WHAT MIGHT THE PROPHET JEREMIAH SAY TO AMERICA?

In reading through the prophets again recently, I could not help but make application of their message to my country—or any other country for that matter—that for the most part has chosen to reject God and the truth of His Word.  Though people may argue, our nation was founded at least in part by people who wanted the freedom to worship God according to the truth of His word.  Our government was founded on biblical principles in recognition of our God-given rights.  Oh how far we have fallen!

We are told several times in scripture that Go is constant in His being and His character never changes.

Lamentations 5:19 “But LORD, you remain the same forever!”

Malachi 3:6 “I am the LORD, and I do not change.”

James 1:17 “Whatever is good and perfect comes to us from God above, who created all heaven’s lights. Unlike them, he never changes or casts shifting shadows.”

Hebrews 13:8 “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”

Keeping that in mind, we can safely make application of God’s messages of warning in response to the sins of the nation of Israel to the sins of America today.  It made me wonder—What would the prophet Jeremiah have to say to the people of America today?  It might go something like this…

People of America, listen to what the LORD Almighty has to say to you!

Oh, you foolish people!  Why do you not fear Me and show Me the reverence and honor I deserve?  You have eyes but do not see and ears but do not hear.  Don’t you realize that I am your Creator!  I am the One that established all the laws of nature.  It is I that holds the universe together.  Why are your hearts so hard and rebellious?  Every blessing you enjoy comes from Me.  

In your foolish wisdom, you have decided to call what is evil good and what is good to be evil in direct defiance of My word.  You take bribes and deny justice.  You let the wicked go free while punishing those who are trying to honor Me by how they live.  You eagerly follow those lead you into sin and make fun of those who seek to get you to repent of your sin.  Lies are common among you, and a man’s word can no longer be trusted.  People will betray one another with lies if the price is right.  Wicked people are ever making plans to spread their evil agendas and destroy everything that honors Me—and getting rich in the process.  There seems to be no limit to the wickedness that entertains you and feeds the lust of your flesh.

Should I not avenge Myself of such a nation?

Over and over again, I have sent My servants to warn you against the consequences of your evil ways.  Over and over again, I have sent you faithful messengers of My truth, pleading with you to repent of your sin and turn to Me in faith.  I see everything you do.  I hear every evil plan you make.  I know your very thoughts.  Nothing about you is hid from Me.  I cannot let you go unpunished.  You have mistaken My longsuffering, thinking that I approve of you or just don’t care about what is happpening.  My longsuffering is a reflection of My mercy.  My desire is to see you repent of your sin and turn to Me in faith!

It grieves Me to see that many who claim to speak on My behalf are partly to blame for your actions.  There are some that only tell you the things you want to hear so that you will continue to increase their bank accounts with your donations; they refuse to preach against sin. There are others that take advantage of your desires for My blessing by promising that those desires will be fulfilled if you will just give them money.  Many other false teachers manipulate My word to accomplish their own personal agendas.  They certainly are not seeking to honor Me.

Oh how I grieve over the greatness of your sin!  How I grieve over your disregard for life!  You sacrifice your children to the idol of self, participate in human trafficking  and neglect those who are helpless and needy to fulfill your own wicked and selfish desires.  

If you do not repent of your evil ways and turn to Me in faith, the day is coming when you will lie in ruins.  You will suffer the consequences of your sins.  I have greatly blessed this nation, but I will bring about your humiliation and destruction if you continue to reject Me.  Though you were once an honored nation, you will be despised.  You will eventually suffer the fate of your chosen god—Satan, the father of lies and the great deceiver.

Please, oh people of America, Repent!

AN EASTER MEDITATION FOR 2020

After reading through this scripture, I pray the closing thoughts will hit home and spark a personal revival in our lives.

