Monthly Archives: June 2021

Essays and Thoughts, National Issues

It’s not about Trump

26 Comments

I’m going to make some partially true statements.  They are not false, but they are only partially true because they are incomplete statements.  But I need to say them in that way for now.  We’ll revisit them after I explain and I’ll make them complete at the end.

It’s not about Trump.  It’s not about politics.  It’s not even about America.

I couldn’t figure out why I hadn’t heard from God on the state of our nation since the theatrical farce of an inauguration on January 20.  What I’ve learned is the Lord wouldn’t bring me discernment on it because my focus would have stayed on that, and that’s not where my focus should be.  And the message I received from Him was:

“It’s not about Trump.  It’s not about politics.  It’s not even about America.  It’s about Me.”

It is about a cosmic war that has been ramping up for millennia.  It is about a promise made.  It is about some names (most of which we cannot pronounce).

At the risk of sounding cliché, the battle over earth is the epic battle of good versus evil.  Whether Trump is reinstated and the election fraud is exposed, or covid is exposed for the deception to gain world power, or a myriad of other very important issues are resolved or even addressed, all are very important.  But these things are secondary.  They are not most important.

The backdrop for my understanding

Josh 24:14-15  (NASU)

 “Now, therefore, fear the Lord and serve Him in sincerity and truth; and put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord.  If it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served which were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

This is part of that admonition Joshua gave when he told the Israelites to choose:  God or gods. 

To be clear, “idol(s)” is found over a hundred times in the Old Testament alone, and not once is it translated from a root word for a deity.  Idol is the image created for projecting worship for a deity.  There was a process they went through to figuratively open the mouth of the inanimate object created to represent the deity they were worshipping.  Idols are inanimate objects.  Gods (little g – gods) are deities, breathing spiritual beings from the Heavenly realm.

Idols are the token expression for worship for the deity.  The deity itself is the god.

There’s a reason the first commandment is exclusive to the worship of the Supreme God, and the second commandment is forbidding creation of idols.  They are not the same thing.  Idols and gods are related but not the same.

Exodus 20:2-5  (NASU)

 I am the Lord [Jehovah, self-existent, eternal] your God [elohiym – god(s), deities], who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

[First Commandment]:  “You shall have no other gods [elohiym – ordinary gods, deities] before Me.”

[Second Commandment]:  “You shall not make for yourself an idol [pecel – graven image], or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth.”

It’s this simple:  There are other deities, other gods.  Don’t worship them.  I, Jehovah, am the Supreme God.  And also, don’t make graven images used to worship other deities.

“Choose this day…” Joshua is not talking about idols here; he’s talking about gods.  These are deities that are worshipped that you and I may call demons or demonic entities.  The god of the Ammonites was/is called Moloch.  Where have we heard that before?  Ah yes, here are a few places….

The martyr Stephen quoted Amos (5:25) when he discoursed the plight of the hardened hearts of the Israelites and how they “carried their pagan gods, the shrine of Moloch, the star of your god Rephan” in Acts 7:43.  According to Stephen, the Israelites worshipped these gods during the forty years in the wilderness.  Joshua addressed this and said:  choose.  Will it be gods of the other nations or God of Israel?

The nations of the world rejected the God of creation in lieu of the sons of God who came down and enticed them to sin against the Creator.  Their corruption of the earth was so great God chose to destroy it, saving only Noah and his family for their righteousness. 

It would only be a short time before the same fate awaited the world again, to borrow from Tolkien, “but the hearts of men are easily corrupted.”  Out of another perverse and corrupt population God would select Abram to create a nation exclusive to Him.  He would use Abram, later named Abraham, to select a bloodline that would become a nation that worshipped God and not the gods.  They would be the example for the world of a people separated unto their Creator.  While it began as a bloodline, any one could join this group of people if they believed the same.

