Light from the Word

The Spirit Is Life to the Body; Faith Is the Sustainer of the Soul

Our spirit communicates with our soul, while the soul communicates with the body. A life of strong faith is the result of the soul applying faith to be an overcomer, while listening to the spirit. The Bible says that “Faith is the assurance, the confirmation, the title deed of the things [we] hope for, being the proof of things, [we] do not see and the conviction of their reality” (Heb. 11:1). Our soul is the responder of circumstances arising our way. That’s when, if we are listening to the spirit, we will act in faith and dependance in our Lord. The soul comprising of the intellect, will, and emotion, will dominate circumstances through the emotions. The emotions, the sensitive part of the soul, is the first to react. If we respond in anger, that will turn into bitterness of heart. It is not sin to anger; it is however to hold onto it, causing bitterness. Paul said, “When angry, do not sin, do not ever let your wrath last until the sun does down; leave no room or foothold for the devil” (Eph. 4:26). Psalms 4:4 says “Be angry and sin not; commune with own heart upon your beds and be silent.” Hebrews 12:14 says “Strive to live in peace with everybody and pursue that consecration and holiness without which no one will see the Lord.”

Faith is the pillar of the soul; it will never fail us, for faith takes us to the throne of Grace, where our Lord and Savior is ready to honor it. “Without faith it is impossible to please God; for whomever would come near to Him must believe that God exists and that He is the rewarder of those who earnestly and diligently seek Him” (Heb. 11:6). When we exercise faith, we are honoring the word of God by obedience. As Paul advised us “be constantly renewed in the spirit of the mind [having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude]” (Eph. 4:23). That’s the soul he is talking about. The enemies of our soul are in constant battle against it. It interferes with our relationship with God, bringing us down to temptations to doubt Him and His promises. The battle of the mind is a control center for the devil to destroy us. It is where the flesh and the spirit collide fighting for what they desire (Gal. 5:17). Only when the soul submits to the Spirit and His leadership is that we understand that the weapons of our warfare are not physical, but they are mighty before God for the overthrow and destruction of strongholds. Those purposes and thoughts that are not from God, we must lead them captive into the obedience of Messiah (II Cor. 10:4,5).

When the flesh and the soul are not renewed unto holiness, their desires are always contrary to the Spirit desires, for in our humanity, the normal for us is to disregard the important role that faith has in our decision and life style. So, we often fall into the arms of temptations. But faith is the pillar that holds us secure and close to our Shepherd. Listening to the Spirit, our faith is strengthened, for we are not struggling with flesh, according to Paul to the letter to the Ephesian’s Church. He said, “Put on God’s whole armor, that you may be able successfully to stand up against the strategies and the deceits of the devil, for out struggles are not with flesh and blood, but against the despotisms, against the powers against the world rulers of the present darkness against the spirit forces of wickedness in the heavenly sphere” (Eph. 6:11-12). This armor is without a doubt, complete with faith and the Word of God. When our soul is not in communication with the spirit, we walk in the flesh, satisfying its desires, harboring willful sin, hindering our communication with God. The Bible says, “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me” (Ps. 6:18). This is the time when we must direct to the soul instructing it to “Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is withing me, bless His holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits- Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases, Who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with loving-kindness and tender mercy; Who satisfies you mouth with good so that you youth, renewed, is like the eagle’s” (Ps. 103:1-5). Yes, we can speak to our body and soul and demand them to do what’s right; Our spiritual power is exercised when we lead those thoughts that are not from God away from our mind before it constitutes mental, emotional and physical problems.

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When the Cock Crowed

Simon, Simon, listen! Satan has asked excessively that you be given up to him, that he might sift you like grain; but I have prayed especially for you, that your faith may not fail; and when you yourself have turned again, strengthen and establish your brethren. And Peter said to Him, Lord, I am ready to go with You both to prison and to death. But YAHSHUA said, I tell you, Peter, before a cock shall crow this day, you will three times deny that you know Me (Luke 22:31-34).

