Yesterday I said
I had a word to release
about the two types of guests
that are invited to the wedding feast.

I thought I was ready to go,
but tonight when I opened Chapter 14
in the Book of Luke,
I noticed something
that I hadn’t noticed before.

“One Sabbath day
Jesus went to eat dinner
in the home of a leader of the Pharisees,
and the people were watching him closely.”
Luke 14:1

Jesus had been invited into a den of foxes,
but instead of being frightened,
He used this as an opportunity
to speak the truth in love.

He asked the Pharisees
and experts of the religious law,
if it was permitted, in the law,
to heal people on the Sabbath day, or not.

I always thought of Satan 
as casting the bait,
but here we see Jesus
as a fisher of men!

But these men refused to take His bait,
the truth in love was something
they did not want to taste!

Jesus extended a miracle they could not debate.
He healed a man
whose arms and legs were swollen,
and then sent him away.

He turned to the men and said,
“Which of you does not work on the Sabbath?
If your son or your cow falls into a pit,
don’t you rush in to get him out?”
Luke 14:5-6

Instead of telling them what to think,
He asked them a question they could not refute.
But their hearts were so hard,
they would not answer Him,
and they refused to believe!

Scripture shows us two types of men
that are the same,
men with hearts like Pharaoh,
and the Pharisees.

And this is how Jesus introduces us
to the first kind of guests
who are invited to the Banquet Table
of the Wedding Feast.

Hard-hearted men who refuse to believe Christ,
even though it appears that they do have faith.
Hard-hearted men who refuse to submit,
no matter the destruction
that comes from God's wrath.

These are the empty hearts
that have been filled with SELF.
They are subject to the spirits of pride and doubt.

You will know them, by their fruit,
because they produce manipulation,
stubbornness and control.
They jockey for position
like they did in Luke 14 verse 7.
They will run over each other,
just to get to the seat of honor.
And they certainly don't even see,
the guest of honor,
who is standing right in front of them.

Vanity - It’s the Mirror of Deceit.
Which is another character trait
of humans that resemble people like
Pharaoh and the Pharisees.

The inability to see anyone but themselves,
not even the true version of Jesus Christ!

And you can’t have vanity, without underlying lust.
It’s an unsatiable desire that causes covetousness.

"My Precious!"
It reminds me of Gollum in the Lord of the Rings,
he would die alone holding on to deceit!

Hypocrisy, vanity and lust;
Manipulation, control
and covetousness -
These are signs that tell us
that we are spiritually lost!

Yet,
Jesus still goes to them, and casts out His bait,
which we already identified as the truth in love,
because He is a Fisher of Men, who does not discriminate.

He paid the price for everyone,
not just the ones who look like
the lost, lonely and broken-hearted.

Any one of those men
could have eaten the bait!
Any one of the Pharisees
could have believed him.
But we see in Luke 14, that none of them did.

Despite the lesson on humility,
found in the Parable of the Great Feast,
the Pharisees and religious men
continued to make excuses,
and stayed away from Him.

This is when I am reminded
to shake the dust from my feet,
and to leave the person or the place
that won't accept the truth in love.

I will not change the gospel
to get a man to believe,
I will twist the WORD,
the truth in love.
Why?
Because this is NOT what Jesus did!

I think this is what upsets me the most,
men who rationalize their own ways,
and their own thoughts IN LOVE,
instead of declaring the truth of God's WORD.

Even though Jesus was invited to THEIR table,
He was not under THEIR control!
We hear Him speak the truth in love
when He says,
“When you are invited
to a wedding feast,
don’t sit in the seat of honor.
What if someone
who is more distinguished than you
has also been invited?
The host will come and say,
‘Give this person your seat.’
Then you will be embarrassed,
and you will have to take
whatever seat is left
at the foot of the table!
“Instead, take the lowest place
at the foot of the table.
Then when your host sees you,
he will come and say,
‘Friend, we have a better place
for you!’ Then you will be honored
in front of all the other guests.”
‭‭Luke‬ ‭14:8-10‬ ‭

Wow! What a revelation!
The world is not Jesus’s kingdom.
He reigns over the Kingdom of Heaven.
He was an honored guest of this world,
who came to show us the truth in love.
And in this passage,
He totally reminded me 
that we are still living under the curse,
and not the blessing.

Do you remember what Jesus said,
when Pontius Pilate asked him who he was,
and what he had done?
Jesus answered, 
“My kingdom is not of this world; if it were, 
My servants would fight to prevent My arrest by the Jews. 
But now, My kingdom is not of this realm.” 
“Then You are a king!” Pilate said.
“You say that I am a king,” Jesus answered.
“For this reason I was born and have come into the world,
to testify to the truth.
Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to My voice.”
John 18:35-37

Much of humanity enjoys living in the den,
so much so that they are not willing to keep God's Word.
They think they own what they have,
and they think that honor and glory is theirs to be had.

It’s so crazy to me, that the Son of God
is standing in front of them,
and they don’t have the eyes to see Him!

Gee, there’s another character trait -
they are spiritually blind.
They are the walking dead!
Eternally damned
if they don’t break the eternal curse
that was spoken by Word of God.

They made so many excuses not to partake
these men described in the Parable of the Great Feast.
And there is another trait,
they are fools who are spiritually dumb!

We see it in Luke 14:16-20,
where Jesus tells a story of a man
who sent out many invitations.
And when the banquet was ready,
he sent his servants to tell them,
“Come, the feast is ready.”
But they all made excuses
and did not come.

Thank God
the Parable of the Great Feast
is changing,
because I don’t think I can take much more
of human spiritual stupidity!

It’s complete hypocrisy and absurdity
to believe that our thoughts
and our ways are the truth!
Once again, this is NOT what God's Word says!
Isaiah 55:7-9 says,
"Let the wicked man forsake his own way
and the unrighteous man his own thoughts;
let him return to the LORD,
that He may have compassion, and to our God,
for He will freely pardon.
“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, 
neither are your ways My ways,” 
declares the LORD. 
“For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so My ways are higher than your ways
and My thoughts than your thoughts."

Now that Jesus has shown us what kind of men,
choose not to participate in Banquet of the Lord,
He introduces the second kind of guest,
the ones who accept the truth in love.

He says,
“The servant returned
and told his master
what they had said.
His master was furious and said,
“Go quickly into the streets
and alleys of the town
and invite the poor,
the crippled,
the blind
and the lame.”
After the servant had done this he reported
there is still room for more,
so his master said to go
out into the country lanes,
and behind the hedges,
and urge any when you find to come
so that the house will be full.
For none of those I first invited
will get even the smallest taste of my banquet.”
Luke 14:21-24

So if you hear the Word of God
and it does not make sense to you,
then this is an indicator
that you have more work to do.
It is time to soften your heart,
repent, accept the truth;
and forgive yourself and your fellow man,
and tell Jesus you are ready to return to Him.

He says that when we prepare a feast,
we should not invite our friends,
brothers, relatives or rich neighbors;
lest they also invite you back and you be repaid.
If we did this, our hearts would be questioned
because it may show that our selfishness still exists.
‭‭Luke‬ ‭14:12-14‬

My God,
don’t you see the humility in this?
It is never about us!
It's always about Jesus!
If the self-righteous don’t want to bite,
then take the truth in love 
to the ones that humans have outcast!
For surely they will believe!
They have learned a thing or two
about humility!

This is such a revelation to me!
We think we are extending 
a hand of human love
to our fellow man,
but even that rationalization
is spiritually dumb!
Because it’s still about us!!!

God help us!
The deceit that lies beneath the human crust
is finally becoming obvious to me. 
I pray that Holy Spirit
will continue to dig it all up!

Everything is about HIM!

Even helping the poor
is not about me, or even them!
It’s about God showing up
through His essence of love
to present the truth, in love!

It’s about inviting all men to the wedding feast!
It’s casting a net so that everyone can eat!

It’s about turning two loaves of bread
and five fish into a feast!
It's about turning us into something complete.

