On the Plains of Shinar

A long time ago there were some people who were wanderers on the earth. They had a dream and a vision to find a place and establish themselves as a people who worshipped God and who experienced unity amongst themselves. So, they found a beautiful land and with much hard work and self-sacrifice they began to realize their dream as it unfolded day by day.

It would be hard to deny that these people did not know something of the heart and purpose of God. In the last book of the Bible we see that God is ultimately after a city. Abraham knew this and he spent his life searching for that city.

By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise: For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God. Heb 11:8-11

I think it would be difficult to fault these people whose motives seemed so noble. However, they had one shortcoming. God had neither commanded nor requested them to build a city for Himself. Therefore, it is not surprising that when these people built, they built with man-made bricks instead of God-made stone. When God, the MasterBuilder wants something built, He equips and instructs His people as to how He builds. His methods and His materials. Man's work always looks like man and is detestable in the sight of God. "...for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God." Luke 16:15b

God eventually stopped the construction of the "holy" city on the plain of Shinar. The place later became known as Babel. Most people forget that it did not start out as Babel. It began as a city with a tower that would reach into the heavens - to God. It is easy to sit back and judge them as a people with some evil imagination in their hearts. Afterall, when people think of Babel they usually think of the worst when it comes to the people that were involved. Pagan, evil, sinister, etc. The fact is, they were people like you and me with ideas, plans and designs for doing something for God. Isn't it amazing that almost every church building today has a tower reaching to the heavens.

Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: Psalm 127:1a

Hi Frank,

Why do you think they "wandered in deserts and in mountains and in dens and caves of the earth?"

Why do we not have the word describing them "inside the camp" of human institutions and systems?

Scriptures say "the world was not worthy" of them.

Were they pushed out of the system and into the deserts, mountains and dens because of their faithful and holy commitment to God and their uncompromising preaching of the truth? I think that is exactly what happened.

Heb 11:36 And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment:

What were they doing or saying that they should receive such rude treatment?

Have you ever noticed that God has very definite ways of doing things? Today we get a little bit of knowledge "under our belt" and then act as if we know exactly how it is all done (laboring with the Lord in building the Kingdom). Many today seem to have adopted this mindset: "Ok God, I see how it is done and I'll take it from here".

How serious do we think God is about doing things His way?

Uzzah was just trying to steady the Ark when God struck him dead. What was wrong with what Uzzah was doing? Uzzah was just trying to "help out God", wasn't he?

Suffice to say that the "Lord's anger was kindled against Uzzah and God smote him"..."and David was displeased".

And why did that whole mission fail, anyway? The mission failed because David himself was not bringing the Ark back the way God wanted it brought back. But they brought it back the wrong route and the wrong way, "driving the ark" instead of on their shoulders. Is there a big difference? In God's mind, there is.

I will talk about this story soon. It is very revealing how men of God can "lean on their own understanding" and get it so wrong. We want to learn something from this story.

Interesting that among other things, Uzzah means "goat".

Blessings to you, bro.

Pilgrim

About 3,500 years ago there were two Israelites that were very special men. What made them special? Their experience and their lineage.

This was their experience:
They had witnessed the Lord bring 10 plagues down on the Egyptians and deliver His people out of Egypt with His mighty hand. They had stood and seen the Red Sea part so that Israel could walk across on dry land. They witnessed the Red Sea come back together and swallow up the pursuing armies. Everyday they ate bread out of heaven and drank pure water that came from a rock - supernatural provision by God to meet their daily needs. These two very special men followed the physical presence of God - a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. They stood with the nation at Mt. Sinai and received the law. They were selected by God to come into His presence along with Moses and Aaron and seventy of the elders of Israel. They beheld God with their eyes and ate and drank in His presence. That was the experience of these two special men.

This was their lineage:
They were descendants of Abraham of the tribe of Levi and the two oldest sons of Aaron, the high priest of Israel. Out of the loins of the oldest should have descended all of the high priests for the next 1,500 years. These two men were consecrated and ordained unto the Lord in the presence of the whole nation. They were part of a perpetual priesthood to God.

These two special men, Nadab and Abihu, with all their great experience and lineage, had what seemed to them to be a great idea. They would do something for God. They would serve him in a novel way. They took their respective firepans and after putting fire in them, placed incense on them and offered strange fire before the Lord, which He had not commanded of them. And fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed them and they died before the Lord. That's right. God killed them for their great idea and wanting to serve Him in their own way. Even with their great lineage and experience, God snuffed them out.

Did God not know who these men were? Did He not know that they were Aaron's sons. Yes, He knew all of that but it did not matter to Him. God is not a respecter of persons and will have things done in His way, and His time and is not interested in "My Ministry". He is interested in transformation, in the inner man. He is not interested in your ministry, at least not nearly as much as He is interested in you. Before there can ever be a proper ministry, there must be a proper vessel. There are many "vessels" today doing "God's work", who have have never let Him do His most important work, in THEM.

Pilgrim

Once there was a very hard working and industrious man who had a heart to seek God. We know that he could "hear" the Lord God's voice because the Scriptures reveal that he was greatly encouraged and counseled by God. He had a desire to please God so he brought to God part of all that God had blessed him with.

So far, according to popular religious standards this fellow has all the qualifications of a leader of the people of God -- very hard working, a heart to seek God, a desire to give unto the Lord and experience of fellowship with God. This is the type of person that the church is actively seeking, a spiritual mover and shaker. The problem is, "that the things that are highly esteemed among men are an abomination in the sight of God".

And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.
Luke 16:15

The Lord was not pleased with this fellow's offering. We can only expect our offering to be received by God when we come to Him according to His terms and not in a way that seems "good to us".

The man, whose name was Cain, had a brother named Abel. Somehow, Abel had an understanding of what was acceptable to God. In order for fallen man to be acceptable before God, there must be an atoning death. This is not really pertinent to the story, nor is the fact that Cain went on to be a murderer and a liar. But rather, the fact that man is constantly leaning upon his own understanding to come up with ideas, plans and schemes to do something for God is a principle that has brought more ruin to the people of God than all of our enemies without. Give some thought about this while waiting for the next story.

