going down to pray for the people but before he got there (again), he saw that the first woman in line was already feeling the very powerful presence of the Lord! She had her hands up, her eyes closed, and was praying and worshipping. She suddenly began reacting to God’s presence all the more and before the preacher ever got to her or anointed her with oil she was instantly healed of her disease! Then the same thing happened to the next woman in line. And the next. Before the night was over everyone there who needed healing was supernaturally healed by the Spirit of God.
The Lord did exactly as He told the preacher He would do the night before. Darkness had tried to intervene but the people had stayed faithful. Darkness failed.
OUR FAITHFULNESS TO GOD
I’ve been around a while. I’ve seen a lot. I’ve experienced a lot. I could write a book on the personal miracles I’ve experienced in my life. It often starts with an internal spiritual desire, what some describe as a “burning.” It is something relating directly to the will of God. When a person catches ahold of that, and prays about it, and seeks the Lord about it, and is faithful to it, the desire grows. It is the Lord confirming that one is on the right track.
But then the enemy enters the picture and tries to mess it up. Spiritual warfare breaks out. There is a strong attempt to bring discouragement and a lack of energy. One has to fight through it. It takes time. Again, I could tell you stories. Determined as I was, and in great need of the miracle, there was no turning back. When you have a big fish on the line you may have to play him for a while. The time comes when you at last break through, defeat the enemy, and the very thing you prayed about, that which looked impossible in the beginning, actually comes to pass. This is what a spiritual fight and faithfulness can do. My life was changed for the better on several occasions through miraculous means. If I had not stayed faithful and determined to fight alongside the Lord the great victories would never have happened.
THIS PRESENT DARKNESS
America is blowing up. Great evil has emerged. It is not unlike what happened in the first century AD. After 400 plus years of no prophetic word the nation of Israel continued to decline from within. Its spiritual weakness made it prone to attack from without and such attacks were often cakewalks for the enemy. What happened to the prophets? Why did the Lord stop sending prophets? I can answer that by asking the same question regarding America. We used to have a majority of solid Christian people and solid Christian leaders in this country. They knew the Word. Why? Because it was being taught seven days a week in some way or another. As time went on, however, the Christian strength of America continued a steady decline. Why? Because the solid Christians and Christian leaders began dying off and fading out, the latter largely through spiritual compromise. Then preachers began acting exactly like politicians in that their funding sources had to be protected at all costs. They began serving money rather than serving God. The Christians under these ministers never put up much of a fight and let them get away with it.
The enemy invaded the void. In ancient Israel’s time, the enemy that invaded the spiritual void included the religious leaders who eventually grew so demonic they sold out their country. They chose the rabid Zealots over the Lord Jesus and His followers.
These people you see in the streets today are much like the Zealots of old who were willing to destroy their own country in their effort to defeat Rome. Rome was never defeated by them but Israel ceased to exist forever. After they murdered the Lord things continued getting worse year by year until the final conflagration in AD 70. It was the result of rejecting love and peace and choosing instead ever greater amounts of hatred, bitterness, and anger until they were consumed by evil.
But the early Christians thrived. It was a spiritual war and the early believers won. The kingdom of the Lord Jesus continued to expand all across the world. At present there are a great many strong Spirit-filled Christians in America winning a spiritual war and the devil is striking back in any which way he can. He has many deceived people doing his work who care nothing for the Lord. This fight will grow much worse over the next few months.
Darkness is reacting to Light. It is reacting violently. Darkness is fighting for survival.
“This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.” [John 3:19-21][1]
© 2020 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
WAKE UP!
The devil is going full bore in this latest effort to destroy Christianity in America. Churches have been forced to close and after restrictions were lifted for a brief time, authorities are demanding closure all over again. If you are not aware of this or think I am exaggerating do a simple search of what has just transpired in California. Will the majority of Christians in California simply lay down once again and let the anti-Christian civil authorities have their way once again? I know many there are fighting, praying, fasting and doing all they can but the majority is sleeping and woefully compromised.
AS GOES CALIFORNIA SO GOES THE NATION?
Why is it that so many American Christians cannot see what is actually going on here? Why can’t they see the underlying demonic agenda? Why do so many Christians perpetually weakly comply with whatever they are told to do by nonbelievers in charge when such demands are obviously designed to destroy them? Why can’t they see the little man behind the curtain? The enemy has gone into a full court press to maintain the great ground it gained this past spring and is wisely refusing to let up. Here’s a clue for anyone unclear on the concept: The enemy will never let up. Christians are going to have to find their backbone again, at least for the relative few who had one before. If Christians refuse to engage the enemy on the spiritual field of battle then it’s over. Just shutter your church and forget it.
FIGHT BACK!
I suffered a major loss over a month ago but have done my best to keep going. Many of you have suffered likewise. You have no choice but to go on. But even with the Lord on our side these times have developed into a major fight and victories have become harder to come by. That’s just the nature of spiritual battle. The Christian who gives up in the face of great battle will obviously never win. When it appears the Lord has left you and no longer cares is when you must fight that much harder. We know the Lord NEVER leaves us. We know He suffered and died to save us. No one loves us more. But this world can be an evil hell hole and such has proven true once again, but perhaps never so much regarding a pure and blatant in-your-face attack on the Lord Jesus and His people. If you consider yourselves one of His then you must do what He did while in His earthly ministry and what He is doing at present. I can assure you He is leading the fight against the enemy of your souls.
GET FILLED WITH HIS HOLY SPIRIT!
He gave us His Holy Spirit to help us. Christians may be able to do okay without His Spirit in “good times” but you can forget it in times like these. If there was ever a time for all the bench-sitting Christians to get off their duffs, repent for their prejudice against Pentecost, get on their face, and BEG the Lord for His Holy Spirit and a fresh anointing it is now. For those who continue to refuse, as they have done traditionally, your time is pretty much over. The state will take over your churches fully. The state has already gained much control to this point and most Christian leaders go along with it weakly. But these times are different.
As I wrote in my prior post, for all the Christian ministers and churches, the majority, who have traditionally refused the full authority of the Lord Jesus, your weakness, rebellion, and intransigence have allowed the enemy to knock down your walls and invade, and you will now be forced to fight back against great odds. Most will not. Many will simply quit completely and join the enemy. Many will surrender to a diabolical Judas spirit. Many, likely most, will continue to insist on conforming to the sinful culture rather than do the will of God. Many will continue to choose the spirit of the world rather than the Spirit of God. Many will choose to maintain their places of worldly religious authority, prestige, and honor, praised by those who hate the Lord, and keep their jobs and paychecks, rather than stand for the Lord’s righteousness. How can these traitorous people deny the very One who gave His life for them and stand in the place reserved only for Him? Who is supporting them? Why are they supporting them?
WE THE PEOPLE?
And regarding our elected leaders, the crazies on one side and sissies on the other, WHO ELECTED THEM? Who is responsible? How did they gain the power to fight the Lord Jesus and His people in this way? Why are they being allowed to destroy Christianity right before our very eyes without a fight? What will it take to finally go on the offensive?
And He was casting out a demon, and it was mute; when the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke; and the crowds were amazed. But some of them said, “He casts out demons by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons.” Others, to test Him, were demanding of Him a sign from heaven. But He knew their thoughts and said to them, “Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and a house divided against itself falls. If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that I cast out demons by Beelzebul. And if I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? So they will be your judges. But if I cast out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are undisturbed. But when someone stronger than he attacks him and overpowers him, he takes away from him all his armor on which he had relied and distributes his plunder. He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me, scatters. [Luke 11:14-23] [1]
© 2020 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
A MUST READ FROM 9 YEARS AGO! (July 13, 2011): WHEN YOU GONNA WAKE UP?
A MUST READ FROM 4 YEARS AGO! (June 7, 2016): SHOUT TO THE LORD
CHRISTIANITY IN CRISIS 2020: THE CANCEL CULTURE IS COMING FOR YOU
THEY SHOWED US HOW IT’S DONE
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A crisis always reveals concealed reality…
An attack reveals one’s preparedness or lack thereof…
The great emerging attack upon Christianity in America proves Christians in general are still blissfully unaware of it.
CANCELLING CHRISTIANITY
If you read my first book, which this site is named after, you would have been aware of this trend and prepared for the present. Those following this blog over the last nine years would be largely up to date on current happenings and would not be surprised at how ruthless things have gotten most recently because they would have known it was coming.
My book was so far ahead of its time the majority of the small percentage of Christians made aware of it in the beginning rejected it almost immediately. This caused most Christians to have never heard of it. I did my best at the time to remedy this. I fought long and hard. There was an incredible amount of spiritual warfare going on, praying, and fasting. I did my best under the circumstances to publicize it but the fight was such that the Christian Pharisees won. This made it difficult and essentially impossible for all those Christians who needed the message to receive it.
One must understand that Christians must reach out for assistance regarding the elements they need which they don’t possess in order to do the will of God. He created a Community of which each member is only a part. But when one happens to be someone raised up by God for the purposes of Christian reform, then one must be careful who he deals with, because reform is anathema to those in control or those who kowtow to those in control. In other words, if everything is perfect the way it is, why are you trying to change it for the better?
LURKING JUDAS
Ordinarily, Christians often never consider that some Christians may be something different than what they project. We can be naïve based on taking positive aspects of the Lord’s teachings to heart without considering other aspects of His teachings which tell us to be careful with whom we associate.
As new Christians, freshly born again, we love everybody. We especially love those fellow believers close to us. In our great and wonderful joy we are absolutely unaware of lurking Judas. It never enters our minds that another believer might be someone out to get you. And for those of you who may think I just drifted off into la-la land, you might want to read up on all the times the Lord Jesus reiterated this very fact. If one doesn’t believe He faced incredible opposition then one obviously does not know the Word or the nature of spiritual reality.
By the way, on the morning of November 22, 1963 in Fort Worth, Texas, while about to walk out into the open before a large crowd under gray drizzling skies, President John F. Kennedy had this very much on his mind. Only a short time before, among the many preparations of that day in his hotel suite, he had already broached the subject of assassination. He had told aides of the ease of which someone could do the dirty deed if so inclined, if someone truly wanted to “get you.”
All that morning, based on the inclement weather, the Secret Service agents were yet to decide on whether the limousine bubble top would need to be installed. For purely political reasons, and it was obviously a political trip to several Texas cities to shore up Democrat support for the 1964 election, it would be best to have an open convertible. It would be best for the electorate to see the relatively young and vibrant President and the attractive First Lady. When the time came to leave the hotel for the airport in Fort Worth, from which they would make the short flight to Dallas, a strange phenomenon following this president’s official trips happened yet again. The rain had largely stopped and skies began clearing. The decision was made to have an open car and leave the top behind. It was a risk John F. Kennedy was not only willing to take but felt he must take.
HE STEADFASTLY SET HIS FACE TO GO TO JERUSALEM
Then He took the twelve aside and said to them, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all things which are written through the prophets about the Son of Man will be accomplished. For He will be handed over to the Gentiles, and will be mocked and mistreated and spit upon, and after they have scourged Him, they will kill Him; and the third day He will rise again.” But the disciples understood none of these things, and the meaning of this statement was hidden from them, and they did not comprehend the things that were said. [Luke 18:31-34][1]
Every single thing the Lord would have to suffer was typed into His Master Plan before He ever created the heavens and earth. He would create free will human beings in the likeness of God. The majority of these would use their free will to grossly violate God’s commandments and holiness and would be lost. A relatively small minority, however, would be made up of individuals who would instead choose to honor God and strive for righteousness and truth. This latter Remnant of humanity was, in God’s considerable estimation, absolutely worth dying for. They were worth the price of redemption.
One of the common denominators of the Remnant is possessing a never-say-die attitude. Regardless of personal stumbles, learning curves, bad circumstances, spiritual attacks, rejection, and even bodily persecution, its members are determined to never quit the path. They signed up for the long haul. They love the Lord Jesus with all their heart. They too set their face as a flint to do the will of God come hell or high water. They all essentially die for Him as He did for them. This is the spiritual dynamic. This is what God created before the beginning of creation. He determined to have a free will people who love Him for who He is and love each other likewise. The only way to allow for this to happen is recorded in the annals of mankind.
Keep this is mind when they tell you once again you must close your churches on false pretenses. Ponder it when they demand that you surrender to the culture and obey immoral anti-Christian regulations and strictures. Think about it when they insist that you not only believe in false agenda-based narratives but make them the very fabric of your lives.
Consider it when the current cancel culture comes calling for the eradication of real Christianity.
© 2020 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
RECOGNIZING THE DEVIL
The Lord Jesus said there is certainly a devil. He also said the devil is a liar and deceiver. But the world is unaware of this. The devil’s greatest trick is convincing the world he doesn’t exist.
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REVEALING INVISIBLE EVIL
The heart of a person is judged not necessarily by his words but by his outward behavior. Sometimes certain people say one thing and do another, but curiously, are able to hide the incongruity. It is likely because their speech is such that it enthralls and captivates, and people fall for it like a load of bricks. After being captivated, or in other words, brought under a spell, such people no longer notice or even care about the resultant actions of said speaker since they have been emotionally brainwashed by the flowery though false words.
THE MAJORITY IS UNDER A TRANCE
“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.” [Matthew 7:13-14][1]
Many years ago I was talking to someone in church. I mentioned what the Lord said about the majority. I said the Lord said only a few would be saved. It was possibly the very next service when the pastor, in the process of his preaching, suddenly railed against this truth. He wore an expression of disdain, eyed me in the big crowd, and said something to the effect, “What’s this about only a few being saved?”
This happened to me a few times, comparatively speaking. I would quote a Scripture, someone would not understand, gossip would eventually get back to the pastor, and I would hear a rebuttal from the pulpit. Of course, the pastor in question was at that time in the process of transforming his successful church into a megachurch. He had already shipped off tapes of his sermons to Christian TV. He was always talking about the necessity of money.
He was not by any means a bad man. He was an excellent preacher, really gifted. But he really believed in going big and didn’t want anything keeping him from his giant goals. Done correctly, this is obviously our mandate, but it must be done according to the Lord’s ministry example. We know what that was by simply reading Scripture. Alternative means can be a trap. Whenever someone falls into such a trap he will keep up the expansion protocol, likely because it looks like success, and refuse to look back. If someone may say the Lord never did it that particular way it doesn’t register.
Now here’s the deal: Great wonderful things often happen within the context of a false understanding. The Lord blesses us with much grace. We carry around incorrect suppositions about Scripture until we gain more knowledge. We must be teachable. We must stand up to correction. But many Christians are willingly clueless by choice. They rarely read the Word and only received snippets here and there. Much of this is never due to a lack of brainpower but to spiritual laziness.
SABBATH REST?
Though I was the dutiful churchgoing Christian soldier for decades it did not mean I was not aware of many gross inconsistencies in official Christianity, one of which involved the Sabbath. According to the Law of Moses the Sabbath is Saturday. It is the seventh and final day of the week. This never changed for the early Christians. But by the second and third centuries or so the Saturday Sabbath was changed to the Sunday Sabbath. There were many obvious reasons for this which I will not get into here. Nor am I stating any religious observance mandate here. I only bring it up to further the previous point.
You see, I grew up going to church on Sundays. Pretty much every Christian did. Thankfully, because of the kind of church I had to go to, one was only required to attend one service. As a young adult after my born again experience in a (ahem) new and different church, we had services on Sunday morning and Sunday night. And I loved every minute of it. Later on, however, once marriage and kids and responsibilities and full adulthood arrived it involved much more work to continue this process. Then I began to think more about what the Sabbath was supposed to be. It was originally created by God as a day of rest. But if you are running around all day long going to church starting from the early morning to late Sunday night, where is the day of rest?
We also always had a midweek service. There were other church-related activities. By the end of the week you were run ragged and never got a day off. This violates the Word of God. And it will cost a person eventually. But if one fully buys into the always-going-to-church idea it should be obvious one has little or no time left for private study. Such people become bound by their church in that everything they know or believe largely comes from there. Christians thus learn to obey the obligations of their church and pastor as the way to get along and cover all the bases. If something arises in contrast to this it is usually rejected, even if it is pure Scripture.
Regarding the pastor I mentioned earlier, he eventually got his megachurch. They had multiple millions of dollars coming in. He established a well-known presence on Christian television. I’m sure many great and wonderful things transpired as a result. A great many unknown people who gave sacrificially made it all happen. He lived, of course, as many successful church leaders do, on donations. I’m sure many of these people were blessed in their giving. I know I was. But the Lord instructed me to leave before all the latter happened. Due to a powerful sense of loyalty I didn’t want to, but I obeyed. I think the pastor had a good heart and good intentions. But he was not beyond insisting on his own way or stepping on those who did not agree.
WHAT GOES UP MUST COME DOWN
One would think one could figure out what often happens next. Those who study OT history do. One of this pastor’s mentors, while he was still up and coming, was a megachurch leader. This guy had built a huge church plant even beyond megachurch standards. He had an extremely high profile and was highly touted in the Christian press. Many years later a massive scandal was revealed there that involved an unbelievable amount of sexual shenanigans of the grossest variety. Of course, all that evil was going on while he and his church were being highly touted by all the official morons who held him up as a Biblical example, though he was actually nothing of the kind. This included my former pastor who was likely shocked when the news came out. At least I hope that’s the way it was with him.
I’m sure there were people who knew the truth as the truth was happening but such people are always in the minority. They are seen as those against all the good stuff. The ones who love all the good stuff and never question anything are the spiritually braindead. These always account for the majority. We have an endless stream of just such a majority who always insist that their pastor, their church, their doctrines, their practices, and their beliefs are absolutely perfect and anyone who differs even slightly can simply get the hell out. They will turn on you in a heartbeat. Then later on when the words of those who tried to tell the truth were proven true, the big boisterous we-know-everything majority becomes the not-a-peep silent majority. They don’t want to mention they were wrong. They run like a bear’s on their tail. It hurts their pride. It is far too humbling. But as long as they maintain their numbers each individual can continue to get lost in the clueless crowd and gain security from the clueless crowd. Though they are forced to face the facts they rarely face the Scriptural facts, which, had they done so before, the scandal would never have happened. And they insist the devil had nothing to do with it.
THIS IS WHY GOD MADE PROPHETS
The Lord Jesus made sure He put truth-tellers in His Community. They are there for a very good reason. Real churches have such truth-tellers. Most churches don’t. That’s why those churches are what they are. It is why they don’t look like the Book of Acts. It is why they are either dead as an iceberg where one can play hockey on the main aisle or are inhabited to some degree by stalking religious spirits. The invisible bad guys have them flummoxed. As a result, some of these places are downright weird, looking like the result of a religious experiment gone bad. Others look wonderful on the surface but are otherwise concealing hidden secrets.
But all could be fixed post haste if the homogenous majority wanted it so. But they don’t. They refuse the cure. They reject the One who could deliver them even while singing His praises.
They simply cannot recognize the devil.
© 2020 by R.J. Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
BE FILLED WITH HIS COURAGE FOR THE BATTLE AT HAND
Walking with the Lord Jesus will involve standing with the Lord Jesus. Standing with Him means one must engage in spiritual warfare. This requires great courage which only He can provide.
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THE ARENA OF SPIRITUAL WARFARE
It’s amazing what one decision will cost a person. Real Christians make such a decision. Unreal Christians never do. The latter make what they think is the right decision but have either been deceived or are only deceiving themselves. Being a Christian does not mean, and usually never does, having a storybook life. It is often the opposite. Rather than a storybook it is much more about struggle. It is a struggle because the Lord Jesus has a great many powerful enemies. When one joins up with Him, His enemies become yours also and will thus hate you as they hate Him. And this hate does not stay holed up in some ethereal world but is demonstrated three-dimensionally.
Why do the majority of Christians miss this? Why are they unaware? These simple questions are essentially rhetorical for those who are aware. They know exactly why. They know it’s because the majority of “Christians” are never in the fight. They have joined a fake form of Christianity that looks nothing like the historical original. These fake forms come in many different subforms yet it doesn’t matter what the particulars are that separate one from the other, since all are separated from the spiritual reality of His kingdom.
If unreal Christians have an inkling this may be true why do they insist on staying put? Well, for one thing, it’s more comfortable. Yet it is also the case that when nothing is ventured nothing is gained. When one agrees with the devil, the world, the culture, or anything else opposing the Lord, the Lord’s declared enemies will never be one’s own. They will never come after such a one. He or she is insulated from spiritual attack. And though it may appear that one’s good fortune is the result of God’s protection and provision, it is more likely due to simply not being a threat to evil. Imagine how many Christians there are in the world that the devil laughs at because they represent absolutely no threat to him.
The Lord’s entire existence is a threat to evil. When He showed up here as one of us, even as a mere babe, He put the devil on notice. His entry into the world was an open attack. Personified evil had always hated Him but at that point they hated Him all the more because He had the audacity to set foot on their turf. That’s how they saw it then and still do. They stole the planet from Him, in a sense. He decided to take it back. He could have simply eliminated them all whenever He felt like it, both demons and evil humans. But regarding the latter, He instead chose the path of love and vulnerability. He wanted us to know He is no threat to us. He wants us to know He actually loves us and wants to save us. Some will never accept His love but a relative few will. For those who reject Him it is their choice. At the end they can blame no one but themselves. Maybe most never understand the full implications of such a decision.
NO MIDDLE GROUND
“He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters.” [Matthew 12:30][1]
I remember an event in my early Christian life when I was witnessing to someone. Of course, I was witnessing to just about everybody but certain events stand out in my memory more. This was one. The young guy I was talking to was listening to me and fully understood good and evil. Though a sinner, he didn’t see himself as evil or being on the wrong side. But he also knew he was not all that righteous except in his own mind and according to the world’s culture. The people he hung around and were familiar with were basically “good.” Most people never see a problem with oneself or one’s friends until a comparison is made. They consider themselves good because they compare themselves to the dregs of society and criminals. However, when one makes the comparison to the Lord Jesus and real Christians who don’t engage in unrighteous behavior and live according to a Biblical standard, they suddenly see their lives in a different light. They may even get convicted.
This is what the guy said in answer to this: “What about a third possibility? What if one doesn’t live for the devil or for God? What if he just lives in the middle?” I quickly told him there actually is no middle. There is no middle ground. No such place actually exists in the spiritual world. One is either on the side of righteousness with the Lord or one is against Him.
If I remember right, there was a brief moment of silence while he considered what I said. I’m sure he understood the implications. He knew he never made a decision for the Lord and didn’t see the need for it. But he likely also felt he was not an evil man who supported the devil. He thought he was just a good guy living life and doing what one must do in this world to make it and would like to have some fun along the way. Most people are like this. I don’t blame them for feeling that way. Life can be rough and for some it is much rougher than it is for others.
We parted amiably. He understood my point and I think he saw for the first time that there really isn’t any middle ground. But he never changed his life in the brief time I knew him. Most people don’t. When one tries to understand this principle further, however, and gains a more mature understanding on the matter, one is forced to recognize that any middle ground between good and evil can’t possibly exist. One is on one side or the other. If one believes in a middle one is not on the side of good no matter how much he or she may be convinced otherwise.
MAKING YOUR ELECTION SURE
Not to belabor the point, but most Christians never actually make a decision for the Lord. They exist in a nether world of their own making, likely deceived by faux Christian leaders, many of whom are also deceived. It never matters what the Word of God says to these people. They will always find a reason to discount Scripture to suit their purposes. They belong to denominations which put their own teachings above those of the Lord. Or they belong to no church and largely trust their own judgments, though such are never fully based on Scripture.
I remember talking to one such Christian once and referred to the integrity of the Bible but this person quickly disparaged the veracity of the written Word, in that no one can really trust that everything written in the Bible is actually true, especially after so many centuries. Yet, strangely enough, this person was a denominational Christian of a certain sort, attended church, and absolutely fully believed in that denomination’s teachings. In other words, this person’s chosen denomination was based on the Bible but apparently did not believe what was written in it, while the denomination’s teachings based upon it were perceived as legitimate and true. Go figure. One would think a reasonably intelligent person could see this logical fallacy but many don’t.
ONE IS EITHER ALL IN OR ALL OUT
The Lord Jesus is the Cornerstone. He is the foundation. He is the ultimate appeal to authority. He never allowed, in any of His teachings, the possibility of any other authority but His own. He taught pure truth. He taught the reality of good and evil. He actually fully exposed evil. He fully exposed the devil. No one had ever done that before. He pulled back the curtain of this world and revealed everything behind it, including the plans and machination of pure evil. He showed how everyone who has ever lived is influenced by this evil and broken by it, compromised by it, deceived by it, and greatly lessened because of it. He taught that the only solution was to face it head-on and fight it, which He did.
Now, had not a few good-hearted people already tried such a thing? Had not many righteous-to-be wannabes taken on evil in some form or another prior to that time or since? And the answer, of course, is yes, and that some small victories were certainly won. But these were usually only minor nicks to great evil and evil likely struck back and won again. The moral of this story is that most are no match for the great evil in the world. How can they be? They are compromised and weakened by personal sin.
The Lord, however, has never been compromised by sin. And that’s the difference between Him and everybody else. If one has any unconfessed sin and refuses repentance then one can forget about engaging in a spiritual fight. He will lose. Every time. The only way to defeat evil, really defeat it, is to attack it from a purely righteous vantage point. The Lord Jesus grants us this vantage point. Because He has the means to take away our sin we have the means to win spiritual fights. Evil simply cannot stand up to pure righteousness. Righteousness will always defeat it. Always. This is why it is imperative to not only “follow” the Lord but stand with Him in spiritual battle. It is the only way victory can be achieved.
The gift of His indwelling Holy Spirit, which fills one with powerful courage, makes this possible.
© 2020 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
AMERICA IS BEING RITUALED: STAY SPIRITUAL!
What you must be concentrating on is your life as a Christian. Closer to the Lord we must be. Believe more. Pray more. Fence-sitting is over.
The majority of Christians in America have always gotten by being nominal, dutiful, spiritually standoffish, half-hearted, and insistent on a non-walk perceived as a real walk. At least one foot is forever firmly planted (in concrete) in this passing world, the other being ensconced in one’s Christian world, likely faux. If by chance one of these legs continues freestyling or left to dangling it must be compartmentalized post haste and will be as soon as some outside force forces an event-related or circumstance-based directive to put it where they say put it. And once both legs are fully spoken for walking only where directed, how must one Via Con Dios? Freedom is over.
The appearance of such remains promulgated, though, regardless of zombie status guised as good guy, and image is everything (of course). Keeping up appearances being a dutiful doofus trumps that overrated swimming upstream thing. Who needs that? Better to not only watch the river flow but jump in and flow with it. Looking free is better than being free. The important thing is getting on in life. The top priority is not the Lord Jesus and can never be. If such would be so it would involve far too drastic a change and can thus never be so. My social status would suffer. I might actually have to think. Better to take one’s chances and get along in the here and now and worry about that eternity stuff later.
GRAB YOUR CROSS. WHAT?
And now, for a cataclysmic jump into spiritual reality, why do most Christians shun cross-carrying? For starters, as previously alluded, there be one’s family religion. One is born with it and born into it with no say so. Most such are not New Covenant much but on-the-shelf variations. It’s like a movie loosely based on a book. To maintain family unity one must stay within it.
Then there is family culture. This must be maintained. We all come from a long line of many people doing certain things and most doings don’t include the only doing that matters which is doing His will. Now, maybe your family got it right. That’s great. Maybe you come from a long line of Spirit-filled giants who spent their lives changing the world for God. If this is true then pardon moi and continue on. Otherwise…
Then the money monster must be dealt with. This guy puts the slave in slave master. Forget enjoyable work. It may work for a few. Most must use force and force-fit a fit without having one which would be tricky if one had time to consider it. The time comes when economic pressure coerces adherence to whatever one must do for money and one’s beliefs must never threaten this. If the people on the job expect a certain mindset and attitude and one is pressured to conform then one must conform or income and lifestyle will be threatened. Call it a form of selling your soul or owing your soul to the company store which means God can’t have my soul. Tennessee Ernie told me so and he’s the one who spent every day loading sixteen tons so he must know.
I could go on. Most people adhere to tradition to the point of absolute close-mindedness even if their tradition is some variation of low-key, apathetic Que Sera Sera in which they don’t believe much or care much. It’s amazing how much they care, however, once this Joe Cool approach is perceived to be threatened by someone with the man-ups to actually witness. Then Joe goes Volcano. It reminds me of this:
“Go up to a land flowing with milk and honey; for I will not go up in your midst, lest I consume you on the way, for you are a stiff-necked people.” And when the people heard this bad news, they mourned, and no one put on his ornaments. For the Lord had said to Moses, “Say to the children of Israel, ‘You are a stiff-necked people. I could come up into your midst in one moment and consume you. Now therefore, take off your ornaments, that I may know what to do to you.’” [Exodus 33:3-5]
TEARING YOU DOWN TO BUILD YOU UP
This is best done in as much of a self-administered and agreeable fashion as possible if at all possible in that full submission to the Lord gets it done faster and better and requires far fewer checkups for further fine tuning. Putting this in a spiritual context, God doesn’t have so much respect for our traditions and excuses and feet-in-concrete reasons to steer clear of actual discipleship. But tell a man he must ruin his life by obeying the unconstitutional draft board, submit to some loud mouth idiot for two months, subject one’s entire life including thoughts and soul to a soldier-making process, go to some distant suckwind country and get maimed or killed and, well, that’s different. It’s different because they’ll throw you in jail and make your life and your entire future even worse if you don’t. And also, everyone will think you’re as yellow as a cob of corn. Can’t have that.
This is why joining up with the Lord for His full program must be strictly voluntary. So right off the bat most will never join. Why? Well, (1) There is no force involved and (2) The world will think one is a total idiot. And then one will have to live life swimming upstream against the grain with a proverbial monkey ensconced on back. Most can never subject themselves to such unless forced to, and many do subject themselves to force of course whatever the force, embracing “May the Force Be With You,” but never His force. Yet the Lord, actually, will never use force and thus most are off the hook and will eventually willingly jump into Fire Lake as the credits roll. Wimps every one. Totally unworthy of the Lord. Don’t let the screen door hit you on the butt on your way out.
WHAT MEANETH THIS?
It means the PTB have gained such control they are playing the majority like a Stradivarius. The devil is a good liar. He convinces most people to not be Christians and most Christians to not be serious. Big Brother sends daily directives to the talking heads who relay the message dutifully and most believe every word and obey or the cleaned brains will trash you to no end for declining DA indoctrination. I would think that most Christians should thus see that the Lord has made the choice very easy and that dropping one’s nets and never looking back is the perfect antidote to crazyworlditis. He cures our ills, gives us everything we need, and blesses us with great spiritual careers walking purely in faith. And then there’s the retirement benefits, which, as the slogan says, are out of this world.
They can attempt to ritual His people all they want but it will never take. Real Christians are above the clouds looking through them due to gifted eyes seeing His spiritual reality which exposes the fake one. They are off the merry-go-round forever. I like this plan.
21 At that very time He rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit, and said, “I praise You, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants. Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight.
22 “All things have been handed over to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.”
23 Turning to the disciples, He said privately, “Blessed are the eyes which see the things you see,
24 For I say to you, that many prophets and kings wished to see the things which you see, and did not see them, and to hear the things which you hear, and did not hear them.” [Luke 10:21-24] [1]
© 2020 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
CHRISTIANS AND RACE: KEEP YOUR FOCUS ON THE LORD!
Current events have opened a national discussion on race. Later in this article I will relay my early Christian experiences in this regard. We were way ahead of the curve.
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When the plandemic news narrative came blasting forth back in March, I noticed that many Christian blogs, ministers, etc. immediately began referring to it in their writings and pronouncements. Over the past week the same phenomenon has ensued only this time it’s about the riots and race. In both cases Christians are responding to the news of the day, taking the bait as it were, as if it is our duty to do so. It exposes what is actually on the minds of Christians in general most of the time, apparently, in that we are no different than anyone else in being highly influenced by news and culture, and consequently sometimes taken off in directions chosen by someone other than the Lord Jesus.
This obviously does not mean we should not be aware of current events. We should. We should be aware of as much as possible. But current events driven by the agenda-based, monetary-based, faux-narrative-based news corporations should never be a priority as opposed to the spiritual-based teachings of the Lord. It is certainly fine to comment on news of the day as some of it is appropriate toward greater truth. I also began writing about the plandemic at that time but my focus was what it had to do with Christianity in these times and what Christians should know and how to properly respond. I saw in the very beginning that there were obvious signs of a major false operation in transit and this has proven to be true.
By now informed people know the entire thing was largely an agenda-based deception and this has proved accurate by the lightning fast segue into the riots and race narrative in which it is suddenly okay to break all the social distancing rules of the plandemic. Previously, those who wanted to keep their churches or businesses opened or attempted to open them later without official sanction were severely sanctioned, both socially and by government authorities. Some were thrown in jail. Those who are now looting and burning, by contrast, are largely getting away with it and even being encouraged.
The first phase destroyed lives and livelihoods to the tune of multiple millions, many of which will never recover. We are talking the greatest magnitude of such in history. Reports say there were a hundred thousand businesses in New York alone that were destroyed. All for what? Fifty to a hundred thousand dying from the flu each year is a common statistic. The vast majority of the people who died from the virus did not actually die primarily from the virus but from any number of other conditions.
As this real news began coming in, that is, actual truth and science fact put forth from many intelligent and well-informed honest people telling the truth and destroying the false narrative that had captured and indoctrinated the majority of Americans, something had to be done really fast to recapture the focus. Hence, the happenings of the past week or so. The focus has indeed been recaptured. The majority has now segued cleanly into the second phase which involves the same destruction as the first but in the literal sense. This segued majority again includes the majority of Christians.
Yet, truth began coming forth right away to counter the new false narrative. This has happened much faster than the first time around and is great news. It reveals that many more have become aware of the real agenda of the narrative makers who are trying their best to stay ahead of the Great Awakening.
STAY FOCUSED
Again, it is fine to stay informed. The problem, however, is that Christians in general are more inclined to get highjacked by such current events based on the media shriekometer, especially those as charged as these, rather than stay focused on the Lord and His work. They get sidetracked most likely because they were not focused on the Lord and His work to begin with. Imagine if the disciples following the Lord were suddenly slammed with some powerful narrative/rumor event and just left Him standing there in the midst of a session and ran off to engage in the new proceedings. Their actions would prove their focus. Whatever they allowed their minds to be occupied with would prove their discipleship level.
Even with this article you are now reading, my intention is to comment on what’s happening now but only in the context of how it relates to Christians. And this current context certainly does relate to Christians. It tells us very clearly what is actually going on (for those with eyes to see) and what is coming next. We saw how the majority of ministers and churches quickly succumbed to government dictates and shut down their ministries and churches. These were all non-essential, you see. Most Christians let it happen without a fight. Next, these same people are suddenly adhering to the current narrative and obeying once again, apologizing for something of which they are not guilty.
BACK TO THE FUTURE
A little background: America obviously used to be largely segregated. There was progress in the 1940s associated with the war. There was great progress in the 1960s. By the 1970s great strides had already been accomplished and more were ongoing. I began attending Pentecostal churches at that time. There were white Pentecostal churches, black Pentecostal churches, and mixed Pentecostal churches. I attended them all.
The Pentecostal movement in America which began 120 years ago was from the start racially mixed. The great Azusa Street Revival was largely led by a young black minister from Texas by the name of William Seymour, whose parents were emancipated slaves. He was a former student of Charles Parham, a white man. There were people of several ethnic backgrounds involved at Azusa. Of course, Pentecostals were greatly scorned by mainline Christians then, the bulk of which were absolutely segregated. This disparagement continued at least until the 1960s. It was not only because these Christians had a powerful aversion to Pentecost but also toward those they saw as inferior regardless of race.
As a young man I was born again among a small group of peers who belonged to a church that contained all local backgrounds. We never had a problem with race. It was no issue to us. This might sound completely unbelievable. I can understand that based on the current narrative. In that church of roughly 100-150 people, there was an older black couple who always sat in the same place on the central aisle about four of five pews from the front. The man always sat quietly with his Bible open. She, on the other hand, was quite vocal. She would often be used of God for vocal spiritual gifts. When she spoke you paid attention. Right behind her sat a white woman powerfully used in the same gifts.
We also had female pulpit ministers. There was a black woman, a friend of the church, who visited on occasion to preach and was always smiling and cheerful but could without doubt bring a message from God. I can never forget what she did for me once. I had a problem with my car one Wednesday late afternoon and ending up having to walk to church. It was a long way. While walking down the highway a car stopped up ahead to give me a ride. It was her. She actually recognized me.
Although the majority of the pulpit time was taken by the senior pastor who was an excellent preacher, and something we all agreed with and wanted, it was a not a closed pulpit. It was open to any number of traveling evangelists and ministers. It was also open on occasion to church members, local believers, singers, and musicians regardless of background. They even allowed yours truly up there later on.
On the very back pew sat a man and his large family. He had about six children, mostly young. He and his wife sat back there because they didn’t want to be a distraction. His children however, were always full of joy and well behaved. Before this man was born again and gloriously filled with the Holy Spirit, he was a classic Texas redneck. I have no idea what his thoughts on race were before he joined up with the Lord but he had absolutely no problem afterwards. He worked in commercial construction. He was the strongest man I ever met. I was taught by my Dad to have a strong handshake, but this man could break your hand if he wanted to. I’m serious. He could have played middle linebacker in the NFL. Before salvation he could outdrink anyone and smoked two or three packs of cigarettes a day. But the Lord delivered him of all of it. He was always bubbling over with the joy of the Lord. The old song says “Give me that Old Time Religion—Makes me love everybody.” What a joy to see all these people loving and hugging one another and working for the Lord together.
We also had a lot of young twenty-somethings who previously lived, before giving their lives to God, among the conditions of that culture at that time. All of us were aware of everything social. I was among this group. We were way ahead of the previous generation. Therefore, joining this church and being around so many different people of all races was no big thing but normal and never an issue. We also had a married couple in which the man was white and the woman was black. Again, whatever. They were great people. I had two close friends in that church. One was white and one was black. I was great friends with a married couple instrumental in my salvation. He was white and she was Hispanic.
Thus, because we were far too diverse, our common denominator was not race or background or income level or social standing. It was Jesus. We were all sold out to Jesus. He was everything. We each gave our lives to Him. We were all filled with His Spirit. That was the real dividing line. It is exactly as He said, in that there would be those who were dedicated to Him 100% and then there would be everybody else. When we came together in our services we were one large diverse and loving family from all walks of life and former traditions. We were black, brown, and white.
I was blessed to win someone to the Lord who happened to be Hispanic. She wanted me to witness to her mother. I was still relatively young in the Lord but was astounded that God was actually giving me these opportunities. I went over there and told her mother about the Lord and she ended up giving her life to God and became a church member. I remember taking my pastor aside while this was going on and telling him, “The Lord is using me, pastor!” How incredible it was to be used of God so He could save and bless them.
My friend told me she had another friend she wanted me to witness to. He was also Hispanic. We went over to his house, which was actually his mother’s house, in a far part of the city. This young man was the farthest thing from what I thought in my natural mind to ever change or be born again. But he actually trusted his friend and we took him to church. Over the next few weeks everybody saw the most amazing transformation take place in his life. This young man became a great follower of the Lord, absolutely dedicated. He also knew a lot of people. Over the next few years it is estimated that he won over five hundred people to the Lord!
THE HUMAN RACE
The moral of this story is that whatever one happens to be, Jesus said we must be born again. When we are born again and filled with the Spirit of God, we have Him in common. We become members of the Lord’s one family which is composed of “whosoever will” and is open to anyone. He loves everybody. He treats everyone the same. God does not discriminate. All are welcome in His kingdom. This is what He meant when He said the following:
31 “Treat other people as you would like them to treat you.
32 “What credit is it to you if you love only those who love you? Why, even sinners love those who love them.
33 “What credit is it to you if you do good only to those who do good to you? Even sinners do that.
34 “What credit is it to you if you lend only to those who you expect will pay you back? Even sinners lend to each other, expecting to be repaid in full.
35 “But love your enemies, do good, and lend expecting nothing back! Your reward will be great, and you will be children of Ha`Elyon; for he is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.
36 “Show compassion, just as your Father shows compassion.
37 “Don’t judge, and you won’t be judged.
“Don’t condemn, and you won’t be condemned.
“Forgive, and you will be forgiven.” [Luke 6: 31-37][1]
© 2020 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] © The Complete Jewish Bible. Used by permission.
REJECTING PENTECOST DESTROYED THEIR COUNTRY
Sound familiar? Pentecost has passed with very little notice. At the exact moment last week when America should have been honoring the Lord Jesus and the Pentecost Miracle the entire country exploded.
If the devil is able to take this kind of control while sleepy Christians slouch back from a real walk with God, everyone should know where this is heading. Pentecost was paid lip service by the usual people in the same way as always yesterday. Some wanted to use the day to make a statement. Some are claiming that their rights were violated by the lockdown by being deemed non-essential a couple of months ago. But at that time many weakly complied and did exactly as told and continued doing exactly as told, which tells everyone who is actually in authority. These Christian leaders willing to shutter their churches cannot be compared in any way to the Early Church. Their congregants so willing to follow them must be seen as even less so. After all the damage was done, however, a few decided to “defy” the restrictions. Right.
There is talk of what the Founding Fathers would think of what has happened to a once great country. What about what the Founder of Christianity would think about so many clueless Christians? What about what the 120 on the original day of Pentecost? There were obviously a great many more followers of the Lord but most had chickened out and obeyed religious authority. The 120 risked everything at a time when all the religious mobsters were out to get them and stop the movement in its tracks. The 120 did exactly as the Lord said to do. They watched Him ascend into heaven. They went back to the Upper Room. They worshiped the Lord Jesus, prayed intently, fasted, maybe most for the duration, and prepared themselves spiritually. How many Christians in America did that over the weekend? How many have been doing that over the last two months? The last year? The last ten years?
Because the majority rejected their Messiah and Pentecost, and accepted corrupt religionists and the Zealot party, the corrupt religionists were unable to stop the Zealot party from eventually destroying the country. Real salvation came but they rejected Him. He had all the answers but they didn’t want Him. They chose Barabbas as a substitute. This “son of your fathers” was an undisciplined, murderous, robbing Zealot. He was the very seed of the Great Revolt which overpowered all restraints and led to total ruin. Because they rejected the real Temple, their own temple was burned to the ground with no stone left upon another. Jerusalem was not only destroyed but eventually sowed with salt.
There is always a direct correlation between that which happens in the three-dimensional world and that which happens in the spiritual world. If we can’t see by now that the devil is having a field day, doing so much of whatever he wants, with nothing stopping him, and that corrupt people in high places are doing exactly the same, and all their minions likewise, while most Christians continue in the same spiritually dead ways, what will it take?
Make no mistake, there IS a Great Awakening. But traditional Christianity is for the most part not part of it. If one can only strive to make proper comparisons one will see this. The Lord Jesus, though absolutely innocent, was rejected by the ruling establishment and the ruling religious establishment. And all the followers of the ruling religious establishment weakly succumbed and agreed. Many of these people were once His supporters but they all became Judases. In the face of this despicable onslaught it is a wonder the Lord was even able to gather a mere 120 and that Pentecost ever happened. The majority was wrong then and the majority is wrong now.
What happened at Pentecost is the answer. The infilling of the Spirit of God is a cure-all. The Lord obviously knew exactly what He was doing. But if Christians are conditioned to reject Pentecost in its full reality, they will eventually get the same thing that happened back then. One must understand that the time comes when the only course of saving yourself means giving yourself to the Lord 100%. There is no longer any more time. So many Christians in the past knew they had come to the end of the road in their lives and if they didn’t fully submit to the Lord they would lose their souls. They would end up in hell. They embraced Pentecost.
American Christians must also embrace Pentecost instead of continually rejecting it. The majority of dead Christians in all their dead churches have already proven they have no spiritual power whatsoever and are completely compromised and rendered spiritually ineffective. This always depends on where they place their trust. A Christian can either submit to the rightful authority of the Man who died to give them salvation, or they can submit to pretenders and shysters. Many of these people must not know how compromised and deceived they have become.
Back in March, how many churches defied the shutdown? How many Christians did their research to understand what was really going on? How many Christians rededicated their lives to God and began praying more, fasting more, seeking Him more, and trying their best not to become entangled in a false narrative? And how many decided to do all in their power to recreate Pentecost wherever they were?
Now, there were some great reports back in March when all this started. I wrote an article on March 22 that has become my most popular post during this time, and this is encouraging. I will put the link at the end. I suggest you check it out. That post revealed one extremely important and positive occurrence: Individual Christians understood how important they were as individuals and were determined to do anything they could to assist the Lord and one another. They suddenly realized they had no church. They lost many freedoms. They could not go here or there. But they still had the Lord Jesus. And this made all the difference. They wanted more and wanted to be more.
It is the Lord Jesus who baptizes in the Holy Spirit. He shares His Spirit with us. This is a powerful individual experience. It does not happen by osmosis or in a corner. It does not come easy. It will cost you. It’s supposed to cost you. It cost Him everything.
Such is the price for creating powerful disciples capable of changing the course of history.
© 2020 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
LINK: THE CURRENT SHUTDOWN: AN OPPORTUNITY TO DISCOVER AND PRACTICE ORIGINAL CHRISTIANITY
CIVIL WAR IN THE CHURCH REVISITED: ON THE DECEPTION OF APPEARANCES
Three years ago I wrote a truth-revealing post that struck deep with many readers. It referred to an ongoing pretense problem within official Christianity.
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It is called The Real Civil War in the Church. There’s a link at the end. Here is a brief excerpt:
“Real Christianity is the only hope America has left and most American Christians don’t want real Christianity.”
THIS PRESENT DARKNESS
If you have control, if you have market share, if you have great amounts of money rolling in, and if you share great popularity, the odds of obeying the Lord are greatly lessened. In other words, who needs God when everything is going so well?
When such good fortune happens to non-believers they always fall for the notion that they are responsible: They worked hard. They used their brain. They proved themselves better than the competition. They’re good looking. They have great personalities. They dress well. All of these common bromidic conceptions are nothing more than false fronts to be deceived by.
This same dynamic happens to Christians. Spiritual pride is not a new thing. It obviously stems from personal pride which extends itself into a false persona with a Christian wrapping, proving that Christians can be just as self-deceived as anyone. Success is always measured in such circles in the same tired ways. Though a probable majority is self-deceived, it is not as if they didn’t have help. Christian leaders deceiving Christian followers has always worked extremely well for several reasons. One is that Christian followers always give way too much credit to their religious overlords and treat them as demigods or always above reproach. In other words, as non-human.
It doesn’t matter than we have the mile-long written Word of God pronouncing repeatedly the foibles, weaknesses, bad character, failures, and outright deliberate sin of such leaders. Moreover, their sin is perceived as not sin, or they were subjected to extenuating circumstances, or they were under too much stress due to the great job they’re doing, or their compassion caused them to fall to temptation, and saving the best excuse for last, the devil made them do it.
Real Christians have thus come to understand that Christian leaders are just as flawed as non-leaders, and they further understand that the Lord Jesus had to be sinless though subjected to the same temptations we all are, not only because He must present Himself for sacrifice as the spotless Lamb of God, but also because we all need a Leader to look to and follow who is never overcome by sin and failure. The rest of us humans do not qualify. This includes Christian leaders. This especially includes Christian leaders who believe themselves to be above it all. They prove by their actions, behavior, willingness to take control, and absolute unwillingness to subject themselves to God’s discipline and timing that they deem themselves worthy and better than the rest.
NEW COVENANT LEADERSHIP
This is actually an easy one but has become greatly complicated, again, by the wrong people in charge. Such people may have been given a spiritual mandate of sorts by the Lord but often have trouble accepting His limits. The key, and for good reason, is to always strive for the proper balance between the Lord’s overall absolute leadership in concert with His working through the challenging medium of humanity which always has a tendency to want more authority than God allows.
The way the enemy overcomes such limits is by attempting to convince certain people they are superior, greater, advanced, more worthy, etc. Christian followers must be convinced their leaders are much better than they, their followers, are or they won’t follow them. Both have become convinced of the superior-inferior fallacy and accepting of the false clergy-laity divide. There is no shortage of those who believe themselves qualified and reining them in is like herding cats.
Let’s say there is someone who photographs extremely well. Let’s say this person has a personal magnetism, a great personality, looks great in great clothes, and has enough confidence to almost make the devil jealous. But this person is not really into morality. You can plug this type in anywhere and use them as tools. Of course, some of the people who qualify as such, those with a conscience, know what they really are regardless of their many such blessings and will attempt the humble road and refuse to be used as props or manipulate others through their props. These account for only a few, however. The rest become politicians.
Sadly, however, many become church leaders. Before you jump my case on this please consider three men that God put forth before us long ago to prove this truth—the first three kings of Israel. They were King Saul, King David, and King Solomon. All three of these men had outward attributes far better than the rest. Saul was both tall and handsome, a living cliché. David was said to be a very good looking guy, was a stout warrior and leader of men, an excellent musician, and you get the idea. Some have described him as an All American Israelite. Solomon, one of David’s many sons, must have also shared David’s outward characteristics. His mother Bathsheba was obviously a babe and David was so smitten with her beauty he committed adultery and had her husband killed. That’s some powerful beauty right there. Solomon also shared this family characteristic as well but used it to the nth degree. He was so wise he had 900 wives. Right.
The rest of the story is that Saul turned into a massive jerk, David acted like a jerk on several occasions, and Solomon became one of the greatest jerks of all time. All three did enough to bust hell wide open and rot there forever. But one of these three escaped that fate by having a quality most leaders and many Christians leaders do not possess. He was able, though he needed help, to see what he really was. When his spiritual sight was best David called himself a worm. He realized, however, that the Lord had called him to a high position in the eyes of the people but also that he must humble himself so God, the real Leader, would always be seen as such. Saul started out this way. So did Solomon, in a sense. Saul ended up going nuts and lost everything. Solomon became the first antichrist. David also sinned but followed it up with great, soul-ripping repentance.
This is what truly great people do. They know what they are. They know they are gifted but also know they are mere humans subjected to sin and temptation, and the best way to overcome is to take every opportunity to destroy pride.
BEAUTIFUL SPIRIT
“Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,” says the LORD of hosts. [Zechariah 4:6][1]
I remember when I was a rookie Christian. A bunch of us went to a small church in great revival. It was so awesome. The Spirit of God was powerful in that place. At some point I saw a young woman there. She was not physically attractive. But she was so filled with the Spirit of God her face was shining. Her eyes were bright. She had such a big smile. Everything about her exuded spiritual beauty. She was not physically attractive and yet she was spiritually beautiful. On the flip side there are stunning women with ugly hearts.
We know from Isaiah Chapter 53 that the Lord Jesus was not a physically handsome Man during His time here. He had no physical charisma. He had none of the outward qualities I described previously in this article. He did not look like Saul or Solomon but there are clues that he shared some of David’s characteristics. But we all know the bottom line. He was filled with the Spirit of God without measure. God is beautiful. And loving. And compassionate. And kind. God is 100% good. When He chose His human tabernacle, He did not choose to be the best looking. He did the same with His mother Mary, of course. Mary was likely just like that young woman I spoke to briefly at that revival and never saw again. Mary was not a looker but was the most beautiful woman on the planet as God counts beauty.
This is what the infilling of the Spirit of God does to a person. They become spiritually attractive because the Spirit of God is. And they operate from, by, and within the Spirit. The Holy Spirit is their strength and song. They are completed by God. Because of this they know what they are without Him, which is pretty much nothing. They therefore do not give in to pride. They determine they will not operate through mere humanness. Of course, the Lord helps such people in this effort. He demands we submit to His discipleship. Such will eventually burn off the spiritually worthless garbage. This should prove to all that many Christians, and certainly many so-called Christian leaders, never submit to His discipleship.
Rather than having spiritual eyes to see spiritual reality, they only see themselves and how great they are.
Instead of How Great Thou Art.
© 2020 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
Link to Cited Article: THE REAL CIVIL WAR IN THE CHURCH
SUBMITTING TO HELLBOUND AUTHORITARIANS
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Christians taking life-changing advice from people on their way to hell is not a good business model.
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This current plandemic will end up being exponentially worse for America than 9/11 ever was. The economy is self-destructing all around us, though we are still in the early stages. Granted that is was cover for an economy about to implode anyway, though two years off schedule, due to Fed gerrymandering and whizzing money mints. Enough has happened to date, however, to set in motion transformations of the not good to the nth degree. And the absolutely ridiculous, unfortunate, jarring and nonsensical greater aspect of said transformations is that they were voluntary. They said “You must destroy the country,” and Americans said, “Okay.”
Those with eyes to see knew something was off right from the start. This brings us to psychological definition time, in that there are two basic types of people in the world. Occupying the seeming majority are those who largely go along with the status quo and cultural narrative with no questions asked willing to jump through any hoops presented and wolf down everything they’re told with not even the slightest concern that the authoritarians they love and honor so much might be something other than presented. The talking heads and proxy air-preachers could be shading the truth. No! They could be lying. No!! They could be openly deceiving the populace for the sake of a hidden agenda. NO!!!
Or maybe they’re just morons. This is similar to what the Lord Jesus taught, an applicable variation if you will, that if a moron follows a moron they both fall into a pit, a pit so deep and otherwise inescapable they never see the light of truth and readily reject it if a miracle ever happens and God sends a messenger down there.
The other type of person has a brain and uses it. He or she has a tendency to see other people as on a lateral plane possessing no inherent superiority and thus unqualified to be worshipped as human deities. This used to be, in the distant past, a cultural bench mark of real Americans, who essentially said to hell with Europe and all its hell-bound, power hungry, impious, inbred, sociopathic kings, queens, money pimps, and ecclesiastics. And don’t bring your human spirit-killing, freedom-hating, individual liberty-bashing, idiots-in-charge, cultural-rotting demonic authoritarianism over here!
This truly American ethos actually lasted a while. A century and a half of colonial liberty and a leave-me-alone-to-pursue-my-dreams individualism took deep root, eventually reaching its skyrocketing beyond Everest zenith in the early 1770s when a relatively small group of Americans finally had enough of the arrogant dictates of a clueless English Parliament and smug crown-wearing fool on the hill.
Today there are, of course, countless fools on countless hills in the former land of the brave backed by unseen uber-morons with pretty much the opposite beliefs and principles of our holy and loving Creator. These puppet-owning backstage big boys with wads of cash do whatever they want whenever they want but love to make a game of it. What little mischievous boys once did, asserting their power and will over their bugs of choice with a magnifying glass, so do these present world elite no morals top hat-wearing monocle-clad mustachioed misfits on any sane planet do to the billions they rule. Why? Because they can. And they don’t believe in God. In their minds they prove this by engaging in the most reprehensible actions with no apparent pushback or immediate punishment, thus deeming themselves bullet proof and untouchable.
Which brings me to my next point. Did anyone happen to catch what Augustus Caesar said the other day? How about Tiberius? Or Nero? Or any Roman emperor? Oh. That’s right. I must have forgotten. They’re dead. They ruled the world, of course. For a short while. They could pretty much do anything they wanted. It eventually got pretty sick with Nero, who made living torches of Christians. But Nero’s dead. And all those Christians he persecuted are in a far out heavenly land of peace and joy with the Lord who purchased their salvation.
The modern guys of oligarchic ilk in our illustrious times eventually die off also, though with relatively extended lives, but every single one of them have another thing in common: They each get to face an angry God granting just judgment for their heinous crimes of imprisoning the world, making slaves of humanity, and gobbling up all the goodies for themselves.
The bigger question in all of this is why. Why do Americans put up with it? I understand that in the early going this year the v-problem was somewhat mysterious begging for information in order to set the proper course. But we’ve seen this movie before. Many times. And many of us quickly surmised what was happening early on but knew it would do little good to sound the alarm because the majority of Americans have been conditioned to tune out alarm bells and warnings as something originating from the dreaded conspiracy corner. Aghast.
This is what America has become. A seeming majority of shallow-minded nonsense news imbibers sans critical thinking skills willing only to maintain their ground level common denominator social standing carrying a hidden fear of the slightest possibility they may be seen as authoritarian-challenging boat rockers. Rather than holding the feet of those in power to the fire (actually placing such feet directly in the fire might be best), they curiously worship said feet, the various owners of said feet, and the proverbial ground said feet walk upon, as if the people attached to said feet are the experts of our lives when in reality they subsist on appropriated undeserved authority willingly granted by those who formerly possessed it.
Beyond this hapless conglomeration of happy Gumps is a rising faction which the greatest American generation would possibly be proud of, depending on eventual outcomes. That greatest generation of the middle to late 1700s gave us this country, what’s left of it anyway, and knew from personal experience and incessant drive that whatever may appear to be lost forever or impossible to achieve is actually not impossible at all. They won their independence from the greatest most implacable power on earth through the implementation of mere Brown Bess single and cluster shot long muskets from behind trees and low stone walls, taking many small victories here and there, fighting and retreating, inventing convention-busting warfare tactics on the fly, and planning on outlasting an enemy ill-equipped to deal with true Patriots who actually believe and fight for a cause, not merely territory or hoped for riches. That cause was individual human freedom and liberty, something the elite few have always hated. To them, liberty is a virus, a deadly one, and must be stamped out and stomped on through whatever means necessary. And they mean it.
Therefore (and I know I will lose some of you here), rather than submit to hellbound authoritarians and their stolen liberty-mooching, top-down, Constitution-shredding, highbrow hijinks, we should instead submit to a loving Creator who died to buy our freedom which initially must involve delivering us from a far worse contagion—our sin disease and its evil power. No actual freedom is possible without this prerequisite.
Once people are spiritually free, they grow spiritually strong. Spiritually strong Americans can re-enliven and restrengthen the land. A life-giving flow of intravenous liberty invigorates a dull-witted sleeping giant tied down by multiple kite strings, which would otherwise have no power, allowing for the rediscovery of inherent champion-level world-class DNA and the inborn fight to rise and conquer.
The strength and power of the Spirit of God overcomes the enemy.
© 2020 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
IMPRECISE PROPHETS AND ILL-DEFINED PROPHECIES: WHAT ABOUT THE NEW COVENANT MODEL?
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They rarely get specific. Their forecasts are open-ended. An uttered word here or there or a noteworthy phrase may qualify as fulfillment and might be used for that purpose. Sound familiar?
MAKING THE GRADE
Have you ever wondered why certain prophetic ministers have such high credibility ratings regardless of dubious track records? One may think it’s because they are right often enough or were right when it mattered, in that they made an impact at a key time or key event. One may think it’s a matter of perception, in that they have the mere appearance of being right. Or it could be that they reported the future before it happened but something intervened afterwards and changed the outcome. Sometimes some of these ministers actually do get it right but not without explanations of how and why or why certain words and phrases actually denoted this or that. “See? Don’t you understand?” But when perusing the “prophecy” again one notices that some of the things claimed as prophecy were quite a stretch. Oh, so THAT’S what you meant. Okay…
The main reason these ministers are accepted as such and honored appropriately is largely for the same reason most ministers gain credibility: (1) They have managed to successfully establish a brand in that they have convinced enough people that they are what they say they are and also have the backing of other ministers or ministerial groups to enforce that supposition. (2) They are perceived as perfectly genuine due to the outer trappings of “legitimate ministry” such as utilizing a church building or “ministry center” from which they minister, belonging to a certified minister group, preacher union, or denominational hierarchy, and also have an ongoing ministry income (oftentimes quite large) which supposedly proves God’s blessing and endorsement. (3) Few people ever bother to grade their pronouncements or keep track of them to see if what they said actually came to pass.
Regardless, once a prophetic minister establishes perceived credibility, it’s just a matter of staying in the public eye and continue doing whatever one may be doing and put forth as good an appearance as possible. The followers they capture become convinced such ministers are for real but most often for other reasons. They may like their outward appearance and “ministerial manner” but fail to recognize the impact of the surface level of such. They may notice an upscale wardrobe but have no idea how much money and work went into it. They like what appears to be a genial quality but do not understand that some of it is a mere put-on utilized for the sake of connecting with an audience. Remember, image is everything. And besides, how can so many followers be wrong?
HOW TO TELL THE REAL FROM THE UNREAL
Though it has been overly used and has lost much of its effectiveness, the phrase “What Would Jesus Do?” remains an effective question in sorting out legitimacy because it puts the spotlight on Him where it should be. It forces a comparison between His manner of doing things and those of Christian ministers who claim to be sent by Him. Are they teaching what the Lord Jesus taught? Are they doing what He did? Do their prophecies actually dovetail with the Word of God? Since most people who identify as Christians have never read the New Testament (much less studied it), it will be difficult to apply the preceding questions. This means they have no frame of reference when attempting to discover legitimacy. Due to their ignorance they are easily fooled. Due to personal pride they hate being told they lack the means for making correct identifications or properly differentiating the real from the counterfeit.
But know this: Those ministers who depend on outward adornments to prove legitimacy are deceptive. Some use fairly innocuous means that go beyond simply being well-groomed, which, concerning the latter, everyone should engage in or strive for within one’s means. But as ministers they must appear as somehow better, you see? Other ministers go beyond this, however, and dress themselves up in clergy clothing to the degree that everyone knows they are clergy. They must have the whole lot because their lack of spiritual credentials is such that looking the part must override actually doing the part. They are much better at appearing to function spiritually than actually functioning spiritually. And then, beyond these people, you have those ultra-clergyites who wrap themselves up in the most ostentatious and ridiculous sheep’s clothing imaginable. They transition from clergy clothing to a clergy costume. They traipse around like the religious actors they are, largely letting their masquerading outfits and all-encompassing symbology do the talking for them. (What Would Jesus Do?) Well, for starters, He wouldn’t dress like THAT.
We can see then, that the more one puts on the act, the more one has something to hide. The more one tries to convince others of one’s legitimacy, the more one is most likely illegitimate.
Regarding actual New Covenant ministerial credentials, here’s what the apostle Paul wrote:
And when I came to you, brethren, I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the testimony of God. For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling, and my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God. [1Corinthians 2:1-5] [1]
Returning to our subject then, do prophetic ministers ever admit it when they’re wrong? Do they ever admit that the overall context of their messages, often filled with unspecific renderings or assertions which could be applied somewhat universally, actually proves they don’t really get it very clear very often, or that “what they see” is largely inapplicable regarding meaningful particulars? Are their messages so open-ended that timing does not apply?
As I wrote in a previous post, the entire overall “last days” prophecy theme of the 1960s and 70s prophecy teachers and book authors was WRONG. See if you can find a record of any single one of them ever admitting it. Some of them continued with the same spiel beyond that time and even into the present, but have been forced to change major aspects of their content because what they had originally prophesied failed and could never happen. They had to keep making a living, you see. They had to keep donations coming in and sell books. They had to keep up appearances. For that they needed their fake exterior and faux content. And by the way, where are the real prophets exposing the fake ones? What happened to them?
THEY WERE REAL BECAUSE THEY WERE RIGHT
Again, the Lord Jesus is our perfect example. Most Christians do not understand that He was also a prophet. He was and remains the greatest Prophet. Read His prophecies and see what happened later on. You can also look to John the Immerser. He was also a great prophet. He told it exactly as he was shown and got it perfectly correct. There were also prophets in the early Community of the Lord throughout the New Testament period.
For example, there was a prophet named Agabus who is mentioned twice in the Book of Acts. The historical record states that he made two brief, direct, and unambiguous prophecies on separate occasions about specific future events, both of which came to pass just as he said:
Now at this time some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. One of them named Agabus stood up and began to indicate by the Spirit that there would certainly be a great famine all over the world. And this took place in the reign of Claudius. [Acts 11:27-28]
As we were staying there for some days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. And coming to us, he took Paul’s belt and bound his own feet and hands, and said, “This is what the Holy Spirit says: ‘In this way the Jews at Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.’” [Acts 21:10-11]
Beyond these, there were the powerfully anointed OT prophets whose dedication and accuracy was legendary. You will notice by their lifestyle and outward appearance that they were all essentially the same. They had to make it on their own. They could not get by through simply gaining the endorsement of a ministry school or preacher group, or possessing a denominational stamp of approval. The enemy was a constant threat and often included their own rulers and fellow citizens. To the world at large their name was mud. They suffered. They did without. They were REJECTED and often hated. The Word of God burned within their hearts and they had to prophesy no matter the cost. They never gave up or gave in.
And rather than cosmetic surgery to improve their appearance, the real prophets would have otherwise required actual surgery to repair their appearance. Thus, it was never carefully crafted outer images or ill-defined prophecies that exemplified their authenticity.
It was battle scars and truth.
© 2020 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
2019 REAL CHRISTIANITY ANNUAL REVIEW AND SUMMARY: ALL POSTS
2019 was a year of warning. The enemy, brimming with confidence, showed his hand. I did my best to keep you posted. As we head into the future, your life as a Christian will be more challenging.
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SPIRITUAL WARFARE
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
Regarding trends, 2019 was the year when the attacks on the First Amendment went into overdrive. There are anti-American forces in America that will do anything they can, legal or not, to eliminate Constitutional guarantees of freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and freedom of religion. For example, there are presently very powerful and extremely well-funded forces making their greatest push yet to declare the New Testament “hate speech” with the purpose of eventually eliminating it. While this may sound impossible or even ridiculous to you at present, the people who perpetrate it are relentless and have been going at it for a long time. If you’ve never heard of this movement, like everything else, I suggest you immediately do your own research. You will be shocked. This is only one of many efforts attacking fundamental rights and the liberty to obey the Lord Jesus without concern of reprisal.
Real Christianity is under attack like never before. Christian persecution is rapidly advancing in the world and is now manifesting very powerfully in America. Most ministers and churches never talk about this. It proves they are either ignorant and unaware or remain a big part of the problem. The Lord does not appreciate Judases, money-firsters, and those who water down His powerful Word for social acceptance, and American Christianity is saturated with these at present. Believe me, it will only get worse.
