July 2020
From a friend of many years: (See Testimony of a Geologist.)
"How are you guys doing? For me, not so well. I am dealing with lots of anger right now about the situation.
Haven’t been able to see my 94 year old mother in months and there is not much light at the end of that tunnel. How many old folks have died without being able to see their family? They tested her and the whole building yesterday. No doubt there will be positives or false positives that will extend her lockdown. There are CONSPIRACY THEORIES out there that even the testing kits are contaminated. But that would be just crazy. No one would do that.
My son hasn’t been able to see his friends. He may be able to go back to school in the fall but only half time there half time zooming and wearing a mask at school. No sports. He has gotten really good at volleyball with all the practice time we have had at the park over the last few months.
I could go on and on, like you could no doubt.
I am feeling like Satan is winning. The father of lies has bamboozled the whole world. I am praying about all of this but I am not seeing any answers. I am not hearing His voice. All I can rest on is the word He gave me years ago “Cease striving and know that I am God”
Do you guys want to get together some time? Any time. I will make it." -- Steve
Reply: Hello Steve! Last March the God above all gods, the Almighty, Omnipotent, and Sovereign Creator stepped into human affairs in a gentle but important way. He shut a lot of activities down everywhere at once —-because we are out of control down here. We are self-destructing. We are not capable of managing His planet. He created everything and He owns everything.
In Biblical language He apparently closed out the old dispensation (in effect since Pentecost 33 AD), and is ushering in a new dispensation, as promised, Ephesians 1:10. See: The Near Future of Planet Earth. The Greek word is οἰκονομία which literally means "the management, or the economy of a household."
Because He has a great mind and plan, in a way God is simply moving forward with His grand plan to step into our affairs and set things straight— as gently and compassionately as possible. He has already told us in great detail what He will do next.
He will gather the few who know Him and take us to a prepared shelter in a garden Paradise. Down on earth He will shut off non essentials and turn up the heat on nonbelievers in order to draw as many as possible to Himself.
The majority of people on earth hate God and pay no attention at all to His wishes. If you were the absent landlord what would you do? When God moved last March in a clear way, non believers should have sought Him by the millions, since everyone knows He exists. There have been no new converts as far as I know.
You would have thought professing followers of Jesus world have reported in to Headquarters for a new briefing and new marching orders from the Commander in Chief? Didn’t happen! It’s becoming clear who is walking with Jesus and who the parasitic hypocrites are.
Will God alter His plans? Nope! Did God not know what we would do when He moved in a very small way to save mankind from total self destruction?
It’s not too late to report for duty at Headquarters.
“I beg you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” (Romans 12:1,2)
When anyone does give Jesus full permission (holding back nothing) that individual gets a new intimate awesome place in the grand army of God. We then become part of the answer instead of a liability down here essentially living on welfare. Very few who claim to know Jesus actually obey Him and serve Him on His terms.
The book of the Revelation has the detailed invasion plan and we are either part of the problem or we are living each day obeying Jesus one-on-one. The end result of Jesus coming back is predetermined and glorious! A bit of clear air turbulence ahead for us first!
As a boy growing up I was very shy and had very low self-esteem. I longed for just one friend. Even in high school I was too terrified to even ask a girl to the school dance. I was so intimated by boys my age I obtained a doctor’s excuse for not going to gym class. (I was healthy as a horse).
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Finally one kid my age asked if he could be my friend. All the girls idolized him and he was a star athlete. Johnny was a C student, I got mostly A’s. We were instant best friends, both without a father and both wanting personal affirmation. A best friend at last but more to come.
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It was only when I reached the ripe old age of 30 that I came into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and learned the truth of the chorus, “What a friend we have in Jesus.”
Jesus heals low self esteem and father wounds and mother wounds and all the damage we do to ourselves by living in rebellion against our Creator. He expunges true guilt and heals low self esteem. When we allow Him to take over our lives, Jesus rewrites the entire script.
Having been rescued by Jesus, “...how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation, which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed to us by those who heard Him...“ (Hebrews 2:3)
I can scarcely believe the near universal ignorance of the Bible in our day. It is painful to see so many beautiful people self-destructing by default preferring to live in misery in a doomed society.
No one is talking about Jesus as best I can tell—even people who say they are as “saved” as necessary now and don’t need anymore of Jesus in this life. “Believing” in Him is way short of giving Him permission to take over the whole house.
I am not lonely now today since every day with Jesus “is better than the day before” but I’d like to really know some of my traveling companions. It’s not rocket science to see how frightened and hurting most people are in my community. Occasionally I connect with another human being young or old and when our conversation is about Jesus vistas open up and Jesus shows up! I know Jesus wants no one to perish but how to reduce people who are afraid of real love?
