God's Truth In Love

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How Do We Make Godly Decisions? – Study of Proverbs 12:10 Animal Treatment

In Abuse, Animal Treatment, Behavior, Bible Study, Biblical Principles, Christian Lifestyle, Christian Living, Cruelty, Decision Making, Decisions, Devotional, Godliness, Proverbs, Uncategorized on January 31, 2024 at 5:50 pm

The Scripture passages are identified with bold upright font and the author’s notes are identified with italic regular font.

Note – All words or phrases found in quotation marks are actual parts of the Hebrew or Greek definition(s).

10 A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast: but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel.

Animal Treatment

Wickedness has no concept for true compassion, mercy and love. Godliness understands the importance and need of all three for people and all living creatures.

Let us get the worst over with first by examining the word cruel.

“cruel” in the Hebrew is defined as:

394. אַכְזָרִי ˒akzârı̂y, ak-zaw-ree’; from 393; terrible:— cruel (one).

393. אַכְזָר ˒akzâr, ak-zawr’; from an unused root (appar. mean. to act harshly); violent; by impl. deadly; also (in a good sense) brave:— cruel, fierce.

The wicked, their ideas of ‘mercy are cruelty’ yet they know it not. They are often blinded by Satan. Wicked people often harm animals. One of the key traits, psychology claims, of a serial killer is that when they were young, they harmed or even killed animals. How horrid!

When you look at what it means to “regardeth” and animal you see where the need for care, love, mercy, and instruction come in.

“regardeth” in the Hebrew language is defined as:

3045. יָדַע yâda˓, yaw-dah’; a prim. root; to know (prop. to ascertain by seeing); used in a great variety of senses, fig., lit., euphem. and infer. (incl. observation, care, recognition; and caus. instruction, designation, punishment, etc.) [as follow]:— acknowledge, acquaintance (-ted with), advise, answer, appoint, assuredly, be aware, [un-] awares, can [-not], certainly, for a certainty, comprehend, consider, × could they, cunning, declare, be diligent, (can, cause to) discern, discover, endued with, familiar friend, famous, feel, can have, be [ig-] norant, instruct, kinsfolk, kinsman, (cause to, let, make) know, (come to give, have, take) knowledge, have [knowledge], (be, make, make to be, make self) known, + be learned, + lie by man, mark, perceive, privy to, × prognosticator, regard, have respect, skilful, shew, can (man of) skill, be sure, of a surety, teach, (can) tell, understand, have [understanding], × will be, wist, wit, wot.

Godly people understand their responsibility to give “care, recognition, instruction, and punishment” where needed to the animals in their care. That dog or cat we love is a “familiar friend” to us, but one who must be corrected when they potty on the rug. In order to train an animal correctly we must have a “kinsman” type relationship with them meaning we “know” them, we “have knowledge of and have understanding” of their temperament, needs, strengths, and weaknesses. A farmer will tell you that all of this is very necessary to get the maximum amount of productivity from their animals.

All living creatures are created by God for a purpose. Let us both respect their purpose and their existence for the length of their life. ++end++

All content generated by a human being, 100%, no AI. 

Throughout this study, if you need the wisdom of God on a matter, and you wish to receive the counsel of another Believer in Christ, please use the “comments” link to send your question to me.

Spiritual/Political Disclaimer:

This blog will not be for the faint of heart or the easily offended. It will not be in any way politically correct. It will make every effort to share the truth in love, [Ephesians 4:11-16], to a decaying and dying society and church. I share what I share not to hurt, harm, or offend any person[s] or group; I do it because Christ’s Standard and Truth is not being represented by enough of His Followers, and I do it out of love. I love enough to tell His Truth.

Ephesians 4:11-16 NKJV

11And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

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How Do We Make Godly Decisions? – Study of Proverbs 12:9 Popularity or Prosperity

In Advice, Attitude, Behavior, Bible Study, Biblical Principles, Change, Choices, Christian Lifestyle, Christian Living, Decision Making, Decisions, Devotional, Godliness, Godly Counsel, Guidance, Honor, Humility, Lifestyle, Pride, Proverbs, Renewal, Righteous, Righteous Living, Righteousness, Uncategorized on January 8, 2024 at 4:19 pm

The Scripture passages are identified with bold upright font and the author’s notes are identified with italic regular font.

Note – All words or phrases found in quotation marks are actual parts of the Hebrew or Greek definition(s).

9 He that is despised, and hath a servant, is better than he that honoureth himself, and lacketh bread.

Popularity or Prosperity

This is a very interesting verse that seems somewhat out of place, but we know with the Word of God there is no such thing.

First, it must be pointed out that in the Hebrew definition of the word “despised” there is an implied meaning and a figurative meaning. The word means both to be a person who is “light and in rapid motion” and also a person “held in contempt” who “seems vile” to other people. A godly person would fit both of those categories.

A godly person is going to be a “light” to the world around them. They are also going to be a person who is “in rapid motion” working to care for their family. They are not going to be lazy or a slacker. Being both a “light” in a dark world and a person “in rapid motion” to provide for your family will make you “despised” by a world growing more and more evil and distorted each day. However, it will also cause the blessings of God to rain down on you where you do not lack for the important things in life and may well also prosper to the point where having a “servant” is a part of your life.

This is a far better life than the “entitled person” who thinks life owes them, without their doing much of anything – the self-important person – those who “honoureth” themselves, usually because no one else does or should for that matter. These people lack for almost everything in life including “bread” or food to eat.

Haughtiness, pride, is a horrible sin that God absolutely hates. Many believe pride to be the very first sin, and it was in a way. Pride can typically be found at the root of every sin or every problem with other people in life. Test this theory and see if after you peel away all the various layers at the core of the issue if pride cannot be found.

Humility, God and godliness is the better choice in every circumstance over Haughtiness, Satan, and sin. Your life will be better the quicker you realize this in life.

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All content generated by a human being, 100%, no AI. 

Throughout this study, if you need the wisdom of God on a matter, and you wish to receive the counsel of another Believer in Christ, please use the “comments” link to send your question to me.

Spiritual/Political Disclaimer:

This blog will not be for the faint of heart or the easily offended. It will not be in any way politically correct. It will make every effort to share the truth in love, [Ephesians 4:11-16], to a decaying and dying society and church. I share what I share not to hurt, harm, or offend any person[s] or group; I do it because Christ’s Standard and Truth is not being represented by enough of His Followers, and I do it out of love. I love enough to tell His Truth.

Ephesians 4:11-16 NKJV

11And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

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Movie "The Shift"

In Apostasy, Biblical Principles, Change, Choices, Christian Lifestyle, Christian Living, Christianity, Decision Making, Decisions, Demon, Demon Possession, End Times, End-times, Evil, Godliness, Left Behind, Mental Illness, Movie - The Shift, Obedience, Renewal, Repentance, Righteous Living, Satan, Suffering, Trust, Uncategorized on December 2, 2023 at 4:27 pm

Movie "The Shift"

Okay guys another movie review and recommendation for Christians and all people. Again, another movie that on the surface you would not think it is a Christian themed movie but it absolutely is Christian.

The trailer for the movie seems to be very odd but it truly is a good movie and well done. I am going to provide you with just a few bullet points about the movie because I do not want to give away any of the plot.

† Job – Modern day take on the book of and biblical character of Job.

† Trials – An examination of what it truly means to go through trials in our lives.

† Choices – An examination of the effects of our choices on our life and our very existence.

† Movie Type – Sci-fi version of end times, a disguised Christian movie meant to look secular, with a love story thrown in.

† Suffering – God revealed in suffering.

† Characteristics – The power of selfishness and selflessness.

The Shift… The last sentence of the film.

"This is not my world but this is my home."

Spiritual/Political Disclaimer:

This blog will not be for the faint of heart or the easily offended. It will not be in any way politically correct. It will make every effort to share the truth in love, [Ephesians 4:11-16], to a decaying and dying society and church. I share what I share not to hurt, harm, or offend any person[s] or group; I do it because Christ’s Standard and Truth is not being represented by enough of His Followers, and I do it out of love. I love enough to tell His Truth.