Thank you both Pilgrim and Frank for sharing your insights on such and interesting thread. I was seeing just the other night how when we lean on our own understanding we will get things all wrong. The topic of fellowship and church has been on my heart and I was thinking this does apply here as well. Far to long those in high places have come up with ways of "doing" church(leaning on their own understanding) instead of walking in HIM, submitting to HIM and living unto HIM. GODS way of doing all things is the only true way so why is it that we fight against this so much with attitudes of "MY" instead of "Your will be done oh LORD!"

I often am amazed as the LORD opens my eyes to show me how in my own heart I do this very thing, I lean on my own understanding of things, of times, of events... I look for all sorts of roads and paths to take when the right one, the narrow one is before me all the time and JESUS is there to lead me!

Sorry if I got off topic a bit. I just really can see so many applications of what you have shared here in my own life and heart that I don't want to miss any part of what the LORD has for me :)

God bless
mj

Hi Mary Jane,

I do appreciate your contributions. Keep them coming.

Cain and Abel is a great example of where it all started. What does Cain bring to the Lord and what does Abel bring? Abel knows his state, but Cain takes the Lord for granted. Cain despises the relationship between God and his brother. Abel has something that his brother does not, he has the ear of God and of course this causes his death, the first martyr if you like. And pharisees have been bringing their unnaceptable offerings and killing the saints ever since...........bro Frank

Thanks for adding to the discussion, Frank.

Your paragraph is a picture of the "children of the flesh" persecuting the "children of the spirit". It has always been that way and it will continue.

One walks by sight while the other walks by faith and brings an offering everyday for the Lord, commensurate with that faith...their hearts.

God did not have Cain's heart but He had Abel's. And Cain was jealous of his brother but there was no need to be jealous of him. Cain could have had what Abel had but did not want to pay the price. So, he devised another way to come to God and was angry that God would not accept him on his terms. After all, Cain thought, "I work hard everyday and believe in God, too".

If you are patient and give men time, their hearts will be revealed and though Cain worked hard and was responsible, and though he believed in God and served him (in his way), he was really serving himself, his flesh. God was not the center of Cain's universe, Cain was. Cain's character reflected the character of his father (Satan) and though he appeared one way before men, he was secretly abiding in Satan and his ways. He certainly was not abiding in the Lord. He was putting on a religious 'show in the flesh' outwardly. But God knows how to reveal men's hearts.

Cain had been incensed before with Abel and his quiet confidence, humility and peace. The day he murdered his brother was not the first day he was jealous and angry with him. Hatred and alienation had been building in Cain until that one fatal day. That one day, Abel offered up a lamb to God and was accepted by God and Cain's offering was rejected. Cain saw Abel's offering as a repudiation of all that he was and he could not take it.

It was more than "the fruit of the ground" that was rejected, it was Cain himself and Cain's ways that God rejected. Offering the fruit of the ground was only a manifestation of his heart's attitude toward God and God wanted nothing to do with Cain's ways, Cain's offerings, wrought by the sweat of his brow.

That was the last straw for Cain and he was about to make a fatal mistake and "blow his cover", his religious cover before men. But only before men, whose admiration he cherished, was his cover blown. The jig was up a long time ago before God. Nothing is ever hidden from Him.

Why do men, try to impress other men when they know that God sees their hearts. Are they so deceived that they don't even know what they are doing when all they talk, walk and think, is only to impress men and be seen of them?

From Genesis to Revelation we have this theme of the flesh against the spirit, good and evil, blessing and cursing, life and death, heaven and hell. And how subtle the flesh is. How subtle the Adversary is. Flesh, evil, cursing and death all masquerade as life. There are only two choices. Never three.

God wants us to know the difference and be able to see through all the machinations of the Enemy so that we know in whom we believe and "another we will not listen to". And if we follow the Lamb, He will lead us safely. He is the only one that knows ALL the machinations of the Enemy.

Do we want our offering to be acceptable to Him.

That offering has been offered for all of us. The one thing that God could never have in the OT and the NT is our heart. It must be given to Him. We give Him our hearts when we abide in Him and His ways, following the Lamb "whithersoever He goeth."

Pilgrim

Yes, Frank. May the Lord keep us from any "blindness".

I am reminded (by your remarks) of the man in Matthew 7 who is standing before the King of Kings and basically talking about himself and all his great works.

Now, he is a living example of blindness.

Standing before the Lord, face to face, boasting when he should be on his face glorifying God.

This is the same prideful heart that is emblematic of a "Cain".

I will post another "story" in a few days.

May the Lord bless you and MaryJane this week.

Pilgrim

Pilgrim writes: . Are they so deceived that they don't even know what they are doing when all they talk, walk and think, is only to impress men and be seen of them?"

______________

I do believe "self" deception is very strong. The idea that I am "doing" all the right things even though I still getting no where can be very strong. Even Cain I think saw himself as a victim. He could not understand why he was rejected because in "Self" his focus was always on trying and never really seeking to know the LORDS heart. Abel wanted to know the LORD, his desire and focus was truly on the LORD while Cain wanted the LORD "to see" how worthy he was and how worthy his offering was. Abel's eyes were always on the LORD while Cains were always on self. Cain was so focused on self, so filled with pride and "doing" things his way, he completely rejected the truth right in front of him(If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.")Genesis 4:7...How often I have fallen into some of these same trappings. I try and try, I struggle only to come up short when all along I just needed to stop and listen to the LORD. To keep my focus on HIM, He knows what is truly right. Its never about me, its always about the LORD...even though self would like to deceive me into thinking it is. My understanding is flawed but HIS is perfect!

Cain's offerings were never meant to show off or display anything of his ability. The offerings were meant to draw him to the LORD, to give thanks for all that the LORD had given and allowed him to accomplish. In the end don't you think Cain wanted credit and glory for what he was doing? He was willing to come to the LORD but it would be on his terms and in his own fashion so that he could receive the recognition that he felt he deserved. Isn't it that same way for many today, we play church, we make sure everyone sees how "good" we can be and no one ever knows how dark our hearts truly are...no one except JESUS.

Sorry again if I seem to have rambled on. Just so much of what you shared has got me thinking and praying...which is a very good thing :)

God bless
maryjane

Cain refused to accept God's ways regarding what it took to be acceptable by Him.