(From Bryce Self) The Lord definitive of all our relationships because our identity derived from personal relationship with Him first of all… Basis of Christian ‘Koinonia’ as well as separation form the world’s darkness—this relationship excludes that one.
Genesis 17:8—Also I give to you and your descendants after you the land in which you are a stranger, all the land of Canaan, as an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.”
Exodus 6:7—will take you as My people, and I will be your God. Then you shall know that I am the Lord your God who brings you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.
Exodus 29:45—I will dwell among the children of Israel and will be their God.
Leviticus 11:45 —For I am the Lord who brings you up out of the land of Egypt, to be your God. You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.
Leviticus 22:33 —who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am the Lord.”
Leviticus 25:38—I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to give you the land of Canaan and to be your God.
Leviticus 26:12—I will walk among you and be your God, and you shall be My people.
Leviticus 26:45—But for their sake I will remember the covenant of their ancestors, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt in the sight of the nations, that I might be their God: I am the Lord.’ ”
Numbers 15:41 —I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am the Lord your God.”
Deuteronomy 26:17—Today you have proclaimed the Lord to be your God, and that you will walk in His ways and keep His statutes, His commandments, and His judgments, and that you will obey His voice. |
Jeremiah 7:23 —But this is what I commanded them, saying, Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be My people. And walk in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well with you.’
Jeremiah 11:4—which I commanded your fathers in the day I brought them out of the land of Egypt, from the iron furnace, saying, Obey My voice, and do according to all that I command you; so shall you be My people, and I will be your God,’
Jeremiah 24:7—Then I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am the Lord; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God, for they shall return to Me with their whole heart.
Jeremiah 30:22—‘You shall be My people, and I will be your God.’ ”
Jeremiah 31:1—At the same time,” says the Lord, “I will be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be My people.”
Jeremiah 31:33—But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.
Jeremiah 32:39—They shall be My people, and I will be their God;
Ezekiel 11:20 —that they may walk in My statutes and keep My judgments and do them; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God.
Ezekiel 14:11 —that the house of Israel may no longer stray from Me, nor be profaned anymore with all their transgressions, but that they may be My people and I may be their God,” says the Lord God.’ ”
Ezekiel 34:24—And I, the Lord, will be their God, and My servant David a prince among them; I, the Lord, have spoken.
Ezekiel 36:28—Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; you shall be My people, and I will be your God.
Ezekiel 37:23—They shall not defile themselves anymore with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions; but I will deliver them from all their dwelling places in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them. Then they shall be My people, and I will be their God.
Ezekiel 37:27—My tabernacle also shall be with them; indeed I will be their God, and they shall be My people.
Zechariah 8:8—I will bring them back, and they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem They shall be My people and I will be their God, in truth and righteousness.’
II Corinthians 6:16 —And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be My people.”
Hebrews 8:10 —For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws in their mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.
Revelation 21:3—And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.
God is not bi-polar, but tri-polar. At least by design, our relationships are not only with one another but mutually with God. The three-fold Corinthians not easily broken.
“That which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ."
Of course, all relationship derive from the Community of the Trinity—we only have relationships at all because the Godhead is relational among themselves and we are made in His image.
"For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named…”
Unity, not uniformity. The procession of the Godhead can be seen in two simple illustrations, What is Time? and Who is God? (Nathan Wood, Ray Stedman)
There are two cherubim over the Mercy Seat, facing each other, beaten from one piece of gold, looking at the blood in the center. “There I will meet with you” above the Mercy Seat and between the cherubim—above || & between == describing the form of the Cross.
Now in the church that was at Antioch there were certain prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.” Different gifts and functions, racial origins, social status, education levite, political convictions, religious backgrounds (Pharisee v. Jew, Jew v. Gentile).
What a motley crew! Yet with a union of fellowship and relationship that, without demolishing their diversity, could provide the matrix for the Holy Spirit to produce Paul’s apostolic character, ministry and mission.
Differences designed to bring about God’s intention: male and female, Jew and Gentile, one ethnicity and other.
STRONGS NT 2842: κοινωνία
κοινωνία, κοινωνίας, ἡ ( κοινωνός),fellowship, association, community, communion, joint participation, intercourse; in the N. T. as in classical Greek:
1. the share which one has in anything, participation; with the genitive of the thing in which he shares: πνεύματος, Philippians 2:1; τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος, 2 Corinthians 13:13 (14); τῶν παθημάτων τοῦ Χριστοῦ, Philippians 3:10; τῆς πίστεως, Philemon 1:6 (cf. Lightfoot); τοῦ ἱματος τοῦ Χριστοῦ, i. e. in the benefits of Christ's death,1 Corinthians 10:16 (cf. Meyer at the passage); τοῦ σώματος τοῦ Χριστοῦ in the (mystical) body of Christ or the church, ibid.; τῆς διακονίας,2 Corinthians 8:4; τοῦ μυστηρίου, Ephesians 3:9 Rec. εἰς κοινωνίαν τοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ, to obtain fellowship in the dignity and blessings of the Son of God, 1 Corinthians 1:9, where cf. Meyer.