Ephesians 4:11-16 NKJV

11And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

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How Do We Make Godly Decisions? – Study of Proverbs 12:5-8, 12-13 Righteousness vs. Evil

In Authority, Behavior, Biblical Principles, Christian Lifestyle, Christian Living, Christianity, Decision Making, Evil, Holiness, Lifestyle, Obedience, Proverbs, Prudence, Renewal, Revival, Righteous Living, Righteousness, Sanctification, Uncategorized on October 14, 2023 at 12:50 pm

The Scripture passages are identified with bold upright font and the author’s notes are identified with italic regular font.

Note – All words or phrases found in quotation marks are actual parts of the Hebrew or Greek definition(s).

5 The thoughts of the righteous are right: but the counsels of the wicked are deceit.

6 The words of the wicked are to lie in wait for blood: but the mouth of the upright shall deliver them.

7 The wicked are overthrown, and are not: but the house of the righteous shall stand.

8 A man shall be commended according to his wisdom: but he that is of a perverse heart shall be despised.

12 The wicked desireth the net of evil men: but the root of the righteous yieldeth fruit.

13 The wicked is snared by the transgression of his lips: but the just shall come out of trouble.

Righteousness vs. Evil

In these verses the meaning as far as application to life is fairly straightforward. It is in an in-depth look at the definitions for the words in this verse that the nuggets of spiritual gold are found.

Hebrew definition for:

v. 5 “wicked”

7563. רָשָׁע râshâ˓, raw-shaw’; from 7561; morally wrong; concr. an (actively) bad person:— + condemned, guilty, ungodly, wicked (man), that did wrong.

The fact that “morally wrong” is part of the Hebrew definition indicates that there is a moral standard. We as Christians know this to be true, but the world, and some people who say they are Christians, indicate that there is no concrete moral standard. They are wrong! God has clearly laid out a moral standard for humanity and there are consequences for not following that Standard and blessings for doing so.

Note that the definition states that the “wicked” persons referred to here are those who are, “an actively bad person” not a person who sins at times or does wrong on occasion. None of us are perfect and we are going to sin at times, though we do not have to do so habitually thanks to the freeing power of Jesus, but we are not a person who actively seeks to do wrong or is comfortable with doing wrong. There is an element of being “condemned” that comes with being “an actively bad person” or someone deemed to be a “wicked” person.

Hebrew definition for:

v. 5 “deceit”

4820. מִרְמָה mirmâh, meer-maw’; from 7411 in the sense of deceiving; fraud:— craft, deceit (-ful, -fully), false, feigned, guile, subtilly, treachery.

7411. רָמָה râmâh, raw-maw’; a prim. root; to hurl; spec. to shoot; fig. to delude or betray (as if causing to fall):— beguile, betray, [bow-] man, carry, deceive, throw.

Wicked people are filled with “deceit” and they seek to deceive other people. Where you find a deceitful person you find Satan, the Father of Lies (John 8:44), deep at work. They cannot and should not be trusted because they are “feigned” (insincere or pretend) people. Deceitful people will always bring hurt to your life.

Hebrew definition for:

v.6 “upright”

3477. יָשָׁר yâshâr, yaw-shawr’; from 3474; straight (lit. or fig.):— convenient, equity, Jasher, just, meet (-est), + pleased well right (-eous), straight, (most) upright (-ly, -ness).

3474. יָשַׁר yâshar, yaw-shar’; a prim. root; to be straight or even; fig. to be (caus. to make) right, pleasant, prosperous:— direct, fit, seem good (meet), + please (will), be (esteem, go) right (on), bring (look, make, take the) straight (way), be upright (-ly).

Hebrew definition for:

v.6 “deliver”

5337. נָצַל nâtsal, naw-tsal’; a prim. root; to snatch away, whether in a good or a bad sense:— × at all, defend, deliver (self), escape, × without fail, part, pluck, preserve, recover, rescue, rid, save, spoil, strip, × surely, take (out)

There is a right way to God in life and that is God’s Way. It is only through following God’s Standards for life that we can fulfill life in a meaningful way, in the way God intended. When we follow God’s Way for our life, He then delivers us in our time of need or distress. Following God’s path for our life makes our life “prosperous” as well. Note that to be prosperous is not just about money, it is about life, health, godly spirituality, relationships, all the things that make up life. Follow, look to, “the straight way” in life, God’s Way.

I want to focus in on the “deliver” aspect of verse six. Have you ever had God remove something from your life you did not want removed? There are times when God will “snatch away” something or someone from our life and at the time it appears to be a horrible thing to have happen to us. We definitely in these times view the snatching away as being done in “a bad sense” at least from our LIMITED perspective. Yet, after we wait a while, maybe years, we finally see that God in the snatching away of what we viewed as important or precious, was instead actually us being delivered by God from something or someone that did not need to be in our life, or that had its season for our life, was now over, yet, we had not yet let go of it, so God snatched it away. Whatever or whomever from which God sees to “deliver” us, is intended for the purpose to “preserve, recover, rescue, rid, save, or defend” our life in accordance with God’s Will. Trust God’s deliverance.

Hebrew definition for:

v.7 “overthrown”

2015. הָפַךְ hâphak, haw-fak’; a prim. root; to turn about or over; by impl. to change, overturn, return, pervert:— × become, change, come, be converted, give, make [a bed], overthrow (-turn), perverse, retire, tumble, turn (again, aside, back, to the contrary, every way).

It is the destiny of the wicked to be “overthrown” at some point and time. Perhaps, even to the point where they will “be converted” to God’s Way of life. When God makes your life “tumble” it is quite the tumbling, and life is never again the same.

On the other hand the life “of the righteous shall stand” thanks to God.

Hebrew definition for:

v.7 “stand”

5975. עָמַד ˓âmad, aw-mad’; a prim. root; to stand, in various relations (lit. and fig., intr. and tran.):— abide (behind), appoint, arise, cease, confirm, continue, dwell, be employed, endure, establish, leave, make, ordain, be [over], place, (be) present (self), raise up, remain, repair, + serve, set (forth, over, -tle, up), (make to, make to be at a, with-) stand (by, fast, firm, still, up), (be at a) stay (up), tarry.

The absolute greatest security in the world and in the world to come is a relationship with Jesus the Christ.

Hebrew definition for:

V.8 “commended”

1984. הָלַל hâlal, haw-lal’; a prim. root; to be clear (orig. of sound, but usually of color); to shine; hence, to make a show, to boast; and thus to be (clamorously) foolish; to rave; caus. to celebrate; also to stultify:— (make) boast (self), celebrate, commend, (deal, make), fool (-ish, -ly), glory, give [light], be (make, feign self) mad (against), give in marriage, [sing, be worthy of] praise, rage, renowned, shine.

Note that in this definition there is both positive and negative meaning. Since a person is “commended according to his wisdom” positive and negative would have to apply. “According to” indicate a degree and type of commending. For the godly wise this would mean they are “renowned” – “they shine” – people “sing their praise” – their wisdom is “cause to celebrate” for themselves and other people – they bring “glory” to God the giver of their wisdom. For those who lack in wisdom they too are “commended” for their lack of wisdom – they ”boast and thus tend to be clamorously foolish” – they show they are a “fool” – people tend to “rage” against them instead of praising them.

The wicked cannot give godly wisdom because their heart is “perverse” and not seeking the heart, will, and mind of Christ. This leads to them ultimately being “despised” by people, hence the “rage” people feel against them.

The wicked are their own worst enemy for they are “snared by the transgression” of their own life, their own “lips” not by other people.

Hebrew definition for:

v.13 “transgression”

6588. פֶּשַׁע pesha˓, peh’-shah; from 6586; a revolt (national, moral, or religious):— rebellion, sin, transgression, trespass.

6586. פָּשַׁע pâsha˓, paw-shah’; a prim. root [rather ident. with 6585 through the idea of expansion]; to break away (from just authority), i.e. trespass, apostatize, quarrel:— offend, rebel, revolt, transgress (-ion, -or).

Wicked people choose to rebel against God, to reject Christ, to live in “revolt – morally and religiously” on a daily basis. They have chosen “to break away from just authority” the authority of God, their Creator.

However, “the just shall come out of trouble” thanks to God. Note that it does not say they will never enter trouble or have trouble, what it says is that they “shall come out of trouble” and they shall, every single time.

