Self will, self exaltation and self indulgence will eventually place the proud one in the prison of their own minds. To maintain their self proclaimed specialness, the arrogant person must continually day dream grandiosity to maintain their euphoric sense of self importance. They must squash any attempt on the part of others to bring them back to reality and their true state of sinfulness. Not only do they not listen to those around them, they refuse to listen to God, the more they are chastised the harder their heart becomes and the more devious their ploy to ruin those who try to help them.
I can't think of a prison more devastating and stressful than the one of pride, the same pride that afforded the devil loss of status in heaven and eventual hell forever.
Satan wanted to be worshiped and elevated as above everyone and everything, he wanted to be above God, he became enraged when he could not have it. His aim was to destroy everything God loved in revenge against God.
Ezekiel 28:17
"Your heart was proud because of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor. I cast you to the ground; I exposed you before kings, to feast their eyes on you."
The devil had everything but was not satisfied with it, he had to be the most and the best. His pride blinded his eyes to what he had in order to have what he shouldn't want.
Isaiah 14:12-15
"(12) "How you are fallen from heaven,
O Lucifer, son of the morning!
How you are cut down to the ground,
You who weakened the nations!
(13) For you have said in your heart:
'I will ascend into heaven,
I will exalt my throne above the stars of God;
I will also sit on the mount of the congregation
On the farthest sides of the north;
(14) I will ascend above the heights of the clouds,
I will be like the Most High.'
(15) Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol,
To the lowest depths of the Pit."
The longer the stubborn heart defends their sin, the harder their heart becomes, until at some point there is no opportunity to become anything else.
2 Kings 17:14
"However, they did not listen, but stiffened their neck like their fathers, who did not believe in the LORD their God."
Jeremiah 7:24
"Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, but walked in their own counsels and in the stubbornness of their evil heart, and went backward and not forward."
The only solution is to repent from stubbornness while there is still time to see the truth and realize their need for Christ.
Christ is the answer, no other answer will do, not trying harder, not pretending through outer actions and no denial of what they are will help, they must admit, confess and ask to be cleansed by Christ. There is no other answer than this.
Thursday, May 4, 2017
Wednesday, May 3, 2017
Worship Demands Obedience
Acts of obedience and seeking Christ for the answers is the worship the Lord desires.
Amos 5:21-23 "21 I hate, I despise your feast days, and I will not smell in your solemn assemblies.
22 Though ye offer me burnt offerings and your meat offerings, I will not accept them: neither will I regard the peace offerings of your fat beasts.
23 Take thou away from me the noise of thy songs; for I will not hear the melody of thy viols."
Amos 5:21-23 "21 I hate, I despise your feast days, and I will not smell in your solemn assemblies.
22 Though ye offer me burnt offerings and your meat offerings, I will not accept them: neither will I regard the peace offerings of your fat beasts.
23 Take thou away from me the noise of thy songs; for I will not hear the melody of thy viols."
The Rebellion of our Children's Generation
I am astonished at how common the disrespect from our children's generation is and seems to be growing.
I have gone on the internet to see if others are experiencing rejection from in-law daughters and daughters, I found hundreds of letters entitled, "I hate my mother in law."
I read some of them and they were so petty and hateful, I knew that it was our children's generation that somehow feel superior to or contempt for, their spouses parents. But I also notice that it was the women who were attempting to ruin relationships between their mother or mother in-law to isolate them from their families. There are some men who do this too, but the majority of the whining about mother's-in-law were coming from the daughter's in-law.
From all those letters I learned that there was no real reason except jealousy that the son or son-in-law would pay any attention to anyone other than their wives. The women of today in the "70's" generation are hell bent on destroying any relationship between their husband and his mother. I notice too that they don't bother with ruining the relationship with the father, it is the mother. It has to be the jealousy factor, that a petty wife cannot endure her husband loving anyone else but her, even if it's a mother. And, a petty woman cannot endure her father loving her mother.
I see this in adult daughters too, who attempt to turn their fathers against their mothers, even dreaming up reasons that do not exist, to show contempt and passing their version onto the husband and father as though it were fact.
It is demonic!
We knew this would happen, no matter how well we knew it, it still hurts and rejected mothers grieve. May that grief not diminish our walk but make us stronger and more resolute to obey Christ.
Luke 12:52-53 "…52 From now on, five in one household will be divided, three against two and two against three. 53 They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”
Christ went through it too when Jerusalem rejected Him, He grieved because of their hate toward Him, He said we would go through the same contempt and rejection that He did.
Luke 19:41-42
Jesus Weeps over Jerusalem
"41 And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, 42 saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes."