2020 will mark a time when you as a Christian will have to make hard choices on whether or not you will continue following the Lord and honor Him first or kowtow to the culture, including unreal Christianity. Great temptation to back off and to compromise is coming. While this temptation has always existed and is why most of what is referred to as Christianity is merely a faux form thereof, the heat is currently being turned up to its highest levels yet. For Christian organizations who have already succumbed to money and the sinful culture, some of which I hope are deceived, their presence will continue to influence others to follow suit.
Do not take this warning lightly. I predicted in my book, Real Christianity, writing almost a quarter century ago, and seeing it before then, that great Christian persecution was coming to America. Those who remember that time also remember that such an idea appeared impossible, but everything I wrote then has been coming to pass. This has happened and continues to happen for one central reason: Many American Christians have betrayed the Lord for a fake “easy’ Christianity. Unreal Christianity has become the default and official form. This adds pressure to real Christians and allows for “Christians” persecuting Christians. It permits an unholy hybrid in which fake monetary Christianity and geopolitical economic interests join forces. Both of these have a common enemy.
WE ARE WINNING
The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous runs into it and is safe. [Proverbs 18:10]
So be encouraged. The Lord never leaves His people without the means to stand and continue on. He is always faithful. He always provides. There remains a very powerful spiritual kingdom on the planet where righteousness dwells in which we can have safety and support. We remain in the early part of a coming Great Awakening. It is based on Truth that will bring forth a powerful revelation of the Lord Jesus and His actual teachings along with His Light shining everywhere else. This means lies, misinformation, and disinformation are being exposed for what they are. The lies that hide the truth are being torn away. It will no longer be possible for these to remain hidden and includes exposing the perpetrators, some of which are fake and/or compromised Christian “leaders.”
And He was saying to them, “A lamp is not brought to be put under a basket, is it, or under a bed? Is it not brought to be put on the lampstand? For nothing is hidden, except to be revealed; nor has anything been secret, but that it would come to light. If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.” [Mark 4:21-23] [1]
It is vital that we all grow closer to the Lord than ever before. What follows are links to every post I made in 2019 starting in January. There’s a lot of good writing here to further your Biblical knowledge and current events awareness. Take note of the titles.
Blessings to you.
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
- HAPPY NEW YEAR? 2019
- THE GENESIS OF CONTEMPORARY CULTURAL HATE
- PROCLAIMING TRUTH, OVERCOMING IGNORANCE, REVEALING CORRUPTION, AND EXPOSING DECEPTION
- The Road Not Taken
- The Lord At the Helm
- SHUNNING THE SHYSTER SHEEPFOLD: FINDING THE HIDDEN DOOR OF LIFE
- OVERCOMING JUDAS: WHY THE GREAT AWAKENING WILL NOT BE STOPPED
- REPLACING RUTH BADER GINSBURG WITH AMY CONEY BARRETT: EPIC BATTLE BREWING?
- RE: LEGAL BABY MURDER—IS SELECTIVE JUDGMENT LOOMING?
- AMERICA IS NOT BEING JUDGED!
- THERE COMES A TIME, WHEN YOU JUST KNOW, THE LORD HAS THIS…
- THE FUTURE IS NOW: FROM PREDICTED CHURCH DECLINE TO THE PREDICTED GREAT AWAKENING
- BUSTING PETER OUT OF JAIL: THIS IS WHAT PRAYER CAN DO!
- THE SECOND COMMANDMENT PROHIBITS GRAVEN IMAGES: WHAT WAS GOD THINKING?
- EXPOSING CHRISTIAN PHARISEES (THEY’RE JUST LIKE THE REAL PHARISEES…)
- THE PHARISEES, INCLUDING THE CHRISTIAN VARIETY, ARE LOVERS OF MONEY
- HAPPY EIGHTH BIRTHDAY REAL CHRISTIANITY
- COUNTERING THE GREAT AWAKENING: THE RISING ASSAULT AGAINST FREE SPEECH IN AMERICA
- THE INDEPENDENT SOVEREIGNTY OF EACH REAL CHRISTIAN
- HEAVEN WILL BE SPARSELY POPULATED
- THE GREAT PRETENDERS OPPOSING THE GREAT AWAKENING
- REAL SPIRITUAL WARFARE: HOW TO KNOW IF YOU ARE AN EFFECTIVE CHRISTIAN
- WANT TO KNOW WHO THE REAL DECEIVERS ARE? HERE’S A HINT:
- STAND WITH THE LORD JESUS
- THE GREAT UNIFIER IS ALSO THE GREAT DIVIDER (Part 1)
- THE GREAT UNIFIER IS ALSO THE GREAT DIVIDER (Part 2)
- THE GREAT UNIFIER IS ALSO THE GREAT DIVIDER (Part 3)
- In the Beginning, Real Christians Didn’t “Go To Church” to “Have Church.” Real Christians ARE the Church.
- IF HE CALLS HIMSELF A CHRISTIAN AND ENDS UP IN HELL IT’S HIS OWN FAULT
- REVEALING THE FATHER’S NAME
- UNREAL CHRISTIANITY MAKES THE TRUTH IRRELEVANT
- THE MORE FALSE AUTHORITY THERE IS, THE LESS SPIRITUAL LIBERTY THERE IS
- ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE WITH GOD
- THEY HATED ME WITHOUT A CAUSE
- ALL “SUCCESSFUL” CHURCH LEADERS PREACH TO MONEY
- EVERY TIME A DOOR SLAMS A PASTOR GETS HIS WINGS
- IN SUPPORT OF REAL CHRISTIANS THROUGHOUT THE WORLD IN THIS TIME OF PERSECUTION
- REMEMBERING JFK
- THE REJECTED BECOME THE CHOSEN: SEPARATIST PILGRIM PIONEERS AND THE JOURNEY TO AMERICA
- A SHOCKING REVELATION
- ALL HOPE HAD VANISHED: THEN THE LORD SPOKE LIFE TO DEATH
- THE UNDYING THREAT OF NEW COVENANT TRUTH
- SING FOR JOY
- MARY HIGHLY FAVORED: “BLESSED ARE YOU AMONG WOMEN!” (Intro)
- MARY HIGHLY FAVORED: “BLESSED ARE YOU AMONG WOMEN!” (1)
- MARY HIGHLY FAVORED: “BLESSED ARE YOU AMONG WOMEN!” (2)
- MARY HIGHLY FAVORED: “BLESSED ARE YOU AMONG WOMEN!” (3)
- MARY HIGHLY FAVORED: “BLESSED ARE YOU AMONG WOMEN!” (4)
- MARY HIGHLY FAVORED: “BLESSED ARE YOU AMONG WOMEN!” (5)
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE UNDYING THREAT OF NEW COVENANT TRUTH
They killed the Lord Jesus but He didn’t stay dead. It was a nice effort although a failure. Every other effort to destroy His living legacy also failed. All present and future efforts will end in failure as well.
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“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” [John 10:10]
It was the Lord Himself who was the initial target. Herod tried to get Him in the very beginning. There were probably pre-ministry attempts on His life that Scripture does not record. After stepping into open destiny He was under constant threat. The following are four historical instances of such murder attempts from each gospel to illustrate what He faced on a daily basis:
Then when Herod saw that he had been tricked by the magi, he became very enraged, and sent and slew all the male children who were in Bethlehem and all its vicinity, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the magi. [Matthew 2:16]
The chief priests and the scribes heard this, and began seeking how to destroy Him; for they were afraid of Him, for the whole crowd was astonished at His teaching. [Mark 11:18]
Just at that time some Pharisees approached, saying to Him, “Go away, leave here, for Herod wants to kill You.” [Luke 13:31]
For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God. [John 5:18]
We can gather from the preceding accounts that the Lord had many enemies, both civil and religious. We also know the Lord never committed a single sin, never violated the Torah, and never broke any legitimate civil law. He was accused of violations, but interestingly, only by the actual violators.
It reminds one of Catholics and Protestants taking turns burning each other at the stake. Catholics killed some people representing a threat who did not believe and practice the Catholic religion properly. Protestants killed some people representing a threat who did not believe and practice whatever Protestant religion properly. Protestants killed non-Catholics. Catholics killed non-Protestants. Why all the killing? Why were these crazy religionists so threatened?
We know why the Pharisees were threatened. They didn’t spend two centuries formulating their perfect religion only to have the Lord reveal it for what it really was. There were no prophets during the time the Pharisees created their belief system, loosely based on the Law of Moses, but heavily dependent on oral commentaries and connections to Babylon. Because there were no prophets in the land no one had the spiritual anointing to object and expose them. It wasn’t until John the Immerser came forth that a true prophet was once again in the land of Israel/Judea. After him, of course, came forth the greatest Prophet of all time. These two revealed Phariseeism for the sham it was and its connection to the devil. It was just another thing prophets were sent to do on a routine basis. Prophets kept the land clean from false beliefs and interpretations. They stood only for the real Word of God.
This same dynamic invaded Christianity in that new denominations were only based on the New Testament. Additions were made. Subtractions were made. Commentaries were added. This is what the New Testament really means, they said. The new denominations, of course, must have a priesthood or clergy to denote the real and rail against the unreal. But they were only defending their own man-made belief systems and not the actual New Covenant Scriptures. Hence, when they gained enough power, they forced people to believe what they advocated and installed strong penalties for those who refused, including, of course, the death penalty.
All this within a religion of peace? Right.
Regardless of all the initial attacks against the Lord, His men, and the early believers by unbelieving Jews, the Lord’s Community not only survived but thrived. Try as they might they could not destroy it. Keep this in mind when trying to differentiate among various Christian denominations and their early histories. The Lord NEVER operated this way, never would, and never will. If you chose not to follow Him or believe His teachings He would still love you. The early Community of the Lord never advocated for such a thing. But false religions know they can be destroyed without using every tool at their disposal including the death penalty. Real Christians know the Lord is eternal, His Word is eternal, the Gospel is eternal, and nothing will ever eliminate Him or them.
This means New Covenant Truth is an ever-present threat against the forces of evil. Unreal Christianity is an enemy of the truth. Whatever religion or belief system is anti-Lord Jesus or antichrist is an enemy of the truth. One either honors the Lord and the fullness of His teachings or one does not. But if one does not, he or she is okay to believe whatever he or she wants to believe without being under threat by the Lord. The Lord threatens no one. He never stoops to such lowlife tactics as do the false religionists.
He does warn us, however, that sin is a killer, and unless one does something about it one will pay. One will lose one’s soul. He paid the price for sin with His life. He can remove sin from a person. He can clean us up. He will remove the power of sin in a person’s life. Only He can cure us of the sin disease. This requires repentance on our part. If one refuses the Lord’s free gift then one stands in opposition to Him by his or her own choice. Unlike false religions, including the Christian variety, the Lord never forces conversion. Forced conversions are false conversions.
Those who oppose New Covenant Truth are the enemies of God. Those who create false religions and belief systems espousing this and defending them to the point of taking lives are the worst offenders.
And He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” And Peter answered and said, “The Christ of God.” But He warned them and instructed them not to tell this to anyone, saying, “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed and be raised up on the third day.” And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it.” [Luke 9:20-24] [1]
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
ALL HOPE HAD VANISHED: THEN THE LORD SPOKE LIFE TO DEATH
He had just been at Capernaum. A Roman centurion’s slave was on death’s door. Due to the centurion’s great faith, the Lord Jesus was able to heal the sick man without ever even seeing him.
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He traveled with His disciples south from the northern environs of the Sea of Galilee through small towns and fishing villages along the west shore and then out across the plane to the southwest. Passing by the 1,886 foot rounded peak of Mount Tabor jutting up obtrusively on the right about six miles east of Nazareth, they continued on past Endor to the south. Arriving at the outskirts of the ancient town of Nain they were soon accompanied by a large party of locals no doubt enthralled by the many wonders and miraculous happenings associated with the Lord.
However, rather than any expectancy regarding the immediate event in process before them upon entering the town, all parties adopted a hush of respect for the great mourning suddenly in their midst. A lonely, bereft widow had just lost her only son. Just inside the gate of the village, amid the weeping and wailing of mourners, the Lord’s disciples turned attentive caring eyes toward the procession playing out before them—a dead man was being carried on a crude bier in the opposite direction on the way to the hillside tombs within eyeshot close by. Amid the ordered tumult, the Lord’s gaze fell upon the dark-clad grieving woman whose life’s misery was now compounded beyond bearing. Her much crying since the dread event had lapsed into an intolerable somber anguish without any foreseeable remedy during her few remaining years.
This was her only son, her only begotten son, a dead son of a dead father. What hope was left? If not for this otherwise chance meeting with someone whose life and mission could relate, who had always known His eventual fate and the dreadful effect it would have on His own mother, and who is “touched with the feeling of our infirmities,” the bedraggled procession would continue onward to the place of death and perpetual remembrance.
But that was not going to happen. Not this time.
When the Lord saw her, He felt compassion for her, and said to her, “Do not weep.” And He came up and touched the coffin; and the bearers came to a halt. [Luke 7:13-14a]
I believe He was weeping when he told the woman to stop weeping. What could she have been thinking? How incredulous she must have been in that brief moment. Do not weep? What? But she followed His movements. No one said a word. He walked over and placed his hand on the coffin. The procession stopped. The usual ongoing heartbreak and pain associated with life in this world stopped. All eyes were upon Him. He acted in such a way that no one had a chance to impede His interruption, as all were likely shocked at what was playing out before them. What is this stranger doing?
And He said, “Young man, I say to you, arise!” The dead man sat up and began to speak. And Jesus gave him back to his mother. Fear gripped them all, and they began glorifying God, saying, “A great prophet has arisen among us!” and, “God has visited His people!” [Luke 7:14b-16]
SPEAKING TO A DEAD MAN
When something is done, it is done. It is over. This is what we are taught. Life teaches us this, often brutally. Yet the New Testament narratives persist in telling us this is not necessarily true. Are these just a bunch of old stories? Did the Lord actually do all those impossible things? Once one considers such he may as well throw it all out—throw out the New Covenant, throw out the Gospels, throw it all out. It’s either all true or none of it is true. Though many have done this and will never express any real faith in the Lord, others have seen His hand. It may not be as dramatic as the events of this story but are life-changing nonetheless. In many cases it is not the Lord stopping a horrendous event (often because He will not violate human will) but giving us the otherwise impossible strength to deal with it and overcome it. Such is just as viable and powerful.
For example, though he gave this poor grieving widow her only son back, he did not stop the man from dying in the first place. He did not stop the death of His friend Lazarus. He was notified that Lazarus was sick but purposely waited two days before he headed over there. His sisters suffered great grief. He also did not stop His own death and thus allowed His mother to suffer terribly as a consequence of it. But in all three cases He raised the dead. In two cases he brought great joy to grieving mothers by doing something otherwise impossible.
Everyone will die. We know the above two guys died twice. But the Lord promises that those who have faith in Him will rise again. There is a resurrection coming for all. Some will be resurrected to eternal life.
In the meantime it could well be the case that something has died that the Lord wants to resurrect in the here and now. Maybe it’s something that suffered death as a result of spiritual attack and warfare. Maybe it exists in a weakened condition needing a spiritual jolt to live again.
Whatever is attempted for the Lord will suffer attack. Some attacks are powerful. Sometimes such attacks succeed. It could be that the attack was so potent and soul wrenching that one cannot muster the strength, ability, or desire to fight back effectively. One wonders of how many things the Lord wanted done that never got done due to losing spiritual battles. Sometimes we do fight back but can’t quite get there. We try. We give maximum effort. We exhaust ourselves in the attempt. And we still know we must try again until we finally succeed.
Regardless of how it all works out or what is supposed to happen, don’t ever forget that the Lord in fact spoke to a dead man. He did it more than once. Imagine the people standing around that heard it. And then, shockingly, the dead man also heard it and actually responded.
The dead man sat up and began to speak. [Luke 7:15] [1]
Is there something the Lord may be telling us?
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
A SHOCKING REVELATION
Something was wrong in the church. Great spiritual effort was being made to no avail. A hindrance was blocking progress. What could it be? I began praying earnestly to find out.
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We were young, in our early to late twenties. In the space of six months to a year the Lord brought forth a new membership group by ones and twos in an otherwise small traditional church. We provided a new strength and energy. The church had been struggling. The existing congregation had recently moved from its previous location and built a large, tasteful building. It had not gone as planned. There might have been a split. The church maintained a solid core of strong faithful believers but most were older and determined to maintain traditional practices. The Lord, however, was doing something new.
A NEW AWAKENING
A nationwide revival of sorts remained on the move. It began around 1960 and spread throughout all denominations. Prior to that time there had been a great divide between Pentecostals and Protestants. The Azusa Street Revival, which began in 1906, had brought Christians of many stripes together for a brief time but after only a few years a major divide had ensued. There were initially arguments among Pentecostals that resulted in splits that created what later became major Pentecostal denominations. Mainline Protestants were at first intrigued with the movement but in general had a hard time giving up or changing their long-held traditional practices. Nevertheless, there was a lot of healthy mixing and cross pollination. In time though, these two groups returned to being estranged from one another.
What took place in 1960 was possible in part because a relatively few Protestants in key positions of authority were somewhat secretly engaging in Pentecostal practices. Because they were discreet it caused no scandal. They perceived the otherwise questionable practices as perfectly natural and solidly New Testament based. These believers would be used by the Lord to assist in opening doors when the new movement began. By the mid 1960s even Catholic priests and nuns were receiving the Holy Spirit and speaking in tongues. It was in a certain sense a non-threatening revival, somewhat the opposite of Azusa Street, which blew the doors off and created a powerful worldwide movement. The 60s awakening spread steadily throughout all denominations and even began the new phenomenon of non-denominational churches. The traditionalists could not stop it but likely had great success at times in slowing it down. Non-Biblical traditions die hard.
In the late 1960s a great many young people, especially it seems, on the west coast, began coming to the Lord. Some of these had no traditional underpinning and therefore had no understanding of how they should properly present themselves. In all the pictures of the Lord Jesus they had seen He wore long hair and a beard so the young men wore long hair and beards. Those who had dressed like hippies pretty much continued dressing like hippies after they became born again Christians. Their hearts were in the right place but their new attitude of spiritual freedom didn’t go over so well among buttoned-down conservative Christians. Even traditional Pentecostal churches had a major problem with this.
By the 1970s battle lines had formed. It was yet another new guard-old guard paradigm. We know from the Word of God that the prior generation always has a problem with whatever new thing God is doing and regularly opposes it. The new generation, thoroughly enmeshed in the Lord’s new purposes, continues on, as they should, in obedience regardless of the opposition and obstacles. And the old does all in its power to maintain and hang on.
MY NEW CHURCH
It was this very thing that I was born into. The Lord needed new blood and provided it. The latest members added much new energy and exuberance. It turned out to be a great mix. We thoroughly respected and honored our elders in the Lord, the older people who had supported the church for many years and kept it going. After the big move they had a problem. Most of the shiny new pews were empty every service and remained that way for the most part after the new influx. To rectify the problem the pastor was always preaching about the need for witnessing. This went over the heads of most of the older saints but us younger people took it seriously. We were determined to fill up the church.
We had a meeting in a couple’s apartment. It was decided that we would continue witnessing all the more but also go on an extended fast and devote much time to prayer. I had learned all about fasting when I joined this church. We were expected to fast one day every week and go on a two day fast every quarter. These were real fasts that allowed only water or coffee. I was great at this. I often fasted two or three days a week though not in succession. I discovered early on that 24 hours was doable but going beyond that very difficult. Some of the guys had decided to fast for a week or two, and one guy pretty much indefinitely. This is how serious we were. We had a great passion to see people saved!
I continued witnessing up a storm and bringing people to church. We were all on fire for God. This greatly assisted the older saints and gave them a charge. They appreciated how respectful we were and for all the new life! The big fast eventually came to an end. One man fasted an entire two weeks while never missing a day of work. We were praying all the time.
UH OH
But not much changed. The church building remained as it was. We might have gained a new member or two. I couldn’t understand it. I began seeking the Lord earnestly in prayer. I kept asking what the problem was. I was still a relatively young Christian and had a lot to learn. I was naïve regarding church practice and churchgoers, believing everyone to be solid believers in step with the Lord. Remember, I had been wondering what was causing the problem in the church and why all of our efforts weren’t going anywhere. I had to know why.
While praying one night alone I finally got an answer. I was stunned. It was the kind of answer one never expects to receive. The Lord had spoken very clearly. He said, “It’s the pastor.” That was all He said. He never said what the problem was. I had no idea what it could be. I never asked. I really wasn’t interested.
I didn’t know what to do. I decided at last to reveal this shocking answer to my best friend and his wife, the ones responsible for witnessing to me which led to my salvation. I was very careful. I knew he greatly honored the pastor and held him in high esteem. I did my best to reveal the answer in as gentle but strong a way as possible. With the three of us gathered at their house one night, both of them expectantly waiting, I revealed what the Lord had told me. My friend almost immediately hit the roof. I couldn’t believe it. I was asked, or told, to leave. I had arrived there with them and ended up having to walk home. His wife, who never reacted as he had, came outside after me. She asked if I was okay. I will never forget her loving manner and her open tender eyes. But the relationship was broken. I don’t think I ever told anyone else. It wasn’t long after that incident that I had to move on. I moved away to start again. They stayed.
About a year later the news had reached me. I found out what the problem had been. I discovered why our heartfelt sincere work for the Lord had been unfruitful. While we were busy witnessing, fasting, and praying, our pastor had been having an affair with a church member.
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
THE REJECTED BECOME THE CHOSEN: SEPARATIST PILGRIM PIONEERS AND THE JOURNEY TO AMERICA
In the 1590s English Separatists and dissenters were finding life in England ever more difficult. Several were sentenced to hanging in an enhanced effort to kill off the movement toward spiritual liberty.
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Laws were passed that made exile to the European continent the punishment and death if one ever returned. England would thus stop at nothing to rid itself of unwavering Christian reformers. There was no going back for those who had gone so far with God. Queen Elizabeth was determined to wipe them out and the level of her persecution continued until her death in 1603. She had no heirs and her passing thus ended the generational line of the ultra-dysfunctional Tudor monarchs.
The new king was James Stuart I (1566-1625), the then present king of Scotland under the name of James VI. He had ascended the Scottish throne at a mere thirteen months of age in 1567 when his mother, Mary Queen of Scots (1542-1587), had abdicated. As “King of Great Britain” James I united England, Scotland, and Ireland under his leadership. Though his mother was a loyal Catholic, James was raised as a member of the Protestant Church of Scotland. The developing church was attempting to continue the reform movement began a decade earlier by essentially removing all things Catholic, but James obviously felt more comfortable with those men manning church offices whose ecclesiastical nature lent them to monarchial rule.
Of course, that’s what bishops and ruling prelates are by nature and why such offices were created. The Presbyterians were setting up a national polity in which churches would be administered by the Biblical model of elders and overseers, which simply does not mix with monarchy any more than does oil and water. The comfort level for kings had always involved close trusted ones, be they civil or clergy, and James was thus not prepared to get on board with the movement toward spiritual truth. In becoming king of England he had quickly embraced an anti-Puritan sentiment, which gives one an idea of his treatment of Separatists and other dissenters who continued pushing for reform and refused to conform to non-Biblical tenets. The Puritans still maintained membership in the Church of England and had consequently escaped the larger wrath of Elizabeth, but the heat began rising. Yet, regardless of the new king’s negative attitude toward them, it was their own compromise and apprehensive middle-ground approach that relegated them as unfit for the spiritual frontier. They were not of a mind nor possessed the strength of purpose to be used of God in the necessary major way as those Separatists who had given their all. The Puritans as a group had remained far too connected. They were unqualified as pioneers.
After Elizabeth’s reign of terror, it seemed there remained only one Separatist church community in all of England. Located in the hamlet of Gainsborough, most of its members had fled to Holland two years later. There remained a few holdouts of this group in the town of Scrooby, Nottinghamshire, and it is here the story gets interesting. In Scrooby there lived a man who became postmaster there in 1590. He had attended Cambridge in his youth and later became greatly interested in the new Christian reformation movements. By the early 1600s he had taken under his wing a young man from Austerfield while ministering in the Scrooby area as a reforming Puritan when persecution raised its head once again. A group of perhaps 50 were meeting secretly at Scrooby Manor, having managed to cobble together a small community from the remains at Gainsborough, when the decision was made in 1607 to break ranks completely with the Church of England and establish themselves as Separatists. Thence began the great adventure.
The two men were the postmaster William Brewster (c.1566-1644), who would become a leading Elder at Plymouth Colony, and his young protégé William Bradford (1590-1657), the future Governor thereof. These two were undoubtedly placed together by Providence. Bradford’s father died when he was only a year old and his mother when he was seven. The orphan was forced to live with several relatives in the interim. He met Brewster at the meetings of the Puritan Richard Clifton when only a young man of about twelve and at last found an appropriate father-figure. From this he received a better upbringing and someone to direct his already keen interest in the Reformation movement.
The restrictive spiritual atmosphere in England was such that the young congregation decided they must leave the mother country and sail across the channel to Holland to live according to their convictions. Yet, as another indication of the severe trials and fight to come their way, they were robbed of all their possessions by the officers of the ship they hired and imprisoned for attempting to leave England illegally. They remained undeterred, however, and were able to make their getaway the next year, finding peace and religious toleration in The Netherlands. After a year in Amsterdam amid the bickering of two other congregations, they moved to the city of Leiden, approximately 100 strong, and settled into a peaceable and productive life.
One can see by the trials they faced and tests they passed that God was preparing them for a much greater mission. Others had disqualified themselves for one reason or another, be it a lack of faith, selfish attitudes, inability to work together, or loyal connections to the state church, which prohibited a lack of complete loyalty to God. Those connected, as the Puritans, had not considered their inevitable betrayal through their association with ecclesiastical authority and the throne or the temptation of looking back. We see the same thing in the ancient history of the Jews when God had to remove all Egyptian influence and fleshly nature from His people through their wanderings in the Sinai desert. These Separatist future founders of the American Plymouth Colony had proved their loyalty to God by both their obedience to Him regardless of greatly challenging circumstances, and also their complete separation from the world.
In Leiden, Brewster began publishing books for sale in England and was soon under arrest by English authorities in 1619, who had accused him of the same crime as William Tyndale—printing up non-official religious works that did not toe the mark of the accepted Anglican confession. The Dutch government agreed with England in a political move and confiscated the printing equipment. Brewster was able to escape to England and hide out. It was during this time that plans were made to make the most radical move of all—securing a land patent from the London Virginia Company.
The community as a whole had become very concerned after ten years of relative comfort and security in Leiden that their children, if allowed to grow up and become established there, would lose both their English heritage and Christian beliefs. The Netherlands was a free pluralistic nation by comparison to England, but the resultant freedom also gave place to a more open mindset regarding moral values and sin. It occurred to the group that the time had come yet again when they must move on if they would maintain their walk with God. Their willingness to suffer so many trials for the sake of the real Gospel had undoubtedly impressed the Lord. Due to their relentless attitude toward holy living and walking in God’s new light, rather than fighting against the movement or holding back like almost every other group, they had become the chosen ones to take not only the Gospel to America, but a community form much closer to Scriptural intent.
The 180 ton Dutch cargo vessel Mayflower was hired in London and sailed to Southampton on the southern coast of England in late July of 1620. Most of the Pilgrim community remained in Leiden, Holland and bought a small ship called the Speedwell to take them to Southampton, from which both ships would sail across the Atlantic to Virginia. The second ship proved unworthy of the journey, however, having leaked on the trip across the English Channel, and after repairs, began leaking again at the start of the great voyage. Stopping at Dartmouth, repairs were made a second time. On their second attempt at the Atlantic crossing, as they reached the open ocean after having traveled roughly 300 miles, the Speedwell continued leaking once again and the Pilgrims were forced to return to England. Many of the passengers had become so tired and frustrated they decided to stay home. Here was yet another test of heart and a further winnowing of the passenger list, from about 120 to 102. Of these, approximately 40-45% were members of the Leiden congregation.
They decided to scuttle the second ship entirely and transfer all their goods and supplies to the Mayflower, making for very cramped quarters and a much less comfortable trip. After losing about forty days, the Mayflower finally set sail from Plymouth, England on September 16 (Gregorian calendar). The second half of the ocean voyage was very rough, having hit the severe northern Atlantic storm season, and piled yet more discomfort and trepidation upon the passengers. Imagine the battle these Pilgrims had with doubt and second thoughts, crammed together in a freezing ship tossed forth like a cork on the frigid seas.
After 66 long days, the sturdy ship arrived intact off the coast of America around November 21, 1620. During the long and fitful journey there was one death but also one birth. The colonists’ destination was the mouth of the Hudson River, part of Virginia at the time, but the captain first sighted land off the coast of Cape Cod. In the attempt to go south the elements were again against them, almost causing shipwreck. As if by divine hand they returned to Cape Cod and dropped anchor. With great courage and whatever stamina remained as the biting cold winds of winter descended upon them, parties were arranged to explore the land for a suitable settlement site. By the next summer, 50 of the original 102 passengers had perished, the majority over the harsh winter, and most of them from disease contracted during the voyage.
From these extremely difficult and humble beginnings Plymouth Colony was built upon the hope and grace of a committed people and the Lord Jesus. Having served as willing pioneers and taking the full brunt of the battle, many more parties were soon making the trip across the Atlantic and adding to the new colony. In time it became a routine crossing peopled primarily by English Puritans who began spreading out into the wilderness. In time the Separatist Pilgrims became greatly outnumbered, though their spiritual stand and way of life had a decided effect on later arrivals.
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
IN SUPPORT OF REAL CHRISTIANS THROUGHOUT THE WORLD IN THIS TIME OF PERSECUTION
“If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you.” [John 15:19]
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Christian persecution is presently raging across the planet. Much of it is happening in the Middle East. The devastation against Iraqi Christians began with the war against Iraq, a country that never attacked the U.S. nor represented a threat. The Christian population in Iraq in 2003 before the war was approximately 1.5 million. Since the U.S. invasion, supposedly in part for the introduction of democracy, the Christian population there has been reduced to only 250,000, according to a BBC report in May of this year. The latest numbers as of October 2019 are said to be somewhere in the range of 150,000 to below 120,000. That’s a staggering drop of 92% in 16 years.
What happened to these people? How many were part of the great loss of life brought on by that war? If one remembers the immediate aftermath of 9/11 18 years ago, many Americans were suddenly getting serious with God and singing “God Bless America” while war plans were being ramped up. Many of these were Christians. Did American Christians have any idea or care that upwards of 1.4 million fellow Christians in Iraq would be killed and displaced?
2019
There were many reports at the beginning of this year that Christian persecution was set to rise dramatically in the world: Christian Post. Christian Today. But sadly, the Christian witness in many former Christian countries is dying out. And Christians in America are being set up at present to take a fall. Be prepared.
Those who follow real news and not the corporate false narratives and fluff presented by the major media know we are presently in the midst of a powerful war. It is war of truth. Controlling interests have been subverting truth for decades and getting away it, mainly for two reasons: (1) They must cover up their dirty deeds, and (2) They control the major media. If one doesn’t believe this is true it is easily verifiable. Those who have been paying attention for the last fifty years know it to be true. The current Orwellian move toward mass censorship and destruction of First Amendment rights is only a response to the great success over the last decade or so in exposing evil. This success continues unabated and the only way to stop it is to kill the internet. But be encouraged. There are moves afoot to create an alternative internet in just such a case. If all this sounds spacey and strange to you then I suggest doing a bit of research.
IT’S THE SHOES
Regarding China, remember the big NBA story a few weeks ago? A man who works for an NBA team tweeted out support for the pro-freedom demonstrators in Hong Kong. This was a giant no-no. But what would have been successfully repressed not long ago failed to be shuttered this time around. Even the NBA commissioner was forced to make a weak stand for freedom of speech and had to support the man. Somewhat. Then the big bombshell hit. A respected longtime sports journalist revealed something that all NBA insiders had always known but was shielded from the public. He said, in essence, that the NBA was effectively owned by a shoe company.
The shoe company is worth much more than the NBA. The shoe company does really big business in China. NBA stars have extremely profitable shoe company endorsement contracts. This means the NBA is not only effectively owned by an international shoe company but is also effectively owned by Communist China. China has no respect for individual freedom and liberty. There is no Bill of Rights in China. It is run by cold-blooded Communists who harass, make life miserable for, jail, and even kill anyone who dissents against attacks on personal freedom and individual human rights, especially if they happen to be Christians.
So after the NBA executive sent out that first tweet in support of the Hong Kong protesters who are fighting against the eventual takeover of Hong Kong and dissolution of rights by Communist China, the biggest star in the NBA tweeted his support for China. He did this because NBA exhibition games were currently being played there, there is a move to continue NBA expansion into China, he has a giant shoe contract, the NBA is dependent on the shoe company, the shoe company does big business in China and has many of their shoes made there by low paid workers in likely sweat shop conditions, and if he doesn’t support China and therefore not support the freedom protesters in Hong Kong he will lose big money and influence and so will the NBA. He is only protecting himself.
The story got really comical when a couple of well-known NBA coaches who always rail on America never said a word against China. Neither did one single NBA player that I know of. They all know where the money is coming from. To hell with free speech and freedom. Money is much more important to them. And because money controls the major media and the NBA regular season was about to start, this story went away very fast.
AMERICAN CENSORSHIP AT WORK
“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.” [Matthew 6:24] [1]
And now to the point: A few in cable news revealed the hypocrisy in the NBA story and mentioned the suppression of freedom in Communist China and the great censorship there, social credit scores and all that. They also reported that many Muslims in China were suffering persecution. The far left MSM rarely mentions this even though they purport to be pro-Muslim. But guess what the so-called good guys of cable news never mentioned in their entire set-the-record-straight story? Well, the same thing they rarely mention and what no one ever talks about—persecuted Christians.
I have written about this many times. I suggest you begin some serious research on the topic if you are uninformed. A great powerful Spirit-filled Awakening has been transpiring in China for forty years. Chinese Christians have grown exponentially in that time. These are not your regular sleepy time dead Christians having no spiritual impact like many of those in America. And they exist illegally. Real Christianity is illegal in Communist China. But the real Christians there don’t care. They are constantly hounded by government spies and routed by Communist goons. They must meet in secret. They are thrown into work camps. Many are murdered. Their gatherings are shut down. I will give the Chinese Communists their due, however, in one sense—they know who has the greatest power. They know these Chinese Christians are the greatest threat to their power. It is a spiritual war. They are only protecting themselves.
KARMA CHICKENS COMING HOME TO ROOST
The same thing happened in the Roman Empire. It greatly persecuted the Christians. The Empire eventually lost. The greatest empire in world history faded out and ended ingloriously while the real Church of the Lord Jesus soared and grew rapidly. It grew so fast and became so powerful that after three centuries the Romans eventually threw in the towel and joined them. But not really. It was all a great deception. What they actually did was create a false government-sanctioned Christian “church” and forced everyone to join under penalty of law. They magically transformed Roman government buildings into “church” buildings. They made illegal all other forms of religion, including real Christianity. This is how the persecution of real Christians became diabolical in that the fake Christians fought the real Christians. This is how not only the government but “Christianity” itself became the enemy of real Christians.
The same thing is going on in China. They have their government-sanctioned Christian churches in which the Lord Jesus is never allowed. And for those of you who really know what is going on in America, you will not only identify with this but also get a gold star, because the Lord Jesus is never allowed in American “government” churches either. If you don’t know what that is, then do some simple research into charter churches and the 501c3. Discover what is lost by receiving the benefit of tax deductions for your tithes and offerings. Remember free speech? Remember individual liberty? That’s what you lose in this deal. You can only be Christians up to a point. You only have free speech up to a point. You only have spiritual freedom up to a point. And that’s one of the reasons many American churches are dead and frozen over. They have traded their freedom to preach the full truth for thirty pieces of silver. They have sold Christians into slavery.
Real Christians know all about the content of this post. And they have paid the price. But they have also prevailed. They know the key to spiritual victory is to always honor the Lord Jesus. They know they must preach the real Gospel. They must stand up for Truth. They must stand against corruption. They will never sell out and will never sell out the Lord. They will not trade their freedom for a bag of money. They will not be silenced. And if you are wondering who will win in the end I can guarantee you this: In spite of the greatest persecution against any people on the planet for two thousand years real Christians have not only survived but thrived. They have won against the powerful spirit of antichrist though it works hard to stay hidden… No one can defeat the Lord Jesus.
The Christians in China have fought long and hard over four decades and they continue to grow. There are estimates that they currently make up 20% of the population. Though such an occurrence appears ridiculous on the surface to uninformed people who don’t know the truth, and unless the Chinese Christians quit fighting their successful spiritual war, their country will one day in the not too distant future become a Christian country. Such an occurrence would be astounding but it wouldn’t be the first time such has happened over the last two millennia.
The bigger question, though, is what will happen to America?
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
In the Beginning, Real Christians Didn’t “Go To Church” to “Have Church.” Real Christians ARE the Church.
The following post is in answer to an excellent comment from one of my long time faithful readers found in the comment section here. I have always appreciated her support and insight. We have never met but have established a good rapport over the last several years. From my perspective, we are a good example of how two Christians might not believe everything the same but want to stay in fellowship anyway. This is what all believers should strive for.
Thank you. Your comment brought many thoughts and memories to me as well. In my extensive church career I have been a member of the very big and very small. I have spent time in mega churches. I have spent time in many small house groups, some which were official “churches” and some not. I presided over my own group for several years. I learned early on that we will never be able to make disciples as the Lord commanded unless we change the focus to much smaller groups so each person has an excellent opportunity to develop. In my case it didn’t matter what size church I attended because I learned most of what I know through my own individual study and walk with the Lord, but I appreciate having a well-rounded perspective.
No preacher should be “rich and famous.” Those who love the spotlight and insist on taking control are not demonstrating the humility of the Lord. They are not in it for the right reasons. Maybe some of them started out well but backslid into the usual false paradigm. The more the big shots claim their head honcho status the more the rest of the congregation must be relegated to irrelevance. They are not allowed to develop. The Lord ends up losing scads of potential ministers because the one guy claims it all for himself.
In smaller groups this would not happen. People have a much greater opportunity to contribute and develop. Seeing the ridiculous seas of silent humanity in the vast majority of “churches” sitting back and doing nothing except honoring ad nauseam the lone dude in the pulpit or spotlight in no way represents real New Testament Christianity. The Lord and the early Church never did it that way. Each group of believers was relatively small and had several mature ministers who brought different gifts and abilities. Those were true communities of people in which everyone was contributing in a substantial way. They were no mere spectators, which now make up the vast majority of church-goers.
People walk in the light they have. It appears that your parents struggled to keep it all together at times serving the Lord over many decades and greatly succeeded. They never looked back. How blessed they were! We play the hand we are dealt. We do the best we can. We work with the tools we have. We try to get better. This agrees with the New Testament example.
But the fake preachers want none of this. They want power and control and money and prestige. They want exactly the same things the false prophets of old wanted and what the Pharisees demanded in the first century. That false set-up strives mightily against the Spirit of the Lord Jesus and exists as the greatest opposing force to doing things His way.
“An appalling and horrible thing has happened in the land: The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule on their own authority; and My people love it so! But what will you do at the end of it?” [Jeremiah 5:30-31]
Instead of these mega churches and large congregations we would be much better off with as many small groups as possible spread all over the countryside and urban areas to reach people where they are and allow every single believer to have a voice and a significant place in real ministry. This is actually happening and has been happening for decades but the big boys have also been very successful in keeping the movement from taking off. They fear their bottom line. They don’t want to lose their money, prestige, jobs, and market share.
In reality, if most of these various congregations and mega churches, along with the few very influential rich and famous who run them, disappeared tomorrow, it would make little difference in the country. Most of them serve no real spiritual purpose. America has become a sin-filled empty spiritual shell compared to what it once was on their watch. And they don’t care.
Real Christians must continue to fight for and stand up for the Lord Jesus. We must submit to Him, serve Him, and serve one another. We must preach the real Gospel. When we do, the very clear evidence of His presence and direction become obvious. The reason real revivals and spiritual awakenings are rare is because stubborn religious flesh wins most of the time. Real Christians are fought against and their efforts curtailed. Worldliness ensues. Unreal Christians subvert themselves to the sinful and rebellious culture. And they submit to the wrong people. Then the devil works through the vast presentation of religious and personal pride. He has a field day. These fake Christians leave the Lord Jesus in the lurch, that is, in a vulnerable and unsupported position.
Whoever has enough money to build cathedrals and mega churches has far too much money. Such vast sums should instead be spent on people, and it is people who comprise the real Church. There are millions of the Lord’s real ministers who struggle every day due to a lack of funds and their ministries are more difficult as a result. But there are always available funds (billions) to build what are essentially extremely expensive and comfortable barns to house those who refuse the Lord’s full counsel. Most of the early cathedrals no longer exist or are mere ruins.
History repeats itself.
“Why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? Everyone who comes to Me and hears My words and acts on them, I will show you whom he is like: he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation on the rock; and when a flood occurred, the torrent burst against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built. But the one who has heard and has not acted accordingly, is like a man who built a house on the ground without any foundation; and the torrent burst against it and immediately it collapsed, and the ruin of that house was great.” [Luke 6:46-49][1]
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
STAND WITH THE LORD JESUS
DO NOT WAVER. STAND.
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And He came home, and the crowd gathered again, to such an extent that they could not even eat a meal. When His own people heard of this, they went out to take custody of Him; for they were saying, “He has lost His senses.”
The scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “He casts out the demons by the ruler of the demons.”
And He called them to Himself and began speaking to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. If a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. If Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but he is finished!
“But no one can enter the strong man’s house and plunder his property unless he first binds the strong man, and then he will plunder his house. Truly I say to you, all sins shall be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they utter; but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin”—because they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.”
Then His mother and His brothers arrived, and standing outside they sent word to Him and called Him. A crowd was sitting around Him, and they said to Him, “Behold, Your mother and Your brothers are outside looking for You.” Answering them, He said, “Who are My mother and My brothers?” Looking about at those who were sitting around Him, He said, “Behold My mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of God, he is My brother and sister and mother.” [Mark 3:20-35] [1]
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
WANT TO KNOW WHO THE REAL DECEIVERS ARE? HERE’S A HINT:
When their actions are the opposite of their rhetoric.
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TRAITS OF THE PHARISEES
The people who put on a big show spouting on endlessly in their bold bloviations do not care whatsoever if their speech is the opposite of their actions. In fact, their speech is designed to hide their actions. What they say is not what they do.
Therefore, if one is swayed by the talk without investigating the walk, they will be hopelessly deceived. They simply do not grasp the fact that they are being manipulated. They are being tricked into joining the mass support class.
“HE WHO HAS EARS TO HEAR, LET HIM HEAR.”
The Lord Jesus warned us about this. He exposed this trait of the Pharisees. But the majority always either reject the warning or are simply too dense to understand it. Those who have the lazy tendency to believe anything they are told simply need a grand presentation on the part of the Pharisees in order to enforce their laziness. In other words, if you dress up a lowlife huckster to the point that he or she appears to be a legitimate and honest proponent of truth, the majority believes what they see and what they hear at face value instead of making an investigation behind the scenes.
Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, saying: “The scribes and the Pharisees have seated themselves in the chair of Moses; therefore all that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds; for they say things and do not do them. They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as a finger. But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments. They love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues, and respectful greetings in the market places, and being called Rabbi by men. But do not be called Rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers. Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. Do not be called leaders; for One is your Leader, that is, Christ. But the greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted. But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you shut off the kingdom of heaven from people; for you do not enter in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.” [Matthew 23:1-13][1]
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
REAL SPIRITUAL WARFARE: HOW TO KNOW IF YOU ARE AN EFFECTIVE CHRISTIAN
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When a real believer obeys the Lord in presenting the real Gospel, the enemy strikes back and open spiritual warfare ensues.
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Most Christians prefer non-spiritual warfare Christianity. Most Christians don’t even know what spiritual warfare is. Many have never even heard of the term. It is thus obvious that they are not at war.
How is it that a great Man preaching love, forgiveness, mercy, compassion, and joy was treated as a despicable criminal? It is because the people treating Him this way are despicable criminals. Whoever hates and rejects the Lord Jesus tells the whole world they are the world’s biggest and vilest creature and is the farthest from God (one could not be any farther). Whoever loves the Lord Jesus and strives to honor Him is the one who is closest to God.
Paul was sent on a mission. He was sent to preach the Gospel and rescue souls. What most people miss is that he was sent as a spiritual soldier into spiritual war. The Lord told him he would suffer for this. In watching one of the many D-Day memorials recently there was a clip I am sure many of you have seen. It shows General Eisenhower, the supreme commander of all allied forces, greeting paratroopers right before their mission. The video said that 40,000 paratroopers would parachute into northern France behind enemy lines. It also said that Eisenhower expected 80% casualties. In other words it was effectively a suicide mission. Yet here were all these soldiers geared up for battle in good spirits. They obviously had no idea what they were getting themselves into. Though many volunteered for the armed services, most were drafted and obeyed their government in good faith when forced into the service. The men on this particular mission would soon be decimated. I don’t know what the final figures were. Perhaps some of you reading this do. But it was a disaster.
Also, about 2,000 men died in the initial D-Day invasion. Most were killed right away, as soon as they began. Their crafts were blown away on the open sea. Many were strafed by machine gun fire as soon as they lowered the ramps of their boats. They had little chance. They were lambs led to the slaughter. It is said that both of these groups had to be sacrificed for the greater good so the successive waves could succeed. But again, I don’t think most of these men had any idea what they were in for.
This is what happens when you attack an enemy. The enemy will attack back. At that point you either quit or attack back again. The last man standing wins. It cost the lives of tens of thousands very early in this opening battle to bring eventual success. But it was the first group that suffered the highest casualties. Whoever is on the front lines gets hit the hardest.
This is why right-thinking people understand what the Lord Jesus really did and why He should be highly honored and respected more than any man. He put His life on the line for all the others who came after. It is the same for His original apostles who were the first wave sent into an evil world with the Gospel. These men would be hit the hardest, and they were. The Lord prepared them perfectly. They learned it all from Him. They saw how He handled everything thrown His way. They experienced evil striking out at Him every day. They knew they must learn from Him and grow, and develop spiritually and be strong. They knew that when their time came they would have to be ready and attack with full force, and also have much and keep much in their reserve tanks for ongoing battle. Otherwise they would fail.
UNDERSTANDING SPIRITUAL WARFARE AND AN ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE
After doing exactly what the Lord told them to do at Philippi, they were beaten bloody and thrown into a filthy prison. But instead of feeling bad about what happened they praised the Lord Jesus. This set the stage for even greater miracles:
“Hey Silas, can you imagine how much we accomplished today? The devil threw everything he had at us!”
“He certainly did, Paul.”
“The Lord knew exactly where to send us and what to say. The enemy had a fit. Now we know the people in league with the devil who have sold out to the enemy, and who the people are we need to rescue. We know what is holding them back, what is constraining them. We know this is a little hell hole of the devil but with many people who want to be free.”
“And will be free! And are being set free!”
“Yes! Let’s sing to the Lord and praise Him!”
The crowd rose up together against them, and the chief magistrates tore their robes off them and proceeded to order them to be beaten with rods. When they had struck them with many blows, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to guard them securely; and he, having received such a command, threw them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.
But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God, and the prisoners were listening to them; and suddenly there came a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison house were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were unfastened. When the jailer awoke and saw the prison doors opened, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped. But Paul cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Do not harm yourself, for we are all here!” And he called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas, and after he brought them out, he said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” They said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” And they spoke the word of the Lord to him together with all who were in his house. And he took them that very hour of the night and washed their wounds, and immediately he was baptized, he and all his household. And he brought them into his house and set food before them, and rejoiced greatly, having believed in God with his whole household. [Acts 16:22-34][1]
It was only after all of the above was accomplished that Paul and Silas were released and free to go in peace. It cost them with blood and suffering but they accomplished what the Lord sent them there to do. They showed themselves to be good and effective servants of the Lord by successfully attacking and defeating a powerful spiritual enemy and opening up doors of salvation.
They won the spiritual battle.
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE GREAT PRETENDERS OPPOSING THE GREAT AWAKENING
For the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea. [Isaiah 11:9]
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They appear to be for real. They have garnered great market share and popularity. Yet, they not only refuse to preach the real Gospel, they oppose the Lord Jesus whom they claim to serve.
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AWAKE, O SLEEPER
False prophets are nothing new. Ancient Israel was plagued with them. Once the Lord’s Community came forth they began appearing at that time as well. The Lord Jesus warned us against them. The apostle Paul spoke of them often. The false apostles, prophets, teachers, etc, soon grew to large numbers and after a century or so eventually replaced the unbelieving Jews as the chief persecutors of the Lord and his people. They opposed all that was real. They created their own version of the way things ought to be and demanded that their followers fall in line.
Which brings us to the present. Because America is largely Biblically illiterate, most people are easily deceived. Of course, they don’t know that. The bigger question is why so many Christians are so easily deceived. It’s the same answer. Most Christians are also Biblically illiterate. They may know much more Bible than secular non-believers but their Biblical knowledge is largely denomination-based. Their beliefs follow the dictates of their preachers, churches, and groups. If they want to be members in good standing wherever they happen to be they must adhere to whatever their preachers, churches, and groups teach.
They don’t really care so much about truth. They don’t care about the Lord’s real teachings put forth plainly in His Word. They only care about what they have chosen to believe. They thus reject Scripture that can free them from the clutches of deception. Most preachers know they better preach what their denomination tells them to preach or they will be out of a job. They preach what their people want and expect for the same reason. When they do this they get great positive feedback. They climb in the ranks. They make more money. They become more popular. They garner more love and respect from the Christian masses. Millions follow them on Christian TV. They live in expensive houses, drive new cars, their kids go to big universities, they can afford to live in relative luxury, and their entire lives become models of the classic American success story.
This is all because they refuse to teach the truth because they align themselves with money. They pay special attention to the biggest donors. They act, they put up false fronts, they master fake smiles like politicians, and instead of suffering persecution life just keeps getting better. As their stars rise the people they preach to are most often no better off and continue to struggle. But the church leaders don’t really care. They write off those who struggle as slackers who won’t obey the program. They blame the people for not being as good as them. They understand they themselves must be special, have arrived, and get it right because of their great place in the Christian world and secretly have contempt for those Christians who will never gain what they have.
YOU CAN’T HIDE FOREVER
We keep hearing about all the fake preachers, their dastardly deeds behind the scenes, their money grubbing, and pedophile priests. But the Catholic Church protected all the pedophile priests and kept moving them around so they could abuse even more children. They still do it today. They know there is a big priest shortage. Some Catholics are livid about this but their voices never go anywhere for the most part. Most Catholics have their heads in the sand. It is same with Protestants. Many live on fossils of many years past and have been overcome by the growing sinful culture. All of these people who have such great and powerful platforms could do something to turn it all around if they wanted to. They have the money. They have the support. But they refuse.
They have joined up with the devil. They made friends with the world. They like life the way it is. They are pretenders one and all.
Many of these evil fakers were exposed beginning in the late 1980s. The pedophile priest problem began seeing the light about that time also. Yet nothing has changed. Most of the guilty saw what was happening and quickly tried to give off the impression that they cleaned up their act. A few evil ones got busted. Most not only got off scot free but once the heat was off went right back to doing the same things they had always done.
We live in different times now, however. It is now possible for anyone to gain a platform and begin speaking out. Millions are doing this. We live in a time of an emerging Great Awakening in which Truth is coming forth like never before and evil is being exposed far beyond anything that has happened in the past. They are quickly running out of places to hide. Their only chance is to keep convincing people to stand by them and attack the honest ones.
This is why the major social media platforms are no longer even pretending to not be the great discriminators they are. Their censoring is obvious to all. They must do all in their power to shut it down. They cannot afford to be exposed. But they will all be exposed anyway. It is happening as we speak. There are just too many truth tellers. There are too many who want justice. There are too many who want to be free. And for Christians, there are growing numbers who want the Lord’s real teachings to come forth and for all the false doctrines that hold people in spiritual bondage to be exposed for what they are.
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. [Ephesians 6:12-13]
“It is enough for the disciple that he become like his teacher, and the slave like his master. If they have called the head of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign the members of his household! Therefore do not fear them, for there is nothing concealed that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. What I tell you in the darkness, speak in the light; and what you hear whispered in your ear, proclaim upon the housetops.” [Matthew 10:25-27][1]
When I was a rookie many years ago and was out witnessing all the time something really profound happened that led to a spiritual victory. But because I was still a new Christian and had not yet experienced such a thing on that level I went to my pastor after a church service and told him about it. I’ll never forget what he said. He got a big smile on his face then laughed and said, “You’ve got the devil on the run!” I just stood there. I didn’t know what to say. But it felt great. It felt like I was actually having an impact. I later saw that the strange things happening around me when I was witnessing and teaching were manifestations of evil coming forth that would normally remain hidden. They were protecting their turf against attack. I was shining my light in the darkness and exposing error and sin. I wasn’t necessarily trying to do this but was only obeying the Lord under His anointing. I realized that even a young new believer could expose the enemy on his own ground and make a difference.
But what if millions could do this at the same time? Those that know the spiritual present know this is exactly what is happening right now. But all the sleepy Christians remain blissfully unaware. They are too busy listening to pretenders.
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
HEAVEN WILL BE SPARSELY POPULATED
“For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.” [Matthew 7:14]
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If you like wide open spaces free from the maddening crowd you will love heaven. It will not be because heaven’s perceived billions will be spread out in such a way over a limitless expanse that it appears relatively empty, but because its population relevant to planet earth will be disproportionately less than many can imagine. This means most humans will never get there.
A HUNDRED MILLION TO ONE
It reminds one of why the Creator is so generous with seeds so as to greatly boost the chances of fruitfulness. It appears He is thus wasting seeds but in reality He is only increasing the chances of fertility, productivity, success, and abundance.
One might keep in mind that every human being is the result of one very strong unrelenting little fighting spermy guy who fended off all the other loser spermy guys to make it first to the interior of the great egg at the finish line.
On average, when the sower sows his seed, 100 million sperm are released. 100 million. That’s roughly 30% of the current population in the USA. Yet these 100 million are reduced down to only one winner. So though we characterize extremely long odds as “a million to one,” this ratio is one hundred times that. This means 100 million minus one are losers. They never get to the finish line. The vast majority all die along the way.
Now, these little guys can actually live up to about five days once implanted. This means they have five days to get to the egg. So it is not just each other they are competing against—they are also competing against time. Each one of them has the highest of callings but only one in a hundred million actually gets to fulfill it. Many of them get lost. Many run out of steam. Many get sidetracked. Many don’t have the capacity to get very far. They say this is nature’s way of insuring that only the very best make it to the very end. Only one gets there. There is no second place.
“For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.” [Matthew 7:14]
It is the same with humanity. Billions of people exist but the Lord Jesus said only a relative few will make it to the eternal goal. It is not necessarily because He sets very high restrictions. It is mostly because human beings in general are stupid, lazy, selfish, and prideful. Most do not seek truth. Most do not seek deliverance from sin. Most people do not understand that seeds must be planted and that this action calls for sacrifice and self surrender. Most of those who do understand it cannot bring themselves to do it, or do it consistently, or they try but give up.
Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it to life eternal.” [John 12:24-25]
Survival of the fittest is also true in the spiritual realm. The Lord Jesus gives us the tools and opportunities to succeed but we must put it all to work and we must always trust Him faithfully regardless of circumstances. The human spirit is extremely strong. Once it is directed properly and functioning properly per the Lord’s will there cannot help but be success. This success, however, is according to the Lord’s standards and not those of this world. Worldly standards dictate that the apostle Paul, for example, was a loser. He left this world with no material possessions beyond the clothes on his back, no retirement, no 401k, no nothing. But according to spiritual standards he perhaps did more for the Lord Jesus and His kingdom than anyone else. All real Christians are still blessed recipients of Paul’s writings to this day.
How much more can the same be said for the Lord Jesus Himself? He accomplished infinitely more than Paul or all the rest of us put together. He not only made it to the egg but He made it to the greatest egg of all time and opened up a door and a trail for us to get there as He did. Even so, most “believers” will never make it. This is why:
“Hear then the parable of the sower. When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is the one on whom seed was sown beside the road. The one on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, this is the man who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he falls away. And the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty.” [Matthew 13:18-23]
No one overcame as many obstacles in completing His course as did the Lord. The early believers illustrated for future generations how one must go about living for God, doing His will, and achieving the objective. They did not have it easy but they did it anyway. Most of today’s Christians take the opposite approach. Most will all die in the opening salvos and machine gun fire on the beaches of Normandy.
It is an exceedingly tough journey for the little spermy guys to make it to the egg. Not only must they expend energy on the trip, they must also conserve the energy they will need for the end of the trip. Why? Because the egg is actually covered by a thick layer which makes it all the more difficult for conception to occur. The few sperm that get there must have enough left in the tank to penetrate the outer layer of the egg. This is where the remaining few greatest die. Imagine making it that far and not being able to complete the objective.
This exact seed journey scenario mirrors life in a general sense, but it perfectly captures life in the spiritual sense. The Kingdom of the Lord is therefore only for those who have the unrelenting drive to make it all the way, to dedicate themselves completely to the Lord Jesus, and be determined against often ridiculous odds to complete the course.
All real Christians will go though the following in the process:
“Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” [Matthew 5:10-12]
If one is going to make it to heaven one will have to overcome all the persecution along the way. One will have to maintain love and always forgive. One must contend with betrayal and potential traps. The obstacles can be immense. There may be vast scorching waterless deserts to cross or giant mountain ranges with deep snow and icy winds. There will always be much resistance. Many elements of the journey will refuse to cooperate. At times the objective will appear impossible. But because the real Christian is blessed with the indomitable spiritual seed of the great Creator, he has the ability to overcome everything and continue to press on. On one occasion, Paul illustrated the challenge set before us as follows:
I do all things for the sake of the gospel, so that I may become a fellow partaker of it. Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win. Everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. They then do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. Therefore I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air; but I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified. [1Corinthians 9:23-27][1]
If Paul knew he could miss the mark, we should all know we could also. He put forth maximum effort to stay qualified. We should also. Anyone who has ever accomplished anything significant knows that it takes much work and dedication. This is even truer when it comes to working in the Lord’s kingdom. And it is entirely true when it comes to properly graduating from this life into the next.
There will only be a relative few at the ceremony.
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
COUNTERING THE GREAT AWAKENING: THE RISING ASSAULT AGAINST FREE SPEECH IN AMERICA
Freedom of Speech is under attack like never before in this country. What’s worse, very few are even aware of it or seem to care. If something isn’t done fast, we will lose the rights great patriots of the American Revolution fought and died for.
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In March of this year the Secretary of State made a chilling statement against the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and freedom of speech in particular. I’ll get to that shortly. But first I will present a lead-in quote he made a month after the first one. This man is supposed to uphold the Constitution. He claims to be a Christian. Before he was Secretary of State he was the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. This is what he said about his job there:
“I was the CIA director. We lied, we cheated, we stole, it was like (laughing), we had entire training courses! It reminds you of the glory of the American experiment.”
I have no idea what he was talking about with that last line, but the fact of the matter is that elements within our government have been in the lying, cheating, and stealing business for many years and it has grown much worse over time. This is no great revelation. Government officials admit it readily. And the American people in general, by majority, have apparently always accepted it. When the honorable Secretary made the preceding quote he got great applause and much laughter. The audience had no problem with official lying, cheating, and stealing. Perhaps their spouses cheated on them and they were fine with it. Perhaps they had their houses robbed and saw no problem. Perhaps they found out that good friends had been lying to them and about them for years and they just didn’t care one way or the other.
THE LORD JESUS MADE NO EXCEPTIONS
Perhaps this fallen, broken world of sin which rejects the love and leadership of its Creator must resort to such tactics for survival and defense. Perhaps American officials have no choice but to violate the Lord’s teachings. And perhaps this is defensible against foreign enemies. But lying, cheating, and stealing should never be practiced against fellow Americans.
Regarding any possible exceptions or caveats in His teachings, however, the Lord Jesus has never and will never okay lying, cheating (covenant breaking), and stealing for any reason, and whoever practices such sin is on their own and wholly responsible. He has never justified these otherwise blatant sins and never will. He has never said it is appropriate to engage in these sins on occasion, or use them as means to do a job. There will never be any lying, cheating, or stealing in heaven. This is what He said about the people who will never get into heaven:
“But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.” [Revelation 21:8]
Here is a refresher on the Ten Commandments, numbers seven, eight, and nine:
“You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.” [Exodus 20:14-16]
Yet, it is okay to violate the Lord’s commandments for the sake of “national security.” I submit that the only reason these practices got started long ago by wholly dishonorable men is because they could not possibly care less about what the Lord Jesus thought or what He taught. As the years went by the lying, cheating, and stealing (and justified officially-sanctioned murdering, mass murdering, and multiple mass murdering) just kept getting worse. The American people didn’t know early on. This is why so many revelations of wickedness perpetrated by those in high positions of power never came out until decades later. Too much time had passed to do anything about it. Yet, the practices continued and greater efforts went in to keeping the skullduggery secret. In time, it was no longer the perpetrators of the crimes who were made to pay, but those who exposed them. This is in part why the Lord Jesus was murdered. He exposed the gross immorality and evil of those among His people ruling over His people.
“Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot hear My word. You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies. [John 8:43-44]
TRASHING AMERICA
Have you ever noticed, over the last half century or so, how America is incessantly trashed by Americans? Telling the truth and exposing secret evil is one thing but hating America is quite another. Have you noticed that Americans can say pretty much anything they want against their country? This has been happening on college campuses for decades, for example. Not only is America being trashed, early American history is being trashed. The Founders are being trashed. I’m referring to people such as George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. I’m referring to the great patriots who gave it everything they had to found this country. Well, their names are increasingly being dragged through the mud. What’s always interesting is the people doing this. They must think themselves to be far superior to everyone else. They have created in their own little minds a false morality and faux moral high ground that is actually more akin to a septic tank.
Since it apparently is just super fine for Americans to trash their own country, one assumes it must be okay to do the same to other countries. Our current President, early in his administration, had something to say about certain $%#@* countries. But he is not doing so much about defending freedom of speech at the moment. I hope he will. I hope somebody will. The big tech companies are deplatforming, censoring, and silencing Americans to their heart’s content and nobody in Washington seems to care. Yet, one can say anything one wants against America and other countries. Well, except for one. There is one country you must never criticize or hold to account. This is what I was referring to early in this article when I said the Secretary of State made a chilling statement this past March that was even worse than the “lying, cheating, stealing” statement he made in April.
Here you go:
“The United States stands with the Jewish people and Israel in the fight against the world’s oldest bigotry. This bigotry is taking on an insidious new form in the guise of anti-Zionism. It’s discussed by our media. It’s supported by certain members of Congress, none of whom I suppose are here tonight. Don’t get me wrong, criticizing Israel’s policies is an acceptable thing to do in a democracy. But criticizing the very existence of Israel is not acceptable. Anti-Zionism denies the very legitimacy of Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people. Friends, let me go on record: Anti-Zionism IS anti-Semitism. The Trump administration opposes it unequivocally and we will fight for it relentlessly.”
I’m an American. I’m a Christian. I don’t have a dog in that fight. I care that the United States of America as founded has a right to exist. I care that American freedoms and rights remain intact and protected. I care that the Constitution is honored as bedrock law. I care that righteousness and light overcomes evil and darkness in this country. The citizens of every country should feel that way about their respective countries. But it would great if the honorable Secretary would talk about Christian persecution in America and the world. It would be great if he mentioned standing with the Lord Jesus and that this current administration promoted the Lord to a greater and more vocal degree. Christianity is disappearing in the Middle East and those who rule Israel both politically and religiously have nothing but utter contempt for the Lord Jesus.
It might also interest otherwise unaware Americans and Christians, especially Christian Zionists, to know that there are a great many Jewish people and Jewish religious leaders, in America and abroad, who are not Zionists and that there are many Jews who outwardly oppose Zionism. Not only that, but within the current Israeli rhetoric whipping up war against Iran it must be noted that the largest Jewish population in the Middle East after Israel and Turkey is in Iran. Iran is also home to a large Christian population relative to such in that region of the world. Therefore, these clear facts add even greater weight regarding those Jews who oppose the Zionist warmongers to the former quote by the honorable Secretary in that these people have now been characterized as anti-Semitic Jews.
Now, let that sink in. Can you figure it out? And I’m not referring to a mere handful. As an example, just to get started, if you are interested in the subject of Jews against Zionism, you can go here. Since a great many Jewish American citizens oppose Zionism, criticize it, or at the very least remain consciously noncommittal, does it now mean their first amendment rights have been subverted? Should they be concerned? One wonders what these Jewish people may know to take such a stand. Why are they against Zionism? One also wonders how they will eventually react to this new official policy violating freedom of speech and conscience once it becomes more entrenched. There are strong moves at present to actually make it law. What then?
It is also quite curious that the central focus of such new laws is always anti-Semitism and perhaps “Islamophobia,” but never anti-Christianity. Why is it always okay to trash the Lord Jesus and Christians in America? Could it be because certain powerful forces have an agenda to do just that and most Christians refuse to speak out about it?
THE FIRST AMENDMENT
Here is the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
The rights contained in the First Amendment are the rights of all American citizens and these rights are protected by the Constitution. Whoever violates these rights of Americans is breaking the law and is subject to prosecution. Period. Well, actually, that’s no longer true. The Constitution is still there, of course, but first amendment rights have been hollowed out over time, as have other rights in the Bill of Rights, especially the Fourth Amendment.