++end++

All content generated by a human being, 100%, no AI. 

Throughout this study, if you need the wisdom of God on a matter, and you wish to receive the counsel of another Believer in Christ, please use the “comments” link to send your question to me.

You can sign up to have each blog posting sent directly to your email. Just find the “follow” button on the bottom of the main page, then enter your email address. All email information remains confidential and is never shared in any manner.

Spiritual/Political Disclaimer:

This blog will not be for the faint of heart or the easily offended. It will not be in any way politically correct. It will make every effort to share the truth in love, [Ephesians 4:11-16], to a decaying and dying society and church. I share what I share not to hurt, harm, or offend any person[s] or group; I do it because Christ’s Standard and Truth is not being represented by enough of His Followers, and I do it out of love. I love enough to tell His Truth.

Ephesians 4:11-16 NKJV

11And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

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How Do We Make Godly Decisions? – Study of Proverbs 12:3 Roots Only Grow In One Soil

In Behavior, Biblical Principles, Christian Lifestyle, Christian Living, Decision Making, Decisions, Disobedience, Evil, Proverbs, Repentance, Righteous Living, Righteousness, Sanctification, Spiritual Change, Spiritual Fruit, Truth, Uncategorized, Wickedness, Wisdom on September 6, 2023 at 3:10 pm

The Scripture passages are identified with bold upright font and the author’s notes are identified with italic regular font.

Note – All words or phrases found in quotation marks are actual parts of the Hebrew or Greek definition(s).

3 A man shall not be established by wickedness: but the root of the righteous shall not be moved.

Roots Only Grow In One Soil

When we think of trying to secure ourselves, our life, our reputation, etc., we are thinking about something that in the long run of life only God can do. Security that we produce is only an illusion, then one day it is gone. Security God produces holds. We do however play a part in allowing God to secure our life for us, and that part is what we will explore here.

“established” in the Hebrew language is defined as:

3559. כּוּן kûwn, koon; a prim. root; prop. to be erect (i.e. stand perpendicular); hence, (caus.) to set up, in a great variety of applications, whether lit. (establish, fix, prepare, apply), or fig. (appoint, render sure, proper or prosperous):— certain (-ty), confirm, direct, faithfulness, fashion, fasten, firm, be fitted, be fixed, frame, be meet, ordain, order, perfect, (make) preparation, prepare (self), provide, make provision, (be, make) ready, right, set (aright, fast, forth), be stable , (e-) stablish, stand, tarry, × very deed.

Wow, right! What incredible and in-depth meaning there is to the word established. It literally covers every aspect of human life. It is no wonder man cannot do it himself/herself but instead it requires an act of God in concert with an individual.

No form of wickedness will ever help a person truly reach a point of this type of security, as found in what it means to be “established” by God’s standard. We have seen this played out in society time and time again. A person is riding high by the world’s standards, has fame, plenty of fortune, then one day it is all gone, seemingly overnight. In almost all of these cases there is one common thread, the fame and fortune was almost always acquired through ungodly means, wickedness.

“wickedness” in the Hebrew is defined as:

7562. רֶשַׁע resha˓, reh’-shah; from 7561; a wrong (espec. moral):— iniquity, wicked (-ness).

7561. רָשַׁע râsha˓, raw-shah’; a prim. root; to be (caus. do or declare) wrong; by impl. to disturb, violate:— condemn, make trouble, vex, be (commit, deal, depart, do) wicked (-ly, -ness).

Wickedness is only temporary security, at best. God will never allow it to be anything else. Righteousness on the other hand is another thing.

“righteousness” is defined in the Hebrew language as:

6662. צַדִּיק tsaddı̂yq, tsad-deek’; from 6663; just:— just, lawful, righteous (man).

צִדֹנִי° Tsı̂dônı̂y. See 6722.

6663. צָדַק tsâdaq, tsaw-dak’; a prim. root; to be (caus. make) right (in a moral or forensic sense):— cleanse, clear self, (be, do) just (-ice, -ify, -ify self), (be, turn to) righteous (-ness).

Jesus is the only one who can do that initial “cleanse” of our souls and spirit that is required. He does that through our willingness to humble ourselves to our sinfulness, believe and trust in His sacrificial death on our behalf, our seeking of forgiveness from Him, and our invitation to Him to come into our life, every area of our life, and make us what He wants us to be, what He created us to be. He makes us “morally right” with God the Father.

Jesus “clears us of self” and instead as we allow His Holy Spirit to work in us, He provides the strength needed to live in the “righteousness” He has called each and every one of his children to live in. His strength must be sought before we can “turn to righteousness” in a way that will be successful and long-lasting. What far too many Christians miss is that it is His strength through us, which equals us calling on Him to empower or strengthen us to live as He wants, coupled with us choosing what God deems morally right or “righteous” in each situation.

Jesus’ strength + our choice = righteousness.

That kind of living is a life that is rooted in a way that cannot be uprooted, “moved”, or toppled.

“moved” in the Hebrew language is defined as:

4131. מוֹט môwṭ, mote; a prim. root; to waver; by impl. to slip, shake, fall:— be carried, cast, be out of course, be fallen in decay, × exceedingly, fall (-ing down), be (re-) moved, be ready, shake, slide, slip.

Unlike the life “established by wickedness” those lives whose “root of righteousness’ is Christ, and following God’s Way to live, is a life that will not “be out of course” with God’s Will or one found to “be fallen in decay exceedingly” at any point.

To truly be “established” in life, rooted in a way that cannot be toppled, God must do the establishing and you must choose righteousness, His Way over your own. Who will “establish” you in life, God (righteousness) or self (wickedness)?

Again, Jesus’ strength + our choice = righteousness. ++end++

All content generated by a human being, 100%, no AI. 

Throughout this study, if you need the wisdom of God on a matter, and you wish to receive the counsel of another Believer in Christ, please use the “comments” link to send your question to me.

Spiritual/Political Disclaimer:

This blog will not be for the faint of heart or the easily offended. It will not be in any way politically correct. It will make every effort to share the truth in love, [Ephesians 4:11-16], to a decaying and dying society and church. I share what I share not to hurt, harm, or offend any person[s] or group; I do it because Christ’s Standard and Truth is not being represented by enough of His Followers, and I do it out of love. I love enough to tell His Truth.

Ephesians 4:11-16 NKJV

11And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

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How Do We Make Godly Decisions? – Study of Proverbs 11:30-31 – Who Ends The Game With More

In Actions, Behavior, Biblical Principles, Christian Lifestyle, Christian Living, Decision Making, Decisions, Divine Protection, Evil, Godliness, Lifestyle, Proverbs, Righteous Living, Righteousness, Uncategorized, Wisdom on July 18, 2023 at 4:21 pm

The Scripture passages are identified with bold upright font and the author’s notes are identified with italic regular font.

Note – All words or phrases found in quotation marks are actual parts of the Hebrew or Greek definition(s).

30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise.

31 Behold, the righteous shall be recompensed in the earth: much more the wicked and the sinner.

Who Ends The Game With More

Far too many people look at life as a competition for who can have more, but more of what? For each person having “more” depends on what their heart tells them is important. For some it is simple, like my spouse used to say, ‘If I wake up in the morning it is a blessing from God, anything more I get is extra.’ If everyone could be so grateful to God for life.

As we have explored previously there are many people who obtain what they have through evil, wicked, and ungodly means only to have it all stripped away in an instant.

Righteousness, godliness produces fruit, righteous fruit. That fruit produces a “tree” or as the Hebrew definition includes “a stalk” of life, meaning the evidence or reward manifest in our daily lives (v.30). Let us take a moment to explore this “tree of life” and what “life” includes.

“life” in the Hebrew Language is defined as:

2416. חַי chay, khah’-ee; from 2421; alive; hence, raw (flesh); fresh (plant, water, year), strong; also (as noun, espec. in the fem. sing. and masc. plur.) life (or living thing), whether lit. or fig.:— + age, alive, appetite, (wild) beast, company, congregation, life (-time), live (-ly), living (creature, thing), maintenance, + merry, multitude, + (be) old, quick, raw, running, springing, troop.