“In the beginning
the Word already existed.
The Word was with God,
and the Word was God.
He existed in the beginning with God.
God created everything through him,
and nothing was created
except through him.
The Word gave life to everything
that was created,
and his life brought light to everyone.
The light shines in the darkness,
and the darkness
can never extinguish it.”
‭‭John‬ ‭1:1-5‬

I will forever be faithful to God!
I will stand courageous and bold!
No one can shake me, or make me fall,
because I stand rooted in God’s love!

Jesus IS TRUTH, in love,
and He IS the Word of Almighty God!
There is nothing that can be taken out!
Because it’s not possible to negate Him!

He existed from the beginning of time,
and He is the ancient of days!
You are a vapor in the wind,
but He is eternal and never ending!

He is God!
Alpha and Omega!
And it’s in HIS WORD that I stand!
And I am a Fisher of Men,
and I am casting out the TRUTH, in LOVE.

My only ministry is the reconciliation of men,
speaking to the truth in love
to reconcile hearts back to Him!

It’s the same line that was finally cast to me,
the line that the WORD of God
was with us from the beginning of time,
and that we must consume the inspired Word.
We must eat the whole sacrificial lamb,
and put the blood of Christ on our hearts.
Without Him, we are eternally damned,
and once that happens
there is nothing that can bring us back to Him.
Once we accept Him,
we must change our thoughts and our ways,
and that is why Holy Spirit came.
He guides us and comforts us
through the rest of our days,
until our Father is ready to bring us home.
This fishermen line can not be changed.
It is the same line every time!
It’s the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

So I ask you, will you take the bait?
Do you believe that Jesus came, and died for you?
Do you believe He was ransomed and redeemed?
Do you believe that He is the Son of God?
Do you believe that He is the Spirit of Truth?
Do you believe He came in Love?

If you do, then present yourself to Him.
He will accept you just as you are.
His blood purifies all of your past,
and His purity makes you white as snow.
He will transform you, and make you His virgin bride,
who keeps her lamp burning and is ready to go home.

If you have no idea what I say,
then I encourage you to pick up the Word of God.
All you need is a mustard seed of faith,
and He will do the rest.

It's time to decide,
what kind of guest do you want to be?

When you’re invited to a feast,
what do you think will be
on the serving plate?

If you had to guess,
do you think it would be
milk, candy or meat?

Can you imagine sitting down to eat
only to be offered a glass of milk,
or even worse,
a heaping plate of candy-coated mystery meat?

I know this must sound ridiculous,
but its part of the Parable
found in the 14th Chapter
of the Book of Luke.

Here we see
Jesus serving up
even more spiritual truths!

I’m going to divide this Sermon in half.

Part One
will speak to the wedding feast,
where the WORD is spread out
on the Table of God.
Perfectly prepared for his BRIDE,
repentant hearts who've been purified by Him.

Part Two
will come tomorrow
and it will describe
the two different kinds of guests
that have been invited by Him.

While the message I’m about to share
is meant for the world,
the Spirit is pressing on me
to focus on the American church.

Candy-coated mystery meat
has been the diet we have been fed
from Mega churches
who present themselves
as a House of God.

Americans have consumed
thousands of empty calories
from extra helpings of Big Mac messages
and false gospel fries.

You would think that
the servants of the King
would prepare the choicest of meats
to lay out on the Table of God.

You would think the Written Word
would be the main dish,
and the Spoken Word
would be freshly-picked,
perfectly placed and offered to the guests.

But instead, they serve
sugar-coated verses
that have been sprinkled with
cultural bias;
and if that's not modification enough,
cultural relativism
is injected into
God’s Word,
line by line.

Instead of consuming
the whole sacrificial lamb,
limbs are extracted
and candy-coated.

This is the recipe
for every false gospel,
and it’s why us humans
are spiritually starving.

Pastors hand-pick their kitchen mates,
and false prophets become their self-anointed chefs.
Apostles who are supposed to carry out the Word,
trip over each other as they run to the front row.
Shepherds herd humans like animals
by binding them through dominion and control.
Teachers speak their own words, 
and people circle around hoping to be acknowledged.

Instead of wisdom
shouting out in the streets,
fools propagate there own beliefs.

Water baptism has become the new herding mentality,
where humans are marched in and randomly dunked.

Quantity is valued more than quality;
Human hearts haven’t been taught
anything about spiritual accountability!

People enter the water believing that Jesus
will be the answer to all of their problems.
But then they give up hope when they see He has left them.
For some,
they stop believing
because their circumstances
are not changing,
all because no one told them told them the truth.

Rarely do we take the time to disciple men,
and rarely do we tell them
they will need to endure suffering.
We don't equip them to understand Mark 12:45,
where "an impure spirit comes out of a person,
then goes back and takes with it
seven other spirits more wicked."
People must be told the whole truth,
and nothing but the truth, so help us God.
Because without God's truth, we are just living a lie.
 
The American Church
has become a breeding ground for Satan;
and we know this fallen angel
rules over all the worldly kingdoms.
So, what does that say to us?

Many pulpits are occupied by baby Christians
who just need more time to grow spiritually mature.
But truth be told, they do speak the truth in love,
just not enough.

Milk is not bad, in fact it is really good!
Spiritual Milk grows spiritual bones
which becomes our frame. 
However, if you are fully grown,
then milk alone will not do.
Spiritual Meat is needed for spiritually hungry,
and it should not be served deceitfully,
as candy-coated mystery meat.

Unfortunately this is how the lie begins.
Since milk is served next to mystery meat,
people think they are being fed,
when in fact they are being spiritually misled.

Mixing the truth with a lie
is typically how humanity works,
just read Romans 1, verse 25.

This has to be Satan’s most precious form of bait,
it leaves fools believing
there is only THEIR truth and God’s Grace.

The American church has become
the leading factory of Carnal Christianity -
the making of “Christians” who believe
that human love is more important than the truth.

They use their mind to break up God’s foundation
while trying to use their heart to keep up His walls;
essentially,
they bring their heart to the alter,
but not their thoughts.

They are the what the Bible calls
the Church of the Laodiceans,
the spiritually indifferent and lukewarm.

We can read all about them
in the Book of Revelation,
where the apostle John
is shown the end times
by an angel of God.

Carnal Christians
will stake their claim to grace,
while simultaneously
spiritually spitting in Jesus’s face.

But this is how deceit works!
People don’t even realize they are doing it!
If they did, my prayer is that they would stop.

They bind up people’s wounds 
and put ointment on them,
but they do this without ever sharing God's truth.
They coat the skin with grace
before ever injecting His mercy.
They close up the wound while leaving the infection in.

Yes, some will heal in time,
but many will be left to their own devise.
If you do not show them the truth in love,
then they will continue to be subject to satanic lies.

The truth is we are all sinners living under God's curse,
but He sent his Son Jesus to ransom us,
to pay the price for our life with his own blood.
All we have to do is repent and give our lives back to Him,
knowing full well that our portion is not of this world,
but in the world to come.
Deuteronomy 30:19 says, 
"I lay before you life and death. 
Choose life so that you and your descendants may live."

Listen,
If you’ve never had filet mignon,
which is symbolically,
the whole Word of God,
and you’ve only had candy-coated mystery meat,
then how would you even know
that the fake food is NOT good for you?

You would keep on consuming
all that you’ve been told,
even though it’s a falsehood,
because it looks good,
smells good, and tastes good!

And before you've even had a chance to learn the truth,
you could be completely addicted to the false teachings
you have ignorantly consumed.

For a Carnal Christian who has been addicted
to their own beliefs and human love,
spiritual detoxification from this witchcraft
can be very humbling, and very hard.

It entails regurgitating spiritual falsehoods,
and dying to self on the alter of God.
It requires repentance of sin,
and requires a willingness to endure
even more suffering
that comes from the consequences of humanity
living in adultery, separated from Him.

But if you extend your hand,
He will lift you from the pit.
He is always ready to bring a repentant heart back to Him.

2 Timothy 15-19 says,
“Do your best to present yourself to God
and receive his approval.”

“Be a good worker,
one who does not need
to be ashamed AND
who correctly explains
the word of truth.”