Once violations become routine, freedom gets turned upside down and innocent law-abiding Americans are left to fend for themselves against great odds. This will all get straightened out at the Judgment, however, and the unrepentant minions of evil will get theirs. However, everyone on the planet currently has an ongoing great opportunity to get right with God before that fateful occurrence. His free grace extends to all. Until then, Americans, and especially real Christians, might want to keep in mind what eventually happened to the Lord in His time.
Speaking of which, the Lord refused to be silent. He is the one who created freedom of speech. He is the one who grants it to all people everywhere. Part of His very purpose was to reveal light and showcase the truth. In that process, He was not afraid to expose those who were lying, cheating, and stealing while in the guise of religious or political legitimacy. Regardless of what they thought or the illicit means they thought they needed for success, He never supported or justified such violations of the Torah. One might also note that He called those people serpents and vipers, which is quite the pejorative since it references, in the minds of those Torah violators in positions of great power, the following:
Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made… [Genesis 3:1]
They all knew exactly what He meant.
THE ABUSE OF GOD-GIVEN LIBERTY
The history of humanity is a history of abuse against God-given rights. Whoever knows real history including ancient history and Biblical history knows this. Evil people always manage to rise to the top to rule masses and they inflict said masses with such things as lying, cheating, stealing, slavery, and abuse. Most of all, they restrict personal freedom to their heart’s content. They absolutely loathe and despise liberty. This is in part why there has always been such unrest in the world. People fight for basic rights against evil people in power who hate them and only use them for their own benefit. They treat people worse than animals. With this background it is amazing that America was ever founded. It is a miracle that we possess the rights we have. It should be needless to say, but a great price was paid to obtain them.
Regarding freedom of speech, the Founders were addressing primarily what may be termed political speech in that an American may address verbally or in print whatever they may want to articulate regarding their personal beliefs and interpretations of Constitutional principles, and legally question whatever its government does and what government officials and office holders speak forth and practice. The people are to act as a governor and disallow evil illegal practices and especially practices that violate freedom and liberty. This country is supposed to be presided over by We the People. But those who wrested control long ago laugh at the concept and trash it every day. They only care about themselves. They lie, they cheat, and they steal.
Freedom of the press regards the literary freedom to write and publish whatever we want within the limited confines of not violating the rights of others. We used to have a free press in this country long ago but it was subverted by powerful people who use what they call a free press for mere monetary gain and propaganda purposes. There used to be a much greater appreciation of the Constitution and Bill of Rights in this country not long ago. It was often the left side of the equation that stood up for freedom of expression, speech, and the press, but the left of a generation ago, though it was obviously saddled with extremists, is nothing whatsoever like the crazy left of today, which advocates for censorship and the dissolution of Constitutional rights.
The point is that Americans have rights that the vast majority of the people in the world do not have and have never had. The rulers that the citizens of other countries choose or allow to be in power refuse to grant them such rights. As far as they are concerned it’s their problem. If they don’t like what’s going on in their country, they can do something about it. That’s what the founders of America did. Yet now it is Americans who are subverting those very rights in their own country. The evil people advocating for overthrowing the Constitution are very few but they have had great success in manipulating and deceiving weak minded and willingly ignorant people to actually agree with their subversive agenda. Is it possible that enough Americans will stand up at this time and fight for their Constitutional rights and protections? Do enough Americans still care about civil liberties? Do Americans even know anymore what their rights actually are? How many Americans have actually heard of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights?
Freedom is a great thing. When the people are free to know the truth they can hold evil people accountable and from gaining power over them. When people lose this freedom they have no chance to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. Evil people take over. It then becomes an almost impossible fight. The American Revolution was one such impossible fight but against all odds the original patriots won that battle and secured the great and many rights we have.
THE LION FROM THE TRIBE OF JUDAH
But a much, much greater fight than this took place two thousand years ago when one single Man stood up to the entire world of sin and faced off against the evil people who lied, cheated, and stole to gain it. He won a great victory and continues winning every day. Real Christians continue to support Him and live for Him. He possesses all power and authority in both the earthly and spiritual realms, and He always takes care of His own.
So Jesus said to them again, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” [John 10:7-10] [1]
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
HAPPY EIGHTH BIRTHDAY REAL CHRISTIANITY
Hello friends. I want to drop a short note to let you know I’m still here but have been involved in a lot of practical matters and have not had any time to write. Much has transpired since my last post.
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I created this site on May 10, 2011 and have been faithful to it regardless of circumstances. One never knows what most people go through, or what other Christians in particular go through in their daily lives, but at the end of the day it is all about being faithful. I discovered long ago that faithfulness leads to greater accomplishment, meaning that one must continue regardless of circumstances to maintain victory. Evil never stops which means righteousness must outlast it. Light must overcome darkness. But in order to do this light must be consistent.
“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” [Matthew 5:14-16]
Real Christians promote the Lord Jesus—always—in whatever way He calls us to do this. He is the Light. He is the only Light. Everything else is spiritually dark without Him. This is why the dark places of this world perpetrated by the dark hearts of this world are filled with lying, cheating, stealing, murder, mayhem, and destruction. We attempt to do our best for Him to overcome the darkness so He can set those people free who want to be free. He gave everything He had for us. He is the pearl of great price, the hidden treasure found in a field, and the reason for living. He said this:
Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven.” [Matthew 10:32-33] [1]
Be blessed this day. Thank you for your support and friendship.
(I began a new article yesterday and will be posting it soon. See you then.)
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
*PLEASE SEE THE FOLLOWING POST FROM BILL AND MARY SWEENEY! IT WILL BLESS YOU! TELL ALL YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY: HANG IN THERE!
BUSTING PETER OUT OF JAIL: THIS IS WHAT PRAYER CAN DO!
I originally posted the following two weeks ago on the morning of the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington DC. It illustrates what powerful prayer and intercession can accomplish.
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THERE COMES A TIME, WHEN YOU JUST KNOW, THE LORD HAS THIS…
Peter sat uneasily against the grimy wall of his darkened cell, chained to two hardened Roman soldiers. He thought about what just happened to his good friend and fellow apostle James.
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Agrippa was a bloodthirsty bastard. In his twisted mind he knew he could curry favor with the Jews by arresting followers of the man they called Yeshua of Nazareth. The Jews hated the Herods but made use of them. It was a symbiotic love-hate relationship. The Herod family—Idumean Jewish pretenders—were not unlike the inbred Roman imperial family. Their genealogical chart went off in every direction including sideways and often doubled back upon itself. The members thereof were not only plagued by abnormal DNA and sick minds but immoral behavior that would gag a maggot.
His grandfather was Herod the Great. Through Agrippa’s close ties to Roman royalty, including a close friendship with Caligula, he eventually became king of the restored environs of his grandfather’s vast domain, including Judea. A cold and tactless political warrior, he knew early on he would have to bring the Jews and Romans into closer proximity, which he did accomplish, but only at the expense of the Jewish followers of the Lord. He figured correctly that such people were expendable and would do nothing for his kingdom, and most likely surmised them to possess an opposing kingdom. He stood strongly for Jewish orthodoxy and this put the Jewish Christians at odds with Rome and furthered the gap with the religious Jews who saw the Community of the Lord as a heretical faction.
Now about that time Herod the king laid hands on some who belonged to the church in order to mistreat them. And he had James the brother of John put to death with a sword. [Acts 12:1-2]
This happened very fast. The Lord’s people were caught somewhat unprepared at the sudden vengeance directed toward them. James, possibly the oldest apostle, probably put himself in peril at the start by stepping out to take the brunt of the brutality against his people. He likely sacrificed himself to protect the others. It didn’t help that the unbelieving Jews hated him all the more due to his strong personality and manly stature. Some say this Son of Thunder had a fiery temper to match Peter’s. Before anyone could do much to stop Agrippa’s treachery James was quickly executed for all to see, likely going out the way of the Baptist.
When he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. Now it was during the days of Unleavened Bread. When he had seized him, he put him in prison, delivering him to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out before the people. [Acts 12:3-4]
Peter was quickly rounded up and arrested as Agrippa was told by the Jews that he was another ringleader. Something had to be done speedily because a blood bath was in the making. The unbelieving Jews reveled in the emerging murder spree and wanted to wipe them all out. Agrippa knew he would gain ever greater favor with every believer killed. In no time at all the leadership of the early Church would be no more. What to do?
As Peter pondered his fate He no doubt thought of his times with the Lord and his own early ministry. Had he misheard Him? Would he not actually live to a mature age as the Lord had implied? He wondered how it had so quickly come to this. He was chained to two Roman bikers and two more guarded the door. Three other sets of four replaced the previous ones every six hours. It looked like each new set was more gnarly than the others and undoubtedly threw their weight around. These were rough characters. Peter was no longer the bad dude he used to be. In his former life he could have taken any of them and made them pay dearly. James too, and probably John. The early apostles were very tough men. The Lord chose no pansies for apostle work. But Peter’s priorities had changed. Much fasting had sapped his physical strength in the intervening period of the early Community and the edge was taken off his spirit as he grew loving and kind, and in greater control of his notorious temper.
He was ready to go. There was nothing to be done. It may be a few days yet because Agrippa knew he’d better wait until after the eight day feast. James had likely been killed right before Passover, close to the very time his Lord had also been executed. In the interim Peter would make his peace and ready himself, but was greatly worried about his fellows. What would happen to them all?
So Peter was kept in the prison, but prayer for him was being made fervently by the church to God. [Acts 12:5]
Of course, they were all thinking the same thing and decided that rather than accept mass death they would pray for no more death. It was a tall task, but they went for it. They would pray for Peter and for each other. They would put their faith to the test and find out if spiritual power really did work on such a scale. Outside observers would have called them utter fools for believing any such thing. The faithless knew there was no way this could ever end well.
They decided to act anyway, against impossible odds, and before long a level of prayer had risen up majestically in Jerusalem that knocked the devil over on his ear. Mature Christians know the great power of prayer and one had also better know that the enemies of the Lord were backed up on their heels. They were feeling a great weakness coming over them and a curious fear. Agrippa himself no doubt became deeply concerned in his dark soul that something was happening he could not explain. He felt fragile and scared. Unseen demons knew the feeling. And they didn’t like it. It was enough that massive sinister spiritual forces began shifting around in an unsettled state, their former confidence and unity shattered. The great incessant prayers of the Jerusalem Community were having a profound and powerful effect.
On the very night when Herod was about to bring him forward, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and guards in front of the door were watching over the prison. [Acts 12:6]
Peter stirred sleepily. He tried to understand what was happening. In his groggy state he thought he heard someone talking to him. The snoring unwashed soldiers beside him did not make things any easier. He had become accustomed to the jail, as least as well as one might, and had been blessed with an unearthly spiritual strength to handle the rough treatment, the dank smells, the darkness… What is more, he actually felt the prayers on his behalf. He was becalmed and strengthened by them. He should not feel this good under such circumstances. He was not only resigned to his fate but had an ongoing peace as he waited for the fast approaching time of his murder. But who was speaking? Was this a dream? There was a glowing form…
And behold, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared and a light shone in the cell; and he struck Peter’s side and woke him up, saying, “Get up quickly.” And his chains fell off his hands. And the angel said to him, “Gird yourself and put on your sandals.” And he did so. And he said to him, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.” And he went out and continued to follow, and he did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. When they had passed the first and second guard, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which opened for them by itself; and they went out and went along one street, and immediately the angel departed from him.
When Peter came to himself, he said, “Now I know for sure that the Lord has sent forth His angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting.” [Acts 12:7-11][1]
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THERE COMES A TIME, WHEN YOU JUST KNOW, THE LORD HAS THIS…
Peter sat uneasily against the grimy wall of his darkened cell, chained to two hardened Roman soldiers. He thought about what just happened to his good friend and fellow apostle James.
Agrippa was a bloodthirsty bastard. In his twisted mind he knew he could curry favor with the Jews by arresting followers of the man they called Yeshua of Nazareth. The Jews hated the Herods but made use of them. It was a symbiotic love hate relationship. The Herod family—Idumean Jewish pretenders—were not unlike the inbred Roman imperial family. Their genealogical chart went off in every direction including sideways and often doubled back upon itself. The members thereof were not only plagued by abnormal DNA and sick minds but immoral behavior that would gag a maggot.
His grandfather was Herod the Great. Through Agrippa’s close ties to Roman royalty, including a close friendship with Caligula, he eventually became king of the restored environs of his grandfather’s vast domain, including Judea. A cold and tactless political warrior, he knew early on he would have to bring the Jews and Romans into closer proximity, which he did accomplish, but only at the expense of the Jewish followers of the Lord. He figured correctly that such people were expendable and would do nothing for his kingdom, and most likely surmised them to possess an opposing kingdom. He stood strongly for Jewish orthodoxy and this put the Jewish Christians at odds with Rome and furthered the gap with the religious Jews who saw the Community of the Lord as a heretical faction.
Now about that time Herod the king laid hands on some who belonged to the church in order to mistreat them. And he had James the brother of John put to death with a sword. [Acts 12:1-2]
This happened very fast. The Lord’s people were caught somewhat unprepared at the sudden vengeance directed toward them. James, possibly the oldest apostle, probably put himself in peril at the start by stepping out to take the brunt of the brutality against his people. He likely sacrificed himself to protect the others. It didn’t help that the unbelieving Jews hated him all the more due to his strong personality and manly stature. Some say this Son of Thunder had a fiery temper to match Peter’s. Before anyone could do much to stop Agrippa’s treachery James was quickly executed for all to see, likely going out the way of the Baptist.
When he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. Now it was during the days of Unleavened Bread. When he had seized him, he put him in prison, delivering him to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out before the people. [Acts 12:3-4]
Peter was quickly rounded up and arrested as Agrippa was told by the Jews that he was another ringleader. Something had to be done speedily because a blood bath was in the making. The unbelieving Jews reveled in the emerging murder spree and wanted to wipe them all out. Agrippa knew he would gain ever greater favor with every believer killed. In no time at all the leadership of the early Church would be no more. What to do?
As Peter pondered his fate He no doubt thought of his times with the Lord and his own early ministry. Had he misheard Him? Would he not actually live to a mature age as the Lord had implied? He wondered how it had so quickly come to this. He was chained to two Roman bikers and two more guarded the door. Three other sets of four replaced the previous ones every six hours. It looked like each new set was more gnarly than the others and undoubtedly threw their weight around. These were rough characters. Peter was no longer the bad dude he used to be. In his former life he could have taken any of them and made them pay dearly. James too, and probably John. The early apostles were very tough men. The Lord chose no pansies for apostle work. But Peter’s priorities had changed. Much fasting had sapped his physical strength in the intervening period of the early Community and the edge was taken off his spirit as he grew loving and kind, and in greater control of his notorious temper.
He was ready to go. There was nothing to be done. It may be a few days yet because Agrippa knew he’d better wait until after the eight day feast. James had likely been killed right before Passover, close to the very time his Lord had also been executed. In the interim Peter would make his peace and ready himself, but was greatly worried about his fellows. What would happen to them all?
So Peter was kept in the prison, but prayer for him was being made fervently by the church to God. [Acts 12:5]
Of course, they were all thinking the same thing and decided that rather than accept mass death they would pray for no more death. It was a tall task, but they went for it. They would pray for Peter and for each other. They would put their faith to the test and find out if spiritual power really did work on such a scale. Outside observers would have called them utter fools for believing any such thing. The faithless knew there was no way this could ever end well.
They decided to act anyway, against impossible odds, and before long a level of prayer had risen up majestically in Jerusalem that knocked the devil over on his ear. Mature Christians know the great power of prayer and one had also better know that the enemies of the Lord were backed up on their heels. They were feeling a great weakness coming over them and a curious fear. Agrippa himself no doubt became deeply concerned in his dark soul that something was happening he could not explain. He felt fragile and scared. Unseen demons knew the feeling. And they didn’t like it. It was enough that massive sinister spiritual forces began shifting around in an unsettled state, their former confidence and unity shattered. The great incessant prayers of the Jerusalem Community were having a profound and powerful effect.
On the very night when Herod was about to bring him forward, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and guards in front of the door were watching over the prison. [Acts 12:6]
Peter stirred sleepily. He tried to understand what was happening. In his groggy state he thought he heard someone talking to him. The snoring unwashed soldiers beside him did not make things any easier. He had become accustomed to the jail, as least as well as one might, and had been blessed with an unearthly spiritual strength to handle the rough treatment, the dank smells, the darkness… What is more, he actually felt the prayers on his behalf. He was becalmed and strengthened by them. He should not feel this good under such circumstances. He was not only resigned to his fate but had an ongoing peace as he waited for the fast approaching time of his murder. But who was speaking? Was this a dream? There was a glowing form…
And behold, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared and a light shone in the cell; and he struck Peter’s side and woke him up, saying, “Get up quickly.” And his chains fell off his hands. And the angel said to him, “Gird yourself and put on your sandals.” And he did so. And he said to him, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.” And he went out and continued to follow, and he did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. When they had passed the first and second guard, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which opened for them by itself; and they went out and went along one street, and immediately the angel departed from him.
When Peter came to himself, he said, “Now I know for sure that the Lord has sent forth His angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting.” [Acts 12:7-11][1]
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
AMERICA IS NOT BEING JUDGED!
Many Christians continue to erroneously paint the entire country with a very broad brush. They could not be more wrong. Good is actually overcoming evil.
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In my last post six days ago I revealed the truth of Selective Judgment. Regarding the bold, unapologetic political moves of the abortion industry last week, I asked the question: Is Selective Judgment Looming? The very next day judgment descended.
A prominent state governor was exposed for being a hypocrite. Earlier last week he spoke in no uncertain terms about actually killing a baby that had just been born. On Friday, the day after my last post, a huge news story broke that served to expose the depravity of the abortion industry. Since then the mainstream media is doing all it can to reverse the process. This story, however, is not going away. It was featured prominently in the President’s State of the Union message last night. Ungodly practices are being exposed and condemned and the people who support such practices will no longer be able to hide.
This is proof that America still has a moral conscience and that millions of Americans are good people living right and honoring the Lord. This is why Christians must stop insisting that God hates America and is bringing judgment. For example, there are Christians who actually support the idea of any number of doomsday scenarios, such as God allowing America to be struck with nuclear missiles. They talk about how depraved the country has become and that America must be severely punished. This perspective could not be more asinine and short sighted.
WHAT HAPPENED TO MY PRIOR POST?
I’m not sure what happened to my traffic last Thursday but my post Re: Legal Baby Killing—Is Selective Judgment Looming? was effectively invisible. My post before that had received exceptional traffic. It appears as though many of you may not have known I posted anything at all last week. I wonder sometimes about the usual censorship suspects. I know the mainstream media always fights to ban Pro-Life news or anything that shines a light on the evil of abortion. Perhaps something of that sort is at play here. Whatever the case, the Lord is on the side of righteousness.
Also, regarding The Notorious RBG, who has been missing in action for over six weeks, there was at last a claimed reported sighting the other day at a concert venue. But strangely enough, there was absolutely no evidence whatsoever. In a world of ubiquitous cell phones, this is curious. I waited until last night to see if she would show up at the State of the Union. She didn’t.
THE FUTURE OF AMERICA
Many of us have children and grandchildren. We would like them to live in a great country. We would like them to be blessed. But the forces of anti-America have become so powerful they render such desires as evil. They hate the idea of America being great. Where the hell did these people come from? Why are they here?
I assure you that the Lord Jesus is here to love us and save us, not condemn us. He has no plans to destroy America.
He knows people usually end up destroying themselves without His intervention. It is His intervention that He cares about. He wants to save us, help us, and bless us. That’s what the Good News is all about. As Christians, we are supposed to be telling everyone the Good News, not that God is going to get you.
The pastor of the previous President wanted God to damn America. That’s one of the most asinine messages to ever come forth from a pulpit. Such people are raving lunatics. The current President wants to make America great again, and for that he and his supporters are pummeled on a daily basis. By such behavior and rhetoric they are only hastening their own demise. Their treachery is being exposed. They are being outed for what they are.
The same is true for the all the fake Christians who incorrectly see God as a destroyer of worlds. In reality, if He is forced to bring judgment, He does it selectively. One can read about this throughout the entire Old Testament. One can also see such judgment as it happened in the first century. When the forces of evil reach a place of such concentrated power that they defy the possibility of any societal corrective against their evil, and vast numbers of innocent people are being greatly harmed, something must be done to stop them. Otherwise they will eventually eliminate the righteous. Thus, the Lord fights on the side of goodness and supports those on the righteous side of battle for the sake of saving those who want to be saved and appreciate His great salvation.
“He who sees Me sees the One who sent Me. I have come as Light into the world, so that everyone who believes in Me will not remain in darkness. If anyone hears My sayings and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. He who rejects Me and does not receive My sayings, has one who judges him; the word I spoke is what will judge him at the last day.” [John 12:45-48][1]
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
RE: LEGAL BABY MURDER—IS SELECTIVE JUDGMENT LOOMING?
Some Christians believe there is judgment upon America. It could be that there is actually selective judgment. If so, it is likely based primarily on a single heinous crime growing more egregious each day.
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We exist in a time when the onrushing forces of evil are no longer holding back or exclusively operating from behind a veil of deception. They are challenging the long-held American traditions of morality, truth, and goodness on a greater level. Rebellion is rising exponentially. Deep-seated systemic corruption has invaded all levels of society including the upper levels of management in both the public and private sector. The fox is often guarding the henhouse.
What used to exist on the seedy side of town in nondescript storefronts and secreted locations run by shady characters has now become mainstream. There are two principle reasons for this: One, sin is progressive. It continues growing and expanding until it meets the proper force of resistance. Two, the entities authorized to counteract such sin and resist its spread have grown weak and often non-existent.
All manner of sin, hate, rebellion, false narratives, and deceptive agendas are now transmitted into every available receiver from televisions to personal cell phones. The American people in general remain mostly oblivious or have been shanghaied by disinformation and false narratives. If one takes in a movie or network television program it is likely one is being secretly indoctrinated. Anything Christian is taboo. Hate is driving belief. As a result, once a person, event, issue, practice, outlook, or truth is identified in a large swath of the public mind as evil and the target of revulsion, through an ongoing onslaught of negative and distorted prevarications, there is often no remedy to change such thinking. It may take time but entire cultures can be transformed in this manner. People simply accept what they are told without questioning the validity of such programming. Others accept it readily because it supports their prejudices and gives them an accepted outlet for their angry agendas.
The natural result of such distorted misconceptions in the minds of the deluded is to strike out against those they wrongfully discern as deviants, in order to correct a perceived wrong, without comprehending that the wrong they perceive is actually often a false construct. These misguided and often hopelessly deceived people apparently believe they are standing up for what is right. They insist on supporting sin and evil practices because they do not see such practices as sin and evil but insist they are good and wholesome.
They align themselves with the forces of darkness while believing themselves to be the children of light.
They inevitably begin attacking the very ones who are the actual guardians of truth, purveyors of righteousness, and preservatives of society. This ongoing ferocious, brutal, and even violent attack and destruction by degree of truth, righteousness, and society itself results ultimately in an outright civil war of which only one of two sides can be victorious.
If the lawful institutions, both civil and religious, which previously provided a bulwark against corruption and destruction also grow corrupt what will then act as a preservative? What societal organization can perform the objective of stemming the tide of ruin? Who or what is left to provide an appropriate defense of all that is good?
“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men.” [Matthew 5:13]
TAKING RESPONSIBILITY
I want to thank those of you who read and supported my previous post, REPLACING RUTH BADER GINSBURG WITH AMY CONEY BARRETT: EPIC BATTLE BREWING? It attracted a lot of traffic. Some of you may have noticed that I posted it before sunrise on the anniversary of Roe v. Wade. In direct association with this you may have also noticed that later on the same day a new pro-abortion law in New York was passed that allows for abortions all the way up to delivery. The lawmakers who made this possible gave it a standing ovation and many cheers. There were smiles and laughter all around. A Roman Catholic Democrat governor signed it into law. The newly elected Democrat Senate made it possible. The Catholic Cardinal said it would not be appropriate to reprimand or excommunicate the Catholics involved. Catholic politicians are sometimes the very ones who support such abortion laws and are never made to pay even though Roman Catholicism purports to be against abortion. New York City has already been the worst offender in that more abortions are performed there than anywhere. I wrote the following post on this over six years ago: New York City is the Undisputed Abortion Capital of America.
The gist of last week’s post was that America has the greatest opportunity in a long time to get closer to eliminating the worst decision in Supreme Court history (and there have been some bad ones), by replacing a pro-abortion female Justice who likely agrees with what New York just did, with a Pro-Life female Justice who will respect the Constitutional rights of the unborn. All the other political battles currently brewing pale in comparison to that one should it occur. But we are heading in that direction. The nation has become increasingly factionalized over the issue.
Speaking of which, unless one stands up and fights for righteousness one will fall into unrighteousness. The forces of evil are relentless. They must put out the light. They must keep light from shining. Light exposes them. Also, they combat truth with lies. Lies must not be allowed to stick.
Therefore do not let what is for you a good thing be spoken of as evil. [Romans 14:16]
When the enemy tells lies, and the devil is a master at it, truth must strike back. When darkness invades, light must shine forth ever brighter. Much of what is termed Christianity has never understood this. The false forms of Christianity have no spiritual power or authority to act in concert with the Lord and stand up for righteousness. When revivals break out it is sometimes only because someone gets fed up, throws caution to the wind, and speaks out loudly and strongly against that which deludes and brings weakness and for that which stimulates and brings forth spiritual strength and vitality. When many others agree they are inspired to follow suit
It is simply a fact of life that life itself will cause weariness, a winding down, and low batteries, especially if one is living righteously or working for righteous causes. That is why Christians must remain ever vigilant, maintain their spiritual strength, and continually strive for excellence. The Lord showed us how to do this. When real Christianity is successful within a society the society prospers and there is peace. Evil is relatively weak. It must seek the dark corners and hidden dens of sin. We are presently not living in such a time. Evil has made a great comeback. This could only have happened, however, if large portions of the forces of good have surrendered, capitulated, grown weak and ineffective, or even joined the opposition.
There comes a time when Christians must understand that business as usual no longer works. And if those the Lord has worked through previously are no longer doing the job they must be rejected and replaced with those who will. This is happening on an ever-increasing scale at present. The mainstream everything has grown corrupt. The Lord is therefore raising up new people everywhere, those who are not corrupt, in all venues of society to counteract and fight against emboldened evil. One of the most terrible consequences of this scenario is when the new righteous are fought against and stigmatized by former friends who reject the need for reform since they control their organizations and thus stand for the corrupt status quo. This happens all the time in churches. Church leaders who grow spiritually weak but personally strong usually have no accountability or check on their behavior. When the Lord attempts to correct them they fight the messenger. What is even worse, all the wimpy Christians in the controlled congregations side with their corrupt leadership and also fight the messenger. They would otherwise lose their social standing and know they are too weak to handle it. They could never stand the adversity.
SELECTIVE JUDGMENT
It should be obvious that if the hundred and fifty million or so Christians in America were doing their job we would not have come to this point. The good news is that all the rejected who didn’t give up and are doing their jobs, though often subject to ongoing attacks and character assassination, are beginning to have a major impact. That impact is strong enough that the forces of evil and darkness have reached a place of utter desperation and collective insanity. The places and institutions they control with the support of the majority will thus likely incur selective judgment. This is judgment that pertains only to them and their locales. America as a country is not being judged and will not be judged as long as there is a strong contingent of real believers. God does not pour out wrath on His own obedient people doing what He called them to do and He has millions of followers here. Rather, He supports them and blesses them. He loves them. This means America is presently factionalized spiritually as well.
The Lord revealed to me decades ago that a separation was taking place and would continue. The good guys were leaving the bad guys and vice versa. As this continued, there was a higher concentration of both. This is why you see evil rearing its ugly head in such a pronounced way and standing up for the most vile practices imaginable. It is why they continually subvert the truth and double down on manipulating the public to maintain their status. It is the only way they can survive. They have rejected the checks and correctives on their sinful behavior and false beliefs. There are few left within their groups to tell them they are wrong. There is little semblance of salt among them.
And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper… [Romans 1:28] [1]
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
OVERCOMING JUDAS: WHY THE GREAT AWAKENING WILL NOT BE STOPPED
All Christians have a choice to make. They will either stand with the Lord Jesus 100% or they won’t.
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No one has ever been subjected to the attacks the Lord Jesus suffered. We now live in a time when extremely hateful vile people have gained a massive bully pulpit blasting out attacks against any and all who refuse to kowtow to their false narratives and slimy lies. What many people still do not recognize is that this is a very clear sign of the Great Awakening.
This should be obvious. It is not that the attacks of the enemy have only just begun. The enemy has been doing this a very long time. What makes these times different is that the enemy has greatly stepped up its attacks but only for one reason:
The forces of truth and morality are fighting back. They are fighting back like never before. They have gained a spiritual backbone.
They are not supposed to fight back! They are supposed to stay in their little hovels to which they have been assigned where they are never seen and their voice is never heard. Why so many otherwise good people have ended up there can be narrowed down to two reasons:
(1) They failed to stay strong in the Lord. They failed to stay prayed up. They failed to work hard at gaining the knowledge and information they would need to stand as stalwart people defending the truth. (If one does not know the truth how can they defend it?) As a result the enemy took advantage of their spiritual laziness and began dismantling the rest of whatever was good that had yet to be destroyed while most people simply let them do it without a fight.
(2) They succumbed to an attack from inside. The people around them—a friend, a family member, an associate—who got suckered into the false narratives, turned against them and lambasted them often not even knowing they were doing the devil’s work and that they had been deceived. In other words, the indolent people who simply believe whatever they are told to believe and never verify anything or trust the wrong people, who are easily deceived and easily fall sway to the false pronouncements of authority figures who they pledge to support without even knowing who these people really are and what they actually believe, end up turning against their own. Shouldn’t they know better?
This is what the Lord said would happen to His real followers. It refers to all of His followers for all time:
“Blessed are you when men hate you, and ostracize you, and insult you, and scorn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man. Be glad in that day and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven. For in the same way their fathers used to treat the prophets.” [Luke 6:22-23]
This is what He said about prophets, including Himself:
Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and among his own relatives and in his own household.” [Mark 6:4]
The reason the preceding happens is because a person joins up with the Lord and chooses His side. As a result, all those who hate Him or refuse to join His side turn against those who join Him. Those who choose to hate the Lord Jesus and never change end up influencing all those who have never joined Him or who sit on the fence. Many Christians have one foot in the world which opposes the Lord and one foot dangling in the right direction but cannot get themselves to go all the way in either direction. They know enough to not support the enemy but are too chicken to go fully over to the Lord’s side. This means they are somehow compromised. They fear what they will lose by going all the way.
There is actually no middle ground, however. Middle ground does not exist. One is either with Him or one opposes Him. The person who therefore insists, “No, there is a middle ground and this is where I will stay,” lacks knowledge and wisdom. This person has no spiritual backbone. This person’s faith is weak or non-existent and is ruled by doubt:
…For the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. [James 1:5-8]
The Lord Jesus is the ROCK and all who support Him unequivocally are also like rocks. Rather than being swayed by false narratives or an ungodly culture that opposes Him they stand for Him. Rather than being tossed around in the roiling surf they stand as great rocks in that surf and cannot be moved. There is no possible way they can do this without the Lord. They had recognized their own weakness and desired strength to stand but discovered it was only the Lord Jesus that had such strength. It is a strength that can withstand anything. So they went fully over to His side and were blessed. They gained a backbone they never had before.
Veteran real Christians know that their times of weakness were caused by not doing the things they needed to do and doing other things that weakened them. They often discover this after an attack. When a strong attack comes against them and they have a very hard time standing, they realize their strength had waned due to their own negligence. It is most likely the case that the attack came precisely for this reason. The enemy saw an opening caused by weakness and went for it. Most of the time a believer is able to rally back and overcome but not always. It is why followers of the Lord must remain ever-vigilant.
There are Judases skulking around. There are Jezebel spirits. There are religious spirits. There are all manner of wicked spirits sent to do a job.
The Lord was always dealing with this phenomenon during His ministry and so were His later followers. They were subjected to the most heinous attacks. Stuff came out of left field. They were lied about and cheated. Even friends and spiritual brothers left them in the lurch because they believed the lies or were too sissified to stand with them. Imagine if you were one of the Lord’s disciples when the following happened. How would it make you feel?
At that time Jesus said to the crowds, “Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest Me as you would against a robber? Every day I used to sit in the temple teaching and you did not seize Me. But all this has taken place to fulfill the Scriptures of the prophets.” Then all the disciples left Him and fled. [Matthew 26:55-56]
CORRUPTION IS AS CORRUPTION DOES
We have two major political parties in America. One is characterized by adopting ungodly and unconstitutional positions. The other is characterized by having no backbone to carry out the things they claim to stand for. They look quite different outwardly but their differences are often only skin deep. The people from these parties who currently hold elective office are almost all compromised in some way. Some are complete total sellouts. A few actually are not sold out at all. Those who refuse to sell out will always be opposed by the sellouts. You may never see the back door skullduggery openly but at some point, at the least suggestion that the honest non-sellout may have done something not acceptable politically, usually something completely innocuous, the sellouts will violently turn against such a person and attempt to destroy him even if the person is a member of the same party. This gives us another indication that what we have in the main is a uniparty, two sides of the same coin, playing games to appear as opposite teams. The real divide, however, is that some are honest and some are not.
Christianity is divided the same way in that there are two types of Christians. There are those who have joined up with the Lord Jesus 100% and there are those who have not. The latter should be absolutely ashamed. Watch your back. They are Christians in name only. The Lord is keeping track. He knows those who are with Him and those who are not. He knows the ones with Him are His friends. He knows they have had to stand up against all manner of attacks perpetrated against them by His enemies. He knows they make themselves vulnerable to the evil people of this world when they join up with Him and serve Him. He also knows that sometimes the attacks must happen, that they may be severe, and that His son or daughter will suffer as a result. It is all part of the real work of the Gospel.
But Jesus said to him, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?” [Luke 22:48] [1]
All real believers will experience a time when they will suffer the worst of attacks, one in which they are innocent but smeared and no one comes to support them. They know they have been railroaded and set up. They know the evil one convinced those who were formerly true to withdraw their support. The worst attacks come from friends. Sometimes, the only friend they have left is the Lord. Rather than this being a really bad thing, however, and it certainly is, it is also a great thing. Why? Because it lets us know the Lord will always remain with us though everyone else does not. It is a tremendous opportunity to grow in greater relationship with the Lord. The suffering that happens, and it can be great, is the obverse reality of the much better reality, that the Lord is one’s BEST friend and will be there always under any circumstances. This is when a believer understands the greatness of the Lord’s love and His true fidelity and faithfulness. He will never leave His children or betray them. Ever.
Standing up for the Lord Jesus against great opposition is the most difficult thing one may ever do but it has the greatest reward. The more one stands the stronger one gets. Those who are determined to give their all are the stalwarts working with Him to bring forth this Great Awakening.
And as it was with the Lord, this includes overcoming Judas.
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
PROCLAIMING TRUTH, OVERCOMING IGNORANCE, REVEALING CORRUPTION, AND EXPOSING DECEPTION
In the beginning Americans were more intelligent and knowledgeable with a high liberty index. Then a century and a half later America effectively became a nation of Forrest Gumps.
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And now this nation has apparently revived cognitively. The average IQ of America has been measured at just below 100, which ranks as normal or average on the scale. Below 90 presents the beginning of deficiency. Above 110 counts as superior. 140 is genius level.
A century ago the American IQ was about 70 or less. This means Americans are gaining in intelligence though not necessarily in truth. Americans have also gained in education but this is relative. Does a formal education actually equate to greater intelligence? Based on many of those who have college degrees it appears as though something is amiss. One can also not compare a prescribed college education with one based on decades of personal study using books, literature, research studies, and other materials not found on politically correct campuses that subscribe to a doctrinaire cultural narrative heavy on social engineering. Since the general public has also become comparatively intellectually lazy and less studious it follows that a greater percentage of Americans may have a greater IQ and educational level while simultaneously being spiritually lacking and practically deficient. Common sense and wide-ranging functional abilities have waned.
Though cognition in itself has gained as have the professions demanding it, it appears that contemporary education has also drifted off into the world of the abstract and hypothetical which makes the overall IQ numbers somewhat suspect. Not only that, but young Americans have become relatively uninformed regarding history and literature compared to prior generations, both due to a lack of interest but also because of a curriculum based on indoctrination rather than facts. And though history has always been subjective it is now the case that much American history is no longer being taught at all, especially with regard to Constitutional studies, the American Revolution, and individual liberty due to conflicts with present political priorities. Considering all these negatives in light of apparent positives, are Americans merely projecting intelligence while effectively becoming dumb and dumber?
We use the term “dumbed-down” to refer to an actual conscious effort by those with control in the education and propaganda sphere to make Americans less knowledgeable of truth and more accepting of concepts thought to be true but based on fabrications. Most Americans have bought into the program. These people will continue to grow less knowledgeable over time regardless of brainpower. Their quasi-academic adaptations, lack of interest in gaining truth, and willingness to adopt what is essentially a low common denominator and socially middling attitude regardless of otherwise positive factors in their lives, such as wealth or good health, make them doomed to continue a downward slide.
On the flip side, however, there is now a greater percentage of Americans, though the percentage relative to the entire population is relatively small, who have gained much more knowledge and truth than the average person and continues to expand their thinking. Their intelligence quotient is somewhat higher but this is not the central factor that causes the rise in their awareness level. It is simply due to the fact that they are hungry for truth and reality, work very hard to find it, and understand that they previously had been propagandized and deceived. In other words, they discovered the existence of a public relations agenda manipulating and programming the populace which caused them to seek the real truth to overcome false truths and purposeful misinformation.
For example, this always happens to Americans who were raised as nominal Christians when they become real Christians. After their legitimate born again experience they suddenly have a great hunger to read the Word of God, especially, of course, the teachings of the Lord Jesus in the four gospels. His teachings open their minds and hearts to greater truth. The more truth they gain the more they can apply it to other subjects. The ongoing result is the discovery of ever more truth and a greater ability to see through false narratives and half truths. This is especially true for “Christian” false narratives. Christianity in general is rife with false doctrines that have no legitimate basis in New Covenant teachings.
Every denomination has its pet overemphasized doctrines that may or may not be true but which serve to cloud or cover over the fullness of the Lord’s teachings and those of the early Church.
Because Americans in general used to have a much higher level of respect for their authority figures they never or rarely questioned the activities of these people. After being incessantly lied to and cheated by corrupt officials over a great many years this is no longer the case. In this we have come somewhat full circle. America started out as a nation fully aware of outward abuses by a distant government and fought against it, not willing to take the abuse, and fought to the point of overcoming the distant government though it was the greatest power on the planet. It was arrogant enough to deem itself invincible but lost badly to what initially appeared as a hodgepodge collection of unintelligent and radical homegrown dissidents. It did not see our forebears as great freedom fighters intent on protecting individual liberty.
Most Americans are not like that anymore. In fact, Americans became so trusting of thoroughly corrupt authority figures they never questioned the myriad of much greater abuses perpetrated upon them than those upon the American colonists. They reached a place of polar opposite, otherwise known as a deep pit of abject stupidity and ridiculous false trust in which they were easily manipulated and deceived. It was not because Americans were actually stupid but merely chose to act that way. They were certainly uninformed and misinformed, however, but such was no excuse. Because of this they doomed their descendants to lives much less than they should have been and allowed the country to be taken over by a cabal of evil people. How were so many so easily fooled?
There were voices of reason and warning but these were shouted down and eliminated by the ignorant brainwashed majority. The same dynamic took place in ancient Israel with any number of powerful prophets who were most often rejected and killed off instead of listened to. The people later saw that the prophets were right but usually far too late to change the evil course they brought upon themselves.
THE PROPHETIC VOICE REACHED ITS ZENITH WITH THE LORD JESUS AND WE ALL KNOW WHAT THEY DID TO HIM.
Americans did this to Americans and this still happens as a daily occurrence. The few who know the truth and the right way are shouted down by the evil DAs in control who have no interest in truth, justice, and the Lord’s way, and these evil people have millions of brainwashed Americans supporting them. As long as they can continue to have such a great deceived percentage of the populace on their side there is little more the proponents of truth and reform can do for the time being.
However, proponents of truth and honesty are growing in numbers. They are making inroads despite the fact that so much is against them. We truly are in the early stages of a national Great Awakening and it will eventually turn the tide against all those who love evil and hate the Lord. The worst perpetrators are not those far away in the political and financial capitals but much closer. They are often deceived American Christians of many different stripes who simply have no eyes to see or ears to hear and no spiritual gumption whatsoever. They may outwardly give off the impression of being loving and kind but it is only a thin veneer hiding unawareness and relative dishonesty. Those who don’t believe this is true have yet to do what the Lord did in exposing the false-veneered corruption for what it is.
The good news is that great progress is happening anyway and eventually everything purposely hidden will become known. Mass corruption and deception will be revealed. This is occurring in both the spiritual and natural realms due to: (1) The greater outpouring of the Lord’s Holy Spirit and a much greater percentage of Spirit-filled people, (2) Superior technology which allows for greater knowledge and which reveals the flaws of past inferior technologies used to deceive, and (3) The fact that truth seekers in both realms are driven to succeed, will never stop, and cannot be stopped. The Lord Jesus is on their side.
Under these circumstances, after so many thousands of people had gathered together that they were stepping on one another, He began saying to His disciples first of all, “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. But there is nothing covered up that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known. Accordingly, whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in the inner rooms will be proclaimed upon the housetops.” [Luke 12:1-3][1]
This proves that a great many people already knew about the evil religious fraud of the Pharisees et al but never said anything openly for fear of retribution and social/religious ostracism. Sound familiar? They were reduced to speaking in the dark and whispering in inner rooms. But the day came when many of these same people were supercharged with the Spirit of the Lord and began proclaiming truth everywhere regardless of the consequences. They revealed corruption. They exposed deception. They brought people into the Lord’s great light.
This is what separates nominal Christians from the real thing. In this they obey their callings and do the work of the Master.
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE GENESIS OF CONTEMPORARY CULTURAL HATE
At the root of today’s culture of hate and blasphemous reactionary rhetoric is a denunciation of America’s Christian heritage and an attack on the teachings of the Lord Jesus. It is a rejection of all things Christian.
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When Pilate saw that he was accomplishing nothing, but rather that a riot was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this Man’s blood; see to that yourselves.” And all the people said, “His blood shall be on us and on our children!” [Matthew 27:24-25]
American Christian values have been under attack for a very long time now. Many believers continue to stand in the gap for the Lord Jesus, however, and will not be swayed from their loyalty toward Him. He is the foundation of their lives. He saved them from a life of sin and waywardness and gives them strength each day to stay on the straight and narrow path.
His enemies apparently suppose that such a path and belief system is highly restrictive. In the name of personal freedom they embrace sin, knowingly or not, and establish their moral code according to their own desires. Their open road and broad way must include the liberty to engage in practices condemned by the Lord’s moral code. His code, of course, is not designed to restrict freedom but to protect His followers from choices which incur bad results, often with long-term effects, and to release great blessing, joy, and fulfillment. But He never forces His teachings on anyone. Real followers of the Lord obey Him voluntarily as individuals without any coercion on His part because it is a relationship based on love and trust. This is contrary to the leadership method of faux religions and cults that must compel programmed group compliance for “the greater good,” which is merely a euphemism for the benefits they incur by being in charge and the only way their organizations can exist.
Ironically, despite their incessant virtue signaling and false moralizing, and instead of using their freedom for the good of others, which involves self-sacrifice and spiritual love, their freedom is often used for entirely selfish purposes and collective societal agendas and strike hard at the heart of individual liberty by denying the right to live according to conscience. It is thus not too difficult to surmise which agendas are based on love and which are not.
“In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want them to treat you, for this is the Law and the Prophets. Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.” [Matthew 7:12-14]
Crucifying an innocent man simply because you disagree with His teachings and because He exposed institutional societal and religious corruption is a clear sign of a hateful heart. All sane people agree with this. But continuing to harbor great ill will toward Him after two thousand years must be the same. When outright rejection of the Lord Jesus is a central component of one’s religion and secular belief system, it reveals an otherwise obvious problem. Some address it, overcome it, reject it, and gain spiritual health and healing. Others buckle down all the more and continue the fight. Whether this fight is a struggle for personal freedom against the centuries-long onslaught of false Christian denominations and evil anti-Jewish traditions or direct abhorrence of the Lord Jesus is a question left to the individual. In that regard it is certainly the case that unbelieving Jews have been persecuted by fake Christians in direct violation of the Lord’s teachings.
But these same fake Christians have also persecuted real Christians who refused to be forced into their cults.
I could name names but most people reading this know exactly which entities I am referring to. Concerning one of these major denominations, if you ask who the worldwide leader is most members will refer to a man known as the holy father who is not the Lord Jesus. In this there is the echo of the following:
They answered and said to Him, “Abraham is our father.” Jesus said to them, “If you are Abraham’s children, do the deeds of Abraham. But as it is, you are seeking to kill Me, a man who has told you the truth, which I heard from God; this Abraham did not do.” [John 8:39-40]
Suffice it to say that burning people at the stake or engaging in any of the other well-known torture tactics against those who stand up for personal freedom and liberty of conscience, and who pay with their lives rather than submit to a false cult opposed to the Lord Jesus, is strictly within the realm of the devil.
Yet, it was not the Romans who crucified the Lord but the leaders of an evil Jewish cult. Roman soldiers carried it out but only because Pontius Pilate was deathly frightened by the threats of this religious cult against him. They were going to appeal directly to Caesar and blame him for the social unrest incurred by them and use his record against him. Pilate knew he was on thin ice because of his former evil treatment of certain Jewish people whom he saw as worthless renegades deserving his wrath and cold Roman “justice.” He therefore completely surrendered to their blackmail. They played their card extremely well. To save himself Pilate allowed the Lord to be crucified. To save themselves, the leaders of the evil Jewish cult did the same. They wanted Him out of the way. He exposed them for what they were.
In the long run it didn’t matter. Forty years later what was left of the nation of Israel was destroyed forever. It was certainly the case that a great many Jews were on the side of right and did not harbor the ill will and destructive practices of the evil cult and its supporters. A great many Jews recognized the Lord Jesus as their Messiah and gave their lives to Him. The Lord Jesus is a descendant of Isaac and Abraham, as were all of His original followers. The 120 in the Upper Room at Pentecost also had this pure bloodline. The entire Community of the Lord for about the first seven years or so of its existence were comprised entirely of these same descendants. There were no Gentiles. Thus, that which we call Christianity today had what we would call today a Jewish or Hebrew heritage.
It is therefore absolutely wrong to state that Jews were not Christians or Christians were not Jews. By our current terminology, in the beginning ALL the Christians were Jews.
So where did Christian anti-Judaism come from? Where did Jewish anti-Christianity come from? Both of these obviously did not come from the Lord or from real Christians. Real Christians never persecuted anybody. How can people who are instructed to crucify their flesh and love everyone on the planet persecute people? No, the ones engaging in the hate are those who reject the Lord. Such people are on both sides. Anyone who studies Christian history gains an understanding of who the perpetrators were simply by looking at what they did to those who disagreed with them.
Which brings us to our current theme. Hatred in America is greatly increasing. Rather than simply disagree but stay friendly, we now have people who engage in outright hate to the point of threatening bodily harm and murder if you don’t believe as they do. These people are not interested in friendly dialogue and discussions. They want to get you. If they can’t do physical harm they will engage in every manner of character assassination. They will trash you all day long and lie incessantly. Many, many people have suffered in America and had their lives destroyed by these people. They are relentless. They have no moral code other than forcing everyone to believe as they do and their beliefs are often fluid. They do the very opposite of what the Lord Jesus taught. For students of the Great Reformation this should sound familiar.
THE LION FROM THE TRIBE OF JUDAH
I have been to Messianic synagogue services several times. I have known several Jewish people who converted to the Lord Jesus. I keep in touch with Messianic ministries in Israel. I have done much study on the Hebrew roots of the Christian faith. I was one of the earliest to do this when it first came forth over thirty-five years ago. I was fascinated by first century Hebrew history and culture and the times of the Lord. I still have all the books I acquired back then and continue my research. For many Christians it is difficult to go beyond the walls of their denomination or church, but there is a rich heritage to study for both Jew and Christian. The Lord’s primary message to all was to love God and love our neighbor. Would that we would all surrender to the Lord Jesus and obey His teachings on this love as illustrated perfectly by His example.
Spiritual love is the only antidote to cultural hate.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.
“Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.” [Matthew 5:9-20] [1]
© 2019 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE DOMAIN OF DARKNESS AND THE LIGHT OF SPIRITUAL REALITY
For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son… [Colossians 1:13]
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The apostle Paul spoke of first-hand experience. He knew well what had actually happened to him out on that dusty Damascus road. He knew it was a rescue.
“But it happened that as I was on my way, approaching Damascus about noontime, a very bright light suddenly flashed from heaven all around me…” [Acts 22:6][1]
Think about this. Paul was apparently not seeking God. He did not appear to be on a search for truth. He had a very strong attitude about what his religion was, what it entailed, and what was required. And he was hell bent on not only performing all the rites and believing all the beliefs of his religion but would do all in his power to force others to do the same. Whoever did not believe as he did would be made to pay.
He was determined to get them. It was part of his religion to get them. They were nothing but evil heretic Jews who defied the universal synagogue as defined by the Pharisees. Other Jewish sects were recognized by the Pharisees, of course, especially the Sadducees who controlled the temple and ran Jerusalem, and who were also tied into the great wealth of this world and politically aligned with the Romans. But for any up-and-coming offshoot Jewish sect which did not abide by the dictates of the master cult, these must be stomped on and eradicated using any method possible. This was Paul’s attitude as it was with the majority of the cult, though perhaps no one of these had as strong a conviction as he did or were as willing and able and energized to do serious damage.
THE PRESENCE OF THE DEVIL
It was the work of the evil one. The cult had fought the Lord Jesus every step of the way. It was absolutely opposed to Him and never gave an inch. The Lord knew where those guys were heading. He knew their future. He knew they had already crossed a line of no return and that there was nothing He could do to stop them. They were determined to fight it out to the end and would eventually destroy themselves and their nation forever. Some of them did not know they had been terribly deceived. Most of them bought into the devil’s program because that’s exactly what they wanted and would do it a thousand times over. They were comfortable in the domain of darkness. They loved it. They loved all the sin and vileness, all the corruption and robbery, and all the power and sense of personal pride it brought them.
What the Lord had started as good, beginning with Abraham and continued later with Moses, they had transformed into something evil with the mere appearance of good. As long as no one ever challenged them they were able to maintain their exterior benevolent facade. But they obviously were not benevolent at all. It was only a front, a pretense, with an ulterior agenda. They had joined a very dark force to gain their power but never or rarely acknowledged this openly. Again, some of them were deceived. They thought they were doing right.
Some were not deceived, however, in that they had come to see the cult for what it was but were too frightened to reveal this. To protect themselves and their families, they never said a word.
I have seen this exact phenomenon in Christianity. It is obvious for all to behold once one studies Christian history. The exact pattern always emerges. Some strong personality starts a new faction or belief system, or simply reveals more spiritual truth. Some of these have been given actual spiritual light and revelation. Eventually, however, standard operating procedure takes over and transforms the new effort into an organized cult built upon a personality or specific doctrines that differ from others. A few of these manage to outlast smaller versions and grow to become official Christian denominations only because of the numbers of people involved. The large numbers are what give the denomination its perceived legitimacy.
Of course, each of these, simply because they were not Roman Catholic, were collected into the obverse pool of Christian bodies referred to as “Protestant.” These were the ones known specifically as protesters against Roman Catholicism. Why would they protest? What was there to protest against? Incidentally, regardless of any new “reforms” within Catholicism since the Protestant Reformation, Catholicism is still pretty much as it ever was. It really has not changed all that much. One might focus on a minor change here or there and perceive it as major but this is only a matter of perspective. Overall, and effectually, the Catholicism of today is essentially the same as the Catholicism of then. So whatever the Protestants protested against then they could certainly do the same today.
And the Catholics could certainly fight back. In its history, the Roman Catholic Church has had the same attitude of the ancient Pharisees in that it worked overtime to stomp out any and all dissent or mere perceived dissent. This is one of the main planks it used to gain and maintain power. They would never have become a worldwide religious monolith otherwise. It had used the same methods as its namesake to gain converts and take territory. Many if not most Catholics simply do not know this or they reject it. The Catholicism they possess in their heads is not the Catholicism of reality and history.
The same is true for Protestants. They have rewritten their histories to reflect a kinder and gentler account, both because their present members for the most part no longer believe as their progenitors did and also because they want to eliminate anything that does not reflect present cultural values. I always find it quite interesting that Christian groups refuse to acknowledge that which gave them power and put them on the map in the beginning, as if they were embarrassed about it. Perhaps they don’t feel comfortable attempting to answer the harder questions. They do not like their origins and past but insist on maintaining their organizations.
GOD NEVER PROMISED US A PLATFORM THRONE
Both Catholics and Protestants killed a lot of people only because they differed in beliefs and mostly because those killed believed in the real Gospel and were determined to serve the Lord Jesus rather than whatever faux lord was thrust upon them. I have thought, for example, about the ridiculous level of hubris and arrogance it took for some dumb human obsessed with self importance to sit his fat backside on a religious throne and accept completely undeserved honor as some kind of religious potentate. We see this, obviously, with Catholic popes, but we also see it just as obviously with Protestant leaders, though their thrones are not as ornate or evident. We also see it, strangely enough, in the Pentecostal, Charismatic, and Nondenominational world.
I don’t know who first invented these ubiquitous large and often ornate chairs or platform thrones but whoever it was needs to be spanked. First of all, there should not be a platform (a stage). If the platform was not there then the platform throne would not be there. Yet we still see to this day some religious pride guy and his minions squatted in giant chairs up on high to make sure everyone on the premises knows full well who is in charge. If you want to check this against spiritual reality, just imagine the Lord Jesus insisting on His disciples carrying around a very large and decorated throne chair that He could sit in all the time everywhere He taught and preached (and maybe be carried around in.)
His great humility and example thus destroys all these stupid unrepentant religious lamebrains and all their prideful and arrogant attitudes. The tables will turn one day. They will get theirs. The first will be last. These ever-present departures into darkness, whether it is the tendency to kill rather than discuss or the desire to indulge one’s flesh instead of crucifying it, will be dealt with by the Lord in His way and in His time. He is very patient that we come to our senses. He intercedes for us. He does His best. He even gave His life. But it is apparent that His perfect example and attitude have not been accepted or emulated by most of what is termed Christianity.
As it was with the false Jewish sects of the first century which refused the Lord and eventually killed Him, the same has happened among great numbers of supposed Christian believers. The LIGHT has come but most still prefer the domain of darkness.
Like Paul, many Christians need to be rescued.
© 2018 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
EXPOSING THE ILLUSION BY REMOVING THE VEIL
“He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters.” [Matthew 12:30]
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Those against Him are the minions of anti-Messiah. Everything they do is in opposition to God. They build societies according to their false anti-liberty paradigms. They deceive millions to follow them and reject the Lord. They cause destruction, disruption, mass murder, and poverty.
It might interest those who may not know that the Christmas season as we know it arose primarily among European Christian cultures that honored the birth of our Lord Jesus. This tradition carried over into America. His birth signified a great new hope for the world. He was seen by these people as one who came to save us from sin and evil and rescue us from the hand of the enemy.
Anyone with a modicum of knowledge regarding ancient history knows this planet has been plagued for millennia by evil, rotten dictators who force slavery and the building up of societal models which are anti-liberty and which serve only them. In contrast, the Lord Jesus wants everyone to be free and fulfilled. People in general have always gone along with the evil because they felt they had no choice. Whoever might speak out against the injustice would often end up dead. All those too afraid to do so became congealed among the supporters of evil.
“He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters.” [Matthew 12:30]
Of course, the evil dictators and their sycophant minions would also eventually end up dead. And then they would have to face a holy God. They would no longer be sitting on their earthly thrones, would no longer have body guards or armies to protect them, a false media to lie about them, and no one to come to their rescue. At that point justice would be meted out. These unrepentant evil people would not be allowed to infect God’s perfect universe ever again. They would be annihilated and cease to exist forever.
Back on the surface of the three dimensional world, great state funerals convince majorities that these were actually good men and everyone better recognize them as such. Transforming an evil man’s character borne out by all his evil deeds against humanity into a false sainthood is a great trick and one that most appear to accept handily. Many will even stand up for such evil men and vouch for their character but in doing so they prove their distance from the Lord.
“He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters.” [Matthew 12:30]
Thus, the perpetrators of evil are also excellent at creating the grand illusion. There is only one antidote to this, only one way to escape deception. Otherwise, people live their lives believing that which is false but believe to be true. They are propagandized. They are indoctrinated. They are deceived. They are otherwise hopelessly fooled. When the curtain goes up they watch the show. They take it all in. They do not know the show is not real but a mere set-up. They do not know that the curtain is false and does not actually go up but goes down. The false curtain hides reality. The false curtain conceals the truth.
It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness fell over the whole land until the ninth hour, because the sun was obscured; and the veil of the temple was torn in two. [Luke 23:44-45]
When this miraculous occurrence took place upon the death of the Lord it revealed to everyone present that they had been living according to a religious sham. The torn curtain of the temple no longer concealed the truth but exposed the fact that there was nothing there. The Holy of Holies was empty. There was no Ark of the Covenant. There was no presence of God. God was actually over on the cross and the real temple—the temple of His body—the veil of His flesh—had just expired. The real temple had been walking among them for approximately three and a half years. This temple was indeed filled with the presence of God. This was the real Holy of Holies.
And they killed Him.
“He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters.” [Matthew 12:30]
Since that time there have been two types of people in the world. One is with Him and one is against Him. There is no in-between.
Those with Him are the blessed ones. They love Him. They trust Him. They believe in Him. They follow Him. They obey Him. They work for Him. They give their lives for Him. They do not and cannot hide who they are. The world opposes them.
One is deceived by the illusion and the other sees the illusion for what it is.
But to this day whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their heart; but whenever a person turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit. [2Corinthians 3:15-18] [1]
© 2018 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
CHRISTIAN PERSECUTION AND SWAMP DRAINING (COMING TO A CHURCH NEAR YOU?)
© 1971 by Walt Kelly
You say it can’t happen here? It’s been happening here. Great Awakenings and Christian persecution always go together.
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All who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. [2Timothy 3:12]
The difference between Christian persecution in America and the rest of the world is that in America Christians persecute Christians.
Notwithstanding the fact that there is certainly a multitude of cases in which the government and other secular institutions have attacked Christians and Christian organizations for their Biblical beliefs, most persecution does not come from that direction. Even though the United States Constitution has been shredded and cast aside by very powerful people who will never let the law of the land stand in their way from doing whatever their money and influence grant them, and though this has been going on for a very long time, government itself has rarely or never been the main perpetrator.
For one thing there is the vast Christian voting bloc that candidates must have to one degree or another to have success. But most Christian voters are uninformed and Biblically illiterate or they would never support so many successful candidates. When they do support them and believe the untruths from the campaign trail, the vast majority of voters never hold the successful candidate’s feet to the fire once they gain office. The candidates know this, of course. They know all they have to do is put on a big show when running for office and then switch gears once they gain office. They know Christians will almost never hold them accountable and that they would never be able to do much after the fact anyway. The candidates know that once the big show is over the voters will have exhausted themselves and must return to normal life. The voters may feel they have done their part and must now leave it up to whatever is going to happen. They also want to keep the newness of new office holders and administrations fresh because it gives them a good feeling.
This happens every election. Yet, over the last few years America has certainly adopted a new “throw the bums out” approach that has not happened before. One can see this in the large turnovers that have been taking place every two and four years. What Americans still do not comprehend, however, is that even though they do this nothing substantial ever changes. I and many others have been saying for many years that there is effectively no difference in the two major political parties. Both are sold out to the money powers and are much more influenced by lobbyists than voters. That is who they cater to. Also, there are some very powerful member organizations in which the members thereof, many of which are office holders, see to it that their interests always come first. These people have taken over a long time ago. They are the people most often in office. They were selected before they were elected.
The current administration has shown great promise and it could be the case that a few good things may keep happening long term. It is probably too much to hope for, however, to see such continue as would happen in a real reform effort. Great change for the better usually only happens over a relatively large length of time. Real reform of this kind does not happen fast because there is so much evil to weed out. The greater concern for now, however, is that any reform which has begun may be cut short due to the powerful interest and control of those who strike back. They took over long ago and most American Christians either don’t know they exist, feel powerless against them, or are simply too apathetic to sustain a drive.
Nevertheless, the Great Awakening has already begun and sides are being chosen. This is also happening among Christians.
CHINA
I have written about the Christian Great Awakening in China several times on this site. Forty years ago, China was in very bad shape from a Christian perspective. It was a vast non-Christian swamp. Christianity in China had been severely persecuted under the Chinese Communist regime and effectively wiped out. Most American Christians don’t know this or care much if they do, but the Chinese Communists had murdered roughly forty million Chinese, a staggering number. But after Mao died in 1976 a miracle began. The Christian presence in China began coming forth. It was obviously very small at first and, as usual, the early spiritual pioneers paid the biggest price. But the underground church has grown exponentially and overall current numbers of Chinese Christians indicate approximately 200 million. Trends indicate that China will soon become a Christian nation.
Christianity, of course, is illegal in China, except for those Christian organizations that receive the Chinese government stamp of approval (and are thus government controlled). Conversely, raids on underground house churches and others continue in force.[1] Regarding government control, the same thing has long since happened in America. Only those churches and Christians organizations approved by the government are free to be what they are and they largely escape any persecution. The 501c3 boys made a deal to limit their effectiveness and their voice, and are thus hopelessly compromised. We have the same licensing process here as they do in China though it appears much less obtrusive. Any Christian group in America that neglects to gain this government approval will subject itself to scrutiny. Most of these never make it to the radar screen because they are far too small and inconsequential. They are also mostly independent, scattered, and unaligned. They represent little or no threat.
If they grow large enough or become connected enough to gain a voice they will certainly show up on the radar. For example, there was much persecution against many Christian groups under the prior administration when government agencies were weaponized against them. Many of these were destroyed as a result as were the lives of the people involved. As a real Christian, do not ever think the Freedom of Religion right as guaranteed in the Constitution will protect you. Yet, it is there and will certainly act as a protector if enough real Christians get involved and protect one another. But American Christians almost never do this. There will always be a few selected causes and individuals that Christians will defend if such causes gain enough attention and notoriety. That which happened with an American pastor’s recent release from a Turkish prison is a great example. But these causes can often act as brakes on the overall cause of all Christians undergoing persecution here because it makes them that much more invisible.
LURKING JUDAS
For it is time for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? [1Peter 4:17] [2]
Churches and denominations protect themselves. They will always fight believers who do not believe as they do and do not strictly believe and obey all their church doctrines and denominational bylaws. It does not matter that most of these churches and denominations never preach the full Gospel or that they teach non-New Covenant doctrines. The only thing that matters to them is protecting their swamp and the people who run it. This is why the people with the real power to do something never do anything to press real reform. It is the same reason the Old Testament prophets were always disassociated single individuals with no protection whatsoever except that which came from the Lord. The kings would never protect them, of course, or only very rarely. The prophets were always persecuted.
If they came for a mega church pastor in America, well, then, everybody in the country would know about it. But when has this ever happened? And why is it not happening?
This proves beyond anything else, perhaps, that the bigger the church the bigger the compromise and the bigger the odds are of a pretender or compromised minister in charge. There are far too many Christians, churchgoers, and “pastors” in this country that if they decided to demand that reform must come then I guarantee you reform would come. But they never do this. They have a different agenda. They would rather protect themselves and let all the struggling persecuted Christians in America fend for themselves. This is why it is not the government that is the overall problem. If anything, though there have certainly been documented cases of abuse by government entities directed against Christians, the government really doesn’t care what you do as an individual Christian as long as you obey the law. And when the Constitution guarantees freedom of religion you are not violating the law by preaching and teaching the real Gospel!
No, the bulk of Christian persecution in America does not come from government, it comes from other Christians. This reveals that the most effective Christian enemy is not in that other swamp in need of draining, but most likely in one much closer.
© 2018 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] 100 Christians Snatched in Overnight Raids on Underground Chinese Church
[2] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST
The level of deception regarding our so-called “leaders” is so thick most Americans are completely deceived and have no idea what these people really are. They are certainly not with the Lord.
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Their world is not His world. He created a world of love, beauty, and peace in which people get along and treat each other right. They created a world in which people are impoverished, in which they suffer and die needlessly, and in which a very few at the top become incredibly wealthy and powerful at the expense of everyone else. They love war and profiting from war. They have no reservations about killing mass numbers of people and then calling it good and necessary. They create the “bad guys” and the “good guys.” They finance both sides.
Most people do not know this or care. The sad thing is that most Christians are just as oblivious. They are ignorant of this reality because they believe the incessant false propaganda and false narratives and are hopelessly glued to their televisions and mass media, and refuse to do their own research or consider alternatives. Most of all, they refuse to read the Word of God, have a real walk with God, and engage in spiritual warfare against the enemy. This makes them thoroughly susceptible to deception. The mass media is owned by just a few corporations and it is ridiculously easy for them to deceive the bulk of the people, especially in America.
So here we have yet another who has gone onto a reward that is the opposite of what most people think. The desperate and evil people who live a life of committing petty crimes with long rap sheets are properly looked upon by law-abiding people as lowlifes who refuse to play by the rules and cause problems for others. But what if someone kills a million? What if a small cabal decides to have a World War to satisfy their own financial and geopolitical interests and increase their power and authority? What if these people suck up all the wealth, gain all the power, impoverish the world, and do the very opposite of what the Lord Jesus taught? What are they?
