Wednesday, September
24, 2014, 6:00 a.m. – The Lord Jesus put in mind the song, “Living Water.” Speak, Lord, your words
to my heart. I read 1 Corinthians 6:1-11
(NASB).
Wronging One Another
Does
any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go to law
before the unrighteous and not before the saints? Or do you not know that the
saints will judge the world? If the world is judged by you, are you not
competent to constitute the smallest law courts? Do you not know that we will
judge angels? How much more matters of this life? So if you have law courts
dealing with matters of this life, do you appoint them as judges who are of no
account in the church? I say this to your shame. Is it so, that there is not
among you one wise man who will be able to decide between his brethren, but
brother goes to law with brother, and that before unbelievers?
Actually,
then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another.
Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded? On the contrary, you
yourselves wrong and defraud. You do
this even to your brethren.
This past Saturday morning I was abruptly awakened from
sleep by my husband hitting me with his arms. Instinctively, in my sleep, I literally
blocked his hits with my arms.
After we were both awake, he told me that he had been
dreaming, and that in his dream he was chasing a teenager who was throwing
rocks at and was kicking his grandchild, so he was swinging his arms into the
air against this teen in defense of his grandchild. He said that he had seen
this teen going after his grandchild from a long distance away (looking east),
that he had pointed to him, and then he went after him. When he caught up with
the teen, he said the teen was using karate moves against him, so he was
swinging his arms in a defensive move to stop the teen, and to put an end to
what he was doing. He also said there were other people who were going after
the teenager, as well.
My husband’s “air strikes” with his “arms” did hit the
teenager in his dream, but literally and in reality they were hitting me, his
wife, who was doing nothing but sleeping peacefully.
Flailing Arms
As I considered these “air strikes” against me that morning
by my husband’s flailing “arms,” I felt I should check the news, so I did. I
read where France launched its first air strikes against “ISIS” in Iraq, “boosting
US-led efforts to unite the world against the growing threat posed by the
Jihadists,” the article stated (1).
Immediately I made a connection between this news story and
what had just happened to me that morning. The stories in the news about going
after ISIS, a terrorist group posing a threat to the US, are made up, kind of
like what took place in my husband’s dream. What he dreamed did not really
happen. What he described to me was what took place in an unreal world. In
reality, these air strikes hit me, i.e. they are Christians killing Christians.
Today the Lord Jesus brought this back to mind, and again we
have more news stories about air strikes against “ISIS” in Iraq and in Syria,
which are US-led, and are being joined by France, the UK and about five
different Arab nations, apparently. The news article I read today stated that the
overall goal in this start of a “prolonged campaign” is “to degrade and
ultimately destroy” (2) the enemy, in reality, followers of Christ throughout
the world.
When I think of the church here in America, I think of how
the institutional church is in a partnership relationship with the US
government (her husband), and how the US claims to be a Christian nation, and
even our president claims to be a Christian, and yet I believe our government
is leading this effort to search and to destroy followers of Jesus Christ, most
especially those who are actively involved in the spreading of the gospel of
Jesus Christ, i.e. in “throwing rocks,” i.e. symbolic of Jesus being our Rock
and us being living stones, and in how we are spreading this gospel of
salvation, so that makes us “Rock throwers.”
Our Defense
The song in my mind Saturday morning was “To My Beloved” which was about being
strong in the grace of Christ, and putting on the full armor of God in the
fight against the enemy of our souls. We are to resist him with all our might.
Literally, even though in my sleep, I resisted the flailing
arms of my husband which were striking me. I believed the Lord Jesus was giving
me a picture of what it means to resist Satan’s attacks against us, only our
armor (arms) is not made of physical weapons, but spiritual ones. We don’t
fight with guns and bombs, but with truth, prayer, faith, salvation and
righteousness (See Ephesians 6:10-20).
Do Not Be Deceived
Or
do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do
not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor
effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor
revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of
you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in
the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.