“Avoid worthless, foolish talk
that only leads to more
godless behavior.”

“This kind of talk spreads like cancer,
as in the case of Hymenaeus and Philetus.
They have left the path of truth,
claiming that the resurrection
of the dead has already occurred;
in this way, 
they have turned some people away from the faith.”

“But God’s truth stands firm 
like a foundation stone
with this inscription:
The Lord knows those who are his,
and All who belong to the Lord
must turn away from evil.”

You may think
we should not say anything to anybody
about God’s truth,
at least not until Holy Spirit timing is right.

But let me ask you this,
“Are you God?”
Are you the one in charge?
Do you not know what Jesus spoke
after his resurrection?

Jesus spent 40 days
teaching about the Kingdom of God.
In fact, His final instruction to his disciples was this,
“Go and make disciples of all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father
and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
and teaching them to obey everything
I have commanded.”
Mark 28:19-20

I’m not trying to be mean,
but do you know when a man will take his last breath?

God does!

God does not say to wait
to tell a man His truth.
In fact, He commands just the opposite!
He commands us to
speak the truth in love, all of the time.

Here is a trustworthy saying:
If we died with him,
    we will also live with him;
if we endure,
    we will also reign with him.
If we disown him,
    he will also disown us;
if we are faithless,
   he remains faithful,
    for he cannot disown himself.
2 Timothy 2:11-13

Paul encourages us with these words
on how to be spiritually mature,
“Then we will no longer be immature like children.
We won’t be tossed and blown about
by every wind of new teaching.
We will not be influenced
when people try to trick us with lies
so clever they sound like the truth.
Instead, we will speak the truth in love,
growing in every way more and more like Christ,
who is the head of his body, the church.”
Ephesians 4:14-15

“Since you have heard about Jesus
and have learned the truth that comes from him,
throw off your old sinful nature
and your former way of life,
which is corrupted by lust and deception.
Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes.
Put on your new nature, created to be like God -
truly righteous and holy.”
‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭4:21-24‬ ‭

Since God is love, and His Spirit is truth,
how can you possibly operate in one, but not in two?

God help us when Christians don’t stand on your truth!
It’s like building a house on sand,
that moves with every thought that enters our heads.

I humbly present myself to you,
to let you know, that I too,
walked spiritually deceived.
I walked as a Carnal Christian for over twenty years.
I was so deceived that I could not see
the impurity that lived inside of me.

And while I often opened God’s Word,
I did it from a heart of humanity,
my intent was to find God's love,
while standing on my own human-centered beliefs.

I refused to believe that God had a wrath
that would be poured out on men;
and I could not come to terms
that God would shut the doors of Heaven on any human.

The narrow door was just not a belief that I could hold onto;
If God was so good, then why would He condemn anyone?

I did not like boundaries, and I certainly hated walls!
I took God’s place of honor, and spoke my words over His.

God allowed me to eat the false beliefs that I consumed.
And this is when I fell into depression,
and endured the consequences of my sin.

But in the end, I learned more about God’s love
than I ever could have on my own.
Thank God there were Christians
who spoke the truth in love,
who came by my side and did not leave me alone.

And that is why today,
I lay down my beliefs, and my ways,
as a living sacrifice to Him.

The Lord has three requests when coming to the Table of God,
Come when you are invited
Come with a repentant heart of humility
Come prepared to eat the whole WORD of God

Be careful not to believe exchange the truth for a lie.
Do not believe sugar-coated messages over His truth.
Do not denounce the Bible as a book written by fools,
instead believe it to be the inspired Word of God.
Be cautious of the opposite,

Don't confuse love as hate, and hate as love.
For the Lord hates anything that goes against Him,
and the Lord loves anything that brings you back to Him.

Do not think that plumb line faith is not of God;
and do not stand on the human interpretation of universal love.

Be careful if you are straining,
Your spiritual vision may be blurred;
Be careful not to doubt the inspired Word of God

Jesus said,
“Don’t begin
until you count the cost.
For who would begin construction of a building
without first calculating the cost
to see if there is enough money to finish it?
Otherwise, you might complete only the foundation
before running out of money,
and then everyone would laugh at you.
They would say,
“There’s the person who started that building
and couldn’t afford to finish it!”
Or what king would go to war against another king
without first sitting down with his counselors
to discuss whether his army of 10,000
could defeat the 20,000 soldiers marching against him?
And if he can’t, he will send a delegation
to discuss terms of peace while the enemy is still far away.
So you cannot become my disciple
without giving up everything you own.”

This IS the Word of God!

I pray that all who hear it, won't excuse it!
Don’t even try to rationalize it!

Come like children, ready to hear
the words that are spoken from your good father,
whose message is intended for the pure in heart.

Being a disciple is more than showing love.
It’s a full commitment to put down your thoughts,
pick up his cross and submit yourself to Him.
It is following Him, no matter what the cost-
it’s speaking the truth in love
to the wandering, and the lost.

I have to remind myself everyday
that Jesus warned us that the world would hate us,
if we followed Him.
Since my ministry is the reconciliation of men,
if only one comes to Christ,
then I know I have done the work of God.

When your life and your ministry
is no longer be about you;
it will be a sign that you’ve laid down your life
and given it back to him.

He will tear down your walls of pride and vanity,
and He will gently remove the mask of deceit
to expose truth.

So if you find yourself spiritually hungry
and the milk will no longer do,
then it means you are maturing,
and you will need something more to eat.

The Lord invites you to His wedding feast.
Where the WORD is laid out on the Table of God.
Come with a repentant heart,
and Open the Bible for yourself
and get ready to be amazed!

INSPIRED and WRITTEN
WRITTEN and INSPIRED
LOGOS AND RHEMA
EAT ALL OF HIM

Toss away
the candy-coated mystery meat
it will only make you more spiritually sick.

Tomorrow I will release Part Two of this Word;
Where Jesus compares two different kinds of guests
that are invited to the Table of the Lord.

Here's a hint,
One is characterized by the Pharisees,
full of hypocrisy, vanity and lust;
and one is characterized as the desperate and needy,
who are known for humility, child-like faith, and thankfulness.

Luke Chapter 13 explains to us
why the message of repentance
is the most perfect form of God’s love.

Think about it.

Why would Jesus share
the Parable of the Barren Fig Tree,
or The Narrow Door,
if He didn’t want us to know
how serious He is
about turning back back to Him.

If you think Heaven
is open to everyone,
then you clearly do not know
what the Word of God says.
It's so important that we don't miss this,
it is really a matter of eternal life or death.

Do you remember
what Jesus said
when his disciple asked him,
“Lord, will only a few be saved?”

He said,
“Work hard
to enter the narrow door
to God’s Kingdom!”
Many will try to enter
but will fail.”

“When the master of the house
has locked the door,
it will be too late.
You will stand outside,
knocking and pleading,
“Lord, open the door for us!”

But he will reply,
“I don’t know you
or where you come from.”

Then you will say,
“But we ate and drank with you,
and you taught in our streets.”

And he will reply,
“I tell you, I don’t know you
or where you come from.
Get away from me,
all you who do evil -
There will be
weeping and gnashing of teeth!”
Luke 13:24-28

I don’t know about you,
but his answer is a LOT scary to me,
many who walking confidently
are actually deceived.

We have to get this right!
Many have not taken the time
to dive into God's Word -
to get to know Him personally.

They walk around proudly,
serving their fellow man,
truly believing
they are going to Heaven
because they are morally good.

But this is NOT what God's Word says.

Where in the world,
does this falsehood come from?

I can’t find anywhere in the Bible
that this is what God says.
In fact it says just the opposite,
if we don't know him,
we will be eternally dead.

He does say
that His greatest command
is to love Him, and
to love our neighbors as ourselves,
but this can only be done
when we truly understand
how He saved us from eternal death.

According to the Word,
it’s only the blood of Jesus
that brings us back
into relationship with Him,
and it’s through a personal relationship
that we can truly know who God is.

And when we know Him,
we come to understand
how much forgiveness is foundational
to spreading the love of God.
 