2421. חָיָה châyâh, khaw-yaw’; a prim. root [comp. 2331, 2421]; to live, whether lit. or fig.; caus. to revive:— keep (leave, make) alive, × certainly, give (promise) life, (let, suffer to) live, nourish up, preserve (alive), quicken, recover, repair, restore (to life), revive, (× God) save (alive, life, lives), × surely, be whole.

Before I start down the path of writing about what it means to reap the rewards of righteousness through life, let me make this perfectly clear. I do not ascribe to the idea that some “religious, overly charismatic, legalistic people” have that if a person dies young, in middle age, dies some horrible death or due to some horrific illness that there was something wrong in their lives. That is legalistic nonsense that stinks in the nostrils of God. That said, there is biblical foundation for righteousness or righteous living providing people forms of protection and/or rewards. With that stated let us explore the implication of the definition for the word “life” in verse thirty.

There is little doubt that righteous living overall produces a “strong” individual spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and physically. There is longevity of life that often goes with righteous living, as righteous living produces better health and a greater resolve to live. It also produces an “appetite” for life and the “company” or companionship, “congregation” to go along with and fulfill that zest for life. Righteous living is the greatest form of “maintenance” for the body, mind, soul, and emotions, there is absolutely no diet, vitamin, workout routine, etc. that can do a better job. Righteousness creates a “merry” spirit that is filled with joy and hope. A righteous lifestyle is our greatest chance at being “old, quick, and running” in our old age with a ‘spring in our step’ and as a true ‘trooper’ for the Kingdom of God. Righteousness will “preserve, recover, repair, restore, and revive’ us as individuals, our relationships, almost anything in life we encounter. Righteousness makes us to “surely be whole” this side of heaven and in the life to come, as the righteousness of Jesus imputed to us gives us a way “to live, whether literally or figuratively” in this life and will “cause us to revive” in the next life.

Who would not want people to have the type of life that was just described. Our hearts should burst at the opportunity to ‘win souls for Christ’ whenever possible. It is certainly a fruit of righteousness and an incredibly “wise” thing to do (v.30).

Righteous people have a reward not only in heaven, but they also have “recompense” right here and now while they are alive on the earth (v.31), as “earth” and world mean the same thing in this verse. World is part of the Hebrew definition for earth. Therefore, let us explore further what the righteous have to look forward to in the here and now.

“recompensed” in the Hebrew Language means the following:

7999. שָׁלַם shâlam, shaw-lam’; a prim. root; to be safe (in mind, body or estate); fig. to be (caus. make) completed; by impl. to be friendly; by extens. to reciprocate (in various applications):— make amends, (make an) end, finish, full, give again, make good, (re-) pay (again), (make) (to) (be at) peace (-able), that is perfect, perform, (make) prosper (-ous), recompense, render, requite, make restitution, restore, reward, × surely.

They can expect “to be safe” in their “mind, body, and estate” – estate being belongings, possessions, etc. They are “completed” in the spiritual realm and that completeness permeates their inner being, their spirit, their heart, and their soul. They tend “to be friendly” and that is “reciprocated” by others in various ways as they find favor with God and people. Other people long to, and righteous people long to keep relationships in good repair, thus making “amends” when needed or to “make good” on anything due someone, they seek to “be at peace” with people and live a “peaceable” life. Righteous people can expect to be made “prosperous” yet, as my late spouse pointed out prosperity does not always come in the form of money only, as far too many people mistakenly think. Prosperity can come in the form of family, relationships, work, health, too many ways to name, which yes, does also include financial prosperity. Righteous people experience “recompense” in this world, they are “rendered” reward(s) for that righteousness, God will “restore” their losses as He did with Job, “requite” is on their side as God avenges the wrongs done to them – “the righteous” see their “reward” in this life as well as the next.

The second have of verse thirty-one can be confusing for many people. If you look it up in various translations of the Bible you find the meaning varies widely, too widely for them all to be right as they contradict one another. I will make my explanation simple.

Just as the righteous get their reward on earth and in the afterlife in heaven, the wicked get their reward on earth and in the afterlife as well (v.31). Who are the wicked? Here is how they are defined based on the definition of the word “wicked” from verse thirty-one.

“wicked” has the definition of the following the Hebrew:

7563. רָשָׁע râshâ˓, raw-shaw’; from 7561; morally wrong; concr. an (actively) bad person:— + condemned, guilty, ungodly, wicked (man), that did wrong.

7561. רָשַׁע râsha˓, raw-shah’; a prim. root; to be (caus. do or declare) wrong; by impl. to disturb, violate:— condemn, make trouble, vex, be (commit, deal, depart, do) wicked (-ly, -ness).

I believe the “wicked” person is pretty obvious when you meet and talk with them.

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You can sign up to have each blog posting sent directly to your email. Just find the “follow” button on the bottom of the main page, then enter your email address. All email information remains confidential and is never shared in any manner.

Throughout this study, if you need the wisdom of God on a matter, and you wish to receive the counsel of another Believer in Christ, please use the “comments” link to send your question to me.

Spiritual/Political Disclaimer:

This blog will not be for the faint of heart or the easily offended. It will not be in any way politically correct. It will make every effort to share the truth in love, [Ephesians 4:11-16], to a decaying and dying society and church. I share what I share not to hurt, harm, or offend any person[s] or group; I do it because Christ’s Standard and Truth is not being represented by enough of His Followers, and I do it out of love. I love enough to tell His Truth.

Ephesians 4:11-16 NKJV

11And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

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How Do We Make Godly Decisions? – Study of Proverbs 11:23-28 – Greed’s Reward

In Advice, Biblical Principles, Christian Lifestyle, Christian Living, Contentment, Decision Making, Generosity, Greed, Money, Money-management, Proverbs, Responsibility, Uncategorized, Wealth on May 16, 2023 at 5:39 pm

The Scripture passages are identified with bold upright font and the author’s notes are identified with italic regular font.

Note – All words or phrases found in quotation marks are actual parts of the Hebrew or Greek definition(s).

23 The desire of the righteous is only good: but the expectation of the wicked is wrath.

24 There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty.

25 The liberal soul shall be made fat: and he that watereth shall be watered also himself.

26 He that withholdeth corn, the people shall curse him: but blessing shall be upon the head of him that selleth it.

27 He that diligently seeketh good procureth favour: but he that seeketh mischief, it shall come unto him.

28 He that trusteth in his riches shall fall: but the righteous shall flourish as a branch.

Greed’s Reward

We are ensnared by our own desires. If we have a converted righteous heart, we desire what is good and pleasing to God. If we have a heart that has not been handed over to the Holy Spirit’s guidance and direction, we expect the worse and most likely should (v.23).

When you seek to do good favor comes upon you (v.27). However, if you seek to do wrong you shall have wrong done to you many times over (v.27).

When you look at the meaning of the word “expectation” in the Hebrew language, you find that the wicked are actually bond to wrath by cords that will drag them there, as they give themselves to wicked deeds (v.23). They know wrath is coming. Sadly, you will see it is what they hope for, live for, and long for, which is horribly sad, and to me, very hard to believe.

Here is the definition from the Hebrew for the word “expectation” in this verse:

8615. תִּקְוָה tiqvâh, tik-vaw’; from 6960; lit. a cord (as an attachment [comp. 6961]); fig. expectancy:— expectation ([-ted]), hope, live, thing that I long for.

6960. קָוָה qâvâh, kaw-vaw’; a prim. root; to bind together (perh. by twisting), i.e. collect; (fig.) to expect:— gather (together), look, patiently, tarry, wait (for, on, upon).

The more we hold on to, the less we will have (v.24). Greed will cause loss in life. Greed is tricky because it might appear to be working for a season and then boom, it all blows up and what a person had is gone, usually all gone. We have seen this play out in the media time and time again by those who had great wealth coupled with great greed. If a person is trusting in their money to protect them, they are going to one day find themselves without….(v.28) for ultimately money will fail you, and you will fall in some manner (this word “fall” in v.28 has many applications.)

On the other hand, we have also seen those who acquire great wealth, are extremely generous, and tend to hold on to their wealth. That is because those people who give liberally, who share and are generous, are rewarded by God (v.25). In the Hebrew language the word “liberal” in verse twenty-five in part means “by implication prosperity” – give and it shall be given to you (Luke 6:28).