2. intercourse, fellowship, intimacy: δεξιά κοινωνίας, the right hand as the sign and pledge of fellowship (in fulfilling the apostolic office),Galatians 2:9 (where see Lightfoot); τίς κοινωνία φωτί πρός σκότος; what in common has light with darkness? 2 Corinthians 6:14 ( τίς οὖν κοινωνία πρός Ἀπολλωνα τῷ μηδέν οἰκεῖον ἐπιτετηδευκοτι, Philo, leg. ad Gaium § 14 at the end; εἰ δέ τίς ἐστι κοινωνία πρός Θεούς ἡμῖν,Stobaeus, serm. 28 (i. p. 87, Gaisf. edition)); used of the intimate bond of fellowship which unites Christians: absolutely, Acts 2:42; with εἰς τό εὐαγγέλιον added, Philippians 1:5; κοινωνίαν ἔχειν μεθ' ἡμῶν, μετ' ἀλλήλων, 1 John 1:3, 7; of the fellowship of Christians with God and Christ, μετά τοῦ πατρός καί μετά τοῦ υἱοῦ αὐτοῦ,1 John 1:3, 6, (which fellowship, accordding to John's teaching, consists in the fact that Christians are partakers in common of the same mind as God and Christ, and of the blessings arising therefrom). By a use unknown to secular authors κοινωνία in the N. T. denotes:
3. a benefaction jointly contributed, a collection, a contribution, as exhibiting an embodiment and proof of fellowship (cf. Grimm, Exeget. Hdbch. on Wisd. 8:18, p. 176)2 Corinthians 8:4; εἰς τινα, for the benefit of one,2 Corinthians 9:13; ποιεῖσθαι κοινωνία (to make a contribution) εἰς τινα, Romans 15:26; joined withεὐποιΐα, Hebrews 13:16. (Cf. Buttmann, § 132, 8.)
Acts 2:42—And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.
Romans 15:26—For it pleased those from Macedonia and Achaia to make a certain contribution for the poor among the saints who are in Jeremiah.
1 Corinthians 1:9—God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
1 Corinthians 10:16—The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?
2 Corinthians 6:14—Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?
2 Corinthians 8:4—imploring us with much urgency that we would receive the gift and the fellowship of the ministering to the saints.
2 Corinthians 9:13—while, through the proof of this ministry, they glorify God for the obedience of your confession to the gospel of Christ, and for your liberal sharing with them and all men...
2 Corinthians 13:14—The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.
Galatians 2:9—and when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that had been given to me, they gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised.
Ephesians 3:9—and to make all see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden in God who created all things through Jesus Christ...
Philippians 1:5—for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now...
Philippians 2:1—Therefore if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy,
Philippians 3:10—that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death,
Philemon 1:6—that the sharing of your faith may become effective by the acknowledgment of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus.
Hebrews 13:16—But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.
1 John1:3—that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ.
1 John1:6—If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.
1 John1:7—But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.
C.S. Lewis |
"Too Easily Pleased""Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling around about drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are too easily pleased." (C.S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory) |
To Bryce, yesterday our topic was about people not having a good connection with God. Or no connection at all. Knowing Jesus is where one starts. In heaven we will have solid relationships with all peoples and with young and old.
We will surely have privacy in heaven, family
friends, acquaintances. No sin. No marrying and giving in marriage.
I know hardly anyone single or married who is in a real relationship with trust, intimacy today and with Jesus as the prime Lover. Being “in a relationship” today usually means a guy and a girl living together in an extended hookup with sex a key ingredient. --Lambert
Biblical Terms for the End of the Age
The Two Aspects of the Returning of Jesus to our Planet
The Rapture is Next in History, but Won't be Noticed Much by the World
The Rapture will be a Shock for most Christians
Hell: The Backside of Love
The Bema Seat Judgment of Christians
The Great White Throne Judgment
The False Church
Seven representative churches on earth have characterized God’s main activity down here on the planet. Each type of church can Be found functioning somewhere the entire 2000 years of the church. Each individual church has had its “day in the sun.” The 7th Church is of special interest, especially now at the end of the Age.
Revelation 3:14 “And to the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write, ‘These things says the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God:
“I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. “So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. “Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’--and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked--
“I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see.
“As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. 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 dine with him, and he with Me.
“To him who overcomes I will grant to sit 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 3:14-22)
Update September 22, 2021
