Election Results

     With the election over, some may be elated and others dismayed. Regardless, God is still in charge! I'm content with the results, although not enthused, because win or lose, no one wins or loses if it is not God's will. His hand is in daily affairs; those who think not are Deists, not Christians.  We don't understand completely, but because of sin, for a time, bad guys do win out. It is part of God's Plan.
     The United States is not immune. Before the end of time, our government will be entirely evil. It won't happen suddenly but as the Church withers even more evil people will rule. Evil governments will creep up on the world.
     Periodically, Christians will get a reprieve but the trend toward evil will always be upward. Sometime in the near future because Jesus said, "Surely I come quickly," (Rev 22:20), and when he does, the time will be as in the evil days of Noah. Hatred will cease to be merely of the heart but also of the blade. With impunity vicious government leaders all over the world will decapitate Christian heads (Rev 20:4). The United States will not be immune!
     I can't stand the thought of evil leaders! On the other hand, Jesus could have destroyed the evil Romans but instead paid unto Caesar what was Caesar's (Mat 22:17). Any secular government is not Jesus's. The government will, however, someday be on his shoulders (Isa 9:6). Until then the government will be on the shoulders of men and women.
     I know the outcome of the only election which matters. Jesus is King and will always be King! Until then, we delude ourselves because no one is righteous; no not one (Rom 3:10). The best that we can do is to have sinful leaders to lead our nation! Everyone's sins are merely different but all are sinners. Therefore, voters cannot just consider the candidate but also their policies. Since God uses "crooked sticks" for His purposes, unrighteous men can and may do His will. The best example is King David. If it was not for that deceptive, lustful, murderous King who was after God's own heart (1 Sam 13:14), we would not even have Jesus.
     An imperfect world is always ruled by imperfect people. Jesus knew that because that was part of God's Plan. Those who love God must get fed up with the world and seek another better Kingdom. That is my plan as well! This world is not my home; I'm just passing through as the song says. No one will ever be content in this world. This morning, admittedly, I am not content with the election outcome. I do, however, trust God for an eternal government which will be on His shoulders! That day will come soon. Until then, all of us must be content with the viperous politicians of all poisons. I only vote for the ones who are not as poisonous.
     That brings me to my dismay: I wonder in amazement at those Christians who vote for candidates who are obviously at odds with God's will. I can't understand how a Christian can vote for candidates who favor abortion, same-sex marriage, and godless socialism. I am not so much dismayed by the iniquitous candidates, but that Christians would vote for those who outright oppose God's will. Have they no discernment? Do they not care? It condenses to voters voting for their own will, and not God's!
     Some use foolish criteria. They voted for the women. Gender is not a qualification but a genetic assignment. Why would an intelligent person vote for a woman just because she is a woman? Why would a person vote for a minority just because he or she is a minority? That is ignorance at the highest level?
     Some vote for those who seem to favor their profession. I would never vote for an engineer just because they are an engineer. I would never vote for a candidate who even favors engineers just because of that! That is intellectual stupidity and wrong. It's voting for self-interests and not for what is overall in the nation's best interests. Too many people vote for what is seemingly the best for them, and not in the long-term, in the best interests of the nation. Indeed, that is how Democrats gain  power; they promise special interests carrots for votes. Naïve people buy into that as the swamp gets deeper and deeper.
     I'm not prideful. I know that what I say is not gospel. However, I get my ideas from what is gospel. I know that self-interest is the original sin. The thought, what can I get out of it? is pervasive and sinful. What can this do to please God? is the best question to ask oneself. Does abortion please God? Does same-sex marriage please God? Does stealing from one person or profession to help another please God? Does dividing men from women please God? How about division between the races? None of that pleases God. I vote for those who don't believe in doing those things. Many other Christians care less what God thinks and do their own will! That is original sin.
     Of course, I err at times. I have voted for the wrong person on several occasions. Those times were when I didn't test their policies by scripture. I voted for Donald Trump. Was that God's will? It was God's will to vote for Trump's policies because overall they support Christians and Christian principles. It validates my choice when the world hates him so!
    Christians have a Bible which is to be their doctrine. The political parties all have doctrinal statements as well; they are called "party platforms". They are what party candidates adhere to. Democrats adhere to socialism, same-sex marriage, abortion, and such. Their bible is disgusting to Christians... or should be. Christians who use gender, appearance, presentation, profession, race, or other characteristics as qualifications are deceived to the utmost. It is the duty of the voter to know the character of whom they vote. Character is manifested by things they have done or are doing, not by empty promises. Accepting empty promises for one's own gain is stupidity.
     Focusing on those who support your personal cause(s) is foolish. Politicians can phrase anything to deceive the people, even the elect (Christians). Obama, for instance, was able to get Christians to accept his lies as honesty. (e.g., not in favor of same-sex marriage). Smooth-talk is a bad qualification; that was learned from the cunning Serpent!
     This is my rant for today. I am not displeased entirely with the outcome, but am quite concerned that righteous Christians supported the law of sin with their votes. If 85% of the United States are Christians, that means 35% or more Christians voted for the law of sin. I find that disturbing. I contend that God does as well because we are to do His will in all things.
   

It Sure Feels Good

    Feel good. It seems so benign; what could possibly be wrong with feeing good? Most of us want to feel good and there is nothing wrong with being pain free. However, I'm not referring to feel good in that manner but enjoying pleasure. Contentment is a feeling as well but those who seek to feel good are looking for something beyond that. For me, contentment is my pleasure. If things are copacetic, I am  a happy camper. I enjoy being content!
    My friend, the other night, who had a history of marijuana usage, said, "marijuana feels good." I don't know that feeling and never want to! I have always felt good without things to make me feel that way. Why so? Contentment is my feel good.