The Lord was looking for a blood sacrifice and Cain brought the works of his own hands. Cain's religion was to be accepted by God based on his own good works (his own self-efforts to be righteous before God). Cain's actions revealed his heart. You can imagine all the adjectives. Prideful, arrogant, unthankful, obstinate, unyielding, etc, etc.

We know that God spoke to Cain and obviously Cain could hear Him because God provided instruction on how he could be accepted by God.

Cain actually reminds me of Adam and Eve covering themselves with fig leaves. Man is constantly trying to "work his way" into relationship with God instead of depending on God's grace.

Cain's offering came from that which was cursed. "Cursed is the ground".
Gen 3:17 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;

Wrong offering and wrong motive and wrong attitude:

Rather than humble himself and offer a sacrifice that demonstrated faith and dependence on God, Cain persisted in his own self-efforts and was livid when rebuked by God. It is quite possible that this event of offerings was a very public one which only increased his rage as he was publicly embarrassed. His offering was a manifestation of his true heart condition which was rebellion against God's ways. That rebellion came to full fruition when he murdered his brother, Abel.

By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous. God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks (Hebrews 11:4).

God is always trying to help us when He rebukes us. He is not trying to destroy us. Sin on the other hand is likened to a crouching creature that is laying at your door ready to pounce on you.

Gen 4:7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.

And sin is even personalized (his and him).

Peter could have been thinking of Gen 4:7, when he wrote:
1Pe_5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the DEVIL, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

What do I take away from this? That I should hearken to the Lord's words, not turning to the left or right (unto my own "good" ideas) and that the only way to know Him is not just by the Scriptures but also by the Spirit. I cannot turn the Scriptures into a personalized rule book of morality and have no regard to the voice of the Spirit of God.

Is Christianity just believing that Christ died for me, and rose again, go to church once or twice a week and read my Bible in the morning?

Or, is it about entering into relationship and fellowship with God, through Jesus Christ and by the Holy Spirit and
yielding to the voice of the Spirit each day rather than following my own preconceived ideas of what constitutes pleasing God.

Lately, I have had to face up to something from the Lord that I was ignoring. And I was ignoring it through self-justification. The Lord wants us to walk in total peace and if we don't have peace there must be a reason why. You only have to go to the Lord and ask Him why (with all earnestness) and He will be faithful to tell you? Where the "rubber meets the road" is WILL YOU MAKE THE NECESSARY ADJUSTMENT in your life? We can continue to play the religious game, read our bibles and look good to men all the while refusing the voice of the Spirit, or we can be more concerned about how we look to God. What has more value for you?

What is one way that one refuses the voice of the Spirit? They convince themselves that God really means something else than what you know in your heart of hearts He is really telling you.

Let's fast-forward to the NT and talk about another "Cain". Here we will see someone that did just what I mentioned. He loved the Torah and was passionate for God, ready to avenge God of all of His enemies, yet he really did not know God or His ways.

Many blessings to you,
Pilgrim

What can be more simple than, "If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him." Gen 4:7

God only wants us to do well. What is so hard about that?

God's version of doing well is heeding His voice and heeding His voice always incorporates the denial of the flesh (the Cross).

Man's version of "doing well" never involves the Cross.

Many today, really don't want to walk by the Spirit, heeding His voice within. It is much better to walk by our own "form" of Christianity.

2Ti_3:5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.

Was Cain "wicked" because he murdered Abel or was that just a manifestation of the wickedness in his heart? And what was this wickedness? The refusal to be bound by voice of God.

That is why he and anyone else is wicked in God's eyes. They refuse His voice.

Heb_3:7 Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To day if ye will hear his voice,
Heb_3:15 While it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation.

Turning to the New Testament we have Saul of Tarsus. Saul who became Paul after his conversion on the road to Damascus was like Cain. He offered the Lord the fruit of his own hands. And like Cain, the vanity of his sacrifices drove Paul to the ultimate religious act - he murdered his brethren who were more righteous than he.

Paul was like the ancients who built the tower of Babel - the building of man in behalf of God. Lost in the abomination of religion, Paul's zeal took him to the highest pinnacle of the religious system.

Paul was like Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron who offered strange fire before the Lord. Paul's service before God was to ravage the church and to fill the prisons with redeemed men and women.

Paul was like the men of Israel who bore the ark of God into battle with great confidence. Resolute with fundamental and absolute certainty of victory, Paul marched into battle ignorant that he and his black religious heart were the true enemy of God.

Only to a man like Saul of Tarsus could the true nature of man's religious ways be revealed by the Lord of Glory. And after fifteen years of emptying and filling and changing and suffering and fellowship with the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ - then the Lord had a man that could go to the Gentiles and build something neither religious nor worldly. A man who would prove obedient to the heavenly vision.

Pilgrim

Ever since Adam and Eve, God is trying to drive the point home that He does not want our best intentions. I need you to "learn of my ways, for my ways are higher than your ways and learn of my thoughts for my thoughts are higher than your thoughts". God will grind us down little by little by life's circumstances, situations and disappointments until someday, we will stop trying to walk this Christian walk and build His church in our own strength. When we are ready to surrender, the real fun will begin. There is a lot of security in being a nothing, a zero. If you don't think so, try it. There is a lot of rest getting rid of your false burdens and trying to do only what is God's job to do. When you come to the place where you look to Him in everything and He is truly your everything, life is so much better. When you stop trying to do His job and get rid of your false burdens, you will begin to experience Him and His joy. Peace and rest will enter your soul.

Moses had a false burden and thought that by the strength of his hand he would do a wonderful thing and be the Deliverer of Israel. Yet it was not meant to be. Good intentions, yes, but not God's way. There is only one Deliverer in God's kingdom. After 40 years of being ground down in the backside of the desert, God called Moses. The proof of Moses coming to the end of himself, is that when he was called, he did not even want the job. Now, there is a man that God can use! Contrast that with men today that jump at the chance to "lead" God's people, or who plan it as a vocation and a career. And part of their career plan is to be educated and get credentials from men. Very good intentions, yes. But not God's way. The Lord's school is the school of the Spirit in everyday life. It is not a school of textbooks and term papers and degrees on parchment and letters behind your name and titles, that then give men a false confidence that they can either build or lead the church. Our confidence must be completely in Him. If you are primarily looking to these things instead of the Holy Spirit, you will be disappointed. God will use men with letters behind their name or not, and not because they have these things or lack these things. It does not matter. He will use those who have a yielded and obedient heart and that makes everyone a candidate, educated or not, rich or poor.

