It is not forgiveness without reconciliation. This is why God said, "When they come and say I repent you are to forgive them." If someone is not sorry and will not confess their sin, they are not forgiven. If they come and are sorry, then we can reconcile. The confession of sin and the extended forgiveness are the healing that causes reconciliation.
Luke 17:3-5 "…3Watch yourselves. If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. 4Even if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times returns to say, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive him.” 5The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!"
We are not called to forgive someone who is not repentant. Our model for this is Christ Himself Who requires us to repent to be forgiven and changed into a new creation.
Confession and forgiveness bring growth of character and change of behavior.
Those who say you can forgive but still have nothing to do with the person are not wise and not Biblical. The key is knowing the difference through discernment between manipulation and authentic repentance. God gives us this through the Holy Spirit.
May every believer evaluate these phrases we hear everyone saying, many of them sound so good but are very wrong.
Saturday, January 31, 2026
Thursday, January 29, 2026
Wednesday, January 28, 2026
Watching the Fall of a Nation Before My Eyes
I don't know about the statistics but what I can see with my own eyes are families dissolving all around me without tears or regret for breaking up the children or being a terrible example in society.
No one cares about how they affect anyone else anymore. They see God's word as a book of suggestions they can ignore. They even add their own words to justify defying God.
It is a fact that when marriage is disrespected in a nation, all kinds of other evils follow. Once someone has resolved to do their own thing without regard to God the nation as a whole is doomed.
We can see the 2 Timothy 3 mentality all around us now without regard to anyone but self.
2 Timothy 3:1-5 Difficult Times Will Come
3 But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come.
2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, slanderers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy,
3 unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good,
4 treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,
5 holding to a form of godliness although they have denied its power; avoid such people as these."
Once the marriages and families have been negated and attacked the nation falls into all kinds of sin and debauchery. People no longer embrace what makes good sense, they build anger toward those who defend God's standard, fostering rebellion in the hearts of the children.
Matthew 24:12 "Because of the multiplication of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold."
1 Timothy 4:1 "Now the Spirit expressly states that in later times some will abandon the faith to follow deceitful spirits and the teachings of demons,"
2 Peter 3:3 "Most importantly, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires."
Do not let this discourage you, people will say they love God and disobey most of His word, they are lying.
Matthew 7:21-23 I Never Knew You
21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’
23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’"
Sometimes I worry about family members who say they believe in God but do not do what He says. They value family and friends above God, making excuses for their disrespect of God's Word. They desire to please people more than to please God.
If you have to walk alone without love from people, you will be experiencing what Christ and the apostles experienced. Anyone who takes a stand to obey God will be treated with unbelievable disrespect and contempt. Thank God for this time of testing and strengthening of our character.
Romans 5:3-5 "Not only that, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His love into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us."
1 Peter 1:6-7 "In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in various trials so that the proven character of your faith—more precious than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ."
No one cares about how they affect anyone else anymore. They see God's word as a book of suggestions they can ignore. They even add their own words to justify defying God.
It is a fact that when marriage is disrespected in a nation, all kinds of other evils follow. Once someone has resolved to do their own thing without regard to God the nation as a whole is doomed.
We can see the 2 Timothy 3 mentality all around us now without regard to anyone but self.
2 Timothy 3:1-5 Difficult Times Will Come
3 But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come.
2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, slanderers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy,
3 unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good,
4 treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,
5 holding to a form of godliness although they have denied its power; avoid such people as these."
Once the marriages and families have been negated and attacked the nation falls into all kinds of sin and debauchery. People no longer embrace what makes good sense, they build anger toward those who defend God's standard, fostering rebellion in the hearts of the children.
Matthew 24:12 "Because of the multiplication of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold."
1 Timothy 4:1 "Now the Spirit expressly states that in later times some will abandon the faith to follow deceitful spirits and the teachings of demons,"
2 Peter 3:3 "Most importantly, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires."
Do not let this discourage you, people will say they love God and disobey most of His word, they are lying.
Matthew 7:21-23 I Never Knew You
21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’
23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’"
Sometimes I worry about family members who say they believe in God but do not do what He says. They value family and friends above God, making excuses for their disrespect of God's Word. They desire to please people more than to please God.