The hour was approaching, when our Lord was going to face trials and death. He spent his last days and hours with His disciples instructing them on what was about to happen to Him. Those hours were solemn hours for the disciples solely depended on YAHSHUA. The news of His coming death caused fear and uncertainties in their heart with confusion of their understanding. At that time, YAHSHUA had a warning for Peter that caused a change of heart. He said, Simon, Simon, listen! Satan has asked excessively that you be given up to him, that he might sift you like grain… (vs.31). But YAHSHUA would not allow Satan to do that to weak Peter. Instead, He prayed that Peter’s faith may not fail; and when he had turned again, to strengthen and establish his brethren (vc.31-32). But Peter insisted saying, I am ready to go with You both to prison and to death (vs.33). A spiritual warfare was going on for the life of Peter in those hours without him knowing. YAHSHUA was defending and protecting him thorough prayer. But Peter ignorant of what was happening, refuted the Lord implying that he was strong and ready to die with YAHSHUA. A sign then was given to Peter by the Lord to prove to Peter His prophetic utterances to be right. He said to Peter: before a cock shall crow this day, you will three times deny that you know Me (vs.34). A cock is a male bird – rooster. Roosters break the dawn with a wakeup call for the world to get up and go. The rooster is the most reliable alarming clock there is. YAHSHUA used this to tell Peter that nature’s clock will prove him the veracity of YAHSHUA’S words. Wanting to get warm, Peter mingled himself with some others around, not knowing that they were going to test him. Peter’s weak personality couldn’t resist the first simple affirmation from a servant girl, his first encounter: “This man too was with Him.” He was confronted by two more, the third one emphatically insisted saying, It is truth that this man also was with Him, for he is a Galilean! On the third time that he was challenged, Peter began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, I do not even know the man! And at that moment a rooster crowed (Matt.26:74).

While Peter was still speaking, the cock crowed affirming YAHSHUA’S words to Peter and at the same time, The Lord turned and looked at Peter. And he recalled the Lord’s words, Before the cock crows today, You will deny Me thrice. Peter went out and wept bitterly (Luke 22:61-62). YAHSHUA’S eyes looked deeply into Peter’s soul and Peter, ashamed of the past few hours, was faced with his own failure, for the reality check caught him in a crucial time, when he rejected YAHSHUA’S warning. When his eyes met the eyes of the Savior, he had nothing to say, but weep for his actions. In life, there is always a rooster who will warn us of our actions. It is called the conscious. Often times, we shut it off, not wanting to admit our wrong doings, for the pleasure of it.

YAHSHUA warned Judas before his betrayal to save him from the terrible consequences, but his heart was fixed in doing it, no matter the cost. However, remorse took hold of his life; he lost it under the control of Satan, ending up in hell. At times we get angry at warnings, when pride controls the situation. We continue dancing around the fire that is about to devour us, until too late. Ignoring warnings brings consequences we do not want to face. There are no excuses and justification when we know what is right and remain doing wrong, ignoring the voice of reason. The Word of God says that any person who knows what is right to do but does not do it, to him it is sin (James 4:17). Thus says the Lord: Stand by the roads and look; and ask for the eternal paths, where the good, old way is; then walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk in it! Also, I set watchmen over you, saying, Hear and obey the sound of the trumpet! But they said, We will not listen or obey… Therefore, hear, I am bringing evil upon this people, the fruit of their thoughts, because they have not listened and obeyed My words, and as for My law, they have rejected it (Jer.6:16-17,19). In Peter’s case, he heard the prophetic words from our Lord, but as Israel rejected the warnings, in the desert, so, did Peter. However, the Lord gave him another chance and re-instated him to his position of apostle. His love for the Lord was tried three times, commending him to “Feed My lambs.” This time, Peter’s heart was repented and contrite before the Lord. He followed Him the rest of his life and died as a martyr for the Lord.