There is much to study here. The information is available. It takes a lot of work. One will not only have to find historical truth but wade through great swamps of obfuscation, lies, and misinformation. The evil ones promote their own. As a testimony to their power and influence, the greatest Man who ever lived ended up dead on a cold hillside nailed to a cross, thoroughly rejected by all while evil people are propped up as great and adorned with adoration. These evil people would put Him there again and again. But instead, the great evil people are applauded and lauded as the world’s finest. All their sycophants who owe their careers to them honor them and pay them endless respect.
Consider organized crime families and how they support one another. They call them families for a reason. They engage in evil practices as a way of life but still have love for another. They know they are all successful because everyone involved does their part and obeys the directives that bring them success. But then consider these people on a much, much larger scale. Start wondering about why the earth is filled with so much evil and pain. It doesn’t have to be this way. It is not inevitable that the world must be evil. It is evil overall compared to what it could be because a handful of evil people have made it that way. There is a reason the Lord taught us the proper rules by which to live. If everyone lived the way He wants us to it would be a beautiful world of love and peace. There would be no World Wars. There would be no poverty.
Now, there will always be evil people in the world, but guess what? Law-abiding citizens have always greatly outnumbered the outlaws and by this have helped to keep evil in check. But when evil people gain the controls of the machinery and rig everything to support their lust of gaining ever more riches and power, and they don’t care at all what they do to other people, and will kill people by the millions to serve their ends, well, now you have a problem. There is then no possible way to get such evil, rich, powerful people out of that place they wrested for themselves.
Unless the Lord Jesus intervenes. He is our only chance. My suggestion for all Christians is to take the blinders off and start doing greater research. One will initially be shocked at what one finds. More Christians will then have a much greater understanding of why certain people absolutely hated the Lord Jesus, despised Him, and vowed to kill Him on countless occasions. They never succeeded and never would have unless He willfully laid down His own life as a sacrifice for us. And they rejoiced that they could finally get their hands on Him. They inflicted the most pain and torture they could imagine upon Him to satisfy their hatred and blood lust. If they could have done this to Him a thousand times they would have, and would have loved every minute of it.
Since they cannot, they turned to inflicting pain and murder upon His followers. The evil people running the world have done this ever since. They hate the Lord and they hate His kingdom. They hate His people. They hate real Christianity. If they could they would eliminate all real Christians. They have certainly tried.
But an interesting thing always happens in their pursuit of this goal. I remember being shown this revelation as a young believer and was absolutely enthralled at the prospect: Every time the evil ones kill a real believer greater good comes from it and even more believers spring up in his place. Every time they fight to destroy the Lord’s people the Lord raises up even more people. The devil can’t win. So he took a different path. Instead of trying to eliminate them, he thought, I will deceive them and pacify them. I will convince them they are fine when they are not. I will tell them their sin is not sin and they can do whatever they want. As he continued thinking along these lines he realized he had come upon the perfect plan: It is much better for me to fool Christians and create false “Christian” entities that refuse to teach and preach the real Gospel. By this I will capture their minds and hearts. Then I will turn the “Christians” against each other.
Of course, there are actually only a comparative few real Christians in the world, exactly as the Lord taught, as opposed to the unreal variety. The real guys suffer the bulk of the attacks for obvious reasons. The fake Christians remain warm and fuzzy and snuggled in their beds, spiritually brain dead and brainwashed. They don’t even know who the real enemy is. Then they end up honoring the evil anti-Americans who never show any signs of real repentance for all their evil deeds and by this they crucify the Lord afresh.
The cabal honors its own. But justice awaits on the other side.
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, and say, ‘If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ So you testify against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. Fill up, then, the measure of the guilt of your fathers. You serpents, you brood of vipers, how will you escape the sentence of hell? [Matthew 23:27-33] [1]
© 2018 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
HONORING THOSE WHO WENT BEFORE US
They’re all dead and in the grave. Their mortal remains are all that remain in this three dimensional world. But they still live on. They have gone to the other side.
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To those human beings who have no belief in a spiritual world, they truly are the intelligent animals they claim to be. Though intelligent might be a stretch. It is not so intelligent to have what is otherwise the obvious evidence of God’s presence and creation all around us and still not see.
Have they been taught out of the truth? I suspect this is true. I remember, as a tyke, the wonder of it all. I believe with all my heart that all very young children are very close to God. They don’t question His presence. They don’t question spiritual reality because they don’t question goodness and life and laughter and joy. Even babies laugh out loud. I get tickled when they get so tickled they can’t stop laughing.
One wonders what happens to most humans as they get older. It can be argued that maybe their environment is bad or their parents are not so good or whatever. But this is all a crock. There have been so many born of a low estate with strong challenges that later left that estate simply because they willed themselves to and refused to be brought down by circumstance. I know my own family was neither rich nor poor. We had a good house and ate well. My parents were responsible. They loved us.
Speaking of eating well in otherwise humble conditions I heard of one man who came from a very poor family but said they always had plenty of food. He said he knew this was true because when he was a hungry kid he often asked for seconds and his Dad said he already had plenty.
It used to be that families made do with a whole lot less. You do the best you can. The Lord looks upon our lives and will help if we have any faith but I believe He protects us anyway. But it is our own wills and bad choices that get us in trouble. At the end of the day we are solely responsible and will have to face the Lord alone. I think it is wise to practice this. I think it is a smart thing to do to picture ourselves before the Lord at the judgment:
“What do you have to say for yourself?” And we would say “You died in my place Sir. Without You I have no chance. I have tried to do my best. I committed many sins but repented a lot also. It took a long time but You finally convinced me that I am worthy of eternal life but only because You say so, and I believe You, and I know You love me, and I love You, and you paid my way to make it possible…”
And then I think, wait, hold on, shouldn’t one’s judgment before the Lord be a time of great joy? I mean, if we have been living by faith and trust in Him and are really trying hard to be a good Christian and have achieved something or another for Him, shouldn’t we believe that He will give us great news? I am not talking about presumption or spiritual arrogance and pride but just looking at it the way a child would. Would a young happy innocent child expect anything less than spending forever with his or her heavenly Father? This is why I think many Christians have made it all too complicated.
Those who have gone before would tell us this. They had found that the secret to living for the Lord and eventually getting to heaven was along these lines:
First of all, take the Lord at His Word. If He says the default destination of every soul is hell and that’s where you’re going without Him and all He can do for you then that’s where you’re going unless you do something about it. If He says there is another Way, a road that starts with a small gate and involves a narrow road pushed in on both sides by pressure that is sometimes not at all so comfortable, and that if one chooses this road and stays on it no matter what then one will eventually get to the destination which naturally occurs at the end of that road. We know this about every other road. No one travels without destinations in mind. The Lord’s Way has a destination.
Secondly, we have to know why we are here. The first church I belonged to after my born-again experience majored on teaching witnessing. We were always being told to go out and witness to others. So I did. A lot. With many. I was so anointed and had so much to say and everything was so brand new. I wanted everyone to know what I knew and how great the Lord was. A few years later in a new church I learned about something that was relatively new back then, or at least new to me. It was a “spiritual gifts” test based on Romans Chapter 12. Through this test I found out that I had a teaching gift. Teaching always came up first and prophesying second. This made perfect sense because I had an insatiable hunger for the Word of God and loved telling others everything I learned. Long before this I had already bought a brand new leather bound Thompson Chain Reference Bible and one of those big Strong’s concordances. I was always doing word studies and etc.
Knowing who I was and why I was here made it a lot easier to live for God. I know this will sound goofy to some who have no qualms about making fun of spiritual things, but I had discovered my mission in life. I have tried my best to honor my calling and stay on point in my mission, but as all real Christians know, we are simultaneously fighting a spiritual war and sometimes the enemy gets in some good licks and slows us down. Sometimes we mess up on our own. Sometimes we get knocked right down on our butts and it takes a while to get back up and get going again. But if we do what we had always done we will get back up. We will go on. It is due in part to a strong sense of duty and responsibility but it’s also because the work we are called to is something we enjoy and which actually charges our spiritual batteries. We also want to go stomp the devil the way he stomped us. We must never let the big idiot have the final say or the last lick. One must get up to fight again and give that piece of garbage yet another black eye and bloody lip.
Those who went before us know this also. Those solid and powerful believers did damage to the idiot’s disgusting little kingdom and rescued souls by the thousands. They knew what could be done and they did it. Their examples give us great inspiration because we see that they were just human as we are human, and the Lord was able to work through them, often in a mighty way, which gives us confidence that He can do the same with us. What a great thing it must be to complete one’s course and come to the end of the narrow road with the Lord Jesus Himself there to greet us! How cool is that?
So I encourage you all to continue on and know that if they could do it we can do it. It might seem highly unbelievable that flesh and blood human beings can somehow be transformed from this three dimensional world into an unseen spiritual world when for all practical reasons it looks like we just die and go to the grave and that’s it. But real Christianity, that which is based exclusively on the teachings of the Lord Jesus, says the grave we see is not the end of us but merely the end of a flesh and blood temple housing an eternal spirit until a future resurrection, and that we will live on forever in great joy and peace with the Lord. If we believe this and stay on the road, what He says will happen will happen. We will get there. But we must have a purpose. We must have a reason to live this life that brings honor to Him.
Those that went before us figured out early on who they were and what their purpose was and then they got after it and stayed after it. Attending to their callings made their life’s work possible, and it made life go by relatively fast. The more they paid attention to their walk the easier it was to stay on the road.
Then, after three days they found Him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, both listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard Him were amazed at His understanding and His answers. When they saw Him, they were astonished; and His mother said to Him, “Son, why have You treated us this way? Behold, Your father and I have been anxiously looking for You.” And He said to them, “Why is it that you were looking for Me? Did you not know that I had to be in My Father’s house?” [Luke 2:46-49] [1]
© 2018 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
SELLOUT MINISTERS WHO REFUSE TO TEACH THE TRUTH
Teaching the Truth is hard. It is not for the squeamish or religious sissies. It will cost you everything.
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There’s a fat boy minister who sold out a long time ago who has managed to deceive enough people to gain a very comfortable living and much undeserved respect and honor from Christians who appreciate his ability to bring in high television ratings and subsequent elevated funding. There are obviously many ministers like him. In fact, most are like him. They have done all they can to insure monetary success and high community social standing as if that was what the Lord taught us to strive for.
Of course, the Lord never taught this. As I have related here several times a fact that most never know, believe, or teach, the Lord Jesus worked very hard throughout His life and earned a lot of money prior to His public ministry. He then used that money for His ministry. He called relatively young men into His ministry and told them to drop whatever they were doing and follow Him exclusively. This meant they had to quit whatever they had been doing to earn money. This meant their wives and children would no longer have any money coming in for support. What were they to do?
Because general Christianity is relatively grossly unaware of the basic facts of New Covenant Scripture, it can hardly be expected that general Christianity would know such facts as I am presenting here. The Lord Jesus was simply supposed to be a person who dutifully and quietly went about His business as a young man and young adult earning a little money as a carpenter. There is generally little or no understanding that He was actually quite successful monetarily. One might ask, after thinking about it, how someone could not be monetarily successful if one worked hard and obeyed all the commandments. The Lord Jesus is as moral as one can be. He worked hard and never wasted His money. He must have had a lot.
We know this is true from Scripture itself, though most ministers choose to either downplay it or reject it, or change the clear meaning of Scripture (but what else is new?). The following is what the apostle Paul said on the subject:
For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich. [Corinthians 8:9]
It has usually been argued that the Greek word used here refers to spiritual riches, not monetary riches, which makes no sense, of course, especially within the context of the verse. If this was true, then the Lord was spiritually rich and then became spiritually poor so we could become spiritually rich. The problem with this is that it is impossible for the Lord Jesus, who is God Himself, to become spiritually poor. It can be argued that this indeed is what happened while He was on the cross when the sin of the world was laid upon Him, when Paul seems to say the Lord actually became sin:
He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. [2Corinthians 5:21] [1]
However, the words to be do not appear in the Greek. This makes the supposition incorrect. Paul never said what many ministers think he said. The Lord Jesus never sinned in His entire life. Therefore, the Lord did not become sin but was treated as sin. He was a sacrificial substitute on behalf of all those (us) who should otherwise have been there. Each person who ever lived should have suffered His fate but He did it for us. He suffered and died on our behalf.
His sacrificial death as a sin offering is activated when we believe in Him, follow Him, obey Him, and dedicate our lives to Him. Otherwise His sacrifice does not apply.
But getting back to the Lord Jesus and the money He earned, this must have been true because He had to support twelve men and their families after He called these men into full time ministry. If one begs to differ then one must believe the apostle’s wives and children were forced to become dependent on family or friends after their husbands ran off on a wild goose chase with an obscure itinerant preacher. Or they will argue that the Lord had somehow gained enough ongoing donations to support His cause, which would make Him dependent on outside donations. He certainly did accept donations but He could have made it monetarily on His own. Also, one must remember that He was given an unknown amount of gold as a baby which was likely taken well care of and possibly invested, as His teachings on investing money at interest would suggest.
According to the Lord’s example, ministry was never for earning money and making riches, which means the sellout ministers are violating His teachings. But who cares, right? Don’t they violate His teachings anyway by either not teaching them in their fullness or teaching things He never taught? I would think these compromised sellouts, like Mr. Fat Boy himself, would be very concerned about their eternal futures because they will have a lot of explaining to do when so many ministers who actually lived and taught correctly will be put before them as examples. And no one was a greater example than the Lord Jesus Himself who did indeed become poor so others could become rich.
This obviously means it is perfectly fine to work hard earning money honestly and becoming monetarily rich according to His will.
Though He had a lot of money He earned the bulk of it with “the sweat of His face” and then gave it all for the ministry He was called to. He used much of it to support His first disciples (students) who were BLESSED not only to attend His school but attend it for free! How many “Bible schools” do you know of in which this is true?
Here’s one more thought: I have known people who worked hard and earned money which they later used for ministry. As one example, I knew a man who was an independent oil man who later started a church and from which he never drew a salary. None of the other men helping him ever drew a salary either. They served in ministry for free. His church ended up becoming very large. They had a very large building and associated buildings. All that real estate had to have cost a lot of money but it was all initially provided for free of charge. There was obviously no debt.
They also never took up donations during services. There was never an “offering” in which ushers passed a plate or reached in the pews with velvet baskets on long poles to extract money as if the church was a beggar on the street. (“Please help the beggar Christians! Please help the beggar Christians!”) No, this church community only had a small obscure box in the entry to collect donations anyone may want to give and that was all. They never even mentioned anything about collecting money during services and yet funding was never a problem. I found it all very refreshing.
If this resonates with you I suggest you stick to your beliefs and scruples all the more as they reflect what the Bible really says on the subject and continue exposing (and praying for) the faker sellouts like Fat Boy however you are directed to. The Lord certainly did this regarding the hard core religious fakers and sellouts of his time.
But it cost Him everything.
© 2018 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
Please See This Link From Linda’s Bible Study: BLIND WATCHMEN
AWAKENING TO TRUTH: DETECTING CHRISTIAN BS
“You will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” [John 8:32]
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Real Christians are good BS Detectors. They know when people are blowing smoke. Some are excellent at this skill. Our Master and Lord is, of course, the best. He saw right through the idiot religionists of His time and hammered them hard. He did not appreciate their manner of deceiving people, their use of silly propaganda, and most of all, the way they acted out their religion to keep up appearances as outwardly righteous though possessing disingenuous hearts.
He does His best to teach this skill to His students (disciples). Most Christians have a difficult time with it, however, and there’s a specific reason why: Most Christians are not disciples. They are instead as rebellious, if not more so, than all the spiritually unregenerate people in the world who refuse to bow their knee to the Lord Jesus and acknowledge Him as God.
They get tripped up in their own limited interpretations and fall sway to savvy savants who masquerade as ministers. Before they ever get their detectors up and running they succumb to the very BS the Lord wants to protect them from.
THE HISTORICAL RECORD
Imagine that. We have very clear writings dating back two thousand years proven to be accurate and also secular documentation to prove their authenticity. Specifically, we not only have a historical record of the Lord’s life and teachings but we have it from four different perspectives. In addition to this amazing data mine we have a full history of the early Community of the Lord, a thirty year detailed record dating from just before His ascension into heaven to a few years before the death of the apostle Paul, which took place in roughly the year AD 67.
Luke, the writer of both a gospel and the Book of Acts, our aforesaid history book, has been verified as extremely precise in all that he wrote. His many detractors over the centuries have continually been proven wrong in assessing his facts as incorrect. Many of these people are now dead and their intransigent legacies have left them with eternal egg all over their formally arrogant faces. It still amazes me how the devoid-of-facts crowd which insists it knows better but actually doesn’t know squat makes up for it with negative emotion and truckloads of anger when their false interpretations and convoluted narratives are challenged. They cannot stand the thought of being proven wrong after investing so much of their lives in phony characterizations and bogus imaginings regarding the Lord Jesus and the real history of early Christianity.
DON’T CONFUSE ME WITH FACTS
Regarding unreal Christians, in all their superfluous variety, they prefer their own versions of the way things ought to be and reject handily the truths of Scripture which confirm their unstable and derelict dirt foundations. It is part of the reason we have four million Christian denominations. It is also part of the reason we continue to have spiritually brain dead preachers spouting off their nonsensical deceptive twaddle endlessly and incessantly, plugging up the airwaves and stealing the spotlight from the Lord’s real ministers. They also love engaging in personal character destruction and destroying reputations, as the unbelieving Pharisees et al attempted with the Lord. They will get theirs eventually. My hope is that they repent. Maybe they will. The odds are most won’t.
The bewitching nature of this fallen world is such that most people always buy into false narratives and are somehow seemingly blocked from truth. Deception has always run deep on planet Earth. Most of the truth blockage is often self imposed, in that people not interested in spiritual truth set up their own blockades to various levels in order to protect themselves from any encroachment of light which might possibly seep through and cause them to have to actually think about their chosen belief systems. The Lord taught that those who have no love for the truth will be blind to it. Those blind to truth can thus only believe such truth does not really exist, since they cannot possibly discern it or know what they don’t know, when in all actuality it only does not exist to them within their diminutive darkened worlds.
We know from the relatively recent phenomenon of social media that most people who engage in that particular medium almost always end up associating with like-minded people and then think their respective social constructs and belief systems are the correct ones. They then often get extremely agitated and angry with those who do not believe as they do and consider everyone not within their zone as complete nitwits. (There are obviously a multitude of zones.) They frequently reject whoever does not see things their way. This has caused a rise in great hatred for others and a deep bitterness which never shows itself until thus challenged.
What this phenomenon had done regarding social division is striking. It is stunning. But it is not new. Christians jumped in with both feet long ago and started their own social media constructs, otherwise known as denominations. Whoever differed from the company line was made to pay. Those who clutched their religious robes about them in defense of the cult saw to it that detractors would be dealt with severely. All the little sycophants had such great fear of their religious masters they meekly stayed in line and consequently remained blissfully ignorant. There were a few, however, who displayed great courage.
THE MORNING STAR OF THE REFORMATION
For example, John Wycliffe was a Catholic priest who eventually gained access to Scripture as part of his higher learning and studies, something denied to the people in general. It didn’t help for the general population that the Scriptures were not available in most languages. This was by design, of course. It was a way to keep people unaware and uninformed and thus much easier to control. The idiot religious powers-that-be greatly feared the people gaining access to the truth of Scripture, mainly because the people would then know they had been shanghaied by con artists misrepresenting themselves. They would know they were ripped-off and cheated, and taken over by what were essentially wolves in sheep’s clothing who hated the Lord Jesus and served the devil.
So what happened with Wycliffe? This was back in the 1300s. There are reams of data on his life and accomplishments. For those of you who do not know much about him I suggest you study his life. It is quite revealing and informative and will open your eyes that much more to the battle real Christians face. John Wycliffe was an English scholar who knew Latin, the language of Scripture at that time, and thus had access to the truths of the New Covenant. He had paid his dues in that he was trusted with Scripture, since he had already bought into the dictates of his denomination which happened to be Roman Catholicism. The vast majority of people who get that far become so heavily invested and dependent, both monetarily and for their religious and social reputations, that they never stray from the reservation regardless of what Scriptural truth they might learn that is contrary to the teachings of their cult.
Wycliffe was different. He was essentially one in a million. He discovered when reading the New Covenant writings that they did not match up so well with Catholic teaching. He attempted to rectify this and bring reform. He eventually completed one of the greatest works in Christian history by translating the entire Word of God into English. This was the real beginning of the Great Reformation. He never stopped being a Catholic but Catholicism hated him anyway. They failed at stopping him. They were never able to kill him but did kill many of his itinerant workers and preachers. Several of these were burned at the stake with Bibles around their necks!
Over forty years after Wycliffe’s death, his Catholic enemies, in a particularly vengeful case in point, dug up his resting remains from his otherwise peaceful grave and then crushed, burned, and scattered them in the River Swift. The incredible amount of hatred against these early Christian reformers starkly exposed the real demonic presence within the establishment Roman Catholic leadership at that time, which would stop at nothing to maintain control. This was a level of hatred seen often by many over the centuries to that time, but that particular act against such a great Christian lives on as an ignominious example of what wolves in sheep’s clothing will do to those who stray from the cult and expose it for what it is.
John Wycliffe differed from others in that he had a very powerful Christian BS Detector. Make sure yours is in good working order.
Therefore, beloved, since you look for these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless, and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation; just as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him, wrote to you, as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction.
You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, be on your guard so that you are not carried away by the error of unprincipled men and fall from your own steadfastness, but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen. [2Peter 3:14-18] [1]
© 2018 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE RED SOX BEAT THE DODGERS: BASEBALL MEETS THE 2018 MIDTERM ELECTION (2)
I know what you’re thinking. This guy thinks the World Series has something to do with the upcoming election. Well, stranger things have happened.
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I explained it all in the previous post. If you have not read it you can find it here.
The gist was that the Red team, the Boston Red Sox, represented the Republican Party. The Blue team, the Dodgers, represented the Democrat Party. Some prophetic voices have said there will be a great Republican victory in the 2018 Midterm Election. Since the Red Sox won, and won decidedly, it appears to be yet another sign confirming the prophecies.
There was supposed to be a Blue Wave, meaning a great Democrat victory. As we grew closer to the election everyone began to understand that was not going to happen. That fact alone is a Republican victory. But as it was in the Presidential Election two years ago, when most of the experts predicted the very opposite of what eventually happened, it could be the case that the tide will continue turning until next Tuesday.
According to a prophecy made many months ago by Mark Taylor, who I introduced to some of you in the last post, this tide will turn into a Red Tsunami, meaning a great Republican victory. This can only mean they will win against all odds and retain both the House and the Senate. It already looks like they will keep the Senate, something unforeseen only a matter of weeks ago. Very few, at this writing, think they have much of a chance keeping the House.
Boston won a decisive victory. In the playoffs, they won the first round against the Yankees three games to one, winning the series in New York. The Yankees were an excellent team. They then beat last year’s champions, the Houston Astros, four games to one, again winning the series on the road in Houston. The Astros were an even better team and the choice of most to repeat. Then Boston beat the Dodgers in the World Series, also four to one, in Los Angeles. Some are calling them the best Red Sox team in history. While some experts thought they would do well, I don’t think any of them thought they would do that well.
This sounds familiar…
© 2018 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
BLUE WAVE OR RED TSUNAMI? BASEBALL MEETS THE 2018 MIDTERM ELECTION (1)
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The 2018 Midterm Election is two weeks away. This first in a series of articles will delve into several high-impact subjects touching on prophecy that have been brewing for a while. Read on.
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RED SOX RED AND DODGER BLUE
The Baseball World Series starts tonight. In a very strange twist of fate, an extremely interesting coincidence, or a shocking harbinger of the coming election, the stage is set for a Red team and a Blue team. The Boston Red Sox will host the LA Dodgers of Dodger Blue fame. I know there are several Red teams and Blue teams and maybe this is not so unusual. But these two teams, both of which have very long histories in the game, have only met each other in a World Series once before, in 1916. It was the first World Series for the Dodgers. Boston beat them four games to one.
Now here we are again over a century later. The Dodgers were known as the Robins back then and hailed from Brooklyn. The Brooklyn franchise began in 1883 and was known by several names until becoming fully established as the Dodgers in 1932. The Brooklyn Dodgers moved west to Los Angeles and played their first season there in 1958. The current Dodger Stadium opened in 1962. It might seem strange, but that ballpark is now the third-oldest park in major league baseball. As near as I can tell without going into deep research the Dodgers have worn blue since at least 1910.
The Red Sox have the oldest park. Fenway Park opened in 1912. The team has done a great job, first, of keeping the park instead of tearing it down and building a new one, which they were close to doing several years ago, and second, of revamping and modernizing the park while retaining its early feel and dimensions. The Boston franchise was formed in 1901. In the first seven seasons they actually wore dark blue socks and had no official nickname. Their unofficial name was the Americans. It was not until the 1908 season when the team officially became the Boston Red Sox and wore red stockings.
REPUBLICAN RED AND DEMOCRAT BLUE
I’m not going to study this subject regarding origin, but at some point the two major parties became associated with these two primary colors. Regarding the upcoming midterm election, the political party not holding the White House traditionally does very well. This is why several months ago we began hearing the term “Blue Wave” in that the Democrats would have great success. But in addition to this there have been a few voices saying not so fast. One voice in particular has been prophesying of not just Republican success but a “Red Tsunami.” Such an occurrence would be highly unlikely, of course. But this same man prophesied that Donald Trump would become the next President of The United States. But he prophesied this in April of 2011, over four years before Donald Trump announced.
The man’s name is Mark Taylor. I’m sure many of you have heard of him. He continues to insist that these words he is receiving are prophetic and that he is not predicting anything by his own power or ability. And he has never wavered from this prophecy even though he first received it, from what I can presently ascertain, at least several months ago. Maybe some of you know the exact date. The point, however, is that he is saying that something will happen that is not supposed to happen and has not happened in probably a very long time. This time around, the midterms are supposed to belong to the Democrats. But he says the opposite will happen.
We can all recall the many experts, including the former president, who all pretty much said that Donald Trump would never be elected President. Snowballs had a better chance in hell.
They all said this very arrogantly and condescendingly. Of course, the big boys have been selecting their presidents for many decades in the guise of Americans electing them. If you control both parties and own both parties then whoever gets elected doesn’t matter. Both are mere puppets.
So maybe what will transpire in two weeks really will be a Red Tsunami. Even Bernie Sanders said yesterday that there will be no Blue Wave and that it will be very close. The same thing happened two years ago. A definite sure fire victory would happen for Clinton but as we got closer to Election Day it began to tighten up. That did not stop many ongoing crazy predictions that never came true.
So now we have the added twist with the Baseball World Series. If there is to be a Red Tsunami I would assume that means the Red Sox will beat the Dodgers again as they did 102 years ago. We’ll see.
© 2018 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
A GREAT AWAKENING PRIMER: WHO IS MORE LIKELY TO DISAPPOINT THE LORD?
There are two types of Christians: Those who obey the Lord and those who don’t. Those who don’t are often held in high esteem in church society. Why? Because substance matters little and image is everything?
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KEEPING UP APPEARANCES
Most Christians are no different from anyone else in this world. They know that the best way to get ahead and have a better life is go along with whatever program they have ascribed to and never rock the boat. They know leadership will appreciate them much more if they simply never question anything and do all they are told. They are taught that this attitude is the way of the Lord and that the Lord is against all who refuse to toe the mark. Thus, one’s standing in church society is paramount.
The reality is that this is not so much the way of the Lord but the way of those in religious control and those under their sway. It is much easier to control the people who always do what they say and weakly succumb to their leadership.
But no clergyite can control a Spirit-led child of God.
Now, this is a very strange attitude for these people to have. They are supposed to be Christian leaders. This means they must believe in the New Covenant writings and especially the pure teachings of the Lord Jesus. All their sycophants apparently believe this about them. They consider them experts in the Word of God and thus they honor them accordingly. They also believe if they do not honor them accordingly, well then, the Lord will get them and much trouble will transpire in their lives.
But are these people really all that brilliant? The reality is that the vast majority of official clergyites actually do not have much knowledge of the Word of God at all. They claim to but most are not taught of the Lord. Many of them certainly have surface knowledge but most of what they know has been received through the prism of subjective narratives. Rather than ever being taught the pure Word of God without leaven they are instead taught according to their yeasty denominational beliefs or their own limited personal beliefs. Both are lacking and both are prejudicial toward a particular viewpoint. These vaunted people, in other words, are not independently-minded but are also controlled by senior members of their respective hierarchies. They therefore must kowtow. They must pay homage to their religious culture. Their paycheck and religious standing demands it.
OUR REAL EXAMPLE—OUR ONLY EXAMPLE
The best way to gain knowledge of this reality is to simply study the life of the Lord Jesus. No person had ever honored proper religious authority as much as He. He was raised very well. He studied Scripture, like all the youth in His culture and time, from a very early age. As a young Man, He was already extremely well-versed in the Law of Moses, the Hebrew Prophets, and the Writings. He was quiet and obedient. He never caused trouble. He blended in so well no one ever thought of Him in any way but as a dutiful and obedient young Man who brought honor to His parents, family, and community. He was known in His local synagogue but likely never stood out. No one ever suspected He was more than the humble, obscure youth they were vaguely familiar with.
Except His parents. Mary knew. Joseph knew. They experienced clear, miraculous events associated with His birth. The parents of John the Immerser also knew. And Simeon knew:
And he came in the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to carry out for Him the custom of the Law, then he took Him into his arms, and blessed God, and said, “Now Lord, You are releasing Your bond-servant to depart in peace, according to Your word; For my eyes have seen Your salvation, which You have prepared in the presence of all peoples, A LIGHT OF REVELATION TO THE GENTILES, and the glory of Your people Israel.” And His father and mother were amazed at the things which were being said about Him. And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary His mother, “Behold, this Child is appointed for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and for a sign to be opposed— and a sword will pierce even your own soul—to the end that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.” [Luke 2:27-35]
Anna also knew:
And there was a prophetess, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years and had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, and then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the temple, serving night and day with fastings and prayers. At that very moment she came up and began giving thanks to God, and continued to speak of Him to all those who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem. When they had performed everything according to the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own city of Nazareth. The Child continued to grow and become strong, increasing in wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him. [Luke 2:36-40] [1]
But most of Israel then and later knew absolutely nothing about Him and this was also true of those in Nazareth. Next to no one had any spiritual vision. Most had dark hearts. Sound familiar? However, there were sordid rumors from that earlier time that did damage to Mary’s reputation. This is what most had believed. Some remembered and would bring it up on occasion. These rumors would later be used against Him.
I say all this to let everyone know that the Lord Jesus had an impeccable and perfect reputation. He had never sinned. No one had any dirt on Him whatsoever because there was none. He was just a great kid who grew into a perfect young adult. He was the type of child every parent would be proud of. He never rebelled, never caused any problems, always did what He was told, and grew into the epitome of the ideal Hebrew Man.
Yet, somehow or another, none of this mattered when the time came to begin His ministry. In the space of only a couple of months or so He became the most hated Man in Nazareth.
© 2018 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
HATE MOB: FUTURE REPERCUSSIONS
When they killed the Lord they thought that was it. He was dead. They dodged a howitzer. They would remain in power. And all their dirty deeds would remain hidden to history.
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Except that particular scenario was not the way it turned out. Not long after the pathetic kangaroo court of strident misfits where lies ruled and truth was sentenced to death the vicious perpetrators quickly realized it was not yet over and made an otherwise brilliant political move:
Now on the next day, the day after the preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered together with Pilate, and said, “Sir, we remember that when He was still alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I am to rise again.’ Therefore, give orders for the grave to be made secure until the third day, otherwise His disciples may come and steal Him away and say to the people, ‘He has risen from the dead,’ and the last deception will be worse than the first.” Pilate said to them, “You have a guard; go, make it as secure as you know how.” And they went and made the grave secure, and along with the guard they set a seal on the stone. [Matthew 27:62-66]
Once again, using the power of a foreign government for their own purposes as they had when they convinced Pilate to crucify their hated but innocent challenger, they convinced him to station a full Roman guard at the tomb. They also convinced him to seal it with the Roman stamp of approval whereby anyone who violated the seal would have to answer not to them but the Romans. One wonders how this menacing self-righteous mob had the wherewithal to engage in such outright subterfuge with nary a peep from their collective conscience. Perhaps they had no conscience. More likely they had no heart. Most likely they were getting their assignments from the dungeon master himself.
There was money on the line, and much political power. Their enemy had the audacity to expose them for what they were—a collection of sold-out hell-bound idiots intent on using every trick in their ominous arsenal to stop what must happen and what God willed to happen. Did they know they were fighting against God? Would they have stopped if they did?
With the tomb secure they slunk back to their evil lairs and dens of iniquity to wait out the remainder of the aforementioned three days whose passing would at last secure their future. They threw everything they had at Him. They destroyed His reputation. They said He was crazy. They called Him a drunk and a glutton. They later claimed He was a fornicator with a well-known harlot. They accused His mother in the worst way possible by claiming He was illegitimate. They even said He was demon-possessed. The Lord’s family members were mortified at what all these false accusations meant for their future.
This hate mob knew it was either Him or them and it wasn’t going to be them without throwing everything they had at Him.
In doing this, however, they unknowingly exposed themselves. Sane people looking on saw them not as they saw themselves, as holier than thou, as far better than lowlife unintelligent commoners. No, the outer world rightly saw them as crazy religious nuts, as people with an inbred sense of arrogance and narcissism such that all people everywhere must bend before them forever. This included the One who came to save them and deliver His people, from which they sprung, and from which they went off on an otherworldly tangent the likes of which the world had never seen.
The three days were up. Now they could breathe again. Now they knew everything would be alright. The false testimony of lying witnesses had stood up! It was believed! The pretender had met His match in them. No one would ever again challenge their master of the universe status or try what He had tried. All possible candidates would surely hold back as cowardly dogs.
AND NOW IT BEGINS. NOW IT ALL BEGINS…
While in such a state of deep contentment, sitting far back in their leather-bound chairs and smoking victory cigars, they reveled in their triumph. The morning light appeared over the Mount as a welcome harbinger of sunny success. Then suddenly, no, this cannot be, there was a great rumbling of the earth. The place shook like an olive tree during harvest. The front door was cast ajar. It seemed it would never stop. And then, there was quiet, several moments of quiet—a deathly quiet, only to be broken by distant hurried footsteps growing louder. A young man appeared in the door opening.
Uh Oh.
Still slack-jawed and open-mouthed, terror on their faces, they received the inconceivable news from the shocked and harried messenger.
“The earthquake… The tomb… It happened just like He said! The Romans can’t explain it! Nothing like this has ever happened before! He’s gone!”
Talk about your best-laid plans. The future repercussions were now unstoppable. They knew it. But nothing could ever keep them from fighting against the inevitable. And with every opposing move they dug themselves deeper in their holes. The holes became ruts. The ruts became graves. They could never go back. It was they who loosed the evil genie. And it was they who would now receive the full impact of the fate they meant for others.
Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. [Galatians 6:7] [1]
© 2018 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE HEALING OF AMERICA (A GREAT AWAKENING PARABLE)
I have a friend who is a Certified Holistic Nutrition & Lifestyle Coach. She did not choose this vocation. It was a calling that arose in the midst of a severe family crisis.
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Several years ago her husband became very sick. It kept getting worse. The illness had reached a serious stage. Traditional medical authorities had no real advice outside of radical measures and pharmaceutical drugs. She knew there must be a better way.
She decided she must take the bull by the horns. She began researching his condition. She had always maintained a traditional Christian outlook on life and had no real proclivity for anything off the beaten trail but that’s where she was heading. She entered into the outskirts of the realm normally inhabited by people on the alternative side of life who often engaged in pretty much the opposite of traditional Christian outlooks. They believed in things shunned by ultra-traditionalists who want nothing to do with anything dictated and directed by anything or anyone not perceived as official establishment authority figures. Her story and eventual long and hard-fought victory is also an inspiring parable for what has happened to America and what is coming in the near future.
YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT
Though many non-Christian beliefs and practices began entering the American mainstream in force about half a century ago, other beliefs and practices also emerged which have been proven to be wholly beneficial. One of these was, for most Americans, an entirely new paradigm on diet. This new understanding and knowledge also came at a time when the American food supply began being bombarded with all manner of harmful chemicals on an ever-increasing scale which almost all citizens were completely oblivious to. In short, Americans were being poisoned. Wholesale chemical use upon the food supply certainly did not begin then but that’s when it burgeoned forth. Like a massive evil dust cloud descending from every horizon, great fields of produce were routinely blasted with poisonous chemicals from on high. These substances were designed to kill the bugs and weeds and whatever else that preyed upon the cash crop. The perpetrators thereof were either too ignorant of what they were actually doing or did it anyway with no concern for what they were unleashing upon an unsuspecting citizenry.
People started getting sick but they didn’t know why they were getting sick. One must remember that this was from a time when people still had no understanding of such things and thus never made the connection. It was from a time when people believed “When it’s your time it’s your time.” They thought diseases just materialized out of nowhere and that there was no cause and effect. They had no understanding that lifestyle choices and the food one consumes plays a powerful role in healthy living. They didn’t understand that their food had been poisoned but the effects of the poisoning were often long-term in scope. Since nothing happened at the moment of consumption or immediately thereafter, as would certainly happen if one’s food was directly poisoned by an evil enemy, they did not detect a problem. When health problems did emerge later that were based directly on their consumption of chemically-laden food and drink they had no idea that the sicknesses that came upon their lives were directly related to what they themselves had been introducing into their bodies.
The perpetrators didn’t care because they were only concerned about the bottom line and personal or corporate profits. If they must poison Americans to gain those profits they certainly would. They covered themselves by always insisting there were no direct ties between their chemicals and American health issues, which began growing exponentially, and stated publically time after time that the idea was preposterous. But others made the connection. It always starts with a few. Hardy souls, these, who were willing to take on gargantuan and powerful interests for the sake of everyone else, but knew the fight would be next to impossible. As Christians, this should sound familiar. Since many of these whistleblowers were from what may be termed the alternative side of things, their knowledgeable warnings and pronouncements were not only fought against by the powers that be, they were also largely rejected by the majority of those they were trying to help.
This was the backdrop from fifty to sixty years ago. One may recall the book Silent Spring by Rachel Carson, published in 1962, in which she revealed the fact that powerful poisonous chemicals were routinely being sprayed all over everywhere and dropped from the sky in such massive amounts that the perpetrators thereof were killing not just the intended insects but also all manner of beneficial insects vitally necessary for a healthy environment. Many species of birds, including the American bald eagle, were being randomly obliterated. Other negatively affected wildlife would be unable to recover in the targeted areas for years to come. Americans had been instructed to have no fear, that these chemical poisons would have no effect upon them even though vulnerable members of the natural world were dropping like flies all around us (pun intended). Rachel Carson said this in a 1963 interview:
“Man’s attitude toward nature is today critically important simply because we have now acquired a fateful power to alter and destroy nature, but man is a part of nature, and his war against nature is inevitably a war against himself.”
Incidentally, this was also a time when cigarettes were routinely smoked by doctors and were often prescribed. Let that sink in. (“Here. Have a cigarette. It’s good for you.”) One wonders how people could be so unaware and trusting.
DUMB AND DUMBER BY DESIGN
It stemmed from two things: (1) Americans of that time had already been thoroughly brainwashed into always honoring all authority figures without question. It gave such people free reign to do whatever the hell they wanted without enough oversight or accountability. (2) Americans had been taught to get stupid and stay stupid. Now, this stupidity was selective. Americans in general were very bright and industrious. If whatever they engaged in stepped on no establishment toes they could do whatever they wanted. Much knowledge continued coming forth. New discoveries reached dizzying heights. People continued coming up with brilliant inventions in their garages and backyard workshops. But for the two reasons stated above almost no one ever looked into those things which Americans were conditioned and programmed to steer clear of.
This revealed a great fear of authority figures and established dominions, especially secretive government institutions. It was as if all the serfs could play but only upon their own playground. If one entered the playgrounds of the disconnected, secretive high and mighty they would initially be set upon by perimeter bullies and scared off. If they persisted and actually had the strength and wherewithal to fight them and reveal their sordid evil, they would be beat to a pulp by bigger bullies. Thus, Americans were conditioned and programmed to know their limits. They feared what would happen to them if they challenged those who were secretly ensconced behind giant mighty doors doing who knows what.
As a result we all suffered. Americans in general became like the proverbial submissive dog ducking its tail while simultaneously and otherwise walking around like cowboys and linebackers. Americans had always been a strong and powerful people but such strength and attitude was being limited to only allowable venues and otherwise made illegal in others. People have always known the ones they better not mess with unless they wanted a fight they would likely lose. But over the last hundred years Americans started learning that you better not mess with those who should otherwise be friendly allies.
COMING SOON TO AN AMERICA NEAR YOU
For example, the Constitution of the United States contains big bold letters at the very beginning: We the People. Those first people truly were the People. They were powerful, stalwart, independent figures willing to take on the devil himself anytime and anyplace. In a bold stance of gathering might they challenged the greatest power on earth that had become an intolerable overlord and put everything on the line. They gathered in their houses and taverns and open fields discussing what must be done. They had had it with all the garbage inflicted upon them from a distant unseen enemy and had enough gumption to go after them though they knew the chances of ultimate victory were next to nil. But they didn’t care. They were willing to take the chance and live the lives they knew Providence had granted them without the asinine interference from arrogant wig-wearing effeminate tax-collectors and bureaucratic henchmen. They made a call to arms.
The difference between then and what has happened in America going back first to about fifty to sixty years ago, then to about hundred years ago, and ultimately all the way back a century and a half to the War of Northern Aggression (the Civil War), was that before that evil war Americans were much more united when it came to pure Constitutional principles. What the great American Revolution had gained the War of Northern Aggression had fundamentally decimated. Further decimation happened in the years of 1913-1918. If you don’t know much about this period, that is by design, but you must educate yourself! Traitors in very high places had everything to do with these decimations of American liberty and strength. From a hundred years ago it continued unabated as if a new power had somehow come to be in charge. This was a secretive evil power that hovered over DC like a dark demonic cloud and continued growing like the evil intestinal parasite it was. By the late 1950s Americans were becoming a mere shadow of their former glory and along with this the great personal Christian morality they had once displayed before the entire world was being decimated as well.
The 1960s blew everything to hell. On the other hand, however, the Lord Jesus began doing something He had never done before. While some thoroughly involved themselves in the new evil with no concern whatsoever for others or the future, and while others huddled in their huts of fear unwilling to take on what had become a gnarly universal monster, a few began turning on to God in a way that most American Christians never had. While hell was rising heaven was also descending. Where sin began to burst forth like an intergalactic destructive algae bloom, grace was also being supplied in great quantities like new manna from heaven. The traditionalists began being squeezed out of the middle and eventually joined up with the “my country right or wrong crowd” and the evil cabal that ruled them but never did anything to right the wrongs because they were too chicken and were unaware they had been programmed and conditioned by their unseen slave masters to be exactly that way.
Those who refused to be forced into joining the look-the-other-way crowd who refused to challenge the entrenched evil took lonely stands against the otherwise obvious illegal and immoral practices that had become mainstream. Many of these were real Christians. They believed something must be done about the secretive malevolent underbelly so harmful to America and Americans.
RESTORING AMERICA TO HEALTH
When my nutritionist friend started her initial research into the true nature of the American food industry she was shocked by her findings. It was not too long before she became aware of rudimentary solutions that would assist her in restoring the health of her husband. All it took was nothing more overtly radical than changing his diet. But keep in mind, his diet was perceived as perfectly fine. No doctor ever advised him against it. He was an otherwise strong and vibrant man. He was not overweight. He was active. The problem was that the food he was eating, the same food millions of other Americans were eating, the standard American diet in other words, contained secret poisons each of which had various levels of dire effects on his body. Some are more sensitive to these poisons but all are affected in some way. Through much discipline and instruction on her part and being perfectly willing to be as disciplined to make the necessary changes on his part, he began to recover. He kept getting better. He eventually became perfectly healed. She saved his life. Literally.
Of course, the Lord had everything to do with it as well as she will readily point out. The answer was always there. It just took the right catalyst to find it.
© 2018 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
EXPOSING THE ANTICHRIST SPIRIT: THE HISTORICAL RECORD
The light of the real Gospel exposes all darkness. It shines upon all who lurk in the shadows of sin. It reveals every hidden enemy of the Lord Jesus to those with eyes to see.
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We live in a time of veiled opposition. Most people are completely unaware of the spiritual warfare raging all around them. There are times when this warfare flashes into the open. It happens whenever the real Gospel is properly presented by the power and anointing of the Holy Spirit. This is when sinners are exposed. Their sin becomes known to them. Many blessedly surrender unto salvation. When this happens on a large scale, Great Awakenings break forth. The kingdom of the Lord expands and advances.
Parallel to this, the unrepentant enemies of the Lord are also exposed, often by their own hateful and rapid reactionary response which they most often cannot manage. We call this triggering or getting triggered. It often takes place in people with low or no impulse control. A stimulus causes a reflex. Something sets them off.
That something is the truth of the Gospel. More so, it is the truth of the real identity of the Lord Jesus. When His real identity is veiled, obscured, watered-down, or removed, there is little reaction. His enemies are pacified. But when the real Gospel is brought forth and His real identity, authority, and presence are fully noted, His enemies suddenly become extremely upset and angry. They are instantly inflated with antagonism and rapidly rise up to fight. The more resentful they are the more reactionary they become. The more antichrist they are, the more they agitate.
It never changes. When the real Gospel is preached as it was in the beginning it happens. When the Lord Jesus is lifted up for who He really is it always occurs. His enemies cannot contain themselves. Their bitterness and hatred will not allow them to. They must fight back to defend their false paradigm and faulty construct to which they have dedicated their lives and in which they are fully invested.
THE EARLY CHURCH IN ACTS
The real time demonstration of this dynamic is entirely clear as plainly illustrated by the following compelling events from the Book of Acts, captured brilliantly by Luke. Many Christians are not aware of these passages and many others rebuff them as irrelevant and even inappropriate. Others are embarrassed and discomfited, as the Scriptural record does not fit their religious and cultural narratives.
Though listed here as highlighted sections in a chronological format, I encourage everyone to also read these passages in full context and thereby gain even greater insight into the genuine outworking of the original Gospel presentation, why it applies to the present, and how it exposes the antichrist spirit. We are blessed to have this historical documentation.
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. [Romans 1:16]
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THE HISTORICAL RECORD
But Saul kept increasing in strength and confounding the Jews who lived at Damascus by proving that this Jesus is the Christ. When many days had elapsed, the Jews plotted together to do away with him, but their plot became known to Saul. They were also watching the gates day and night so that they might put him to death; but his disciples took him by night and let him down through an opening in the wall, lowering him in a large basket. [Acts 9:22-25]
And he was with them, moving about freely in Jerusalem, speaking out boldly in the name of the Lord. And he was talking and arguing with the Hellenistic Jews; but they were attempting to put him to death. [Acts 9:28-29]
“You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. We are witnesses of all the things He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They also put Him to death by hanging Him on a cross.” [Acts 10:38-39]
Now about that time Herod the king laid hands on some who belonged to the church in order to mistreat them. And he had James the brother of John put to death with a sword. When he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. Now it was during the days of Unleavened Bread. [Acts 12:1-3]
When they reached Salamis, they began to proclaim the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews; and they also had John as their helper. When they had gone through the whole island as far as Paphos, they found a magician, a Jewish false prophet whose name was Bar-Jesus, who was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence. This man summoned Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God. But Elymas the magician (for so his name is translated) was opposing them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith. [Acts 13:5-8]
The next Sabbath nearly the whole city assembled to hear the word of the Lord. But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and began contradicting the things spoken by Paul, and were blaspheming. Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and said, “It was necessary that the word of God be spoken to you first; since you repudiate it and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles. For so the Lord has commanded us, ‘I HAVE PLACED YOU AS A LIGHT FOR THE GENTILES, THAT YOU MAY BRING SALVATION TO THE END OF THE EARTH.’” When the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord; and as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed. And the word of the Lord was being spread through the whole region. But the Jews incited the devout women of prominence and the leading men of the city, and instigated a persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and drove them out of their district. But they shook off the dust of their feet in protest against them and went to Iconium. And the disciples were continually filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit. [Acts 13:44-52]
In Iconium they entered the synagogue of the Jews together, and spoke in such a manner that a large number of people believed, both of Jews and of Greeks. But the Jews who disbelieved stirred up the minds of the Gentiles and embittered them against the brethren. Therefore they spent a long time there speaking boldly with reliance upon the Lord, who was testifying to the word of His grace, granting that signs and wonders be done by their hands. But the people of the city were divided; and some sided with the Jews, and some with the apostles. And when an attempt was made by both the Gentiles and the Jews with their rulers, to mistreat and to stone them, they became aware of it and fled to the cities of Lycaonia, Lystra and Derbe, and the surrounding region; and there they continued to preach the gospel. [Acts 14:1-7]
But Jews came from Antioch and Iconium, and having won over the crowds, they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing him to be dead. But while the disciples stood around him, he got up and entered the city. The next day he went away with Barnabas to Derbe. [Acts 14:19-20]
But the Jews, becoming jealous and taking along some wicked men from the market place, formed a mob and set the city in an uproar; and attacking the house of Jason, they were seeking to bring them out to the people. When they did not find them, they began dragging Jason and some brethren before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have upset the world have come here also; and Jason has welcomed them, and they all act contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus.” They stirred up the crowd and the city authorities who heard these things. And when they had received a pledge from Jason and the others, they released them. [Acts 17:5-9]
But when the Jews of Thessalonica found out that the word of God had been proclaimed by Paul in Berea also, they came there as well, agitating and stirring up the crowds. Then immediately the brethren sent Paul out to go as far as the sea; and Silas and Timothy remained there. [Acts 17:13-14]
And he was reasoning in the synagogue every Sabbath and trying to persuade Jews and Greeks. But when Silas and Timothy came down from Macedonia, Paul began devoting himself completely to the word, solemnly testifying to the Jews that Jesus was the Christ. But when they resisted and blasphemed, he shook out his garments and said to them, “Your blood be on your own heads! I am clean. From now on I will go to the Gentiles.” Then he left there and went to the house of a man named Titius Justus, a worshiper of God, whose house was next to the synagogue. [Acts 18:4-7]
But while Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews with one accord rose up against Paul and brought him before the judgment seat, saying, “This man persuades men to worship God contrary to the law.” But when Paul was about to open his mouth, Gallio said to the Jews, “If it were a matter of wrong or of vicious crime, O Jews, it would be reasonable for me to put up with you; but if there are questions about words and names and your own law, look after it yourselves; I am unwilling to be a judge of these matters.” And he drove them away from the judgment seat. And they all took hold of Sosthenes, the leader of the synagogue, and began beating him in front of the judgment seat. But Gallio was not concerned about any of these things. [Acts 18:12-17]
After the uproar had ceased, Paul sent for the disciples, and when he had exhorted them and taken his leave of them, he left to go to Macedonia. When he had gone through those districts and had given them much exhortation, he came to Greece. And there he spent three months, and when a plot was formed against him by the Jews as he was about to set sail for Syria, he decided to return through Macedonia. [Acts 20:1-3]
From Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called to him the elders of the church. And when they had come to him, he said to them, “You yourselves know, from the first day that I set foot in Asia, how I was with you the whole time, serving the Lord with all humility and with tears and with trials which came upon me through the plots of the Jews; how I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you publicly and from house to house, solemnly testifying to both Jews and Greeks of repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. [Acts 20:17-21]
As we were staying there for some days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. And coming to us, he took Paul’s belt and bound his own feet and hands, and said, “This is what the Holy Spirit says: ‘In this way the Jews at Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.’” When we had heard this, we as well as the local residents began begging him not to go up to Jerusalem. [Acts 21:10-12]
Then Paul took the men, and the next day, purifying himself along with them, went into the temple giving notice of the completion of the days of purification, until the sacrifice was offered for each one of them. When the seven days were almost over, the Jews from Asia, upon seeing him in the temple, began to stir up all the crowd and laid hands on him, crying out, “Men of Israel, come to our aid! This is the man who preaches to all men everywhere against our people and the Law and this place; and besides he has even brought Greeks into the temple and has defiled this holy place.” For they had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian in the city with him, and they supposed that Paul had brought him into the temple. Then all the city was provoked, and the people rushed together, and taking hold of Paul they dragged him out of the temple, and immediately the doors were shut. While they were seeking to kill him, a report came up to the commander of the Roman cohort that all Jerusalem was in confusion. [Acts 21:26-31]
But on the next day, wishing to know for certain why he had been accused by the Jews, he released him and ordered the chief priests and all the Council to assemble, and brought Paul down and set him before them. Paul, looking intently at the Council, said, “Brethren, I have lived my life with a perfectly good conscience before God up to this day.” The high priest Ananias commanded those standing beside him to strike him on the mouth. Then Paul said to him, “God is going to strike you, you whitewashed wall! Do you sit to try me according to the Law, and in violation of the Law order me to be struck?” [Acts 22:30 – 23:3]
And as a great dissension was developing, the commander was afraid Paul would be torn to pieces by them and ordered the troops to go down and take him away from them by force, and bring him into the barracks. But on the night immediately following, the Lord stood at his side and said, “Take courage; for as you have solemnly witnessed to My cause at Jerusalem, so you must witness at Rome also.” When it was day, the Jews formed a conspiracy and bound themselves under an oath, saying that they would neither eat nor drink until they had killed Paul. There were more than forty who formed this plot. They came to the chief priests and the elders and said, “We have bound ourselves under a solemn oath to taste nothing until we have killed Paul. Now therefore, you and the Council notify the commander to bring him down to you, as though you were going to determine his case by a more thorough investigation; and we for our part are ready to slay him before he comes near the place.”
But the son of Paul’s sister heard of their ambush, and he came and entered the barracks and told Paul. Paul called one of the centurions to him and said, “Lead this young man to the commander, for he has something to report to him.” So he took him and led him to the commander and said, “Paul the prisoner called me to him and asked me to lead this young man to you since he has something to tell you.” The commander took him by the hand and stepping aside, began to inquire of him privately, “What is it that you have to report to me?” And he said, “The Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul down tomorrow to the Council, as though they were going to inquire somewhat more thoroughly about him. So do not listen to them, for more than forty of them are lying in wait for him who have bound themselves under a curse not to eat or drink until they slay him; and now they are ready and waiting for the promise from you.” So the commander let the young man go, instructing him, “Tell no one that you have notified me of these things.” And he called to him two of the centurions and said, “Get two hundred soldiers ready by the third hour of the night to proceed to Caesarea, with seventy horsemen and two hundred spearmen.” They were also to provide mounts to put Paul on and bring him safely to Felix the governor. [Acts 23:10-13]
After five days the high priest Ananias came down with some elders, with an attorney named Tertullus, and they brought charges to the governor against Paul. After Paul had been summoned, Tertullus began to accuse him, saying to the governor, “Since we have through you attained much peace, and since by your providence reforms are being carried out for this nation, we acknowledge this in every way and everywhere, most excellent Felix, with all thankfulness. But, that I may not weary you any further, I beg you to grant us, by your kindness, a brief hearing. For we have found this man a real pest and a fellow who stirs up dissension among all the Jews throughout the world, and a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes. And he even tried to desecrate the temple; and then we arrested him. We wanted to judge him according to our own Law. But Lysias the commander came along, and with much violence took him out of our hands, ordering his accusers to come before you. By examining him yourself concerning all these matters you will be able to ascertain the things of which we accuse him.” The Jews also joined in the attack, asserting that these things were so. [Acts 24:1-9]
Festus then, having arrived in the province, three days later went up to Jerusalem from Caesarea. And the chief priests and the leading men of the Jews brought charges against Paul, and they were urging him, requesting a concession against Paul, that he might have him brought to Jerusalem (at the same time, setting an ambush to kill him on the way). Festus then answered that Paul was being kept in custody at Caesarea and that he himself was about to leave shortly. [Acts 25:1-4]
After he had spent not more than eight or ten days among them, he went down to Caesarea, and on the next day he took his seat on the tribunal and ordered Paul to be brought. After Paul arrived, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him, bringing many and serious charges against him which they could not prove, while Paul said in his own defense, “I have committed no offense either against the Law of the Jews or against the temple or against Caesar.” But Festus, wishing to do the Jews a favor, answered Paul and said, “Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and stand trial before me on these charges?” But Paul said, “I am standing before Caesar’s tribunal, where I ought to be tried. I have done no wrong to the Jews, as you also very well know. If, then, I am a wrongdoer and have committed anything worthy of death, I do not refuse to die; but if none of those things is true of which these men accuse me, no one can hand me over to them. I appeal to Caesar.” Then when Festus had conferred with his council, he answered, “You have appealed to Caesar, to Caesar you shall go.” [Acts 25:6-12]
So, King Agrippa, I did not prove disobedient to the heavenly vision, but kept declaring both to those of Damascus first, and also at Jerusalem and then throughout all the region of Judea, and even to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, performing deeds appropriate to repentance. For this reason some Jews seized me in the temple and tried to put me to death. So, having obtained help from God, I stand to this day testifying both to small and great, stating nothing but what the Prophets and Moses said was going to take place; that the Christ was to suffer, and that by reason of His resurrection from the dead He would be the first to proclaim light both to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles.” [Acts 26:19-23]
When they had set a day for Paul, they came to him at his lodging in large numbers; and he was explaining to them by solemnly testifying about the kingdom of God and trying to persuade them concerning Jesus, from both the Law of Moses and from the Prophets, from morning until evening. Some were being persuaded by the things spoken, but others would not believe. And when they did not agree with one another, they began leaving after Paul had spoken one parting word, “The Holy Spirit rightly spoke through Isaiah the prophet to your fathers, saying, ‘GO TO THIS PEOPLE AND SAY, “YOU WILL KEEP ON HEARING, BUT WILL NOT UNDERSTAND; AND YOU WILL KEEP ON SEEING, BUT WILL NOT PERCEIVE; FOR THE HEART OF THIS PEOPLE HAS BECOME DULL, AND WITH THEIR EARS THEY SCARCELY HEAR, AND THEY HAVE CLOSED THEIR EYES; OTHERWISE THEY MIGHT SEE WITH THEIR EYES, AND HEAR WITH THEIR EARS, AND UNDERSTAND WITH THEIR HEART AND RETURN, AND I WOULD HEAL THEM.”’ Therefore let it be known to you that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles; they will also listen.” When he had spoken these words, the Jews departed, having a great dispute among themselves.
And he stayed two full years in his own rented quarters and was welcoming all who came to him, preaching the kingdom of God and teaching concerning the Lord Jesus Christ with all openness, unhindered. [Acts 28:23-31] [1]
© 2018 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE DESIGNATED HECKLERS
What would happen in any of our hallowed church services if someone in the congregation stood up and started heckling the preacher in the name of “correcting” him?
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Everywhere the Lord went during His ministry He enjoyed support and success, and the joy of knowing He was making a difference in the lives of those He loved.
Then the hecklers showed up. They couldn’t help themselves. They lived to confront Him, question Him, tell Him He was wrong about everything, complain about Him, call Him names, call His mother names, and generally be ongoing everlasting pests that dogged Him without end.
They were never satisfied. Every correct answer He gave was never good enough. For the most part He stayed calm and collected, knowing He was dealing with dimwits. They never cared so much about all the good He was doing or could do, but only that He wasn’t doing it their way. He wasn’t teaching their way. He wasn’t teaching what they taught (and thank goodness for that). He didn’t buy in to all their religious stuff. He wasn’t into getting rich off the ministry or turning it into a job. He didn’t care so much about making a name for Himself, so to speak, or standing up for His honor and His character. He knew He was only passing through and that most would reject Him. In that process, He strove to find the few who appreciated Him and were open to His ministry. He came to help but was often treated really bad by incessant detractors.
There were times when He had to be strong and tell ‘em off. His many rebukathons are never heard in most churches and ministries today. Many ministers wish these powerful and strong words of His that make many nominal believers (themselves included) so uncomfortable, had never been recorded. Such words don’t sound very loving. Though the Lord Jesus IS Love and no one could possibly be more loving, many Christians believe He didn’t sound so loving at all when He ripped the Pharisees and their associated ilk to the core of their being.
HIPPIES IN LEISURE SUITS
Some churches and ministry organizations have effectively eliminated all things discipleship. They don’t want to mention anything even closely resembling spiritual warfare, hardship, or suffering. Everything is all bright and peachy keen and rainbows and lollipops and many of these people look and act like hippies in leisure suits. These people love everyone who believes exactly as they do.
“Um, the Lord was crucified. It was a bloody, violent death. All of the original twelve, except apparently, John, died the violent bloody deaths of martyrs. Paul had his head cut off. So did James. So did John the Immerser. Anything like that ever happen around here?”
Such hate portends the presence of a very violent enemy who will stop at nothing. When given the chance this enemy will kill every real Christian he possibly can. Millions of real Christians have died such a death. They all stood tall. They are all great heroes. Though you rarely hear about it in churches and most ministries, not to mention, obviously the main stream media, real Christians are presently undergoing severe persecution all over the planet and have been for a long time, especially in places like China where they are having a major impact.
In America, we don’t see this. It is because American Christianity in general is not much of a threat. It is also because we have laws against it. It is because America is the one country in the world that has the highest level of religious freedom written into its founding Constitution. This does not mean there will not be persecution. This does not mean there is not persecution. It only means the persecution comes in a different form. The persecution still comes to the greatest extent that it can and the perpetrators thereof certainly wish they could do much more, as was done to the originals. But alas, the enemies of the Lord are restricted by freedom principles established by our founders and the great American patriots of that time. No other country ever had such great ones and that’s why no other country has our freedoms, especially the freedom to serve the Lord Jesus the way He has called us to do.
DEFINING GREATNESS
I have an internet friend. His name is Bill. He has a disease that leaves him bound in a wheelchair unable to move or even talk. But he has a blog. He has had it for years. He says what he wants to say. Even though his body almost doesn’t work at all he still manages to speak his heart and lift up the name of Jesus. He would probably wish I would shut up about Him but I appreciate him and see him as a very great man. He is a hero. He has effectively said, “Fine. My health is pretty much gone. But I’m still here. AND I AM GOING TO DO WHAT THE LORD HAS CALLED ME TO DO REGARDLESS.” The enemy will never stop him. Ever.
Many of us have suffered greatly and suffered great losses. But we go on. We see what happened to the Lord. We see what they did to all the early believers. We see how real Christians are persecuted all the live long day by those who insist on perpetrating suffering to uphold their own beliefs and traditions. Because we have laws in America, all these people can do for the most part is bring insults and attempt to destroy one’s name and character.
I have another internet friend. Her name is Kat. She is one of those stalwart ones who preach against abortion, including right out on the sidewalks in front of abortion mills. It is her life. The Lord called her to it. She knows many more have been called but most don’t go. It is too hard. They don’t want the hassle. She works extremely hard and is very dedicated. You probably don’t want to know about all the insults and threats she and her associates have suffered. It is pretty much ongoing. She has effectively said, “Abortion is a great evil. It must end. Babies must be saved. AND I AM GOING TO DO WHAT THE LORD HAS CALLED ME TO DO REGARDLESS.” The enemy will never stop her. Ever.
THE REAL GOSPEL
We know by the Lord’s example what we must do. As Christians we are all called to help Him save the lost. The mature are all specialists by gifting according to the Romans 12 model. Those of us who have been at it a long time have been slandered and reviled, and this never stops. Most people are never a problem. Even non-believers can be quite friendly and charming, and even supportive. There will always be some unbelievers, however, who are quick to strike out and show the hatred in their hearts. But most don’t do this. Those who do are miffed because their beliefs get challenged.
Well, that’s pretty much what the real Gospel does. It challenges beliefs. When the real Gospel comes to town all the little imps come out of their hovels and start throwing hissy fits. They get their panties in a wad. These are those who have bought into something contrary to the Gospel and do not appreciate being told they have been deceived. The real Gospel thus causes powerful reactions. For one person, it is Good News that sets him or her free and makes life abundant and joyous. For another, it is heresy, and strange and weird and off-putting and evil. One accepts it with open arms and another rejects it with a passion.
Regarding the Lord’s Gospel preaching method (since He created the Gospel), the following are two differing approaches depending on the audience:
THAT DOESN’T SOUND SO LOVING
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel! Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence. You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.” [Matthew 23:23-28]
BUT DIDN’T YOU JUST SAY…?
“But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. Whoever hits you on the cheek, offer him the other also; and whoever takes away your coat, do not withhold your shirt from him either. Give to everyone who asks of you, and whoever takes away what is yours, do not demand it back. Treat others the same way you want them to treat you. If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. If you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners in order to receive back the same amount. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil men. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.” [Luke 6:27-36]
CORRECT SPIRITUAL BEHAVIOR
From these passages we know there will be designated hecklers and that they must be loved. The Lord taught this. No other curriculum teaches this. Most people think it is impossible to bridge such a contrary gap. The chasm is too wide. You can’t get there from here. Paul wrote:
Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor; not lagging behind in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation, devoted to prayer, contributing to the needs of the saints, practicing hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. [Romans 12:9-14] [1]
On the one hand the Lord’s enemies were always coming after Him with a passion with a firm belief that their job was to heckle Him always to prove themselves right and Him wrong. Otherwise they knew they would lose. They had to defend their enterprise, their chosen belief system, and their hand-picked “facts.” On the other hand the Lord said to love them, something no one can really do except with His help. The fact that He loved them did not stop Him from telling them off. But a word of caution here: It is relatively easy to tell someone off. It is not so easy to turn the other cheek. What this means is that the more the designated hecklers come after those they insist are wrong, the more they will be subjected to the same treatment in some form or another from someone or something else. The Lord was strong enough to take it and thus was both strong enough and qualified to dish it out when necessary. (Plus, He was never wrong.)