Now there is great gain in godliness with contentment, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs. ... (1 Tim 6:6-11; ESV).

     I am content because God makes me content. I need nothing else, except perhaps the love of others, to remain content. We should be content with food and clothing. I remember when I had very little of either. God has blessed me now with both, and what more things of the world would make me more content? I like other "necessities", but are they really necessary. I like nice cars but the Amish are content with mere buggies. My own father was content owning only a mule! Things don't make people feel good; they are abstractions to real contentment.
     Those in third world countries who have little food and clothing use opioids, mushrooms, peyote, and things like marijuana to mask their lack of necessities. Perhaps I can understand their dependence on inebriants to feel better, them surely seldom feeling good. Americans, because we are blessed, should not need things to make us feel good. For us, harmful desires can plunge people into ruin and destruction. Americans don't need methadone, cocaine,  class II narcotics, nor marijuana to be content. They desire those somatic ingredients to feel good. My friend admitted that. Others say, I need my _______ (insert drug of choice). Furthermore, no one needs alcohol to feel good!
     My friend looked back at the time he enjoyed marijuana. He is a Christian, and one thing we should have learned is, don't look back!

And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground. But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt. (Gen 19:25-26)

    God overthrew the sinful cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Perhaps to visualize them, one need only look at Las Vegas and Hollywood. All those cities are as in the days of Noah. They are dens of iniquity. Lot's wife, although saved from destruction, looked back at those two cities which were burning with fire and brimstone. Why did God turn Lot's wife into a pillar of salt? Because she looked back. What do you suppose was on her mind? Pleasure - memories of feeling good, memories of lust, memories of possessions, etc. My bet is that before she had pleasure; she felt good and already recalled the pleasures of sin.

     Satan wants Christians to look back at what was before. Many look back at bad habits, fornication, sinful friends, lustful entertainment, drug usage and many other things. That is dangerous! Returning to feel good days can be disastrous. Somehow I always return to original sin for wisdom because there is nothing new under the sun. In the Garden was contentment: The Law of God was liberty to be  content. Then, Adam and Eve were tempted and they ate of the forbidden fruit. The fruit was some type of pleasure, and they felt good for a short time until guilt overwhelmed them. Thankfully the Word was there to cover their shame. Feeling good if for wrong reasons is shameful!

     Adam and Eve were punished by God and expelled from the Garden of Eden. Ironically, they did not look back to when they truly felt good. They went into the world where contentment must be worked for - by the sweat of his face (Gen 3:19). In the world, mankind is more in pursuit of pleasure than contentment. People always look for what makes them feel good.

     People often say, "I feel good about myself!" How can we? We are all sinners. We should never feel good about ourselves but feel blessed in spite of ourselves! My friend used marijuana when he was young to feel good. He no longer does because he has the Holy Spirit inside to make him feel good.

And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules. (Ezek 36:26-27; ESV)

     That new spirit is a new attitude with new desires. Christians come to desire contentment and the pursuit of pleasure is removed. They are not to look back at the twin cities of shame but look forward to the Kingdom of God!
     Why did Adam and Eve not look back at the Garden of Eden? Because they were looking forward to Paradise. God promised that to Adam in five-and-one-half days, according to sacred literature. That is 5500 years or during the sixth day. On the seventh day - Jesus's millennial reign - God and Adam will rest again, then rest forever on the eighth day - eternity!
     Feeling good is temporal. Contentment is eternal. Those who deny eternity cannot be content. They can only put on a veil to disguise dismay. Pleasure disguises contentment. It is a veil over the face of sinners which blind them from sobriety. Sobriety, of course, is of clear mind, but also without inebriants. Insobriety and lack of vigilance leads to destruction:

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour (1 Pet 5:8).

     As with Lot's wife, looking back at good times wherein there was sinful pleasure is recalling a period when your very soul was in jeopardy. Think about it: when people are high on marijuana, they expose themselves to the vicious lion seeking to devour! Think about it: when you recall fornication, you expose yourself to destruction. Spiritually, you just may turn into a pillar of salt as your heart hardens! Don't look back; feeling good is just not worth it, and that desire to feel good was mankind's problem from the start:

For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. (1 John 2:16)

     Looking back at what feels good, looks good, and embellishes people are from the law of sin which is the lawlessness of the world.
     Those are my thoughts. I know what looking back is for I have looked back. I know why I looked back as well; it's because sin feels good.  Although short-lived, we all know that it does or we wouldn't do them or look back at the pleasure as appealing. If the Devil can't devour by tempting, he will devour by revisiting sinful memories.
     We can feel good, but it's not by pleasure. We can all feel good because of the hope of salvation (Lam 3:26). I am blessed because I never felt good because of marijuana or any other drugs. Neither did alcohol ever make me feel good. I feel good because God prevented me from ever having those pleasures.

Transformation

     To be saved, sinners "must be born again" (John 3:7). Jesus said that. Since Jesus is the Way and only Way to be saved (Acts 4:12), the change referred to as born again (regeneration) is the first step toward salvation. Salvation comes at the end for those whose faith is steadfast: "He that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved" (Mark 13:13), since by faith sinners are saved (Ephes 2:8). In other words, faith is not a moment of contrition but trusting Jesus continually until the end.