People hate greedy people. They tend to be a source of much distain (v.26). Yet, the person who is generous is a person who is looked upon favorably (v.26). Scripture makes it clear in verse twenty-six, and in many different areas, that generous giving people are a blessed people.

You can sign up to have each blog posting sent directly to your email. Just find the small “follow” button in the bottom right-hand corner of the main page, then enter your email address. All email information remains confidential and is never shared in any manner.

Throughout this study, if you need the wisdom of God on a matter, and you wish to receive the counsel of another Believer in Christ, please use the “comments” link to send your question to me.

Spiritual/Political Disclaimer:

This blog will not be for the faint of heart or the easily offended. It will not be in any way politically correct. It will make every effort to share the truth in love, [Ephesians 4:11-16], to a decaying and dying society and church. I share what I share not to hurt, harm, or offend any person[s] or group; I do it because Christ’s Standard and Truth is not being represented by enough of His Followers, and I do it out of love. I love enough to tell His Truth.

Ephesians 4:11-16 NKJV

11And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

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Left Behind Movie (The Rise of the Antichrist)

In Abominations, Anxiety, Apostasy, Biblical Principles, False Doctrine, False Gods, False Teaching, Hate, Hatred, Hell, Left Behind, Religious Freedom, Remnant, Renewal, Repentance, Revelation, Uncategorized on May 3, 2023 at 4:40 pm

The Left Behind Movie, the 2022 version that was in theaters recently is our topic. Really it is just a remake and an update of the original Left Behind, just incorporating modern day events and technology.

Some of the things that caught my attention which were incorporated into a modern day version of what could happen were…

The UFO angle. Many people believe in UFOs and our government in recent years have released video footage and documentation of objects flying in the air that could not be explained, footage taken by military pilots. Many people believe these things are UFOs. And then the movie kind of alludes to the idea that the people taken in the rapture may have actually been taken by UFOs.

They allude to the idea and concept that artificial intelligence, which is rapidly on the rise now, and many people are warning about, is playing a part in all of this as well.

Of course they talk about COVID, the fear that is instilled in people to get them to comply with whatever the government wants them to do. COVID-19 being a prelude to the idea that our government could get us to partake in self-imprisonment or mandated home imprisonment just because they deem something as a crisis in our country. That part is very real and a little bit intimidating when you think about that we have dealt with that during COVID-19, and we will most likely deal with it again. How unjust is our government to force that upon us in what we view as a free society.

Also, the idea of a one world government being birthed out of coming together over a crisis or pandemic type situation like COVID-19. Including the idea that the government will outright lie about a crisis that really doesn’t exist.

One thing that was depicted in the movie that I had not considered in any depth was how the internet potentially could be manipulated to remove access to the bible, biblical prophecy, references to the rapture, ETC. If you alter social media and internet searches most people, let’s say under the age of 50, would be completely lost when it comes to biblical things and the history of world events. So many people depend upon social media as their source of accurate information and that is so sad. I know for a fact during COVID-19 social media, specifically Facebook and Twitter, were removing any post from people’s accounts that they deemed as misinformation. I mean surely, I know you realize how incredibly dangerous that is to a society, yes?

One thing I have been aware of is the removal of certain things from the Scriptures as more and more translations emerge in our society. More and more is being removed especially surrounding Jesus’s Deity in the New Testament, so I could see how, as the movie portrayed, that one day potentially the Truth about the End Times or The Rapture could be completely removed from any existing Bibles, it’s not really that farfetched. This is why I’ve studied so many of the translations to see what has been removed or what has been changed because they indicate their improving the Bible’s accuracy, but when you look at what is actually going missing or being altered it is not an improvement.

The false teachers, like the pastor acknowledges being in the movie, to me seem extremely prevalent today in what is supposed to be Christian churches. Like he talks about in the movie, he knew all about the Bible but in his heart, he really didn’t believe the stuff, but he taught it, nevertheless. How incredibly scary! Although I absolutely believe I have met and interacted with Christian leaders who are exactly as this man describes himself. I can think of three off the top of my head, a married couple who minister at a church as well as a life group, and a man who heads a church and heads the local minister’s association. Is that like scary or what?

A pay system through an app. A form of one world currency. Well most of us are used to using PayPal or Apple pay, so we take a few steps closer and closer. And where they talk about you will either have to use the app to pay for things or starve to death, we see now that there are conditions that you must comply with to use any app, almost any type of app, and those conditions that must be complied with are not optional.

We have canceled culture, which goes against anyone who tries to put the Truth out.

Remember what Jesus told the disciples when he was describing what it would be like in the last days. His first words were, ‘Take heed that no man deceive you.’ People better know what they believe and why they believe it.

Favorite quote from the movie…

"So why do people who don’t even believe in God suddenly hate Him so much? Because they have no one else to blame it on."

Very typical of wounded or broken people, who are extremely fearful, unsure about life, and perplexed about why certain things happen or why a specific thing they know about or experienced has happened.

I would really enjoy reading your thoughts on the movie as well, please send them via the “comment” link. Let me know what you think.

If you need the wisdom of God on a matter, and you wish to receive the counsel of another Believer in Christ, please use the “comments” link to send your question to me.

Spiritual/Political Disclaimer:

This blog will not be for the faint of heart or the easily offended. It will not be in any way politically correct. It will make every effort to share the truth in love, [Ephesians 4:11-16], to a decaying and dying society and church. I share what I share not to hurt, harm, or offend any person[s] or group; I do it because Christ’s Standard and Truth is not being represented by enough of His Followers, and I do it out of love. I love enough to tell His Truth.

Ephesians 4:11-16 NKJV

11And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

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Nefarious–The Movie

In Anxiety, Apostasy, Curses, Demon, Demon Possession, Depression, Disobedience, Evil, Generational Curses, Hate, Hatred, low self-esteem, Mental Disorder, Mental Illness, Move of God, Nefarious - the movie, Psychiatry, Repentance, Satan, Seven Deadly Sins, Truth, Uncategorized, Wicca, Wisdom, witchcraft, Words of Knowledge, Words of Wisdom on April 15, 2023 at 3:05 pm

God is incredible!

I had one of those experiences today (April 14th 2023)  where God asked me to do something that seemed absolutely ridiculous for me to do and something I would not normally do, but God was in it. He had me go see a movie called Nefarious, it is in theaters now. Every human being, Christian or non-Christian, should go see this movie.

Why?
1-Most incredible theologically accurate in-depth explanation of how evil works, evil’s work in people’s lives (including how it gets entrance), and it’s influence on society.
2-Danger of toying with evil.
3-Ignorance of psychiatry, to understand the influence of evil.

It could be summed up as:
The struggle between who God created him to be and who Satan (demons) influenced him to become.

Nefarious the movie centers around a conversation between a condemned inmate and a psychiatrist who must sign off on his execution.

Completely dialogue driven, and you must listen carefully and be attentive to what is being said, almost every bit of the dialogue is packed with truth, (gratefully God made sure I was the only one in the theater when I watched it). No real violence.
Forget this movie’s labeling because it’s listed as a thriller and a horror movie, but it is far from that. I believe God via the producers wanted to get the attention of a certain type of people that would go to horror movies so the truth could be revealed to them. The description of this movie is very misleading so do not be put off by the description, like I was when I read it, but I knew that God was insisting I go… I trusted God’s guidance, and I’m glad I did.

God is everywhere right now attempting to pour out His Truth to believers and non-believers.

PLEASE FEEL FREE TO PRINT/COPY  THE FOLLOWING PRAYER AND SHARE IT WITH ANYONE IT MIGHT BENEFIT. 

Prayer for Renouncement of Evil

Heavenly Father I come to you in the name of Jesus. Please hear my prayer because of the work of Christ on the Cross and allow the blood of Christ to cover my every sin and need.

I thank you for your Holiness, your Presence, your omnipotence, and your great love. You as the Creator of all things are worthy of praise and honor for you alone have dominion over all things and people. I thank you for the freewill you have given me and through that freewill, I have erred against you and that is why I seek you today.