One blog out of many was written by a woman who shared how much she loved her mother-in-law, it was an Amish woman who had been raised to honor her elders, not only her own parents but the parents of her husband. What a blessing it was to see that ONE, in the pile of hundreds of mean spirited, ruthless and contemptuous diatribes by selfish and petty women.
When we become one in marriage, our spouses parents become our extended parents and worthy of as much love and respect as our own parents. My guess though is that those who treat their in-law parents badly, never treated their own parents with respect either. They may have preferred their own parents but never treated them with respect, or they would know how to treat their new extended parents.
I heard it said once by a non-believer that she could not call her husband's parents "Mom or Dad", because they were not her parents. This woman had no clue as to the melding together of two souls by Christ to make a couple one. The idea that "what was mine is now yours and what was yours is now mine", is not a concept familiar to this generation of selfish individualism. Sadly this same mentality is in the church, we have so called "Christians" calling their spouses parents by their first name, rejecting the idea of honor for those who hold the position of honor above them. These brats see no one as above them, no one worthy of respect, also allowing them to reject deference to anyone as a way of life. They are an entity unto themselves and everyone must bow to them. They are gods in their own hearts, those who do not worship them are to be punished.
Proverbs 17:10-12 …10 A rebuke goes deeper into one who has understanding Than a hundred blows into a fool. 11 A rebellious man seeks only evil, So a cruel messenger will be sent against him. 12 Let a man meet a bear robbed of her cubs, Rather than a fool in his folly.…
I have gone on the internet to see if others are experiencing rejection from in-law daughters and daughters, I found hundreds of letters entitled, "I hate my mother in law."
I read some of them and they were so petty and hateful, I knew that it was our children's generation that somehow feel superior to or contempt for, their spouses parents. But I also notice that it was the women who were attempting to ruin relationships between their mother or mother in-law to isolate them from their families. There are some men who do this too, but the majority of the whining about mother's-in-law were coming from the daughter's in-law.
From all those letters I learned that there was no real reason except jealousy that the son or son-in-law would pay any attention to anyone other than their wives. The women of today in the "70's" generation are hell bent on destroying any relationship between their husband and his mother. I notice too that they don't bother with ruining the relationship with the father, it is the mother. It has to be the jealousy factor, that a petty wife cannot endure her husband loving anyone else but her, even if it's a mother. And, a petty woman cannot endure her father loving her mother.
I see this in adult daughters too, who attempt to turn their fathers against their mothers, even dreaming up reasons that do not exist, to show contempt and passing their version onto the husband and father as though it were fact.
It is demonic!
We knew this would happen, no matter how well we knew it, it still hurts and rejected mothers grieve. May that grief not diminish our walk but make us stronger and more resolute to obey Christ.
Luke 12:52-53 "…52 From now on, five in one household will be divided, three against two and two against three. 53 They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”
Christ went through it too when Jerusalem rejected Him, He grieved because of their hate toward Him, He said we would go through the same contempt and rejection that He did.
Luke 19:41-42
Jesus Weeps over Jerusalem
"41 And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, 42 saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes."
One blog out of many was written by a woman who shared how much she loved her mother-in-law, it was an Amish woman who had been raised to honor her elders, not only her own parents but the parents of her husband. What a blessing it was to see that ONE, in the pile of hundreds of mean spirited, ruthless and contemptuous diatribes by selfish and petty women.
When we become one in marriage, our spouses parents become our extended parents and worthy of as much love and respect as our own parents. My guess though is that those who treat their in-law parents badly, never treated their own parents with respect either. They may have preferred their own parents but never treated them with respect, or they would know how to treat their new extended parents.
I heard it said once by a non-believer that she could not call her husband's parents "Mom or Dad", because they were not her parents. This woman had no clue as to the melding together of two souls by Christ to make a couple one. The idea that "what was mine is now yours and what was yours is now mine", is not a concept familiar to this generation of selfish individualism. Sadly this same mentality is in the church, we have so called "Christians" calling their spouses parents by their first name, rejecting the idea of honor for those who hold the position of honor above them. These brats see no one as above them, no one worthy of respect, also allowing them to reject deference to anyone as a way of life. They are an entity unto themselves and everyone must bow to them. They are gods in their own hearts, those who do not worship them are to be punished.
Proverbs 17:10-12 …10 A rebuke goes deeper into one who has understanding Than a hundred blows into a fool. 11 A rebellious man seeks only evil, So a cruel messenger will be sent against him. 12 Let a man meet a bear robbed of her cubs, Rather than a fool in his folly.…
Tuesday, May 2, 2017
Cleansing Every Day
I am thankful that Christ in me is cleansing me all the time, there are fewer sins today than there were in the past and even fewer as He does His work in me throughout the rest of my life.
Ephesians 2:10 "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."
James 5:16 "16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man has great power to prevail."