     Let that soak in for a moment. Those who are born again profess to be saved.  However, salvation comes if and when Christians endure to the end. When is the end? That time occurs when it becomes impossible to exercise faith. "The end" is the end of life in this world - when the flesh dies. Those who are certain that they will endure unto death have the assurance of salvation. The assurance is if one is truly transformed at regeneration. 

  The test for regeneration is change. The regenerated person's attitude changes from what it was to a new one. Those who are born again have a metamorphosis: they change into another form. Baptism is a testimony to that change and is called an "ordinance" which is obedience to God's authority. Testimony is important because no one can be a secret Christian:

Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. (Rom 10:9-10)

     Baptism, then, is that public confession that Jesus Christ is Lord of the Christians' lives. Baptism proclaims the transformation: "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new" (2 Cor 3:18).
     Regeneration is the death of the old creature and the birth of the new just as the flood of Noah was the death of the creation and the birth of a new world. With the flood, the world was transformed by the washing away of unrighteous people! Regeneration is the change and baptism is the flood. Of course, it is not the water which transforms, but the Power behind the water. Water always represents the Holy Spirit and Power. 
     Noah's family was born again when they chose God over the world. As they entered the door (gate) to salvation, they left the world behind. They transformed from the world to a haven of safety. Could the ark have sunk? If they had reveled in sin, yes it could have. 
    At that time, sin was removed by the flood. Regeneration is a one-time event but salvation is a long process. Baptism is the initiation of a changed life; a covenant with God much like the Abrahamic Covenant. Unlike Christian denominations who say that salvation is a process ending in baptism, salvation is really a longer journey ending in physical death. Baptism is the pledge to take the journey and signifies transformation which should have occurred at regeneration. Let's look at the change which should take place commencing with regeneration:

And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed (metamorphoo) by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think... (Rom 12:2-3)

     Christians are not to be in conformance to the world. We all struggle with the area where we are most conformed. It is in entertainment. Some would prefer the evil doctrine of Hollywood rather than the truth and purity of Christianity. Possibly, for those who favor the entertainment of the world to  contentment with Christ, transformation has not yet occurred.  Psychologically speaking people are what they consume. The same applies in Christianity. Our desires indicate who or what it is we love!
    Sinners are like the world, or to be blunt, as their father the devil (John 8:44). Those who conform to the world look to God like Satan because they do his will rather than God's. Those who routinely sin without remorse will look more like the Devil every day. Perhaps, for those who are still in conformance to the world, they still belong to the Devil.
     On the other hand, salvation is a process. For those who have truly transfigured, they look to the prize as if it is in hand (Phil 3:14). In the journey to the end, Satan tries to remove that vision. He tempts the Christians at every chance, and even the righteous will sin. (We saw that with both Noah and Ham after the world was cleansed from sin). But God kept Noah and his household safe. Satan could still tempt them but only God could remove them from the earth. They were kept safe by God as Satan shot his fiery darts. Drunkenness and disrespect soon contaminated the world. That's the same for Christians, and they must endure temptation to the end by keeping the faith which God ahs so graciously given them!
     At regeneration Christians undergo a metamorphosis. They are transformed or changed into a new creature from the old one who has conformed to the world. Regeneration is seeing the Light (truth) that only Jesus can save and the person is regenerated when they accept that. The transformation, then, is regeneration. It's when the sinner sees themselves in a true light: they are sinners unable to save themselves but Jesus can. They diminish themselves as they lift Jesus up!
    With that, the  mind has been renewed: thinking that one cannot be saved or can save himself to realizing that salvation is available and it is only by Jesus's Name!
     Baptism is proving to the world that the transformation is good, acceptable, and perfect. The trip to the prize (salvation) is living as good, acceptable, and perfect as one can. That commitment is called "sanctification". It makes enduring to the end much easier. Sanctification is being set apart from conformity to the world.
    Is sanctification a second act of grace? Every help by God is by grace. Each day that I am alive is an act of grace on God's part. Each moment I do not sin is an act of grace. What I'm saying is that grace doesn't end at regeneration. God's grace helps us endure to the end because God's Holy Ghost is Comforter (John 14:16).
     Regeneration is the time when Jesus comes into peoples lives. The Holy Ghost is the Spirit of Jesus (Mark 15:37). When Jesus gave up his flesh, his "Ghost" was released from the bounds of the world.  When Christians give up their flesh - conformance to the world - Jesus's Ghost enters them. That is the transformation. Christians are transfigured from mere sinners into new creatures. Yes, Christians, as was Jesus, are transfigured:

And after six days Jesus taketh with him Peter, and James, and John, and leadeth them up into an high mountain apart by themselves: and he was transfigured (metamorphoo) before them. And his raiment became shining, exceeding white as snow; so as no fuller on earth can white them. (Mark 9:2-3)

     The Greek word metamorphoo is the original Greek for transformed, transfigured, and changed.
     Are you truly a Christian? To answer that, ask, "Have I changed?" Have you climbed your mountain? If a person changes from conformity to the world to conformity with God, that is transformation and the sinner has been transformed into a Christian.
     Jesus, although never a sinner, had worldly flesh. However, God morphed that flesh on the mountain into glorified flesh. Jesus's flesh no longer conformed to the conditions of the world but was made able to withstand death. Our own transformation - standing in the presence of God - allows us to withstand the sting of death and live forever! Paul spoke of that change:

But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed (metamorphoo) into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. (2 Cor 3:18)