If you have to walk alone without love from people, you will be experiencing what Christ and the apostles experienced. Anyone who takes a stand to obey God will be treated with unbelievable disrespect and contempt. Thank God for this time of testing and strengthening of our character.
Romans 5:3-5 "Not only that, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His love into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us."
1 Peter 1:6-7 "In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in various trials so that the proven character of your faith—more precious than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ."
They are the Divisive Ones Who Call Others Divisive the Narcissists who Wear a Cross
WHEN A NARCISSIST WEARS A CROSS
Some people don’t find God.
They find God’s people.
Because faith communities are full of empathy, forgiveness, compassion, and hope — and to a covert narcissist, those aren’t spiritual qualities…
They’re tools.
This type doesn’t come in loud.
They come humble.
Soft-spoken.
Quoting scripture.
Talking about “conviction,” “growth,” and “God changed me.”
But watch the pattern.
They use:
• scripture to silence you
• “forgiveness” to avoid accountability
• “submission” to control you
• prayer talk to cover manipulation
And the moment you question behavior, it becomes:
“You’re attacking me.”
“You’re not walking in love.”
“You’re being rebellious.”
That’s not faith.
That’s spiritual framing.
A covert narcissist doesn’t worship God.
They worship control.
They know empathic, God-fearing people:
• want to see the good
• want to help
• want to believe in redemption
So they perform transformation, not live it.
But here’s where the story shifts.
When an empath grows…
when they stop confusing faith with tolerance…
when they learn boundaries are not sin…
The manipulation stops working.
The narcissist loses supply.
And that’s when their mask slips:
anger, blame, victim-playing, guilt, scripture twisting.
Because exposure threatens control.
Teaching moment:
Real faith produces humility, accountability, and consistent character.
Fake faith produces performance, control, and spiritual guilt.
So when you wake up, you don’t argue theology.
You don’t try to “save” them.
You withdraw access.
Because even God gives people free will —
and consequences.
Sometimes the most spiritual thing you can do
is walk away from someone using God’s name to hurt you.
ENGAGE: Have you ever seen religion used as a control tactic instead of a path to growth?
R.Trent Rose- The Writer 
If your spirit resonated with this message, go to the comments.
There’s something there that’ll sharpen your intuition and shift the way you see people. 
Tuesday, January 27, 2026
Salvation By Grace Through Faith Alone
Believing one can keep themselves saved reveals two things: that Christ's sacrifice was not enough and that we must help Him out by being as good as He was in our own effort.
When Christ transforms us into a new creation, it is not just a mental assent, it is a spiritual metamorphosis that only Christ can do.
God gave us examples in nature that demonstrate this transformation. The worm in the cocoon emerges from that womb into a beautiful butterfly. That worm can never turn back into a worm again.
Many other examples happen every day in nature. The calf that emerges from the cow can never become a fetal calf again; it has emerged and will never return to that helpless state again.
This is true of every mammal and every human being.
Ephesians 2:9-11 "…9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance as our way of life. 11 Therefore remember that formerly you who are Gentiles in the flesh and called uncircumcised by the so-called circumcision (that done in the body by human hands)."
When God makes two people one in marriage, their souls are blended and cannot be unblended until death because it is a work of God not of man.
Genesis 2:24 "24 For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh."
The problem we face in our Christian world today is that most people who say they are Christians do not believe the Bible because they have never been born again.
It is only when Christ transforms us that we can understand His Word and His Ways.
1 Corinthians 2:13-15 "…13 And this is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom, but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. 14 The natural man does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God. For they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. 15The spiritual man judges all things, but he himself is not subject to anyone’s judgment."
Only those who are born again can understand the things of God, one must have the Holy Spirit of God to recognize the depth of His Word.
May the believers reading this pray for great wisdom as they search the Word of God to grow in holiness.
When Christ transforms us into a new creation, it is not just a mental assent, it is a spiritual metamorphosis that only Christ can do.
God gave us examples in nature that demonstrate this transformation. The worm in the cocoon emerges from that womb into a beautiful butterfly. That worm can never turn back into a worm again.
Many other examples happen every day in nature. The calf that emerges from the cow can never become a fetal calf again; it has emerged and will never return to that helpless state again.