When we truly understand
the cost of our sin,
we will have no problem
forgiving our fellow men,
because it's only then
that we understand
how much He forgave us.

God became a human
so that He come in flesh,
die on the cross,
and spill His Holy blood
as our final sacrifice -
Why?
Because He knew
there was no way in hell
that we could obey the Law.

This is the difference
between Christians
and the religious,
or even universalists.

It’s all about Jesus!
Only Jesus leads the way.
As scripture says,
“There is one God,
and there is one mediator
between God and men,
the man Christ Jesus,
who gave himself
as a ransom for all” the world.
1 Timothy 2:5-7

Unforsaken
only comes through repentance - 
The blood of Christ is poured
into human repentant hearts.

Jesus says it like this,
“A man planted a fig tree
in his garden,
and came again and again
to see if there was any fruit on it,
but he was always disappointed.”

“Finally, he said to his gardener,
“I’ve waited three years, and
there hasn’t been a single fig!
Cut it down.
It’s just taking up space
in the garden.”

The gardener answered,
“Sir, give it one more chance.
Leave it another year,
and I’ll give it special attention
and plenty of fertilizer.
If we get figs next year, fine.
If not, then you can cut it down”
Luke 13:6-9

Do you not see,
how tolerant our God is?
He is the gardener
asking for more time,
patiently waiting
for the fig tree to bear fruit.

Time.
He is giving us time -
Time to change our minds.
Time to repent.
Time to stop our adulterous ways.
Time to remember how good He is.
Time to stop.
Time to apologize,
get on our knees
and bow our heads to Him.

Why do you think He describes
the children of Israel
as an adulterous wife,
who have strayed,
and walked away from Him?
It’s because He is a relational God.
Even His own seed is Three in One.
His whole being is pure love!
He is so desperate for us,
that He sent His only son
to be a living sacrifice
to cover our sin with His blood.

This purification
comes through a choice.
God asks human beings
to become his virgin wife;
He washes away our sin,
and makes us fully clean.

This is what repentance means!

The church has been set apart for Him.
We are to keep our lamps burning,
and prepare for the wedding feast.
This is the promise
to the human heart
that invites His Holy Spirit in.

Wow!
Holy Spirit is so good!
This is the perfect place
to talk about
the mustard seed and yeast.

Jesus said,
“What is the Kingdom of God like?
How can I illustrate it?”

“It is like a tiny mustard seed
that a man planted in a garden;
it grows and becomes a tree,
and the birds make nests
in its branches.”
Luke 13:18-19

This made me think,
when God created Adam
and placed him in His garden,
was He expected to be like
the mustard seed
and multiply in love?

Jesus also said,
“The Kingdom of God
is like the yeast a woman
used in making bread.
Even though she put only
a little yeast in
three measures of flour,
it permeated every part
of the dough.”

So once again
we see the concept of pregnant, 
where a little seed of something
grows into something more.

It does not matter
whether it’s bad or it’s good,
whether it’s a mustard seed of faith
or a little yeast of sin.
It's still represents
the concept of birth and growth,
whether attached to the blessing or the curse.

This is why Paul says,
“For by the grace given to me
I say to everyone among you
not to think of himself more highly
than he ought to think,
but to think with sober judgment,
each according to the measure
of faith that God has assigned.”
Romans 12:3

Scripture says,
“Faith comes from hearing,
and hearing through the word of Christ.”
Romans 10:17

Therefore we can discern,
that Faith is a partnership
between you and God.
When you seek Him in his Word,
He impregnates you,
and puts a measure of faith in you.

As the seed of His Spirit
grows inside of a man,
that man will automatically
grow more like Him.

But if he does not,
we can assume something is wrong,
It means there is
a misalignment of His soul,
and this is known as blasphemy to God.

So we must pay attention,
when God starts tugging on us.
He is such a good father,
that He wants to correct us.

It doesn’t surprise me
that we see Jesus healing
a woman’s bent back
and making it straight;
This is included in Luke Chapter 13.

Scripture says,
“One Sabbath day
as Jesus was teaching
in a synagogue,
he saw a woman
who had been crippled
by an evil spirit.
She had been bent double
for eighteen years
and was unable
to stand up straight.
When Jesus saw her,
he called her over and said,
“Dear woman, you are healed
of your sickness!”
Then he touched her, and
instantly she could stand straight.
How she praised God!
But the leader in charge
of the synagogue
was indignant that Jesus had
healed her on the Sabbath day.

"There are six days
of the week for working,”
he said to the crowd.
“Come on those days to be healed,
not on the Sabbath.”

But the Lord replied,
“You hypocrites!
Each of you works
on the Sabbath day!
Don’t you untie your ox
or your donkey from its stall
on the Sabbath
and lead it out for water?
This dear woman,
a daughter of Abraham,
has been held in bondage by Satan
for eighteen years.
Isn’t it right that she be released,
even on the Sabbath?”
‭‭Luke‬ ‭13:10-16‬ ‭

So this brings me to the barren fig tree -
the human race is under the curse;
Born into sin.
Not bearing God's seed.

Why do you think Sarah was physically barren?
God needed to show us
how He can create
something from nothing!

Isn't our God good?

Despite her doubt,
He fulfilled His Word,
He gave her a son -
who filled the sands 
with many men, and many nations;
Nations who would return
their hearts to Him
so that He could impregnate them
with His Word.

And through Issac,
Jacob came,
and through the line of Judah,
David was born.

A shepherd boy,
who became a King,
setting the stage for Jesus;
Jesus came as a lamb,
to be slaughtered as a human
so that He could resurrect as our King.

Today,
Jesus sits at the right hand of God,
making intervention for us;
while He waits patiently for man
to accept Holy Spirit baptism
through the act of repentance. 

But if a man
refuses to repent
and come back to Him,
then God allows
his heart to stay hard,
Which is not good!

It will stay
in its natural form,
full of self and void of God.

Spiritually barren
and all alone,
this is the story of people like Pharaoh,
yet God will use them to let His people go
so that they can make their way back home.

The understanding of spiritual fruit,
Helps us not only discern human behavior,
and human hearts,
But it also gives us wisdom
about spiritual truths.

Jesus said,
“Beware of false prophets,
who come to you
in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly
they are ravenous wolves."

"You will know them by their fruits.”
Matthew 7:15-16.

Then He said,
“Do men gather grapes from thornbushes
or figs from thistles?”
Even so, every good tree
bears good fruit,
but a bad tree bears bad fruit.”

“A good tree cannot bear bad fruit,
nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.
Every tree that does not
bear good fruit is cut down
and thrown into the fire.
Therefore, by their fruits
you will know them."
Matthew 7:17-20

I cannot tell you,
how great this advice is!
If you want to know
how to discern spirits,
you must first repent
and give your heart back to Him.

Then,
as you pursue Him,
He will give you understanding
to what His parables mean,
and He will whisper spiritual truths
into your ear.

He will open your eyes
to what you need to see,
so that you can walk forward
boldly and courageously.

His desire is that you will join the Lord's army,
and become a vessel for Him,
through the ministry of the reconciliation of men.

The true testimony of Jesus
must be told,
He is the Messiah,
the resurrected Son of God.
It’s only his blood
that covers our sin,
and it’s only His Spirit
who can discern the intent
behind the hearts of men.

This is why we are told not to judge;
and this is why we are commanded to love.

We must know,
that water baptism
is ONLY the outward expression
of our inner declaration;
and it does not replace
the inner desire of a man’s heart,
to be transformed in Spirit and
walk in fellowship with Him.

Spiritual Alignment comes
when we repent;
when we die to self
and give God back our hearts.
A person must decide
where their heart resides,
does it beat for Him,
or for them?

Jesus set His face like flint,
and walked boldly into Jerusalem.
There was nothing
that would stop Him
from fulfilling the purpose
of why He had come.