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The Tongue, the Spokesman of the Mind

The tongue is the way to communicate to the world and to our friends and have a wonderful time as friendship deepens. It opens the world of happiness and completes the feeling of well being toward others. It is a mental exercise needed to keep our mental health, as we communicate and share our feelings. It expresses the thoughts and the attitude of the mind when necessary to alleviate the burden we carry at the time. It is a useful member of the body, for its many benefits and uses. Small as it is, it performs several functions. However, the tongue is a “weapon of mass destruction.” It constitutes danger to the soul and body. When the tongue is without control, the body suffers. For it causes the body to sin. James describes the tongue as a fire; a world of wickedness set among our members, contaminating and depraving the whole body and setting on fire the wheel of birth (the cycle of man’s nature), being itself ignited by hell; the human tongue can not be tamed by man. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison (James 3:5-8). The tongue has caused mental and physical diseases as a result, and even suicide. The power of words can penetrate deeply into our mind, causing depression insecurity, when we believe those flammable words. The mind of a carnal Christian, insensitive and outside of God’s love and the Holy Spirit’s control is capable of destroying a person with one word. Taking seriously the danger of the tongue, David prayed, Set a guard, O Lord, before my mouth; keep watch at the door of my lips (Ps. 141:3); You have proved my heart; You have visited me in the night; You have tried me and find nothing; I have purposed that my mouth shall not transgress (Ps. 17:3); I said, I will take heed and guard my ways, that I may sin not with my tongue; I will muzzle my mouth as with a bridle with the wicked are before me. (Ps. 39:1).

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The Word of God

The Law of the Lord is perfect- restoring the soul

The testimony of the Lord is sure- making wise the simple

The precepts of the Lord are right- rejoicing the heart

The commandments of the Lord are pure – enlightening the eyes

The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever;

The ordinances of the Lord are true and righteous altogether

They are to be desired more than gold; sweeter than honey

By them your servant is warned;

In keeping them there is great reward.

(Ps.19)

The Word of the God is our Savior and Lord YAHSHUA. John declared saying, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God Himself (John 1:1). When He created the world, all He did was to call forth the world into existence and there it happened. It was through the power of His word that the world was created. The heavens stand up high declaring the glory of God through the firmament with twinkling stars, YAHSHUA’S handiwork. Their twinkles call our attention to the beauty and wisdom of our Creator. They are alive, proclaiming without speech, the knowledge of God. Silently, their voices echo throughout the entire world the beauty displayed in the dark of the night for all to see. “God commands the sun, and it rises not; He seals up the stars [from view]; Who alone stretchers out the waves and high places of the sea; Who made [the constellations] the Bear, Orion, and the [loose cluster] Pleiades, and the [vast starry] spaces of the south; Who does great things past finding out, yes marvelous things without number (Job 9:7-10). God made the Pleiades and Orion, Who turns the shadow of death or deep darkness into the morning and darkens the day onto night. Who calls for waters of the sea and pours them out upon the face of the earth- he LORD (ADONAI) is His name (Amos 5:8b). The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows and proclaims His handiwork (Ps. 19:1).

The written word of God is alive and powerful; it is sharper than any two-edge sword, penetrating to the dividing line of the breath of life and spirit, and of joints and marrow, exposing and sifting and analyzing and judging the very thoughts and purposes of the heart (Heb. 4:12). More precious than anything in this world, the Word of God is to be desired above gold and silver and all the riches of this world. The Word of God manifests itself in many ways; men are without excuse before the living God. Paul warns us, For that which is known about God is evident to them and made plain in their inner consciousness, because God has shown it to them. For ever since the creation of the world His invisible nature and attributes, that is. His eternal power and divinity, have been made intelligible and clearly discernible in and through the things that have been made. So, [men] are without excuse. Because when they knew and recognized Him as God, they did not honor and glorify Him as God or give Him thanks. But instead, they became futile and godless in their thinking and their senseless minds were darkened (Rom. 1:19-21). Love of money is the root of all evil (I Tim.6:10). It is replacing God, in your life, for the god mammon- wealth or money. In Luke 16, YAHSHUA gives a parable of illustration of a rich man, who clothed himself in purple and made merry in splendor every day. Meanwhile, at his gate there was an utterly destitute man named Lazarus covered with sores, feeding himself from the crumbs that fell from the rich man’s table. The greedy heart of the rich man, selfishly ignored the poor man until the day came when they both passed away. The future that waited the rich man was a place of torment. Not because he was rich, but for his greedy way of life; the love of money, profited nothing for his eternal life, but anguish in the flame. YAHSHUA asked the question, what does it profit a man to gain the world and forfeit his soul? (Mark 8:36).