This was such a big deal.  Stay with me, because it’s why God has been silent with me about current national events.  Because of Abraham’s devoted loyalty to the true God, God would covenant with him a promise that we may not be able to fully comprehend this side of Heaven.  God said He would make nations out of Abraham’s seed. 

Plural. 

Nations.

God said Abraham’s seed would possess the gates of their enemies.  God reiterated that promise to Abraham’s son Isaac, and to Isaac’s son Jacob. 

Surely you know?  Have you not heard?

And from the Pentateuch, to the Book of Jasher and the Book of Jubilee, we are told a story of a people group that defeated armies more vast and numerous than they, more superior in might and strength, larger, stronger, more numerous, and fierce. 

Each time the odds were against them, each time they were surrounded – flanked on all sides with no escape, each time they were ambushed or tricked, they called upon God and were delivered.  Why?  Because He made a promise to Abraham and Isaac and Jacob.

Every face-off the sons of Abraham had with a king or pharaoh, they gave fair warning by making known to that king or pharaoh like this:  “Do you not know, O King?  Have you not heard?”  And they would tell of the deeds of their God.  They were near death on countless occasions and yet the God of Israel time and again delivered His people from impossible situations and scenarios.

Abraham took 318 men of his household in pursuit of five kings and their armies and defeated them all to save his nephew from slavery.

Two men, Simeon and Levi, put a whole city to the sword when its prince defiled their sister.  And when the seven Amorite kings with their armies came out to destroy Jacob’s family because of this, the sons of Jacob and their servants strapped on their weapons and went out to meet them.  Judah exhorted his brothers and Jacob called out to God to deliver them.  The kings turned from their ambitions and left Jacob’s family in peace.

But that’s not all!  Genesis does not cover all of the battles Jacob and his sons encountered.  The Book of Jasher, (chapters 37-40), recounts that the kings of Canaan waged war on Jacob and his sons.  They gathered seven kings with their armies to slay the sons of Jacob and the fighting went on for six days of battles.  Jacob and ten of his sons (Benjamin was too young and Joseph was in prison in Egypt) with their 112 servants defeated seven kings and their armies, and destroyed seven cities, putting them all to the sword.  The blood that flowed from the city of Gaash was described as a brook of water and was seen for miles away.

Each battle was different and there were times there was certain defeat and even death for the sons of Jacob, and yet, Jacob would lift up his voice and cry out to God and remind Him of His promise to him and his father and grandfather. 

Do you not know?  Have you not heard?  Surely you know!

The story isn’t over.  The story is still being written.  It has little to do with a flurry of actors calling the shots on planet earth, and everything to do with the God and gods. 

In every generation, at every turn, God moves on behalf of His promises.  He only requires a person to agree with Him. 

I’ve heard the rumors of Chinese armies being raised up against us.  I’ve speculated they’ve already placed them in strategic places and employed mercenaries.  I know about the Russian fleet off the coast of Hawaii.  I know there are no less than a couple dozen very real threats against the United States and our American liberties, from both within and without. 

But we have two things going for us that have nothing to do with the idiots in our government, or the players in motion.  We serve the God of Abraham, and we are co-heirs with THE son of God.  We are recipients of both the Abrahamic covenant and also Christ’s covenant. 

So at the end of the day….

This has nothing to do with Trump or politics or even America.  God has been silent with me to make sure I don’t make it about those things.  Those things have a place and we’ll address that, but it is not primary.

The gods of this world, the demonic entities, the sons of God who defected – however you want to phrase it – have infiltrated just about every aspect of American culture and the world systems.  They worship their gods in their words and deeds, both public and private.  Look at the infiltration of the social constructs.  The entertainment industry has led the way in reversing old standards and bringing in the perverse that their gods require.  It is considered quite cool now to bow at the feet of deities of sexual perversion, gender mutilation, pedophilia, violence, idolatry, selfishness, and everything in 2 Timothy 3.