Jesus said,
“Go tell that fox
(speaking of the Herod Antipas),
that I will keep on
casting out demons
and healing people
today and tomorrow;
and on the third day
I will accomplish my purpose.
Yes, today, tomorrow,
and the next day
I must proceed on my way.
For it wouldn’t do
for a prophet of God
to be killed except in Jerusalem!
“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem,
the city that kills the prophets
and stones God’s messengers!
How often I have wanted
to gather your children together
as a hen protects her chicks
beneath her wings,
but you wouldn’t let me.
And now, look,
your house is abandoned.
And you will never see me again
until you say,
“Blessings on the one who comes
in the name of the LORD!”
‭‭Luke‬ ‭13:31-35‬

As I come to the end
of Luke 13,
Let me just remind you again,
“There will be weeping
and gnashing of teeth,
for you will see
Abraham, Isaac, Jacob,
and all the prophets
in the Kingdom of God,
but you will be thrown out.
And people will come
from all over the world -
from east and west,
north and south -
to take their places
in the Kingdom of God.
And note this:
Some who seem
least important now
will be the greatest then,
and some who are
the greatest now
will be least important then. ”
‭‭Luke‬ ‭13:28-30‬ ‭

And lastly,
remember what Jesus said,
when people came to Him
about Pilate murdering
people from Galilee
as they were offering sacrifices
at the Temple of God.

He asked,
“Do you think those Galileans
were worse sinners
than all the other people
from Galilee?”

“Is that why they suffered?
Not at all!
And you will perish, too,
unless you repent of your sins
and turn to God.”
‭‭Luke‬ ‭13:1-3

What did you hear in all of that?
I’ll tell you what I heard.

I heard that none of us are good!
We all sin, and we all must repent!
We all sin, and we all must forgive!
Without forgiveness,
we are bound to the root of bitterness,
which produces pure hate
instead of pure love.

So I ask you this,
what kind of fruit do you bear?
Do you live, breath and speak
from the curse or the blessing?

We must keep our eyes
focused on Christ,
and we must beware
because it is easy to fall
into the pit of despair,
Satan is the prince of the air,
and his only goal is to deceive men.

So hold onto hope
and proclaim Jesus as Lord;
He understands what you have to endure,
and He is preparing a room for you
in His Kingdom of Heaven.

Jesus is the true prophet,
and He is our King.
He is our Holy priest,
and He is the only Judge
who can condemn or acquit.

Here is your alter call.
Will you bring it all
to the foot of the cross?
Will you put your trust in Him?
Will you open His Word and search for yourself,
that the only way to be blessed
is through the blood of Christ?
Will you give him your heart?
Will you give him your life?
Will you be a living sacrifice
so that others can come to know Him?
Will you choose to love and forgive,
even when it is hard?
Will you die to self and accept this new life?

Luke 12
is going to be divided up,
at least into four parts,
because these messages
ARE for THIS season,
and these WORDS
are what Holy Spirit
wants to me to exhort.

Part 1 was about Hypocrisy,
intended for the religious spirit
that focuses on the falsity
“of you instead of me.”

These spirits 
like to hide behind walls
and draw lines in the sand.
They judge, kill, destroy and condemn.

Their mission 
is to mix fear and dominion,
with tradition and rigid opinion
to intimidate their fellow man.

Yes.
Modern-day Pharisees exist today.
Instead of being a lamp stand
and reflecting God’s love,
they sit under baskets,
and whisper condemnations
about all the Christians
who have  been led astray.

I pray for increase
in Followers of the Way -
for zealous Christians 
who keep their eyes 
faithfully focused
on Jesus!

Let me say,
the poetic sermons,
in Luke Chapter 12
set the stage
for the end of age!
I believe these are the signs
that describe the end times,
so please pay attention,
and keep a sober mind!

Hypocrisy and love of money
is rampant in our streets!
Our generation is driven
by anarchy and apostasy -
where rebellion,
and religious spirits
have been actively pursuing men.
While God can intervene,
at any time,
His word is clear.
He is patiently waiting
for humanity to draw near.

He has already sent His Son,
to redeem us from our sin.
And He sent Holy Spirit
to live on the inside
of hearts of men.

He has not left us,
or taken away His love.
In fact, it is just the opposite!
He is administering
the corrective discipline
referred to in Hebrews 12.

This is what the author
of Hebrews said,
“And have you forgotten
the encouraging words
God spoke to you as his children?"

He said,
My child,
don’t make light
of the Lord’s discipline,
and don’t give up
when he corrects.
For the Lord disciplines
those he loves,
and he punishes each one
he accepts as his child.
As you endure
this divine discipline,
remember that
God is treating you
as his own children.
Who ever heard of a child
who is never disciplined
by its father?
If God doesn’t discipline you
as he does all of his children,
it means that you are illegitimate
and are not really his children at all.
Since we respected
our earthly fathers
who disciplined us,
shouldn’t we submit even more
to the discipline
of the Father of our spirits,
and live forever?”
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭12:5-9‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Discipline?
You may ask what
what we need discipline from.
Perhaps this a good time
to share Romans, Chapter 1.

But before I do,
let me just say,
that in my flesh,
His thoughts are not my thoughts,
and His ways are not my ways.
I had a very hard time
coming to terms with God,
for so long I walked in rebellion.
I believed in parts of His Word,
but I made excuses and justified
most of what I heard.

Then the Lord
allowed me to come to the end of myself,
and this is when I contemplated suicide.
There was consequence to my sin
that He allowed me to endure,
but He is such a Good Father
that He sent Jesus
to rescue me from the pit.
In that moment, 
I died to myself;
and in that moment
I understood His love - 
and this is when I decided
to fully surrender my will to Him.

Romans 1 says,
“So God abandoned them
to do whatever shameful things
their hearts desired.
As a result, they did vile
and degrading things
with each other’s bodies.
They traded the truth about God
for a lie.
So they worshiped and served
the things God created
instead of the Creator himself,
who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen.
That is why God abandoned them
to their shameful desires.
Even the women turned
against the natural way to have sex
and instead indulged in sex
with each other.
And the men,
instead of having normal
sexual relations with women,
burned with lust for each other.
Men did shameful things
with other men,
and as a result of this sin,
they suffered within themselves
the penalty they deserved.
Since they thought it foolish
to acknowledge God,
he abandoned them
to their foolish thinking
and let them do things
that should never be done.
Their lives became full
of every kind of wickedness,
sin, greed, hate, envy, murder,
quarreling, deception, malicious
behavior, and gossip.
They are backstabbers,
haters of God,
insolent, proud, and boastful.
They invent new ways of sinning,
and they disobey their parents.
They refuse to understand,
break their promises, are heartless,
and have no mercy.
They know God’s justice
requires that those
who do these things deserve to die,
yet they do them anyway.
Worse yet, they encourage others
to do them, too.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭1:24-32‬ ‭NLT‬‬

As you can see,
all of humanity is in need, 
because not one of us walks
in His purity.
Evil is the intent of our heart,
until we receive Jesus,
and are set apart.

Lust gives birth to sin,
and sin gives birth to death.
Human unrighteousness
is a progression -
rejecting one aspect of God
leads to even greater
rejections of Him.

The Parable of the Rich Fool
is just another example
of humanity's plight,
where we foolishly think
that we have it all right.

This is a message
that everyone needs to hear -
especially the wealthy
who live throughout the world.

And in America
we teach individualism -
where self-reliance and
independent thinking
defines our human existence.

Most Americans
who say they are Christian
don’t even believe
that Jesus brought both unity and division.

They think that 
no matter what your religion,
all paths lead to Heaven.
They think
God is the Creator of Unity.
But you will see,
later in Chapter 12,
that Jesus himself says,
"I came to cause division." 

So, today, I pray
for people like me,
"the rich fools" 
who have been led astray.

Riches and glory
is not of this world,
yet, this is the story
we have all been told.

Greed and Getting
are the values we hold.
And Money and More
is what we have worked for.
Land and Homes,
Trucks and Cars,
Shoes and Clothes,
and Entertainment Shows -
This is the gold
the typical American heart
worships and longs for.
High salaries and pension plans,
retirement savings and 401K plans.
Climbing the ladder of success
while stepping on sisters and brothers -
this seems to be what many aim for!