Pilgrim

Dear brother Pilgrim,

Thank God for the deep Word,

Amen,amen and amen !

It is with great joy that I am reading this,...please continue.

Bless you,
elizabeth

Bless you too, Elibeth.

Amen brother. We must enter into His rest. There is a direct correlation between His rest and proximity to Jesus. Jesus is our promised land. Jesus is our promise and the fulfillment of all of God's promises and He is the culmination of the New Covenant. We are told to press in, draw near, come unto Him.

Jesus is the beating heart of the New Testament message. There is so much legal talk of how we stand and who we are in Jesus. This is at the heart of so much theology. The irony being that the study of God replaces the presence of God. There are thousands of men all over the world teaching about God, and there is Jesus, standing, knocking at the door, wanting to be known, not in the head as one would know historical or abstract truths, but actually known personally. There was a generation of Israelites who talked about the promised land for 40 years, yet talk is wilderness, crossing over and possessing the fullness of God's promise is life and that more abundantly.

Appolus,

I have always thought that the chief thing to watch out for when discerning the spirits, is this: Is Jesus Christ being diminished? Is some personality or some teaching being exalted over Jesus Christ. One of the first things, if not the first thing I am always listening and looking for (spiritual ears and eyes) is if Jesus is being diminished in any way. That spells trouble if I detect it.

Jesus was zealous for His Father's house and those who have His Spirit will be zealous for the glory of God to rest upon Jesus Christ.

Psa_115:1 Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory, for thy mercy, and for thy truth's sake.

It is a very cataclysmic event in one's life when they first come to the Lord. How can it not be? Coming to the Lord and receiving His Spirit brings a radical, heart altering change in one's life. We are wrenched out of the Kingdom of Darkness into the Kingdom of His dear Son. What a ride that was!! And we are filled with euphoria and the love of God and we want to change the world and yet we are zealous without knowledge. Not the knowledge of the Bible, but the knowledge of Him and His ways. But that's ok. This is a normal path to take in our new life with Christ. Soon enough, He will bring testings in our lives to mature us (test our love for Him) and teach us what real love is. It is not a feeling or an emotion, though feelings or emotions may accompany it. Love is an act of our will.

And there is another upheaval in one's life when they come to utter failure and the end of themselves and realize they cannot live this Christian life apart from Him. When they finally give up performing for God and vying for men's admiration and promotion and realize that the safest and best thing to be is a nobody, yet known of God, they begin to understand His rest. And they begin to enjoy Him as Mary did, while Martha was in the kitchen and indignantly accused Mary to Jesus. Yes, Mary had chosen the good part that would not be taken from her.

"Stand still and see the salvation of God."

"Be still and know that I am God."

Staying in that rest is not automatic. We are to "labor to enter that rest" and you will labor to stay in that rest, too. But it is a good labor, a worthy labor, a labor that resists the flesh, the world and the Devil.

Do you know this song?

Psa_68:4 Sing unto God, sing praises to his name: extol him that rideth upon the heavens by his name JAH, and rejoice before him.

I love it. We were born to extol and worship and love God.

Another song that ministers to me is Zech 3:17.

Zep 3:17 The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.

Hallelujah!!

The Lord bless and keep you all in His love.

Good morning! Praise the Lord!

Some profound thoughts in your poem, Apollus. Thank you very much.

When I am low in my troubles and darkness covers me
And the messenger, its only bad news that he brings
I will call upon my God and arise again once more
Like a dove with silver sprinkled on its wings

Do you know that I have never received bad news from the Lord? He is a constant source of encouragement and comfort. In this life, no one ever receives bad news from Him. We may receive a foreboding message of warning, but even that should be seen as a message (of good news) from the loving hand of God. Cain did not receive God's message that way. Our heart attitude to God determines "how" we receive His Word.

God's message to Cain only "cramped" his lifestyle and desires.

I really like this stanza, Frank.

Zion you are small, as far as mountains go
To look at you no one could ever tell
That this would be the place, of power and of grace
This would be the place that God would dwell

It reminds me of 2Co 4:7.
"But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us."

Here is a short story in keeping with this devotion and a couple of thoughts I have. Please add your thoughts bringing out the riches of Christ within you.

In the days of Samuel the prophet, Israel was at war with the Philistines. In one particular battle, Israel was defeated and 4,000 Israelite soldiers were slain. When the people came into their camp again they were dejected and confused. They wondered why the Lord had not given them victory over their enemies. Were they not His people, had He not given them the land? Why had their enemies prevailed over them?

Then some of the elders of Israel had a great idea (the elders, no less). They would send to Shiloh, to the tabernacle of Moses and have the two sons of the high priest bring the ark of the covenant into the camp that they might carry it before them into battle. Surely through the ark, God would grant a great victory.

Soon there was hope and expectancy in the hearts of the men of Israel as they waited for the most holiest possession of their nation - the very representation of the presence of the Living God. And it happened that as the ark of the covenant came into the camp that all of Israel shouted with a great shout.

When the Philistines heard the noise of the shout and understood that the ark had come into the camp of Israel, they became terrified. And instead of fleeing for fear, the Philistines greatly encouraged one another and resolved to fight with utmost courage.

That day Israel suffered a mighty defeat and 30,000 of their soldiers were slain and the rest were completely scattered before their enemies. Not only that but the Philistines captured the ark of God and took it away to their own country.

Why did such a calamity happen to the people of God? Because someone came up with a reasonable plan - such a sensible scheme. And all of it was done in behalf of God.

Schemes, good intentions and cool ideas cannot replace a humble and pure heart before God.

The only thing that persuades God to fight for you, is for your heart to be right with Him.

He does not respond to techniques and Christian "superstitions".

Heb 10:22 Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.

In His love,
Pilgrim

Oh yeah, I understood. I did not make myself clear. I was contrasting the bad news we get from various sources and the good, encouraging and comforting words we get from the Lord.

Very good thought in your sentence and exactly what I am trying to say. You encapsulate it quite well.

No matter how honorable the task at hand, it does not trump integrity.