     The metamorphosis should be as looking into a mirror at ourselves and seeing the glory of the Lord. That is seeing Jesus in our own lives, and that vision is of one sanctified. Sanctification is being as much like Jesus as human beings can live. Sure, we will fail; even faithful Noah did! Sanctification is the willingness to be like Jesus, and that willingness is by grace.
     Jesus changes hearts. The transformation is from the world (unwillingness) to holiness (willingness). Are you willing to be like God or do you still want to be like the world. Lot's wife preferred the world although she was safe from harm by God's grace. She turned back and looked at what she once loved and turned into a pillar of salt. She relinquished her salvation for a peek back at sin. She preferred conformity to the world to the promise of God.
    As an afterthought, one might ask, "How can I see Jesus in the mirror?" God's throne in Heaven is on a "sea of glass" (Rev 4:6). How can we see Jesus? Through that transparent sea of glass. We can see God through His Word Jesus.
     Study of Holy Scripture allows Christians to see God. Holy Scripture is where the events of life can be tested. If eyes are open to truth, God can be seen through that sea of glass. Truth is revealed and becomes transparent through scripture. True Christians have bright eyes - they can see Jesus through the Word. Transformed people have bright eyes. The veil is removed, and the truth is known and will set them free (John 8:32).

The Deception of Socialism

     The election is at hand. It is more than Democrats vs. Republicans or Obamanites  vs. Trumpettes. The election may determine the fate of our nation; even good vs. evil. The most significant issue is not health care or even border walls, it is the philosophical viewpoint of the two major parties. Over 44% of young people like the idea of socialism. It does seem fair, but like most things it is not what it seems!
     Deception is the manner in which evil things are wrought. Socialism is not only not good but it is evil. Their proposition is that things will be better for the "masses" but in every socialist experiment to date, it is the masses who have suffered most as the elite become more elitist. The Democrats, with the exception of Bernie Sanders, steer asway from the very word "socialist" because of its reputation. They prefer a milder description - progressive. That word is deception at its best!
     Progressive is "making use of or interested in new ideas, findings, or opportunities" (Merriam-Webster Dictionary). Let's examine recent examples of that.
     Rahm Emanuel said, "You never want a serious crisis to go to waste." Since Rahm was Obama's progressive, then the progressive opportunity was to use the calamity of the people as a way to introduce new ideas. In other words, the misfortune of the masses is merely an advantage for progressivism. 
     Obamacare was their search for "new ideas". Examine what it's chief architect said about Democrat health care: "The stupidity of the American voter" made Obamacare possible (Jonathan Gruber). What do progressives truly think about the masses? They are stupid and are easily deceived. Progressivism depends entirely on the stupidity of those who think they want freedom but choose regulation. It is ironic that their mantra "right to abortion" draws from the First Amendment to the Constitution, but their philosophy is in opposition to the entire Constitution.
     What stands in the way of socialism? Yes, capitalism. That evil (sic) ideology that made America great. Socialism has stolen America. Progressives hate Trump because he wants to reclaim America from self-destruction. 
     The American Dream was made possible by capitalism. Even many of those who at one time were slaves now live in fancy homes and drive high-dollar cars, not because of socialism, but because of capitalism, and by the way, Republicanism. Many forget which party enslaves and which one frees! Democrat ideology has been undemocratic from the start. It started with mistreatment of Indians under Democrat Jackson, slavery under the Democratic Party, the Ku Klux Klan under Democrats, Jim Crow laws under Democrats, and fighting civil rights led by Democrats. 
     You see, "progressive" Democrats are the most regressive organization in America. Their growth is always through the misfortune of others. This instant, the election depends on the crisis in South America - those unfortunate people being deceived from progressive organizers who are creating a crises. Progressives don't depend on natural crisis; they create them where they don't exist!
     Socialists treat people as a commodity to be traded. In other words, they are capitalists at their worst, using capitalism to advance their ability to control. They used human beings to farm their plantations. They stole the land of the Indians in their version of making America great. They used Jim Crow laws to keep "undesirable" people from sharing the American Dream. They trade the lives of unborn babies so that mothers can "prosper" and have better (sic) lives. They even have used same-sex marriage as a way to gain votes. Their idea of making America great is making it more like the Soviet Union and the Third Reich!
     Socialism is evil foremost because it dupes the people. Socialism is the fruit on the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. That tree has many fruits and the tastes of all of them are deceptive. Things look appealing when they are rotten to the core! Socialism is a rotten fruit.
     The propagandists compare the Doctrine of Christ to socialism without blinking an eye nor without even a grin. Socialism is the legalization of theft as it takes the income and profits from those who work hard and give it to those who have not been motivated. The definitive statement of Marxism (socialism) is this "From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs" (Karl Marx).

 

     Examine that; it seems so fair! However, would any sane person want the government to decide their charity? Those with ability may not want to share with those who are needy. Why? Because most often the needy are needy because of their own actions or inaction. Scripture teaches charity. Charitableness is out of love and kindness. Taking from one and giving to another is not kindness especially when the bulk of the giving (sic) goes to the government. Socialistic governments are not good stewards of charitable giving as most of the theft goes to the thief! 

     Because free people don't like legalized theft, those who have things reject socialism. Thereafter, the government steps in and uses force. Most often "force" is a jail term but when much force is needed, socialistic governments don't hesitate to kill the masses. When voluntary submission to socialism is rejected, socialists use force. With force, socialism becomes full-fledged communism - free peoples like Americans become serfs to autocrats as in Russia.  Socialism is the gradual erosion of freedom. Communism is its rapid demise!

