Tag: Faithfulness

But As for Me

It is, in many ways, easier to follow the crowd than to stand alone, under the scrutiny of the majority, because we are all connected; we are social beings. It is natural for us to copy each other’s behavior, follow the trend, life styles, the way we dress, even the way we speak. We are copy-cats in many aspects of life, learning from each other, as in, “Monkey see, monkey do.” However, there will be times when exercising our faith, we must separate ourselves from the crowd to follow the Word of God.  In Romans 12:1-2  “Paul appeals to them saying, Therefore, brethren, I beg of you in view of [all] the mercies of God, to make a decisive dedication of your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and well pleasing to God, which is your reasonable service and spiritual worship; do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, so that you may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God, even the thing which is good and acceptable and perfect.” The Lord spoke to the prophet Isaiah with His strong hand and warned and instructed him not to walk in the way of the people saying, “Do not call conspiracy all that this people will call conspiracy; neither be in fear of what they fear nor in dread. The Lord of hosts- regard Him as holy and honor His holy name, and let Him be your fear and let Him be your dread and He shall be a sanctuary; but He shall be a Stone of stumbling and a Rock of offense to both the houses of Israel, a trap and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem” (Isaiah 8:11-14).

God’s instructions and guidelines continue for us today. Life is without meaning, and without success when God is out of the equation. The phrase, “But as for me,” denotes a personal commitment, based on knowledge of Scripture coupled with the desire to follow God’s instructions. It is also based on the love we have for Him, as we have died for the world and live for Him. While the report from the spies who were sent to explore Canaan was discouraging to the congregation, Joshua’s report and Caleb’s report had a different view. They had made a choice not to support what they had heard, but stood firmly to change the congregation’s view, saying, “The land through which we passed as scouts is an exceedingly good land. If the Lord delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land flowing with milk and honey, only do to rebel against the Lord, neither fear the people of the land, for they are bread for us. Their defense and the shadow are removed from over them, but the Lord is with us. Fear them not.” (Num. 14:77-9)

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The Past Remembered Through Twelve Stones

When Israel left Egypt under the leadership of Moses and his brother, Aaron, they were a multitude of people of which God created a nation for Himself. The first challenge they faced was the Red Sea in front of them, the Egyptian’s army behind and mountain. They all constituted challenges of great proportion, impeding the journey planed by God. Moses, however calmed them saying, “Fear Not; stand still and see the salvation of the Lord which He will work for you today. For the Egyptians you have seen today you shall never see again. The Lord will fight for you and you shall hold your peace and remain at rest”. (Exodus 14:13-14).  All through their journey to the Promised Land, Israel experienced the supernatural, for God’s plan was going to be completed amidst all their troubles. From the parting of the Red Sea for them to go through on dry land, to water provided through the rocks to satisfy their thirsty, to food falling from heaven, called mana; for forty years their clothes and shoes did not wear out; they experienced the presence of God on Mount Sinai, when He Himself came down and touched the mountain, to covenant with them, leaving the mountain wrapped in smoke; Israel heard His audible voice and feared Him greatly (Exo. 19). Those were forty years God used to make a nation out of them, a nation like no other nation, whose God was their King.

Psalm 78 gives a report of Israel’s journey through the desert, God’s provision and their rebellion against Him. Psalm 107, the psalmist calls to attention the need for us to give thanks to the Lord, as He reminds Israel of God’s goodness in all Israel’s pilgrimage through the desert to the Promised Land. Verse 20 we read, “He sends forth His word and heals them and rescues them from the pit and destruction; OH, that men would praise the Lord for His goodness and loving-kindness and His wonderful works to the children of men” (20-21). At the end of his life, Moses predicted Israel’s faithlessness. He said, “For I know that after my death you will utterly corrupt yourselves and turn aside from the way which I have commanded you; and evil will befall you in the latter days because you will do what is evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke Him to anger through the work of your hands (Idolatry)” (Deut. 31:29). Israel provoked Moses at the water of Meribah and quarreled with the Lord. Moses struck the rock twice instead of one time he was commanded to do. For that, he was not allowed to lead the people into the promised Land. (Deut. 20:10-13; 3:23-28).