This is the message of Part 2
in the 12th Chapter
of the Book of Luke.
The Parable of the Rich Man
is actually a destitute fool.

Do you think
God cares about our money,
our fame or our glory?
No!
He is not toting
the gospel of prosperity.
Jesus came, as a lamb
to model and preach
the gospel of suffering.
This is the TRUE testimony
that we much teach!
The gospel of dying to self
to pick up His cross, and follow Jesus!

Let’s get real!
Bible prophecy is not about you or me!
It’s about the fulfillment
 -of who Jesus is.
And it's not about spiritual gifts,
and it definitely is not about 
money and wealth.
Bible prophecy is all about
Jesus as prophet, priest, the king -
and our prosperity is His blood,
the key that gives access
to the Kingdom of Heaven.

Dominion -
is also not as you think.
Dominion is actually
the FREE Gift
of God’s grace.

The Independence and Democracy
that our founding fathers foretold
was not about separation from God.
Instead,
it was all about
being free from the greedy
kings of this world.

We are not meant
to be separated from God.
In fact, it is just the opposite!
We are to hide His Word
in our hearts,
so that we do not sin against him!
Psalm 119:11

How do you think
Jesus felt
when the rich fool got it wrong?
It must have totally
broken His heart
to see him foolishly absorbed
by this stronghold.

The rich fool said,
“Teacher, please tell my brother
to divide our father’s estate with me.”

Jesus replied,
“Friend, who made me a judge over you
to decide such things as that?”

Then Jesus said,
“Beware! Guard against
every kind of greed.
Life is not measured
by how much you own.”

Then he told them a story:
“A rich man had a fertile farm
that produced fine crops.
He said to himself,
“What should I do?
I don’t have room for all my crops.”

Then he said,
"I know!
I’ll tear down my barns
and build bigger ones.
Then I’ll have room enough to store
all my wheat and other goods.
And I’ll sit back and say to myself,
“My friend, you have enough
stored away for years to come.
Now take it easy! Eat, drink,
and be merry!”
“But God said to him,
“You fool! You will die this very night.
Then who will get everything
you worked for?”
“Yes, a person is a fool
to store up earthly wealth
but not have a rich relationship
with God.”

So here we see
Jesus getting angry
when a man wants equality
with dividing 
his father's estate.
For humanity,
this is a a really big thing!
Fairness and equity
are completely related to money,
civil rights and physical property.   
But Jesus calls this GREED,
and says,
"Life is not measured
by how much you own.”

After addressing the man,
He turned to his disciples, and said,
“That is why I tell you
not to worry about everyday life -
whether you have enough food to eat
or enough clothes to wear.
For life is more than food,
and your body more than clothing.
Look at the ravens.
They don’t plant or harvest
or store food in barns,
for God feeds them.
And you are far more valuable to him
than any birds!
Can all your worries
add a single moment to your life?
And if worry can’t accomplish
a little thing like that,
what’s the use of worrying
over bigger things?
Look at the lilies and how they grow.
They don’t work or make their clothing,
yet Solomon in all his glory
was not dressed as beautifully as they are.
And if God cares so wonderfully
for flowers that are here today
and thrown into the fire tomorrow,
he will certainly care for you.
Why do you have so little faith?
And don’t be concerned
about what to eat
and what to drink.
Don’t worry about such things.
These things dominate
the thoughts of unbelievers
all over the world,
but your Father
already knows your needs.
Seek the Kingdom of God
above all else,
and he will give you
everything you need.
So don’t be afraid, little flock.
For it gives your Father great happiness
to give you the Kingdom.
Sell your possessions
and give to those in need.
This will store up treasure
for you in heaven!
And the purses of heaven
never get old or develop holes.
Your treasure will be safe;
no thief can steal it
and no moth can destroy it.
Wherever your treasure is,
there the desires of your heart will also be.”
‭‭Luke‬ ‭12:13-34‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Part 2 of Chapter 12
in the Book of Luke
is totally about wealth -
but not the way we think!

It's about
the faithfully devout
who are focused
on spreading the gospel of Jesus,
and promoting Kingdom glory and wealth.

Hypocrisy!
It’s the poisonous yeast
that lives inside of me.

It’s true!

When I read
the first paragraph
in Chapter 12
of the Book of Luke,
I immediately thought
of people like YOU, 
instead of me!

It’s a travesty!

As the crowd gets bigger,
people begin stepping
on each other -
and that is when 
Jesus
gave His warning!

He said,
“Beware of the yeast
of the Pharisees -
their hypocrisy!”
Luke 12:1

Wow!

Thank you Holy Spirit
for opening
my spiritual eyes
and allowing me to see!

This message has really
spoken to me,
on so many .... levels!

First, let me address the fungus!

Biblical yeast is a symbol of sin.
It represents the evil world that we live in.
It also represents the hearts of men,
who live outside the will of God.

And since leaven is symbolic of sin,
we are to develop a taste
for unleavened bread.

Jesus said,
“Truly, truly, I tell you,
unless you eat of my flesh,
and drink the blood
of the Son of Man,
you have no life in you.”
John 6:53

The Feast of Unleavened Bread
symbolizes how we are to live -
through honest reflection
and Godly mediation -
attached to God’s promises,
instead of scurrying around
like foolish men.

Repentance
shows Jesus
what our heart reflects!
It’s the recognition
that we have digested leaven,
and the request
that He remove it from us.

So here is the second level revelation,
this poison is not just a toxin
that gets into the body via swallowing,
inhaling or absorption through the skin!

No - this venom has a specific purpose
to kill the souls of men;
and it is intentionally injected
through a bite or a sting
from Satan,
the Prince of Demons!

Why do you think
Satan is portrayed as a snake
in the Garden of Eden -
Or a Great Red Dragon
in the Book of Revelation?

I am guessing
it is biblical symbolism,
not literalism -
but maybe I am wrong?

Paul eloquently states,
“Earthly people
are like the earthly man,
and heavenly people
are like the heavenly man.
Just as we are now
like the earthly man,
we will someday be
like the heavenly man.
What I am saying,
dear brothers and sisters,
is that our physical bodies
cannot inherit the Kingdom of God.
These dying bodies
cannot inherit what will forever last.
But let me reveal to you
a wonderful secret.
We will not all die,
but we will all be transformed!
It will happen in a moment,
in the blink of an eye,
when the last trumpet is blown.
For when the trumpet sounds,
those who have died
will be raised to live forever.
And we who are living
will also be transformed.
For our dying bodies
must be transformed
into bodies that will never die;
our mortal bodies
must be transformed
into immortal bodies.
Then, when our dying bodies
have been transformed
into bodies that will never die,
this Scripture will be fulfilled:
“Death is swallowed up in victory.
O death, where is your victory?
O death, where is your sting? ”
For sin is the sting
that results in death,
and the law gives sin its power.
But thank God!
He gives us victory
over sin and death
through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭15:48-57‬ ‭

Sin -
it's the sting that results in death,
and hypocrism 
stems from satanic stronghold
of deceitfulness.

It's humans accusing humans of their flaws,
like the religious Pharisees
who went around
pointing their finger at others
for not obeying the law.
 
So , here is the third level of insight
to the hypocrisy plight...
me not paying attention
to the log in my own eye!
I mean, really,
isn’t this what hypocrisy means,
a pious posturing of our affected superiority!

Perhaps this is why
we are not called to judge,
but to love.

How can we see clearly
if we are constantly
looking at the falsity
in other human beings!

I’m my opinion,
this has to be
the underlying meaning
of pure deceit!

My favorite Bible story
is found in John 8,
when Jesus defends a woman
stuck in the stronghold of adultery -
who is viciously attacked
by the religious leaders and the Pharisees.