I read SAT morning in Romans 16. Paul was giving an appeal
to his fellow believers to watch out for those who cause divisions and who create
obstacles contrary to the doctrine they had been taught. They were to avoid
them. He said, “For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own
appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naïve.”
Then, he said, “For I want you to be wise as to what is good and innocent as to
what is evil. The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.”
Many Christians here in America are being deceived by our
government, politicians, the news media, celebrities in the news, and even by
the institutional church. These entities are some of their idols which they
give their devotion and heart to not truly knowing much of what is really
happening in the real world, in some or most cases, but only in the fantasy
(dream) world our government and media and institutional church present to us.
Just because someone says he or she is a Christian does not
make him or her a true follower of Christ. We have to test everything we hear
and see. We have to stop putting so much faith and trust in humans who can so
easily deceive us, especially in this day and age when things can be faked and
made to look real. Just because the news media says such and such is happening,
it does not mean it is true. We need to be discerning. We need to be wise about
what is good, and innocent (not participating in) as to what is evil.
Air Strikes
Yet, there are many ways in which we can commit “air strikes”
against one another, and the foremost one which comes to mind is with our
tongues (speech), which can be audible or can be written in emails, on social
media sites or posted anywhere on the internet for others to read. Nonetheless,
we should confront sin, and we are to judge the church, as well as we are to
expose the fruitless deeds of darkness. But we must guard against thoughtless,
mean-spirited, and slanderous remarks against one another which are meant to harm
one another, and have no goal in mind to bring about restoration and healing.
We do this when we participate in gossip or when we attack others because we
just don’t like them, or we don’t like what they are doing, although we have no
legitimate basis for such dislike.
There are presently multiple articles on the internet tying “ISIS”
in with the US government, though I suspect the internet is censored somewhat, so
we are probably not getting to see as many articles as have been written on
what is really happening in Syria and in Iraq. There are also multiple articles
about Christian persecution in these countries, which also address the issue of
ISIS being US-funded, so when I share what I do here, I do know that what I am
sharing is supported by other articles and can be found on the Internet.
Yet, the thing about deception is that it comes about
through lies, trickery, slander, false accusations, fakery, etc., and we are
deceived because the reality of what is really happening is hidden from sight
for the most part, so it must be discerned through careful examination of
scripture, through prayer, through the witness of the Spirit in our hearts, and
through diligent research, while the truth can still be discovered on the
internet, which may not be for long.
So, all I can do is to ask that you pray through what I have
shared here, and ask the Lord Jesus to show you the truth. But, I also believe
if you read prophecies of scripture with regard to these last days that you
will see that the nations will gather together, not against ISIS, but against
the Lord, and against his anointed. We are the enemy of Satan. Let’s just make
sure we are truly on God’s side and that we are not being deceived, and that we
are not giving our support to those who are persecuting and killing our fellow believers
in Jesus Christ. We need to stop making humans our idols, and turn to our Lord
as our only God.
Living Water / An
Original Work / November 21, 2013
Based off Various Scriptures
My people have
forsaken Me,
Their Savior, who died
on a tree;
Made idols, and they
worshipped them;
So empty, they will
ne’er fulfill.
Lord, You are the hope
of Your chosen ones.
Those who turn away
from You will be shamed;
The Spring of Living
Water left behind.
Living Water
satisfies.
The thirsty, let them
come and drink;
Believe in Jesus as
their King;
The gift of Jesus
given them,
So they will never
thirst again.
Indeed, the Living
Water flows within.
It springs up like a
fountain cleansing sin.
Eternal life in heaven
promised them.
Living Water
glorifies.
Oh people, won’t you
come to Him?
Obey Him and repent of
sin.
Let Jesus come and
live within.
Surrender all your
life to Him.
My people, won’t you
turn your hearts to Me?
Forsake your idols and
then you’ll be free.
Won’t you come now to
Me on bended knee?
Living Water
sanctifies.
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