This is true of every mammal and every human being.
Ephesians 2:9-11 "…9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance as our way of life. 11 Therefore remember that formerly you who are Gentiles in the flesh and called uncircumcised by the so-called circumcision (that done in the body by human hands)."
When God makes two people one in marriage, their souls are blended and cannot be unblended until death because it is a work of God not of man.
Genesis 2:24 "24 For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh."
The problem we face in our Christian world today is that most people who say they are Christians do not believe the Bible because they have never been born again.
It is only when Christ transforms us that we can understand His Word and His Ways.
1 Corinthians 2:13-15 "…13 And this is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom, but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. 14 The natural man does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God. For they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. 15The spiritual man judges all things, but he himself is not subject to anyone’s judgment."
Only those who are born again can understand the things of God, one must have the Holy Spirit of God to recognize the depth of His Word.
May the believers reading this pray for great wisdom as they search the Word of God to grow in holiness.
Good Actions are not Evidence of Salvation
We are not saved by doing the right thing and we do sin at times as believers.
1 John 2:1-2 "1My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate before the Father— Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. 2He Himself is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.…"
Hebrews 12:5-7 "…5And you have forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons: “My son, do not take lightly the discipline of the Lord, and do not lose heart when He rebukes you. 6For the Lord disciplines the one He loves, and He chastises every son He receives.” 7Endure suffering as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father?…"
God never tells us which sins will lead us to hell. He tells us that sin without Christ will lead to hell. Those who love Christ hate sin and are convicted when they do it, but it does not lose the salvation. The Holy Spirit does not hop in and out of people. When Christ transforms us into a new creation it is His work and we cannot undo what He did nor do we want to.
There are rewards in heaven for obedience and loss of rewards for disobedience.
1 Corinthians 3:15 "If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet only so as through fire."
God said not to pull of the tares in the church because we might be pulling up the wheat. This is just how bad Christians will be in the last days; they will look just like tares.
Matthew 13:29-30 "…29 ‘No,’ he said, ‘if you pull the weeds now, you might uproot the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat into my barn.’”
2 Corinthians 13:5-6 "5 Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Can’t you see for yourselves that Jesus Christ is in you— unless you actually fail the test? 6 And I hope you will realize that we have not failed the test.…"
Many people who say they are Christians were never born again and feel no conviction of sin because they were never transformed by Christ. They decided they would join the church, but are not a new creation.
This is why we must warn the pretender to see if they are saved and the authentic believer to confess their sin of spiritual laziness to begin serving Christ again.
1 John 2:1-2 "1My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate before the Father— Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. 2He Himself is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.…"
Hebrews 12:5-7 "…5And you have forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons: “My son, do not take lightly the discipline of the Lord, and do not lose heart when He rebukes you. 6For the Lord disciplines the one He loves, and He chastises every son He receives.” 7Endure suffering as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father?…"
God never tells us which sins will lead us to hell. He tells us that sin without Christ will lead to hell. Those who love Christ hate sin and are convicted when they do it, but it does not lose the salvation. The Holy Spirit does not hop in and out of people. When Christ transforms us into a new creation it is His work and we cannot undo what He did nor do we want to.
There are rewards in heaven for obedience and loss of rewards for disobedience.
1 Corinthians 3:15 "If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet only so as through fire."
God said not to pull of the tares in the church because we might be pulling up the wheat. This is just how bad Christians will be in the last days; they will look just like tares.
Matthew 13:29-30 "…29 ‘No,’ he said, ‘if you pull the weeds now, you might uproot the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat into my barn.’”
2 Corinthians 13:5-6 "5 Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Can’t you see for yourselves that Jesus Christ is in you— unless you actually fail the test? 6 And I hope you will realize that we have not failed the test.…"
Many people who say they are Christians were never born again and feel no conviction of sin because they were never transformed by Christ. They decided they would join the church, but are not a new creation.
This is why we must warn the pretender to see if they are saved and the authentic believer to confess their sin of spiritual laziness to begin serving Christ again.
Whippings as a Child to Correct Naughtiness
I was an inexperienced child who thought the thinner the willow switch was, the less it would hurt; not so, the thinner the bigger the pain.
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