     The Democrats brag about being progressives. Now their constituents openly desire socialism. Just as the Jews walked in a civil manner to the gas chambers in socialist Germany, naïve young people walk to the demise of their freedom with hardly an objection. Trumpism tries to save naïve people from themselves. Rather than battle those who use their stupidity to have power, naïve people fight the very guy and party who works hard to preserve their freedoms! We don't believe the people are stupid as the progressives do; we believe that they are gullible. 

     There are four commands at least which diminish socialism: (1) Thou shalt not have other gods before me. (Socialism denies god and the government assumes that role.) (2) Thou shalt not steal (even legally), (3) Thou shalt not covet. (That is jealousy of the haves. People want what the prosperous have and can't stand the thought that some have more than others!) (4) Thou shalt not lie. (Socialism is based on lies. It can only succeed by deceiving. People who believe they are free walk toward servitude to the government. Regulation kills prosperity and socialism is based on control of the economy, the masses, and even the Church.)

     Socialists hate successful capitalists. They resent those who have because of jealousy. Even though Americans are prosperous compared to the world because of capitalism, socialists despise the very ideology and people who made them prosperous. It's not so much that they want more, but that prosperous people have less. The mobs hating one-percenters is that of which I write. 

     Jesus taught hard work. He said that we would always have the poor with us (Mat 26:11). Jesus, as God, could have ended poverty with one thought. He didn't do that because he didn't come to die to save us from our curse (Gen 3:19) but to save us from eternally dying. He taught us to give charitably. 

     If progressives want to give of their profits, conservatives encourage that because that's how we Christians do things! Progressives hate self-sacrfice; they want others to be charitable. Who keeps those left wing rich people from giving? No one! Who keeps Nancy Pelosi from sharing her twenty-millions? Herself. She wants the middle class to do her giving for her. That is disgraceful!

     Progressivism is the most selfish and egotistical ideology in existence. The very idea that they see themselves as Robin Hoods is despicable when they live like the Sheriff at Nottingham! Socialism is the same feudal system as England in the middle ages with its nobles and serfs. The progressives are the most ignoble of Americans! They are a disgrace to capitalism and only exist because of their Goebbels-like propaganda ministry - the media. 

     Vote wisely Tuesday my friends. It is you who will be hurt most by the lie of socialism.

     

Peace On Earth

     What is peace? We think of peace as fellow human beings coexisting without war. A world without war would be tranquil. That leads to the true meaning of peace: concordance and tranquility. Those two terms seem to be ambiguous as well, so let me use Herrin's Lexicon: Peace is freedom from fear, harmony with others, and hope for a bright future. The brightest future is the "hope of salvation" (Lam 3:26; 1 Thes 5:8). 

     Now for my point today. Jesus said, "Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division:  For from henceforth there shall be five in one house divided, three against two, and two against three. (Luke 12:51-2) and "Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.  For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law" (Mat 10:34-35).

    Jesus denied that he came to bring peace to the world. On the other hand, look at what is written (also in Luke):

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.  And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. (Luke 2:13-15)