Twelve stones of remembrance served as a testimony “that the hand of the Lord is mighty and that you may reverence and fear the Lord your God forever.” (Josh. 4:21b). Stones are silent witnesses of the present and the past. Israel’s pilgrimage left enough behind to be remembered. These stones would remind them of all the Lord had done for the nation for their children to know. They had arrived at the end of the road that would take them to the place promised many years ago. Their lives will now change; for they arrived home. Now they were given land to own and establish their lives with their families. A nation now they were considered. With these twelve stones reminding them, for sure that they would not forget their God. These stones remained pointing to them all the blessings of the past. However, they followed after other gods, as Moses prophesized. They were without excuses to forget forty years of experiencing miracles after miracles, and supernatural miracles.

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They Begged Him to Depart From Their Town

That day, was a very busy day for YAHSHUA. When He came down from the mountain, great throngs followed him (Matt.8:1). The people’s physical needs were many. On that day, He healed a leper, who worshipping Him said, Lord, If You are willing, You are able to cleanse me by curing me. YAHSHUA, with great compassion, reached out His hand and touched him, saying, I am willing; be cleansed by being cured. And instantly his leprosy was cured and cleansed (vs2-3).  When going to Capernaum, He was met by a centurion, begging YAHSHUA to heal his servant. So, YAHSHUA healed the centurion’s servant. At Peter’s house, He found Peter’s mother-in-law lying ill with a fever; He touched her hand and the fever left her; she got up and began waiting on Him (vs.14-15). And thus, He fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah, He Himself took our weaknesses and infirmities and bore away our diseases (Isa.53:4). YAHSHUA’S life was the Word of God; He lived the Word, He preached the word. All prophecies coming from Him were fulfilled or will be fulfilled. Even before His trials, He fulfilled the Isaiah’s prophecy. People ran after Him to be healed and to hear Him teach. He was the most popular man on earth in His days. Perfect in all He said and done, yet, He was hatred by the Jewish authorities, even today many of them continue hating Him for no cause.

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The World in Spiritual Chaos

Peace, peace is the cry of the world today as it faces turmoil of biblical proportion. What is really happening world widely that so many people are committing suicide in a hopeless state of mind? Can you separate what’s happening in these days from the prophecies written in the Bible? No, you cannot. YAHSHUA, when answering the disciples’ questions concerning the end of time, said this as a sign of His coming, among many other things: And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not frightened or troubled, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, a d there will be famines and earthquakes in place after place; all this is but the beginning of the birth pangs (Matt. 24:6-8). There is a cry out there coming from the hearts of men for the normality of things, when there will no longer be as it was just two years ago. No one expected that a manmade virus would control the destiny of the world, much less that it would linger with vaccine, mandated vaccine and passport vaccine. When will it ever end? A question everyone asks anxiously wanting to see the end of the ordeal. One thing we did not realize was that what’s happening today is the result of many years the few who controls the world have been planning in the pursuit to depopulate the world from billions to five hundred million. An evil plan coming from Satan himself, performed by those who follow him. This is definitely a scary time for those who do not know God neither His word. The Bible is filled with fulfilled and unfulfilled prophecies in God’s watch. The prophets of old did not see what they prophesized; because although, some prophecies were to be fulfilled in a short time, others had a long span of weighting time for them to be fulfilled.