Isaiah 53:2–11 “For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, And as a root out of dry ground. He has no form or comeliness; And when we see Him, There is no beauty that we should desire Him.  He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.  Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted.  But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed.  All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.  He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, And as a sheep before its shearers is silent, So He opened not His mouth….He was cut off from the land of the living; For the transgressions of My people He was stricken….Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him….My righteous Servant shall justify many, For He shall bear their iniquities.”

Matthew 27:22–25 “Pilate said to them, “What then shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?”   They all said to him, “Let Him be crucified!” Then the governor said, “Why, what evil has He done?” But they cried out all the more, saying, “Let Him be crucified!”  When Pilate saw that he could not prevail at all, but rather that a tumult was rising, he took water and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, “I am innocent of the blood of this just Person. You see to it.”  And all the people answered and said, “His blood be on us and on our children.””

Matthew 27:26–31 “Then he released Barabbas to them; and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered Him to be crucified.  Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole garrison around Him. And they stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him. When they had twisted a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand. And they bowed the knee before Him and mocked Him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” Then they spat on Him, and took the reed and struck Him on the head. And when they had mocked Him, they took the robe off Him, put His own clothes on Him, and led Him away to be crucified.”

Luke 23:34 “Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” And they divided His garments and cast lots.”

Matthew 27:45–46 “Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?””

Matthew 27:50–54 “And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit.  Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split, and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many.  So when the centurion and those with him, who were guarding Jesus, saw the earthquake and the things that had happened, they feared greatly, saying, “Truly this was the Son of God!””

Matthew 27:58–60 “This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be given to him. When Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and laid it in his new tomb which he had hewn out of the rock; and he rolled a large stone against the door of the tomb, and departed.”

Matthew 28:1–7 “Now after the Sabbath, as the first day of the week began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat on it. His countenance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow. And the guards shook for fear of him, and became like dead men.  But the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. And go quickly and tell His disciples that HE IS RISEN FROM THE DEAD!”

It seems pretty clear from the scripture that it was the Roman soldiers under orders from Pontius Pilate who yielded to the will of the people of Israel that killed Jesus? But is that the whole truth?  This sobering old song by Mickey Holiday drives the truth home.

Who Killed Jesus?

Was it Roman soldiers with their tools of war?

Driving nails through hands that did no wrong.

Mocking and abusing, crowning Him with thorns

All the evidence is very strong.

Was it Pontius Pilate?  He was governor,

Trying to decide the car that day.

Find that the Savior had no fault his own—

Was he guilty when he turned away?

When I think of Jesus and the way He died,

How upon Him all my sin was laid.

All the other people fade away from view.

It’s for me the sacrifice was made!

I no longer wonder anymore.

I have found what I’ve been searching for.

My sin demanded hell—

On Him the judgment fell.

I am guilty—Now it’s plain to see—

That it was really me!

GOD IS STILL ON HIS THRONE!

Well, it seems the world as we have known it has changed almost overnight.  Things will settle down to a new “normal” once this pandemic is under control.  When and what that will look like is yet to be seen.

The one thing I am certain of, however, is that God is on His throne; and His plan is unfolding according to His purpose and timetable.  His word is ever true, and His promises sure.  Although we don’t often understand the ways He chooses to work in our lives, we can be confident that He is working for good in the life of each of His children that love Him.  We don’t have to fear what this world or anyone in it can do to us because what is considered to be the worst that can happen—death— is actually a transition to the best that can happen—being in the presence of Jesus.  Our heavenly Father is aware of every need of each one of His children, and He will supply these needs in His own timing according to His own loving purpose.

Events on planet earth are continuing to align according with the prophetic word of God.  Many of the events that are happening around this world are indicative of the “birth pains” that are identified in scripture as preceding His return.  So, in spite of the hard times that we may be experiencing now or are yet in our future, we can look forward with hope to the fact that Jesus is soon going to come and take His children home.  After that, the world will experience the worst seven years in the history of planet earth as Satan is allowed to have his day.  At the end of that seven years, the LORD Jesus will return in great glory to destroy all that is evil and establish His Kingdom on planet earth. 