I suppose you might recognize the common principle found in each of these stories. It is that man has a propensity and even a drive to do something toward, for, or on behalf of God. Since the dawn of creation, one abomination after another has been done by man in the name of God. We have a way of judging these things by our own yardsticks, our own values, likes, dislikes and we never ask this question, "Has the Living God commanded me to do this thing?" Never mind that your scheme is so necessary, reasonable, or logical. Never mind that it is so pure--how would you really know your motives anyway?

Jesus Christ is the King of King. His people should inquire of their King ans seek His command. To do otherwise is to deny His sovereignty. The problem with this is that He might not tell you to do what you want to do. And that will not satisfy your addiction. But you ask, "What addiction?" The addiction known as "my ministry." All of us to one degree or another have a natural, innate drive to somehow make a difference on this earth for Jesus Christ. It is a heady thing for us to consider that we can have some input into and effect upon the Kingdom of God. The more ministry we have, the more ministry we want.

Did you know that God is not interested in your ministry?

At least not nearly so much as He is interested in you. Before there can ever be proper ministry, there must be proper vessel. I am not talking about your spiritual gift or supernatural empowering. I am talking about transformation.

The work of the Holy Spirit in your life.

Amen, again Appolus. Speaking of what gives us worth...

When we first come to Christ we find our value and worth in Him. Our constant "identity crises" in life prior to Christ come to a halt as we realize our true identity is in Christ. But somehow, our value which is found in Christ becomes based on "what we do" rather than "who He is".

And when it becomes "what we do", then we need to create "results" commensurate with what we do..."our ministry". Then it becomes all about "results", produced.

The "rest" that we find in Christ is opposite the religious propensity of man.

Resting in Christ is all about being faithful to Him and leaving the "results" up to Him.

He has called us to be FAITHFUL, not to produce results. What kind of eternal results can we produce, anyway? "Can the branch bear fruit of itself?"

"Unless the Lord builds the house, they that labor, labor in vain". (Psalms)

Going back to the my previous post concerning the "Holy Spirit's work in you". It takes years-a lifetime. It consists of pain and suffering. PRESSURE! The work of the cross. Without the transforming work of the Holy Spirit, regardless of your spiritual gifts, YOU WILL make the offering of Cain, build the city of Babel, offer strange fire of Nadab and Abihu or march confidently carrying the ark of God right into the jaws of destruction. If God is merciful to you, He will bring your folly to a swift end. If God is not merciful to you, He will let your abomination done in His name grow larger and larger. And more and more addictive to you. It will look like man. It will act like man, and it will have the foul stench of man. And you will lie awake at night agonizing over how to keep it going and how to make it bigger-all in the name of God. That is not the "Rest of God."

Pilgrim

In another thread there is a very good statement.

"Belief does indeed equal obedience."

Nothing has changed regarding God's ways between the OT and NT because God's ways are tied to His Character, which does not change like the wind (or like man).

We see in the OT that those who did not enter the Promise Land died in the wilderness. It is the same today. Those who will not enter into the Promised Land (Christ's rest) by faith (belief) will die in the "wilderness" (unbelief).

Being born again is NOT "entering into His Rest". That is only being rescued from Egypt and putting us into a position to enter the "Promised Land" (His Rest). We now have a walk to walk and this is a walk of faith and love.

We are to set aside everything that so easily besets us and look unto Jesus.

Listening to today's "Gospel", there is nothing to apprehend after one prays a prayer or walks the aisle. There is no walk to walk because today we are saved by slogans.

I sure wish our posts within a thread were numbered as it would make it easy to reference them, but for now, following up on 2 posts before this one:

Speaking of the "abominations" that man creates in the name of God, you may say that my judgments are too harsh and that "there is tremendous need in the Body of Christ and in the lost world. Why, we have the ability and indeed, the mandate to meet those needs regardless of the methods."

In the days when the ark of God was being restored to Israel, a man named Uzzah was attending the ark. As the ark was being carried on an ox-cart, the oxen stumbled and caused the cart to tilt. There arose an urgent need for the ark to be grasped and steadied lest it fall into the filth of the road. If there ever was a need that demanded a response, it was at that moment for the safety of the ark. With his ignorance to excuse him, Uzzah, with the best of motives and intentions, reached out and took hold of the ark. He met the urgent need. And the Living God struck him dead. The hand of man--the work of man--is never, under any circumstances, regardless of the urgency of the need, acceptable to perform anything for God or His kingdom.

In a way, I believe that this calamity happened to poor Uzzah so that we might gain wisdom and insight as to how to be pleasing to the Lord. As the Holy Spirit begins to transform us into the image and likeness of Jesus Christ, then can He begin to use us to accomplish His purpose.

Why do good sincere and even gifted men...men who desire to be used by God for the sake of His house...ultimately end up building the religious system which is an abomination to God? Perhaps the answer to that question may be found in the lack of any or all of four basic necessities that every effective servant of God must possess.

Vision

The first necessity is vision. No matter how much you love the Lord or how many gifts the Holy Spirit has given to you, without a vision you will never be used by God to build His house. How can you build what you have not seen? How can you lay hold of that which you do not know?

In the OT, Moses was shown a heavenly reality and then he built the tabernacle according to the pattern of the reality. The same thing was true regarding the temple. David received a detailed vision of all that the temple should be. He gave the plan to his son, Solomon, who was then able to build the temple according to the desire of God and not the whims of man. If these things are true concerning the Old Testament types and foreshadows, how much more shall the substance, the church of Jesus Christ, require a God-given vision of the desire and purpose of God?

By way of illustration let's look at a couple of statements from two workers in the early church.

In Paul's testimony before Festus and King Agrippa, Paul relates the words spoken to him by the Lord Jesus at Paul's conversion. "I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee; (Acts 26:16)

The apostle Paul did not build by improvisation. He built according to the revelation of the vision given to him by the Lord. To appreciate the effect and consequences of that vision, consider what the Lord said it would accomplish:

"Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee"

In Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek, and only through a divine revelation of the purpose of God will any worker be delivered from building something either religious or worldly. By the grace and mercy of God, Paul was able to testify before Agrippa, and his words ring out a challenge to us today.

Whereupon, O king Agrippa, I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision: (Act 26:19)

What "vision" were you given in your early walk with God and have you proven faithful to it?