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Strong Bulls of Bashan Have Hedged Me In

Psalm 22 is a prophetic psalm concerning the suffering and death of our Savior, YAHSHUA. Verse twelve is of great significance for us to understand the meaning of the phrase “Strong bulls of Bashan have hedged Me in.” It requires us to know a piece of history of its past and why this prophecy included the mountain of Bashan in YAHSHUA’S trials. Mount Herman, a well-known mount, is identified with Mount Bashan, for it forms the northern border of the region of Bashan, a geographical reality found in Psalm 68:15-17: “Is Mount Bashan the high mountain of summits, Mount Bashan [east of the Jordan] the mount of God? Why do you look with grudging and envy, you many-peaked mountains, at the mountain which God has desired for His dwelling place? Yes, the Lord will dwell in it forever.”

Psalm 22 is a prophetic description of the sufferings of our Savior to take place many years later. You see, the atonement of mankind was in YAHWEH’S mind from the foundation of the world. The Old Testament pictures this event in various passages of its prophetic pages. Genesis 3:15: “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her Offspring (Seed YAHSHUA); He will bruise and tread your head underfoot, and you will lie in wait and bruise His heel;” Psalm 22; Isaiah 52:14-15; Isaiah 53. In Psalm 22:12-13 the psalmist uses the bulls of Bashan as YAHSHUA’S foes coming to attack Him: He says, “Many bulls have surrounded me; strong bulls of Bashan have hedged me in. Against me they opened their mouths wide, like a ravening and roaring lion.” Prophecy from Moses concerning the tribe of Dan connects to the word of the Psalm 22:12-13. He said of Dan: “Dan is a lion’s whelp that leaps forth from Bashan” (Deut. 33:22). The Psalmist uses the term “a ravening and roaring lion.” Before the death of Jacob, he said this of Dan: “Dan shall be a serpent by the way, a horned snake in the path that bite at the horse’s heels, so that his rider falls backward…” (Gen. 49:17). That’s what Dan became and will become in the frame of time. In the book of Judges chapter 18, we read the idolatrous acts of Dan’s tribe’s idolatry. Separated from God through their rebellious and unfaithful ways, this tribe is excluded from the 144 thousand to be chosen and sealed for their protection in the tribulation time, as they become God’s messengers of the Gospel.

History tells us through the book of Enock that the mountain of Bashan and mount Hermon were places for spiritual evil, in particular the Watches- fallen angels. These mountains constituted the places where the giants chose to dwell and there they engaged with women. “There were giants on the earth in those days – and also afterward- when the sons of God lived with the daughters of men, and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown” (Gen. 6:4).

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Prayer, the Cry of the Soul

The book of Psalms undouble expresses our cries in many ways. For that reason, we often go there to find comfort and learn how to present our cries to the Lord. They are testimonies of God’s faithfulness in every situation. Psalm 42:5 says, “Why are you cast down, o my soul? And why should you moan over me and be disquieted within me? Hope in God and wait expectantly for Him, for I shall yet praise Him, my Help and my God.” Reading the psalms, we find similarity with the writers of the Psalms. It is as if they were expressing our feelings in many cases. The book of Palms is filled with praises and acknowledgement of Whom God is. Merciful, loving, powerful, patient, etc. In Psalm fifty-one King David expresses sorrows for his sin with repentance, seeking God’s forgiveness. The cry of his soul is evident in the acknowledgment of his desire to be clean from his sin: “Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and guilt and cleanse me and make me wholly pure from my sin, for I am conscious of my transgressions and I acknowledge them; my sin is ever before me… Create in me a clean heart, o God and renew a right, persevering and steadfast spirit within me” (Ps. 51:2-3,10).