The designated hecklers are not lovers because if they were lovers they would not be heckling. What the Lord did during His rebukathons was not heckling. It was telling the truth about their real motivation for the sake of illustrating correct spiritual behavior. But it cost Him. He knew it would cost Him. Loving them was what kept Him from feeling otherwise about them, and that is the lesson.
It is the triumph of love over hatred and good over evil.
© 2018 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE ACCUSER OF THE BRETHREN
And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. Then I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down, he who accuses them before our God day and night.” [Revelation 12:9-10]
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FROM THE INTERNATIONAL STANDARD BIBLE ENCYCLOPEDIA:
124 Accuser: <a-kuz’-er> This word, not found in the Old Testament, is the rendering of two Greek words:
(1) Greek: kategoros, that is, a prosecutor, or plaintiff in a lawsuit, or one who speaks in a derogatory way of another (Acts 23:30, 35; 25:16, 18; Rev 12:10);
(2) Greek: diabolos, meaning adversary or enemy. This word is rendered “accuser” in the King James Version and “slanderer” in the Revised Version (British and American) and the American Standard Revised Version (2Timothy 3:3; Titus 2:3).
According to the rabbinic teaching Satan, or the devil, was regarded as hostile to God and man, and that it was a part of his work to accuse the latter of disloyalty and sin before the tribunal of the former (see Job 1:6 ff; Zechariah 3:1 f; Revelation 12:10).
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THE ADVERSARY AT WORK
We gather from the Book of Job that The Adversary (HaSatan) is in the business of doing everything possible to denigrate the people of God. As the early conversation goes, the Lord holds up Job to be a good example and a fine servant:
The LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered My servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, fearing God and turning away from evil.” [Job 1:8]
The Adversary was just getting started. He had plenty of fuel left. He rammed it into high gear and began telling the Lord it was only because He protects him so, and makes him virtually impervious to attack. He said:
“Does Job fear God for nothing? Have You not made a hedge about him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But put forth Your hand now and touch all that he has; he will surely curse You to Your face.” [Job 1:9-11]
And this, thus, is the challenge. The Lord indeed protects His people but there are times when they must be tested. They are often tested, as per the Lord’s example, when something profound is about to happen. They must be found with no pride or arrogance. In essence, they must be tested and submitted to a process by which they can be purged of anything possibly within them that causes them to act like the enemy.
OVERCOMING THE FLESH
“Keep watching and praying that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” [Matthew 26:41]
In New Covenant terminology, there is much reference to “the flesh.” It is defined as that part of a person which is indicative of one’s lower nature, that of purely natural processes, in which one acts according to one’s pure sinful humanity rather than according to the Spirit. The process of discipleship is therefore an ongoing progression toward developing a spiritual nature rather than a carnal one. The carnal nature wants to always be first, number one, and act out of personal pride. It is the antithesis of spiritual humility.
As I mentioned in my last post, the Lord Jesus said we must be as children. Young children have yet to develop the carnal nature brought on by advancement in sin. They are often joyous, happy, trusting, and humble. In answer to those of His disciples who were arguing about which of them might be the greatest, the Lord put forth the following:
But Jesus, knowing what they were thinking in their heart, took a child and stood him by His side, and said to them, “Whoever receives this child in My name receives Me, and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me; for the one who is least among all of you, this is the one who is great.” [Luke 9:47-48]
The Lord obviously has a different definition of greatness. One sees this greatness in Him, as He is the most humble Man who ever lived, very self-effacing and always willing to turn the other cheek. He allowed Himself to be persecuted in such a way that those close to Him did not understand. In saying at His ongoing trial right before His death that His kingdom was not of this world, it helps explain so many of His actions when it appeared He never took up for Himself the way most people do.
He knew who He was, of course, but also lived according to a higher standard that is contrary to living according to basic human nature, in which selfishness and pride must rule.
The Lord Jesus was filled with the Spirit of God without measure, as the Father in His fullness dwelt within Him. He is God in flesh. But He still had His flesh to deal with. He overcame His flesh on an ongoing basis and never, ever allowed it to have the upper hand. Because He disciplined His flesh in such a powerful manner, His flesh was always subservient to His Spirit. This took a lot of work, the kind most people know nothing about, which also includes many Christians. Overcoming the flesh is a must for the spiritual disciple of the Lord. It is the only way one’s spirit can rule. But long before that occurrence can ever happen, one’s spirit must be born. It is why all real believers undergo a born-again experience. Otherwise, the flesh, or lower human nature, remains in charge.
Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. [Galatians 5:19-21]
Those who do practice such things must be under the Law. They have not taken authority over their lower nature and must therefore be ruled from without by a higher power. They must be told what they can and cannot do on a daily basis. Their conscience must always be at work to give them every opportunity of assistance toward knowing right and wrong, since they cannot control themselves. It is, of course, possible to overcome the dictates and desires of the flesh somewhat through personal (non-spiritual) discipleship of a kind, but this usually involves the mere strapping-on-of-the-plow for singular purposes which have no bearing on taking full control, since such is impossible. Those who appear to achieve it only give the impression of overcoming their lower nature but at best all they do is temporarily suppress it. There is only one way to defeat the flesh and bring it under subjection and that is by the Spirit of God.
WINNING THE BATTLE
Perhaps this is why there must be an accuser. As in the previously stated ISBE definition, the accuser is as “a prosecutor, or plaintiff in a lawsuit, or one who speaks in a derogatory way of another.” This is what HaSatan did to Job. The Lord spoke of Job in glowing terms. He was quite proud of His child. But the devil had to do his part, in that he must make every attempt to prove to God that Job was indeed not so great at all. He felt strongly he could prosecute him successfully if given the chance.
“Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men.” [Matthew 5:10-13]
When people join in with the devil to help him in his work, they engage in the insults as listed above. The flesh hates such insults, in that it will always strike back against attack and accusations if at all possible, unless greater damage may be done to it. What the Lord taught in this regard is absolutely completely contrary to the will of the flesh. He said disciples must rejoice when under persecution and undergoing slander? Yes. It is counterintuitive. It makes no sense to a carnal mind. But all this is illustrated in the life of Job. He was put to the test. His life was virtually destroyed. He lost everything. But he never lost his faith in God. He was being made fun of and accused even by his friends. His own wife told him to curse God. How many could hold up under such an onslaught? How many can withstand such ongoing adversarial tactics? How many can overcome the Accuser of the Brethren?
Those passing by were hurling abuse at Him, wagging their heads, and saying, “Ha! You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself, and come down from the cross!” [Mark 15:29-31]
But Jesus was saying, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” And they cast lots, dividing up His garments among themselves. And the people stood by, looking on. And even the rulers were sneering at Him, saying, “He saved others; let Him save Himself if this is the Christ of God, His Chosen One.” [Luke 23:33-35] [1]
© 2018 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
DANCING WITH THE DEVIL
Engaging the enemy to advance one’s present cause will demand eventual future payment, and the latter will be much greater than the former.
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Therefore the chief priests and the Pharisees convened a council, and were saying, “What are we doing? For this man is performing many signs. If we let Him go on like this, all men will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.” But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing at all, nor do you take into account that it is expedient for you that one man die for the people, and that the whole nation not perish.” Now he did not say this on his own initiative, but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but in order that He might also gather together into one the children of God who are scattered abroad. So from that day on they planned together to kill Him. [John 11:47-53]
They knew they could never get the job done on their own. They were not powerful enough. They knew they must actually engage their avowed enemy in order to kill their greatest enemy. It was at the preceding meeting when a conspiracy of much greater comport was brought forth. They had conspired before on several occasions. They had gotten together in their secret, grungy little hideaways and poured over the possibilities of how they might do Him in but it always came to no avail. They failed on every previous occasion.
But when they at last decided on the most diabolical trick of all, to engage the Roman Empire in their sad little conspiracy, they were on the road to success. In common parlance this is called “selling one’s soul to the devil.” We know this is done. There is certainly a devil and he will certainly work to advance the cause of those who want the same things he wants, and it doesn’t matter if they like him or worship him or not. He knows the very act of their willing engagement is enough to please and satisfy him, and gives him that much more of an opportunity to advance his own cause.
The way this generally works is one decides to invoke a higher power to gain personal power and wealth, and the ability to satisfy one’s lusts to the nth degree. The devil is only too willing to comply. If one believes this process is not possible and is only a fanciful myth, one might want to know that even the Holy Scriptures state that the devil is the overall ruling power of this present world and that his power and authority is superseded only by the Lord Himself:
Therefore, since we have this ministry, as we received mercy, we do not lose heart, but we have renounced the things hidden because of shame, not walking in craftiness or adulterating the word of God, but by the manifestation of truth commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God. And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. [2Corinthians 4:1-4]
One may wonder how the devil has such power that he can make people oblivious to the Gospel which would otherwise set them free. How does he blind them? It is actually very simple: They must be unbelieving. If one chooses not to believe he subjects himself to spiritual blindness. If one has no love for the truth the truth will consequently be hidden to him. The Lord protects His Truth and His Gospel and does not throw His pearls before swine. Because they do not believe, they cut themselves off from any advancement or blessing from the Lord.
This leaves them with only two choices. They can attempt to make it in this world only through their own power and strength which includes help from other unbelievers. Most, however, have no such access to higher human power or wealth and know that those who have it will probably never allow them in their exclusive clubs. Their lives, then, are destined to be humble.
The second choice is to invoke the only other higher power available. Many unbelievers want no part of this, though. They are wise enough in their own eyes that such a route will cost them later and their personal desires are such that they would rather do without or with very little and thus maintain their own pride and limited freedom. Historically, these people usually comprise the lower classes. They are not tied into those with wealth, the higher classes, and refuse, possibly from fear, any close association with the devil. Their understanding is limited but at least they are not sell-outs.
Regarding those who refuse to be denied, however, they simply do not care about any future payment. They have enough confidence in themselves that they feel they will find a way out of that when the time comes or simply continue to negotiate and make future deals. When the political/religious leaders of the Jews in the first century decided to make a deal with the Romans to get the Lord, it was not as if they were not already well aware of invoking high demonic powers. This had already been part of their modus operandi.
The Lord Jesus had already revealed their hearts and motives on this and rebuked them for it. He told them and the entire nation what they were. They were exposed.
They had no legal authority to kill Him but the Romans did. It was thus to the Romans they went but only in a very deceptive, conspiratorial way. They rigged things behind the scenes in such a way that they essentially grabbed Pontius Pilate by the, well, by the heart, we will say. He had no idea what was going on until the trap was sprung. When it was he suddenly saw his entire career and reputation going up in flames if he did not comply with their wishes. To say this was diabolical on their part is somewhat of an understatement, if that is possible, in that I think they must have greatly impressed the devil with their conniving.
They were thinking only about the present. If they did think at all about the future they never expected what would eventually happen. They effectively not only sealed their own fate, they sealed the fate of their nation. That the Lord died for the nation is true, but only for the believing remnant. When full payment was eventually called for, the unbelievers were forced to pay in full. They lost it all. And in a strange karmic-déjà vu twist of Biblical proportions, it was those very Romans who brought forth both justice and judgment. The conspirators destroyed themselves with their own scheming brilliance.
And He called a child to Himself and set him before them, and said, “Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me; but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him to have a heavy millstone hung around his neck, and to be drowned in the depth of the sea. “Woe to the world because of its stumbling blocks! For it is inevitable that stumbling blocks come; but woe to that man through whom the stumbling block comes!” [Matthew 18:2-7] [1]
© 2018 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE TRUTH DIALOGUES (COMPILATION)
In early to mid-December of 2017 I posted a three-part series called The Truth Dialogues. These posts are parabolic in nature revealing hidden truths for those with eyes to see.
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In these posts one will discover figurative indicators of hidden subterfuge currently being revealed in the real world in real time. There is an exposing process taking place on the national scene as preparatory to a national cleansing process. The corruption had reached massive levels with next to zero accountability. The bold hubris of the people involved reached astronomical proportions, both for what was never before attempted and also for the complete disregard for the law, individual rights, common decency, and basic morality.
The Lord told anyone who was listening during His ministry that the massive corruption of His time was about to be exposed and dealt with, and He was the first one on the scene after John the Immerser to begin the process. His ministry not only featured the presentation of truth and the hope of salvation being made readily available for those who were willing, it was also greatly reformative. He would shine His pure Light on all the hidden vermin, rats, and roaches that had wrested control for monetary controlling purposes and selfish, immoral personal agendas, and expose them for all to see. He would also, in the end, bring everlasting judgment on the cabal in question.
Here is your opportunity to revisit these posts and discover light for our present times as new information of relatively recent misdeeds keeps rolling in:
December 01, 2017: THE TRUTH DIALOGUES: EPISODE 1
December 05, 2017: THE TRUTH DIALOGUES: EPISODE 2
December 19, 2017: THE TRUTH DIALOGUES: EPISODE 3
© 2018 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
REAL CHRISTIANITY DEMANDS IMPOSSIBLE VICTORIES: RISING TO THE CHALLENGE IN 2018
Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” [John 2:19]
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We call it the Church. This word is from the Greek word Ekklesia. The Hebrew word is Qahal. It refers to the entire worldwide congregation of the Lord Jesus. Relationally, it is a spiritual community composed of all believers working together. It was known in the beginning as “The Community of the Called-Out Ones.” It has never referred to a single denomination though some have appropriated the title.
The Church is not a building. Though we call them “churches” today that was not the case in the beginning. In fact, there were no official church buildings for THREE CENTURIES. The early believers met almost exclusively in private homes. They did not “go to church” in order to “have church.” Real Christians ARE the Church.
The best chance the enemy had at destroying the Church was destroying the Lord. If God’s enemies could manage to kill Him before He did any more damage to their kingdom they would succeed at eliminating the possibility of the Lord’s movement reaching the powerful spiritual level it was blessed with at Pentecost. The devil knew he could never allow that to happen or he would lose it all.
So the Lord had to be destroyed. They tried it several times, even at the beginning of His ministry at Nazareth, but continued to be woefully unsuccessful. No matter how hard they tried they couldn’t get Him.
They claimed He was a liar, a false prophet, and certainly a false messiah. They said He was demon-possessed. They insisted He was crazy, something even His own family considered. They also said He was a drunk and a glutton. Imagine that. After a forty-day fast? Those idiots did everything they possibly could do destroy Him and His reputation. They attempted to destroy His good Name. Many were convinced by their lies.
But those who felt compelled to believe in Him were never convinced by such falsehoods. They knew all of these false pronouncements were lies. They knew the Lord’s enemies must lie about Him and slander Him in an attempt to destroy Him so they could save their own lives and their own reputations. They had previously succeeded in convincing almost everybody that they were right, that they were legitimate, that they were in religious control legally and by divine right. This meant the entire temple complex. It meant every synagogue. The bad guys had taken control of the entire operation.
“No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.” Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, were listening to all these things and were scoffing at Him. And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God.” [Luke 16:13-15]
They dressed very well for the part. They did anything they could to look like holy men, to look like men separated out by God for His purposes, and claimed exclusive religious authority over the people. They created a higher caste in which they deemed themselves the only worthwhile members. They relegated everyone else—the 99%—to the lowest of the low and thereby created another class, one of voiceless nobodies with no authority, and denied them a proper spiritual education, allowing them to be taught only the false doctrines and dogmas of their exclusive club. Whoever dissented was made to pay. They even violated the Law of Moses by creating their own unwritten interpretation that eventually gained more prominence than the Law itself.
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel! Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence. You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.” [Matthew 23:23-28]
When the time came for the Lord to lay down His life and fulfill His calling as the Sacrifice Lamb to buy back our freedom and rescue us from sin and death, His enemies pounced. They worked very hard for that opportunity. They could hardly believe their good fortune. They had lied about Him repeatedly and did everything they could and it finally paid off. All of their filth and innuendo and slimy lies and slander and libel finally came to fruition.
When Pilate saw that he was accomplishing nothing, but rather that a riot was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this Man’s blood; see to that yourselves.” And all the people said, “His blood shall be on us and on our children!” [Matthew 27:24-25]
After the Lord had already been beaten up to an inch of His life and was hanging on the cross those people still were not through. They had to keep pounding away verbally to get in as many shots as they could before He died.
Those passing by were hurling abuse at Him, wagging their heads, and saying, “Ha! You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself, and come down from the cross!” In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes, were mocking Him among themselves and saying, “He saved others; He cannot save Himself. Let this Christ, the King of Israel, now come down from the cross, so that we may see and believe!” Those who were crucified with Him were also insulting Him. [Mark 15:29-32]
We all know the rest of the story. The Lord died. They killed Him. They released as much of their hate and vitriol as they could. For almost three days the Lord’s reputation was completely destroyed. He was just one more false prophet who met His fate. All the great things He had done in His ministry were largely forgotten. Even His own close disciples huddled in fear, knowing they could very well be next. There was no solution for this incredible miscarriage of justice. All was lost.
Then the Lord Jesus did the impossible. HE ACTUALLY RAISED HIMSELF FROM THE DEAD JUST LIKE HE SAID HE WOULD.
They did indeed destroy the Temple. The enemies of the Lord were exulting in their great success. They had eliminated the threat to their wicked and despicable kingdom. And yet, forty years later they were the ones who were destroyed forever.
“For the days will come upon you when your enemies will throw up a barricade against you, and surround you and hem you in on every side, and they will level you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not recognize the time of your visitation.” [Luke 19:43-44]
And while some were talking about the temple, that it was adorned with beautiful stones and votive gifts, He said, “As for these things which you are looking at, the days will come in which there will not be left one stone upon another which will not be torn down.” [Luke 21:5-6]
Though they killed the Lord and killed a great many of His followers in the first major persecution wave of the early Church, He didn’t stay dead and all of His followers gained eternal life. But Jerusalem was destroyed. The temple was destroyed. Those evil people were all put out of business. And every single one of the Lord’s people thrived. No matter what anyone tried to do to them they kept going. They kept preaching. They kept teaching. They kept loving. They often suffered greatly but then just got right back up again and kept on going. They would never stop unless they were killed. Nothing anyone tried worked. If they died they went to heaven. If they stayed alive they kept doing the work of the Lord. They pulled together. They worked together. They loved each other. THEY EVANGELIZED THE ENTIRE ROMAN EMPIRE AND THEN WENT TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH.
The lesson to be learned here is that if you are a real Christian you will certainly have enemies who will hate you and want to take you out. It all depends on the effect you are having upon those enemies. If you are a Christian in love with the world you will be safe, of course, but friendship with the world is enmity with God. Here is an example of the proper attitude of real Christians:
But a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the Law, respected by all the people, stood up in the Council and gave orders to put the men outside for a short time. And he said to them, “Men of Israel, take care what you propose to do with these men. For some time ago Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody, and a group of about four hundred men joined up with him. But he was killed, and all who followed him were dispersed and came to nothing. After this man, Judas of Galilee rose up in the days of the census and drew away some people after him; he too perished, and all those who followed him were scattered. So in the present case, I say to you, stay away from these men and let them alone, for if this plan or action is of men, it will be overthrown; but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them; or else you may even be found fighting against God.”
They took his advice; and after calling the apostles in, they flogged them and ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and then released them. So they went on their way from the presence of the Council, rejoicing that they had been considered worthy to suffer shame for His name. And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they kept right on teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ. [Acts 5:34-42]
There is a Great Awakening coming to America. Christians are waking up. Many have been bound by religious garbage. But so many of you reading this know exactly what I am talking about. You have been attacked in the past and have been trying to recover ever since. Some of you have suffered greatly and wonder if you will ever regain the fight and spiritual vitality you once possessed. It appears as though the enemy has gained the victory and even that the Lord doesn’t much care. These are all lies. The enemy will get his. Here is my advice:
Even if you have not suffered so much but know you are not operating at top speed and full strength, you must allow the Lord to raise you back up by raising yourself up. I am not referring to some lame self-help stuff. This is a purely spiritual situation. The Lord has called each of his children to go work in the fields and no one else can do your job. You must take the time right now to begin reevaluating everything and determine to return to full strength in this coming new year. I will close with this:
Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth does not become weary or tired. His understanding is inscrutable. He gives strength to the weary, and to him who lacks might He increases power. Though youths grow weary and tired, and vigorous young men stumble badly, yet those who wait for the LORD will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary. [Isaiah 40:28-31]
The Hebrew word for “wait” in this passage is qavah. It means to not just wait passively but to wait patiently, eagerly, hopefully, and expectantly. It is an active word connoting being filled to the brim in faithful anticipation of what the Lord is going to do, namely, that He will provide NEW STRENGTH and ENERGY and POWER and will overcome all of one’s weariness and tiredness, and by implication even lethargy. Then one will RUN without getting tired and WALK without getting weary. This waiting eagerly for the Lord will allow one to receive strength enough to run a spiritual Ironman Triathlon! So we must not just sit around waiting in a static sense but wait dynamically and actively and with great faith. The waiting itself is waiting in strength which we provide in anticipation of the Lord’s providence of GREAT STRENGTH that only He can provide. It could be that the more we put into the waiting, the greater the Lord’s providence will be!
Don’t ever forget that real Christianity demands impossible victories. In the Lord’s case they threw everything they had at Him and even killed Him but it did no good. They still lost. They were the biggest losers this world has ever known and so are those who attack the Lord today and His people. Such attackers are losers, and unless they repent they will prove it eternally by losing their souls. Don’t let them stop you, especially those wolves in places of authority dressed like sheep.
Gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to WAIT for what the Father had promised, “Which,” He said, “you heard of from Me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” [Acts 1:4-5] [1]
© 2017 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE TRUTH DIALOGUES: Episode 3
“In discussing people beyond the reach of justice and majorities uninterested in truth, where does that leave the endeavors of honorable individuals intent on necessary reform?”
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“Reformation is always an enterprise of individuals. It is always the individual who sees the need for reform. Though there are usually a great many individuals who see such a need, only very few actually act upon it. The larger part of that equation—the decision-making process which chooses eventually to not act—is most often based on mere self-preservation. Most people would rather not rock any boats because they know they will receive bad reactions and negative feedback and some of it may be severe. Most are intelligent enough, if that’s the right word, or at least aware enough, to figure this out ahead of time.”
“Even though they know there is an injustice, they would rather keep quiet?”
“Yes. Of course. It is almost never the case that grave injustices are performed in the dark and stay there, hidden from everyone. It is that the perpetrators thereof deal in a very high level of intimidation.”
“They use fear to keep people quiet.”
“Everyone knows this. It is why the bad guys are often so bold in their schemes. They know someone always notices what they do, even if done in secret and in the dark, and it is often many someones, but they also know most will never act to expose or stop them. It is like that famous case several decades ago, though in microcosm, of a murder that took place late at night in a teeming city in which many people heard the screams of the victim but no one acted to save her.”
“There is the phrase, ‘I don’t want to get involved,’ and the operative word there is involved, in that becoming involved in another person’s problem could potentially cause too much personal discomfort.”
“Yes, and it is not at all just discomfort, or even pain that they fear, but also concern for one’s reputation. This is why most people prefer to run in groups in which everyone thinks and acts roughly the same and in which there are no deviations from the norm.”
“And thus no deviants.”
“Yes. Most people would rather be part of a crowd and not deviate from the parameters or mores of the crowd because such a deviation would be a pox upon their reputations. They know the members of their own group would look askance upon such behavior and might even rebuke them. Such efforts are initial lead-ins to possible further censuring in order to do whatever may be necessary to keep such wayward members in line.”
“Because wayward members may cause a chink in the group’s armor, so to speak.”
“Yes. The group must protect itself, that is, its shared interests, against anyone who may attempt to subvert it and its cohesion, even if it comes from within. This is why it is always the case that the first enemy a reformer faces comes from his own group and never from without. And there are always very strong members in the controlling circle of the group with the most vested interests who bring the strongest attack. As a perfect case in point, the Lord Jesus was betrayed and killed by members of His own nation, though they used an outside political intermediary, the Romans, to get the job done.”
“And that is quite the irony, is it not?”
“It certainly is, in that the group was threatened by the reform efforts of one of their own, and in order to protect the group from outside influences in order to keep it pure, it enlisted the help of the most powerful outside influence to eliminate the threat.”
“What does that say for that particular group and for such groups in general?”
“I would say that if such groups have to resort to that level of devious subterfuge to stave off its own necessary reformation, it not only proves the dire need for its reformation in the first place but also reveals that real reformation for such groups is often not even possible.”
“Then Jesus was not actually trying to reform it?”
“No. He was actually revealing it for what it was and attempting to rescue people from it. Though He would have liked to bring reform and could have, He knew it was not possible simply because the group was not willing. It works the same way with individuals. The Lord gave everything He had to save and was willing to die for everyone, but he won’t waste His time with unrepentant and unwilling people. Even so, individuals who do not hold membership in groups are easier to save in part because they are not compromised and hindered by peer pressure, and the worst form of that is religious peer pressure.”
“It is the ruling supremacy of the group.”
“Correct. And the people of the group have already bought into it to such a degree that their liberty and individual consciences have been compromised without them realizing it. People become bound. Their loyalty is misplaced. Their minds have been undermined. No one can break out of such a condition except through one process. The individual must have somehow retained in his possession something very important that the cultish control of the groupthink mechanism failed at some point to eliminate.”
“And what would that be?”
“That would be an overriding and uncompromising love for the truth.”
© 2017 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
THE TRUTH DIALOGUES: Episode 2
“At the end of our last segment you stated that majority opinion means absolutely nothing as an arbiter of truth. Perhaps you can take up today’s discussion based on that belief.”
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“To begin, the Community of the Lord Jesus is not a democracy. It is not about majority rule and never has been. It could never operate effectively that way. But on the other hand it is certainly not a so-called benevolent dictatorship, as I have heard it referred to, since such is fundamentally a contradiction in terms. Actual dictatorships always operate, and this should be obvious, according to no respect whatsoever for individual rights or freedom. The Lord has never operated that way and never will.”
“But God is in charge, right?”
“Well, of course He’s in charge but He never violates free will.”
“How can one have an actual organization under such guidelines? And does not the existence of God’s overall authority mean He is in charge anyway regardless of semantic professions to the contrary?”
“God is always in charge. He created the universe. But He also created human beings with a free will. He did this because he wants us to excel.”
“Please explain.”
“Let me start by saying we know very well what happens when one person takes control over other persons in non-voluntary situations. The controller gains power by siphoning the liberty of those he controls. In most cases the one in control always operates according to purely selfish interests and will eventually do anything to maintain control once he has it. It is the control over others that gives him his power. He uses his power for personal gain. Even in so-called enlightened societies this is true. It is why people in power must have their power checked by law.”
“And this brings us to the fact that a nation of laws is a much better place to live within than a nation ruled by people, correct?”
“Yes. Laws are put in place, agreed to by the majority, that even the leaders must abide by, and this keeps leaders from becoming lawless tyrants, because the law inhibits the leaders ability to wrest control and thus violate individual rights.”
“Okay, we agree in general, but we still have the means with which laws are created that we must deal with, since you stated that potential laws must first be agreed to by a majority. Does not the same problem develop when laws must be established in this way?”
“Is there any other way to do it? The majority decides but with full respect for individual rights. Otherwise the voters vote against their own liberty. In the beginning God only had one law and that one law was designed for no other reason than to protect the first humans and their progeny.”
“From what?”
“From evil.”
“What evil?”
“The evil arising from an invisible sinister force that had taken residence on the planet before the creation of human beings.”
“Do you really believe that, the idea of an aboriginal sinister devil or serpent or whatever, that predated man? This flies in the face somewhat of scientific advances regarding the evolution of our species and appears as a scapegoat celestial bogeyman upon which we fix blame.”
“Instead of blaming ourselves?”
“Yes, but not in the way I think you mean it. The Genesis story created a bad guy on which to fix blame instead of addressing the actual guilty party.”
“So you believe guilt was involved.”
“Of course guilt was involved and it still is. Humans must find a way to blame someone other than themselves because the alternative implication is far too dark to deal with.”
“Meaning that human beings are actually very well aware of their propensity for evil.”
“We have many centuries and even millennia telling us all we need to know in that regard.”
“In that human beings are evil?”
“As a species we certainly have proven this over and again regardless of time or place. The record is there.”
“Yes, and it doesn’t matter if we are referring to common individuals with little or no control over others or not.”
“In that human beings have proven themselves to be evil because they perpetrate evil acts.”
“The Bible calls it sin. Non-Christians make fun of the concept. But sin is obviously real, as is evil.
“These are merely different terminologies for the same problem and the same potential darkness in people that people feel greatly uncomfortable acknowledging.”
“From a Biblical perspective, sin is defined as missing the mark. Philosophy calls it the problem of evil. Without going into great detail or falling into the trap of endless posturing and casuistry, let us simply acknowledge that evil exists and must have had a point of origin. From a purely amoral scientific perspective in which there is no God and everything exists as the byproduct of billion-year geologic and biological processes, evil still exists. It could be that we have affixed a label to undesirable actions but the undesirable actions still exist, and it is we humans who label such actions as undesirable. Most of us don’t like them. We say they are wrong. We get convicted when we do them, most of us anyway, and wish we had not. So regardless of terminology or belief systems, all human beings the world over have this exact conviction. We know evil exists and we wish it didn’t but we don’t know how to eliminate it.”
“But Christianity does, correct?”
“Before I answer that I want to address the idea that human beings became aware of their sin from the beginning and tried to do whatever they could to eliminate it. At first they tried very hard to simply stop doing bad things. That didn’t work so well but it did slow it down somewhat by those who put forth the effort by simply not obeying the ever-present seemingly natural impulses or giving in to bad desires. Then they tried using ultra-discipline techniques which as a byproduct created like-minded groups, some of which grew into ancient philosophical schools, predating Greece by multiple centuries, of course, and also man-made religions. These did not work so well either. Then we entered into the advent of Law. Law did nothing about the presence of evil. All it did was define it specifically and attach penalties, some very severe, to practices deemed bad or evil which the majority labeled as such. Thus, the fear of violating the law and facing stiff penalties, which would grossly violate personal liberty, kept many people from breaking the law.”
“And this is still the case today. One wonders then, how many people would revert to evil actions characterized as ‘breaking the law’ indiscriminately if there was no longer any law.”
“We already know the answer to this from what happened before law and by the actions of those who refuse to obey the law now. Many such people today are imprisoned because they are a constant unrepentant threat to the law-abiders who wish to live morally in peace.”
“Meaning evil can be checked by disciplined personal choice.”
“Yes. This is what the majority is left with. Not a complete elimination of bad behavior but the choice to try one’s best to be an agent of good. Yet there are still people on the planet who engage in whatever bad behavior they want, including great evil, in that they unofficially violate the law as a matter of course and never have to pay for their crimes.”
“Because they are above the law?”
“No. But because they are beyond the reach of the law.”
© 2017 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
THE TRUTH DIALOGUES: Episode 1
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“Sir, you are on record of saying that one cannot be a good American and a good Christian, and that one must choose one or the other. Is that true?”
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“Well, I never said that. I said something some may think is related to your incorrect characterization, but not according to those terms.”
“What did you say?”
“I said there are times when a Christian must choose their Christianity over the desires of their ruling authorities.”
“But what does that mean exactly?”
“It means the same thing that Peter and John meant when they said real believers must choose the Lord’s will and preach the real Gospel instead of obeying opposing authorities.”
But when they had ordered them to leave the Council, they began to confer with one another, saying, “What shall we do with these men? For the fact that a noteworthy miracle has taken place through them is apparent to all who live in Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. But so that it will not spread any further among the people, let us warn them to speak no longer to any man in this name.” And when they had summoned them, they commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.
But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge; for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.”
When they had threatened them further, they let them go (finding no basis on which to punish them) on account of the people, because they were all glorifying God for what had happened… [Acts 4:15-21] [1]
“Why would you use that passage? I don’t understand your reasoning or the application of that case in this discussion. We have complete freedom of religion in this country. How does Peter and John’s quote apply here?”
“Do we really have complete freedom of religion in this country?”
“According to the Constitution of the United States we do.”
“But is the Constitution actually being applied to uphold the beliefs and values of Christians? And for that matter, is the Bill of Rights actually allowed expression in churches? If Constitutional rights are not allowed in churches and if governments can bypass the Constitution as well, then where is legally-granted spiritual liberty actually allowed? Don’t we have reams of recent data in the political realm over the last few decades in which it is obvious that Christian beliefs are being attacked or at least not being supported as they should be, and that Constitutional support for freedom of religion is only being applied selectively, usually against Christianity but in favor of other religions and beliefs?”
“I am not sure what you are referring to unless you mean segments of far right Christianity or even forms of Christianity which the majority of Christians are against.”
“So, by characterizing those forms of Christianity under attack in America you agree that it is okay to violate the Constitutional rights of those particular Christians?”
“No, I do not mean that. I mean that some forms of Christianity are not supported by Scripture.”
“But who makes that decision? Where is the grand tribunal that decides such things? Who is the final arbiter of what constitutes the actual correct interpretation of Christianity? And who gets to decide which Christians have no rights and which Christians do? Should not all Christian individuals and groups have the same exact right to freely believe in and practice what the members thereof believe to be correct? Isn’t that what freedom of religion actually entails?”
“Although there is no great Christian Law Court which decides which form of Christianity is correct, I think that Christians themselves usually decide who is right by the sheer numbers believing in particular interpretations.”
“You mean the bigger the denomination or church the more likely it is right?”
“Not exactly, but it would appear that, if all Christians read the same Bible, that majority groups would appear to have the best grasp of what the Bible actually states.”
“So you are saying that one of the true tests of correct interpretation is that a majority must prevail and that Christian minority opinions and interpretations do not hold as much weight regarding their beliefs and should therefore not be granted the same degree of rights to protect their beliefs and practices?”
“Technically, the Constitution protects all Christian individuals and groups, even minorities. But when the large majority Christian bodies reject such minorities, it must mean something significant.”
“Is the something significant fair? Is it just? Is it legal? Is it supported by the Lord? Is the coming together of large bodies against the smaller bodies proof that the larger bodies are more correct in their beliefs? Or is it simply the case that the larger bodies are more powerful, influential, and therefore prejudicial?”
“How is it even possible that the larger bodies could be more prejudicial? Isn’t it obvious that the larger the Christian body the more likely such a body is scripturally correct? And doesn’t this then justify any partiality or bias it may possess against smaller Christian offshoots?”
“Do you hear what you are saying? You are stating that might makes right. I am not here defending non-Scriptural Christian beliefs though I will always side with the truth regardless of church or denomination size. Not only that, but freedom of religion is most directly applied to individuals, and must be. Your original query involved the question of whether or not a Christian must sometimes make a choice between his or her beliefs and authority figures who oppose his or her beliefs, and whether such authority figures, either religious or secular, including one’s prevailing government, can be allowed to censor and hinder the beliefs and practices of Christians. I never said a Christian must choose between his beliefs and his country, as you have implied.”
“But are not those two the same? Is not the government of a country essentially and effectively the same as one’s country?”
“Okay. I know you’re playing dumb here for the sake of argument or whatever, and you are trying to get me to say something in such a way that you can twist for your own purposes.”
“I’m not saying that at all. I understand perfectly well the difference between one’s country and one’s current government, but one’s current government in free countries who vote for their leaders is placed in power by the people who vote which means the government reflects the will of the people, which means one’s current government is essentially the same as one’s country at any given time, right?”
“No. Wrong. You could not be more wrong and I don’t believe you are shooting straight with me at all because that’s an asinine argument. One’s country is one’s country. It has in many cases existed a long time, often centuries, and is an entity completely separate from any government of that country which exists at any given time in its history. Also, people change. People become corrupt. Sometimes, if not most times, the corruption begins very small and escapes detection. The corrupt, through inside influence based on money and power, get away with things and continue in their corruption. When no one notices the corruption or no one successfully rises up to stop the corruption in its early stages it metastasizes and eventually grows to a place in which it cannot be stopped. But the corruption does not exist in a vacuum. It exists in the hearts of people. If the corruption, the evil, is not dealt with by the good, then the corruption prevails. We have seen this happen in many countries, in that a small cabal of corrupt ones masquerading as good guys deceives the people into believing in them and supporting them. Entire countries have thus become corrupted merely by deceiving the majority. The same thing happens in churches and denominations. So no, majority opinion means absolutely nothing as an arbiter of truth.”
“Though I don’t necessarily agree with all you are saying, you have brought up some very interesting points about how Christians must live out their faith in this changing world. Would you care to continue this dialogue in another segment soon?”
“Sure.”
“Okay. Thank you.”
© 2017 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
YES, THEY REALLY ARE THAT STUPID
The Lord gave us a wake-up call in 1906. What happened then illustrated how powerful the Lord can be when we get it right, even in the face of great opposition.
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It was a powerful event. What was just as striking, however, was the usual resistance by the opposing authoritative Christians. The humble organizers, the good guys, those who were merely self-effacing enough to seek and obey the Lord, were hounded from the very beginning and eventually forced into using the most rudimentary building for services.
They began in a house, but the movement grew too big too fast and they couldn’t allocate enough houses fast enough, so they were blessed with a bigger building, though old and rundown. It had much in common with the Lord’s actual beginning, something we lose the significance of over time. But there really wasn’t any room anywhere in Bethlehem for the Lord to be born. No residence, no inn, no nothing where people normally live. He ended up with the farm animals, something equivalent to our barns, but a small one. He apparently had no problem with this. He even expected it. He expected this world to treat Him in such a way. He was born anyway, in a place none of us would ever permit our own babies to be born, regardless of circumstances.
The same thing happens with His work. The apostle Paul said no people of higher bearing are chosen, in general, for the Lord’s work, largely because they deem themselves far too important. They are also ultra-pampered. There is no room for a pampered preacher in the Lord’s real work, but we are besotten with pampered preachers everywhere we look. In fact, this has become the standard.
Where then, are the real preachers? Where are the real Christians?
In general, you will rarely find them in the limelight. William Seymour was a one-eyed black man shunned by much of Christian society yet the Lord worked wonders through him. The apostle Paul has been wrongly relegated after the fact as some sort of high churchman or great theologian. Of course, he was certainly brilliant, but much more so in a spiritual sense. Prior to his own personal Pentecost he used his theological brilliance and high religious standing to do the very opposite of what the Lord had intended for him. How did he get so lost? How did he get so caught up with his own pride? How did he ever get so full of himself? One might ask about 90% of today’s so-called pastors and preachers and priests and what have you.
To show what must be done NOW to correct this is to show what had to happen to Paul—the Lord knocked him down, thoroughly humiliated him, showed him who the boss was, blinded him and made him helpless, and then completely revamped his life. He showed him how he was completely wrong and on the wrong path and had the wrong attitude. He could have just let him go to hell but He knew Paul would respond correctly to the correct stimuli, which in this case involved knocking him on his butt and destroying everything that he had previously held dear.
Paul responded properly. He quickly ascertained that he had been a giant jerk of the worst kind and was thoroughly embarrassed. After a few days his sight returned. He underwent full repentance, giving himself totally to the Lord for whatever purpose no matter how difficult. He went through further humiliation (from a religious view point, that is) by immersing himself in water in the Name of Jesus, the name of his new Master and Savior, and he was soon filled with the Holy Spirit. It’s all right there in the Book of Acts. It was a complete changeover, beyond even a total remodel. The old Paul was DEAD. A new Paul was BORN.
RESISTING REAL CHRISTIANITY BRINGS GRADUAL DEPRAVITY
The same thing must happen to Unreal Christianity in America or it will continue the death spiral it brought upon itself and has engaged in ever since it rejected that which all must submit to for new life to come forth. It is not so much that the Lord cares all that much for trying to set right those Christian leaders who will never change or repent, like so many of the Pharisees of old. It is that He wants to rescue all those good-hearted Christians living in a lesser state, as Paul was, who are deceived and blinded by fake Christianity. They will never be set free from within. It must come from without, as the Lord must do so much from without since He has been rejected in most places so much from within.
Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures. Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them. For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error. And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind… [Romans 1:22-28] [1]
© 2017 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
VICTORY! FORTY DAYS AND THE RAISING OF LAZARUS
This is a must-read article. Please tell all your friends. There is an anointing here that can be applied to otherwise impossible situations and bring victory.
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So when Jesus came, He found that he had already been in the tomb four days. [John 11:17]
The forty days officially began on August 21. The fortieth day begins tonight at sunset. We are about to complete the same forty day period the Lord completed just prior to the start of His ministry in which He fasted for the duration and then went toe-to-toe with the devil.
This is one of those counterintuitive training methods that makes no sense in the natural and causes nominal Christians to recoil in horror. Rather than train conventionally as one may train for a prize fight in which a boxer imbibes in the best nutrition and a regimented workout lasting for several weeks in the effort to eventually outlast an opponent in the ring, the Lord did the opposite. He went far out into the wilderness all by Himself. It is recorded that He was out there with the wild beasts. Every day and night for forty days He had nothing to eat whatsoever. He prayed always. He prepared to the hilt. But it was all spiritual preparation.
This kind of training and fight preparation is no longer taught by what we may term “official” Christianity and hasn’t been for many centuries. Most of today’s Christian ministers laugh at the very idea of teaching such a method of gaining spiritual victory. They keep almost everything in a purely natural and non-supernatural mode because the stakes they seek cater instead to material and “worldly” success.
REAL SUCCESS
Now, please note that I like success. The Lord grants success. He is really into success. But it also must be noted that the spiritual must come first and must come correctly or whatever “success” one may have will soon be lost. When the Lord went to war on our behalf and on behalf of our future success He had in mind a way to buy back our freedom from the ravages of sin and bondage. That was His obvious priority. To that end, and because He loves us so, He was more than willing to subject himself to such austere and extreme training methods and face off with the ugly, gnarly, hell’s angel dipwad responsible for screwing everything up and turning His perfect creation into fallen destruction and His perfect sinless holy humans into spiritually dead, broken, compromised, and hell-bound shells of themselves.
And He was in the wilderness forty days being tempted by Satan; and He was with the wild beasts, and the angels were ministering to Him. [Mark 1:13]
Who else would love like that? Who else could love like that? Well, HE did it. And it cost Him everything. Whatever we do for the Lord and others is great and duly noted but based on the practices of Christianity in general most Christians not only fail to do the least in this regard for the Lord, they don’t even see the need for it, as in “What’s the point?” This attitude is borne out by people completely unaware of the concept in that they see no connection between much prayer, fasting, standing in faith, and fighting spiritual battles with eventual great spiritual victories which would otherwise have no chance of happening.
The Lord Jesus, however, taught the why and how every day of His ministry. He showed us how it is done. His disciples did what He said and had great spiritual success. The entire Roman Empire was evangelized within a century and a half, so much so that the leaders thereof eventually threw in the towel. If those mighty spiritual warriors could do that then why can’t we do it now? It is not that we can’t. It is that the definition has changed. And because the definition has changed there is no longer any need for the great spiritual practices of the originals because Christian success is no longer defined by doing the impossible but by doing exactly as this fallen world is doing.
If the Lord could defeat the devil without a forty day fast and all night prayer sessions and making Himself poor and putting up constantly with religious idiots trying to kill Him then why did He do all those things? Why did the apostles do all those things? They knew, of course, that it was the only way. There was no other way. It was also why they were all filled with the Holy Spirit according to the real New Covenant method and thus gained supernatural strength to fight such battles and do the impossible.
VICTORY ON THE FORTIETH DAY
I just got through fighting such a battle. It was very difficult. I knew from the beginning that the Lord had a plan and a solution but that did not make it any easier. I had to stand in faith consistently over a full forty days. My faith grew. That was part of the reason why it lasted that long. It was an opportunity to increase my faith. The process was fraught, however, with ups and downs and dead-end failure and inspiration and bright spots and hope and temporary depressing defeats and rallying and an incredible amount of prayer and much fasting. There were some I counted on that let me down, others that helped in increments, and at the end a great blessing that the Lord saved for the very end that made it all possible and made the victory complete. I know this will probably sound far-fetched but the victory truly did come on the very last day.
My forty day time period began three days before the solar eclipse. I had a very unfortunate event take place on August 18. It was a very big deal. I was quickly in an impossible situation. I immediately stated that it was no surprise to the Lord and that He had a plan though I had no idea what it was. In my previous post, Forty Days Toward Victory, I was writing on Day 24 and stated that I was in the middle of trying to make something happen that had to happen in order to continue and that it demanded strong faith and a relentless approach.
As mentioned before, the solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 was also the day of the new moon which began the Lord’s forty days and which would end with the Day of Atonement on September 30. Those who understood the stakes and decided to participate knew that America itself was hanging in the balance and that the nation had better repent. That was not possible unless Americans repented and properly prepared for what was coming. I knew something was up and that the Lord had great plans for this autumn, but there would be a price to pay to bring it forth. I wrote about this in At the Crossroads: Will America Repent?
My fortieth day, that is, the fortieth day after the unfortunate recent event in my life, was on Wednesday, September 27. I stayed in faith until then. It was not easy. Yet that day was the exact day the Lord brought forth an otherwise impossible victory.
LAZARUS
There are many very interesting aspects to the story of the raising of Lazarus. This was a man who along with his sisters, Martha and Mary, was a very dear friend of the Lord. Lazarus had gotten very sick. A messenger was sent to find the Lord so He could come and help. The Lord was found at a distance. But instead of immediately rushing to the side of His good friend He did something curious. He waited two days. He essentially waited for Lazarus to die. And He gave His friends no warning whatsoever that He would do this.
So when He heard that he was sick, He then stayed two days longer in the place where He was. [John 11:6]
By the time He went to the home of Lazarus, His good friend had already been dead for four days. The Lord was hammered with, “If only you had been here…”
When I began this article I planned to go into greater detail about the Lazarus story, but I am running long and need to start closing. One thing I will say is that the Lord showed me several parallels to my situation. He could have warned me but He didn’t. He just let it happen. He could have arranged things to where it would not have been so bad but He didn’t. In the case of Lazarus, He could have rushed back and healed Him and that would have certainly been a miracle. But He wanted something better, something much greater. He wanted to raise Lazarus from the dead.
Consider this perspective. The Lord could fix your current problem, but if you allow Him to He can bring a much greater miracle. I know this happened in my case. I was looking for the path of least resistance and the lesser way out. But the Lord had already determined, “No, I am going to do something much, much better.” It meant the problem had to be much worse. It meant the problem had to be impossible. It would require resources I didn’t have. It would require Him to come through in the nick of time.
A friend gave me a book over four years ago. I never read it. I didn’t care for the author so much. I kept the book, of course. I put it right up there on my bookshelves. But I never had any desire or inclination to read it. Then, last week, when my situation was most dire and it looked like all hope was lost, the Lord led me to that book. I began reading. I started feeling better. I got inspired. Then I realized that the Lord wanted the very best for me and I should go for the whole enchilada, to go for the best possible outcome, to not settle for a mere partial victory, like the healing of Lazarus, for example, but for an actual resurrection from death. In other words, for an impossibility.
That’s what I decided. I saw in that moment that it was what the Lord wanted. I had perfect faith in the BEST outcome because I knew it was the will of God. It was still impossible but because I knew the Lord wanted to go that route I was all in. He would make a way. I started praying and believing to that end all the more. I was at my absolute lowest on the thirty-third day. Then hope began to arise. The last week was still very difficult but as the Lord had planned all along, and I am so glad He gave me the strength to do His will, the victory came on the fortieth day. YES!
THE DAY OF ATONEMENT
Now, regarding the Lord’s forty days, the fortieth day begins at sunset today. It begins the Day of Atonement, which is representative of having all of our sins washed away. It was the one day during the entire year that the high priest entered into the Holy of Holies to make atonement for the nation. Only the high priest could go in there. And he could only do it once a year. The Lord Jesus is our High Priest. Only He can make atonement.
When the sun goes down Saturday evening, September 30th, the forty days will be complete. What started with an incredible nationwide celestial event, a full transcontinental solar eclipse, will end in a way that only the Lord knows. After that we will see what the Lord has had in store all along. After that we will begin to see all the various “Lazaruses” being raised from the dead.
When He had said these things, He cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come forth.” The man who had died came forth, bound hand and foot with wrappings, and his face was wrapped around with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.” [John 11:43-44] [1]
© 2017 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
FORTY DAYS TOWARD VICTORY
I don’t know about the rest of you, but the current forty days of preparation is proving to be a giant challenge. Spiritual warfare is strong but a great victory is coming…
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And He was in the wilderness forty days being tempted by Satan; and He was with the wild beasts, and the angels were ministering to Him. [Mark 1:13] [1]
The Lord Jesus began His ministry with forty days of prayer and fasting. In His case, he fasted the entire time, both day and night.
There are only three men listed in all of Scripture who have ever gone on a full forty day fast. This does not mean others did not do it. Undoubtedly, many did. But only Moses, Elijah, and the Lord Jesus have been listed as having done it. Moses did it twice.
You may note that these three were also on the Mount of Transfiguration together. Moses and Elijah represent the Law and the Prophets. The Lord Jesus represents everything good, but primarily in this case He represents Salvation and Grace. In fact, the Name above every name means “YHWH-Salvation” or “YHWH sets free.”
Regarding the actual timing of the Lord’s forty day fast, it began with the new moon of the twelfth month on the Hebrew civil calendar, toward the end of summer. It extended into Rosh Hashanah, the “head” of the year or the Hebrew New Year, and continued for another ten days to Yom Kippur.
Yom Kippur is the Day of Atonement.
As of today, we have now entered into Day 24 of the forty-day period of repentance, fasting, prayer, and preparation. The forty days began this year on the afternoon of August 21 and will end on September 30. Of course, in one of the most incredible celestial and spiritual signs most of us will ever experience, the forty days began this year with a full solar eclipse that crossed the full length of the continental United States and no other country. This had not happened in almost eight centuries. Please see my post Solar Eclipse Across America Signals Onset of Repentance.
FASTING
I always try to fast one day per week. It is an excellent spiritual practice and is clearly Scriptural. Give your body a break one day per week and it will repay you greatly. God had instructed His people to let their agricultural land lay fallow (no plowing or planting) every seventh year. By doing this it would allow the land to regain its health and vitality, and restore its nutrients. It naturally follows that if one will fast every seventh day it will give one’s digestive system and related systems an opportunity to do some very necessary housecleaning and repair. It is a greatly restorative practice but requires a strong will.
Longer fasts are tougher. Two days isn’t so bad. I’ve gone longer, and achieved incredible spiritual results, but I’ve never come anywhere close to forty days. Many people have, however. Yet, one should never attempt it unless clearly directed by the Lord.
During this forty day period I have been fasting a lot more than normal. I have also been praying a lot more. There has also been a great increase in spiritual warfare. I have had to walk in very strong faith as a result of something very challenging that happened just prior to August 21. On the day it happened I felt great. Then boom! Uh Oh. I wasn’t expecting that! This is going to be very hard to deal with, I thought.
Afterwards I reached a level of spiritual well-being that I had not experienced in quite a while. I should not have been feeling so good! It made no sense in the natural. I quickly professed, almost immediately, that this not so good event in my life never surprised the Lord and that He had a plan to deal with it. I have been dealing with it ever since. It is one of those things that you have to walk out. There is no ready solution in the natural and no solution is possible without the Lord’s direct help.
I prayed and fasted all the more. There were times when things got really bad and I had to tough it out. There have also been some very bright spots. I started seeing the possible means to a solution. As I write this, I am in the midst of another very important part of this whole thing that must be fixed soon so other parts can proceed. I am certainly walking by faith. I KNOW the Lord has the answer. It is my job to stay in faith and keep walking it out. At the end I will come into a great blessing that would have been impossible otherwise.
For those of you who are relating to this I want you to be encouraged. Many of us have been through severe crises in our lives. There are wonderful people who have recently lost everything as a result of the recent hurricanes. There are times when we know if the Lord doesn’t come through we are pretty much done. I remember many times being backed against a wall with no solution whatsoever in sight and all I could do was do my best to stay in faith and trust the Lord. I have also seen the most incredible, tremendous spiritual victories and was amazed at what the Lord could do.
But remember, it is not only that the Lord can do it, it is because He is motivated by His great love for us that makes Him want to do it. He wants to bless us! But it must be done the right way. We must have the correct spiritual mindset. We must walk in faith. The Lord always responds to faith. We must be humble.
Thus, we are in this special time of preparation, fasting, prayer, and repentance for the same reason the Lord was. Something profound will happen afterwards. That’s what the victory of the Day of Atonement is all about. I believe there is something especially profound this year. We must humble ourselves in order to be exalted. We must do the humbling. He will do the exalting.
BE STRONG.
© 2017 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
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REGARDING THE CURRENT FORTY DAY PERIOD, SEE THE FOLLOWING RECENT SERIES POSTED AUGUST 9-23, 2017:
PART 1: ECONOMIC CRASH AND BURN
PART 2: THE THIRD SIGN: IT’S DÉJÀ VU ALL OVER AGAIN
PART 3: REVEALING THE HIDDEN ECONOMIC JUDGMENT PATTERN
PART 4: SOLAR ECLIPSE ACROSS AMERICA SIGNALS ONSET OF REPENTANCE
THE REAL CIVIL WAR IN THE CHURCH
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Civil War in the Church is not a new thing. It has been raging since the first century.
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But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ. For if one comes and preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted, you bear this beautifully. For I consider myself not in the least inferior to the most eminent apostles. [2Corinthians 11:3-5]
I read about a recent tent revival. Giant tent. Things were going great. Then the leaders thereof lost the use of the tent. The revival came to a sudden end.
Then the leaders thereof pleaded for financial supporters to buy them their own tent. Great amounts of money were quickly raised. The last I read the leaders of the revival were making big plans to buy their own tent and all the other stuff needed to build out the interior with all the modern conveniences, the tractor trailers needed to transport the tent, and one presumes all the salaries necessary to keep the leaders thereof and their helpers taken care of, in order to resume the revival and get it back on track.
They are calling it a miracle provision from God.
UNLESS THE LORD BUILDS THE TENT
Unless the LORD builds the house, they labor in vain who build it; unless the LORD guards the city, the watchman keeps awake in vain. [Psalm 127:1]
I decided not to read about this revival any further, having only read a brief synopsis on a Christian news site. I’m sure many good things are associated with this tent revival but it cannot be more obvious that the leaders thereof are absolutely dependent on a tent. Why not just build a church building like everyone else? Everyone knows Christianity is impossible without church buildings.
As a friend told me once, incredulous than I could not understand this principle, “We have to have a place to MEET.”
This friend happened to own a very large house with a very large meeting room with leather couches and chairs that would have been absolutely perfect as a place to meet. They were friendly people with many associates who made great hosts. They really loved people and were dedicated to the Lord. When I brought up the possibility that their house would make an excellent meeting place and that they could easily invite all their many friends I was told, “Well, if the Lord ever tells us to do that…”
In other words, the “church” they were meeting at was the “official” place. Period. Guess what their “church” was? It was a large room in a single story office and recreational building. It had a low, drop-tile commercial ceiling and a mass of folding chairs all in rows. There were next to no welcoming warm adornments or furniture except maybe a couple of church banners and the walls were a bland neutral color. But this was “church.” They set up a rudimentary sound system and, believe it or not, had a pulpit and a one-step platform. My friend’s house would have been MUCH better. But it never happened.
REAL REVIVALS AND MOVING MOUNTAINS
As we speak there are Christians all over the world in probably a million locations meeting somewhere other than an official church building. For many there are no buildings at all. They meet outside. Some meet in crude huts. Some meet in crude structures that barely keep the rain out when it is raining and out in the open otherwise. Multiple millions are meeting in underground illegal locations all over China. Most of these places are packed full because they are small. Those people worship the Lord and minister all day long. They are always subject to arrest and being ratted on by spies. These are very powerful Spirit-filled spiritual people who know how to move giant things in the spirit and defeat powerful spiritual enemies.
The same thing happens in several second and third world countries. It is mandatory, however, that most of these meetings be held in secret. We therefore do not know the full extent of their existence. But we know this: When real Christians obey the Lord Jesus, allow Him to be in charge, and take their discipleship seriously, MOUNTAINS MOVE. Mountains are moving right now the world over.
It is even happening in America to a degree but one cannot see it very good if their frame of reference is “church.” It’s because mostly nothing all that world-shaking or special is happening in “church.” People are satisfied with what they have and aren’t going to change. In the great tradition of the Pharisees most of Christianity has become a stage play. Most Christians have become mere actors or spectators. Most have no idea whatsoever that they’ve become co-opted.
Real Christianity is the only hope America has left and most American Christians don’t want real Christianity.
Evil people who trash the teachings of the Lord are still in control of this country, the nation’s morals have long since descended into a pit, and “official” Christianity is being led around by the world and is in a race to be more like the world. It continues to spend an inordinate time seeking money, prestige, and political power. It must have the material world. It cannot exist without the material world. Take away the huge outlays in the material world and it would collapse in a day.
A SPIRITUAL KINGDOM
Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm.” [John 18:36]
I could go on. The Lord God commanded Moses to build a dynamic MOBILE tabernacle—a relatively small tent. It was not meant to house everybody. It was not built to cram everyone into it. There are obvious spiritual implications to this. Five centuries later the tent was no more because Solomon built a static located stone temple, just like the heathen nations. Remember, Israel had demanded that God give them a “king” so it could it be like all the heathen nations even though it already had the ONLY KING. They rejected God. This was the beginning of the slippery slope going into hyper space. WHOOSH. The next thing you know they had a big old stone temple, just like the heathen. They had decided to become heathen.
“But it was Solomon who built a house for Him. However, the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands; as the prophet says: ‘HEAVEN IS MY THRONE, AND EARTH IS THE FOOTSTOOL OF MY FEET; WHAT KIND OF HOUSE WILL YOU BUILD FOR ME?’ says the Lord, ‘OR WHAT PLACE IS THERE FOR MY REPOSE? WAS IT NOT MY HAND WHICH MADE ALL THESE THINGS?’ You men who are stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears are always resisting the Holy Spirit; you are doing just as your fathers did.” [Acts 7:47-51]
There is a disconnect in Christianity that must be dealt with. Most Christians keep insisting on somehow cramming an open-ended powerful spiritual kingdom into small three-dimensional “official” material spaces. At best, all this does is render the kingdom less powerful and less able. This is in part why the majority of American “churches” are spiritually dead. There is no spiritual life because there is no spiritual kingdom because there is no Spirit of the Lord!
But there are vast material resources, huge amounts of real estate, and billions of dollars serving no spiritual purpose. And the Lord Jesus is rejected. Sound familiar? And counterfeit shiny substitutes are put in His place.
We should all know this. Many do but do nothing about it. And the ones that do know and do something about it are shown the door that is not even supposed to exist.
WE DON’T WANT YOU HERE, STEPHEN!
If we were all like Stephen we would be tearing up the devil on every front and the entire world would be filled with Upper Rooms and Pentecosts. Instead, far too many Christians, in defending their turf, look more like this:
“Which one of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? They killed those who had previously announced the coming of the Righteous One, whose betrayers and murderers you have now become; you who received the law as ordained by angels, and yet did not keep it.” Now when they heard this, they were cut to the quick, and they began gnashing their teeth at him. [Acts 7:52-54] [1]
This is why legitimate attempts at proper reform always expose the devil in Christian leadership. The leaders thereof don’t want reform. They like things exactly the way they are, wrong or dead though it may be, and will always rise up in defense and teach their people the same. It is why they killed Stephen. It is why they killed the Lord.
It is also why Civil War in the Church will only get more intense, because real revival is coming and it will never fit in conventional old wineskins.
© 2017 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THAT’S HYSTERICAL
HYSTERIA: 1. A psychoneurosis marked by emotional excitability and disturbances of the psychic, sensory, vasomotor, and visceral functions. 2. Behavior exhibiting overwhelming or unmanageable fear or emotional excess. [1]
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THE RESPONSIBLE PARTY
…The chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowds to ask for Barabbas and to put Jesus to death. But the governor said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release for you?” And they said, “Barabbas.” Pilate said to them, “Then what shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?”
They all said, “CRUCIFY HIM!”
And he said, “Why, what evil has He done?”
But they kept shouting all the more, saying, “CRUCIFY HIM!”
When Pilate saw that he was accomplishing nothing, but rather that a riot was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this Man’s blood; see to that yourselves.”
And all the people said, “His blood shall be on us and on our children!” [Matthew 27:20-25]
THE DEMON WHISPERERS
The hysterical people intent on killing an innocent Man refused to listen to reason. They were egged on by demonic religious leaders who had such powerful control of their minds they could make them do anything. The religionists knew exactly what words to use, exactly what stories to spin, and exactly how to gain the greatest reaction. They were unchallenged masters of the medium.
The hysterical people had been programmed over several decades to do the bidding of their masters. One can always tell a CULT by the way the cult leaders are treated:
The mind-numbed crowd will never turn on its masters regardless of their purely evil nature and powerfully sinister actions.
Instead, they will always place full blame on their innocent victims.
Cult leaders can turn their pit bull masses on anyone or anything at any time whenever they apply the proper triggers. In this case they triggered the final inner mechanism in their wicked arsenal by arousing, at the perfect time, the maximum level of cultural inner hatred, and once it was fully armed, they released it full bore upon their greatest enemy for maximum impact.
THE POWER OF RELIGION
There is a reason religion has the power it does. There is a reason religious shysters use religion to gain control of people and coerce their money. It is lucrative. It answers the two basic and fundamental needs of narcissistic authoritarians, many of whom are cleverly concealed charlatans: (1) Authority, and (2) Money. These religionists take power and money as their right.
Here is one way to differentiate some of the real from the unreal when it comes to Christian ministers: The real ones will do the job the Lord called them to do whether they get paid or not (unreal ministers never work without getting paid); whether they are appreciated or not (unreal ministers will never work without ongoing full respect); and whether they are overly protected or not (unreal ministers will never subject themselves to real persecution).
The real ministers of the Gospel will never quit no matter how everyone else may quit on them. They will always continue on though their good names and characters are falsely and wrongly trashed.
The following ALWAYS applies to the real guys:
“Blessed are you when men hate you, and ostracize you, and insult you, and scorn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man.” [Luke 6:22] [2]
REVIVING THE DEATH CULT?
The Lord Jesus—GOD HIMSELF—GOD WITH US—THE LONG-AWAITED MESSIAH—had arrived just as prophesied at the perfect time and He threatened the Death Cult and everything it stood for. He made war against it and would soon end it. He not only prophesied against its complete destruction but led the charge against its destruction.
The Death Cult would be completely incompatible with everything He planned to do in the future. It was a purely opposing force, rebellious to the core. It must therefore be eliminated.
Due to its refusal to admit fault and surrender, outright war to destroy it forever was the only alternative. This was the core construct of the spiritual war of the first century. It is why 70AD Jerusalem had to happen. It is also why God would never support its resurrection.
© 2017 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] © Merriam-Webster
[2] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
REBIRTH OF AMERICAN CHRISTIAN MANHOOD
The greatest expression of manhood is the Lord Jesus. He is the only correct example. The era of frauds is over. Real American Christian men want to be like Him.
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THIS IS INDEED A SPIRITUAL REVOLUTION
I’ve written about this phenomenon in the past, for several years. My particular priority on the issue, since this is a Christian website, is to focus on the dearth of real men within general organized Christianity. What happened? It is really a sad state of affairs.
Many American men have been blessed to have had their born again experience among people who put no shackles on the fullest expression of the Lord within an individual, whatever that expression might be. Though they had already proven their manhood prior to their new birth, getting filled with the powerful Spirit of the Lord, just like those people back on the Day of Pentecost, suddenly transported them into an ultra level of manhood—spiritual manhood—that can never be explained to the unexperienced.
The Lord Jesus knew what He was doing when He invented the whole thing. He was fixing to send His men into a dark, evil world, a veritable spiritual jungle, to rescue the lost and all those overcome by the devil’s evil kingdom. For all the sissy religious eggheads who think He would do such a thing without equipping them properly are probably as stupid as they look. He obviously knew the level of fight His men would face from untold numbers of demon-possessed idiots and shrill followers of religious nutcases as ignorant as the day is long and prone to hateful eruptions of emotional tornados and earthquakes on a moment’s notice.
So the Lord thought, “What do I give them so they can compete and overcome? What force must fuel the Gospel? What kind of power will give them a chance against such powerful entrenched evil? I know. I will give them Myself.”
So Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” [John 20:21-22]
And there you have it. The Lord made it possible to be filled with His Spirit so we can go out and do the same thing He did, which is namely kicking the devil’s backside all over creation.
“The Church is not only supposed to be loving, kind, and gentle, but also able to kick the corpulent posteriors of demons and take their names.” From: Real Christianity
That is why the men He chose and sent were powerful, gritty, sinewy, stalwart men with strong backbones and fisherman’s hands—blue collar workers for the most part—to turn the tide against the hardhearted silly girly men who liked dressing up like ladies in fine embroidery doing their best Louis the Fourteenth and having hissy fits on a regular basis.
HE WENT OUT CONQUERING AND TO CONQUER
But the Lord’s men, these Apostles, those champions of the world, as manly as they were, would be no match for the evil minions of the mission at hand if they only acted from mere natural strength, even if they could whip any other men on the planet. No, they would need more. Besides, the Lord was not sending them out to beat people up but just the opposite: They would have to be strong enough to take a beating without striking back. They would have to love in a world filled with hate.