Once again, we see a crowd
gathering around Jesus, and
“As he was speaking,
the teachers of religious law
and the Pharisees
brought a woman
who had been caught
in the act of adultery.
They put her in front of the crowd
and said to Jesus,
“this woman was caught
in the act of adultery.
The law of Moses says to stone her.
What do you say?”
They were trying to trap him
into saying something
they could use against him,
but Jesus stooped down
and wrote in the dust
with his finger.
They kept demanding an answer,
so he stood up again and said,
“All right,
but let the one
who has never sinned
throw the first stone!”
Then he stooped down again
and wrote in the dust.
When the accusers heard this,
they slipped away one by one,
beginning with the oldest,
until only Jesus was left
in the middle of the crowd
with the woman.
Then Jesus stood up again
and said to the woman,
“Where are your accusers?
Didn’t even one of them
condemn you?”
“No, Lord,” she said.
And Jesus said,
“Neither do I.
Go and sin no more.”
John 8:1-11

Imagine that!
A crowd of two -
where Jesus is the only judge
standing with you.

I wonder what would Jesus do?
Would He seek to condemn,
or would He speak in love,
to convict you?

This is probably
why men are NOT
to point and accuse,
because they don’t have
a righteous view.

I cannot wait to ask Him
what He wrote in the sand.
I can only imagine
it was an act of love,
written thoughtfully
for the One that He loves.

So once again,
third level vision
shows such a deeper level
of Holy Spirit wisdom.

Mark 7 says,
“Judge not,
that you be not judged.
For with the judgment
you pronounce
you will be judged,
and with the measure you use
it will be measured to you.
Why do you see the speck
that is in your brother's eye,
but do not notice the log
that is in your own eye?
Or how can you say
to your brother,
“Let me take the speck
out of your eye,”
when there is the log
in your own eye?
You hypocrite,
first take the log
out of your own eye,
and then you will see clearly
to take the speck
out of your brother's eye.”

So the question is,
How do you know
when your log is removed?
How do you know when you 
have been given
the authority to accuse?

The TRUTH is
found in Romans 2,
unless you are God
you do NOT have the right!

Even though
you are covered
by the blood of Christ, 
there is nothing about you
that is righteous!

Only God is Just!
And He has given
all authority
to His Son, Jesus.

He is the only One
who has the right to administer
God’s righteous judgement! 
And only Holy Spirit
has the ability to convict.

“You, therefore,
have no excuse,
you who pass judgment
on someone else,
for at whatever
point you judge another,
you are condemning yourself,
because you who pass judgment
do the same things.
Now we know
that God’s judgment
against those who do such things
is based on TRUTH.
So when you,
a mere human being,
pass judgment on them
and yet do the same things,
do you think you will escape
God’s judgment?
Or do you show contempt
for the riches of his kindness,
forbearance and patience,
not realizing that God’s kindness
is intended to lead you
to repentance?”
Romans 2:1-4

So, this is what I learned -
Hypocrisy is a sign
that Satan's venom is still inside,
and it's my own flesh
that needs to be redefined.

I pray that the Lord
will continue to give me
spiritual eyes to see,
the log that blocks the vision
of looking at me.

There is no way
I can obey the Law,
because in my humanity
I am not pure.

But through His blood,
I am justified;
and through Holy Spirit
I am sanctified.

This is how
I rely on getting by,
Holding onto
Spirit and Truth
that honors God.

Father, help me
not be a hypocrite.
Help me have a heart
that your light reflects.

Processing
my own hypocrisy
is so pivoting.
This is exactly
what I needed!
A true
Holy Spirit cleansing
from the yeast
injected by religious men and Pharisees -
the venomous sting of hypocrisy!

Help me to see the log
in my own eye,
so that I can show your love
to this hurting world.

Did you know
we are an evil generation?
Much like the one described by Jesus,
in the second half of Luke chapter 11.

Like them,
we ask for miraculous signs
instead of opening the word of God,
and following His lines. 

But at that time,
when Jesus was alive,
He told them he would give them
only one sign to prove He is the Messiah.

He told them He would give them
the sign of Jonah,
the prophet who was sent
to the people of Nineveh.

Jonah tried to run from what He heard,
but God interceded
and put him in the belly of a whale. 

“Then Jonah prayed to God
from inside the fish.
He said, “I cried out to the Lord
in my great trouble,
and he answered me.
I called to you
from the land of the dead,
and Lord, you heard me!
You threw me
into the ocean depths,
and I sank down
to the heart of the sea.
The mighty waters engulfed me;
I was buried beneath
your wild and stormy waves.
Then I said, "‘O Lord,
you have driven me
from your presence.
Yet I will look once more
toward your holy Temple."
I sank beneath the waves,
and the waters closed over me.
Seaweed wrapped itself
around my head.
I sank down to the very roots
of the mountains.
I was imprisoned in the earth,
whose gates lock shut forever.
But you, O Lord my God,
snatched me from the jaws of death!
As my life was slipping away,
I remembered the Lord.
And my earnest prayer
went out to you in your holy Temple.
Those who worship false gods
turn their backs on all God’s mercies.
But I will offer sacrifices to you
with songs of praise,
and I will fulfill all my vows.
For my salvation
comes from the Lord alone.”
Then the Lord ordered
the fish to spit Jonah
out onto the beach.”
Jonah 2:1-10 NLT
 
Can you believe, Jonah was given reprieve?
Once he repented, and began to praise,
the Lord delivered him from the belly of the fish,
or was he actually delivered from eternal death?
 
What is your guess?
 
The Lord then said,
“Get up and go
to the great city of Nineveh,
and deliver the message
that I have given you.”
 This time Jonah obeyed
and went to Nineveh,
a city so large
that it took three days
to see it all.
On the day Jonah entered the city,
he shouted to the crowds:
“Forty days from now
Nineveh will be destroyed!”
The people of Nineveh
believed God’s message,
and from the greatest to the least,
they declared a fast
and put on burlap
to show their sorrow!
When the king of Nineveh
heard what Jonah was saying,
he stepped down from his throne
and took off his royal robes.
He dressed himself in burlap
and sat on a heap of ashes.
Then the king and his nobles
sent this decree
throughout the city:
“No one, not even the animals
from your herds and flocks,
may eat or drink anything at all.
People and animals alike
must wear garments of mourning,
and everyone must pray
earnestly to God.
They must turn
from their evil ways
and stop all their violence.
Who can tell?
Perhaps even yet God
will change his mind
and hold back his fierce anger
from destroying us all.”
When God saw
what they had done
and how they had put a stop
to their evil ways,
he changed his mind
and did not carry out
the destruction that
he had threatened.”
Jonah 3:2-10 NLT
 
Jonah ran away, 
and lived inside
the belly of a whale
before He was willing to go
tell an evil people
that they needed to repent
and turn from their ways.
 
But Jesus did not to try to run,
in fact, He came on his own.
His purpose was heavenly sent,
to be our redeemer while still
telling us to repent.
 
He came to serve our death sentence,
while simultaneously, paying the bail.
 
His location was not the belly of a whale,
instead he sat in the pit of hell.
 
And this is where He took the keys
that would forever set humanity free.
 
Jesus would be the penance for all.
His blood would be enough to cover it all.
 
I pray we will accept this Key,
the free gift of Jesus who came to set us free.
 
And yet, there he stood
in front of the Pharisees,
Literally -
lifting up a sign in neon lights
that He is the Messiah
who came to set them free,
and still they did not believe!
 
No wonder why He calls them evil,
they could not see past themselves!
 
He said that even the Queen of Sheba
recognized pure wisdom
more than they did!
 She came from a distant land
to hear wisdom spoken
from the mouth of King Solomon.
On the day of judgment,
she will stand against them!
 
And the people of Nineveh
will stand and condemn,
because even they can
recognize an evil generation
more corrupt than them!
 
Here is the Son of Man
standing right in front of them,
and yet they are blinded
and can not see
that He is the Messiah,
who came to set them free!
 
Even Nineveh repented
when they heard Jonah speak,
but the evil Pharisees
refused to repent
when they heard Jesus speak.
 
Jesus declares
that they will be the first
on the day of judgement
to be eternally cursed.
 
How did these Pharisees
get so spiritually dumb?
 
Are they oblivious
to the sorrow that awaits them?
 
What happened
to make them so numb?
 
Perhaps they were overcome
with their own evil ways,
instead of repenting
and seeking Holy Spirit wisdom?
 