1 John 1:8-10 "…8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say we have not sinned, we make Him out to be a liar, and His word is not in us.…"
Ephesians 2:10 "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."
James 5:16 "16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man has great power to prevail."
1 John 1:8-10 "…8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say we have not sinned, we make Him out to be a liar, and His word is not in us.…"
Looking at Man or Looking at Christ
Anyone who needs the emotions of others around them, the sounds and words of others to maintain a fervor for Christ, then there is no real fervor, only imitation Christianity.
One who is born again and deeply loves the Lord, he/she yearns for the things of God, they need not be carried by anyone or any emotion to continue.
There are so many "Christians" who display no sense of devotion to Christ unless they are in the "right environment" or with the "right people." These people are never motivated to pray unless someone else suggests it, they are not motivated to read the Bible unless others invite them to do so. Most everything they do is based on appearances rather than substance.
When alone they are not concerned about the principles of Christ. When alone these people have little interest in seeking the mind of Christ or growing in holiness. The evidence of our life are in the day to day activities, the aging process and whether there has been any change over many years.
These people have no spiritual or meaningful advice to give to anyone else, their only motivation is being accepted by those around them.
When someone is filled with God's wisdom they cannot help but share it with others, it flows out like a waterfall and is never emptied.
As a believer who loves the Lord, it is impossible to fill to capacity and stop, there has to be a flowing over, stopping only results in regression and is most often a clue that there has only been pretending all along the way.
Pretending is hard work wearying, so much so it cannot be continued. Stopping results in regression, sort of like a rubber band that is being stretched and released, only to return to it's smaller useless state.
Proverbs 18:4-5 "4 The words of a man's mouth are deep waters; The fountain of wisdom is a bubbling brook. 5 To show partiality to the wicked is not good, Nor to thrust aside the righteous in judgment.…"
One who is born again and deeply loves the Lord, he/she yearns for the things of God, they need not be carried by anyone or any emotion to continue.
There are so many "Christians" who display no sense of devotion to Christ unless they are in the "right environment" or with the "right people." These people are never motivated to pray unless someone else suggests it, they are not motivated to read the Bible unless others invite them to do so. Most everything they do is based on appearances rather than substance.
When alone they are not concerned about the principles of Christ. When alone these people have little interest in seeking the mind of Christ or growing in holiness. The evidence of our life are in the day to day activities, the aging process and whether there has been any change over many years.
These people have no spiritual or meaningful advice to give to anyone else, their only motivation is being accepted by those around them.
When someone is filled with God's wisdom they cannot help but share it with others, it flows out like a waterfall and is never emptied.
As a believer who loves the Lord, it is impossible to fill to capacity and stop, there has to be a flowing over, stopping only results in regression and is most often a clue that there has only been pretending all along the way.
Pretending is hard work wearying, so much so it cannot be continued. Stopping results in regression, sort of like a rubber band that is being stretched and released, only to return to it's smaller useless state.
Proverbs 18:4-5 "4 The words of a man's mouth are deep waters; The fountain of wisdom is a bubbling brook. 5 To show partiality to the wicked is not good, Nor to thrust aside the righteous in judgment.…"
Want to be a Rubber Band?
Are you like a rubber band, being stretched by the fingers of others to keep up your appearances of Christianity. When the fingers of others release you, you are returned to your state of uselessness and smallness.
If we are like the rubber band, that can only be stretched by the affirmation and usefulness of others, as though their Christianity is ours simply by our association with them, then we have none of our own.
Born again believers in Jesus Christ ought to be able to stand alone, while the Holy Spirit in us stretches us to His standards, principles and desires.
John 3:6-8 "6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”"
If we are like the rubber band, that can only be stretched by the affirmation and usefulness of others, as though their Christianity is ours simply by our association with them, then we have none of our own.
Born again believers in Jesus Christ ought to be able to stand alone, while the Holy Spirit in us stretches us to His standards, principles and desires.
John 3:6-8 "6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”"
Monday, May 1, 2017
The Sin of Pride
We live in an age when people think it is a good thing to praise themselves. They call it demonstrating "self esteem." Here is what God says.
Proverbs 27:2 " 2 Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; A stranger, and not your own lips."
Isaiah 64:6 "We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags. Like autumn leaves, we wither and fall, and our sins sweep us away like the wind."
1 Corinthians 13:3 "And if I donate all my goods to feed the poor, and if I give my body in order to boast but do not have love, I gain nothing."
Proverbs 27:2 " 2 Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; A stranger, and not your own lips."
Isaiah 64:6 "We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags. Like autumn leaves, we wither and fall, and our sins sweep us away like the wind."
1 Corinthians 13:3 "And if I donate all my goods to feed the poor, and if I give my body in order to boast but do not have love, I gain nothing."
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