Hi there, appolus. Funny comment about John Wayne. I have done a good Jimmy Stewart impression of John Wayne before and I always end with 'Lil Pilgrim'.

Can you imagine that? Jimmy Stewart doing John Wayne?

You know, the first time David tried to bring the Ark to Jerusalem, it ended in utter failure. David was leaning on his own understanding, then. His good intentions. But, what was the motive of his heart? God knows. Suffice it to say, the people of God can never afford to lean upon their own understanding regarding the things of God, no matter how good intentioned they are.

First, David gathers all the "choice" soldiers and made a big production (show) of bringing the ark into Jerusalem on a cart. Transporting the ark on a cart was against God's specific command. The ark was designed to be carried (Exodus 25:12-15) and was only to be carried by Levites of the family of Koath (Numbers 4:15).

The ark of the covenant represents the "burden of the Lord" and at the same time, "the glory of the Lord" and it was meant to be carried on the shoulders of the priests (Levites).

1Ch 15:2 Then David said, None ought to carry the ark of God but the Levites: for them hath the LORD chosen to carry the ark of God, and to minister unto him for ever.

God always wants His presence and glory to come on the shoulders of consecrated, obedient, praising, men and women who have no other motive other than to see God glorified (not themselves).

In 1 Samuel 6:10-11, the Philistines carried the ark on a cart and got away with it, but not so for Israel. Today, we see the testimony of Jesus carried on "carts" with the most "notable of men" accompanying it and there is nothing consecrated or obedient about a cart.

We are not to "use" Jesus to make ourselves look good in front of men. The testimony of Jesus in His church is not to be accompanied by a big Hollywood production. This is not how the church carries the "burden of the Lord".

To be sure, the 2nd attempt was a "big" production too, but not according to men. The first attempt was a big production that came from man and not God. Look at the differences in the 2nd attempt. It was accompanied by sacrifices and David gathered all of Israel not just "choice" soldiers (professionals).

In our consumer oriented "Christian" culture, today, worship seems to be all about what pleases us and not what pleases God. David had quite a production going that first attempt to get the ark to Jerusalem. David even became angry at the Lord for smiting Uzzah dead.

When you do things God's way you will always get His help and the Levites did indeed get His help.
1Ch 15:26 And it came to pass, when God helped the Levites that bare the ark of the covenant of the LORD, that they offered seven bullocks and seven rams.

When we try to build the House of God our way, we get absolutely no help from the Lord, yet we continue on.

1Ch 15:28 Thus ALL Israel brought up the ark of the covenant of the LORD with shouting, and with sound of the cornet, and with trumpets, and with cymbals, making a noise with psalteries and harps.

The Ark (Christ) is for every member of the church not just "choice" individuals to carry.

Pilgrim

Saul would have been wise to wait on the Prophet as opposed to moving ahead with human wisdom. Better to wait upon The Lord and His direction , even if it means being accused of doing nothing in the face of certain circumstances, than following the dictates of our own or others wisdom.......bro Frank

Saul led Israel to many victories over their enemies. He was even included among the prophets. But he was never willing to completely trust the Lord. He would not lay his destiny and the fate of his kingdom in God's hands.

Saul would always inquire of the Lord but was never willing to wait on the Lord if an answer was not immediately forthcoming. The natural man cannot stand the waiting, the uncertainty. But, it is a testing that God frequently uses to try the hearts of those who belong to Him. It is the "flesh" that urges us, even compels us to "Do something...even if it may be a mistake." Such a man was Saul. All this eventually became evident as he disobeyed the Lord, prophesied naked, consulted a spiritist medium and constantly tried to put David to death (the children of the flesh always persecute the children of the spirit).

On to the "second" worker I alluded to, 4 posts ago. Paul was the first worker, now we look at James.

James was the half-brother of the Lord Jesus and the author of the Epistle of James. After being intimately associated with the Lord and with the twelve apostles, and after maybe 30 years of building the house of God in Jerusalem, James makes the most incredible statement to Paul.

"Thou seest, brother, how many thousands of Jews there are which believe; and they are all zealous of the law:" Acts 21:20

I have absolutely no doubt whatsoever of the love that James and the 12 have for the Lord, but to hold up ZEAL FOR THE LAW as an attribute that ought to even exist in the Lord's house, don't you think something is wrong there? I'm just asking. It is an indication to me that something is amiss or lacking with his (their) vision that steered their work.

Do you want a vision for the house of the Lord? I do. Is it only about belonging to an organization that assembles twice a week in order to hear a message, give money and then adjurn?

If there was something lacking in James' and/or the Twelve's vision what hope is there for us? I believe the answer to that question lies in the grace and mercy of God, because He gives vision to whomever He wills. Any vision that does not come from the illumination of the Spirit is no vision at all. Since it is God "who wills" are we to be passive? "If you seek Him, He will let you find Him." I Chron 15:2

"You will find Him if you search for Him with all your heart and soul." Deut 4:29.

We cannot even lay hold of real spiritual revelation, we must receive it as a gift. We can read all the spiritual books ever written, listen to all the great teachers and search out the Scriptures until you know them backwards and forwards but unless the Holy Spirit opens the eyes of our understanding and gives us ears to hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches, all we will have is head knowledge. And our work as a servant in the house of God will come to nothing...or worse, it will come to ruin.

Today, there are many in the religious system, both clergy and laity, who get a kind of negative vision. In other words, they begin to see what the church is not. They come to an understanding of the religious system and it's myriad shortcomings, failures and compromises. However, it is not enough to only see what the church is not. We must allow the Lord to show us what the church IS.

Some who see this kind of negative vision think that if the religious system is simply exorcised of these things that are wrong, then it will be the proper expression of the church. But if you remove everything that is wrong from the religious system, there will be almost nothing left.

Others who see this kind of negative vision believe that they can build the house of God as it should be by knowing what it is not. But, when you do not know where you are going, you always end up where you started. If people leave the religious system based on a vision only of what is wrong with that system, they ultimately will end up building another system, sometime almost an exact duplicate of what they left.

Without a vision of the church, man will always build the religious system because that is the only alternative without a vision from God of what the church is. Let us remove all hindrances, allowing the Lord to give us divine revelation of His heart's desire, which is the Body of Christ, the House of God.

