Friday, May 6, 2016,
6:30 a.m. – The Lord Jesus put in mind the song, “My Sheep.” Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read Romans 13 (ESV).
Governing Authorities
(vv. 1- 7)
Let
every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority
except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore
whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who
resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to
bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is
good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God's servant for your good.
But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he
is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God's wrath on the wrongdoer.
Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God's wrath but also for
the sake of conscience. For because of this you also pay taxes, for the
authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. Pay to all what
is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed,
respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.
We should subject ourselves to governing authorities unless
what they are asking us to do goes against God’s laws and against his commands
to his followers. God’s laws always trump man’s laws, in other words. We see
this exemplified for us in the lives of Jesus and his apostles. Jesus followed
the law of love rather than strict adherence to religious forms and traditions
of men. The apostles would not stop preaching in Jesus’ name, although they had
been commanded to keep silent. They said, “We must obey God rather than men.”
I see one other area, as well, where we must make a
distinction between following God and following man, and that is in the context
of the institutional church here in America, which is subject to the 501c3
not-for-profit incorporation status under the US government. Under the 501c3
the church is under the headship of the US government instead of Christ,
because the government dictates what the church can or cannot do, and it is
only going to get much worse. God did not call his church, which is a living
organism and a spiritual entity to come under the headship of the US
government. Jesus Christ is to be her only head!
I believe the reference in Revelation 18:4-5 can be applied
to the institutional church here in America, though not limited to that for
certain. I believe the Lord is calling to his people to come out of her so that
we do not share in her sins. The church, the body of Christ, needs to bring herself
back under the Lordship of Christ and remove herself from the headship of the
government, for the US government is not of God, but of Satan. And, the
institutional church is encouraging government worship via the pledge of
fidelity to the government via the pledge to the flag, and via the singing of
patriotic songs in the church.
Check out the layout of Washington, D.C. Look at all its
buildings and statues, which are patterned after Roman, Greek and Egyptian gods
and goddesses. Look into the history of our government in relation to the Free
Masons, and look into its Satanic roots, too.
Also, listen to the president’s speeches with regard to
religion and faith and with regard to religious extremism. What he is promoting
is the same as what the pope is promoting, and that is a one-world government
and a one-world religion where we all join hands together in harmony with
people of all faiths, and we remove our barriers and what divides us as the
people of the world. If we hold to the truths of scripture, and we preach the
full gospel message, we are being tagged as intolerant, bigoted, and hateful,
and we must be stopped.
Love Each Other (vv.
8-10)
Owe
no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has
fulfilled the law. For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery, You
shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and any other
commandment, are summed up in this word: “You shall love your neighbor as
yourself.” Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling
of the law.
Agape love is not the same as human love. It is based in God
and in what he prefers rather than based in human emotion and human desire. If we
say that we love someone, we are not going to lie to that person or cheat on
him or commit sin against or with him or her. And, yet many Christians do
exactly that, and all in the name of “love,” too. They ignore sin in one
another, rather than confront it, and they will sit and watch moral filth on TV
and in movies together, and they call that friendship and companionship. They see
forgiveness as turning a blind eye to a brother’s sin, rather than as an
opportunity to help lift that sister or brother out of sin to restoration and
renewal of his or her relationship with God. Yet, when God forgives, he does
not leave us still floundering in sin. He delivers, restores and he renews us
in faith in him, and he puts us on a solid rock on which we can now stand.
Agape love, in other words, sometimes involves what we call “tough
love.” It is when we have to make hard choices, which may get us hated and
rejected by others, because it is what is best for the one we are loving. Sometimes
parents have to kick adult children out of the home because the children refuse
to obey the parents and to submit to their authority, and/or because the children
are putting other members of the family in harm’s way. We must remember here
that God disciplines those he loves, so we must not fear correction when it is
necessary. The most loving thing we can do for others is to tell them the
truth, and to not let them do what is harmful to themselves or to others, as
much as is within our power to do so. Saying “No” to someone may be the best
thing for him or her, in other words. As well, we may have to remove ourselves
from the lives of those who are pulling us down spiritually or who are leading
us into sin, because love does no harm to its neighbor.
Wake from Sleep (vv.
11-14)
Besides
this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For
salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. The night is far
gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put
on the armor of light. Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies
and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and
jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the
flesh, to gratify its desires.
It is popular in today’s modern church movement to preach a
half-truth gospel, which is a lie. Yet, it does teach the death and resurrection
of Christ, and that Jesus died to take away the sins of the world. It teaches
that it is by God’s grace we are saved, through faith – and this not from
ourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast (Eph.
2:8-9). It teaches, as well, that through faith in Jesus Christ, we have
forgiveness of sins and the hope of eternal life with God both now and forevermore.
These are true things.
What it does not teach, nonetheless, is that Jesus died that
we might die to sin and live to righteousness. It does not teach that believing
in Jesus Christ means death to our old lives of living for sin and self, and
being resurrected with Christ to newness of life, created to be like God in
true righteousness and holiness. It does not teach that Jesus died that we
might no longer live for ourselves, but for him who gave his life up for us, or
that he died that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us
who walk not according to the flesh, but who conduct our lives according to the
Spirit. It does not teach that if we walk according to the flesh that we will
die, but if by the Spirit we are putting to death the deeds of the flesh, we
will live. It also does not teach that if we say we have fellowship with God,
and yet we walk in darkness (in sinful lifestyles) that we are liars, and the
truth is not in us.
It also does not teach repentance for forgiveness of sins,
although Jesus and his apostles taught that. It also does not teach obedience
to God’s commands, although the Bible clearly teaches that if we continue in
sin, or if we do not obey God’s commands, then we don’t know God, and he does
not live in us and us in him. Now, I don’t believe scripture teaches that we
must keep the law 100%, i.e. that we must live in sinless perfection, but it
does clearly teach that a saved life is a life transformed of the Spirit of God
and that this transformation of the Spirit is evidenced in our submission and
obedience to our Lord. If we have not changed, and if we continue living for
sin and self without regard for God/Christ and for his instructions to us in
holy living, chances are pretty good we are not really saved.
So, we must be discerning about these things, and test
whatever we hear against the word of God and against what we know of God’s
divine character and will for us, his followers. This goes to the issue of
obeying governing authorities, which includes under what circumstances we are
to obey or not obey. It also goes to the issue of loving others with agape
love, and us doing no harm to our neighbors. And, it goes to the issue of us
making no provision for the flesh, so that we do not gratify sinful desires.
This is an issue which has as its root a proper understanding of why we are
saved to begin with, which is not just so we can escape hell and go to heaven
when we die, but in order that we might die to sin and live to righteousness
while we still walk the face of this earth. So, be discerning. Know what the
will of God is, and do it. And, do not follow strangers (thieves and liars),
but run away from them!
My Sheep / An
Original Work / June 24, 2012
Based off John 10:1-18 NIV
My sheep hear me. They know me.
They listen to my voice and
obey.
I call them and lead them.
They know my voice, so they
follow me.
They will never follow
strangers.
They will run away from them.
The voice of a stranger they
know not;
They do not follow him.
So, I tell you the truth that
I am the gate, so you enter in.
Whoever does enter
Will find forgiveness and will
be saved.
Nonetheless whoever enters
Not by the gate; other way,
He is the thief and a robber.
Listen not, the sheep to him.
Oh, I am the Good Shepherd,
Who laid his own life down for
the sheep.
I know them. They know me.
They will live with me
eternally.
The thief only comes to steal
and
Kill and to destroy the church.
I have come to give you life
that
You may have it to the full…
They know my voice, so they
follow me.
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