But not against the devil. The Lord empowered them to crush the devil. The Lord has clearly instructed that the fight is never against people. He said He did not come to condemn the world but to save it. We are all in this fight together and the battle is for people, that we may all be set free from the destructive power of sin. It is the devil that opposes this. He wants no one to be saved, set free, and delivered. He obviously wants no one to be filled with the Spirit of the Lord because he knows such people can crush him. People do themselves a grave disservice by agreeing with the devil and siding with the devil in their opposition to the only One who can save them. This is also part of the devil’s work, of course. The devil deceives people into believing he is their friend and the Lord is the enemy.
This is why, against the devil and all his unseen demon idiots, the Lord intended a no-holds-barred slugfest of utter destruction and evisceration. The devil’s kingdom must be raided and invaded so people can be saved. Against the devil, there are supposed to be great left hooks from out of nowhere bashing his silly face and uppercut gut punches sending him over the ropes. For that, the Lord’s apostles would need something really, really powerful. And that is why the Lord gave them His very Spirit.
THOSE WHO CLAIM TO KNOW OFTEN DON’T KNOW SQUAT
You have no doubt heard a lot of bullcorn over the years about the “Holy Spirit.” Much of it sounds pretty girly and is obviously sent forth by so-called Christians who don’t have a clue. The Lord said this would happen. They don’t have a clue because instead of being sent they just went. Most of them are lost in space and thus refer to the Holy Spirit as something spacey and ethereal, completely different than the mighty and powerful Spirit of the Lord Jesus. What they call the Holy Spirit is something else entirely. I will leave it to the Lord to work out all the blasphemy stuff in this regard because He said that’s what we must do, and He will work it out. But in the meantime the facts must be told and the facts in this regard are such that the men the Lord sent out originally were (1) Manly Men as opposed to girly men, and (2) Powerful filled-with-the-Spirit Manly Men instead of empty religious girly men. Whoever may want to argue with that is free to do so but the Word of God, if applied, will destroy those arguments.
This is why it is so refreshing, for men especially, to see what has just happened in this country. And it is just the start. It is a time of American men finally throwing off all the garbage laid on their backs for the last several decades and return to being what the Lord created them to be. This must especially happen in the Christian realm. Christian men must now actually become Christian men. There have been a few who have been advocating for this seemingly forever, as I have been, largely to no avail. Or they get it all twisted, or they turn it in the wrong direction, or they try to do it within a system that opposes it, which makes their fight meaningless and doomed to failure.
Somebody invented a weird doctrine long ago that says in order to be good Christian men, men must become women. But the facts are otherwise clear that God gave Adam permission to be a man when He created Him a man. Period. God never put Eve in charge of the orchard.
REVOLUTIONARY WAR
If we as Christians could only see that the Day of Pentecost marked a strikingly clear beginning—A REVOLUTION—and that the old was done away with and the new way truly came upon us, and that it meant we were supposed to engage as the Lord engaged and become the powerful spiritual people He had always planned for, then this new Great Awakening could come forth all the more.
Most Christians, however, insist on never going beyond the promise of the written gospels. Most Christians don’t even know the Book of Acts exists much less have read it and they certainly don’t live it.
He said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said to him, “No, we have not even heard whether there is a Holy Spirit.” [Acts 19:2]
And there’s your problem. Far too many have taken on religious clowns as “leaders” and have been led right into the quicksand of unbelief. They have thoroughly rejected anything and everything that must transform us into the people the Lord needs to destroy the devil which means they have essentially made peace with the devil and succumbed to his leadership. They also reject the Lord’s powerful empowerment and insist on operating through sinful, wimpy, compromised, uncircumcised, and unregenerate flesh. As Napoleon Dynamite would say, “Idiot!”
The Lord said exactly the same thing about the religious leaders of his time. It is now time for their proponents of the present to get the same treatment. It is time for real Christian men in America to throw off the yoke of effete religious compromise and be what the Lord made them to be. The first step is repenting of fake compromised manhood and any glorification of flesh, and become as the Apostles and all the other men of the first century community of the Lord.
In the spiritual realm, all of our so-called manliness without Him, regardless of how it may be manifested, is just a little mound of estrogen with a pink ribbon around it. Spiritual estrogen is for women, and perhaps it could be the case that when Christian men become spiritual men, real spiritual women could quit carrying the burden. Nevertheless, most “Christian” get-togethers nowadays in America are devoid of testosterone by design and are nothing but mere estrogen fests doing their best to keep real men completely out of the loop, except for the one guy in the pulpit, of course.
THE HERO RIDES A WHITE HORSE
I will end this post with a portrait of the Founder. He has never changed. His message has never changed. HE IS A MAN YOU JUST DON’T MESS WITH. This has not stopped a horde of fakers from trying to do that very thing but their judgment is coming. They will never get away with it. Their little kindergarten show doesn’t fit the future. The good news for today is that their whitewash is coming off. This always happens when God opens the sky and sends a spiritual rain!
And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and wages war. His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems; and He has a name written on Him which no one knows except Himself. He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. [Revelation 19:11-13] [1]
© 2017 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
2017 GREAT AWAKENING TRENDS: (3) The War On Errorism
There are two kinds of people in the world: Those who support the Lord Jesus and those who oppose the Lord Jesus. Those who support Him support truth and oppose error. Those who oppose Him oppose truth and support error.
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“For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.” [John 3:20-21]
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THEY ONLY COME OUT AT NIGHT
Error hates the light. It knows the light will expose it. It knows the light will ultimately kill it. It must therefore protect itself from light. To this end error will always oppose light for sheer self-preservation.
Though often reserved and unperceived, enjoying its dark place in the dirty shadows where the vermin and cockroaches roam, once error is exposed it reverts to its true nature—it rises up on its huffy hindquarters, rears its ugly head, and makes a complete jackass of itself.
Since it has no defense against bright shining truth other than taking on the persona of a first class idiot, it will be that idiot. It will own that idiotness. It will go off half-cocked at a moment’s notice. It will do the stupidest things ever done, things that make no sense whatsoever, in the effort to deflect attention from its crimes and keep its perverted little world intact against light, its deadly enemy.
And rather than face a fair fight, error greatly prefers to remain hidden in the dark shadows where no light penetrates. Error is chicken and a gutless wonder, and in the end will be nothing more than a fading howl sucked into a black hole in the far reaches of distant space.
SUNSHINE IS THE BEST DISINFECTANT
Christians who actually follow the Lord Jesus and know His Word know that He is the Light—the great powerful brightest shining light there is—and that He loves shining His light on all darkness, because He obviously knows darkness is the real enemy. He didn’t just talk the talk, He walked the transparent walk. He revealed the light out in the open for all to see. How is it possible for light to act otherwise? How can light be hidden? Why would light want to hide itself? That makes no sense whatsoever. It is the nature of light to be out in the open and lead the way. This is exactly how light fights the war on darkness.
This is why the Lord Jesus had a transparent ministry. There was no other way for the light to shine. Once He stepped out into the public eye and began His public ministry, He stepped forth as a bright shining beacon for all to behold. His central goal was to SHINE and to REVEAL DARKNESS, and thereby save and set free.
SUNSHINE SUPERMAN
“For nothing is hidden, except to be revealed; nor has anything been secret, but that it would come to light. If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.” [Mark 4:22-23]
He will continue to bring forth greater and greater truth to expose all the lies and all the error. The people standing in the place of lies and error will no longer have any place to hide. Truth will expose them. They may rant and rave and go crazy and all the rest or they may descend deeper into their dark dungeons, dank caverns, and slimy pits, but the Lord will find them. He will send great powerful light. He will pour it into all their secret places. All their evil deeds will be revealed. They will be exposed. Unless they surrender they will never recover.
ERROR HIDES IN THE DARK BECAUSE ITS WORKS ARE EVIL
“In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.” George Orwell
The worst errorists are the official errorists. These are the people who have power and authority. Some are state sponsors of error. They are the people who stand in the place of legitimacy. They are the ones who demand honor but are dishonorable. While claiming to be upholders of the law they routinely violate the law. While claiming to be upholders of the Gospel they routinely violate the Gospel. While claiming to be upholders of the golden rule they routinely violate the golden rule.
Here is a fact I want everyone to know regarding this:
There is a God. He is the epitome of goodness. He is righteous and pure. He is powerful and strong. And unless these people change their ways and climb out from under their rocks, God is going to get them. He does not want to get them. He wants them to change and get right. He wants them to come into His light. But if they refuse, if they continue in their ever-increasing evil deeds with no desire to change for the better, and if they keep treating innocent people badly and using their great power to harm those who have chosen the light, God will certainly get them. It is only a matter of time.
THESE PEOPLE WILL PAY
God’s Creation is good. At least it was originally. But then evil people began fouling it up. The Word of God is clear that the evil set in motion millennia ago will only get worse over time simply because evil is progressive. Unless it is checked it grows ever more evil. There are things going on right now, a portion of it right out in the open, that are so unspeakably evil that past generations could never even fathom the possibility of their emergence. We might call this the unashamed darkness. Darkness usually knows its place. It knows its place is in the haunt of secrecy and hidden shadows. But some within the darkness are so vile they violate the darkness code. It is their attempt to make darkness appear as light.
Errorists are becoming the same way. They are flaunting their error openly and egregiously, and talking even louder and getting in your face all the more. They have come out of their dark and dirty little hovels in a last-ditch effort to fight the light while they still can. Some of them know what most who are supposedly in the light don’t know: The Light is increasing. It is shining brighter. No one knows this more than those who are truly in the light and those who are in abject darkness.
The dark errorists have been getting a pass for a long time. They have been able to operate in the open, legitimately, as if they had God’s blessing. But these people do not believe in God. In fact, they hate Him. But they love their darkness. They love their error. They have made themselves their own gods. They think they can get away with anything and that they will get away with it forever. They think their power has become too great to be successfully challenged. They have grown successful and powerful and have no intention of changing or turning back.
Their success has gone to their heads. They have blinded themselves to the truth. They cannot see and they refuse to consider the abyss that awaits. They have bought into the dark side. They are invested in it. They like its fruits. They like their false façade of credibility. They refuse to acknowledge the good Creator.
THE WORST ERRORISTS ARE “CHRISTIAN” ERRORISTS
Thus, the Lord has had no choice but to bring a war against them. It is the war of light against darkness. It is the war of truth against error. It is truly a War On Errorism.
All those on the side of darkness and error will be exposed for what they are. The Lord knows the perfect way to do this. He will shine His light and shine it ever brighter to expose all darkness. He will shine it even within all their dark little secret places they have become accustomed to hiding within, thinking they will always be hidden.
They have control. They sit in the seat of Moses as it were, but actually in the place of the Lord. They are pretending to be His. Every time the Lord sends someone to correct them they run him off. They hate the correcting voice of God. They hate any semblance of reform. They specialize in the character assassination of real prophets and teachers. They abhor the fact that God can always find a way to expose them and their error.
The need of correction and reform would mean they are in error and are wrong, and they cannot have that. It is too convicting. It makes them look bad. It hampers their ability to receive funding and collect donations. It makes them look like a bad investment. It makes them look bad in the eyes of the community. They have great fear of being branded for what they actually are. They are great at fooling people but they can’t fool everyone and they certainly can never fool God. They are fools to think they can.
As a testimony to their coming fate, here is a little story about what happened to some other people who took the same road:
He began to speak to them in parables: “A man PLANTED A VINEYARD AND PUT A WALL AROUND IT, AND DUG A VAT UNDER THE WINE PRESS AND BUILT A TOWER, and rented it out to vine-growers and went on a journey.
“At the harvest time he sent a slave to the vine-growers, in order to receive some of the produce of the vineyard from the vine-growers. They took him, and beat him and sent him away empty-handed. Again he sent them another slave, and they wounded him in the head, and treated him shamefully. And he sent another, and that one they killed; and so with many others, beating some and killing others.
“He had one more to send, a beloved son; he sent him last of all to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ But those vine-growers said to one another, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours!’ They took him, and killed him and threw him out of the vineyard.
“What will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the vine-growers, and will give the vineyard to others.” [Mark 12:1-9] [1]
The War on Errorism is a vital part of the Great Awakening.
Enjoy!
© 2017 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
TURNING THE WORLD UPSIDE DOWN
I wrote the following response yesterday in answer to a loyal reader’s comment:
One should notice that the great majority of “church leaders” have played little role in the presidential election. The news that most of these deciding Christian voters went off the reservation in their support for the Trump candidacy is coming forth. It is another sign that Christians have not only seen through the MSM fakery and the Washington DC corruption wheel to nowhere, but are also starting to see the irrelevance of their own churches and that church leadership in general would rather everyone sit down and be quiet rather than engage in their ministries, answer their callings, and honor the Lord Jesus.
We have been hearing for quite a while about the 1% or the actual .1% that controls everything and gains all the goodies, but a few more Christians are finally starting to see the 1% as their own irrelevant church leadership.
Though it is great that Donald Trump has so many Christian advisors, it is not so great that many of them are church and ministry “leaders” with their own vested interests. The ones who make the real difference are the forgotten, neglected, and largely rejected 99%.
When the Lord Jesus came on the scene, He let everyone know that He was about to free the sheep from their religious enclosures and allow them to run free in great fields of rich green grass and clear running waters!
WHEN HE IS IN CONTROL THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT ALWAYS HAPPENS FOR HIS PEOPLE.
Otherwise, it’s the spiritual equivalent of sardines in a can and an endless yearning for what could be.
I started writing posts about the 2016 Presidential Election well over a year ago. Then I began writing posts in October about the election in an ongoing series that were purposely parabolic in nature. For reference, see the column at left. I like writing in this manner for several reasons. First, the articles generally do not become dated. Second, they are designed to make us think and use our own spiritual cognitive abilities and critical thinking skills to arrive at the meaning, which can be multi-faceted. Third, the stated truths expose invisible spiritual enemies.
The truth I want to reveal in this post is something I have been writing and teaching about for almost three decades. The Lord taught on this subject often. He revealed it’s truth in any number of parables and teaching stories. But due to the nature of an overpowering deception brought on by a false ministry model that almost all Christians are familiar with and comfortable within, as if it was the only model, the truth the Lord wants to reveal goes right over the heads of most believers.
Rather than go into yet another detailed study of the subject, let me put it this way:
If every single real Christian went to work at becoming what the Lord created him or her to be and began doing what the Lord created him or her to do instead of wasting away doing so much less, all of us together could turn this entire world upside down just like our powerful spiritual forebears did so long ago.
The reality is that only a few are answering their callings and most of those teach everybody else that they have no other calling than supporting them. Thus, Christians in general have traded who they really are in the Lord for who someone other than the Lord wants them to be.
This means that the great majority of Christians, in America especially, are NOT in the spiritual work force and are NOT on the spiritual battlefield. For example, instead of sending nine men out to the field during a baseball game we are sending one man out. That’s fine if the enemy also sends out one but the enemy doesn’t do that. He sends out his entire horde. In addition, the one who is sent out usually does very little effectively against the enemy and for the Lord because he or she has a different agenda to fulfill.
Regardless of what anyone may think about the election or about the winning candidate’s character, the fact of the matter is that Donald Trump showed us how it’s done. He had the whole deck stacked against him and began taking powerful shots from the very beginning, not only from political enemies but from his own party. He won anyway.
The Lord is trying to show us something here. He is telling us that EACH of us matter and that EACH of us must go to work! But if you listen to the Christian professionals they’ll tell you to sit down and hush and work only for them. Thank the Lord there is still enough people in this country with an independent American backbone. That backbone has now revealed itself.
I think of so many of you who have dedicated yourselves to serving the Lord through whatever means you can, especially to all these blogs we are all familiar with. They might not look like all that much if only a few are engaged, but there are probably a hundred thousand Christian blogs. We now are doing independent movies and music. The technology is here that anyone, on their own if need be, can find any platform, go right to work, and eventually reach thousands of people with the Gospel.
All this while most Christians in America are still taught to live in the far distant past when none of these technological ministry avenues were available. Instead of the 1% claiming all the ministry and shutting almost everyone else down, wouldn’t it be better if every Christian was in some form of real ministry?
American Christians must STOP being mere spectators. We must all answer the call.
“These who have turned the world upside down have come here too… and these are all acting contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying there is another king—Jesus.” [Acts 17:6-7 NKJ]
© 2016 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
THE GREAT AWAKENING: Election Proves Leap Forward
There were many accurate prophecies of the election of Donald Trump, some going back years. Mr. Trump and his supporters faced much ridicule from the beginning and he was given no chance. This proved the existence of an arrogant hubris on the part of those who rabidly opposed him, in that they believed their position was one that could never be overcome.
How do people wind up in such a condition? There are several theories. One is that sin makes people blind as bats. Another is that great pride always precipitates great falls, because one buys into the false belief of being beyond rebuke and the inevitable take down. It is a far better defense to know that victory can be lost in a heartbeat and one must therefore strive to fend off defeat rather than simply insist on the belief that defeat can never possibly happen.
Millions of people ended up with great massive dripping gobs of runny eggs all over their faces last Tuesday night, and these millions included great portions of an evil elite intent on stomping on and stamping out all opposition regardless of means. They had been hateful, arrogant, and condescending. And now they are left moaning and drowning in pity parties in pools of tears wondering how such a disaster could have ever befallen them. Oh woe. The only thing left to do was throw a massive fit, and the fit continues.
We will know further that this current awakening is indeed a move of God by the complete failure and disaster inflicted upon those who continue to fight it. We have already known for decades that the MSM is morally and journalistically bankrupt. The election results only confirmed it. We also knew the government was growing more corrupt, mainly because the checks and balances designed by the Founders to stop corruption were no longer functioning properly or at all. Most had sold out and were happy in their selfishness at the expense of the nation.
Well, the nation, over several years now and over several elections, has basically been saying to hell with you. But the nation kept losing. It did not have the power to overcome. It was a very sad thing to see so many good Americans at a complete loss of what to do and how to overcome. The deck was greatly stacked against them.
But then, American Christians finally started getting their sorry lazy act together. They had been spending most of their time on material non-spiritual pursuits. The great majority of churches had become completely spiritually irrelevant. They still are. I know. I was there for a long time and it made me angry for a long time because I kept seeing Christians acting like morons. After serving my tour of many, many years as the good soldier, a polite, church-going, do-whatever-they-tell-me-Christian even though I knew so much more (but only a few cared to listen or apply the proper spiritual truths), the Lord told me to leave. I never took that directive lightly and did receive confirmation. Oh well. I had always gotten so much more work done on my own anyway.
A STIRRING REMNANT
On Tuesday night, November 8, we all saw the results that American Christianity is beginning to come alive. A giant is stirring. Granted, the giant has been a big, lazy, ignorant oaf for the most part, caught fast in the nets of dead traditional religiosity and overcome by untold numbers of demonic clergy spirits, scared to death of breaking custom, not properly honoring culture, or being seen as a deviant.
IT APPEARS AS THOUGH ENOUGH CHRISTIANS HAVE NOW LEFT THE RESERVATION.
VOTING DATA
We now have solid evidence that they decided the 2016 Presidential Election. According to Wikipedia, citing exit polling data provided by Edison Research, these are the numbers:
Christians comprised 75% of the total electorate:
27.00%: Protestant
23.00%: Catholic
24.00%: Other Christian
1.00%: Mormon
The other 25% of the electorate was composed of “No Religion” (15%), “Other Religion” (7%), and Jewish (3%).
Of the Christians who voted for Donald Trump, these are the percentages of the total electorate:
16.20%: Protestant
11.96%: Catholic
13.20%: Other Christian
00.61%: Mormon
41.97%
Of the Christians who voted for Clinton, these are the percentages of the total electorate:
10.08%: Protestant
11.04%: Catholic
10.80%: Other Christian
00.39%: Mormon
33.03%
In scaling these numbers out to 100%, we find that:
60% of Protestants
55% of Other Christians
52% of Catholics, and
61% of Mormons voted for Donald Trump.
Overall, Trump won the Christian vote by 56% to 44%.
Since Mormons only account for 1% of the Christian vote and Catholics almost split the vote, these two were largely inconsequential to Trump’s victory, although Catholics did vote for Trump by a 52-48 percent margin.
It was the Protestants and Other Christians who voted for Trump that made the difference. These two groups accounted for a whopping 29.4% of the total electorate, almost 40 million Americans.
According to Penny Nance, the President of Concerned Women for America, Donald Trump won a historical 81% of the Evangelical vote, the best since Ronald Reagan.
It is estimated that 134.5 million Americans voted, which is 58.1% of eligible voters. Based on that number, 100.9 million voters were classified as Christians. Of that total, 56.49 million Christians voted for Donald Trump.
Though these numbers are not perfectly scientific and remain preliminary, they do give an excellent indication of the actual numbers. We know there was a so-called hidden vote. It came from the forgotten Americans. The majority of these were Christians. This proves the Great Awakening is indeed coming forth, the Remnant is stirring, and a big leap forward has taken place.
Be encouraged. But whatever you do, DON’T RELAX. This is only the beginning.
Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. [Hebrews 12:1-3] [1]
© 2016 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
CUTTING OFF GOLIATH’S HEAD
When soldiers go to war they should not be surprised when the enemy attacks them. If they are surprised it is due to bad training and clueless instructors who have no idea what real war is all about.
When an individual joins up with the Lord, he should know that he’s not joining a peace love dove happiness commune with a bunch of shallow spiritual hippies and a goofy guru completely oblivious to the powerful forces of evil.
To deny evil in this world is to deny reality. Those who attempt to create evil-free societies without going to war against evil will always fail. It is only a matter of time until they fail. They might continue on as communal groups but only as ineffective fossils with regard to original idealistic intentions.
THEN COMETH THE WARRIOR
When the Lord Jesus was born into this fallen world no one saw that His birth was an attack from heaven by a powerful Warrior against an entrenched extremely evil enemy. They only saw a baby. He did this on purpose, of course. He came in like a Lamb. And He kept His life very humble and low key.
But then the day came to go to war:
Now when all the people were baptized, Jesus was also baptized, and while He was praying, heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove, and a voice came out of heaven, “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.” When He began His ministry, Jesus Himself was about thirty years of age, being, as was supposed, the son of Joseph… [Luke 3:21-23]
God became one of us at His conception and birth. The Lord Jesus had always been God even while in training. The day came, however, when His training was complete. He signaled to the world that He must be baptized in water like everyone else, even though He required no repentance. He also signaled to the world an echo of the future Pentecost when He must also be anointed for service through a visible manifestation of the Holy Spirit. Mark used the term “Spirit.” Matthew used the term “Spirit of God.”
Though Jesus was God He still needed to be anointed for service. Prior to beginning His ministry, He had to have the power and anointing that would be required to not only engage in miraculous works and teaching, but to also successfully fight the enemy. Being born into this world was the beginning of heaven’s attack. Being anointed for service by the power of the Spirit of God signaled the conclusion of His training and the beginning of open warfare.
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He then became hungry. [Matthew 4:1]
When the Lord was baptized in water it was His own personal Red Sea Crossing. He then went into “the Sinai” for forty days. One must recall that the nation of Israel was originally intended to spend only forty days in the Sinai before taking the Promised Land, but they proved to be completely unfit and faithless at that time. God made it their penalty to wander for forty years instead.
The Sinai wandering was indicative of killing the flesh. One already kills “the world” by leaving it and joining the Lord’s Kingdom. But after successfully defeating the world and the flesh one must then face off against the devil.
Without the infilling of the Spirit of God as at Pentecost, one will have no chance whatsoever. The devil will either render a Christian completely ineffective or destroy him. Satan is a powerful spiritual enemy. If the Lord Himself needed to be anointed for service and for spiritual warfare then so does every one of His disciples. This is exactly what Pentecost is for.
The temptation of the enemy is impossible to overcome without completely surrendering to God and receiving His power. Defeating the enemy is, of course, impossible as well. If one goes to war trained improperly without the proper weaponry and strength one will have no chance. Spiritual warfare demands the best. Why do Christians wonder about the attacks that come their way as if it is something that is not supposed to happen? Did not the Lord warn us?
“Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” [Matthew 5:11-12]
The Lord Jesus came in like a Lamb. He submitted Himself as the Sacrifice Lamb at the end. But during His ministry, under the great power of His Holy Spirit, He was the Lion of the Tribe of Judah. He came to fix things, to set things aright, to reform a system that had grown hopelessly corrupt, and to usher in the Kingdom of God. The evil people hated Him with a passion. They didn’t like anything about Him. They attacked Him relentlessly. He stood up to all of it.
Here’s the key: He knew what was in store. He was not surprised by all the hate. He knew the entire world was against Him. He knew they hated Him. He went behind enemy lines when He arrived here. He fought the enemy long and hard. He was subjected to the most vile insults, innuendo, and lack of respect that no one had ever been subjected to before or since.
But He was ready. He was anointed.
TORRENT OF HATRED
We are entering into days when the level of outright hatred in America has achieved Biblical proportions. Whoever will attempt to engage in any level of reform will be attacked vociferously. But this has always been the case for real Christians. They are not surprised. Real Christians remember a level of surprise as rookies, in not understanding why so much unwarranted hatred was coming their way. Then they understood what every well-trained soldier knows: The enemy is not your friend. The enemy hates you. The enemy will attempt to destroy your life. The enemy will try to kill you. If the enemy is not trying to get you, you’re not doing your job. Those Christians unaware of this are as ducks on a pond.
The Lord Jesus was subjected to all of these things, as were His men. The more authority and power they had, the more they were attacked. Why? BECAUSE THEY WERE BEING POWERFULLY EFFECTIVE AT DESTROYING THEIR ENEMY. They were exposing him and applying solutions to eliminate his corruption. What else is the devil supposed to do, just sit back and let you win? He will throw everything he has at you. You better be able to throw everything back at Him.
When the enemy is on the run you must keep him on the run. This is how you do it:
Then it happened when the Philistine rose and came and drew near to meet David, that David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine. And David put his hand into his bag and took from it a stone and slung it, and struck the Philistine on his forehead. And the stone sank into his forehead, so that he fell on his face to the ground. Thus David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, and he struck the Philistine and killed him; but there was no sword in David’s hand.
Then David ran and stood over the Philistine and took his sword and drew it out of its sheath and killed him, and cut off his head with it. When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled. The men of Israel and Judah arose and shouted and pursued the Philistines as far as the valley, and to the gates of Ekron. And the slain Philistines lay along the way to Shaaraim, even to Gath and Ekron. The sons of Israel returned from chasing the Philistines and plundered their camps.
Then David took the Philistine’s head and brought it to Jerusalem… [1Samuel 17:48-54] [1]
David was powerfully anointed for service. He attacked the enemy in the Name of the Lord. He did not just knock Goliath down with a small rock sunk in the giant’s head from a mere sling, HE ALSO CUT OFF THE GIANT’S HEAD WITH THE GIANT’S OWN SWORD.
He then took the bloody symbol of the devil’s former authority to the place of God’s authority in the capital city and put it up in a place where everyone could see it.
© 2016 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
LIVING IN THE MIRACLE REALM: Spiritual War (2)
Miraculous works were not only a sign proving the legitimacy and authority of the Lord Jesus and His ministry, they were vital to carrying it out. His overall ministry has never ceased but continued with His original disciples and continues at present. In order to achieve what the Lord has called us to achieve we must use every ministry tool and weapon that He used. We must live in the Miracle Realm.
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SPIRITUAL WAR
We are in a war. It is the greatest war of all time. It has been going on continuously since the spiritual fall in the Garden when sin entered the world. The enemy knows all he has to do is apply enough temptation to get a person to sin and then everything spiritual in that person’s life will be cut off. Such a person will become spiritually blind and completely ineffective.
Therefore, the first reason that most Christians cannot perform miracles as the Lord did is because they have sin in their lives. Of course, human pride is greatly offended at this and will oppose the solution all the more. Most Christians have never had a real born again experience and thus they have never truly repented, and thus, the blood of Jesus has never been applied. They remain in their sins though they may otherwise look and act like a Christian. They have never fully repented.
Of course, such is Christianity 101. It is not that most Christians have failed the course but that they refuse to take the course.
Many Christians go through their Christian routine knowing full well there is a weight upon them and a problem, but having no clue what it is or what to do about it, since they have rejected the otherwise obvious answer (sin), they cease trying to figure it out and simply learn to live with it. They accept a powerless Christianity and simply go through religious motions completely outside the Miracle Realm.
WHAT ABOUT REAL CHRISTIANS?
For sincere believers—THOSE WHO ARE WILLING TO DO ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING THE LORD JESUS REQUIRES WHATEVER THE PERSONAL COST—there are also reasons why they are having a hard time manifesting the works of God.
Again, we are in a war. Science tells us that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. It is the same in the spirit: EVERYTHING A REAL BELIEVER ATTEMPTS TO DO FOR GOD WILL BE OPPOSED—EVERYTHING.
Therefore, if you really want to get it done you must understand that one attempt will usually fail. It is often the case that ten attempts will fail. If one is easily discouraged then forget it. It is not that the Lord is not involved, however, it is that the enemy is resisting. He is fighting you. You must overcome him. The Lord showed us how.
Remember, Daniel prayed for three weeks without hearing anything at all. Then an angel showed up. The angel said the Lord heard Daniel’s prayer at the very beginning. But the angel, the messenger the Lord sent right away, had to engage in warfare with a powerful demon to get the answer to Daniel. That’s why it took 21 days. Daniel did his part by continuously praying and believing, and staying in faith for as long as it took for the answer to arrive.
OUR POWERFUL WEAPON OF FASTING
The Lord Jesus was fasting all the time. He began His ministry with a 40 day fast. If one refuses to fast then forget it—one will never do the miraculous works of God.
OUR POWERFUL WEAPON OF PRAYER
He was also praying all the time, sometimes spending hours every night in prayer, and there were times when He prayed all night long. If one refuses to pray the right way, or pray unceasingly, or pray IN FAITH, or pray as if all depended on one’s prayers, then forget it—one will never do the miraculous works of God.
OUR POWERFUL WEAPON OF GOD’S WORD
The Lord was also always quoting the Word. THERE IS GREAT POWER AND ANOINTING IN THE WORD OF GOD! He used it as yet another weapon. If one refuses to use the real Word of God then forget it—one will never do the miraculous works of God.
Indeed, all three of these are very powerful spiritual weapons. They each must be utilized to achieve the will of God.
© 2016 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church
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MUST READS:
ENTERING THE MIRACLE REALM (Part 1)
LIVING IN THE MIRACLE REALM: Miracles Are Real (1)
Miraculous works were not only a sign proving the legitimacy and authority of the Lord Jesus and His ministry, they were vital to carrying it out. His overall ministry has never ceased but continued with His original disciples and continues at present. In order to achieve what the Lord has called us to achieve we must use every ministry tool and weapon that He used. We must live in the Miracle Realm.
.
THE MIRACLE REALM
All of us wonder sometimes why our prayers are not answered. We wonder why we feel so out of touch spiritually and why the Lord seems to be a million miles away. While such things happen from time to time for dedicated disciples, for most Christians, they happen all the time.
This is one reason: The majority of Christians in the world have never entered the Miracle Realm.
Let me explain.
The Lord Jesus said His real disciples would do the same things He did. Before we go further, please focus on His words in the following passage:
“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father.” [John 14:12] [1]
Now, consider that. The Lord spoke these words very sincerely. He left no doubt as to their meaning. The words apply to every real believer from that time until the present. He said that every REAL believer will do the same works that He did during His ministry and would also do even greater works.
Now consider the following phenomena:
The Lord Jesus could actually SEE otherwise invisible demons.
The Lord was also well-acquainted with angels, as were the members of His early Community. You remember that Peter was busted out of jail by a walking talking angel the night before he was to be executed. Joseph, the Lord’s human father, had one dream after another featuring an actual angel appearing to him in dreams and giving him specific commands.
The Lord Jesus Himself appeared to Paul on more than one occasion.
All of these things happened as a matter of course in early Christian history. For most Christians since and for most Christians at present these kinds of things NEVER happen. Most Christian leaders are so out of touch spiritually they have joined the devil in claiming such things no longer happen, can’t happen, and haven’t happened since the first century. And because of this, most Christians have been taught to NOT believe.
In other words, if it doesn’t happen to me or at my church then it simply can’t be real.
This is what I term Surface-Oriented Christianity. It’s not spiritually real. It has no power. Whatever the denomination, it is as unreal as the day is long. I am not judging the hearts of individuals, but merely agreeing with the actual teachings and ministry of the Lord Jesus and standing on His Words instead of the words of any other.
Let me explain something even further. As a follower of the Lord, I have been around a long time. I am very familiar with Catholic churches, Protestant churches of almost every form, Non-denominational churches, and many Pentecostal and Charismatic churches. I am very familiar with mega churches and many forms of small home groups. I could go on. I have been to roughly a million Christian services and meetings and conferences of pretty much any and every form.
But very rarely, relatively speaking, have I seen or experienced the works the Lord did during His ministry.
BUT I HAVE SEEN THEM. THEY DO EXIST.
It is just that, again, relatively speaking regarding all Christian experience and considering all denominations, the Lord’s miraculous works are very rare. Everyone knows this. Some Christians even think they don’t happen at all and never could.
There are reasons for this. I can tell you exactly what those reasons are, but I also know that most Christians are simply not interested. For the few who are interested and really want to break through and be used of God in a mighty way, stayed tuned…
In the meantime I suggest the following articles:
ENTERING THE MIRACLE REALM (Part 1)
ENTERING THE MIRACLE REALM (Part 2)
ENTERING THE MIRACLE REALM (Part 3)
© 2016 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
WHERE IS THE LOVE? Identifying Christian Pharisees
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” [John 13:34-35]
How does one identify a real Christian Pharisee? Like their spiritual forebears of the first century, a Christian Pharisee is initially known primarily by one thing. And this one thing is both an indicator of such a person’s heart, as it is at the core of his or her being, but is also on the immediate surface, and often boils forward to said surface in a rapid flash which defies any possibility of impulse control.
The first indicator of a real Christian Pharisee is therefore no secret whatsoever in that it reveals itself without restraint in all its unchecked fleshly power as it rises quickly for the kill in response to any perceived sleight or lack of absolute respect demanded by such a one for otherwise arbitrary reasons.
Here it is: CHRISTIAN PHARISEES ARE EXTREMELY AND VERY EASILY OFFENDED AND ARE WILLING TO FIGHT ANYONE ANYTIME ANYWHERE AT THE DROP OF A HAT TO PROTECT AND HONOR THEMSELVES AND THE BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS THEY HAVE BOUGHT INTO AND SOLD OUT TO WITH NO REGARD WHATSOEVER FOR THE GOLDEN RULE OR HONORING THE LORD JESUS.
They refuse to engage in any rational dialogue in the sense of arriving at greater truth because they believe they already possess all truth. They refuse and deflect any form of possible persecution by always beating the other person to said persecution and thus becoming the epitome of the persecutor. Their method is one of insistence that they are right, have always been right, and will always be right, and insist that anyone who doesn’t believe what they believe can just as soon go straight to hell.
They believe with all their hearts that they have captured and possess the very top of the pyramid, that they are superior to all, and that all others must comply with their religion or belief system and every part of it, both in dogma and practice, or be remanded to a state of total rejection.
They then project this attitude upon the “god” of their choosing and insist that “god”, their god, is absolutely on their side and only on their side and is also against the same people they are against. They will go to any lengths to destroy anyone who even slightly touches their massive sacred cows and golden calves as if simple murder is nowhere close to being good enough and doesn’t do proper justice to the immense offense perpetrated upon them.
This very thing happened to the real God, the only God, the God of all Creation, when He showed up here as one of us, as a human being, to save us and set us free. Of course, they couldn’t touch Him until He willingly laid down His life on our behalf. Once He made Himself vulnerable, however, His enemies wasted no time in inflicting upon Him the very worst they could offer and if they had the opportunity they would have tortured Him and murdered Him many times over.
It’s right there in your Gospels. It’s all over the New Testament. It’s infused throughout Christian history. It is why the real saints of the Lord always took it on the chin while doing the real work of the Lord and teaching the real Gospel. The incredible and completely unjustified persecution against them identified them as real disciples who acted out of love and for the truth, and it also perfectly identified the haters who would always rather gossip, slander, libel, and defame, and even murder, maim, destroy, and generally go stark raving nuts in defense of their evil hearts and ungodly agendas.
“You serpents, you brood of vipers, how will you escape the sentence of hell?” [Matthew 23:33] [1]
LOVE IS THE FULFILLMENT OF THE LAW
Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Love never fails… [1Corinthians 13:4-8]
Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law. For this, “YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY, YOU SHALL NOT MURDER, YOU SHALL NOT STEAL, YOU SHALL NOT COVET,” and if there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this saying, “YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.”
Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. [Romans 13:8-10]
© 2016 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
FIFTH COLUMN CHRISTIANS: How the devil Created Unreal Christianity
“FIFTH COLUMN”: Clandestine group or faction of subversive agents who attempt to undermine a nation’s solidarity by any means at their disposal.
“A cardinal technique of the fifth column is the infiltration of sympathizers into the entire fabric of the nation under attack and, particularly, into positions of policy decision and national defense. From such key posts, fifth-column activists exploit the fears of a people by spreading rumours and misinformation, as well as by employing the more standard techniques of espionage and sabotage.” [1]
THE JERK WHO STARTED IT ALL
The devil is the original jerk.
A jerk, in this sense, with a wide inclusion of corresponding names and titles denoting derivative evil and subversive activities, is someone driven to do all in his or her power to mess up a good thing.
The Garden, east of Eden, built by the Lord God, was absolutely perfect.
Adam, the first human, created by the Lord God, was also absolutely perfect.
And Eve, wonderful Eve, the first woman, also created by the Lord God, was not only absolutely perfect but the crown of creation. With all due respect to Adam, there was no possible better created being than Eve. After the Lord God made her He was done. He saved His best for last.
But of course, the devil had to come along and screw it all up. (The devil is such a rotten little reprobate.) He lives to destroy, to rottenize everything he touches, and to do all is his power to transform the perfectly moral and beautiful into gross immorality and ugliness.
The sad thing about this idiot is that he possesses such a powerful ability to lie and cheat and deceive that EVERYBODY ends up listening to all his sorry tripe and most obey him their entire lives with no recourse or ability to stop.
THE ONLY CURE:
He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him.
But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. [John 1:11-13]
THE TREE OF THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOOD AND EVIL
Adam listened and at first he told the devil to bug off. Adam remained loyal to the Lord God.
Eve listened and at first she fought him. She quoted the Word of God. But the devil kept on in his sly and slimy manner and started making sense to her. Adam was nowhere around. The devil isolated her and caught her on her own. She had never been taught directly by the Lord God but by Adam. Thus, the devil simply attacked her husband’s credibility in order to attack the credibility of the Lord God.
Interestingly enough, Eve began to listen:
“Maybe Adam got it wrong…”
“How do I really know that Adam learned everything he taught me from the Lord God?”
“Maybe this alternative picture the devil is painting in the real reality…”
The devil encouraged her to use her human eyes, her human understanding, and her human imagination. The forbidden fruit suddenly looked good to her, both to her eyes as a thing of beauty and also for food. She also fell for the lie that eating the fruit would make her wise and that she would replace the Lord God. She would be equal to the Lord God. SHE would be the Lord God.
The original fifth columnist gained his first convert.
ADAM’S EVENTUAL FAILURE
What the hell happened to Adam? Why did he no longer resist sin and temptation?
He had successfully defeated the pukey little devil on every other occasion. He was never fooled by his lies before. His education by the Lord God in spiritual things had been perfect.
Why did he not resist his wife’s manipulation?
If you can answer this question you will know how Christianity in general has been almost completely subverted and transformed into something completely different from the original, WHICH IS PERFECT.
The man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me from the tree, and I ate.” [Genesis 3:12] [2]
And with that the devil made his second convert.
Since that time the devil has managed to create many more converts. There are more unreal Christians on the planet than real ones. The faux bros have listened to the devil’s suggestions and eaten the forbidden fruit.
Unreal Christians have never undergone required heart circumcision as per the Lord’s commands, but have certainly succumbed to backbone removal.
Could it be because many of the people you see in pulpits are nothing but undercover Christian Fifth Columnists blinded by the devil and won over to his cause?
It certainly appears that they and their congregations have all fallen into their respective pits.
“FIFTH COLUMN:” Clandestine group or faction of subversive agents who attempt to undermine a nation’s (Christian group’s) solidarity by any means at their disposal.
“A cardinal technique of the fifth column is the infiltration of sympathizers into the entire fabric of the nation (Christian group) under attack and, particularly, into positions of policy decision and national (Christian group) defense. From such key posts, fifth-column activists exploit the fears of a people by spreading rumours and misinformation (false doctrines and teachings), as well as by employing the more standard techniques of espionage and sabotage (lies and deception).” [1]
© 2016 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church
[1] © 2016 Encyclopedia Brittanica
[2] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
DEFEATING THE RULER OF THIS WORLD: Christian Heroes and Villains
DEFEATING THE RULER OF THIS WORLD: Christian Heroes and Villains
We know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. [1John 5:19]
WARNING
The apostle John said the entire world lies in wickedness and is under the power and authority of the devil. Because I would think that “professing Christians” are not anti-John, I would think that “professing Christians” would agree with him.
But most do not. This falls under the heading the Lord referenced when He said that some people honor Him with their lips but actually refuse to obey Him. Unless one is under a deceptive trance, most likely a trance of the religious variety, one must agree that one of the main problems the Lord has is convincing “professing Christians” to actually obey Him.
REJECTING TRUTH IS A SIN!
On the other hand, if a “professing Christian” is otherwise under a deceptive trance, he simply cannot obey Him because he does not have “eyes to see” or “ears to hear.” And this is obviously why most of that which is perceived as “Christianity” is not the real thing. It simply can’t be the real thing, (1) Because it looks nothing like the Lord’s original, and (2) Because no one within it actually obeys Him.
This is what churches should look like:
“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father.” [John 14:12]
Therefore, the problem is not that the Lord cannot get His own people to obey Him, it is that most of those who refer to themselves as Christians are not really Christians. How can they be if they do not obey the Lord? They are certainly not doing the works that He did.
“Why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?” [Luke 6:46]
Of course, the Lord said they can’t obey, or actually do not obey by their own choice, because they only act on what they know, which means they simply cannot “see.” How can anyone act on what they do not see?
THE BIGGER PROBLEM
So it appears that the bigger problem, the problem for unreal Christians that is bigger than their rebellion, disobedience, living in sin, or insisting on believing things the Lord never taught, is the problem of perception—they are spiritually blind.
Now, this is not said to cause offense, but is a simple statement of fact.
One wonders how Christians can read the Gospel accounts and not see that the Lord continually made statements about the spiritual blindness of His own people. These statements have obviously not had the intended impact upon Christians in general. Most Christians must think that yes, the great majority of the Hebrew people, from the late Patriarchal Age until the first century AD, could certainly be spiritually blind, deaf, deceived, and compromised by sin, but certainly not us.
The facts, of course, are not that the Lord said His own people were especially more prone to rebellion against Him and thus to spiritual blindness than others, but that ALL people the world over are prone to rebellion against Him and thus to spiritual blindness.
In other words, it’s not a Jewish problem, it’s a human problem.
THE RULER OF THIS WORLD
This takes us back to the very powerful statement that John made about who really runs this world and how the power of this evil entity has essentially blinded the entire world to the Truth:
We know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. [1John 5:19]
From the very clear perspective of the early first-century Community of the Lord Jesus, they saw themselves as us against the world, especially since this perspective was confirmed by none other than John. The early Christians—the real Christians—knew that there were only two master kingdoms on the planet: The righteous Kingdom of the Lord Jesus and the evil kingdom of the devil, the god of this world.
The apostle Paul confirmed this truth—the fact that the devil runs the entire world and everyone other than real Christians support the devil, most completely unaware—and Paul completely agreed with John’s statement by writing the following:
And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. [2Corinthians 4:3-4]
The Lord Jesus also referred to the devil as the ruler of this world. The devil was ruling the world at the time of the Lord’s temptation. But the Lord, when speaking of His coming crucifixion, said this:
“Now judgment is upon this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out.” [John 12:31]
What He meant by this is that the devil would be defeated at the cross and all the devil’s garbage would, at the crucifixion, begin to be cleaned out of the world. Therefore the real Gospel has two main objectives while this cleaning out process proceeds:
(1) The salvation of souls—rescuing people from the devil’s kingdom, his control, and the power of sin—and transferring them to the Lord’s Kingdom.
(2) Taking authority back from the devil for the Lord Jesus, the only real King, through the power of His Name.
Paul said the Gospel is veiled to those who are perishing because the devil has blinded their minds. Now think about that. How is it possible that one cannot see the BRIGHTEST LIGHT in the entire Universe? It can only be due to spiritual blindness of the worst kind.
A VERY THICK GARMENT
The word “veiled” in the above passage is from the Greek word kalupto. This word appears 8 times in the entire New Testament. It appears 4 times in the Gospels. It is translated as (1) cover, (2) covers, (3) covered, (4) concealed, and (5) veiled.
Based on these definitions, the veil or covering that causes the blindness must be very, very thick, as the ultimate blackout curtain. The real Gospel (there’s only one) is hidden to everyone not in the Kingdom due to a very thick covering. What is this covering?
And Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world, so that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may become blind.”
Those of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these things and said to Him, “We are not blind too, are we?”
Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but since you say, ‘We see,’ your sin remains.” [John 9:39-41] [1]
In this passage the pure teachings of the Lord Jesus also perfectly agree with the two passages written by John and Paul, especially, of course, since He’s the one who taught John and Paul. The Lord also paints a picture of only two kinds of people in the world:
First of all, before seeing “the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ,” EVERYONE is blind. EVERYONE. But the Lord said He came so that some will be healed of their spiritual blindness, “that those who do not see may see.” These are people who will readily accept the Good News and will repent of their sins, since it is their sin which causes their spiritual blindness.
The other kind of people in the world comprises those who will never be healed of their spiritual blindness simply because they refuse to admit they have any sin. They reject the only cure. They insist they are righteous without the real Gospel. Their “no Gospel” righteousness, in the eyes of God, however, is characterized by the following:
For all of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment; and all of us wither like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away. [Isaiah 64:6]
If you want to gain more insight regarding this spiritual phenomenon, you can read the ninth chapter of the Gospel of John, from which I quoted earlier. It is a perfect allegory created by the Lord in the three dimensional world with an actual blind man who was made to see. The Lord Jesus was teaching a lesson, and for those who can see, He taught it perfectly. He showed how we can be healed of our spiritual blindness by having our sin removed.
Our sin is exactly as a filthy garment that covers our spiritual eyes.
Now perhaps you can see how the devil has blinded the entire world, and how there is only one cure for this blindness. In the same way he tempted the Lord in the effort to get Him to sin, without success of course, he tempts us.
He knows that if he can get us to sin he can make us spiritually blind.
This is why we must always do our best to obey the Lord’s actual teachings. They are designed to rescue us from the sin that blinds us, give us eyes to see and ears to hear, bring us to full spiritual health, and empower us to defeat the enemy through His indwelling Holy Spirit and the power of His Name.
FAKEWORLD
Anything and everything outside the Kingdom of the Lord Jesus on this planet is nothing but a façade, an illusion, and a powerful deception. The devil is a liar, and everything He says and creates is a lie. It is not real. Other than those in the Lord’s Kingdom, the devil is fooling EVERYONE.
This is why the Lord said that those who refuse to repent of their sin and stop sinning can never be healed of their blindness. This is especially true of those who have been deceived by some form of religion. As long as they stay under the power of their religion they will always be made to believe a lie. They will always respond to the illusion. They will always obey the devil, even though they are unaware of it.
Therefore, in the final analysis regarding the purpose of this article, the majority of “professing Christians” are also blind simply because they refuse the real Gospel and they believe in something that masquerades as the real Gospel. The fake gospel, in all its many forms, does not have “the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ.” Whenever it is applied to the blind man of John 9, the blind man stays blind. He might have the same willingness to honor God, but because he chooses a powerless unreal gospel, he stays blind and he stays in his sin. Many churches are filled with such people.
This is the main problem, of course, with all the devil’s fake gospel forms—they actually do nothing at all about sin. People who choose fake gospels may think they are delivered from the power of sin but they keep denying the proof that repeatedly shows up in their lives that they have not been delivered, in that they have little or no resistance to sin: They keep sinning. Uncontrollably.
As a result, they have created a false form of righteousness which includes sin. They insist they are righteous, though the fruits of repentance do not exist in their lives. Their spiritual blindness makes it impossible for them to obey the Lord.
And instead of defeating the ruler of this world, they have joined him.
© 2016 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
“CHURCHIANITY? WE HAVE A PROBLEM” Supporting Old Wineskins Means Rejecting New Wine
You don’t find it in traditional “church.” You don’t find it in pretty much any form of ultra-organized Christianity, that is, that which is organized by man.
If people are the central planners, central organizers, central leaders, and central motivators, then the Lord Jesus is not.
And that’s the PROBLEM. It’s why you never see real, lasting revival in such places.
It’s why those in some places, in the effort to at least appear spiritual, have given themselves over to pure emotionalism because they simply do not have the real thing. They’ve substituted mere human virtue, emotional good feeling, and shallow spirituality, and have made these the priority. They want everyone to be comfortable, which means they also, by forced option, want people to be comfortable in their sin. No one in these places wants to say anything against their “church” because they cherish it as their support group, strengthening gym, and bless-me club. How then can it ever improve spiritually?
No one wants to say anything or even feel anything against the leaders thereof because it makes them feel uncomfortable. If there was some sort of legitimate process toward solutions, like in the early church, people would have a viable outlet, but as it is, the most anyone can ever do is keep to themselves anything that doesn’t agree with the status quo.
NO ONE WHO HAS SOLD OUT TO ANY OF THESE ORGANIZATIONS WANTS TO BE THOUGHT OF AS A DEVIANT OR SOCIAL PARIAH, AND THUS THEY ALL FOCUS ON FITTING IN RATHER THAN SPEAKING OUT FOR THE LORD, WHEN SPEAKING OUT IS CALLED FOR. THE SILENCE INFLICTED UPON THEM INDICATES THAT THOSE IN CHARGE ARE PERFECTLY FINE WITH THE SET UP.
Of course, it takes the real anointing of the Holy Spirit to speak out. To stand up. To see what the problem is. To bring into the light what the problem is. And to actually give real solutions to fix the problem.
But very few in these places really want to fix the problem regardless of what they say or do because it will involve what I just wrote of above, and no one wants to be that guy.
Well, here’s a news flash: Over the last thirty years or so the Lord Jesus has been pouring out His Spirit and His anointing and His Truth and many, many individuals have been strengthened and anointed and encouraged to OBEY the Lord Jesus in order to do His will, and not the will of others who have decided to take His place.
These anointed individuals are loving and kind and wonderful people, yet each and every one of them eventually found walls and closed doors and closed minds and hard attitudes and were forced out.
THE EXACT SAME THING HAPPENED TO THE LORD JESUS.
But why? —Because He did the same thing that all these other anointed real believers have been doing. He refused to go along with the false religion the religious controllers of His time were pushing. He was sent to preach the one real Gospel. He would teach nothing else.
Of course, all the people who could no longer stay in a place in which the Lord Jesus was not in full control were either silenced or forced to leave, and it caused the light in such places to dim and many lights have eventually gone out completely. The same thing happened when the Lord left the synagogues.
When He walked in He was a BRIGHT LIGHT that exposed all corruption and everything false. When He walked out the place returned to its state of darkness. THE LIGHT WAS REJECTED. DARKNESS WAS ACCEPTED. They felt more comfortable in darkness. They didn’t appreciate the Lord exposing them for what they really were. They hated feeling convicted and rather than repent and get rid of their sin they got rid of Him.
And it was all in the effort to maintain a compromised or dead status quo and keep the people in charge who were in charge, exactly as it is today.
The believers who have traditionally been forced out did not want to be “in charge.” They wanted the Lord Jesus to be in charge! And they all knew that if He was in charge the same things that happened in His historical ministry would happen there. But the powers that be almost always nix this because they simply do not understand the truth nor do they want it. Most really believe in what they are doing and think their places are just fine and even great exactly as they are. Many are deceived.
Here’s another news flash: The compromising of American churches didn’t just happen because the members grew cold, it happened due to a secret organized agenda that most members know nothing about. The general members didn’t cause it, but they have agreed with it.
NEW WINE AND NEW WINESKINS
But what goes on in the vast majority of these places, again, looks nothing like the Book of Acts. Even though there are a few people who remain “loyal” to their establishments while also seeking a great outpouring from the Lord, they don’t understand that they keep trying to force the Lord’s NEW WINE into old wineskins!
When push comes to shove they refuse to allow for the Lord’s NEW WINESKINS and continue to honor, support, and remain loyal to the OLD. Such old wineskins can never allow for the very thing they seek, but again, getting rid of the same old same old is anathema to these people. They have therefore chosen the old wine over the NEW WINE.
“And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled out, and the skins will be ruined. But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins. And no one, after drinking old wine wishes for new; for he says, ‘The old is good enough.’” [Luke 5:37-39]
How do we know someone else is standing in the Lord’s place? How do we know that someone else is in charge? How do we know that someone else is deciding on policy, on what will be taught, on what doctrines will be allowed, what people must believe, and on which “ministers” can speak?
Simple: Next to nothing in these places actually looks like the ministry of the Lord Jesus or that which happened in the early church. Some give forth the appearance. Most do not. And the members thereof have grown satisfied in dry deserts and dusty creek beds and empty lakes and waterless oceans. There’s no water in their swimming pools and yet everyone is acting like there is. That’s weird. But not so much if everyone there is doing it.
So there’s your PROBLEM. It was the same problem the Old Testament prophets faced. It was the same problem John the Immerser faced. It was the same problem the Lord Jesus faced. And it was the same problem the original apostles of the Lord faced. You either joined ‘em or you fought ‘em. Most fought ‘em.
IT’S WHY THEY WERE ALL MARTYRS.
Today, church members in general don’t want to be martyrs. They don’t want to be anything close to a martyr. They are satisfied that the Lord Jesus is not in charge, that His Holy Spirit is not welcome, that they have no powerful outpourings, and that they are bound by teachings and doctrines that are not His.
But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons, by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron… [1Timothy 4:1-2] [1]
THERE IS A SOLUTION
It doesn’t have to be this way. But anyone who knows and has done the research and has studied revivals in detail KNOWS why they happen and why they end. They happen because enough people greatly desire as top priority the Lord’s Truth, the Lord’s control, and the Lord’s spiritual outpouring, exactly as that which happened in Acts 2. These saints of God make great demands upon themselves to achieve this end. They have to fight through so many other Christians thinking they are idiots and malcontents. They must have great courage and must persevere against great odds. THIS is how revivals happen. And when enough of these people are successful and are able to fight off all enemies, most especially religious enemies, GREAT AWAKENINGS happen. Amen!
But revivals end when the human religious controllers manage to fight back and take control once again. When they wrest control back from the Lord, the same old spiritual deadness ensues. They destroy the NEW WINESKINS and rebuild the old.
REVIVAL ANYONE?
Here is the Lord’s guarantee for all of who really want the best: The 120 people in the Upper Room were all in one accord. Each and everyone knew the Lord Jesus must be in charge, must be honored 100%, and must be allowed to do whatever He wanted to do. They were all surrendered to Him and His Truth and His entire curriculum. They LOVED Him with all their hearts. And though tens of thousands followed the Lord in His ministry, only 120 were willing to go all the way to the Lord’s fullness and toward complete obedience.
As a result it was the 120 who were blessed with Pentecost!
If any group of people, or church congregation, or members of a ministry do exactly as the 120 did, the guarantee is that the same outpouring will happen for them.
All of this means it is our choice. The Lord forces no one. That’s in part why most churches are dead and compromised and filled with false doctrines. These places are the antithesis of spiritual health. Though they may look great on the outside, to the eye, and though that is exactly what many of them strive for, all it does is serve as a deceptive shiny wrapper on the far less than optimum spirituality within.
So again, any group anywhere can change their tune and get right with God, but this will never happen until they finally acknowledge that they have a problem.
SUCCESS!
Some churches and groups have done this! They have proven it. Some are proving it right now. But we are still in the early stages.
Always keep in mind that the real Christians of the early community of the Lord actually defeated the Roman Empire in its evil battle against them. If that doesn’t prove the Lord’s power and ability, what does? Rome was the greatest empire the world had ever known until the present empire being built up all around us. The same kind of war is beginning to come forth.
However, our early forebears fought a spiritual war against demonic entities. They fought the devil but loved the people.
And the kind of love they showed, and it’s best characteristic, and its greatest example was illustrated perfectly by the Lord’s suffering and death on the cross.
“Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.” [John 15:13]
This is our challenge.
© 2016 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
Everybody Must Get Stoned: Reaping the Reward of Spiritual Attack
I remember in my late teens I became a big fan of Walt Whitman, the 19th century poet. The man pretty much invented what became known as “free verse.” He called his poems songs. Some were very long, as if he were writing poems as prose. I am currently writing from memory, as something is telling me not to spoil it by looking up the actual poems, etc, and to simply write what I recall. Maybe it will give this post a closer and more intimate feel.
But there was a poem he wrote called something like When I Heard the Learned Astronomer. Walt Whitman was at a lecture. Remember, this was about 150 years ago. The gist of the poem was about this astute scientist droning on about the intricacies of the Universe and his calculations and a bunch of intellectual claptrap, while Whitman finally had enough and was thinking, “Man, how can you take all the beauty and wonder of the crystal clear night skies, and the bright stars, and planets, and the moon…
There is a big and bright full moon hanging in the sky as I write this, and it defies intellectual introspection, and I think the Creator wants us to just appreciate it, and wonder, and not have our simple minds all clouded over and crammed with relatively useless mathematical garbage about the moon, and simply appreciate the celestial glory…
This is what Whitman ended up saying in that particular poem he wrote so long ago. Again, I haven’t read it in what must be decades, but I saw the full moon tonight. I went outside for a while a few minutes ago and was bathed in its light. And I saw the clear sky, and the stars. And I thought about what Whitman was trying to say…
We do the same things as Christians in preaching or teaching the Lord’s Gospel, or whatever it is that we do. We have a tendency, and I am certainly guilty, of focusing on the intellectual, and the spiritual math, and the exact word studies. Now, all of this is quite necessary and the Lord blessed me with the anointing to do this many moons ago, and I do it, and I love it. But I am trying to reach a balance with this post…
You see, spiritual things often cannot be diagrammed and spelled out and made sense of, and are often the epitome of the counterintuitive. This is especially true of spiritual warfare and attacks which many times come by complete surprise and out of the blue. Would that we could set up war plans like military planners and know our enemy to the point that we know what’s coming, but this is rarely the case. Spiritual attacks usually come out of nowhere and the only real defense is staying as close as possible to the Lord so we will at least be strong enough to take the hit.
The point here is that sometimes the devil’s a snake. At other times he smells blood like a shark and rushes in for the kill. Often, after having to undergo this kind of stuff, it makes you think, “What the hell?” Then we remember the Lord, and his original twelve, and all the other disciples from that time, and the early community of the Lord in Jerusalem and throughout an evil world and the undeserved pain they all had to suffer. And we can relate. We’re therefore fortunate to be able to relate.
[Incidentally, the Last Days plan is beginning to accelerate, and a relatively quick rise of great hatred for real Christians in America is starting. Be prepared. As I wrote in Real Christianity twenty years ago, bloody persecution is coming to this country. Most did not believe it then. Most Christians are still so out of touch they still don’t believe it, or perceive it. But again, be prepared.]
As James wrote (pretty sure it was James, or John—remember, I’m not doing my usual checking and ultra-editing and whatnot, I’m just writing my thoughts as they occur), he wrote something about real Christians getting blamed for things they are not guilty of, and suffering undeservedly, and saying it is a good thing. He taught that it was spiritually good for us to get slammed for no good reason, but only because a devil got stirred up and saw an opening and attacked. In other words, the very essence of persecution is being hated without a cause.
The Lord said this about Himself. He taught it, that it was something His disciples would go through. He also taught that there would be times when such slamming happens when no one who should will back you, or come to your rescue, or fight back for you on your behalf, but just kind of stay uninvolved. I know there are some of you reading this who can relate. Sometimes the spiritual attack is so severe and so unwarranted our brothers and sisters and friends keep their distance. Again, it happened to the Lord many times. In His greatest time of need His friends were nowhere to be found. Most people had decided He was guilty and was merely getting what He deserved.
One time, after a particular teaching, many of His followers walked out on Him, and He said to those who remained, “Will you leave Me too?”
Imagine that. This is God we’re talking about. Again, I know some of you reading this can relate. You know what it’s like to be left on your own, wounded, to fend for yourself. Of course, we’re not alone. We’re never alone. The Lord is there, especially in those kinds of times. But it’s still hard. It’s the kind of thing that drives one to the ground.
I remember a former pastor, long ago, preaching about this. He was talking about a pain so great but you can’t confront anybody. You can’t fight back. The devil is pouring it on. He was talking about falling to the floor in prayer in his bedroom, and managing to crawl into the closet, and crawling way back there in the back, all the way back to the hunting boots, and crying out to God.
It happens. It’s the nature of spiritual battle. But joy comes in the morning. Or maybe a few days later. Or something. But if we handle it right the Lord always works it out. It makes no sense in the natural, just like some egghead drawing circles and mathematical formulas on a chalkboard does absolutely no justice to the wonders of the night sky.
By the way, though the great masses of traditional Christianity have already celebrated their “Easter” almost a month ago, we are presently on the eve of Passover. We crossed over the Jordan River on Monday. It is also Nisan 14, the time on the Lord’s calendar of His passion—His undeserved suffering—and His crucifixion. He paid the price. He never retaliated. He let them slam Him.
And this year He is once again doing it alone, since, as I said, the vast majority of Christians jumped the gun last month because they’re following a meaningless Gregorian calendar invented by an egghead theologian who ironically invented an anti-celestial calendar that has no bearing on what’s going on in the sky or the Spirit.
The Lord’s undeserved suffering puts things in proper spiritual perspective. Everything He did He did for our benefit, even for the times when we must share in His suffering with suffering of our own. Such times are great opportunities for gaining spiritual ground and reaping rewards. His own death proves this. There could be no glorious resurrection otherwise.
And because He rose again to new life so will you, and so will I, and so will we all—those of us who count ourselves as His real disciples and live to tell about it, even if we die in the process.
© 2016 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
THIS LAND IS YOUR LAND
Every year I always look forward to a particular anniversary—The Crossing of the Jordan River. The spiritual implications of this date are off the charts. Every real Christian should be paying absolutely close attention to this time, both in one’s personal walk with the Lord Jesus, but also to that which He is doing for His community in general. This has everything to do with the Great Awakening.
I believe the implications of the Jordan River Crossing are especially pronounced this year. Please pray and seek the Lord so you can be in tune with what He has planned.
The anniversary of the Crossing of the Jordan River is Nisan 10 on the Hebrew calendar, which occurs this Monday, April 18, 2016.
.
“Okay Joshua. Listen up. It’s time to take the Promised Land.”
“Cool. Hey look! There it is!”
“Yep.”
“But…”
“What’s the problem?”
“Uh, Sir? Look at all those people!”
The land was filled with dirty rotten Canaanites. They were everywhere. These were the most vile people on the planet. The Lord had often said that judgment must wait until the fullness of sin arrived. It certainly looked like that now. The Canaanites were all engaging in the filthiest, dirtiest, most evil practices ever known to mankind. What can be fairly certain is that when the Lord uses His own people to bring judgment against evil people, the evil people in question have without doubt reached the place of ultimate sinfulness.
“Those people look really, really evil, Lord. And powerful. Are you sure about this?”
“Sure about what?”
“About going in there!”
“What are you talking about? It’s your land. Go in there and take it. I promised it to you didn’t I? And I always keep my Word.”
“Well thanks for the promise and the land but I didn’t know it was going to be crawling with those guys! Those are some bad people, Lord!”
“Hold the phone, little man. Weren’t you and Caleb saying forty years ago you wanted to take the land way back then? And those other wimps said, ‘Oh no! We look like little grasshoppers next to those giants! We’ll get creamed!’ But you said, ‘Back off you pansies! We can do this!’ So what’s the problem now?”
“I don’t know, Lord. It just looks like there’s millions more and they’re all over the place and this is gonna be a lot tougher than I thought…”
“Well why in the world do you think I’ve been telling you to be strong all this time? I’ve been telling you this over and over. Look Joshua, you’re the strongest and most courageous leader I’ve got. Don’t chicken out now.”
“Um, I’m not being chicken but just thinking it’s going to be a lot harder than I thought…”
“So does that change things? What else are you going to do? You want to go back to Egypt like all those dead Judases wanted to do?”
“No Sir!”
“You want to rot out there in the Sinai? That place is spritually dead and is good for pretty much nothing except making you guys strong and yearn for your real land. You can’t go back there.”
“No Sir.”
“So what’s the problem? Are you going to let a few million depraved sin-filled evil little Canaanite squatters keep your land? Are you going to just let them rip you off? Well? What do you say, boy? Those demon-possessed jerks are sitting on YOUR land eating crops from YOUR fields living in houses made on YOUR property from YOUR building materials. Are you just going to let that go on? What else are you going to do? Where else can you go? There IS no other place.”
THIS LAND IS YOUR LAND. THIS LAND IS MY LAND. FROM CALIFORNIA TO THE NEW YORK ISLAND. FROM THE REDWOOD FORESTS TO THE GULF STREAM WATERS. THIS LAND WAS MADE FOR YOU AND ME. [1]
“Then how did all those all those evil people get there?”
“Because they’re lying cheating sinning arrogant evil hell-bound squatters beyond redemption and all those compromising Unreal Christians made a deal with the devil and instead of stopping them joined up with them. All those pretenders and rip-off artists and squatters on YOUR land think everything belongs to them. They don’t deserve it, they don’t take care of it, they are not responsible, they have no integrity, they are rebellious against Me, and they corrupt everything they touch. They have ripped off my children to get everything they have and they will never stop until they ARE stopped. Now, DO YOU WANT TO TAKE YOUR PROMISED LAND?