I have both knowingly and unknowingly sinned against your will and therefore against you. I have both embraced and been exposed to “evil” found in the form of partaking in the things of Satan, the occult, witchcraft, and the like, which your Word makes clear you hate. Having repented of these things and no longer wishing to have anything to do with any of them; I have come to you to seek your forgiveness, to bleed the blood of Jesus over both those sins and the effects upon my life as a result of those sins, and to enter into covenant with you that I will not partake in any of these sins again, nor will I allow myself to be exposed to them. I will flee in the presence of such sins and thus flee from the Enemy. May my change of heart on these matters be full and complete through your sovereign grace.

Father, I ask you now to bring to my remembrance any and all evil you wish me to renounce.

[Pause and allow God to show you anything more you are not aware of to date.]

I now ask in Jesus’ name for your forgiveness of the following sins and I thank you that you are faithful and just to forgive me and cleanse me from all unrighteousness.

I plead the precious blood of Jesus over the following sins.

[Now specifically pray for everything God reveals to you, or has revealed to you, and ask forgiveness for each individual act of evil. Pleading the blood of Jesus over each and every act. – Do not pray generically or as a general group of “all evil”, be specific and deal with each category of demonic activity.]

Forgive me for my involvement in __________________ and through the blood of Jesus break the power, thus canceling the effects and affects of this evil on my life.

Forgive me for my exposure to _________________ and through the blood of Jesus break the power, thus canceling the effects and affects of this evil on my life.

Forgive me for _________________ and through the blood of Jesus break the power, thus canceling the effects and affects of this evil on my life.

Forgive me Lord for allowing evil to have any access to my life, mind, heart, soul, and spirit breaking its power and influence in my life forever. Forgive me Lord for all those acts of evil for which my mind and heart cannot recall at this time and break the power of those influences within my life as well, through the blood of Jesus.

Father in the name of Jesus I seek your forgiveness for my participation in evil and the things of your Enemy, Satan. I renounce any and all effects, and affects, of these things and I plead the blood of Jesus over my life and myself. I ask you to place a hedge of protection around me so that evil and the Enemy can no longer harm or influence me. I ask that you give me an obedient heart so that I might follow your will from this moment forward. I ask you to give me eyes to see and discern evil from good and the power to resist the evil. Increase my capacity to understand what you want, and do not want, for me in my daily life.

Jesus cover me with your blood as I stand against the works of the Devil.

Satan, I speak to you now through the blood, and the power of the blood, of Jesus. In the name of Jesus, I renounce you and any power or influence you have gained in life through open doors, doors of evil, which I have opened or that has been opened by events or other people. I am a Child of God and therefore, you have no place or standing in my life. Therefore, by the blood of Jesus any and all effects and affects you have had on, or have on, my life are now broken, no longer effective, and shall no longer disturb or influence my life. You and your workers, any and all demonic presence must leave my life and I close the door of my spirit to any influence past, present, or future. The blood of Jesus has broken the power of your work and you are overcome by the Blood of the Lamb. Flee from me now in the Name of Jesus; you no longer have any place in my life.

Jesus, I thank you for your death on the cross and the forgiveness that sacrifice affords me. I thank you for your blood and the power over the Enemy that blood has bought me. I thank you that you have interceded for me with the Father and obtained my forgiveness for these and all my sins. I thank you that through the cross I am set free from the negative and evil effects/affects these acts have had on my life. I am grateful to you for it all and for your love. Thank you for dealing with my Enemy, Satan, and for rendering his work in my life useless and void. I shall always be grateful beyond measure. Father thank you for the Son and the work of the Son. God thank you for your Almighty Provision found in the blessed work of Calvary.

I ask all these things in the precious name of Jesus,

Amen and Amen.

If you need the wisdom of God on a matter, and you wish to receive the counsel of another Believer in Christ, please use the “comments” link to send your question to me.

You can sign up to have each blog posting sent directly to your email. Just find the small “follow” button in the bottom right-hand corner of the main page, then enter your email address. All email information remains confidential and is never shared in any manner.

Spiritual/Political Disclaimer:

This blog will not be for the faint of heart or the easily offended. It will not be in any way politically correct. It will make every effort to share the truth in love, [Ephesians 4:11-16], to a decaying and dying society and church. I share what I share not to hurt, harm, or offend any person[s] or group; I do it because Christ’s Standard and Truth is not being represented by enough of His Followers, and I do it out of love. I love enough to tell His Truth.

Ephesians 4:11-16 NKJV

11And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—

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How Do We Make Godly Decisions? – Study of Proverbs 11:22 Swine or Swan

In Advice, Attitude, Behavior, Biblical Principles, Choices, Christian Lifestyle, Christian Living, Decision Making, Decisions, Discernment, Discretion, Femininity, Feminism, Gender, Godliness, Grace, Instruction, Lifestyle, low self-esteem, New Year’s Resolutions, Proverbs, Prudence, Righteous Living, Righteousness, self-esteem, Uncategorized, Wisdom on January 12, 2023 at 5:46 pm

The Scripture passages are identified with bold upright font and the author’s notes are identified with italic regular font.

Note – All words or phrases found in quotation marks are actual parts of the Hebrew definition(s).

22 As a jewel of gold in a swine’s snout, so is a fair woman which is without discretion.

Swine or Swan

If you are a woman let me ask you, would you rather be an ugly dirty swine or a beautiful white swan? If you answered the swine, you might as well stop reading now, but if you answered a swan, however, and are just not sure you are there yet, read on and let God work in your life.

Have you ever met a woman who walking by looks absolutely beautiful, and then you meet her, she opens her mouth, you spend a few minutes with her and see her inner ugliness, lack of intelligence, low character, ugly mouth, pettiness when it comes to life and other people, her shallowness, vanity, gossipy tongue, etc. and you just can’t believe that such a pretty package is filled with such an ugly gift inside.

An inner swine: you can dress her up, you can ply her with pretty jewels, but ugly is ugly and when you are ugly on the inside that is something that you cannot hide for long and something that will strip the bloom off the rose so to speak with people pretty quickly no matter how beautiful your face, hair, or figure.

I absolutely believe a woman should take care of her outer self. Her looks, her health, her figure, all of it, but more than that she should care for her inner self, her swan, that thing that makes women beautiful and appealing no matter what the outer package looks like.

Also when you look at what it means to be “fair” as described in this verse you see that it can be two fold, inner and outer. Note the physical, but then note the inner “to be bright” which is always a sign of inner beauty.

“fair” is defined in the Hebrew language is as follows:

3303. יָפֶה yâpheh, yaw-feh’; from 3302; beautiful (lit. or fig.):— + beautiful, beauty, comely, fair (-est, one), + goodly, pleasant, well.

3302. יָפָה yâphâh, yaw-faw’; a prim. root; prop. to be bright, i.e. (by impl.) beautiful:— be beautiful, be (make self) fair (-r), deck.

Discretion is the number one key to a swan, the key to inner beauty that cannot be match or outdone by outer beauty. Now a look at what discretion actually is and how it manifest itself.

“discretion” in the Hebrew is defined in the following manner:

2940. טַעַם ṭa˓am, tah’-am; from 2938; prop. a taste, i.e. (fig.) perception; by impl. intelligence; tran. a mandate:— advice, behaviour, decree, discretion, judgment, reason, taste, understanding.

As we look at what this means in the Hebrew language, we see that for a Christian godly woman discretion is “a mandate” – a mandate to use sound “judgement and reason” in one’s behavior and when providing “advice” to others. A woman of discretion is a woman who lives by a “decree” in daily life, God’s Decrees, about what she will and will not do, and is a woman who has “understanding” which in biblical terms is synonymous with wisdom.

“discretion” in the Merriam-Webster’s 11th Collegiate Dictionary is defined as:

1 : the quality of being discreet : CIRCUMSPECTION; especially : cautious reserve in speech
2 : ability to make responsible decisions

“discreet” is defined as:

1 : having or showing discernment or good judgment in conduct and especially in speech : PRUDENT; especially : capable of preserving prudent silence
2 : UNPRETENTIOUS, MODEST

A gossip or as some in church circles call it, the woman running around always talking about who we need to pray for and why, is not a woman of discretion by any stretch of the imagination. She is a gossip, plain and simple, doing much harm to the Body of Christ.