The Patriarch Job’s testimony of faithfulness to God written in his book, is a book we must not overlook. One, where he expresses his feelings of frustration being confident of his innocence before God and to his friends who came to comfort him. He expresses himself saying, “Surely, I wish to speak to all Almighty, and I desire to argue and reason my case with God” (Job 13: 3). In his deep hurt, where his heart cried before God, he prayed, “Oh, that I knew where I might find Him, that I might come even to His seat! I would lay my cause before Him and fill my mouth with arguments; I would learn what He would answer me and understand what He would say to me” (vs. 23:3-5). That’s the prayer cry from his soul, when suffering was intense and there was no answer to his prayer. Job’s desperation brings home to us as we too ask, God, “where are You”? Day and night we find ourselves submerged in the agony of doubt, Where is God? Our sufferings are not to be compared with Job’s sufferings, but everyone’s soul go through a valley or a desert hard enough to call on God for help. That’s where prayers from the soul cries to God in intimacy, waiting for His deliverance as Job, did. In spite of his sufferings, Job still feared God. He had much to say that showed his faith and taught us patience. He so declared, “For I Know that my Redeemer and vindicator lives, and at last He will stand upon the earth and after my skin, even this body, has been destroyed, then from my flesh or without it I shall see God, Whom I, even I, shall see for myself and on my side! And my eyes shall behold Him, and not as a stranger!” (Job 19:25-27). That’s a declaration of faith knowing that his eternal future was secure in the hands of His God.

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YASHUA, the Source of Our Salvation

For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life (John 3:16)

It was God’s love that compelled Him to act in favor of mankind. His abundant grace overlooked men’s evil heart deserving of punishment, instead, He took all sins upon Himself and gave us life eternal through forgiveness by His shed blood. He submitted Himself to the most brutal treatment by those He was suffering for. There are no words to describe the extent of His sufferings. He was the sole source of our salvation and beside Him there are no other ways men can be saved. As the Way, He leads us to the Father; as the Truth, He teaches us His word, how to have a relationship with Him; as Life, He gives us life eternal that proceeds from Him. In His sovereignty, He rules over all from His throne in heaven. But men treated Him with contempt by placing a crown of thorns on His head, causing much bleeding. That was in response to His sacrificial love for them. The manner in which they treated Him was inhuman and abusive. In spite of that, He was fulfilling His Father’s will, that of “bruise Him, to put Him to grief and make Him sick.” (Isaiah 53). He suffered pains in His humanity, not in His divinity. He did that voluntarily to fulfill prophecy written about Him. When He entered into the world, He said, sacrifices and offerings You have not desired, but instead You have made ready a body for Me [to offer]; in burnt offerings and sin offerings You have taken no delight. Then I said, Behold, here I am, coming to do Your will, O God – [to fulfill] what is written of Me in the volume of the Book (Heb. 10:5-7).