“Yes Sir!”
“Then take it. NOW.”
Now it came about after the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, that the LORD spoke to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ servant, saying, “Moses My servant is dead; now therefore arise, cross this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them, to the sons of Israel.
“Every place on which the sole of your foot treads, I have given it to you, just as I spoke to Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon, even as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and as far as the Great Sea toward the setting of the sun will be your territory.
“No man will be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you. Be strong and courageous, for you shall give this people possession of the land which I swore to their fathers to give them.
“Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may have success wherever you go. This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.
“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” [Joshua 1:1-9] [2]
© 2016 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church
[1] © Copyright 1956 (renewed), 1958 (renewed), 1970 and 1972 by Woody Guthrie Publications, Inc. & TRO-Ludlow Music, Inc. (BMI)
[2] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
EXPOSING THE POSERS: Why Prophets and Truth-Bearers are Subject to Such Intense Hate and Hostility
One of the great things about the Lord Jesus, found in no other, is His ability to simultaneously reveal truth and expose deception. He shines an incredibly BRIGHT, quasar-pulsing LIGHT on the false construct of fallen, sinful mankind upon this planet—in New Testament terms, the world—and destroys the con, the fraud, the sham, and the ruse.
This is why the forces of darkness hate Him so much. They can’t hide. They successfully conceal themselves and their underground, off-the-radar, highly deceptive machinations from everybody else, but not from Him.
This is especially true for religious fraudsters, and most especially true for unreal Christians and fake Christian “leaders,” probably the most self-deceived people on the planet. They act like they know it all but regarding the Lord’s real curriculum and compared to the Acts model, most don’t know squat. Their religious pride and smugness is off the charts.
The Lord’s demand for honesty is also why the Lord Jesus will never allow His own children—real Christians—to construct false images about themselves or be mere posers, as are so many unreal Christians, who must do such to pass themselves off as authentic.
Such faux bros are not authentic but only pretend to be. It is why they do not like close inspection. They are very easily offended by the Lord’s pure light and are greatly convicted by the pure Word of God. They much prefer hobnobbing with other shallow-minded, largely Biblically illiterate (by choice), and appearance-oriented folk due to the obvious comfort factor. Most churches are composed of such pretenders and posers—those who prefer to hide—and is why such places always run off the bright lights who innocently expose their silly shenanigans.
THE PLAGUE OF PHARISEES
Of course, the first-century Pharisees were the masters of the false image medium, and their present-day descendants have maintained this mastery, successfully taking full advantage of modern media. The original Pharisees, however, were not Biblically illiterate, but the very opposite. Neither were they shallow-minded. It is curious then, that they missed the mark so badly. And that’s how the Word of God defines sin, as “missing the mark.”
The Pharisees misfired so badly they not only missed the broad side of every barn known to mankind, but entire galaxies. And yet they considered themselves, among themselves (there was little or no dissenting opinion within their own group regarding their superiority and high standing), as brilliant and as close to God as is humanly possible. (Sound familiar?) And yet the Lord characterized the Jewish non-believers, including the Pharisees mentioned in John 8:13, as thus:
“You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” [John 8:44]
Keep in mind that this narrative in John 8 is a purely intra-Jewish dispute—everyone in the chapter was a Jew—which includes the author of the fourth Gospel, traditionally named as John. The Lord Jesus is obviously Jewish, especially since He is from the tribe of Judah. Jews are listed in the chapter as believers in the Lord and also as non-believers by implication. The point, though, is that the Lord was drawing a very distinct contrast between the real and the unreal, and was exposing the false-image fakers for what they really were.
“GRAVEN IMAGES”
This construction of false outer images to deceive an unsuspecting public is one of the principle components of the Lord’s commandment against graven images, which proves the non-believing Jews and Pharisees listed in John 8 were actually grossly violating the Torah, though they did not know it and refused to believe it. They were deceived and even self-deceived by their false interpretation of the Word and their departure from the truth:
“You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth.” [Exodus 20:4]
“You shall not make for yourselves idols, nor shall you set up for yourselves an image or a sacred pillar, nor shall you place a figured stone in your land to bow down to it; for I am the LORD your God.” [Leviticus 26:1]
“So watch yourselves carefully, since you did not see any form on the day the LORD spoke to you at Horeb from the midst of the fire, so that you do not act corruptly and make a graven image for yourselves in the form of any figure, the likeness of male or female…” [Deuteronomy 4:15-16] [1]
THE WIZARD OF OZ PHENOMENON
The Lord’s children must be real, and that is not easy. Unreal Christians, conversely, must build false images of themselves as a way to pass religious inspection. Unreal Christian leaders also do it to take control and command authority over others, and as a way to enrich themselves.
As I have written in Real Christianity, the most fully formed graven image (or idol) is a LIVING HUMAN BEING.
The man-made, exalted “Christian” clergy class invented itself for this very reason. The members thereof hide behind a curtain of false piety and holiness, and demand undeserved honor and respect, which never matches their actual deeds. The great majority of their clueless followers give them exactly what they want, which means the few who see them as they actually are and attempt to expose them end up receiving what the evil perpetrators should receive. This is in part why the Lord Jesus was crucified. The evil religionist followers, inspired, deceived, and led by evil religious leaders, turned their wrath upon the innocent party to protect the very guilty false-image party.
The same thing happens to real Christian innocent parties at present in so many false Christian venues, as attested to by so many real Christians who have been made to pay for the sins of others.
It has been said, of course, that the devil goes to church. In reality, the devil owns many churches. They are his enterprises and not the Lord’s. In these places he has complete control and does not appreciate the Lord’s shining lights and truth-bearers bringing their witness.
DISCIPLESHIP DEFINES DISTINCTION
How do we know the difference between the real and the unreal? This is what real discipleship is about. The closer we get to the Lord Jesus, the more mature we become in Him. The more knowledgeable we are about His written Word, the more we will get to know and understand the Living Word. The more our relationship with Him matures, the more we will be able to see what He sees, and the more He will reveal to us.
Putting the Lord Jesus first sorts things out, removes deception, exposes false reality, and sets us free.
PREPARING FOR PERSECUTION
Of course, the enemy doesn’t like being exposed, so any attempt to reveal his false environment for what it is will not be appreciated and will be met with strong hate and extreme prejudice.
This is why innocent and good-hearted real Christians, the only real spiritual children of the Lord, are viciously slammed beyond all reason and out of all proportion. The attacks come from an unseen evil enemy whose only recourse is to engage in wanton character assassination, slander, libel, and even murder.
It is why the Lord was so savagely and hatefully beaten, tortured, and killed, though He never sinned or did anything wrong. It is why Stephen only lasted a few seconds after one of the greatest, anointed, honest, and exposing speeches in Christian history (See Acts 6-7). The enemy was so enraged by the truth pouring forth from Stephen that they even gnashed their teeth at him!
Therefore, if one wonders why the people who are externally friendly, loving, and supportive are suddenly transformed into hating, rejecting, and slandering crazies—something that would otherwise make no sense whatsoever—it most likely reveals the fact that one has exposed a nerve, an ultra-sensitive nerve, and are innocently and often unknowingly exposing a false image—a human front—perhaps created over many years, and also quite possibly a very evil religious spirit.
Such deceiving poser proponents cannot allow anyone to know what they really are, as their entire life is built upon a false foundation. Once exposed, their house of cards will come crashing down very quickly. They will have no leg to stand on. They will explode in a heap. This is why they must attack so viciously against such harmless innocent witnesses. It is also why they must surround and align themselves with birds of a feather—fellow posers—believers in the lie—those who are blind to truth and real morality. The crowd, the congregation, the family, the group—these allow them to hide and access strength they don’t have individually.
Once their attack commences, and once they successfully survive (temporarily) by throwing the honorable party under the bus (or a pile of rocks) and seemingly get away with a huge injustice, the Lord instructed us to leave them alone.
THEY ARE BLIND LEADERS GUIDING THE BLIND AND BOTH WILL EVENTUALLY FALL INTO A VERY DEEP PIT. IT IS ONLY A MATTER OF TIME.
Perhaps from within said pit they will at last see the truth and find salvation.
But as long as they are playing the faker game on the surface they will most likely never repent and find real salvation, since they have already appropriated for themselves a false salvation through a false gospel or counterfeit belief system of their own rendering.
The devil is a liar.
© 2016 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
The American Political Climate is Fixing to Blow Sky High
Dear Readers, I have been very busy as of late and have not been able to post, yet I feel that with the limited time I have I need to post something about the current political situation in America.
First of all, some of you may recall that I wrote a post last summer about the current political atmosphere, and that Americans are in general very, very angry with elected politicians: Prophetic Words from Last November and the First Republican Debate. It is a must read.
This is especially true among Republican voters, who were fit to be tied after their elected representatives completely caved to the Democrats and essentially lied about everything they promised during the election of 2014. It had been building up even before that, of course. But Republican voters turned out en masse in November of 2014 which resulted in a landslide and a great increase in the House of Representatives.
Then, those Republicans who were elected with such an incredible mandate blew it all and squandered it away, like some nitwit who can’t handle winning a big lottery.
Strangely enough, though, even Democrats have taken on a very powerful angry edge. It is no surprise to anyone who pays attention that the hate index within the American Left has been rising precipitously, as well as the outright un-American attacks on the freedoms granted by the Bill of Rights. There is no way in the history of the world that Bernie Sanders, for example, would be having the success he is having now if it was not for this particular time and political climate. He has no chance, of course, but he is doing very well and much better than expected. Hillary might make a great decision to choose him as her running mate. Why? Because a vast squadron of young 20 and 30-somethings have thrown in with Bernie to an incredible degree, and even though they do not appreciate Hillary, they will support her if Bernie is her running mate.
On the Republican side, Donald Trump has obviously tapped into what Republican voters are angry about with regard to career politicians and a non-responsive Washington, though I do not think he had any idea in the beginning that things would have worked out this well for him. Barring a comet striking Earth or some other very weird situation, Donald Trump will win the Republican nomination, which will set up a cage match between him and Hillary.
There is always the very slight chance that Hillary may be indicted, but I don’t believe it. The Republican establishment in general is already on record saying that it will support Hillary if Trump is the nominee. Someone of Hillary’s stature has been and will continue to be protected.
What does any of this have to do with Real Christianity?
For starters, the Great Awakening is obviously also happening in the political sphere. Last Friday I told someone that this year has great parallels to 1968. Since then I have heard the same thing from many pundits. I will not get any credit for this but I saw it before they did. What happened in Chicago last week at the almost Trump rally was eerily similar to what happened at the Democrat Convention in Chicago in 1968. Look it up. The anger of Americans is beginning to spill forth like Niagara, and many otherwise collected people are choosing off and are willing to fight. The emotional tone is ratcheting up into the Stratosphere. And we’ve only just begun.
Again, these days have been building for decades. The great majority of Americans feel totally left out, taken for granted, taken advantage of, and cheated by their own clueless government. They know Washington no longer cares about them or the country whatsoever and is only using them for their own purposes.
What to do? As real Christians, we must remember that times such as this are really no surprise. In fact, I and so many others have been predicting this for years. For the young ones, however, those with no strong knowledge of or experience with past political events going back beyond thirty years, this all looks new and they are in danger of being deceived and deceived greatly. I would caution everyone, especially Christians, to not get too caught up in the rhetoric and strong emotional overtones of these political times, largely because the country has already been divided to the point that this election could destroy American goodwill and unity forever.
There is never any place for such hate, but there are millions who have already bought into the hate mode to the point that they may not recover. And whatever anyone thinks about Christianity we do know this: In essence, the teachings of the Lord Jesus are 100% about love. Therefore, regardless of what may be at stake in this election, Americans in general and Christians especially must put love first. Love the Lord and love each other. The young people back in 1968 were saying exactly the same thing. But they got a rude awakening when their idealism was shattered by hate, hate, and more hate.
If you have become a hater, I strongly suggest you get rid of that attitude post haste and become a lover. That’s what the Lord Jesus is—a Lover. He loved so much He gave His life for us all. No one can top that. Being a Lover means being a Giver and also a Forgiver. Following the perfect example of the Lord creates a loving atmosphere, a loving supportive community, and a great deterrent to the hate, violence, and vitriol of this fallen world.
Though it might sound silly in these powerfully emotional political times, love is still the answer, but it must be fought for, especially now.
Love, Love, Love. Love the Lord. Love your neighbor. Stay true to the pure teachings of the greatest One who ever lived.
Love ALWAYS works.
“At that time many will fall away and will betray one another and hate one another. Many false prophets will arise and will mislead many. Because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved.
“This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.” [Matthew 24:10-14] [1]
© 2016 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE GREAT AWAKENING: Please Pray
Hello friends. I want to take a short break from my current series and tell you all that I greatly appreciate your support. Your ongoing comments and likes contribute to a small community here and it is always enjoyable to see us interact with one another for the sake of the Lord’s truth. You are all a great blessing to me.
Regarding my latest series, Purification By Fire, I especially want to thank Richard Barker and my friends across the pond who contributed so much traffic. Thanks to you all.
I have noticed that many more believers are getting on board with the Great Awakening. Five years ago this was not the case. The Lord spoke very clearly to me in August 2010 that America was in the early stages of a national Great Awakening. Not one person I talked to then, including ministers of the Gospel, saw it or believed it. Much has changed since.
I took the Great Awakening revelation of August 2010 and by the Lord’s anointing turned it into a 340 page book, well-documented, researched, and extensively footnoted. Shortly after finishing that book I began this blog site, which is now approaching 350 articles.
Many are now seeing what the Lord showed me then. There are even so-called official ministers talking about it. This is encouraging but it also exposes many of the fakers as merely latching on to something that came through the hard work and spiritual warfare of so many unrecognized real Christians.
I have continued writing and teaching since, and doing much research, though, like most of you, must earn my own keep. I have not yet been able to publish the book but it is certainly a book that needs to get out there. I would appreciate your prayers toward that end.
In living for the Lord Jesus, we all have our own individual core Christian beliefs and experiences, many of which did not come easy. If there are any two things vitally true about real Christianity that we must all pay more attention to than appears to be called for, however, they are: (1) The ongoing search for greater truth and the exposing of deception, and (2) Spiritual warfare.
Sadly, both of these are traditionally very low priorities in traditional Christianity and are often neglected and rejected entirely. Those who refuse to engage in such are very clearly unclear on the concept. They do not know that the enemy never fights fair and that he must resort to an ongoing agenda of deception, obfuscation, and confusion.
The enemy attempts to transform the great and pure shining light of the Lord’s truth into something indecipherable, irrational, unknowable, and senseless. The enemy also attempts to convince Christians that spiritual warfare is a ridiculous and unnecessary concept totally unsuited to our modern enlightened worldview.
But, my friends, the spiritual facts are actually quite clear: The devil is a liar. His job is to keep people from becoming real Christians and from progressing spiritually once they are. His job is to hide himself and make all those who reveal him and his lies to appear as nitwits. Now, for sure, there are certainly those “Christians” who fit the bill, and when push comes to shove the enemy will highlight such people to prove his point.
For real Christians, however, especially strong veterans who know their enemy, the only chance the enemy has against them is to first do everything in his power to discredit them, and if that doesn’t work, to eliminate them. For historical reference read the Book of Acts. Look at what happened to the Lord Jesus and his original apostles. The first thing the enemy did was destroy their reputations through outright lies and slander. We know the rest. It showcases this truth and puts everything in proper perspective. The devil is a bad guy and can do damage, but “greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world” (1John 4:4).
Therefore, the antidote to the enemy’s attempt to discredit and eliminate the good guys is to discredit and eliminate the bad guys. But when I say bad guys I mean the invisible bad guys. We do not fight against people. In fact, the whole point of real Christianity is to save people. The very Name of the Lord Jesus in the original Hebrew—YeHoshua—means YHWH-Salvation. Salvation means “to set free.” He came to set us free. Once we have been set free it is our job to set others free. We do this through the particular ministries the Lord has called each of us to do through the gifts, talents, and anointing He has blessed us with.
Let us remember to fight the inclination against the compromising effects of the enemy’s warfare by taking the fight directly to him and being the offensive force the Lord created us to be. But we must remember that the enemy has gained ground by taking authority in places of protection. When Christians refuse to attack the enemy because they think he cannot possibly be in control in such places he gets a free pass. This is deception at its highest. In other words, unreal Christians have been taught and conditioned to obey and honor people in league with the devil who appear to be legitimate and in league with the Lord.
You will know them by their fruits. Many are in pulpits and places of religious authority. Many of them are not overtly evil but merely powerless and worldly. Rather than submit to the Lord’s full curriculum they have bought into religious counterfeits. Many are deceived, oppose the Lord Jesus, and don’t even know it.
So remember, we must all:
(1) Continue in the ongoing search for truth and the exposing of deception, and
(2) Engage in spiritual warfare.
Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm.”
Therefore Pilate said to Him, “So You are a king?”
Jesus answered, “You say correctly that I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice…” [John 18:36-37] [1]
© 2016 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
Overcoming Clergy Dominion: BREAKING FREE (5)
The following is an excerpt from Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church:
Like the Wizard of Oz, the ruling class has established a powerful and sometimes fearsome image of itself. Its members have set themselves up as the sacred and the laity as the profane. The laity, if brave enough to seek personal needs, whether a heart, courage, or brains, often do so at the feet of the big boys, who have been enormously successful at promoting their big daddy image for centuries. Of course, the laity receives only religious tokens for the most part, if anything at all. The important thing is image. The great Christian controllers must believe that if the laity perceives them as merely human, and not ultrahuman, it would cause such disillusionment within Christendom that a complete breakdown would take place.
But one man’s breakdown and loss of power is another man’s revolution and recovering of freedom. Ask George Washington. Ask Martin Luther. Ask the Lord Jesus Himself. It was the benefactors of the religious clergy spirit of His time who were so incensed by His radical teachings and so petrified over losing control because of His growing movement that they savagely murdered Him, revealing to all, for all time, their true motivation and character. [1]
Make no mistake about it. When the Lord Jesus arrived on the scene he immediately engaged in spiritual war against powerful forces. The human appendages of such forces had discovered centuries before that great power over large populations could be gained in the realm of religion.
Like the rest of the planet, the ancient nation of Israel also suffered from such demonic interlopers and we have the proof of this religious invasion in the historical accounts of the Old Testament scriptures. Israel had devolved from being the pure people of God to a nation of religious hybrids ruled over by bloodthirsty kings set on complete dominance and an overthrow of God’s rule.
By the first century AD the political kings had long since morphed into religious “kings.” The aforementioned paganistic and syncretized religious practices of ancient Israel had by that time become largely congealed under the banner of Pharisaism which was dominated at the top by those whom the Lord referred to as children of the devil. They did not appreciate His terminology.
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.” [Matthew 23:15]
Though these evildoers did exactly as the evil Israelite kings before them in taking dominion over the populace for their own benefit, the subjugated people felt powerless to overcome. There are two reasons for this:
(1) The people had accepted their lot with a defeatist attitude and simply surrendered to the dominant controlling clique and its rewriting of the Mosaic Code, as the nation of Israel had formerly fallen under the sway of evil civil leaders.
(2) The people had become enchanted by the ultra-human power of religion and got absolutely lost in deception and darkness, unable to see and absolutely unequipped to fight back.
Then, as now, there was only one cure:
“THE LAND OF ZEBULUN AND THE LAND OF NAPHTALI, BY THE WAY OF THE SEA, BEYOND THE JORDAN, GALILEE OF THE GENTILES—THE PEOPLE WHO WERE SITTING IN DARKNESS SAW A GREAT LIGHT, AND THOSE WHO WERE SITTING IN THE LAND AND SHADOW OF DEATH, UPON THEM A LIGHT DAWNED.”
From that time Jesus began to preach and say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” [Matthew 4:15-17] [2]
For those who repented, they were able to overthrow the Wizard of Oz that had them trapped, deceived, and bound by joining up with the Lord Jesus. They received “personal needs, whether a heart, courage, or brains.” His pure LIGHT gave them eyes to see. His great LOVE gave them the support and encouragement they lacked. His POWERFUL Holy Spirit gave them strength to fight. His TRUTH set them free.
For our study, this is the difference between Unreal and Real Christianity.
UNREAL CHRISTIANITY:
(1) The people have accepted their lot with a defeatist attitude and have simply surrendered to the dominant controlling clique and its rewriting of the Gospel, as the nation of Israel had formerly fallen under the sway of evil religious leaders.
(2) The people have become enchanted by the ultra-human power of religion and have gotten absolutely lost in deception and darkness, unable to see and absolutely unequipped to fight back.
REAL CHRISTIANITY:
For those who repented, they have been able to overthrow the Wizard of Oz that had them trapped, deceived, and bound by joining up with the Lord Jesus. They have received “personal needs, whether a heart, courage, or brains.” His pure LIGHT has given them eyes to see. His great LOVE has given them the support and encouragement they lacked. His POWERFUL Holy Spirit has given them strength to fight. His TRUTH has set them free.
© 2016 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Real Christianity—The Nature of the Church © 2001 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[2] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
Apostasy: Invalidating the Word of God For the Sake of Religious Tradition (2)
For it is impossible to restore again to repentance those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, if they then commit apostasy, since they crucify the Son of God on their own account and hold him up to contempt. [Hebrews 6:4-6 RSV]
.
First of all, it must be noted that the great bulk of that which is called “Christianity” is not real Christianity, but something entirely different. It is not watered-down Christianity. It is not less-than-the-best Christianity. It is not weak or backslid Christianity. Instead, it is a completely separate entity.
With reference to the above verses of scripture, the clear facts are:
(1) The great majority of those who refer to themselves as Christians have never tasted the heavenly gift.
(2) The great majority of those who refer to themselves as Christians have never become partakers of the Holy Spirit.
(3) The great majority of those who refer to themselves as Christians have never tasted the goodness of the Word of God.
(4) The great majority of those who refer to themselves as Christians have never experienced the powers of the age to come.
For all of these reasons, it is therefore impossible for those who make up the great bulk of Christianity to commit apostasy simply because they never had the real thing to begin with.
Apostasy is a conscience decision of the human will to quit on the Lord Jesus and walk away. Whoever does this can never be restored again to God until they make the decision on their own to return to God. No one else can thus force repentance upon them.
But the majority of those called “Christians” are not real Christians and never have been. They are playing a game with their chosen form of Christianity and have substituted empty and powerless replacements that have no actual spiritual effect whatsoever. The only thing distinguishing these people from non-believers is the exterior wrapping. And as a person associates with a larger group of people clothed with the same chosen exterior wrapping, such a person feels completely secure within said group and becomes convinced the group is the “right” group or an “approved” group.
How do we then distinguish real Christianity from the many counterfeit forms? Here’s how: Real Christianity has the power of God. This power is released through the use of the Name of the Lord Jesus and through His pure Word.
However, the only people who can use the Name of the Lord Jesus properly and legally are those who have completely surrendered their lives to Him. These are real believers who have have given Him their entire heart. They have subjected their hearts to full heart circumcision. They have turned away completely from all sin, disobedience, and rebellion against the Lord. This is the nature of repentance. They have also been filled with the Spirit of the Lord with the outward evidence of a complete change in their speech—their tongue, the most unruly member of the body, has been completely subjected to the Lord.
SPEECH
In the act of real repentance, the tongue is the very last member of the body to yield to God. Once this happens, an immediate proof of the occurrence follows: The new believer begins praising God in a new language. The person’s speech is at once given over, as if a switch was flipped, to praising God and even prophesying of the things of God. This is all very clearly spelled out in scripture.
James wrote the following:
If anyone thinks himself to be religious, and yet does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this man’s religion is worthless. [James 1:26]
For we all stumble in many ways. If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well.
Now if we put the bits into the horses’ mouths so that they will obey us, we direct their entire body as well. Look at the ships also, though they are so great and are driven by strong winds, are still directed by a very small rudder wherever the inclination of the pilot desires.
So also the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it boasts of great things. See how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire! And the tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity; the tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell.
For every species of beasts and birds, of reptiles and creatures of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by the human race. But no one can tame the tongue; it is a restless evil and full of deadly poison. [James 3:2-8]
It is obvious then, that a tongue never yielded to God proves sinner status and non-discipleship, regardless of anything else by which a person claims to be a Christian. The yielded tongue, however, with miraculous speech following, proves a new birth.
This new birth then allows for invoking the powerful Name of Jesus. Its use, as given by the Lord, results in miracles. The use of the Lord’s Name is only given to real disciples.
This is also why each and every real believer as recorded in the Book of Acts invoked the Name of Jesus in water baptism. The reason why is otherwise simple: Without the Name of Jesus there is no spiritual power.
We can see, therefore, that if there are no miracles within a Christian group, it obviously follows that there is no spiritual power, which indicates the group is not right with God. It proves that the group has never yielded to God.
Real Christianity is distinguished by the following:
And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.
“He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned.
“These signs will accompany those who have believed: In My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues; they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.” [Mark 16:16-18] [1]
© 2015 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued.]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
The “Official” Christian Rule Book: Invalidating the Word of God for the Sake of Religious Tradition (1)
I was sitting in church one day years ago. It was relatively early in a midweek service. We all sat waiting expectantly to hear a message from the Lord. The pastor had just begun his sermon and he told the congregation, “Please turn in your Bibles to the Book of…”
A twenty-something man toward the front, an unbright visitor with no understanding of church protocol, then immediately blurted out, “Wait! What page!?”
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One wonders why, in the face of many centuries of ecclesiastical control and strident oversight within Christianity, that someone has not yet addressed this issue. Why don’t we have just one Bible and one translation so everyone can follow along the same way many Christians do with everything else?
Wait. In fact, “Christians” did think of this. Many centuries ago. Then they quickly surmised it would be even better if they simply dispensed with the Word of God altogether. Then they could make up their own rules and their own book and no one would be the wiser.
They could have called it The Official Christian Rule Book.
All facetiousness aside, such a thing actually happened, exactly that way. For a thousand years (let me repeat), FOR A THOUSAND YEARS, the Bible was effectively outlawed within “official” Christianity.
THE ORIGINAL PROTESTANT REFORMATION
Christians forget that there was once a Protestant Reformation. They also forget that the Protestant Reformation arose for only one reason—it was a PROTEST against the Roman Catholic Church.
Why were so many people protesting against the Roman Catholic Church? And why were all the ringleaders Catholic or former Catholics?
Actually, the Protestant Reformation did not simply begin at a single point in time in the early 1500s, though that was certainly the beginning of the open and successful Reformation that the Catholic Church could no longer suppress or contain. It had been ongoing for, yes, A THOUSAND YEARS.
The problem for the various Protestants through the intervening years prior to the early 1500s was that they were usually politically unprotected single individuals, much like Old Testament prophets, or relatively small Christian societies. They were always outnumbered and outvoted, which included by possibly the millions otherwise sympathetic Catholics who were intimidated into silence without the courage to join them. Thus, these early Protestants were very easy to suppress and kill off by the so-called mother church.
Never mind that the Catholic Church violated always and repeatedly the clear teachings of the Lord Jesus in this regard in order to gain and maintain its strict religious control; it was obvious to the evil leaders thereof that no other method was feasible. The RCC spared no effort or funding to engage in ongoing religious cleansing of dissenters in order to establish and maintain a religious monolith.
Once a person decided to protest against obvious rule-breaking by the new illicit rule makers, such a person became their enemy. The religious controllers could attempt certain punishments to bring such righteous dissidents back into line, such as applying a non-tangible whip like a guilt trip or social excommunication, or they could go much further and engage in actual physical “discipline.”
If such efforts failed and the recalcitrant party refused to buckle under, the only things remaining were the dungeon or death. Both had been used forever by evil despots to silence their critics, and the new “Christian” clergy knew it must also use the same tactics to stay in power. Otherwise, their lies would be overwhelmed by the honest words of honest men who stood for the teachings of the Lord Jesus, and the clergyites would be defeated by truth.
Hence, the Original Protestant Reformation continued on throughout the many centuries of the Dark Ages—ages made dark for one reason—the elimination of the Word of God from the people. Therefore, the opponents of the Catholic Church—the protesting opponents who favored the free use of the Word of God for everybody—were actually the real friends of God. This exposed the real enemies of God—the Catholic clergy—the ones who purported officially and openly to be God’s friends and spokesmen.
Remember, there are two things that the enemies of the Lord hate more than Him, and that is HIS WORD and HIS NAME:
As He spoke these things, many came to believe in Him. So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” [John 8:30-32]
Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name. [John 20:30-31]
The elimination of the freedom-releasing, life-giving, and spiritual power-producing Word of God and Name of God is a must if the Lord’s enemies are to be successful. That this happened through a false front “Christian” operation would otherwise open many eyes save for the extreme duplicity and treachery involved.
It is what we call religious guile, deceit, and hypocrisy of the highest order—standard operating procedure at the hands of the official Roman Catholic clergy of that time—and the very thing the Pharisees of the Lord’s time were guilty of as well.
THE ORIGINAL PHARISEES
The Lord Jesus saved His greatest, most forceful, and most damning rebukeathons for the evil Pharisaic leadership for one reason—they refused to allow the pure Word of God to be in the hands of the people—they refused to allow God to be in charge. They majored on instant condemnation for rule breakers. They were much more interested in the Gotcha! Protocol (and the quick punishment thereof) than any forgiveness, compassion, understanding, love, or mercy.
Sound familiar?
The Pharisees also insisted they must teach from a perverted “official” substitute rulebook written and sponsored by them and by no one else. The desire and goal of the Pharisaic leadership was complete and dominant religious control over every single person within what was left of the nation of Israel, as well as to infinity and beyond:
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.” [Matthew 23:15]
The Pharisees succeeded at this for a while, maybe two or three centuries. Their efforts ended up destroying their nation. But their success was minimal in comparison to successful Roman Catholicism, which not only caused the European Dark Ages but became the greatest Christian offshoot in history to the tune of one billion plus worldwide at present.
And it still operates the same way it always has, though obvious outward changes had to be made since the incredible spiritual successes of:
(1) The Protestant Reformation,
(2) The unprecedented establishment of complete, legal spiritual liberty and religious freedom with the against-all-odds creation of the United States of America. This freedom and liberty did not exist in Europe, even among Protestants, and certainly not among Catholics who spent a millennium and half fighting against it.
(3) The giant, ongoing, ever-increasing, worldwide Pentecostal movement of the last 120 years.
As had the Original Pharisees, the Roman Catholic Church still possesses its official rule book. It is a book loosely based on the Word of God. Yet, whoever knowingly teaches against the pure teachings of the Lord Jesus, makes additions or subtractions to or from them, and refuses to honor all of His teachings are, like the interloper Judas Iscariot, the Lord’s greatest enemies.
They are such because they both pretend to be something they are not and deceive people into believing it, and are flippantly arrogant in their effective rewriting of God’s original Word for the sake of their own illicit religious kingdoms and elite power structure.
Regarding the approach of the Lord Jesus toward such illicit rule book makers who revel in lording it over others, we know how He approached the Torah teachers (lawyers) and Pharisees of His time in the following passages:
“Woe to you lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge; you yourselves did not enter, and you hindered those who were entering.” [Luke 11:52]
“But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you shut off the kingdom of heaven from people; for you do not enter in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.” [Matthew 23:13]
“And by this you invalidated the word of God for the sake of your tradition.” [Matthew 15:6] [1]
© 2015 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued.]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
The Reception of Deception: Happy Rosh Hashanah 2015
Rosh Hashanah arrived at sunset tonight.
Four years ago at this time of year, in the first year of this site, I wrote a post regarding Rosh Hashanah. I reposted that article in 2012. The post explains succinctly but compellingly the nature of Rosh Hashanah and the month of Tishrei, and includes tantalizing clues regarding the return of the Lord Jesus:
And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. [John 1:14]
I highly recommend a quick look at the article. It is especially necessary for this particular Rosh Hashanah and will set the tone for the following post. You can find it here: Happy Rosh Hashanah 2012
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THE SECOND COMING
The second coming of Messiah Jesus to this fallen world will be the greatest event in the history of the last days. All will see at once the extreme dichotomy of His pure, holy, and powerful rule—the rule of the great triumphant King returning to claim His own—in comparison to the corrupt rule of sinful, hell-bound despots, who by that time will have consolidated their evil under the demonic rule of one man.
This man will be purported to be a child of Abraham, a Last Days Solomon—the Antichrist. He will rule the entire globe openly through the power of satan, and will be revered by the majority of this world’s population as a Savior and populist answer man bringing peace, security, and economic prosperity. His embrace by the world will prove the incredible depravity to which the world has fallen, but much more by this world’s overwhelming rejection of its real Savior.
Imagine then, the rejected One returning, not as the faux representation—the safe and harmless man few people respect or honor, including all those within Unreal Christianity who have historically purported this ridiculously false image—but as the GREAT CONQUERING KING He is, to set everything right and dispense justice righteously and mightily, in a manner this world has never seen.
The rule of the Sinner Elite will be over. Spiritual slavery will be ended. Deception will be revealed for what it is. The faithful will be rewarded.
THE RECEPTION OF DECEPTION
Speaking of deception, it should interest all of us the full extent of such spiritual deception happening at present, especially with regard to all of the so-called prophecies supposedly about to happen. Great fear has been ratcheted up. False prophets are going nuts. They have understood very well, going back a few years, that this is a great time for garnering speaking engagements and selling books. There are some first class shysters out there demanding we listen, intent on deceiving. When that which they prophesy fails to happen, they will, as usual and as always, back off somewhat but quickly change gears, as they always do, like duplicitous politicians.
Their game is not about revealing the Lord’s truth—it is about gaining influence, earning market share, building up their brand, and making money.
I will again remind everyone that the Lord’s real prophets and teachers of these last days look like the Lord Jesus—they look like the members of the Lord’s original community. They have no vested interest or agenda other than speaking and revealing the truth—the truth that lines up perfectly with the Lord’s teachings and His revealed Word.
As I wrote a year and a half ago regarding the so-called Blood Moons, most of what you are hearing about the “imminent” happenings of these days is more about deception than truth. To draw a very quick distinction, this is what happens when someone tells the actual Truth:
Then he released Barabbas for them; but after having Jesus scourged, he handed Him over to be crucified. Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole Roman cohort around Him. They stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him. And after twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand; and they knelt down before Him and mocked Him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” They spat on Him, and took the reed and began to beat Him on the head. After they had mocked Him, they took the scarlet robe off Him and put His own garments back on Him, and led Him away to crucify Him. [Matthew 27:26-31]
Now when they heard this, they were cut to the quick, and they began gnashing their teeth at him. But being full of the Holy Spirit, he gazed intently into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God; and he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened up and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” But they cried out with a loud voice, and covered their ears and rushed at him with one impulse. When they had driven him out of the city, they began stoning him; and the witnesses laid aside their robes at the feet of a young man named Saul. They went on stoning Stephen as he called on the Lord and said, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!” [Acts 7:55-59]
But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much harm he did to Your saints at Jerusalem; and here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on Your name.” But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of Mine, to bear My name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel; for I will show him how much he must suffer for My name’s sake.” [Acts 9:13-16]
THE GREAT AWAKENING
If you want to know the REAL truth about the time at hand, it is this:
The Great Awakening will continue. Deception will continue to be revealed for what it is, and Truth will continue to come forth as a shining light. Spiritual warfare will be greatly increased. The persecution against real Christians in America, something I have been predicting for 25 years, will be increased, and much of it will come directly through organized, false Christianity. Many real believers will gain new spiritual strength and anointing to stand forth and will refuse to surrender to unholy dictates which violate their beliefs and consciences. Formerly supportive “friends” will become foes. Sinners will lash out in their limited understandings against the teachings of the Lord Jesus, thinking they are doing right and believing they are winning arguments, but will only be further revealing their hate. As we grow closer toward the great return of the Lord Jesus, opposing sides will grow further apart. Those on the wrong side will graduate from mere name-calling and character assassination to outright physical attack, as noted in the above Scriptures. We are entering a time when fewer and fewer people will be able to hide the real intentions of their heart, and will be compelled to bring formerly hidden intentions and unspoken words into the open. We are already seeing this through the phenomenon of instant social media, brought much more strongly to the fore as of late through the presidential election process. Illicit, anti-God power will increase, and much of this is illustrated by the following:
“These things I have spoken to you so that you may be kept from stumbling. They will make you outcasts from the synagogue, but an hour is coming for everyone who kills you to think that he is offering service to God. These things they will do because they have not known the Father or Me.” [John 16:1-3]
THE BRIDE OF CHRIST
The Word of God clearly reveals that when the Lord returns, about this time of year, He will return for a powerful, glorious, Spirit-filled community—a spotless Bride. This community will be very well versed in the ways of spiritual warfare and will have defeated the devil at every turn, though also paying a heavy price. This Bride of Christ will be worthy of His return. It will be composed of the powerful Stephens and Pauls of the last days, those who know that an all-out commitment to the Lord Jesus is the only proper commitment, as all laggards and fake Christians will not be found within it, but without, in unity with the enemy.
Regarding the victory we seek and must have, I encourage you to be strong and grow in faith. Stand up for the Lord and He will stand up for you. Preach the real Gospel in whatever way the Lord has laid upon your heart.
I leave you with these words from a man who not only preached the real Gospel but lived it, and paid the ultimate price:
…But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord. [1 Corinthians 15:57-58] [1]
© 2015 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THE SALT OF THE EARTH
“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men.” [Matthew 5:13]
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You know the wrong people are in charge when sin triumphs.
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When sinful people have their way and no corrective measures are taken, greater sin happens. This causes lesser sin to remain completely untouched and such lesser sin becomes interwoven into the fabric of the culture.
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And every time those in cultural control allow greater sin to transpire without the proper corrective, those sins, greater than the lesser sins, also become culturally acceptable.
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The proof of resident sin and spiritual blindness is that otherwise sane people reject obvious answers.
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Is not the continual application of failed and unworkable methods to correct growing and expanding problems while also rejecting obviously correct, workable, and time-honored solutions a form of insanity?
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SPIRALING OUT OF CONTROL INTO EVER-INCREASING SIN AND LAWLESSNESS
We now live in the time when sin and lawlessness are going through the roof. Lawlessness has been rising exponentially.
Every time someone tries to do something about it they get shouted down by the sin-embracing seeming majority.
But this seeming majority is not at all the actual majority. It is simply a unified, defiant, vocal marginal faction that has taken over and won the culture war.
How?
BECAUSE THE PEOPLE WHO ARE SUPPOSED TO BE THE SALT OF THE EARTH ARE NOT DOING THEIR JOB.
SALT AND LIGHT IN NAME ONLY
Many American “Christians,” millions and millions of them, are sitting around doing absolutely nothing other than being “good church people.” Their authority figures have long since ran off all the real Christians who possess great salt and light because such leaders prefer collections of spiritually weak people who meekly always do what they’re told but rarely or NEVER what the Lord Jesus tells them to do.
Such God rejecters—“Christians” in Name Only—are infinitely easier to control, manipulate, and house, and much more likely to support false prophets. By surrendering their God-ordained status as the Salt of the Earth and Shining Lights with Eyes to See, they are no longer worth anything to God.
“Therefore, salt is good; but if even salt has become tasteless, with what will it be seasoned? It is useless either for the soil or for the manure pile; it is thrown out. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” [Luke 14:34-35]
The ethos of real Christianity has thus been destroyed among the majority.
Salt and Light now only exists among those real Christians who serve ONLY the Lord Jesus.
American “Christians” in general should be ashamed, but like Americans in general, they have become spiritually emasculated by their bless-me clubs.
CONNECTION AND CLUE TO THE PAST
The Lord Jesus clearly stated that the last days of the world would be like the days of Noah:
“And just as it happened in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man: They were eating, they were drinking, they were marrying, they were being given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all.
“It was the same as happened in the days of Lot: they were eating, they were drinking, they were buying, they were selling, they were planting, they were building; but on the day that Lot went out from Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all.
“It will be just the same on the day that the Son of Man is revealed.” [Luke 17:26-30]
LINKING THE FLOOD WITH SODOM
Have you ever noticed that the Lord Jesus tied these two accounts together? Both accounts relate to great judgment upon thoroughly depraved and morally corrupted people. By the time God’s judgment and final destruction arrived, it was because the people had reached the full limit of sin and were beyond redemption.
They all refused the corrective of repentance and thus no grace could possibly be granted. They loved sin. They wanted it. They chose it. They were no longer good for anything.
We know the sin of Sodom. Undoubtedly, it was also the same among the people who refused the ark of Noah.
According to the Lord Jesus, the following are the activities the people of both historical accounts were involved in just prior to final destruction:
(1) They were eating
(2) They were drinking
(3) They were marrying
(4) They were being given in marriage
(5) They were buying
(6) They were selling
(7) They were planting
(8) They were building
During the great flood, the entire population of the world was destroyed except for the eight people on the ark.
During the destruction of Sodom, the entire population of those cities was destroyed, except for the rescued Lot and his daughters.
This proves that most, the vast majority, will reject the ark of the Lord’s salvation in the last days and will refuse to exit their doomed antichrist cultures.
It means exactly what the scriptures claimed almost 2000 years ago:
But evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. [2Timothy 3:13]
CLEANING UP SINFUL CRISIS DISASTERS
There are a few people reading this who know what I’m referring to. You have been involved in impossible clean-up projects as the result of the great sins of others. You know what it’s like to be involved on the fixing end of an impossible crisis that happened because of outright sin and rebellion. You know how much effort it takes to become Salt and Light, to be Salt and Light, and to work with Salt and Light to clean up corruption. It’s a great feeling to work so hard and see great results.
But what does one do when the people causing all the gross corruption are unwilling to fix the mess they created? What happens when they laugh at the corrective of repentance? What happens when such people become the majority? And what happens when so-called leaders bow to the dictates of the sinful majority and refuse to apply the proper corrective?
You’re seeing it right now.
Sin is spiraling out of control into ever-increasing lawlessness.
The proof of resident sin and spiritual blindness is that otherwise sane people reject the obvious answers to correct the problem, and refuse to correct it even if they manage to know the answers.
This is the point when a culture has lost all sense. There is no salt. There is no light.
Being the Salt of the Earth is now not only politically incorrect, it is religiously incorrect.
Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness.
You know that He appeared in order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin.
No one who abides in Him sins; no one who sins has seen Him or knows Him.
Little children, make sure no one deceives you; the one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous; the one who practices sin is of the devil; for the devil has sinned from the beginning.
The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil. [1John 3:4-8] [1]
Each and every entity that allows sin and promotes sin is of the devil.
THE LORD JESUS IS THE ONLY ANSWER
All real Christians in America must get the big idea if they have not already. It is only the Lord Jesus who has the answers to fix the problem, and He works through His people—those who have surrendered to His authority and become real disciples.
But He was rejected by His own, as all real Christians are rejected by their own.
As sin increases, the people who know how to fix things and have the power and ability to fix things are increasingly rejected by the ones who are increasingly destroying things.
Yet, the love of the Lord is such that He is bringing a Great Awakening to America anyway.
If you believe yourself to be a real Christian, then walk in complete confidence, strength, and anointing that you may be used of God to bring Salt and Light to a place and culture in desperate need of it, though you must wade through hate, indifference, and rejection to get the job done.
Don’t just take up your cross.
TAKE UP ALSO THE SWORD OF THE SPIRIT.
BE THE SALT OF THE EARTH.
© 2015 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
Of Their Father the Devil: Political Pharisees
“You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” [John 8:44]
To the pure, all things are pure; but to those who are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure, but both their mind and their conscience are defiled. They profess to know God, but by their deeds they deny Him, being detestable and disobedient and worthless for any good deed. [Titus 1:15-16]
Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness; Who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter! Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight! [Isaiah 5: 20-21]
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One of the greatest evils in this fallen world is evil people in positions of great power. And the worst kind of evil people are those who pretend to be good.
As sin increases exponentially and the authority of the devil continues to invade powerful positions of authority, millions of otherwise moral people with sound minds are so affected and influenced by the power of evil in authority figures that, barring a close walk with God, they also become depraved.
And despite the presence of any number of maniacs engaged in isolated incidents, the worst maniacs are those who use their positions of great power to corrupt huge populations.
For such people, the very best course of action is to repent and get right with God while they still can.
Barring that, they choose the worst course of all—choosing the devil as their father—and expose themselves to the worst judgment of all—eternal separation from God—that perpetrated upon themselves from which no one else can be blamed. They become the worst the human race has to offer and those who should never be in any position of authority.
They will receive the justice they deserve when they face God at the Judgment.
DEFAULT: HELL
The Word of God states that prior to making a decision for God everyone is a sinner bound for hell.
Most people, including most professing “Christians,” do not believe this. Never mind that their own personal history is laden with sins acknowledged or not (most often not), the history of the world clearly reveals, from anyone’s perspective, that it is absolutely true.
Mankind’s history is one of sin, depravity, immorality, murder on a grand scale, and pure evil. Such sin is in every society, culture, and nation that has ever existed.
No one can disprove this because it is impossible to disprove. One won’t get far if one tries and will consequently silently close the book, put it away, and stare with great disillusionment into thin air at the revelation.
This world is no playground. Those who believe it is eventually get creamed. People learn early on that they must defend themselves and quickly seek some form of protection for the purpose of survival. A few, very few, are ultra-protected and blessed with unlimited money and appear to be beyond judgment.
But for such people who have chosen a very temporary dream world, they must know that human bodies do not last forever: They wear out; they get old. And the people existing within said bodies will have to leave the comforts of home one day and enter into what is a completely mysterious future from their perspective.
Eternity is a great unknown for them because they risked everything on this life and living for this world, this very short sojourn that all humans get a chance at, without doing anything whatsoever to prepare for what comes after, which leaves them completely unprepared.
Such people are bold and strong when young and vibrant, when they seemingly have the world by the tail. They shoot their mouths off though they often have no real clue about whatever subject they may be discussing.
Most never consider the cost paid by parents or others, but mostly the cost paid by God to both create them AND die for them to purchase their salvation. They laugh at the idea. They take for granted the cost paid to get them to the place of their comfort from which they choose the opposite of the correct attitude and adopt instead a brash, spoiled-brattish stance revealing them to be the mere posers they are.
THE DOWNWARD SLOPE
But the Pharisees went out and conspired against Him, as to how they might destroy Him. [Matthew 12:14]
All nations go through stages. Great nations are led by great people who are mature, moral, and battle-tested. The final stages of a nation, however, are staffed by the opposite.
When nations go bad, it is because the people in said nation grow immature. They live off the great strength of those who have gone before them, who knew the price that must be paid for greatness.
Immature, spoiled people then choose likeminded people to be their leaders. A nation’s leaders are always a reflection of the populace. Poor nations are poor because they lack the moral strength and resolve to do something about it, and evil leaders rush in to take charge, since no one stops them. They end up taking everything for themselves.
In America, it used to be that political leaders must pass a very strict test placed before them by society at large. It included a morals test. But presently, the idea of a morals test placed upon prospective leaders is a joke. We have not had a series of moral leaders in a long, long time.
Why? Because the country has drifted downward. It began the descent by drifting downward morally. Once morality was thrown out the window no one could put a morals test on leaders. Hence, leaders became depraved.
But there is something else. When a nation of 300 million begins to go bad it takes a while. And while it is descending toward a moral cesspit having lost its way, and thus making completely idiotic choices for leaders, it goes relatively slow. There are many within the down-sliding group that continue to speak out and warn, and the warnings are always given with sufficient time to change course.
But not so with the chosen evil leaders. Their decline into abject immorality is relatively fast. Depending on the immoral state of the country, there are fewer and fewer checks and balances against evil overseers. No one can thus stop them without a drastic course correction.
WHO’S THE BOSS?
“From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.” [Luke 12:48] [1]
In America, the Constitution states the people are the masters and government representatives are servants of the people. Hence, the people are the boss and must therefore always take their responsibility seriously.
This is why, even in a place like America—always imperfect but overall historically more moral and especially free than most other countries—it creates the saddest state of affairs when decent people choose evil people to lead them.
They choose them because they believe their lies. The people are cheated, but the people actually cheat themselves.
Why? Because a big part of immorality is willful ignorance. Americans knew better but neglected their homework and became a nation filled predominantly with ill-informed voters who chose people to lead them for all the wrong reasons.
And now we are stuck with a few, very few, in very, very powerful positions who no longer listen to voters AT ALL.
And why should they? They know the majority of voters are stupid which can easily be proven by their own elections and appointments.
And they know if they can deceive the American public so easily while merely running for office, they can deceive them that much more easily once they gain office.
Hence, Americans have chosen leaders who have zero respect for them and treat them exactly as they feel they should be treated according to their evil inclinations and attitudes.
This makes them maniacs.
Americans should be ashamed.
Things are backwards and upside down.
Americans should do what is required to right the course and regain control.
It begins with repentance and getting right with God.
We have been taken over by Political Pharisees.
© 2015 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
Storming the Gates of Hell: The Spiritual Freedom, Maturity, and Responsibility of Real Christians
“THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD IS UPON ME, BECAUSE HE ANOINTED ME TO PREACH THE GOSPEL TO THE POOR. HE HAS SENT ME TO PROCLAIM RELEASE TO THE CAPTIVES, AND RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND, TO SET FREE THOSE WHO ARE OPPRESSED, TO PROCLAIM THE FAVORABLE YEAR OF THE LORD.” [Luke 4:18-19]
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Today is the 800th anniversary of the Magna Carta, also known as “The Great Charter of the Liberties.” An English document intended for rudimentary freedoms toward a restoration of basic liberties, it was immediately annulled by Pope Innocent III then reissued a year later. The Magna Carta began a centuries-long process toward political and spiritual freedom that eventually led toward the establishment of the freedoms gained in the American Revolutionary War.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
Any American who reads the above passage from the Declaration of Independence and still doesn’t get it is an American in name only, just like so many clueless “Christians” who are Christian in name only.
This is a definitive statement that agrees perfectly with scripture and acknowledges the powerful fact that the Creator of us all has granted freedom to us all, that He has created us all equally, and that it is up to each individual to seek strongly with no reservation one’s own individual God-granted life, liberty, and happiness. Before one can set others free, one must himself be free.
We have been blessed in this nation with the legal support to become and be real Christians freely, with constitutional backing, and unlike the vast majority of tyrannical nations in this world throughout time, it makes it relatively simple to obey the commandments of God and spread the Gospel message.
And yet, we have a seeming majority of so-called Christians who deny it all. In their ridiculous opinion, Christians have no rights to seek anything whatsoever and must be forever banished to being powerless little non-people who are then supposed to somehow carry out the great obligations the Creator has placed upon them.
Where does this goofy, unbiblical, and anti-human idea come from?
Oh yeah—clergyites. You know, the guys with all the power, prestige, honor, answers, and control. Modern day clergyites are the direct spiritual descendants of the first century Pharisees, those who wanted to control every single aspect of every person’s life. These are the people who promise spiritual freedom but force everyone to sit down in pews all lined up in neat rows and never, ever utter a single word, and believe and practice only that which is dictated to them.
THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS
The institutional clergy middlemen serve primarily not as ministers of light, but as blockages of the spiritual ministry of the Lord Jesus. Their insistence upon strong central authority has resulted in a free and strong people becoming unfree, spiritually wimpy, and incredibly quiet.
As a result, after so many centuries, these people have created a massive underclass of submissive, spiritually ignorant, Biblically illiterate nobodies who have become so conditioned to their illicit rule and heavy-handed regulations that they rarely, if ever, utter a single peep against what has been perpetrated upon them for fear of incurring their wrath, but mostly, and much more importantly, for fear of incurring God’s wrath.
And yet, God is the very one who wants us all to be free! Why then, are “God’s” ministers holding everyone in check? Why are they all demanding that we serve them? Why do they all insist that they must be honored to the nth degree while all the pew-sitters get squat?
Could it be because such a system does not serve God as much as it serves them?
“They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as a finger. But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments. They love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues, and respectful greetings in the market places, and being called Rabbi by men.” [Matthew 23:4-7]
I am not arguing against proper authority, and the Lord Jesus has certainly authorized proper authority within His community. But I do argue very strongly AGAINST unrestricted clergyite excess and FOR the individual authority of every believer, BECAUSE GOD HAS GRANTED HIS AUTHORITY TO US ALL, not simply a miniscule subset of self-pronounced thoroughbreds.
How in the world are a mass of ultra-conditioned and manipulated no-namers in the devil’s eyes afraid to speak up against a celergyite ever going to effectively speak up against and fight the devil? The entire process is backwards. The Lord Jesus needs great, powerful people filled with His powerful Holy Spirit to take the battle to the enemy exactly the way the Lord and His people did in the early years. It is the only possible way to defeat the invisible forces of evil.
THE DEFEAT OF BRUTAL ROME
In case one has forgotten, the Roman Empire was ruled by brutal dictators and sub-tyrants on every level who had no feeling whatsoever for anyone who refused Roman rule, especially real Christians. There were ongoing Christian persecution campaigns from the very beginning that lasted at intervals over centuries, and it was all because the early believers insisted on serving the Lord Jesus as God and no other.
And guess what? The Christians won! The community of the Lord grew like a powerful, well-cultivated garden and spread over the entire empire regardless of any and every method the devil and Roman leadership used to stop it. The Lord Jesus made real disciples by the millions!
For a current equivalent, do some research on what’s been happening in China over the last 30-40 years. Millions and millions are filled with the Spirit of the Lord and are taking over in the same way.
How did it happen then, that we in America somehow lost that early fervor and strength of our forebears to the point that we willingly submit to so-called “pastors” whose idea of a spiritual army involves surrendering to their authority on every level? And the vast majority of these guys are mere talking heads and powerless blowhards less manly than most of the men in the pews.
And we wonder why America is going down the drain. The greatest potential resource God has is being wasted while sitting perpetually on the bench and never getting in the game because every position on the field has been taken over by T-balling clergyites making a mockery of God’s work.
When individual Christians are taught to surrender their God-given authority and freedom to wimpy controllers of a false system that effectively gets NOTHING done in a real spiritual fight, it plays perfectly into the hands of the devil himself who would rather face a bunch of illiterate wimps any day of the week than one single real Christian, because he knows that one single real Christian will hurt him.
God wants and needs believers who can do damage to the devil’s kingdom.
As it stands, though, the vast majority of “Christians” in America have been trained by religious quacks to do the very opposite of what the Lord Jesus instructed. It is a form of enchantment. What kind of theological magic is this, in which people think they are serving God but deny the authority of the Lord and refuse His freedom within their assemblies?
Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. [2Corinthians 3:17]
Most so-called believers put no fear on the devil whatsoever. Most are no threat. Most do not attack him. Most just sit around and go through the motions completely oblivious to the battle all around them, while sinners go unsaved, miracles go unperformed, the sick go unhealed, the needy go unassisted, and no one is ever filled to overflowing with His life-giving and power-producing Holy Spirit.
And if anyone is confused on the issue, what good does it do to assist people according to natural means only and deny them freedom from sin and the forces of evil? The Lord Jesus was always a proponent of establishing spiritual freedom first. It was and remains His primary objective.
Therefore, the Lord has no need of powerless pew-sitting converts. He needs DISCIPLES. He needs people who can do damage to the devil’s illicit kingdom and rescue souls from it.
In short, He needs all of us to be KNOWN IN HELL:
God was performing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, so that handkerchiefs or aprons were even carried from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out.
But also some of the Jewish exorcists, who went from place to place, attempted to name over those who had the evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, “I adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preaches.” Seven sons of one Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this.
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And the evil spirit answered and said to them, “I recognize Jesus, and I know about Paul, but who are you?”
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And the man, in whom was the evil spirit, leaped on them and subdued all of them and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.
This became known to all, both Jews and Greeks, who lived in Ephesus; and fear fell upon them all and the name of the Lord Jesus was being magnified. Many also of those who had believed kept coming, confessing and disclosing their practices. And many of those who practiced magic brought their books together and began burning them in the sight of everyone; and they counted up the price of them and found it fifty thousand pieces of silver. So the word of the Lord was growing mightily and prevailing. [Acts 19:11-20] [1]
© 2015 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
The Day of Pentecost
When they had entered the city, they went up to the upper room where they were staying; that is, Peter and John and James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas the son of James. These all with one mind were continually devoting themselves to prayer, along with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers. [Acts 1:13-14]
Every Christian must have a personal Upper Room experience. Pentecost is for every believer. The entirety of the Lord’s ministry in its full extension leads directly to it.
Many voices continue to insist that this experience is no longer available or exists, or that it ended in the first century. This defies a very clear historical record since that time.
It is only the enemy and all who follow him who claim the experience of Pentecost and the actual infilling of the Holy Spirit as clearly illustrated in the Book of Acts is something Christians must shun and refuse to partake of, which gives him the advantage.
The enemy does not want anyone filled with the Spirit of the Lord, because he knows such an experience creates a very powerful disciple who can wreak havoc upon his kingdom. He has thus successfully convinced the vast majority of Christians and Christian leaders throughout history to join him in opposition to the Upper Room experience, so that the vast majority of Christians will be denied the possibility, and therefore keep them spiritually weak and non-equipped to engage in spiritual war against him.
One can only wonder how it is possible that a “Christian” leader can counsel his own flock with the counsel of the enemy. If your spiritual experience has yet to look like the experience of Acts, I strongly suggest you seek the Lord Jesus with all your heart. If you really want this Spirit-infilling, do as our forbears were taught to do. Find your own Upper Room, fast and pray, and ask the Lord Jesus for the exact experience of the early believers. The Lord needs strong, powerful disciples to storm the gates of hell and He has made a way for that to happen.
Today is Sivan 7, the actual Day of Pentecost. It is exactly 50 days from the anniversay of the Lord’s resurrection. Almost 2000 years ago the following is the account of what happened then. May it happen in these days for us all.
We are in the early stages of a national Great Awakening.
When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance. [Acts 2:1-4] [1]
© 2015 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
Suppression: The Forces of Hell at Work (2)
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them.
For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. [Romans 1:18-20] [1]
“Did you know that people who violate the Golden Rule go to hell?”
“You mean if they violate it willingly and habitually.”
“Yes. In the sense that violating it is part of the code they live by, in that keeping the Golden Rule disallows the possibility of their success in this world by their estimation, and hence keeping such a “mythical” rule is senseless.”
“But that’s the argument of a selfish person.”
“Yes it is, but they don’t acknowledge that, because they see what others call selfishness as one’s required pathway to survival and success.”
“Meaning that looking out for number one is a self-preservation requirement that all intelligent people recognize as a must and as perfectly honorable.”
“Right again, except, again, they are blind to their own selfishness and have written their own rules to benefit themselves, and then codified it as something all right-thinking people should accept.”
“Which is why the Lord Jesus has always had a hard time in first convincing His disciples-to-be to see things the right way, and that selfishness is anathema to brotherly love.”
“Right. Meaning that selfishness and violating the Golden Rule is exactly why Cain killed Abel. Abel was a keeper of the Golden Rule.”
“What does any of this have to do with suppression?”
“The work of the Lord Jesus was suppressed. But guess by whom?”
“By the Pharisees and other religious leaders, primarily.”
“And why?”
“Because they were threatened by Him.”
“But the Lord had no evil intent toward them whatsoever and never violated the Golden Rule regarding them.”
“They were threatened by Him because he exposed their evil hearts.”
“And yet the people in general had always seen those religious leaders as God-sponsored and upright, and for the most part believed in their false religious garbage.”
“And that was because the religious leaders had cornered the market on religion and religious expression, and had created harsh punishments for those who rebelled against them.”
“So people were intimidated.”
“Of course. It’s the way of this fallen sinful world. People set off in life to climb the pyramid of success and invariably come upon junctures in which they must violate their conscience in order to proceed. They compromise. Then they no longer listen to their conscience once success arrives. They build their future on a foundation of moral compromise and violation of God’s commands, and as long as the money keeps rolling in they keep doing what they feel they must in order to maintain their success and achieve greater success.”
“But why don’t they ever think about what comes after this life is over?”
“In too deep. Too late to change. And, of course, they have convinced themselves to believe their own lies. They also find that it is very helpful to hang around people like themselves to keep any possible conviction of their conscience far, far away.”
“But isn’t conviction actually their friend, in that it leads to repentance?”
“One would think so. But once violaters of the Golden Rule taste success and get away with it they no longer perceive the possibility that pay day is coming. Some actually come to believe a reward is coming.”
“The Pharisees?”
“All fake religious leaders. It is why all the false religions of mankind, including the many false forms of Christianity, always end up with the two goals shared by the great evil elites in league with the devil—power and money.”
“So if false religious leaders, including all the ones who appear benign and harmless, and perfectly acceptable, perceive their religious enterprises as threatened, they will fight back against those they perceive as enemies.”
“Yes. They will indeed fight back. And they will demonize all who do not believe as they do. And they will suppress their work. Why else did the Pharisees try to kill the Lord Jesus in the very beginning of His ministry? Why did Roman Catholics over many, many centuries murder perhaps millions of those who they called heretics? Why did so many Protestants kill so many non-Catholic dissenters, engaging in the exact dynamic as the Catholic inquisitors? These were obvious gross violations of the Golden Rule, God’s command.”
“And why don’t the Catholics and Protestants of the present condemn those of their own religions who did this in the past?”
“Because to do that would be admitting guilt. And regardless of fake overtures that appear as apologetic, they can never condemn the past guilty ones properly and correctly without condemning themselves.”
“So they suppress.”
“Yes. They suppress. They treat real Christians with indifference. They hate with a smile. THIS is what you are going to have to see and fight through. Once religious leaders are compromised by money and power, they will fight the very Lord Jesus they claim to serve and suppress the work of His people at all times in order to protect themselves and their faux religious enterprises. In this they have compromised themselves with a false gospel and violate the Golden Rule for the sake of power and money in this world.”
“And condemn themselves to hell.”
“Yes. Though they are blind to it. They have discovered it is very easy to suppress and hopefully eliminate the Lord and His people if they merely violate the Lord’s commandments in the process. They justify their sin as a means of protecting themselves and all they have gained.”
“When they should be hitting the deck in repentance.”
“But people don’t repent when enraged by hate. And they don’t repent for sins they don’t think they have…”
© 2015 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
Suppression: The Forces of Hell at Work (1)
“I don’t know. I just can’t figure it out.”
“Figure what out?”
“All the effort…”
“What are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about all of the effort we put forth. All the work…”
He paused, as if trying to find the energy to go on with a line of thought he had traced out so many times before, that always ended in the same place, a place where nothing made much sense at all.
“We work so hard and it seems we rarely get much done. I’m working twice as hard, three times… But it’s like pulling teeth. There is so much resistance, apparently. There is always such a backlash. It is so hard to figure. Why is there such a fight against our work? The level of vitriol just doesn’t fit.”
His older friend said nothing. He turned from looking at him and stared at the ground, knowing the usual words of counsel would have little effect. After many seconds of silence, a thick silence filled with the proverbial Why’s and Woe’s of his friend and the desire to receive and provide a fitting answer, a word came.
“Suppression.”
“Suppression?”
“Your work is being suppressed.”
The younger man wondered at the idea. Why would anyone want to suppress his work? It wasn’t sinister, or…
“The devil doesn’t like what you’re doing.”
“I know that. That’s no secret. It’s all…”
“You don’t quite understand. The devil has these people…”
The older man was not really all that much older, only about five years, and had taken on the role of older brother to the younger man. He was much wiser and much more knowledgeable of spiritual things, though. He was perhaps thirty years older in that sense and it gave him the aura of being almost a father figure.
“The devil has these people. They are bound to serve him. There are bound to stop you.”
He wondered if he had said too much but quickly discounted that notion, knowing his younger friend had reached a point when he needed a clear answer and strong counsel regarding the fight at hand.
“Evil was here first. It had already staked a claim. We’re contesting that claim. They don’t like that. They see us as attacking them, that we have no right to do what we’re doing. They hate losing…”
“Seems to me they’re winning. They’ve got the whole blasted planet.”
The last words trailed off as the weariness in the young man began to bleed through.
“Why doesn’t God help us more? Why does the fight have to be so strong? I just don’t get it.”
“You don’t get it because you see yourself as playing by the normal rules, that life is fair or should be, and that goodness should win out rather easily, and that evil just can’t be that evil.”
He paused again. Both men stared ahead at something that wasn’t there, the younger man settling into a rare disillusionment, the older waiting for his words to sink in. He stared at the ground, strong, a slightly contorted look on his face, very slight, but showing the gravity of the moment. Many men never get past this moment. They give up though they continue on, no longer believing that the victory they seek will ever really happen to the degree they hope for. They are all in when young and fresh and excited about the future but become slowly bedraggled in their spirit for want of achievement that just won’t come.
“You have to fight through it. You knew it would be hard, but you didn’t realize how hard. And even after trying harder it still didn’t work to your satisfaction. You know that in other pursuits you would have achieved so much more by this time and it bothers you that the work you are attempting appears next to impossible. Especially after you feel you have given it everything you have.”
“Suppression?” The young man thought long and hard and said it again. “Suppression?” My work is being suppressed?”
“Uh, YEAH.”
“Wait. I know that. But not to this degree. I am… I’m just one man. Why is the devil so concerned about what I am doing? I’m nobody special.”
“Well, actually you are, and it actually isn’t about you or your desires. You have signed up with the King of kings and the devil hates the King of kings with a passion no human being knows, and is also deathly afraid of Him, and knows his vast evil kingdom is always hanging on a mere thread regardless of outward appearances.”
Continuing, he said, “Every young buck who wants to change the world and set the world on fire with the Gospel reaches this point where you are presently at, and realizes, shockingly, that it is going to be a lot harder than he ever imagined. It will even come down to fighting for survival. You don’t know what I have suffered to get to where I am, and I spent years trying to figure out why it all had to be so hard, and why it seemed as though God called me to do a job and then disappeared.”