     The angel inferred with the birth of Jesus, that on earth peace, rather than peace on earth. Who is wrong, Jesus or the angel? Luke wasn't for he wrote them both. He and the angel knew something that we didn't. What Jesus said was true! Since God came into the world, there has been nothing but division. Everyone is at odds with each other.
     The world is the "building" which houses the universal Church. In my book, Killing God, I point out that the Church is the threshing floor which God uses to separate and winnow out the good seed from the chaff. Therefore, the world is the structure for housing the threshing floor.
     Before I proceed to the rest of the story, let's consider the Church and the world. The world is full of animosity and hatred. Spiritual forces are at war with each other through us. Demons fight for Satan using sinners as their army, and angels fight for God using Christians as His army. Demons have darkness for shelter, but God shines Light that Christians can see the demons. Those who walk in the light see demons clearly. They also have discernment, and realize that other humans are in Satan's army; not necessarily on purpose, for "they know not what they do" (Luke 23:34).
     That spiritual warfare is what Jesus meant when he said that he did not come to bring peace on earth. The battle in the heavens came to earth when God created mankind. God's presence on earth just aggravate the situation as demons would have to war even more vociferously with God present in the Flesh at the head of His armies. God came to fight for mankind's very souls. He desired that none should perish and would submit Himself to perish at the head of His army. God's Flesh died on the cross as any good king in those days would do since they themselves led the armies.
     The Jews were expecting a King on the order of David to win the war of independence with the Romans. Nearer even, they were looking for a Maccabee general to win the war of independence. Instead, their new King was a meek carpenter who fought the battle. He saved not only the Jews  but mankind from Satan and his demons. Rather than gratitude for their King, God's chosen people insisted that He be crucified, and a mockery was made with a sign - King of the Jews.
     Thus, Jesus, as he said, did not come to bring peace on earth. The dissension continues to this day. When there is discord, God remains silent. Jesus's "Ghost" is always present, but when divisiveness occurs He hangs around remorsefully until people love each other and are of one accord (Acts 2:1). The minute controversy occurs among his children, if they don't heed His authority, dissension results. Satan's demons gain ground when people fail to love each other.
     As the world is the structure of the universal Church, the red brick, stone, or clapboard building are the structures for the churches. Nowhere can dissension, at times, be greater than within the walls of the church. The demons attack churches hard because they should be Holy Ground where God is present. Demons take their war to the frontlines wherever Christians gather. Church is where the spiritual battles are the bloodiest and there is much collateral damage. We've seen that; when two Christians feud the entire church is in disarray. That is because demons don't waste a good catastrophe!
     As there is no peace on earth, there is little peace in the churches. Denominations are an outcome of spiritual warfare and Christian retreat. Denominations are at the same time good and bad: they both destroy church unity and present a fortification to worship with what is perceived as truth. Some church denominations are true to the Doctrine of Christ and others are not? Likewise, the people within churches war with others, God, and even themselves.
      Individuals continually fight little independent spiritual wars even when they are alone. That's what Paul meant when he wrote, "The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak" (Mat 26:41). In other words, the world is in chaos because God came into the world.
     People still battle about who Jesus is, his purpose, and his Law of Love. They still believe that they won't be saved, can save themselves, or there is nothing to be saved from in spite of Jesus dying for our salvation. He said, "you must be born again" (John 3:7) and most people say, "Not me! or as Alfred E. Neuman of Mad Magazine fame, "What, me worry?" Worrying about salvation rather than being born again, is not peace. People war with themselves when they fail to submit to truth. What is truth? You can't save yourself but God can. That very proposition causes dissension.
     There will be no peace on earth until two things happen: (1) the Devil is destroyed forever, and (2) God cleanses the earth with fire and creates a new heaven and a new earth. Therein, in the Kingdom of God, Jesus will reign in peace.
     Now let is examine what the angel meant when announcing Jesus's birth: "Peace on earth; good will toward men."
     Throughout patriarchal times, the chief priests brought peace offerings to God. Peace offerings were zevah (slaughter offerings). To obtain peace with God an animal had to lose its life. Offerings were to be the firstborn and pure of defect. The offering was one of well-being with God. Most often the peace offering was the slaughter of a lamb.
    What then did the angel mean? That Jesus would be the Lamb for the peace offering. The chief priest did it every year for the sins of the Jews but Christ came to be sacrificed once and for all. For what purpose? For the well-being of his "peculiar people" - those who sacrifice themselves to God (Rom 12:1).
    The Peace on Earth is the Purpose of Jesus. God came to earth and took on Flesh to be sacrificed for all mankind's sins. When salvation does come, what will be the outcome? Peace on earth. That refers to  the presence of Jesus both when he walked the earth, and later on when he will rule it. Finally, when the fiery flood comes to create a new heaven and a new earth, Peace will rule. Jesus, in his glorified Flesh will rule in perfect peace!  That's what they angel surely meant! Jesus is Peace!
     Until Jesus rules, and Satan's claim to the throne is dismissed, there will not be peace on earth. When Jesus's Kingship is established, there indeed will be Peace on earth! "On earth Peace" is the presence of God on the earth - Jesus is His Name.

The Trees in the Garden Identified

     Old Testament writings are much like dark negatives of future events. Sure, they were actual events but to see Jesus in the pictures, one must hold the undeveloped image to the light. Jesus is the Light. We are to look at the Old Testament in the light of the New Testament. Always read the Book of John first, the gospels secondly, then the letters and Revelation before reading the Old Testament. You will see the Garden of Eden in a bright new Way because Jesus was there, and so was salvation!

     There were many trees in the Garden but two in its midst. The lesser known one was the Tree of Life. That same "Tree" was crucified instead of mankind for their sins (the other "trees"): "Who his own self (Jesus) bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed" (1 Pet 2:24). The Cross was a "tree". (Hang onto that thought for a few minutes as I proceed.)
     Trees are similes for different forms of life. The Tree of Life represents Jesus Christ (Rev 22:2), the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil represents Satan, and the other trees were those soon to become people which Adam was to "dress and keep" (Gen 2:15) and represents "neighbors" who Adam was to love.
     We again find "trees" when men are saved at the end of time. Some will essentially be replanted in the Garden (regeneration) while others are burned up.

And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads. (Rev 9:24)