Nations are unsettled and will continue to be until God supernaturally intervenes their plan, and these people will be judged for the slaughter of many who took the vaccine. Used to be cradled in comfort and peace, nations are found shocked at what is happening. Why do the nations assemble with commotion, and why do the people imagine an empty scheme? (Psalm 2:1) For sure this verse describes the world’s situation of today. The chaos created by the few to bring about their “empty scheme” will not prevail, although it looks as though it has. Our God is not limited to impossibilities of problems. He shines then, because there is nothing impossible for Him. One of several examples concerning God’s unlimited power is found in II Kings in the fourteenth year of Hezekiah’s reign over Judah, when the king of Assyria came up against the cities of Judah and took them. All seemed to be impossible for King Hezekiah to overcome such power, as the king of Assyria defiantly challenged him. But King Hezekiah found a place of comfort in the presence of the Lord, when he went there to pray. The message came to him from the Prophet Isaiah saying, Thus says the Lord: Do not be afraid because of the words you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have reviled and blasphemed Me. King Hezekiah prayed: O Lord our God, I beseech You, save us out of his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know and understand that You, O Lord, are God alone (II kings19). The Lord heard King Hezekiah’s prayer and supernaturally delivered Judah from the hands of Assyria’s king.

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The Supernatural Diet

(Daniel 1)

In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it… and the king told Ashpenaz, the master of his eunuchs, to bring in some of the children of Israel, both of the royal family and of the nobility… Among these were of the children of Judah: Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah (Dan. 1:1,3,6).

King Nebuchadnezzar offered these young men the opportunity to be educated in the Babylon’s culture and language for three years to serve in the king’s palace. Their diet was to be daily from the portion of the king’s own rich and dainty food and of the wine which he drank (vs. 4-5). That probably would have been very attractive and an adventurous experience to the eyes of some other young men who had been taken captive, considering the treatment they were going to have as slaves.  But not in the eyes of these young men. Their determination to follow God and His laws in that strange land of cultural differences, stood firm before all. When approached by the chief eunuch with the idea, Daniel courageously spoke for the four of them expressing their heart’s determination not to defile themselves by eating the portion of the king’s rich foods. He requested of the chief of the eunuchs that he might [be allowed] not to defile himself (Daniel 1:8).  Meanwhile, God was working in the heart of the eunuch to show favor toward them. Although, he expressed fear in the outcome of Daniel’s decision, he gave him permission to try the diet of vegetables and water for ten days. At the end of that period of time, the chief of eunuchs perceived that they looked better and had taken more flesh than all the youths who ate of the king’s rich dainties (Vs. 15). The supernatural happened, because of their choice to obey God and not to depart from His laws. God then came to their aid and proved to all that He is the sustainer of life. It was not the vegetables and the water that sustained them, but it was God’s doing. The result was obvious and no one could deny the fact. Although their identities were lost in the change of their names, seemly their faith was challenged when brain washed in that period of three years, still they held on to the things they had learned back in their country and nothing would erase that from them.

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Of Many Such Matters He Is Reminded

 (Job 23: 10,14)

Although I walk through the valley of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me (Ps. 23:4). In life’s challenges there is the thought that we are in that situation alone. Everyone around us seem to be indifferent to our cry for help; our voice seemly muffled by their indifference. We pray, but help does not come fast enough for us. To the contrary, we feel that we were not heard, and life goes on in that mode for as long as our trouble lingers. Like Job, we cry, 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 (Job 23:3-5). In the pages of Psalm 139: 13,15-16 we have a beautiful, significant  and trustworthy statement from the Lord to us through David, to assure us of His involvement in our life from the beginning, when He was forming us in the womb of our mother: For You did form my inward parts; You did knit me together in my mother’s womb.  I will confess and praise You for You are fearful and wonderful and for the awful wonder of my birth! Wonderful are your works, and that my inner knows well. My frame was not hidden from You when I was being formed in secret intricately and curiously wrought in the depths of the earth; Your eyes saw my unformed substance, and in Your book all the days [of my life] were written before ever they took shape, when as yet there was none of them.

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Awake My Soul

Awake my soul from slumber

To the glory of YAHWEH

Displayed every moment

Around and about you

Awake to the hour

Nearing when to Him

You must give an account

Surround yourself with truth

Of the everlasting covenant

And know His faithfulness

Shown to you by His grace

A thing you do not deserve

Lift up your hands to Him

And utter words of gratitude

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