“Yeah…” The younger man’s words trailed off…
[To Be Continued.]
© 2015 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
Happy Fourth Birthday, Real Christianity!
The great blessing of this blog is communicating with so many awesome people hard at work for the Lord Jesus! Very encouraging! Thanks to all of you for reading.
Real Christianity is now four years old. I have posted 280 articles.
You can locate every article prior to this year through the above Article Archives tab, organized both by category and calendar year.
There is also the Reader Favorites tab right next to it listing links to the 30 most popular articles.
All 2015 posts are in the Latest Articles—Feed Your Spirit column to the left (scroll down).
On the top left is the About the Book tab which gives a brief description of the book I wrote that this blog is named after, as well as many comments.
Speaking of which, there have been many excellent comments made by you guys through the years, including as of late, which are greatly appreciated. Actual real Christianity involves real community and all of us must communicate what the Lord has put on our hearts. The one rule I have is obey the Golden Rule.
In my recent posts we have discussed the presence of spiritual strongholds and spiritual blindness. Loyalty is a great quality but loyalty to the wrong thing will cut one off from greater truth. One way or the other, for the real Christian and dedicated disciple, the Lord Jesus will eventually strip away everything from one’s knowledge base that is not true. THAT is a painful process. But much more painful is the loss of brothers and sisters who refuse the process.
This dynamic is certainly Biblical. God sent prophets to correct Israel and Israel responded most often by killing them. Yikes. That’s a fine how do you do. We see it in the New Covenant also in the life of Paul, who suffered greatly at the hands of detractors. We apparently must be reminded continuously that all the original apostles except John died violent deaths at the hands of spiritual enemies, and this, of course, happened to the Founder as well. It is apparent they always put truth above togetherness, which is not at all the same thing as New Covenant fellowship, or koinonia.
Perhaps that is why most Christians settle into denominations and/or denominational beliefs and forego the journey into greater truth and a closer walk with the Lord. Perhaps most Christians would rather surround themselves with a congregation of “like-minded” believers. The spiritual frontier is tough, and rejecting the spiritual frontier for a comfortable parlor back east is more socially acceptable. Rejecting an ever greater understanding of the Lord’s real curriculum—the real Word of God—that is not added to and subtracted from by religionists with an opposing agenda is much more comfortable.
And then there is the absolute unwillingness to do the equivalent of what the rich young ruler was supposed to do. The Lord told him to sell everything he had and give the money to the poor and the man refused. So do Christians refuse the fact that they or their leaders, dead or alive, are wrong in some way. They would rather support a false belief and the mere humans who inspired them than scrap it all and learn directly from the Lord Jesus. Why is there this all-consuming need to stay grabbed on to a deteriorating life raft in a stormy sea while continuously rejecting the Lord’s seaworthy ship?
It has been said that the price of freedom is death. Not only will the TRUTH make one free, it will also cause spiritual attacks, some quite severe. It caused the Lord’s death, but praise God He didn’t stay dead, and because He rose again we can all rise again, both in the here and now and forever.
The TRUTH will cause backbiting, slander, gossip, and rejection. It will bring about a strong reaction from evil, unregenerate flesh. The flesh hates the TRUTH and is convicted easily. Most people would rather rage against the TRUTH, fight it, and go to hell than surrender to the Lord.
There are a few well-intentioned Christians who think the receivers of these evil things are somehow responsible or have a screw loose, as they take a purely non-spiritual approach to perceived remedies. Their arrogance is solid, often off the scale, and they are sold out to any number of false diagnoses and relative witch doctor remedies.
“Tell me, Jesus. How does it make it you feel when people hate you? Ahem, ahem… Does it bother you that people think you’re fake? Ahem, ahem…”
But the Lord Jesus stated very clearly that whatever His enemies do to Him they will do to His disciples. It is therefore not the fault of the disciple to be the recipient of evil. It goes with the territory.
It is enlightening to know that the Lord Jesus was and is rejected more than any man. During His time among us He was:
- Accused of being an illegitimate child
- Accused of being a glutton
- Accused of being a drunk
- Accused of being crazy, including by His own mother and siblings
- Severely second-guessed by none other than John the Immerser
- Accused of being demon-possessed
- Accused of being a false prophet
- Accused of being a false teacher
- Accused of being a false messiah
- Rejected by everyone, including His own disciples and close apostles
- Rejected by the entire religious establishment
- Rejected by His nation
- Rejected by the world
- Killed illegally by demon-possessed religionists whose father was the devil and who did everything in their power to rid the world of Him, including lying, cheating, character-assassination, and threatening Pilate to the point that the otherwise very strong man and Roman leader was reduced to a wimpy sissy completely under their demonic thumb. Their power trumped Roman power. Think about that.
We could go on. The point here is that the devil threw everything he had at the Lord and not only did none of it work and never stopped Him, the Lord actually worked that much harder and fought all the more so that we could all be set free from the evil around us.
He was thinking of you and me.
Regardless of everything against Him, HE WON THE VICTORY.
He never quit, would never quit, and walked right through all the sordid slinging flying garbage and innuendo that came His way to the great disillusionment of His many detractors. They wanted Him STOPPED but could not get the job done and it frustrated and scared them to no end.
Therefore, one of the clear marks of a real Christian must be the same. One must have the same experiences. And one must overcome them all.
We are fighting a spiritual war. If you want the Lord to be proud of you, you must fight. You must go forward. You must attack the enemy. You must overcome. You must do the job He put you here to do. And we will overcome if we do things His way, even in the face of the most vile and disgusting attacks, often at the hands of “friends.”
The Lord found out who His friends were. They were the ones who repented. They were the ones who returned. They were among the relative few who showed up for Pentecost. They were the ones who put their lives on the line.
We are getting closer to a time of Christian persecution in America like this country has never seen. We are also getting closer to the greatest Great Awakening this country has ever seen.
You must remember, though, how things will go. At first, many people will appreciate it. Then, with the advance of greater truth, the resulting conviction, and the lack of desire to repent and accept the TRUTH, they will begin to get miffed. Then, they will do an about face and turn on you like a rabid dog. This process is perfectly captured in the following account:
And all were speaking well of Him, and wondering at the gracious words which were falling from His lips; and they were saying, “Is this not Joseph’s son?”
And He said to them, “No doubt you will quote this proverb to Me, ‘Physician, heal yourself! Whatever we heard was done at Capernaum, do here in your hometown as well.’”
And He said, “Truly I say to you, no prophet is welcome in his hometown.
“But I say to you in truth, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the sky was shut up for three years and six months, when a great famine came over all the land; and yet Elijah was sent to none of them, but only to Zarephath, in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian.”
And all the people in the synagogue were filled with rage as they heard these things; and they got up and drove Him out of the city, and led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city had been built, in order to throw Him down the cliff. [Luke 4:22-29]
They loved Him and spoke well of Him but moments later tried to kill Him. Go figure. They failed to kill Him then and failed in every other attempt also. They only succeeded in finally murdering Him because He allowed it FOR THE SAKE OF OUR SALVATION.
“Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for their fathers used to treat the false prophets in the same way.” [Luke 6:26] [1]
At some point, a Christian will have to make this connection and figure it out. Until then, such a one is subjected to deception by false prophets (alive or dead).
Whatever the case, I am most thankful for all of you. We have much to do. May the Lord Jesus bless you abundantly.
Onward.
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If you’re interested in gaining some perspective regarding the last four years, I’ve included links to each prior anniversary, as follows. Thanks.
Happy First Birthday, Real Christianity (5/10/12)
Happy Second Birthday, Real Christianity (5/10/13)
Real Christianity: Three and Free (5/10/14)
© 2015 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
Dancing With the Devil
Why did the Lord Jesus continually warn us about being deceived? Why did He continually command His disciples that if they would be His disciples they must stay very, very close to Him? Why did He command His followers to obey Him, and Him only, and no one else?
The obvious answer, though only obvious to a few, is that the devil is a lying deceiver and hater of the first caliber, and that the only antidote to his lies is Truth, and Truth only comes from the Man who called Himself the Truth.
In other words, without the Truth, you’re on your own.
And since the devil has no need to fight those not against him (the majority of the world), he concentrates his attacks on Christians.
Why is this the case? Simply because the devil won’t waste his time with peripheral people and issues that do not directly affect his central modus operandi—to stop his one and only mortal enemy by attempting to corrupt and hoodwink those who claim to be His followers.
As the Lord Jesus Himself was tempted by the devil, and in a very major way, every Christian will also be tempted by the devil.
But not all Christians will pass the test.
It should be obvious when researching general Christian history that most Christians fail the test. They fail the test the same way Adam and Eve failed the test. They end up serving the devil whether they know it or not. The Lord said you will know them by their fruits. This is why unreal Christians are included among the deceived.
The devil is essentially a keystone predator. He has no natural enemy that can touch him or do him any harm whatsoever, except for one. The devil runs roughshod over this world doing whatever he wants to do, destroying, stealing, and murdering. He was here before we were. He knows the landscape. The apostle Paul called him “the god of this world:”
And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. [2Corinthians 4:3-4]
Consider that statement—the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving.
Why? How? And how does he have this power?
It must somehow be according to the will and plan of God.
But consider how far-reaching that power is, that the devil has the ability to blind the minds of EVERYONE who does not believe, including unbelieving “Christians.”
What constitutes an unbeliever?
An unbeliever, from the New Covenant perspective and writings, is anyone who does not honor, trust, and obey the Lord Jesus as one’s sole Master, Rabbi, Shepherd, and Savior. And if one wants a pure description and illustration of real New Covenant believers in action, one must read the Book of Acts.
It is there where one will discover the evidence that constitutes a real believer, the dividing line between believer and unbeliever, and deduce the presence of unbelievers who masquerade as believers, whose minds have been blinded by the god of this world.
Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. [Galatians 6:7-8] [1]
© 2015 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
New England’s Avalanche of Apostasy: Snowing Over the Pilgrim’s Progress
The northeast has had an exceptionally snowy winter. And it’s not over yet. Residents have experienced cold and snow way beyond the norm in an ongoing series of repeated winter storms and blizzards blowing in with gale force winds, much of it concentrated on the inner coastal areas of New England.
The city of Boston has set new all-time snowfall records. The area’s snowfall is greatly out of proportion compared to other usually more prolific geographic snowy spots known for large accumulations and relatively high averages. Is all this random?
Boston set a new season snowfall record on Sunday, measured from July 1 to June 30, with just over 9 feet to date. This had never happened before in official recorded history. The city also set by a large margin a new all-time winter record, and destroyed the previous monthly record with 64.9 inches in February, eclipsing the old mark of 43.3 inches set in January of 2005.
The official measurements date back to roughly 1870. Unofficial record-keeping dates to the 1700s. There is no way to know for sure what the actual records are from the time of Boston’s founding, but residents of the Boston greater metropolitan area, which adds up to about 7.6 million people including commuters, have seen the record snowfall firsthand and generally refer to this as the worst winter in memory.
Boston was founded in 1630. It could certainly be the case that the new official records were exceeded in all that time, but comparing the snowfall totals of the last 145 years gives a good indication that the current snowfall has been decidedly extreme. The previous annual record was set two decades ago. The snowfall is increasing at what appears to be an exponential rate with new records being set at shorter intervals.
Adding this to all the other strange weather patterns happening in recent years all across the country tells us something is up. Other records are being broken as well. There is no comparable data for many of these events in recorded history and therefore no portent of what is to come, but it does not look good.
THE ARRIVAL OF THE PILGRIMS
And he changeth the times and the seasons: he removeth kings, and setteth up kings: he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding: He revealeth the deep and secret things: he knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light dwelleth with him. [Daniel 2:21-22 KJV] [1]
In 1620, the English Separatist Christians, also known as the Pilgrims, landed at Plymouth Rock. They were the first English settlers in the region and founded Plymouth Colony, the second colony in America.
These believers had suffered greatly for their faith while in England, and even had to flee to the European continent to escape persecution before coming to America. The Separatists had withdrawn completely from the English state church—the Anglican—many decades before, due to strong beliefs in pure New Covenant teachings. They paid for it severely. Many lost their lives and were imprisoned long before later brethren made it to these shores.
There is confusion regarding the many denominations of the English Reformation of the 1500s, such as the Presbyterians, Puritans, and Separatists, but it was the latter group that the Lord had chosen to get to New England first.
The Puritans were relative latecomers to America and had always insisted on keeping one foot in the official Anglican Church. They proved their lack of resolve by not only succeeding in avoiding much persecution, but also waiting for others to do the heavy lifting and putting forth a strong witness. Once the ocean highway was built by the pioneering Pilgrims they began infiltrating Plymouth Colony and the Boston area in droves.
Thirteen years before the Pilgrim landing, in 1607, it was the Anglicans who began the first English settlement on the American continent, but this was to the south in Jamestown, Virginia. The Jamestown settlement experienced great hardship and was actually abandoned briefly in 1610. It had a purely economic motive rather than the spiritual motive of Plymouth.
Regarding New England, though the Separatists were obviously the group closest to the heart of the New Covenant and the Gospel, they were soon overrun by all the others who later ventured to America. Still, they laid the initial spiritual foundation. The Puritans overlaid the Pilgrim’s foundation with their own, which included an ecclesiastical culture and governance, much legalism, and the aforementioned connection to the hybrid high church Anglican assembly. Nevertheless, there was a strong Christian presence in the New England colonies overall and the Puritans eventually distanced themselves from the Church of England.
THE FIRST GREAT AWAKENING
The first American Great Awakening began a century later in late 1734 in Northampton, Massachusetts in a small church community led by Jonathan Edwards. It eventually spread like the proverbial wildfire throughout the northern colonies and later as far south as Georgia. This proved to unite many of the members of the various denominations, though the old school Christians fought the revival tooth and nail. The Awakening proved to be the initial unifying force of the young confederation of colonies that a few decades later rebelled against harsh English rule and won independence in the American Revolution.
It must be noted that the Revolution against the English throne had achieved in the secular what the Separatists had achieved in the Spirit. Both parties made the decision to risk everything and attempt an impossible goal. Both were driven by something otherworldly beyond the natural scope. Without those strong disciples of the Lord a century and a half before the Declaration of Independence was signed—those who were willing to risk it all in bringing the Gospel to a new continent—there would have been no American Revolution, no freedom, and all the blessings of God made possible since.
THE SECOND GREAT AWAKENING
The Second American Great Awakening in the early 1800s spread rapidly primarily under the preaching of Charles Finney beginning about 1825. The next ten years were his most active as a revivalist. Again, God’s choice was not conventional. Though a Calvinist, he rejected much of the Old Divinity Calvinism, and preached against strict Predestination, proving that the doctrine of some people being born for heaven and others for hell to be heretical.
Finney caught much flak from his detractors during his ministry. He was a strong advocate of preaching against sin and demanded repentance, exactly as had the Lord Jesus and the early believers. Jonathan Edwards had done the same. Both of these men were humble and unpretentious. Both fought against great odds. Both were seen as odd.
Finney preached thousands of messages in revivals throughout his life and also founded Oberlin College in Ohio. His revivals were primarily located in upper New York state and Manhattan.
The First Great Awakening of Jonathan Edwards’ time had spread throughout New England, New York, and Pennsylvania.
The Separatists Pilgrims had established Plymouth Colony, which at its height covered most of the southeastern part of what is now the state of Massachusetts. This colony merged with the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1691.
There is no doubt that great spiritual happenings were a matter of course for the greater New England and northeast region. The people there had been abundantly blessed by God. Later history, however, reveals the unfolding of a spiritual disaster.
SPIRITUAL SNOWSTORM?
What has happened to the great Christian presence in the Northeast? In the region where great revival fires spread and untold numbers of people were saved there is now a general spiritual coldness, distance from God, and a growing hatred of real Christianity. As the record snowfalls of Boston portend, the hearts of millions have grown cold in an ever increasing spiritual snowstorm.
Could the snow records be a sign? Could it be that the record snowfall is a clear indication of the great apostasy of the region?
Boston’s snowfall record goes back to the beginning of official record keeping in about 1870. Charles Grandison Finney died in 1875. Coincidence? How could a place with such a powerful Christian spiritual history become the very opposite at present? What is the cause of the northeastern states’ descent into such a freezing cold spiritual condition?
In looking once again at the impossible journey of the Separatist Pilgrims almost 400 years ago and the great spiritual foundation they set, and also at not one but two powerful Great Awakenings that shook the northeastern part of the country, it should give all believers serious pause over what can happen when people drift away from God. The spiritual temperature in the region is matching the frigid winter lows but remains constant all year long, and has resulted in a relative spiritual ice age.
Keep your seeing eyes peeled. After just witnessing the greatest all-time snowfall upon the exact land claimed for God by the Separatists four centuries ago, there are not only warnings to be heeded but signs to be sighted.
Something tells me the present early stages of the Great Awakening will not be having any breakouts out in Boston.
© 2015 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
♫ Kenneth, James, and Joel ♫
(Sung to the Tune of “Abraham, Martin, and John” © Dick Holler)
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbJ5V37Gagc
(Sing Along With Above Karaoke)
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♫ Kenneth, James, and Joel ♫
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(0:21)
Has anybody here seen my old friend Kenneth?
Can you tell me where he’s gone?
He’s fooled a lot of people
But it seems the fooled, they move on
You know, I just looked around and he’s gone.
.
(0:54)
Anybody here seen my old friend James?
Can you tell me where he’s gone?
He’s fooled a lot of people
But it seems the fooled, they move on
I just looked around and he’s gone.
.
.
(1:36)
Anybody here seen my old friend Joel?
Can you tell me where he’s gone?
He’s fooled a lot of people
But it seems the fooled, they move on
I just looked around and he’s gone.
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(2:03)
Didn’t you wonder about the things that they stood for?
Didn’t they try to make a fool of you and me?
And we’ll never be free
Following them, if we follow them you see…
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(2:29)
Anybody here seen my old friend Francis?
Can you tell me where he’s gone?
I thought I saw him walking up over Vatican Hill
With Kenneth, James, and Joel
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© 2015 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
RISING AGAIN…
The world was dark and cold. Defeat had become a matter of lifestyle, of accepting a great wrong against one’s hopes and dreams with no way to overcome the pain.
And it was certainly pain, the kind of deep pain stored in the depths of one’s heart that it seems can never be excised no matter how hard one may try.
There were “leaders” who had come along who claimed they had answers but their efforts never went anywhere, even though a few had gained relatively large followings. Yet, no matter what particular hope had come down the road and into the hearts of the defeated, though briefly, the light shined for merely a moment and was gone.
It was as if the whole world was against each person, and that each person had no way to strike back effectively. The great pain carried by most was the pain of a defeat so strong and overwhelming that they must simply surrender to it and find a way to make life work.
It is one of the most difficult things to deal with and make sense of, and in all probability the most difficult. People were created to overcome, to stand tall, to fight and win, to work hard and get things done, to put their heart into alleviating a problem, and to let nothing stand in the way of their freedom and success.
Yet, the nation was broken. It had long ago been taken over by a brutal regime that had little or no compassion, and certainly no concern for the individuals who lives were essentially destroyed and enslaved. People kept working hard—they had to—but they were only working to stay alive. Survival was the big dream, or actually, it was the attempt to stay mentally tough against so much misfortune and no hope for the future. This “survival” was the manner in which one was forced to attempt a win, the way a starving man may grab at crumbs in hopes that he may find a piece of bread, and then, just maybe, something more.
But it was the seeking of something more substantial that caused the greatest depression among people. If they could only just give up and accept a less than good life, a less than average life, or even a mere subsistence level life, then maybe that pain would go away. Maybe if they just gave up on dreams that kept stirring their hearts but never, ever came close to reality, then, and only then, could they maybe smile a weak smile and somehow be content with their lot.
It was not to be, of course. No one can live like that for very long without finding alternatives to bleak reality that somehow make reality possible to stomach. It had all been going on for so many years and decades. People could actually no longer remember any actual good times but they still had the misty sagas that old people told on occasion, when long ago, their people lived in victory and strength.
In a way, such stories, real or imagined, kept a spark alive but only a few really thought it could ever grow into anything more than that. So many people had tried for so long to overcome it all…
Their houses had been broken into and ransacked. They were forced to vacate not only their homes and fields that they had worked so hard at building, but whole towns. Communities were destroyed. Industry was destroyed. The means to build it all back was completely removed. These evil despicable hell-bound demons in human form had decided that total destruction was the answer, and in their zeal to eliminate those good people they falsely characterized as evil, they had become evil incarnate.
Their sweeping victories, however, gave them the aura of somehow being on the winning side, and that their grossly evil behavior was somehow justified even by God Himself. It was as if God had turned from His righteousness and honor, and sided with the devil, and that any unfortunate ones who fought the invaders would be crushed by God because the good people were characterized as being the devil.
Why would God do this? Why would He side with evil? Why wouldn’t He help these poor destroyed people? Was their sin so great and the obvious sins of these invaders so unacknowledged that the entire cosmos had gotten turned upside down?
As their lives, hopes, and dreams were destroyed, they remembered their Scriptures, the sayings of their holy book. They remembered the words that seemed to fit so clearly—
Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness; who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter! Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight! [Isaiah 5:20-21]
The confidence level of the invaders had grown exponentially the more they destroyed the land and its people. As the proverbial sharks smelling blood and swimming swiftly to the kill and engaging in a free-for-all bloodbath, so did these so called liberators fall into the most heinous of crimes. Looking past their own sins and thinking themselves as holy with justified and God-breathed righteous anger, and even as agents of proper judgment, they raped and pillaged and burned and murdered, and they exulted in it, they enjoyed it, it was a tremendous opportunity to release their evil passions like hardened, reprobate, insane criminals escaped from the worst penitentiaries.
How could agents of supposed good engage in such incredibly sinful acts? And why do monuments built for their leaders exist to this day—statues and bronzes beholding their evil glory?
As the majority of those in the Lord’s day who judged Him falsely of evil and agreed with His death sentence and torture, so do so many still to this day claim the side of righteousness while engaging in or fully supporting the most evil of deeds. They refuse to acknowledge the gross violations of the Lord’s teachings. It is a justification of the worst forms of hate and all that stems from it.
It must be understood that the thundering hooves supporting these invasions never stop. They continue on in subjugating others, and others still, and overcome the innocent, and rob them, and destroy them, and justify it all.
But the day will come when their juggernaut will come face to face with a higher power, the very power they had previously claimed was on their side, and they will at last meet their match, and so much more.
In their current state, the subdued cannot imagine anything to change it, for evil has gained such a stronghold over them, and they are so small and outnumbered, and apparently defeated. But they remember what always follows, what comes next, what the prophets said about the righteous and faithful people, and it is then that the tiny spark in their deepest heart glows brighter:
Evil is always stopped. It is only a matter of time. The temporary never survives against the eternal. Dishonesty, lies, deceptive agendas, fake historical accounts, and false narratives never defeat Truth in the long term. And the evil ones who ride high in their day and get away with so much will all eventually pay the price. Their time will come to an end. Their earthly kingdoms, like all previous earthly kingdoms and empires, and all their sordid gains will fail and come to nothing, and can never be translated into eternity.
The real kingdom, though—the eternal kingdom of the Lord Jesus, inhabited by those who love Him and obey Him and are called by His Name—it will continue now and throughout eternity. And regardless of the pain and the many losses the Lord’s people have suffered upon this planet, their fate is good and bright—they will live forever in their eternal home.
And one more thing: Those places and regions of the earth where the devil has historically wreaked the worst havoc are often the same places from which the Lord later brings forth the greatest Great Awakenings…
“THE PEOPLE WHO WERE SITTING IN DARKNESS SAW A GREAT LIGHT, AND THOSE WHO WERE SITTING IN THE LAND AND SHADOW OF DEATH, UPON THEM A LIGHT DAWNED.” [Matthew 4:16] [1]
© 2015 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
LOVE Your BROTHER, FIGHT the DEVIL
I wrote my last article here two months ago, on this site’s third anniversary. I am certainly thankful for all of you who read these articles and are blessed by them, but circumstances at that time caused me to wonder about the future of this blog. On prior anniversaries I had received more support.
Dwindling readership and a few other factors allowed for some serious disillusionment. From my perspective I worked very hard at receiving and writing, and writing articles with necessary content to possibly assist us all in seeing the things holding us back, recognizing the presence of the enemy fighting us, perceiving the possible lack of doing the will of God, and possibly the biggest problem—not obeying His Word as we should, which has resulted in subpar efforts in many circles and often a complete failure to achieve spiritual objectives.
Things were going well but then, though some of you remain ever faithful, things began trailing off. I also had to attend to the inevitable practical matters of life and no longer had the time or inclination to write. Thanks for those of you who prayed. Today’s effort might or might not strike any chords, but for the first time since May I’ve felt like writing again.
If there was another way to reveal those harder truths most Christians want no part of without having to engage in spiritual fights, we would certainly attend to it. But the fact remains that Christianity in general is infused with false doctrine on top of false doctrine. Most Christians know this but stop at doing anything about their own personal false doctrines. The Lord Jesus, however, will never stop. He will have a bright shining community one way or the other, devoid of all teachings not His own, thus evoking the picture of the few people who will actually become and remain part of it, rather than the false paradigm of a giant mass of non-disciples.
The reality is that the attempt to apply the real curriculum of the Lord Jesus is not at all easy and never has been. In fact, in a fallen world of sin, pain, rebellion against God and righteousness, and the resultant misery that affects us all, it is the most difficult endeavor one could ever engage in, though also the most rewarding.
It is fraught with heartache. And the worst heartache of all is that which arises from an attack from one’s friends.
The Lord Jesus suffered this more than anyone. All real Christians will suffer it as well. It is part of the deal, you know. Betrayal is a simple but terrible fact always waiting around a dark corner. It is next to impossible to defend yourself against it because it comes at the hands of those you don’t think you should defend yourself against until it is too late.
I remember many years (decades) ago during my rookie year. I had a very powerful born-again experience. I had been valiantly searching for truth for many years prior to that time and when the Lord Jesus led me to Himself within a small fellowship of loving believers, it changed my life forever. It was and remains the best thing that ever happened in my life. I wanted everyone to have what I had been given. I tried telling the world about the great joy in my life and the love of the Lord Jesus that sets us free.
The problem with this approach was that I soon found out that most people, instead of seeing the great change in my life for the better, saw me in a much different light. For whatever reason they were perfectly happy to remain in their sins, refused to consider all I was sharing, could not see and would not see the truth or have any love for it, and remained ensconced in that place far from God where I had also previously been. Only a few listened to or saw my witness.
Sounds a tad judgmental, I know. But I also know God’s patience will not last forever. He has called ALL OF US to repentance and gags at our dirty attempts at righteousness without Him. There is a giant mess that needs cleaning up, He’s the only One who can do it, He will do it in time, and the major part of the Big Clean is removing sin from His Creation. This poses a problem for human beings because sin is not just floating around out there in the ether—it is resident within human beings. And if a human being refuses to engage in the cleansing process with the Lord by first assisting Him in cleansing the sin from his or her own life and person, he or she will be part of that which goes in the great dumpster on fire.
Now, such a statement will evoke great high notes of horror from the self-righteous among us, especially those who are religiously self-righteous, and much more especially from those who are Christian religiously self-righteous. Such people apparently see God as a glowing orb of pure love from which could never come anything negative or judgmental and certainly never toward such lovely caring holy people as themselves.
This is possibly the most disgusting thing about sinful humanity—not only is there a complete lack of recognition of their own sin, there is a complete lack of believing that God would do anything about it in their particular case, because they are so good and if God would ever even think that way about them—demand their repentance that they may be clean and free, as if they must somehow not be so good—well then God can just go stick it in His big giant ear.
It is a very weird thing when people think they are just as righteous or more righteous than God.
For those who have never been enlightened or have no knowledge of the Word of God this is understandable, yet because everyone has a conscience no one is without excuse. For Christians there is especially no excuse. This is why of all people on the planet, the most vile, backbiting, and most likely to betray are fake Christians. Of course, they apparently do not know they are fake, but the fruit of the tree defines the tree.
The hard thing about real Christianity is that we are actually expected by God and even commanded by God to obey His Word. Fake Christians don’t bother with such trivialities.
At the end of my last post two lunar cycles ago I wrote the following:
Regardless of what we believe or how we see things, we must remain polite. We must remain brothers and sisters. We must be family. The Lord said the entire everything hangs on only two commandments, and we must always honor those two and obey them above all else:
One of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?”
And He said to him, “‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.’ This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’ On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.” [Matthew 22:35-40]
If one reads that post one will see I was writing from the perspective of attempting to obey God and honor His Word, though it is a challenge for all of us. One of the problems I have always faced, however, is having to deal with other Christians who so easily get their panties in a wad over something I may be teaching.
Recently, a fellow believer reblogged one of my posts. One of this person’s readers wrote a comment disparaging my post. The author of the blog wrote a comment defending my post in a very loving and well thought-out manner. The one who had the problem then said he found nothing wrong with the content of the post, but did not like the spirit in which it was delivered…
Go figure.
“Hey Lord Jesus. We know you are from God and we like your teachings but could you please tone it down a little because after all we’re just a bunch of sissy weenies who really only want to suck on religious teets our whole life and have no taste whatsoever for adult food featuring sides of beef and giant filets of wild Alaskan salmon so please give as sugary cereal milk forever and none of these ‘hard sayings.’ Okay?”
Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it? When Jesus knew in himself that his disciples murmured at it, he said unto them, Doth this offend you? {offend: or, scandalize, or, cause you to stumble}
What and if ye shall see the Son of man ascend up where he was before?
It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.
But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not, and who should betray him. [John 6:60-64 KJV]
Anyway, right after I posted my last article expressing my utmost in teaching what we all must do to please God and get the job done at present to help bring forth the very needed Awakening (but also on my part hoping not to offend religious sensibilities—a virtual impossibility but I do try), I get slammed by a brother who took issue with something I wrote that he did not agree with and who conveniently forgot all about the Golden Rule apparently because it did not apply to him and I was indeed worthy of a personal slam and he was self-anointed to deliver the slam. And as always, I never mention names and in this case never even responded, but that did not stop him from naming mine.
So what do I do? Well, sometimes having the kind of natural human inclinations that would want to grab him by the back of his head, slam his face onto a bar, mash his nose into a bloody mess, and thereby teach him the proper respect the way Augustus McCrae did to that arrogant little San Antonio barkeep in Lonesome Dove, I decided the best thing to do would be to discipline my natural human inclinations in an attempt to honor the Lord and not respond in kind, eat his backhanded attack, take the hit, forgive him, and do the very thing I had also just written about in my last post (which this guy read):
It is never my intention to offend. I only want to reveal truth. But unlike many others, I will not go to war against my brothers. Like many of you, I know what it’s like to get treated like dirt by those who claim to be doing the Lord’s work. I will teach very strongly when the door opens but when it appears fellowship starts taking a hit, it often indicates a time to fall back on first priorities—loving one another regardless of differences. In that light, however, the Lord never compromised the truth. Paul spent much ministry time arguing about the real revelations of Scripture and truth, but did it in love. Both got into serious trouble as a result.
In other words, those who decide to go to war against the Lord Jesus are apparently emboldened because they think He’s merely a wimpy forgiverer-lover who acts like a little girl and would never stand up for Himself. In fact, if the Lord wanted to, in His humanity, He could whip all comers in any kind of fight they may wish to bring Him. Bare-knuckle fisticuffs? He’d clean one’s clock, I’m telling you. He simply chooses not to for the sake of righteousness and a willingness to take a hit without responding in kind, since he knows He’s dealing with confused and/or ignorant no-challenge sissies.
Most “Christians” never think of the Lord in those terms. This is possibly why most “Christians” will end up in hell, because they take God lightly, they take His teachings lightly, they get convicted easily and whine to no end, rebel against Him and any of His disciples who take Him seriously, and refuse to repent if it means admitting they are wrong, even to the point of getting tossed into the fiery dumpster with these guys:
The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, so as not to worship demons, and the idols of gold and of silver and of brass and of stone and of wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk; and they did not repent of their murders nor of their sorceries nor of their immorality nor of their thefts. [Revelation 9:20-21]
Men were scorched with fierce heat; and they blasphemed the name of God who has the power over these plagues, and they did not repent so as to give Him glory. Then the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom became darkened; and they gnawed their tongues because of pain, and they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores; and they did not repent of their deeds. [Revelation 16:9-11]
In these days of thousands of Christian pulpiteers preaching the devil’s message and taking congregations to hell with them while Christians at large honor their every false word, someone better do a little more than what has been required in the past. Thankfully, the Lord is never surprised by idiots and Judases and always has an ace in the hole in the form of giant spiritual swords to fiercely hack away at sin and devil’s doctrines in high Christian places. He has raised up millions of fearless warriors who comparatively no longer give a flying flip about these sorry little short lives we live, whose minds are on heaven and eternity and achieving the objective, and are willing to go toe to toe with any devil or religious idiot for the sake of obeying their King and doing His work.
For the few of you who are willing, it remains the time to storm the gates.
And for those Christians who are confused, THE DEVIL IS YOUR ENEMY, NOT YOUR BROTHER OR SISTER. DO GOD A FAVOR AND GROW A PAIR, AND FIGHT THE DEVIL IF YOU CAN SOMEHOW MANAGE THE DISCIPLESHIP.
For all you ladies out there in the Lord’s glorious service who never shrink from a fight, my personal thanks to all of you for standing by God and fighting the good fight of faith, often doing far more than your share. It is certainly a fact that Christianity in general is greatly overpopulated by women, but a remnant thereof continues to shame men who shrink from His service or refuse to get off the pew.
“Many daughters have done nobly, but you excel them all. Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the LORD, she shall be praised. Give her the product of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates.” [Proverbs 31:29-31]
Many believe that if one does not work then one must not eat. But the Word also says that if one refuses to fight the enemy, or fights God’s people instead of the enemy, then one must not only not eat, but face judgment.
Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know Him who said, “VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY.” And again, “THE LORD WILL JUDGE HIS PEOPLE.” It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
But remember the former days, when, after being enlightened, you endured a great conflict of sufferings, partly by being made a public spectacle through reproaches and tribulations, and partly by becoming sharers with those who were so treated. For you showed sympathy to the prisoners and accepted joyfully the seizure of your property, knowing that you have for yourselves a better possession and a lasting one.
Therefore, do not throw away your confidence,[1] which has a great reward. [Hebrews 10:28-35] [2]
© 2014 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Strong’s Concordance: #3954 parrhesia {par-rhay-see’-ah} Meaning: 1) freedom in speaking, unreservedness in speech 1a) openly, frankly, i.e without concealment 1b) without ambiguity or circumlocution 1c) without the use of figures and comparisons 2) free and fearless confidence, cheerful courage, boldness, assurance 3) the deportment by which one becomes conspicuous or secures publicity
[2] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
RECOMMENDED MUST READ: LIAR LIAR PANTS ON FIRE
Real Christianity: Three and Free
Hello everyone. It has now been three years since I started this site on May 10, 2011. Thanks to you all for reading, commenting, and subscribing. I also give special thanks to those of you who have been with me from the beginning or thereabouts, and those who reblog my posts on your own sites. I’m not sure, but it could be that your reputation is ruined twice over.
I knew from the beginning that the topics I would write about would not necessarily be popular, so I am thankful for the support this blog has received. Though it may appear sometimes that I just barge right in and begin offending right off the bat, I actually try my best to be as tactful as possible. I’m not necessarily trying to win an argument here, but I must reveal what has been revealed to me. I want you all to know that I do, or have done, a ton of research to support my articles. I work very hard at creating works that support what I know to be true, doing much editing, over and over again, to get each post in the form I feel it deserves (though the inevitable typos slip through anyway).
I have no other agenda than to obey and honor the Lord and present New Covenant and historical truth. I am not trying to support any denomination or denominational beliefs. I don’t have a pastor looking over my shoulder. I attempt to go strictly by what the Lord Jesus reveals through His own teaching, and the teachings of those who were taught by Him directly so long ago.
In that light, no one has it all, all of us are in need of more knowledge and revelation, and all of us probably have some level of teaching that the Lord’s teachings do not support. Therefore, we must not only continue to study to show ourselves approved, but be humble enough to know we don’t know everything, and that some of the stuff we know and think is true is actually incorrect.
The latter presents itself at worst in the behavior of the Pharisees, who thought they had it all down perfect but were actually wrong on most accounts. They were more concerned with winning arguments and with their own religious pride and standing. As are many Christians, they were invested in their beliefs and most of them refused to consider alternatives. The Lord had grown exasperated with their religious redneckism.
Their own Scriptures said they were generally stiffnecked, and it has been my experience over several decades that Christians insist on competing with that stiffnecked attitude. Many Christians refuse to hear anything that might make them feel uncomfortable regarding their chosen path. As a solution, for those humble and wise enough to accept it, I suggest we all present our doctrinal apologetics toward the Lord’s teachings, not the teachings of others.
At best, we look to the Lord’s example of learning, knowing, possessing, and sharing truth. Usually, the only times He got really upset was with the Pharisees and their close-minded, we-know-everything attitude that drove them to kill rather than see the light. Seeing the light demands humility. We must all know at all times that deception surrounds us and is sometimes so powerful and thick we are astonished when we see the light in respect to former beliefs.
As Christians, we are blessed to have the writings of the New Testament. We are blessed to have an actual history book of the early community of the Lord. We know what they believed, what they did, how they lived their lives, and what they taught. And we know they were given miraculous confirmation of all they taught, the same as it was with the Lord. We know they gave it everything they had and put their lives on the line.
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In early December of last year, I was blessed with more time and made a concerted effort to work very hard and create as many posts as possible based on what the Lord was downloading at that time. There was a lot on the back burner (many back burners), and I proceeded to write a lot partly in an effort to catch up. It started on December 9 with the first of a two-part article entitled Forced Religious Conformity: Human Graven Images. Within a month I made 7 posts.
But something very interesting happened in early January of this year. I began receiving the nucleus of a long article that regarded a frontier crossing I was embarking on, and one I knew many of you were also.
It began on January 14 when I posted the first of a three-part series called Entering The Miracle Realm.
From that point on I had crossed a threshold into some kind of deeper spiritual zone. Sounds weird, I know, but the article reveals what was happening then. I remember one of you pointed out that something in my posts changed at that particular time (Thanks Susan). I know I was dealing with some serious challenges, one of which was a serious back injury that seemed to come out of nowhere. Such fun happenings were no doubt due, at least in part, to spiritual battle. I also got pretty sick a couple of times, and I rarely ever get sick. Things were going on in the spirit. Ground was being gained. I certainly paid the price for that but it’s all part of the process.
Also, it was at that time that blog activity began picking up. Hits increased somewhat dramatically. Things had dipped quite a bit last November when I had so little time. I managed to get back on par in December. Then, January of this year set a new record. February set a new record. March set a new record. And April of this year stayed right up there.
From January 14 until April 29 I made another 31 posts. This does not include a couple of posts I made in February regarding my son’s motorcycle accident. I had asked for prayer and received a huge response from you all and remain very thankful. He has made a full recovery.
From May 10 of last year until December 9, 2013 I had much less time to write and only managed 18 articles, so that adds up to about 56 posts or so for my third year (but 31 in a recently completed 3½ months!).
Overall, I managed to go over 200 posts for the three years about a month back.
I’m not sure what happened this month but the bottom has fallen out. It could be I am no longer receiving. Part of it involves having less time and being involved with many more practical matters.
But I think the main thing is probably the latest article content. I know I have lost readers that used to like my stuff, no doubt because disagreements arose. As I said before, I try very hard to present the truth I have learned and be tactful about it. I want you all to know, though, that I am constantly reading, doing much research, fact-checking, and trying my best to hear the Lord. This often involves new truth, and that often brings offense. We must remember that the Pharisees (and Christian Pharisees since) gained the religious ascendancy during the Lord’s time and had swayed the people to their perspective. Of course, they never thought it was a mere perspective but absolute truth. We must be careful to not make this our problem. Religious pride is a killer.
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; A broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise. [Psalm 51:17]
I wrote my first book in part dealing with the fact that we have about four million Christian denominations, off-shoots, and even more doctrines that often contradict one another. I always reiterate the point that there is only one Lord Jesus and He teaches only one curriculum. This means the vast majority of Christian teaching is somehow suspect. We must get back to our roots. But in doing that many sacred cows are inevitably revealed for what they are and offense comes.
It is never my intention to offend. I only want to reveal truth. But unlike many others, I will not go to war against my brothers. Like many of you, I know what it’s like to get treated like dirt by those who claim to be doing the Lord’s work. I will teach very strongly when the door opens but when it appears fellowship starts taking a hit, it often indicates a time to fall back on first priorities—loving one another regardless of differences. In that light, however, the Lord never compromised the truth. Paul spent much ministry time arguing about the real revelations of Scripture and truth, but did it in love. Both got into serious trouble as a result.
Regardless of what we believe or how we see things, we must remain polite. We must remain brothers and sisters. We must be family. The Lord said the entire everything hangs on only two commandments, and we must always honor those two and obey them above all else:
One of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?”
And He said to him, “‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.’ This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’ On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.” [Matthew 22:35-40]
Again, looking to His example, He often taught with great power and authority. At other times He used tact. We must be sensitive to the Lord and one another. The point is to reveal the truth that sets us free. Otherwise, all we are doing is teaching the commandments of men that keep us in bondage.
“Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees…” [Luke 12:1] [1]
Keep up all the wonderful work you are doing and keep showing the love of God. Great things are happening! We remain in the early stages of a national Great Awakening. The Lord is in charge.
Later.
© 2014 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
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PLEASE CONSIDER PURCHASING MY BOOK. THANKS.
Behind Enemy Lines: This World is Not My Home
The apostle Paul was told his fate. After appearing before the man Nero left as a representative, Paul was told he lost his case. He knew what that meant. But he had already known anyway, because the Lord revealed it to him beforehand in the spirit. He was happy that his day had come to see the Lord…
But he was also greatly saddened because he wanted to keep working. He wanted to minister to others, and to continue revealing the light of the Gospel message and blessing whoever he might. He wanted to continue being used as a vessel for God’s glory regardless of the sacrifice and pain.
He was a scrapper!
And so are so many believers the world over who continue smiling as they face great discomfort, neglect, and rejection for knowing and loving their Creator and Savior. And this is their great victory—they can smile! They want to smile, and they cannot help but smile and express their joy, even though at times it may be in their spirit and not visible to others.
The great hero’s of the faith are those who soldier on regardless of the cost. Like Paul, they are determined to finish their course. Imagine what Paul was thinking as he laid his head down for the last time on this side of eternity. He must have thought about how blessed he was, how he gave it his all, and how he was so fortunate to love and be loved by so many people…
Then, in his final seconds, he probably thought about how blessed he was in that he was also given the awesome opportunity to present his body as a living sacrifice one final time to honor and glorify his King. He had been doing just that during his entire ministry, and he had the many scars to prove it.
The reality is that Paul would have never stopped living and working for God. He would have continued until his body simply quit functioning, even though he was most likely racked with pain every day due to all of his injuries and suffering. He knew at the end how short life really is and how much more he wanted to do, but also that his time of departure was not his decision.
Unless the Lord reveals it, no one knows his or her future. Some who thought they would live long did not. And some who thought their passing was eminent lived on for many more years. We’ll all be checking out at some point, either young or old. We know that. But let it be in God’s timing. And in the meantime, we will do our work for God with courage and dedication, with a heart of love and gratitude, continuing to be thankful for our many blessings.
Paul gave everything he had in life, and in the end gave everything he had in death, always in surrender and obedience. With nothing more to do or give, his very last thought was probably associated with the following:
“For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.” [2 Timothy 4:6-8]
“For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” [Philippians 1:21]
There is no sense in arguing with a man with an experience. Paul not only walked with the Lord on a daily basis, the Lord actually made it a tad easier at times by circumventing the usual convention and showing up in 3D:
And there occurred a great uproar; and some of the scribes of the Pharisaic party stood up and began to argue heatedly, saying, “We find nothing wrong with this man; suppose a spirit or an angel has spoken to him?” And as a great dissension was developing, the commander was afraid Paul would be torn to pieces by them and ordered the troops to go down and take him away from them by force, and bring him into the barracks.
But on the night immediately following, the Lord stood at his side and said, “Take courage; for as you have solemnly witnessed to My cause at Jerusalem, so you must witness at Rome also.” [Acts 23:9-11] [1]
Paul understood the stark reality of life on this planet. He knew there was a God. He knew God by name. He knew this world was a temporary place. He knew there was a constant battle going on, and he knew the more he witnessed for the Lord the more the battle would break out around him and upon him. For “Christians” who experience no battle of this kind, it is obvious they are doing little or nothing for God.
Real Christians understand this is a fallen world and that the human inhabitants of this world are spiritually blind until a legitimate spiritual new birth takes place. When that happens the blind think the unblind are nuts, simply because the ones who see claim the reality of the spiritual world.
And they reveal truth.
And they expose the devil.
And as a result they experience a backlash from evil forces otherwise known as persecution.
For some, Christianity is only cultural. For others it is merely a ritualistic religion. But for Paul, it was life and death. It was warfare. Due to the nature of his calling and anointing, trouble seemed to follow him wherever he went. He was a wanted man. The devil hated him and repeatedly tried to take his life. But as it was with the Lord, the devil failed on each and every occasion. When the time came for Paul’s retirement, though, it was the Lord Jesus who made the decision. And it must be noted that real retirement for the real Christian is physical death.
Paul died the same way John the Immerser died. It was relatively quick and painless. And the next thing he knew he was at his retirement party in heaven welcomed with applause and hugs all around. They probably all sported miniature funny hats and had a big cake. And at one end of the group was the Lord, with a big smile.
Good job, Paul.
© 2013 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
Crushing the Head of the Serpent
All I knew then was that I began to download stuff from God and it continued to arrive. The anointing was very strong. By that time in my spiritual walk I had already been with the Lord for several years, and in that time I had experienced and learned more than many Christians do in a lifetime.
It was not necessarily according to what I wanted, but I learned from the very beginning that making a commitment to God will cost. It will cost a person everything.
And I do mean everything.
Eventually I had amassed enough writing to compose my first book. Then I did something I thought was perfectly on the up and up and the right thing to do. I put my book together in an excellent pre-published format and presented it to the eldership of the church I had been attending for the previous six years. I was full of hope.
They shot it down. They rejected it outright. And they didn’t stop there. They picked it apart. Put me down. Said I was wrong. One brother I held in high esteem told me to burn it.
I couldn’t believe it. I thought something really good was about to happen. Complete indifference would have been a lot better. You could say I was a tad disillusioned. That’s why, years later, when someone tells me he read my book I immediately ask, “And are we still friends?”
But even though I never expected such a high level of battle, I would have it no other way. I never really had to utter the stupid phrase, “Bring it on!” This phrase is usually uttered by idiots who have no idea what they’re getting themselves into. All I tried to do was receive from God and get it right, and hopefully shed some light. But it seemed the battle would always find me.
And I thought, “Why does this garbage keep happening?!” And then I thought, “Right. There’s a battle going on. Those who sign up for the real thing are immersed in unending spiritual warfare. And as a result, many good people are completely deceived and simply do not understand. And the devil and his people (especially the “Christian” ones) are complete morons, have no scruples whatsoever, and are as vile as a forty year-old fast food sludge pit.
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others.
“You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel! Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence. You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also.
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, and say, ‘If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ So you testify against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. Fill up, then, the measure of the guilt of your fathers.
“You serpents, you brood of vipers, how will you escape the sentence of hell?” [Matthew 23:23-33]
Sometimes we make bad decisions and it costs us. Sometimes people make bad decisions against us and it costs us there as well. And sometimes we make the best decision any human being can make and it will cost us the most. It is one of the things that make living for God and answering the call somewhat agonizing.
One wonders how one’s heart can ever be healed after being hit by an eighteen-wheeler, thrown off a cliff, fed through a wood chipper, cast in a dungeon, rejected by loved ones, and even trashed by a pastor or a good friend.
Or nailed to a cross.
I know all this sounds overly dramatic but those of you who have experienced what I’m referring to know. You know very well how painful it can be to make a decision for the Lord, follow Him, honor Him, and continue to be faithful to Him while also being the recipient of hatred, gossip, and forty degrees below zero cold-heartedness that you had previously thought people were not capable of rendering.
And most of this stuff always comes from other Christians or those who refer to themselves by that title, and their modus operandi usually involves protecting their religious turf, religious ideas, religious misunderstandings, religious false doctrines, and religious MONEY that must continue to come in. The byproduct of all this is an outright religious hatred directed toward anyone who dare do anything that may be construed as questioning any minor part of their false religious kingdoms.
“If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you.
“Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also. But all these things they will do to you for My name’s sake, because they do not know the One who sent Me.
“If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. He who hates Me hates My Father also. If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would not have sin; but now they have both seen and hated Me and My Father as well.
“But they have done this to fulfill the word that is written in their Law, ‘THEY HATED ME WITHOUT A CAUSE.’” [John 15:18-25] [1]
We are now living in a time when millions of real believers have thrown off a false religious yoke, have been delivered of deception, and understand fully why religious Christians do the stupid things they do. So many believers have been fooled by silly religious quacks that don’t care about them at all. And many have left their dead churches for places of life.
The vast majority of churches in America still refuse to allow the Lord Jesus to have full control, but millions of individual Christians have allowed Him full control and are showing the fruit of His authority. And the Lord has created brand new wineskins and keeps creating new ones. And these wineskins properly contain His Holy Spirit and His work, and great things are happening!
So remember, though the battle rages, the Lord is winning. The Great Awakening is coming forth and nothing will stop it, though religious Christians keep trying. More people are coming to the Lord right now than ever before, and this is happening because real Christians are doing something right! So whatever it is the Lord has called you to do, do it with renewed vigor, strength, commitment, joy, and faith, and don’t be deterred by detractors or circumstances, whoever or whatever they may be.
They heeded his advice. After summoning the emissaries and flogging them, they commanded them not to speak in the name of Yeshua, and let them go. The emissaries left the Sanhedrin overjoyed at having been considered worthy of suffering disgrace on account of Him.
AND NOT FOR A SINGLE DAY, EITHER IN THE TEMPLE COURT OR IN PRIVATE HOMES, DID THEY STOP TEACHING AND PROCLAIMING THE GOOD NEWS THAT YESHUA IS THE MESSIAH. [Acts 5:40-42 The Complete Jewish Bible]
© 2013 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
Never Say Die
Sometimes life is hard.
But we learn fairly young in life that we must press on and overcome whatever difficulty we are facing because the alternative is much worse.
In fact, there is really no comparison.
Even if we never achieve the goal or actually fully overcome and get past major obstacles and setbacks, there is at least a good feeling that we tried, that we made the attempt, and that we gave it everything we had.
In sports, losing is not as bad if we give everything we have and “leave it all on the field.” Of course, losing is bad. Losing is really bad. I hate losing. Being very competitive by nature and by choice, I know that making peace with the idea of losing is a terrible thing to do. But if one has done everything one can possibly do (and that always involves doing things we never thought we were capable of doing), we can eventually get past the loss and get on down the road.
But it depends on how we lost. If we know we gave it our all and that there was nothing more that could have been done, we have a victory of sorts in our hearts. And it is the kind of victory that allows us to feel okay about ourselves, and not get down on ourselves, and keep the fires stoked for the next opportunity to win.
I am not afraid of the devil. Yes, he is a very powerful spiritual entity that can wreak the very worst forms of destruction and wickedness. And yes, he sometimes gets us. He sometimes inflicts serious damage. I mean, as wicked as humanity can be, there is no way humanity can reach such incredible forms of wickedness and evil without some serious help. We know as Christians that there is a devil and that he can do some damage. The devil working in concert with unregenerate humanity has proven to be a lethal combo throughout history, and there is plenty of evidence to support this.
Yet, if one is not a real Christian one will not perceive any devil. The devil, through his great powers of deception, can easily keep sinful human beings in the dark and remain invisible. In fact, non-Christians often scoff at the idea of a devil and of wicked unseen entities existing upon this planet.
But the Lord Jesus knew such entities existed. In fact, He could see them. He addressed them. And they talked back. He was not afraid of the devil and He taught us the same. To respect one’s enemy is a good thing. To fear one’s enemy is to not have faith against one’s enemy. And if that happens, one will find oneself up a creek without a paddle. One will have no return volley or return fire or a bigger punch. Instead of fighting even harder to overcome the enemy and the obstacle, fear causes one to give in. One will surrender. That’s what fear without faith does. It causes eventual surrender.
Real fighters, however, never surrender. Real Christians have no fear of their enemies. If one respects his enemy and knows he is in for a tough fight, he will have a much better chance of victory. But to fear one’s enemy is to lose before the battle is ever engaged.
But even if you should suffer for the sake of righteousness, you are blessed. AND DO NOT FEAR THEIR INTIMIDATION, AND DO NOT BE TROUBLED, but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence; and keep a good conscience so that in the thing in which you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ will be put to shame. For it is better, if God should will it so, that you suffer for doing what is right rather than for doing what is wrong. [1 Peter 3:14-17]
Though we face formidable foes, the Lord empowers us to kick their rear ends all over creation. That’s what He did. Dying on the cross was not what unbelievers would call much of a victory, but for real Christians, He is our great King because He defeated hell, He defeated death, and He defeated the grave. He fought with everything He had to resist all temptation and live a life completely devoid of any sin. Most of the rest of us already commit our first sins as little kids, right out of the chute. But not the Lord. And as a result, when He died, HE COULD NOT STAY DEAD. Sin had no hold on Him. He defeated sin. He defeated the world. And He mopped up the parking lot with the devil.
So even though the devil is still a bad dude, he’s got asphalt stuck in his face and elbows and knees, and regarding the Lord, is a thoroughly defeated foe.
But the Lord, from His good heart and wonderful grace, has blessed each of His sons and daughters with their own opportunity to whip the devil. He allows for spiritual fights to take place. He trains us for battle and sends us into war having full confidence that we can also get our licks in and overcome any obstacle any enemy might put before us.
So remember, living some sort of “perfect” Christian life in some sort of faux American dream or “hippiefied flowers in your hair peace love dove nothing bad ever happens to me” is a bean dream, even though many fake Christian ministers tell us we can, and that it should be one’s primary goal. However, if one does manage to live such a life on this planet, it exposes the fact he is not fighting the devil. It illustrates such a one has made peace with the devil. And it reveals a person in league with the devil.
“If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also.
“But all these things they will do to you for My name’s sake, because they do not know the One who sent Me. If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. He who hates Me hates My Father also. If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would not have sin; but now they have both seen and hated Me and My Father as well. But they have done this to fulfill the word that is written in their Law, ‘THEY HATED ME WITHOUT A CAUSE.’” [John 15:18-25]
The bottom line, ladies and gentlemen, is that real Christians are in a real fight, and as in any war, there will be casualties. But the victor who suffers on the field of battle continually gets back up to fight another day, and this absolutely infuriates the devil and this fallen world. The evil one hates the fact that he can throw everything at us and still not defeat us. He considers himself and his hordes far superior and it causes him untold grief every time a son or daughter of the Lord Jesus gets back up and fights on though horrifically battered and bruised.
Through such valiant and stalwart action, warriors for the Lord look directly into the enemy’s eyes and fearlessly express something to the effect, “Is that all you got?”
…Greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world. [1 John 4:4] [1]
© 2013 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
Election Rejection: What Goes Around Comes Around
And because the Republican Party establishment will continue to savage Ron Paul and refuse to give him anything at all, the Republican Party will go into the election without him and it will end up costing them in November. Keep in mind that Ron Paul is a Republican and has been for many years. But it won’t matter. He refuses to be bought, refuses to obey the corrupt Republican Party line, and will be smeared and cut out (unless by some miracle they see the light). At this writing, the Republican Party establishment would rather lose than accept Ron Paul. [You’re Being Scammed (January 7, 2012)]
And lose they did. After all the effort, all the money, all the sacrifice, all the hope, all the dreams, and all the work, the Republicans still lost. What exactly was accomplished?
Regarding the Presidential Election itself, pretty much nothing.
The current occupant of the White House, to the great dismay of almost exactly half the country, is still the current occupant of the White House and will be for quite a while.
It was said from the get go that Ron Paul was not electable. But tell me, would you really rather have the current occupant than Ron Paul? Because Congressman Paul was “not electable,” but Mitt Romney was electable, and according to conventional wisdom much more so, Ron Paul was cast aside and Mr. Romney was bear hugged and smothered with kisses.
But he still lost. As it turned out, Mitt Romney was the one who was not electable. In an election that should have been a cakewalk, Romney lost to the worst President in American history.
It is easy for me to see where it all went haywire because I already knew what would happen after the best candidate was rejected. Rules were changed. Behind the scenes cheating and skullduggery took place. And the arrogant attitude and Nazi-like control of Republican bigwigs blazed forth into one of the biggest losses in Republican history.
The man in the White House was mortally wounded but the Republicans still managed to snatch a humiliating defeat from the jaws of victory. This is like blowing a three touchdown lead in the last quarter. (Wait. Didn’t I see the Dallas Cowboys do this a few million times over the last several years?)
The defeat of the incumbent should have been a sure thing, but two primary and significant scenarios were playing out that made this one of the most unprecedented presidential elections in history:
(1) The first has to do with the complete rejection of Ron Paul and millions of his passionate supporters, both young and old, all over the country. This was the stupidest thing the Republican Party could have done. It alienated millions of great Americans, the early majority of those in the military, and a gigantic block of young, aware, and intelligent voters.
What were they thinking? Hard to say. Insanity has no rhyme or reason.
But it was mostly about the money. And control. Mitt Romney had by far the greatest treasure chest and the greatest financial backers of any other Republican candidate, matched only by those of the current occupant.
But Ron Paul had the grassroots. He had the passionate backers who had already done their research and were not swayed by political talking heads and brain dead, bubble-headed TV commentators. The LSM was undoubtedly in the pocket of the main guy, but money does some serious talking, and the corporate media played their role flawlessly, supporting the money.
But money is no equal to real Americans passionate for their country who see right through the LSM gobbledygook and the insanity that is DC. Even so, many more Americans who began running the race well allowed themselves to be compromised by fake candidates who were largely doing nothing but running interference for the elite-chosen Republican big boy.
I tried to warn people, but it just proves how many millions of voters in this country are swayed by the media, and that the media has an agenda that opposes real American life and progress.
Nevertheless, this election will turn out to be a great victory for the country, which brings me to the second primary and significant scenario:
(2) Judgment. Earlier in the year, I had agreed with another writer that reelecting the current occupant would later prove to be a much better thing than a Romney victory. Why? Because if Romney was elected president in 2012, most Republican and conservative independent voters would go back to sleep thinking a great victory was won in cleansing the nation of the current occupant. This is exactly what would have happened. And the new guy would continue the same sorry policies as the old guy and most people would pay no attention, and the country would continue going down the drain.
I happened to mention this in a comment on a conservative blog earlier this year and got lambasted for it, due only to the great passion involved in not wanting to necessarily fix the country, but simply get rid of the current occupant (even though this always plays into the opposition’s hand).
But now that the current occupant has been reelected, the real fighters for American liberty will continue to be goaded on by an obvious non-Constitutional interloper. The intent, however, will not be to remove him but fix the country. The election of the new guy would have sapped this strength.
I keep trying to express the fact that the big boys are highly, highly intelligent, rich, and are expert extrapolators. They always know what nearly every sequence of events will be and have almost every base covered. They are world-class manipulators.
But the one base they do not have covered is the passion of the electorate. The elite in control (both major parties) are very, very few in number. Though they have ripped off America and have many, many puppets in power, they will never be able to contain the revolutionary fervor that is coming, even though they are planning for it the best they can. Before it’s over, Americans will take their country back. In the meantime, as I expressed in my last post, judgment will continue:
And regarding predictions, whichever of these men gets elected on Tuesday, I will guarantee you this:
There will be judgment on his administration.
And judgment in general will continue upon the country and will accelerate. Just as is the case when a lawbreaker goes too far and ends up in prison and must be incarcerated to protect society, so will there be judgment against the ungodly for the preservation of the country. Discipline never looks or feels good at the time, but if the corrective is accepted and applied, good things result. Judgment is simply a much louder alarm clock.
The coming years will continue to be tough but God always takes care of His own. Real Christians will continue in faith and will be used of the Lord Jesus to continue bringing in probably the greatest Great Awakening this country has ever seen. What we are beginning to see is a much higher level of spiritual kingdoms at war.
Speaking of which, the way to win the war is according to the following:
“Blessed are you when men hate you, and ostracize you, and insult you, and scorn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man. Be glad in that day and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven. For in the same way their fathers used to treat the prophets.
“But woe to you who are rich, for you are receiving your comfort in full.
“Woe to you who are well-fed now, for you shall be hungry.
“Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep.
“Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for their fathers used to treat the false prophets in the same way.
“But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. Whoever hits you on the cheek, offer him the other also; and whoever takes away your coat, do not withhold your shirt from him either. Give to everyone who asks of you, and whoever takes away what is yours, do not demand it back.
“Treat others the same way you want them to treat you.
“If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. If you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners in order to receive back the same amount. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil men.
“Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
“Do not judge, and you will not be judged; and do not condemn, and you will not be condemned; pardon, and you will be pardoned.
“Give, and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure—pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.” [Luke 6:22-38] [1]
© 2012 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
THANK YOU FOR READING. PLEASE HELP ME GET THE WORD OUT. BE BLESSED.
THIS MEANS WAR
“The LORD is a warrior; The LORD is His name.” [Exodus 15:3]
The LORD will go forth like a warrior, He will arouse His zeal like a man of war. He will utter a shout, yes, He will raise a war cry. He will prevail against His enemies. [Isaiah 42:13]
“The LORD your God is in your midst, A victorious warrior. He will exult over you with joy, He will be quiet in His love, He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy.” [Zephaniah 3:17]
In the above passages, the word LORD is used instead of the actual word — YHWH. The Hebrew scribes considered it sacrilegious to write down the name of God so they substituted the Hebrew word Adonai, which is translated into English as “LORD.”
YHWH is truly a great Warrior. He is the greatest of all warriors. When He became a Man, He never stopped fighting, but actually upped the ante several million times and began to fight all the more. When the Lord Jesus arrived on this planet, He effectively declared war like He had never declared war before.
He declared open warfare against the devil. He declared open warfare against the world constructed by unrepentant sinful mankind in league with the devil. And He declared war on sin, sinful human nature, and the binding power of sin upon humanity.
He determined to set the captives free.
As a result of His declaration of war, He suffered libel and slander. They said He was the fruit of a sinful liaison, that He was illegitimate, and that His blessed and pure mother had done the unthinkable.
They said He was crazy, that He had a screw loose, and that He was missing a section of His mind.
They said He was a common drunk because He drank wine.
They said He was a glutton, despite His very thin frame and a forty-day fast.
And they said He was demon-possessed, that He was filled with and controlled by filthy demonic entities who gave Him His power and spiritual standing.
Have you suffered any of these things because of your Christian stand? When you became a real Christian, did people (mainly other “Christians”), say the same kind of things about you?
If so, you can relate to God. You understand what spiritual war is all about. And you understand why war is necessary.
Spiritual warfare is not to be avoided but embraced.
The Lord began His warfare by becoming as one of us, born into the world the way all humans are. He lived a quiet life of preparation until the age of thirty. He then made a public show of Himself, coming out into the open, answering His calling, and positioning Himself for the warfare He would embrace. Though He needed no repentance, He came to John and was immersed in water as everyone else was commanded to do. He then received the infilling of the Spirit of God, as all those believers on the Day of Pentecost would later receive.
Then He left “Egypt.” He left the world of man. He went into the wild lands alone to fight the devil. But before He fought the devil He had to defeat His flesh, not that He was sinful or would ever be sinful, but to show forth the correct example of what spiritual warfare required. One cannot fight the devil while also indulging his or her own passions. He defeated His flesh in this sense by fasting for a full forty days.
Only two other men are listed in Scripture as having undergone a forty-day fast. This does not necessarily mean others did not do it, but only two men, Moses and Elijah, are listed. Moses did it twice. These three men were later present on the Mount of Transfiguration, representing the Law (Moses), the Prophets (Elijah), and Grace (the Lord Jesus). The other two men also had powerful anointings and were able to work miracles. But the other two men were not God.
Defeating “the World” by leaving it and refusing to partake of its lusts is something most “Christians” never do.
Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever. [1 John 2:15-17]
Outside observers see little difference between Christians and non-Christians because there IS little difference.
Once the Lord left “the World,” He began a back-breaking fast that would put Him in the stratosphere of spiritual power. He would fight His flesh by denying it. He was already holy and pure and always had been. But as our example, and to solidify and concentrate His spiritual power and authority, he fasted away His outer humanity.
But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law. Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. [Galatians 5:16-25]
After defeating the world and the flesh, it was time for the Lord to go toe-to-toe with the devil himself. Through speaking forth the Word of God, he defeated Satan, answering each temptation with powerful spiritual resistance and truth. When He returned to begin His ministry, He had defeated all three enemies and had established the means through which to keep them defeated. Everywhere He went from that time on He had power OVER the world, the flesh, and the devil. And used this power to openly attack His enemies, hitting them head-on with ballistic missile after ballistic missile, giving no quarter, and destroying them at every turn.
In the end, He even destroyed death.
He showed us how it’s done.
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. [Ephesians 6:10-13]
The fact that we are at war with very powerful spiritual forces explains everything.
Then the Lord awoke as if from sleep, like a warrior overcome by wine. He drove His adversaries backward; He put on them an everlasting reproach. [Psalm 78:65-66] [1]
© 2012 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
Real Christianity 