Women of discretion must take the time to use “good judgment” in what they will do and in how they go about life in order to “make responsible decisions” that will not negatively impact their life or the lives of others.

Lastly, a woman of discretion is a “modest” woman in her manner of dress. A woman who has half her cleavage hanging out, then gets angry or feels disrespected when men look, is not only foolish she is a swine and lacks the swan trait of discretion. If her dress is so tight or the hemline is so high that nothing is left to the imagination this is a swine woman not a swan woman, this is a woman without respect for herself or discretion.

A little tip ladies about swine women (women with no discretion, grace or class) verses swan women (women of discretion, grace and class). A good man, a Christian man, a man of quality will look at those swine type women, might even play with them here and there, but when it comes to the woman he wants to marry, the woman he wants as the mother of his children, these swine woman are not the type of women they want long-term. Almost all men want a swan.

Throughout this study, if you need the wisdom of God on a matter, and you wish to receive the counsel of another Believer in Christ, please use the “comments” link to send your question to me.

Spiritual/Political Disclaimer:

This blog will not be for the faint of heart or the easily offended. It will not be in any way politically correct. It will make every effort to share the truth in love, [Ephesians 4:11-16], to a decaying and dying society and church. I share what I share not to hurt, harm, or offend any person[s] or group; I do it because Christ’s Standard and Truth is not being represented by enough of His Followers, and I do it out of love. I love enough to tell His Truth.

Ephesians 4:11-16 NKJV

11And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

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How Do We Make Godly Decisions? – Study of Proverbs 11:21 Safety in Numbers, Really?

In Actions, Advice, Behavior, Bible Study, Biblical Principles, Christian Lifestyle, Christian Living, Christianity, Decision Making, Decisions, Discernment, Discretion, Divine Protection, Godliness, Lifestyle, Proverbs, Responsibility, Righteous Living, Truth, Uncategorized, Wisdom on November 19, 2022 at 6:39 pm

We will now resume with our study and reflections on the Book of Proverbs. 

The Scripture passages are identified with bold upright font and the author’s notes are identified with italic regular font.

Note – All words or phrases found in quotation marks are actual parts of the Hebrew or Greek definition(s).

21 Though hand join in hand, the wicked shall not be unpunished: but the seed of the righteous shall be delivered.

Safety in Numbers, Really?

People tend to believe if they band together, they will somehow be safe. When it comes to God this is not true. There is nowhere to hide from God. There is no place that God cannot reach and no protection great enough to overcome Him or keep Him at bay if He desires to reach you.

“hand” in the Hebrew means:

3027. יָד yâd, yawd; a prim. word; a hand (the open one [indicating power, means, direction, etc.]

The wicked can attempt to secure their power by joining with other wicked people but none of them shall escape the wrath of God in this life and the life to come (v.21).

The “seed” as defined in the Hebrew language is:

2233. זֶֶרַע zera˓, zeh’-rah; from 2232; seed; fig. fruit, plant, sowing-time, posterity:— × carnally, child, fruitful, seed (-time), sowing-time.

2232. זָרַע zâra˓, zaw-rah’; a prim. root; to sow; fig. to disseminate, plant, fructify:— bear, conceive seed, set with, sow (-er), yield.

However, the opposite is true for the righteous. Their seed, in works, off spring, or people will be taken care of and delivered to its fruition.

Each day we make a choice of what type of fruit we will produce. We choose what type of life we will live, wicked or righteous. We decide if we are going to allow God to rule in our life by doing His Will. You will eat the fruit of those choices without escape, so choose very carefully.

Throughout this study, if you need the wisdom of God on a matter, and you wish to receive the counsel of another Believer in Christ, please use the “comments” link to send your question to me.

You can sign up to have each blog posting sent directly to your email. Just find the small “follow” button in the bottom right-hand corner of the main page, then enter your email address. All email information remains confidential and is never shared in any manner.

Spiritual/Political Disclaimer:

This blog will not be for the faint of heart or the easily offended. It will not be in any way politically correct. It will make every effort to share the truth in love, [Ephesians 4:11-16], to a decaying and dying society and church. I share what I share not to hurt, harm, or offend any person[s] or group; I do it because Christ’s Standard and Truth is not being represented by enough of His Followers, and I do it out of love. I love enough to tell His Truth.

Ephesians 4:11-16 NKJV

11And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

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Truth Tellers

In Advice, Anxiety, Bible Study, Biblical Principles, Choices, Christian Lifestyle, Christian Living, Christianity, Correction, Decision Making, Favor, Fear, Godliness, Guidance, Obedience, Prophecy, Remnant, Renewal, Repentance, Righteous Living, Righteousness, Sanctification, Spiritual Activism, Spiritual Activists, Truth, Uncategorized, Wisdom on October 2, 2022 at 12:07 pm

Ye that love the Lord, hate evil:

Psalm 97:10

There are those individuals who tell the truth, and the world hates them for it.

If you are a true Christian, who truly loves God and desires to see His Will done, you have no choice but to tell the truth to a decaying and dying society.

If you are one of those Christians who sold out Christ in order to be accepted by their society and by people in general, to be liked, to make life easier for yourself, one day you will have a lot to answer for before God and I wonder then if it is all going to be worth it.

Because…

When people have the opportunity to quietly, discreetly, sometimes even anonymously tell the truth, those very people in that decaying society from whom you wanted so much acceptance, secretly hate themselves. They are constantly discontent with who they are if they’re able to accept who they are at all. They can never get to a place of being okay, they are always suffering from some type of anxiety or mental disturbance or some form of discontent with their life. Their ideas, their values, their belief system is so distorted and depraved that they can’t be anything but inwardly miserable while they pretend to society and to those people around them that they’re just fine. They are among the masses every day marching in their uniformity line to their own destruction and death, but ha they are politically correct and they “fit in” within their society. They’re just fine, while they’re dying every day little by little because of their…

These are the people you want to be like? These are the people you want acceptance from? No thank you! I’ll go right on being a Truth Teller and being hated by all of them because I would rather be hated by them than to degrade myself to the degree necessary to be accepted by them. What about you?

There are people who have destroyed their whole lives, destroyed who God created them to be, destroyed their relationship with God, destroyed their spirituality all on the altar of trying to fit into and be accepted by their distorted, depraved, cookie cutter, dying society.

         

Spiritual/Political Disclaimer:

This blog will not be for the faint of heart or the easily offended. It will not be in any way politically correct. It will make every effort to share the truth in love, [Ephesians 4:11-16], to a decaying and dying society and church. I share what I share not to hurt, harm, or offend any person[s] or group; I do it because Christ’s Standard and Truth is not being represented by enough of His Followers, and I do it out of love. I love enough to tell His Truth.

Ephesians 4:11-16 NKJV

11And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

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Upcoming Prophecy connected to Azusa Street Revival

In Azusa Street Revival, Biblical Principles, Church Growth, Discernment, God's Voice, Godly Counsel, Prophecy, Prophet, Renewal, Revival, Rhema Words, Uncategorized, William Seymour on September 22, 2022 at 6:37 pm

Over 100 years ago there was a massive revival and outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Azusa Street in Los Angles California. Apparently the leader of the revival William Seymour, received a prophetic word at the revival that in 100 years from the date or time of his death there would be another outpouring of the Holy Spirit like Azusa Street but the outpouring of the Spirit of God would be such a powerful move of God that Azusa Street would pale in comparison.
 
100 years from the date is September 28, 2022.

100 years from his death which took place in 1922 on September 28th.

Attention! Anyone who reads this post; if God is speaking to you about this matter, this prophecy, send me a message via the "comment" link below. I would very much want to hear what God is sharing with you.

Spiritual/Political Disclaimer:

This blog will not be for the faint of heart or the easily offended. It will not be in any way politically correct. It will make every effort to share the truth in love, [Ephesians 4:11-16], to a decaying and dying society and church. I share what I share not to hurt, harm, or offend any person[s] or group; I do it because Christ’s Standard and Truth is not being represented by enough of His Followers, and I do it out of love. I love enough to tell His Truth.