Heb_3:6 But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.

Mar_8:34 And when he had called the people UNTO HIM with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever WILL COME AFTER ME, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

Jesus calls people UNTO HIMSELF out of Babylon (the world which includes false religion, counterfeit christianity).

Rev_18:4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.

God has always been calling for Himself a people out of the world and unto Him. OT and NT.
Gen_49:10 The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; AND UNTO HIM SHALL THE GATHERING OF THE PEOPLE BE.

2Th_2:1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by OUR GATHERING TOGETHER UNTO HIM,

Rev 18:20 Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets; for GOD HATH AVENGED YOU ON HER. (speaking of religious Babylon).

Every since Cain and Abel the "children of the flesh" have persecuted the "children of the spirit".

Gal_4:29 But as then he that was BORN AFTER THE FLESH persecuted him that was BORN AFTER THE SPIRIT, EVEN SO IT IS TODAY.

Very good distinction, Appolus.

Man wants the benefits without the cost. Jesus says "No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other." Luke 16:13

When one wants the benefits of God's blessings but despises the cross one holds to a form of godliness denying the power (of the cross) thereof.

No cross, no Christ, just a false security based on one's own "offerings" rather than the one and final offering of all. (Heb 10:12)

When God calls one out of the world unto Himself, the way out is by the cross otherwise one is not leaving anything.

The "way of Cain" is all around us today.

A glaring necessity (obviously missing today) is EXPERIENCE.

As the Lord gives and increases our vision, He desires to turn it into experience. It was important for Moses to ascend the mountain and behold the heavenly pattern of God's building. But it was for the purpose of coming back down and bringing something into existence on earth...the house of God. Each time the Israelites moved their camp during the forty year sojourn in the wilderness, the Levites who had charge of erecting the tabernacle had two things to guide them, the vision of the tabernacle they had received from Moses, and their EXPERIENCE with the tabernacle itself.

The book of Exodus contains a rather lengthy instruction of just how to build the tabernacle. But in order to erect the tabernacle the first time, it took Moses, who saw the vision, and others who were given special wisdom. However, after that, when the Israelites moved their camp, the Levites who had seen the tabernacle, care for it and disassembled it (experience it, if you will) could easily build it again for they had not only the vision but also their hands-on experience which made the vision practical.

All vision is ethereal until it is turned into experience. You may have received a real revelation of the love of the brethren, but until that revelation is experienced with real love by flesh and blood brethren, you don't really know what you are talking about.

The Lord tests everything that He creates. Even the begotten Son of God was tested. Adam was tested and he failed. The second Adam was tested and He was victorious.

The Children of Israel were tested in the wilderness...
And thou shalt remember all the way which the LORD thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no. (Deut 8:2)

Testing is for our benefit that we would grow from faith to faith.
Deu_8:16 Who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers knew not, that he might humble thee, and that he might prove thee, to do thee good at thy latter end;

...and you also will be tested in the wilderness (this world).

1Pe 1:7 That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:

1Pe 4:12 Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you:

The highway to Zion is a road of suffering.
Isa 48:10 Behold, I have refined thee, but not with silver; I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction.

2Ti_3:12 Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.

1/3 of the New Testament is about suffering. If we reject the way of the cross because of the suffering that accompanies it then we will suffer great loss as did the children of Israel who longed for the leeks and garlic of Egypt.

Do not let the testings of your faith harden your heart, but entrust yourself to your Faithful Creator Who is able to make you stand and to gloriously save you.

The Lord is testing our hearts, purging them of dross, and conforming us to His image.

2Th 2:16 Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace,
2Th 2:17 Comfort your hearts, and stablish you in every good word and work.

Let us yield to the Spirit of God and bring our wills into harmony with His will.

The tabernacle had gold covered acacia wood boards that stood upright and formed the walls. These boards had golden rings through which gold covered wooden poles were inserted. Now consider this question: Were the rings on the outside of the boards or on the inside of the boards? The greatest Bible scholar could not tell you, but the least of the Levites who had experience of the tabernacle could easily give us the answer. It may seem like a small matter as to whether the rings were on the inside or the outside, but without the experience of the Levites, one might erect the tabernacle inside out.

The apostle Paul was saved on the road to Damascus. There the Lord showed him some wonderful things. The revelation did not stop with his experience and the Lord continued to show Paul a wonderful and heavenly vision. He spent some time in the Arabian wilderness, and I imagine that his vision was greatly increased during that time. But with all this wonderful vision and his high calling as "Apostle to the Gentiles," Paul was not sent out by the Holy Spirit until after he had spent some years as a brother in the church at Antioch learning by experience what he had seen by revelation.

Today a man may be gifted of God, and he may have a burning vision in his heart for the Lord's house, but without the experience of having been built up together with others in a practical expression of the Body of Christ, he is unqualified to have a hand in building that which is only ethereal in his own life.

For the Lord to give us a vision of His house and work these things into us experientially, it will take some TIME in our lives.

God does not have any shortcuts to spiritual maturity. There are not "three easy steps" or "five practical methods." There is no seminary degree or certificate of achievement for "spiritual maturity" that will make you qualified. It will take the work of God in your life over a long period of time - years. And God is not in a hurry. He is much more interested in WHAT YOU BECOME IN HIM than WHAT YOU DO FOR HIM.

His work in your life will be thorough and complete...IF YOU WILL ALLOW IT.

Consider the apostle Paul. He was well acquainted with the Holy Scriptures at the time of his conversion. Paul was called to be an apostle on the day that he was saved. According to the standards of the 21st century, western Christianity, Paul was ready for the ministry. But not according to the standards of God. It took fifteen years of preparation before Paul was ready to be sent to the work to which he had been called.

These years were spent receiving a vision of the Church of Jesus Christ and having that vision expanded. Some of these years were spent as a brother in the church in Antioch, learning the Life of the church first-hand so that later there would be no danger of an inexperienced Christian worker building the house of God inside out. During these years of preparation Paul began to know the death of the old life through great suffering and the work of the cross. There were floggings from the Jews and beatings from the Romans. There was his lost reputation which during his lifetime, was never restored. Three was the experience of one who had been rising without peer in the religious and political world of Israel learning to become a NOBODY. Oh yes, and these were the years when Paul learned to love his Lord with a passionate, white hot, first quality love.