The gods of this world have taken their places against the Supreme God.  They’ve even infiltrated His own people and the lands He has given them.  They’ve corrupted the leadership and they’ve corrupted the populace.  The symbols of their allegiance are prevalent across our society. 

This is what it’s going to take

And it will be scoffed by a lot of people.  I don’t care.  I know what I know. 

We take it on in every battleground, every community, every home, and every venue. 

We defy the gods of the world and we align with the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

The coming days, weeks, months and years will be battleground after battleground on issues wide and varied.  So whether we’re facing school boards or county commissions, state or federal legislators, law enforcement authorities, rock stars or movie stars, or whoever, fight with courage and solidarity with God.  Ultimately, we cannot lose.  We represent the Supreme God and His purposes for the earth.

The election matters.  The fraud and corruption matter.  But we don’t tackle it from that angle.  We’ve been trying that for years and how has that worked out for us?

And while I’m a strong advocate for prayer, we don’t just sit home and pray either.  There are giants in our land, and they want our destruction.  We have to fight.  Be forewarned, the institutional church will be one of our larger obstacles, may even become an adversary.  (More on that another day.)

About that promise…

Remember how Daniel was a prophet to Judah?  So his messages were to the Jews?  Well Hosea was a prophet to Israel (the ten tribes of the northern nation), and he prophesied about Israel (NOT Judah) from 750-722 B.C. 

Hosea 1:10 tells us the children of Israel will become “as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or numbered.”  This is a promise from God to Abraham.  (Gen. 22:17)  Hosea is prophesying that the children of Israel will be as the sands of the sea, a reiteration of the Abrahamic covenant, but still for a future time.

Now look at the rest of Hosea 1:10:  “and it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said to them, you are not my people, there it shall be said to them, you are the sons of the living God.”  This is a fascinating prophecy because it tells us two specific things:  the Israelites would become a numerous and vast people, and they would be unknown as Israelites. Regardless, they will be called the sons of God.

In Hosea 2:19-20 God declares this lost and scattered people will become His bride.  He goes on in verse 23 to tell us He is going to sow Israel (scatter) across the earth, and that these people will not be known as His people, and yet they will be His people.

Amos 9:9 reiterates that God will scatter His people Israel among the nations, yet they will not fall.

Recall that Jacob took Joseph’s two sons Ephraim and Manasseh as his own, and he gave them the birthright.  One was to become a “multitude of nations” and the other a great people.  (Gen. 48:19)  However angry God was with Ephraim, and while they would pay the consequences of their waywardness given in Lev. 26 (“I will scatter you among the heathen”), in Hosea 11:8-9, God is unwilling to destroy them. 

Hosea 7:8 tells us Ephraim mixed himself among the people of the earth, and that only half his story had been written (“a cake not turned” is half-baked).  Then Hosea 11:10 tells us the children of Israel will tremble from the west.  (west of the Holy Land)

The woman of Revelation 12 is undisputedly Israel.  Revelation 12 is a historical account of God’s salvation to His people covering a broad range of time and events.  The woman Israel was given two wings of a great eagle to fly into the wilderness (a place away from the commerce of the world) and she would be nourished for a time, times, and a half, which is a 2500 year period.  (Write me if you need me to explain this.)

Even if the 2500 years from Israel’s exile (725-722 B.C.) to America’s independence in 1776 is incidental, the people migrations have already been traced and the namesake tribes of Joseph can be traced to America and England.  America , not known as Israelites, are still known as the children of God (as a Christian nation). 

We are the seed of Abraham dispersed among the nations.  We are the children of God by adoption through Christ.  (Galatians 3:26)  America is a nation from both the Abrahamic Covenant and the Messianic Covenant.  When you know that, it changes everything. 

God will defend His people in the land He gave them because of His promise to Abraham.  It’s not about Trump or American politics.  It’s about God and His promises, and the sooner we realize that and stand on that, the sooner we’ll secure the victory over our enemies.  I will expound on this more in the days to come.