Ephesians 4:11-16 NKJV

11And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

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How Do We Make Godly Decisions? – Study of Proverbs 11:20 God’s Delight

In Biblical Principles, Christian Lifestyle, Christian Living, Decision Making, Godliness, Instant Sanctification, Lifestyle, Progressive Sanctification, Proverbs, Righteous Living, Righteousness, Sanctification, Truth, Uncategorized, Wisdom on September 6, 2022 at 5:57 pm

The Scripture passages are identified with bold upright font and the author’s notes are identified with italic regular font.

Note – All words or phrases found in quotation marks are actual parts of the Hebrew or Greek definition(s).

20 They that are of a froward heart are abomination to the LORD: but such as are upright in their way are his delight.

God’s Delight

We will address part two of this verse.

Now on a more positive note. To bring delight to God’s heart would be wonderful. Being an upright person does that (v.20).

“upright” is defined as:

8549. תָּמִים tâmı̂ym, taw-meem’; from 8552; entire (lit., fig. or mor.); also (as noun) integrity, truth:— without blemish, complete, full, perfect, sincerely (-ity), sound, without spot, undefiled, upright (-ly), whole.

The richness of what it means to be upright is really meaningful when you examine it closely. To be “entire” literally, figuratively, and morally is to be “whole” and “complete” and we are that in Christ. Yet, we need to allow Him to move us toward that more and more daily as our sanctification is manifest in our daily life.

Side note here.

People make sanctification way too complicated and seem to believe that the idea of instant or progressive sanctification are the only options. They seem to believe that the two (instant sanctification and progressive sanctification) are at odds with one another. Well they are not.

Sanctification is both instant and progressive.

When we accept Christ, we are in that very moment “instantly” sanctified in Him, in the spiritual realm. That instant sanctification is manifest in our daily life, in our lifestyle, in our spiritual maturity, in a “progressive” manner, to varying degrees, at different speeds over the course of our lifetime, as we walk with Christ and follow the leading of the Holy Spirit.

It truly is that simple, people just make it, like most of the things of God, far too difficult and complicated.

As we grow in godliness and holiness we become more and more “upright” in God’s eyes and thus become more and more of a “delight” to Him.

And “delight” in Hebrew language means:

7522. רָצוֹן râtsôwn, raw-tsone’; or

רָצֹן râtsôn, raw-tsone’; from 7521; delight (espec. as shown):— (be) acceptable (-ance, -ed), delight, desire, favour, (good) pleasure, (own, self, voluntary) will, as … (what) would.

7521. רָצָה râtsâh, raw-tsaw’; a prim. root; to be pleased with; spec. to satisfy a debt:— (be) accept (-able), accomplish, set affection, approve, consent with, delight (self), enjoy, (be, have a) favour (-able), like, observe, pardon, (be, have, take) please (-ure), reconcile self.

The idea of God “enjoying” me and “liking” me just tickles my heart.

I want to make two other points about what it means for God to “delight” in the “upright” child of God, but I need to be very careful about how I do it, so I am not misunderstood. From the Hebrew definition we see the idea of “having the favour” of God and the idea of “satisfying a debt” we owe.

Point One. Jesus paid a great price to redeem us from hell. Coming to this earth. Living among us. Being hated. Being mocked and scorned by society. Being beaten. Being executed (crucified) on the cross. Dying. Resurrecting (this was the good part for Him I am sure). Having gone though all of that for us, we owe Him our “uprightness” we owe Him the debt of obedience.

Point Two. Obedience to God, the Holy Spirit, is an “upright” thing to do. Obedience is owed Him. We earn nothing from God, but with that said, obedience to God will bring about the spiritual law of God’s favor in your life.

Throughout this study, if you need the wisdom of God on a matter, and you wish to receive the counsel of another Believer in Christ, please use the “comments” link to send your question to me.

Spiritual/Political Disclaimer:

This blog will not be for the faint of heart or the easily offended. It will not be in any way politically correct. It will make every effort to share the truth in love, [Ephesians 4:11-16], to a decaying and dying society and church. I share what I share not to hurt, harm, or offend any person[s] or group; I do it because Christ’s Standard and Truth is not being represented by enough of His Followers, and I do it out of love. I love enough to tell His Truth.

Ephesians 4:11-16 NKJV

11And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

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How Do We Make Godly Decisions? – Study of Proverbs 11:20 God’s Disgust

In Abominations, Actions, Biblical Principles, Christian Lifestyle, Christian Living, Cruelty, Decision Making, Evil, Mental Disorder, Mental Illness, Proverbs, Psychiatry, Renewal, Repentance, Truth, Uncategorized, Wisdom on August 13, 2022 at 5:31 pm

The Scripture passages are identified with bold upright font and the author’s notes are identified with italic regular font.

Note – All words or phrases found in quotation marks are actual parts of the Hebrew or Greek definition(s).

20 They that are of a froward heart are abomination to the LORD: but such as are upright in their way are his delight.

God’s Disgust

We will address part one of this verse.

To be an abomination to Jehovah God is a very serious state to be in. Yet, this Scripture makes it clear that those who are “of a froward heart” are in exactly that situation (v.20). We will take the time to look at what an abomination actually is and what having a froward heart actually means.

“abomination” in the Hebrew is the defined as the following:

8441. תּוֹעֵבָה tôw˓êbâh, to-ay-baw’; or

תֹּעֵבָה tô˓êbâh, to-ay-baw’; fem. act. part. of 8581; prop. something disgusting (mor.), i.e. (as noun) an abhorrence; espec. idolatry or (concr.) an idol:— abominable (custom, thing), abomination.

8581. תָּעַב tâ˓ab, taw-ab’; a prim. root; to loathe, i.e. (mor.) detest:— (make to be) abhor (-red), (be, commit more, do) abominable (-y), × utterly.

That’s harsh! Far too many people see God as some marshmallow who just loves everybody no matter what, without balancing His true character. God does love everybody, but God absolutely hates sin. Sin is sin but there are times in the Bible where some sins are depicted as having the effect of being abhorring to God. The ones, for lack of better wording, that He just hates, hates, hates. Those people with a “froward heart” are among that group.

The idea of being morally disgusting in God’s eyes is heartbreaking to me. To be hated, loathed, detested by my own Creator is beyond description. However, if I were to fall into this category that is where I would be at – unless or until I repented.

What does a froward heart look like? Let us examine that.

“froward” in the Hebrew is defined as:

6141. עִקֵּשׁ ˓iqqêsh, ik-kashe’; from 6140; distorted; hence, false:— crooked, froward, perverse.

6140. עָקַשׁ ˓âqash, aw-kash’; a prim. root; to knot or distort; fig. to pervert (act or declare perverse):— make crooked, (prove, that is) perverse (-rt).

A heart distorted by evil, wrongdoing, perversion, which is a cheat, a heart that is by all account twisted in knots (in an evil sense) by life, is a froward heart. A person consumed with these traits is not a welcome sight in God’s eyes. If you have these traits in your life I urge you, warn you, to repent and clean up your heart before God.

A side note for a moment.

I was once interviewed for a book a professor was writing because of two events in my life. I went into the ministry, and I was almost killed by a serial killer. In this interview we talked about how hearts get distorted by evil (the man who tried to kill me had been horribly abused as a child) and I told the professor my beliefs on the matter. Here is one of the quotes from the things I shared with him, that he cited in his book.

“Evil opens the doorway to psychological damage and psychological damage opens the doorway to evil.” It is a vicious cycle, I told him.

If your heart is distorted it is one of the most serious things in life, so deal with it and do so quickly!

You can sign up to have each blog posting sent directly to your email. Just find the small “follow” button in the bottom right-hand corner of the main page, then enter your email address. All email information remains confidential and is never shared in any manner.

Throughout this study, if you need the wisdom of God on a matter, and you wish to receive the counsel of another Believer in Christ, please use the “comments” link to send your question to me.

Spiritual/Political Disclaimer:

This blog will not be for the faint of heart or the easily offended. It will not be in any way politically correct. It will make every effort to share the truth in love, [Ephesians 4:11-16], to a decaying and dying society and church. I share what I share not to hurt, harm, or offend any person[s] or group; I do it because Christ’s Standard and Truth is not being represented by enough of His Followers, and I do it out of love. I love enough to tell His Truth.

Ephesians 4:11-16 NKJV

11And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.