Do you think this preparation in Paul's life was a fluke?

Were these years an isolated accident, or is this pattern in harmony with the ways of God?

Consider David who spent perhaps a decade living in caves and being hunted like an animal. And this took place during the time between his anointing (his calling) and his coming to the throne (his sending). Or consider Moses, who spent forty years following sheep in preparation for being the shepherd of Israel.

How old are you? Are you 40, 50, 60 or even 70 and still waiting to be sent out? Consider Jesus who lived for 33 years but ministered for 3.

If we truly love the Lord, let us lay aside all spiritual ambition and all desire to serve the Lord and let us lay our lives before Him and humbly ask Him to prepare us according to His ways and His standards. Are you looking for significance in Jesus Christ, or what you do for Him? Or maybe, you are looking for significance from people who will affirm your spirituality. Did you know that only the Lord can affirm your spirituality and it is only to Him that we should look?

The work God eventually does through your life may be small, but the gold, silver and precious stone that can be hidden in a man's pocket is worth infinitely more than a mountain of wood, hay and stubble.

The face of the earth is covered with vast religious works that are a testimony of man's Adamic nature building for God. There is a place reserved in the man-made Christian religious system for ANYONE who wants to become a slave to it.

On the other hand, our Lord desires to restore the tabernacle of David in order that the rest of mankind may seek the Lord and in order that His throne might be established there.

Some can go no other way than to seek the headship of Jesus Christ and to give their lives that His eternal purpose might be accomplished.

Act 15:16 After this I will return, and will build again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen down; and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up:
Act 15:17 That the residue of men might seek after the Lord, and all the Gentiles, upon whom my name is called, saith the Lord, who doeth all these things.

Jude 1:5 I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, AFTERWARD DESTROYED THEM THAT BELIEVED NOT.

Is this not a warning to NT Believers who have been saved "out of the land of Egypt" that they will be destroyed if they "believe not"?

Num 14:22 Because all those men which have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now these ten times, and HAVE NOT HEARKENED TO MY VOICE;
Num 14:23 Surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked me see it:

Psa 106:24 Yea, they despised the pleasant land, THEY BELIEVED NOT HIS WORD:
Psa 106:25 But murmured in their tents, and hearkened not unto the voice of the LORD.
Psa 106:26 Therefore HE LIFTED UP HIS HAND AGAINST THEM (destroyed them in the wilderness), to overthrow them in the wilderness:

Psa 106:28 They joined themselves also unto Baalpeor, and ate the sacrifices of the dead. (they joined themselves to idols).
Psa 106:29 Thus they provoked him to anger with their inventions: and the plague brake in upon them.

Psa 95:7 For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. To day if ye will hear his voice,
Psa 95:8 HARDEN NOT YOUR HEART, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness:
Psa 95:9 When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my work.
Psa 95:10 Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, and said, It is a people that do err in their heart, and they have not known my ways:
Psa 95:11 Unto whom I sware in my wrath that they should not enter into my rest.

What is this "special status" that we think we have that we do not have to walk in obedience to the Spirit of God? Because the "church in the wilderness" enjoyed no such "special status". God is no respecter of persons!

He said, "No flowers, but a crown."
I said, "But the skies are black,
There is nothing but noise and din."
And He wept as He sent me back.
"There is more," He said; "there is sin."
I said, "But the air is thick
And fogs are veiling the sun."
He answered, "Yet souls are sick,
And souls in the dark undone."
I said, "I shall miss the light,
And friends shall miss me, they say."
He answered, "Choose tonight
If I am to miss you or they."
I pleaded for time to be given.
He said, "Is it hard to decide?
It will not seem hard in heaven
To have followed the steps of your Guide."
I cast one look at the fields,
Then set my face to the town.
He said, "My child, do you yield?
Will you leave the flowers for the crown?"
Then into His hand went mine;
And into my heart came He;
And I walk in a light divine,
The path I had feared to see.

George MacDonald

Do not shrink back or fear to obey the Lord.

Num 14:24 But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it.

Dear Pilgrim,

We are in need of some GREAT TRUTH,...and you are speaking it.

I do thank The Lord,...for it is His,..and He has allowed you to share.

Be blessed,

Thanking Him,
elizabeth

Yes, sister. Truth belongs to Jesus because He is the Truth.

Truth is a Person!

He does not ask us to produce results but only to be faithful to Him and with the word that He gives us. He will take care of the results.

All glory and honor to Jesus Christ.

Hi there Frank,

I saw you quote that line a little while back and it was not the first time I thought about how much we think alike because I have said that many times through the years.

Wisdom, love, truth, kindness, justice are all a PERSON.

Isn't it amazing how everything holy and godly is wrapped up in Jesus Christ.

There is nothing good apart from Him. He is the armor of God. I wrote about that once, maybe a year or two ago on SI, but alas, it is too difficult to find old writings on SI. He is Truth, Righteousness, Salvation, the Gospel of Peace (He is our Peace), the Sword of the Spirit (He is the Word of God), our Faith, etc ,etc.

We put on the Armor of God by "putting on Christ".

So, yes, we cannot divorce or separate these things from Christ. He is truly our All in All.

What is our need for the hour? Our provision is found in Christ.

Romans 11:36
For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.

May the Lord bless the conference you are having with the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him.

Pilgrim

What is this "special status" that we think we have that we do not have to walk in obedience to the Spirit of God? Because the "church in the wilderness" enjoyed no such "special status". God is no respecter of persons!

The issue here is inheritance not salvation.

What was the main charge of god to them is that they failed to enter because of unbelief.

We do not obey because we do not believe that God is really as good, gracious and loving as he says he is. Do we really believe that jesus is enough, that his death, burial and resurrection is all we need, if we do the promised land of the blessings of the Spirit are ours.

I agree, lack of obedience, and an unfaithful heart comes down to unbelief. This unbelief started in the garden. Adam and Eve chose to believe another's words over God's words.

Jer_12:5 If thou hast run with the footmen, and they have wearied thee, then how canst thou contend with horses? and if in the land of peace, wherein thou trustedst, they wearied thee, then how wilt thou do in the swelling of Jordan?