Instead of listening,
and pressing in,
they got offended
and created a plan
to crucify Him.
 
My heart sinks
at that thought of this,
that the lost would lead
the found to the cross.
 
This makes absolutely no sense!
But the truth is,
we were only found
when Jesus got off of the cross!
 
Back then,
Jesus stood in front of them,
and God’s own people
did not recognize Him.
 
Today, is no different than then.
Many people have heard of Jesus
but still deny Him.
 
Historical evidence and eye witness accounts
is not enough to turn back hearts;
and even when miraculous things take place,
people find other ways to justify them.  
 
I wonder what Jesus would say today?
 
Would He call us an evil generation?
Will we also be condemned on judgment day?
 
Have we missed the signs that He is the only way?
Have we plugged our ears and been led astray?
 
Do we need to repent
for our moral failure -
for permitting oppression 
and not feeding the poor?
 
Are we like the Pharisees
who build monuments
to honor the prophets
that our ancestors killed?

Do we stand as witnesses
who agree with what they did?
 
Luke 11 ends like this,
“This is what God
in his wisdom said about you:
I will send prophets
and apostles to them,
but they will kill some
and persecute the others.’
As a result,
this generation
will be held responsible
for the murder
of all God’s prophets
from the creation of the world--
from the murder of Abel
to the murder of Zechariah,
who was killed between the altar
and the sanctuary.
Yes, it will certainly be charged
against this generation.”
Luke 11:49-51 NLT
 
Wow!
God does not play!
Do we think we have it bad today?
Just wait until judgement day!
Every knee will bow,
and not one person
will be able to run away!
 
Jonah had it good!
He had time to repent
and get right with God!

What about you?
What will you do?

Are ready to receive the free offering 
that Jesus paid for you?
 
The signs and the times are set.
Not one of us know when our end date is.  

We need to stop being
so earthly saturated,
and spiritually blind.
Before we know it,
it will be the end of our time!

There is a dismantling going on!
Very few people want to know God.

Well, that is not completely true.
Many desire spiritual wisdom,
but most turn to the concept of
universal love.
It's the humanistic view of spirituality.
It's putting self at the center
instead of Jesus's divinity.  

There is certainly
a magnetic attraction
to satanic strongholds.
We see this in the rise of divorce,
and the redefinition of marriage.

We see huge amounts of identity crisis,
an anxiety of souls chasing visions in the wind.

We see depression on the rise,
and many more suicides.
 
We foolishly eat demonic lies,
and drink the brew of agnostic soup.
 
We hold onto falsehoods,
and adhere to the twisting of truth.
 
Bitterness roots inside of men,
and we fall pray to murderous cannibalism.
 
We see people marching, down on the street;
with heads a swinging and dancing feet.
 
There’s a dissolution of community,
and a rising dose of self-serving philosophy.
 
Children are suffering!
Look at the abomination of abortion
and child sex trafficking!
 
And you don’t think this is child sacrifice?
Isn’t it the price we pay for worshiping SELF?
 
Corruption and deceit are everywhere;
Pride and Rebellion are the medals
worn proudly on the chests of self-serving men.
 
Oh God!
We are an evil generation!
Help us to repent and come back to your wisdom!

The Lord says,
"Where is my church?
Do you hear the cries
of the broken-hearted?
Do you see my people
starving in the streets?
Where are my hands and my feet?
How far are you willing to walk?
How far are you willing to reach?
Where is my mouthpiece?
Will you speak out for me?
Will you share your testimony,
and give the glory back to Me?
Gluttony-
It’s the reason
I have turned many hearts
away from Me!
You think the glory
is all for you
and none for Me!
Do not be deceived!
Your “Glory” in the dark
can not be seen!
It’s all just a dream!
There is no light
when you have a heart
focused on you instead of Me.
My power is received
by the hearts that receive Me.
This is when true wisdom
speaks in the streets!
It’s Holy Spirit power
given by Me.
Before you speak,
you must submit
to the Lion of Judah
who is fully equipped! 
Jesus Christ,
the Son of Man,
is also the Son of God!
He came as a lamb,
but do not be deceived,
He is reigns in Heaven
and has been given all authority
to bring my people back to Me.  
The voice that you hear 
is attached to My lungs,
and the light that shines down
comes from My throne!
I am the flood light
that this evil world needs,
and I convict the hearts
who are ready to receive.
Do not be afraid
of the shame that you see;
it's a byproduct of the lies
that you have believed.
Naked is how I made you,
now expose yourself to Me
because I already can see
your most inward being!
There is nothing
that can be hidden from Me.   
Now repent,
and return to Me."

If a bridge did not have piles
it would not stand up.

If an elevated highway
had no viaducts,
it certainly would not be able
to lift vessels up.

If a friend lacked encouraging words,
they would not be someone
you would look up.

And if a Christian lacked faith
they would have no substance to hold up.

Jesus is more
than just an idea.
He’s God in the flesh -
Holy Spirit made real.

And if the scripture is true,
and Holy Spirit lives in you,
then why can’t you believe
that His people can do
what Holy Spirit gifts them to do?

If you say that you believe in Him,
then there must be substance,
an evidence of things
in the unseen realm.

There is an integrity
foundational to faith,
it’s the belief that Holy Spirit
not only lives in us,
but actually has the power 
to transform us.

And in Him,
people have the ability
to do great things,
like healing the sick
by the laying on hands;
or claiming the name of Jesus
to cast out demons.

But people have
all kinds of reasons
to not believe Him;
and it's mostly because
they don't trust people.

The Word of Faith
is a movement by man,
that claims that faith in God
can cure everything.

They accentuate spiritual gifts
by adding their own humanistic twist.

And when people
focus on the integrity of them,
they inevitably get let down.

Then there are those 
who point at them,
they justify their case
and call them false prophets.

But what if,
the accusers are the same?
What if they, too, fall short as humans?

They stand back,
subject to suffering,
and in their minds,
look at men and say, “I don’t believe.”

“How can that be?”
“Look at that man,
he surely is fake!”
They see all kinds of weird things
which justifies their lack of faith!

“If God wanted to heal me,
he would do it anytime."
I don't have to be
in the presence of another human.”

They stand back and say
“God can do anything,”
but their actions illustrate
a clear lack of faith!

What if a woman
pressed into God,
and she followed Him
wherever Holy Spirit led?

What if it looked like
she was following a man,
when really she was just
listening to God?

What if he led her
to a charismatic church,
where the worship felt weird
and there was evidence of search?

What if she pressed in,
like the woman with blood
who desperately wanted
to experience
Jesus's healing touch?

What if she was willing
to do anything
to rip off the roof
to be healed by Him?

Do you think
that God would know
the heart of his daughter
despite what others thought?

What if it was not about a man,
but the belief that God
could possibly
be working through Him?

What if her faith was so incredibly strong,
that she would walk to the Jordan,
just to step in?

Does any man
have the right to justify
what God is doing
in another human?

Since faith is the substance
of things hoped for,
and the evidence of things not seen,
then how can another person
justify what God is doing
through human beings.

“What does it profit, my brethren,
if someone says he has faith
but does not have works?
Can faith save him?
If a brother or sister is naked
and destitute of daily food,
and one of you says to them,
“Depart in peace,
be warmed and filled,”
but you do not give them
the things which are needed
for the body, what does it profit?
Thus also faith by itself,
if it does not have works,
is dead.
But someone will say,
“You have faith,
and I have works.”
Show me your faith
without your works,
and I will show you my faith
by my works.”
“You believe that there is one God.
You do well.
Even the demons believe -
and tremble!
But do you want to know,
O foolish man,
that faith without works is dead?
Was not Abraham our father
justified by works
when he offered Isaac his son
on the altar?
Do you see that faith
was working together
with his works,
and by works faith
was made perfect?
And the Scripture was fulfilled
which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him
for righteousness.”
And he was called
THE FRIEND OF GOD.
“You see then that a man
is justified by works,
and not by faith only.”
“Likewise, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way?
For as the body
without the spirit is dead,
so faith without works
is dead also.”
Timothy 2:14-26