Essays and Thoughts, Things I've Learned Along the Way

musings on grace

4 Comments

Of particular grief to me is the people I run into who cannot see God as He is because of the errors of His people and even their teachings.  I have been one of those on both ends.  I have been one who could not see God because of His people, and I am one who has hindered others from seeing God because of my mistakes in life and teaching.  The latter grieves me far greater.

Upon reading an excerpt from Michael Heiser’s book The Unseen Realm, I was moved by an experience I had with God fifteen years ago. 

The struggle I was having was an area in my life I was worried I was not in perfect obedience to God.  I worried I was in sin because of a particular scenario I kept being placed in.  I had been crying out to God for months to help me understand where I was, and where I needed to be.

Fifteen years ago, I had the following dream:

I was in a building that I knew to be a church with the name of Grace.  It was a huge complex, and I was wandering around because I wanted to get back to my hotel room.  I thought I could walk through this church (because it took up many city blocks) to get back to my hotel; but the church just kept going and going and going.  I wandered from floor to floor, through corridor after corridor.  I kept thinking I would follow the building around and down the blocks to my hotel, and then get to my hotel so I could get to my room.  But it kept going on and on and I kept walking on and on. 

In one large room there was a group practicing for a drama.  Down a hallway were doors after doors of ministry offices.  There were lobbies and foyers spread throughout and people milling here and there.  Finally, after walking for a long, long time, I was wondering if I’d ever reach the end so I could get out and get to my hotel.  I approached a fellow who was with a handful of other people in a foyer, and asked him if he’d show me how to get out so I could get to my hotel room. I heard myself tell him my room was 411.  He led me to an outside entry door and pointed to a row of buildings before me that looked like warehouse docks.  He pointed directly to one particular building and said, “See that building O?”  And there was an “O” marked on the building by the door.  He said to go through that building and out the opposite doorway.  When I got out, I was to reenter Grace at the nearest entry, and my hotel room was in that door.

The hotel was actually part of the church.

When I awoke, I began talking with God.  I had been telling Him over the past several months (as I was walking through this strange scenario that I was trying to discern), that I felt lost.  He spoke to me as I awoke, and said, “While you’ve felt like you were lost, you were lost in My grace.  You’ve never left My grace, Michelle.”

It was then that I realized God’s grace is vastly larger than anything we can imagine.  It goes on and on.  There are compartments and areas we know nothing about until we stumble upon or into them.  His grace is enormous.  Even when I felt like I had gone outside of the church grounds, I had not. 

Staying in a hotel indicated a temporary place for me.  Even in that temporary place, I was within His grace.  I have never forgotten that dream.  At times when I worry that I’ve strayed, haven’t held the straight and narrow, haven’t been abandoned to my Lord, I am reminded of my dream.  The vastness of His grace is beyond our understanding. 

God often speaks to me in numbers and symbols.  The hotel room being 411 was a message for me.  The building titled “O” was a message for me.  These messages help me understand God’s character, help me understand things in my life or circumstances, etc.  That particular year, and even years after, I had dreams of multiples of four.  I also had numerous encounters with eleven.  And sometimes I had them both together, as 411.  This was a personal message to me.  Numbers can mean different things depending on the context, and I had to seek God for years to understand what He was showing me over and over with this. 

I also knew the O was significant.  The building I was to enter was called O, and the door I was to go through was labeled O.  I searched for six years for the understanding for the O before I found it.  It happened when I was prompted to buy a book that broke up the books of the Bible and aligned them with the letters of the Hebrew alphabet.  As I was reading this book, six years later, I read the following:

“In the Bible of Alard, the initial Letter of the Song of Songs is the “O” of the Latin phrase OSCVLETVR ME (Let him kiss me). It is drawn much larger than most illuminated Letters, taking up almost the entire width of the text column. The scribe filled the remaining vertical space with the rest of the first two words. Though it is hard to see in the reproduction, the two figures are labeled with the abbreviations XRS (Christus = Christ) and ECCLA (Ecclesia = Church). Christ covers His Bride with His cloak and their cheeks are intimately pressed together at the exact center of the tri-radiant halo so they share the Sign of Deity, suggesting the full presence of Christ in His Church and the fulfillment of God’s promise to make all believers “partakers in the Divine nature” (2 Pet 1:4). I have little doubt the scribe thought it providential the initial “O” naturally accommodated an optimal representation of the union of Christ with His Bride embracing within an unbroken circle like a wedding ring. “

[The Bible of Alard is an illuminated manuscript of the Latin Vulgate from the eleventh century.  Eleventh century caught my attention.]  Here is the accompanying symbol O for the Song of Songs:

This is part of the reason I love God so much.  He weaves the present with the past and even the future, with full knowledge of our inmost being.  He knew I would be in a crucible of sorts in 2006, but would not have the understanding for the O until 2012.  So He gave me what I needed at that point (2006), but then prepared me over the next few years for understanding the building that I was specifically to enter:  the union of Christ with His Bride, and the intimacy of a bridegroom with his bride (let him kiss me…). 

Entering through the door of intimacy would lead me ultimately back to my room:  411, which is a story and message God has been steadily weaving throughout my life for fifteen years now, and of which I have only received parts of the whole. 

I share this because the world and the institutional church have done a grave disservice to the character of God.  We who are children of God, who wrestle against the flesh to achieve unity with Christ, have been misled to think we can somehow lose our position in Christ by mere sin or disobedience.  What a lie!  What a shame that this is something held over us, like a weight encumbering our very liberty of movement. 

Look at what John G. Lake said in his sermon “Reign as Kings”:

“This thing I am teaching you about our union with God is not known in the great body of Christians.  All they have is forgiveness of sin.  There is no actual union with God.  They do not know that the new birth is a real incarnation.  They do not know that they are as much the sons and daughters of God Almighty as Jesus is.  The great body of the Christian Church has no dominion, does not know it.  They have the most befogged concept of what God has done and what God is to them, and what they are to God.”

Nine years after the revelation of the O, God would give me the revelation of the 411.  I’m still sorting through that revelation.

I end quoting Michael Heiser, because it is the full circle for me on the liberating truth of God’s unfathomable grace.  May it set you free as it has me.

“The history of Israel’s kings illustrates the point.  King David was guilty of the worst of crimes against humanity in the incident with Bathsheba and Uriah the Hittite (2 Sam 11).  He was clearly in violation of the law and deserving of death.  Nevertheless, his belief in who Yahweh was among all gods never wavered.  God was merciful to him, sparing him from death, though his sin had consequences for the rest of his life.  But there was no doubt that David was ever a believer in Yahweh and never worshiped another.  Yet other kings of Israel and Judah were tossed aside and both kingdoms sent into exile – because they worshiped other gods.  Personal failure, even of the worst kind, did not send the nation into exile.  Choosing other gods did.

“The same is true in the New Testament.  Believe the gospel means believing that Yahweh, the God of Israel, came to earth incarnated as a man, voluntarily died on the cross as a sacrifice for our sin, and rose again on the third day.  That is the content of our faith this side of the cross.  Our believing loyalty is demonstrated by our obedience to “the law of Christ” (1 Cor 9:21; Gal 6:2).  We cannot worship another.  Salvation means believing loyalty to Christ, who was and is the visible Yahweh.  There is no salvation in any other name (Acts 4:12), and faith must remain intact (Rom 11:17-24; Heb 3:19; 10:22, 38-39).  Personal failure is not the same as trading Jesus for another god – and God knows that.”

Our faith in God through Christ is the only prerequisite for being found in His perfect grace.  Trials, circumstances, even sin, do not expunge our position in grace, because it is found in the person of Christ.  If our faith is in Christ and Yahweh, and we have no other gods, we need not fear that we are lost in any capacity.  His Grace is able to keep us.