They Band Together

Psalms 94:3-7,21-22 ESV

 

“O Lord, how long shall the wicked,

    how long shall the wicked exult?

They pour out their arrogant words;

    all the evildoers boast.

They crush your people, O Lord,

    and afflict your heritage.

They kill the widow and the sojourner,

    and murder the fatherless;

and they say, “The Lord does not see;

    the God of Jacob does not perceive.”

 

“They band together against the life of the righteous

    and condemn the innocent to death.

But the Lord has become my stronghold,

    and my God the rock of my refuge.”

 

Trickery, Lies, and Deception

 

What this describes here is taking place today on a physical level, but it is also happening on a spiritual, mental, and emotional level, for not all persecution is physical, and not all persecution is visible to the eye. A lot of persecution is hidden and done in secret, but since it is not physical, it leaves no visible marks to show that one is being persecuted. And so many people who are being persecuted and abused remain silent, because they know that they cannot prove that they are being mistreated. And their abusers count on that, in their pride and in their arrogance.

 

And so the wicked, in this case, definitely exult because they believe that they are getting away with the evil that they are doing to others, for they know that their evil deeds are not provable, like when they do gaslighting, for example, or when they pull tricks on others, or when they say cutting remarks on purpose to injure another person. Now some of this is being done publicly, such as on social media, and so it can be proven, but many people today don’t really care that it is happening, or they will feel the person deserved the abuse. And so not many at all come to the rescue.

 

Now there are the wicked who disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, and so they convince many people to follow them. And they have learned the art of misimpressions in order to deceive naïve minds. Thus, their lies are not really visible, i.e. they aren’t direct lies, but they are indirect lies, if you know what I mean. For an indirect lie can be a willful wrong impression, but it is still a lie. But these lies are harder to prove because they are not direct, for they are all about skillfully and cunningly wording things in such a way that they know they are giving an unprovable misimpression.

 

An Example

 

Let me give you an example that I think I have given before. It was on a meme on social media, and it said, “I like messy people who don’t fit in a box or stay between the lines, but whose integrity is greater than any rule book and whose loyalty is stronger than blood.” And there are some Christians who are liking this meme and who are then sharing it with others. And on a surface read it may appear harmless, but let’s examine the words.

 

Now, are they talking about physically messy people who are disorganized, or are they talking about morally messy people who are living in sin? We don’t know, do we? The thesaurus defines “mess” in this way: chaos, confusion, clutter, disorder. The dictionary says this: “a dirty or untidy state of things.” And dirty has both a physical and a spiritual meaning to it, i.e. it can be speaking of physical dirt or of moral dirt (sin, wickedness, immorality). And the life of a Christian should not be defined as disorderly, chaotic, and in a state of confusion and dirty, although on a physical level it may be.

 

And if someone does not stay between the lines, that also can be on a physical or a spiritual level. For lines can have to do with policies, limits, and boundaries, such as what our Lord sets down for us to have to obey. But then pay close attention to this next line, for it says that this messy person who does not stay between the lines has integrity greater than any rule book. Wow! Do you know that the Bible (the Scriptures) is the Christian’s rule book for life? There are tons of rules even in the New Testament. So, this person’s integrity is greater than that of the Scriptures, they say.

 

Are you following me here? So much deception today is in hidden messages which are inserted inside what appear to be harmless messages. And this is why we have to be so discerning. For this is not the only meme giving out this message. And many people’s sermons are giving out a similar message, as is the “gospel” that many people are preaching today, which are all glorifying sin and wickedness and which are downplaying and criticizing righteousness, holiness, godly living, and obedience to our Lord. Thus, they are cleaning up “dirty” while they are vilifying “clean.”

 

What’s the Result?

 

The result is that the majority of those professing faith in Jesus Christ in America appear to all be accepting a gospel message which does not require death to sin nor living to righteousness. It teaches that we can make a one-time profession of faith in Jesus Christ and now all our sins are forgiven (past, present, and future), and heaven is guaranteed us, but regardless of how we live. And many are teaching against holy living, obedience to the Lord, and the forsaking of our sins (true repentance). So they are turning light for darkness and darkness for light, and the masses believe them.

 

And they are indeed crushing the Lord’s true servants and messengers for they are vilifying them and the truth of the gospel by calling them legalistic, teachers of works salvation (or Lordship salvation) and those who are judgmental, unloving, and not caring about the people. And believe me when I say that many people are buying into their lies. Yet, if we read the Scriptures in their context we will see that they teach death to sin and walks of obedience to the Lord as required for salvation and for eternal life with God, and as essential elements of true God-given faith in Jesus Christ.

 

And since these liars and deceivers have been getting away with their lies and deceptions for a long while now, in their arrogance they may be presuming that God does not see and that he does not perceive their wrongdoing. And they may even conclude that some of his servants, too, who are remaining silent in some areas because they cannot prove what they know to be outright deception, because the lies are indirect, not direct. Like I can’t prove that the meme I quoted is a willful misimpression, but I think the part about having integrity greater than any rule book says it.

 

[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

 

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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