Sacrifices according to the Law was annulled when He took the position of Redeemer of the world. He became God’s Lamb Who takes the sins of the world. That’s the way John Baptist introduced Him, saying, Look! There is the Lamb of God, Who takes away the sin of the world! (Jn. 2:29, 36). He came in the humble state of a stable where the chosen lambs that were to be sacrificed stayed. These were perfect lambs who fulfilled the demands of the Law. YAHSHUA, the Lamb of God found room there among them, and by a single offering, He has forever completely cleansed and perfected those who are consecrated and made holy (Heb. 10:14). YAHSHUA’S redemptive sacrifice was not the only thing He did or does for us. He became our Highpriest. We have freedom and confidence to enter into the Holy of Holies through the blood of YAHSHUA. We have such a High Prist, One Who is seated at the right hand of the majestic [God] in heaven (Heb. 8:1). He intercedes for us. The Bible says that when we pray, the [Holy] Spirit comes to our aid and bears us up in our weakness; for we do not know what prayer to offer nor how to offer it worthily as we ought, but the Spirit Himself goes to meet our supplication and pleads in our behalf with unspeakable yearnings and groanings too deep for utterance. Through the redemption by His blood, we were made children of God, and as children of God we are entitled to all the spiritual blessings. He planned in love for us to be adopted as His own children through YAHSHUA Messiah, in accordance with the purpose of His will- to the praise and the commendation of His glorious grace, which he so freely bestowed on us in the Beloved (Eph. 1:5-6).

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Peace That Will Bring Destruction

Peace is sought to be attained today through the alignment of nations as the Mideast with their neighbors, most importantly Israel. They call it the Abraham Accords, and the Cyrus Accord. Israel is in the center of prophecy. A nation created by God, has broken the covenant with Him by walking away from His commandments to worship other gods and do what they pleased in their gross way of living an immoral life contrary to God’s commandments. They rejected their Messiah and chose the cruel King Caesar, as their king, when they shouted crucify him, away with Him! Away with Him! Crucify Him! Pilate said to them, Crucify your king? The chief priests answered, We have no king but Caesar! (John 19:15). Israel is under coming judgment without escape. The Prophet Jeremiah so prophesized, Alas! For that day will great, so that none will be like it; it will be the time of Jacob’s trouble, but he will be saved out of it. (Jer. 30:7); Daniel 12:1b: “And there shall be a time of trouble, straightness and distress such as never was since there was a nation till that time.” No peace without YAHSHUA, the Prince of Peace, will last. Paul confirmed by saying, “When people are saying, all is well and secure, and, there is peace and safety, then in a moment unforeseen destruction will come upon them as suddenly as labor pains come upon a woman with child; and they shall by no means escape, for there will be no escape (I Thess. 5:3).

In spite of these peace accords Israel will be invaded by the Northern alliance countries. These invading forces are Gog of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, of Meshech and of Tubal. Persia, Cush and Put or Libya with them, Gomer Togarmah in the uttermost part of the north. The Lord says, Behold, it is coming and it will be done, says the Lord; that is the day of which I have spoken (Ezekiel 39:9) These present countries are Iran, Cush or Ethiopia, Put or Somalia, Gomer or present-day Germany and Armenia with Russia as the leader.

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Forgiven, Healed, Redeemed, Provided For – Bless the Lord Oh My Soul!

When our Savior, YAHSHUA redeemed us, He blessed us with all the spiritual blessing in the heavenly realm. The moment we accepted His gift of salvation, we became His children and Elohim blessed us in Messiah with all the spiritual blessings (Eph. 1). It is to marvel at the fact that Elohim not only gave us the gift of salvation through His Son, but also made us heirs with Him. As such, we are partakers of all the privileges of children of God. Before the foundation of the world, He chose us to be holy, set apart, blameless in His sight before Him in love; We were adopted as His own children in accordance with the purpose of His will, so that we might be for the praise and the commendation of His glorious grace; we were saved through His blood and forgave us of our sins; we also have obtained an inheritance to the praise of His glory; we were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession to the praise of His glory (Eph. 1). We were made alive in our Savior and Lord, YAHSHUA eternally.

In His sufferings to atone for our sins, YAHSHUA was despised, He carried our diseases and sorrows, He was smitten of God and afflicted; He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the chastening for our well-being fell upon Him and by His scourging we are healed. He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet, He did not open His mouth; by oppression and judgment He was taken away (Isa. 53). Suffering the agony of hell in our instead, He cried to His Father, My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? He suffered insults from those whom He was giving up His life to save them. He was poured out like water and all His bones were out of joint; His heart was like wax; it was melted within Him; His strength was dried up like a potsherd, and His tongue cleaved to His jaws; And (God) laid Him in the dust of death, they pierced His hands and His feet; He could count all His bones… (Ps. 22).