     From that verse, we can see that "but" is used in conjunction with "any tree" and "men" of which only the righteous would not burn. That passage is again the simile between other men and trees.  Those "trees" which will be burnt up are referred to in the Book of Luke: "And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: every tree therefore which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire" (Luke 3:9).
    Our job as sons of Adam are to dress and keep "trees" in reference to others; even the bad "trees" with whom we disagree. That is the Great Commission which is how the Greatest Commandment is accomplished. If we fail our job, God will tend to the "trees" himself. Jesus is the judge: he takes an axe to the un-regenerated trees and casts them into the lake of fire. That happens when we fail to do our jobs as God wants that "none should perish" (John 3:16).
     We can see those "trees" back in Genesis. Those same "trees" are found in the Revelation and the gospels. Likewise, Jesus can be identified as The Tree of Life in Genesis, the Revelation, and the gospels. Where is Satan? Of course, in Genesis, he is represented by the forbidden tree. I believe that in the Revelation, it is Lucifer or Satan who is represented by the fig tree: "And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind" (Rev 6:12). Lucifer is "day star" who fell down from heaven  (Isa 14:12) .  Thus Satan can be identified as a  fig tree.
    In the gospels, we also find a fig tree. Jesus withered a fig tree away in the gospel parables (Mat 21-18-20). That fig tree represents Satan's destruction. We even find that mentioned in the Law: "And the trees said to the fig tree, Come thou, and reign over us" (Jud 9:1). There, the "trees" (sinners) implore the "fig tree" (Satan) to reign over them. That verse is a precursor to choosing one master over the other to serve (Mat 6:24).
     I have now identified the trees of the Garden. Note that Adam and Eve attempted to cover their shame with fig leaves which they had sewn together themselves (Gen 3:7). Right there was mankind's problem. They tried to cover their own sins by the fruit of Satan's tree. People still endeavor to do that. The Pharisees were noted for that, and not by accident, Jesus called them vipers, remembering who it was back in the fig tree in the midst of the Garden. The Tree of Life (Jesus) knew the outcome of the story way back in the Garden. He knew that the fig tree would wither and die, and then be burned. Not only that, he knew that those who covered their own shame would die with the "fig tree".
   Jesus said, "You must be born again," to Nicodemus (John 3:7). Using the analogous situation of Moses and the serpents, Jesus implied how to be born again: Rather than fighting the snakes alone, Moses listed up a motionless brass serpent on a pole. Those who looked up at the snake and beheld it, were safe. They made it through the wilderness and were eventually saved from the serpents. Hence, being born again is diminishing oneself as God is elevated. Who killed the viper on the pole? God did!
     Theologians see the pole as the Cross and the brass serpent as Jesus Christ because it surely appeared red in the sun (the blood). I submit, that the pole may also have represented the Serpent crucified in his tree which of course would be done by Jesus Christ. Rather than mankind battling the Serpent, I believe that the story represents the Serpent being killed. Who killed God? No one. He killed the Serpent. As Adam was effectually killed back in the Garden and died a physical death, Jesus's death on the Cross crucified the Serpent in his tree.
     We know there were three "criminals" on that day of judgment, and only one was entirely innocent. Jesus Barabbas whose name means "Yeshua, the son of the father" was freed. He represents people or "the other trees". He sinned greatly but by grace he was released from punishment. If he burned with Satan, that is another story which we don't know, but Barabbas was kept safe from dying that day. What he did later was whether the crucifixion of the real Jesus - the Son of the Father had an impact on him!
     Of course, the center "Tree" was the Cross of Jesus. The visible part of the Tree of Life died on the "Tree" that day. We know that the Holy Spirit aspect of God did not because Jesus, at his death, "gave up the Ghost" (Mark 15:37). Likewise, the Father aspect of God didn't die because Jesus implored why had He forsaken him (Mat 27:46). Hence, God didn't die on the Cross but His Flesh did, and when the Flesh died, the Ghost of Jesus arose to return another day (Acts 2:3).
     The Tree of Life lived on in new incorruptible Flesh and still stands in the Garden in Heaven, which I surmise arose at the time of the flood just as Jesus did later (Rev 2:7).
     On one of the other "trees" one of the malefactors went to Paradise that day with Jesus. Jesus took all the sins of mankind and dumped them in Hell. The thief on his cross looked at Jesus on his "pole" and was born again (which Jesus said all must be) right before he died. Jesus went to Hell that day for that thief, dumped his sins off there, and then went to Paradise where he safely took that repentant thief. It seems that only Jesus's body laid in the tomb but we know his Ghost left him and went somewhere. He seemed to be busy dispersing sin and taking that born again soul to Paradise! That thief represented those who are born again - looking up at the dead Serpent on his pole or "tree".
     The thief who jeered Jesus represents the Serpent. In the literature, The Life of Adam,  Jacopo de Voragine contends that the True Cross was made from the trees of three seeds from the Mercy Tree which were planted in Adam's mouth. That legend follows closely with my own insight from which I wrote my own book, The Skull of Adam, without foreknowledge of those legends. We don't know what genesis that tree had but evidence of the fragments of the True Cross indicates that it was of multiple woods - three in number. I personally believe that the true True Cross would have been made from the wood of an olive tree which I believe the Tree of Life was!
     What about the thief's "tree" or "pole". It makes sense using scripture that it must have been a fig tree. Thereon, the thief withered and died, and his soul cast into Hell that day.  Thus, Satan's body was vicariously crucified that day as well but not to save mankind from sin but to destroy sin. Sin lost its power that day!
     Satan has helpers and soldiers. They usually do his dirty work because his presence is limited by God. Satan doesn't make people do anything. He can merely tempt and deceive, but he is only found to be busy with elite people in the Bible. He was with Adam, Moses, and Jesus at his temptation. Likewise, Satan had to be somewhere on crucifixion day because that was the most important day in history!
     We know where Jesus was on the first day in the Garden and on his "tree" on the day Satan attempted to kill God. We know that Satan appeared as the Serpent in the Garden. Where was he on crucifixion day? He was standing someplace nearby watching the Serpent (the thief) vicariously die on his pole. He was inciting sinners to crucify God! He surely saw himself there because he had seen it before: him dead on Moses pole!
     There are but a few who have the right to eternal life. That is a right from the Constitution of the Kingdom of God called the Abrahamic Covenant. Mankind's right to life is lifting the Serpent up on his pole and recognizing who killed him; not us but God Himself whose Flesh died that ours will not!
    Being born again is the right to eternal life as can be seen in scripture:

Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. (Rev 22:14)

     That Gate is straight (must be born again) and path to it is narrow (by faith).

Gender Role Confusion

     Both Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Although both disobeyed and were sinful, Adam is credited with the first or primary sin:

Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned (Rom 5:12).