If you do not yet know Jesus as your Savior and LORD, I pray that you will humble yourself, repent of your sin and accept God’s gracious gift of salvation.  He is ready to receive you into His family the moment you sincerely turn to Him in faith as outlined below.

• We must all admit that we are sinners!  

Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.”

• God loved us so much that He sent His only Son, Jesus, to suffer and die a horrendous death in judgment for my sin and yours.  And Jesus did this willingly in obedience to the Father. 

Romans 5:8 “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

John 10:17–18 “Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father.”

• Because we are sinners, we deserve to die and suffer the judgment of hell forever.  But God has offered us salvation, eternal life forever with Him, as a gift.  There is nothing we can do to earn this salvation.

Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Ephesians 2:8–9 “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.”

• All we have to do is call out to Jesus in sincere faith and repentance to receive this gift.

Romans 10:13 “For “whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.”

SHARING THE GOSPEL

Following is an excerpt from a letter I wrote to a dear Catholic lady who is part of my extended family.  I truly feel like the time is getting short and feel an urgency to share the gospel message--especially with those I love.  I just thought some of you might need encouragement to do the same as we see the signs of His return all around us.

I trust that you will hear my heart and not be offended in any way by what I have to say.   This is a love letter.  I know that you are a devout Catholic believer.  It is my understanding of the Catholic belief of salvation (from my reading of church doctrine on the official Catholic website) that prompts this letter.  I also know that there are many “kinds” of Catholic churches, just as there are many “kinds” of Protestant churches.  I believe there are those in both types of faith that are saved as well as unsaved.  So please don’t think I am making any assumptions about you personally.  I just don’t want anything to happen to you without knowing that I had been faithful to share the gospel with you—a part of my extended family.  I believe that is what God expects of each of us that call ourselves Christian.  I would so much rather be talking to you face to face; but since distance prevents that, here goes….

Some of the saddest verses in the Bible are found in Matthew.

Matthew 7:22–23 “Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.”

In other words, these are people that have done many good works in the name of the LORD/Jesus/God that will be made to realize that they were depending on their works for their salvation.  When I read the official Catholic doctrine, I found that there is a requirement that you do certain works or you cannot be saved.  Scripture is clear in telling us that works can’t save us, it is only by faith that we are saved.

Ephesians 2:8–9 “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.”

The works that we do to honor God in gratitude for our salvation give evidence to our salvation.  But if we are depending on those works for any part of our salvation, we are believing a false gospel.  The sacrifice that Jesus made on the cross for our sins is completely sufficient to save us.  If we try to add anything to that, we are basically saying that His sacrifice wasn’t sufficient; it wasn’t good enough to save us.

1 Corinthians 15:1–4 “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures….”

John 3:14–16 “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

John 6:28–29 “Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.”

Romans 10:13 “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

...I am probably preaching to the choir.  And if that be the case, I know you will hear my heart.  I just don’t want to assume and have to stand before the LORD and have to admit that there were those with whom I should have shared the good news of the gospel and didn’t.  

CHRISTMAS - A SIGN OF JESUS’ RETURN

I hope you hear the heart behind my Christmas poem this year.  My prayer is that you will celebrate Christmas as a part of my spiritual family of faith.  Don't be deceived by the lies of the enemy.  Turn to Jesus before it's too late!

I remember Christmas

As a day of joy and love

A time to share with others

Our Gift from God above.

A day uniquely set apart

To celebrate the birth

Of Jesus, God’s beloved Son

The day He came to earth.

He came to be a sacrifice

To suffer in our place

To pay the debt for all our sin

A stunning act of grace!

So many in the world today

No longer understand

The reason that we celebrate

Why God became a man.

Those of us who love the Lord

And live to honor His name

To stand in truth upon His word

Are ridiculed and shamed.

That attitude is another sign

That Jesus is coming soon

To take His family home before

His vengeance and wrath ensue.

So turn to Christ without delay

Be cleansed from all your sin

And look with hope to the future

To an eternal life with Him.