The entire world was under condemnation; sick, hopelessly chained up under the control of the evil one. The Bible says, “As it is written, none is righteous, just and truthful and upright and conscientious, no not one. All have turned aside; together they have gone wrong and have become unprofitable and worthless; no one does right, not even one…” (Rom. 3:10-16). We all have sinned and are fallen short of the glory of God (Rom 3:23). We were dead in our trespasses and sins; we were then by nature children of [God’s] wrath and heirs of [His] indignation; but God – so rich is He in His mercy! Because of and in order to satisfy the great and wonderful and intense love with which He loved us…He made us alive with Christ; it is by grace that you are saved (Eph.2). In His love and compassion, He forgave us with His precious blood; He healed us with all the stripes He received in His body. Many were they; we cannot fathom the terrible acts from sinners against Him; He redeemed us for Himself and raised us up together with Him and made us sit down together in the heavenly sphere in Messiah YAHSHUA (Eph.2). He provides for all our spiritual and physical needs. In what manner should we show Him our gratitude? Must we live as if nothing happened? While He carries in His body the marks of His sufferings a testimony of His love? We, a speck of dust, made of clay, deserving eternal death, must realize that we were purchased with the precious blood of Messiah, like that of a sacrificial lamb without blemish or spot (I Peter 1:19). We were purchased; so, we belong to YAHSHUA, Who shed His precious blood as a ransom for us; it is by His grace through faith that we are saved; salvation is not of ourselves, but it is a gift of God (Eph. 2:8). Therefore, Paul says, we live, not us, but YAHSHUA lives in us. That gives Him the complete right to own our soul: will, emotion and the intellect, or the mind. I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life I now live in the body I live by faith in the Son of God, Who loved me and gave Himself up for me (Gal. 2:20). That means, we died to the desires of the flesh that is not pure or according to the will of God. It is a life of faith that compels us to please our Savior, in return for what He did for us. Now, the mind of the flesh [which is sense and reason without the Holy Spirit] is death. But the mind of the Spirit is life and peace. The mind of the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit itself to God’s Law; indeed, it cannot (Rom. 8:6)

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Would That You Had Known

This is a solemn phrase of regret to those at the end the road. Facing the consequences, without a way to mend the decision made. We often regret certain decisions when facing the results of them. But the regret coming to us from God is serious and concerning, because it involves decision He is making against our actions. At the end of our Lord’s life on the earth, He called the attention of Israel, exclaiming, “Would that you had known personally, even at least in this your day, the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For a time is coming upon you when you enemies will throw up a bank about you and surround you and shut you in on every side; and they will dash you down to the ground, you [Jerusalem] and your children within you ; and then will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not come progressively to recognize and know and understand the time of your visitation [that is, when God was visiting you, the time in which God showed Himself gracious toward you and offered you salvation through Christ]. (Luke 19:42-44).

The days were getting closer for our Lord to offer Himself as the ultimate sacrifice for His people and the world. A warning was given, but not received well, for there was not belief to apply to YAHSHUA’S words. His heart was bleeding for the people, as He wept over the city (Luke 19:41). Israel was deaf and blind spiritually to the reality of YAHSHUA’S prophetic words. O how He tried to save them from the coming disaster! His love flowed audibly over the city of Jerusalem; the city of God. Destruction was eminent if they did not repent; YAHSHUA saw the stubbornness of their hearts and wept, as He saw the consequences of their hard hearts looming in the near future. Another time He warned them saying, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who continue to kill the prophets and to stone those who are sent to you! How often I have desired and yearned to gather your children together as a hen [gathers] her young under her wings, but you would not! Then He declared, Behold, your house is forsaken (abandoned, left to you destitute of God’s help)! And I tell you, you will not see Me again until the time comes when you shall say, Blessed is He Who comes in the name of the Lord!” (Luke 13:34-35).

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