     We have always been taught that eating the fruit of the forbidden tree was the sin of demarcation - the one that brought death to mankind. Eve ate but sin was not accredited to her but it was Adam. What did Adam do that Eve did not? Well, let's look at scripture: "Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife" (Gen 3:17). (I overlooked that for so long and so do most people!)
     Adam "hearkened" or "gave respectful attention" (Meriam-Webster Dictionary). Why would that even matter? There are two reasons: (1) God did not instruct Eve in anything, but He gave specific instructions to Adam not to eat or he would died. Eve added to the command - neither eat nor touch. God had told Adam nothing about touching. Eve was easily deceived. (2) God gave Adam dominion over the world (Gen 1:26). It was not just Adam who was to have dominion, but all men forthwith. Satan, with that one sin, had dominion over Eve. That was Adam's role. Eve made Adam like the beast. Shortly after her eating, Eve had dominion over Adam. Adam shirked his divinely assigned gender role and Eve, not only wore the fig-leaves, but soon after wore the pants.
     Thus, the original sin was gender role confusion. Of course, it all started with disobedience - the cause, but resulted in misappropriating the Designer's intent - the affect. Women would thereafter assume the dominion which belongs to men.
     Nowhere in scripture are women priests. Men's assigned dominion makes them the priests. That is validated by Eve's punishment: "Your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you" (Gen 3:16). With that it should be that men are the rulers, and women should please the husbands by accepting their rule. It is clear that men are to have the dominating role and women subject to the men.
     "But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ" (2 Cor 11:3). Why is that so important? "And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression" (1 Tim 2:4).
     Adam knew that he sinned, but Eve was fooled. She didn't understand that she had because she did not die. Thus, man's responsibility is accountability and his role is spiritual discernment. If God had wanted Eve to have dominion, Adam would have been made from Eve, as is the normative. However, Paul gave the reason:

Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. For Adam was first formed, then Eve. (1 Tim 2:11-13).

     Note that it is not me who says that the woman be subject to the man, but Paul who was inspired by God. What Paul taught is validated by the very Word of God who is Jesus (John 1:1-2, 14). Jesus's will is that men have dominion over the women and that women be subject to the men. Let me point out one thing; it does not even insinuate that they are to be slaves to the men nor involuntary servitude. A Christian woman's heart, as was said before, should focus on her husband because that is the response to God's will. Thus, a Christian woman should be willing to assume a secondary role to the man.

     A Presbyterian "minister" - Reverend Susan Rothenberg - shouted these words to the president of the United States: "“It’s not about you. Let the families grieve. This is our neighborhood,” Rothenberg shouted from the front of her home. “You are not welcome here!”" (U.S. News; 10/30/2018; David Barden). What Mr. Barden did not write is that previously the "reverend" had said that EVERYONE is welcome there. That reverend exemplified hatred. Her role is to practice and teach love, but like Eve, she was out of her gender role assignment. She was easily deceived by the cunning of evil forces. She was the hater and failed to recognize that in herself!

     Paul understood why gender role confusion is so harmful. It is one method by which the world is deceived. That "reverend" was irreverent. She is a hater, and that is anti-Christian. Not only that, but she lies to herself as she uses the title reverend. Not only must women not do that but neither should men. Christians are to be humble. Proclaiming reverence is a prideful thing to do. That woman did not magnify Christ but by her demeanor seemed to serve the Devil.

     I would never attend a church which has a woman pastor. Why? Because, as can be seen from scripture, that is not women's gender role assignment. Satan misuses women to confound Christianity. That is not to say that women preachers are evil but they take God's Word too lightly. Scripture is clear that women are not to be in positions of authority over men. No wonder some people are confused over their gender assignment as they totally ignore their gender roles.

     Nowhere does the Bible say that men should earn more than women. That, however, should not be called feminism. It is pragmatism and fairness. Feminism is taking on the worst aspects of rebellion. Feminism is defiance of God's gender role assignments. Feminists seem to desire more than anything that they be able to sin as rebelliously as Adam did, and as men still do. That's why abortion and homosexuality are so imperative to feminists. It is ignoble to even desire to be like men! (I am now criticizing my own gender.)

     Of course, Adam and Eve were redeemed by the Word (Jesus) who covered their sins. Both would desire to be like God in whose image they were created. That is called righteousness - doing right in God's eyes. That entails performing their gender role assignments. When men and women both do that, there is unity and harmony. We can see how today that Satan has divided women from the men, and not the other way around. They have again been deceived. Men are still wusses because we allow that to happen, and that is not God's will. 

    One thing that is wrong with the Church is that in some women are allowed to preach in place of men. That is gender role confusion, and is not God's will. Women can teach but it should not be over men but instruct alongside men, and their utmost responsibility - to teach the young women.

     Gender differentiation is explained even further. In obedience, there will be unity. Peter and Paul clarify the gender roles even more:

Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered. (1 Pet 3:7)

But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God. For the man is not of the woman: but the woman of the man. Neither was the man created for the woman; but the woman for the man. (1 Cor 11:3)

    Men must honor women. That is good. (God said that when he created men and women.) Women, if certain of their roles, would have gratitude by cherishing the honor. The woman was created for the man which means that men should and must cherish the women. Real men don't abuse, mistreat, nor command women. Real men treat women as God planned. Men should seek their wisdom and consider it. Think of the possibilities if Adam and Eve had approached the Serpent in unity and with clear gender role responsibilities!
     Sin would never had entered into the world! "For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them" (Mat 18:20). There is power in numbers and unity. When people are of one accord, God ceases His silence and His Word protects Christians (Acts 2).
     God unitized men and women with Holy Matrimony which represents the Church's (Bride's) and Jesus's (Groom's) unity. If Adam and Eve had been in unity with proper gender role identification, the Serpent would have been crucified right there in his tree! Instead, improper gender roles caused God to be crucified on the other Tree - the Cross.