The Scourge Of Racism
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Released January 5, 2024
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God is awesome beyond human words to express, for even in the judgment of His “wrath” as the prophet prays, He does “remember mercy,” (Habakkuk 3:1-2, NKJV)! Consequently, a remnant of Israel will be forgiven in accord with His grace at the return of Christ and because “He delights in mercy,” (Psalm 103:8-10; Micah 7:16-20; Zechariah 12:10-13:1, NKJV). In parallel with Samson’s story as I write about in The Scourge Of Racism1 and biblical revival spurred by repentance among those of ancient Judah at the time of Hezekiah the king, the Lord is displaying grace and mercy to those of His Church that with humbled hearts return to Him during the adversities of His judgment.2
I will leave it to the reader of this post to discover the particulars surrounding the parallel story of the American Church with the Bible’s physically strong man, Samson (Judges 13-16).3 Suffice it to say here that although Samson had failed the Lord miserably in his spiritual weakness leading to utter humiliating disgrace, God showed him grace at his end such that he had a final outstanding fulfillment of his calling and mission. The Church of Jesus Christ exists on earth at all and in America not by the will of sinful flesh, but His (Matthew 16:13-18)!4 God has made Him the Head (Ephesians 1:22-23; Colossians 1:15-18). Many over the centuries have willfully forgotten these biblical truths.
Like Samson who started out well, during the assembling years of those fleeing the corruption and turmoil of Europe’s Catholic and Protestant versions of counterfeit Christianity to what would become America, there were some who nobly set out and did the will of Christ as His Church. Others--many others, did not as evidenced by the ignoble history of American slavery, followed after the Lord’s severe rebuke with Jim Crow Segregation which still found ways to violently oppress former slaves and others of color as even spiritual brothers and through the active overt arrogance of racial bigotry and discrimination by some; covert complicity through silence by many to this very hour.
As He led me to write in several previous posts, the Lord is now, moving through His Church in judgment for not only tolerating, practicing and enabling the gross sin of racism, but being so spiritually unfaithful as to serve other gods in idolatry, brazenly stand with the world in rebellion against God’s order of mankind from creation and indulge the sexually immoral among others.5 As has the Church’s sins, Samson’s finally caught up to him as the Lord in judgment allowed him to suffer the full weight of their consequences. After a little season though, the Lord showed Samson grace and mercy by letting him go out (die) fulfilling his calling and mission as intended once more.
Similarly, the Lord extends grace and mercy with bona fide biblical revival to His humbled (remnant to be sure) American Church in the midst of the escalating adversities allowed as part of His judgment. There is so much unnecessary confusion in the use of the word “revival” today. It is used by many especially in Christian media to indicate any apparent event where the activity of God seems to be at work to excite an assembly of people.6 But while everything having to do with the saving and reviving of souls is the supernatural activity of God at work, biblical revival follows His judgment on those already His people, their humble repentance from sin and deeds freshly empowered by Him.
What happened with ancient Judah under king Hezekiah is a perfect example. Following behind the evil deeds of his father, king Ahaz, who had worshipped other gods, sacrificed some of his children to the fire, destroyed articles of, trashed and shut down the Temple putting the priests out of work and leading to God’s severe judgment on the nation (2 Chronicles 28), Hezekiah went the other direction and cultivated a heart of faithfulness to Him. He called upon the priests and Levites to repent and commanded they clean up God’s Temple (2 Chronicles 29:1-19). He then, directed these men to restore worship and led out with other city leaders to participate (2 Chronicles 29:20-36). After this He called all Israel and Judah to commemorate Passover at the Temple (2 Chronicles 30).
Having freshly encountered God through repentance and revival of spirit, the people went forth to tear down the implements of idolatry in the land. The king also saw to it that the Temple and the men God had ordained to serve Him there were taken care of wherever they lived. As is typical of authentic revival that takes place in the heart, the king served God “with all his heart. So he prospered,” (2 Chronicles 31, NKJV). Such revival could have occurred in the American Church years ago, but holding on to the sin of racism among others has prevented it until now. Proud and obstinate, many have not been willing to receive correction.7 However, the severe adversities the Lord in judgment is permitting will change this (Isaiah 57:15, 66:1-2; James 4:1-10; 1 Peter 5:6-11).
1 The book is available in this Ministry’s Web Site Stores including the Strong Man Store, all major internet booksellers and brick and mortar bookstores. View the short book trailer.
2 Watch this Ministry’s Strong Man Of God Online Rally, Return To The Lord. It is one of the ways the Lord is presently manifesting His grace and mercy; appealing to His professed people as Christians who have strayed from or are not living for Him with a sold out heart to return!
3 Greater are the men that are spiritually strong in the image of Jesus Christ as I write about in my book, The Strong Man Of God: Back To Basics! The Hard or Soft Cover or E-Book Editions are available in the Strong Man Store, all major internet booksellers and brick and mortar bookstores.
4 While the Lord declares in the passage cited regarding His Church, “and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it” (VS. 18, NKJV), this does not mean as some I have heard assert that destructive evil He permits cannot assail and even diminish it on earth! What He means is “the dead in Christ” which includes every faithful believer and martyr from the first century until He returns are with Him in Heaven, not Hades where those who don’t know Him go when they die to await the judgment (Matthew 11: 20-24; John 14:1-3, 17:24; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Hebrews 12:18-24; Revelation 6:9-11, 7:9-17, NKJV).
5 Read the July 9, 2023 post, Corrupt Christians Not Hidden From God, the one on July 23, 2023, The Nations Do Not Impress God, both under the category, Call To Repent and the September 24, 2023 post, Racism In Christ’s Church A No-No, under the category, Instruction.
6 See the July 16, 2023 post, God Saves While Judging, under the category, Call To Repent.
7 The Scourge Of Racism, Copyright 2023, ODCM Publishing Division, Portland, OR, p. 57-58.
Memorial Day causes us to look to the graveyard or if you will, the fields of the dead to remember with esteem those of the military who gave their lives serving our nation. So, I do with all others again this year. The ‘“cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre’” in Israel is the burial place of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and their respective wives Jews look to remembering the progenitors of their ethnic heritage (Genesis 49:29-33, NKJV). Jacob, God named Israel, fathered twelve sons by four wives, six of them borne by Leah who is buried with him. How this came about and on this Pentecost, the body of Leah’s greatest Descendant not in a tomb concerns this post.
Leah, daughter of Laban and sister of Rachel examined in last week’s post,1 was honored with burial in the patriarchal cave by her husband, Jacob. She had been his first wife through the deceit of her father when he switched her out for Rachel on what was supposed to be her younger sister’s wedding night (Genesis 29:15-30). For whatever all of the reasons including perhaps, the physical issue with her eyes noted in the referenced passage, Leah as the older of the two sisters had not yet married when Jacob arrived on scene. As with most women of her time, marriage and family were the twin aims of her life and surely the reason in part she cooperated with her father’s treachery.2
In the polygamous marriage to Jacob as his first wife, but second to Rachel because he loved her more, Leah found herself “unloved;” literally hated by her husband. Fortunately for Leah and all women in marriages where their husbands do not love them, God was watching and on the case for her. “He opened her womb” out of mercy, but kept Rachel’s shut (Genesis 29:31, NKJV). While His observation of women in marriages where they are unloved by their husbands is a universal reality that should spur them to prayer for help, God’s specific actions for Leah are not. He acts in accord with His sovereign will, wisdom, unique purposes for all who call upon Him and His glory!3
Leah rightly concluded that the Lord had seen her “affliction” of being unloved by Jacob when she bore him a son she named, Reuben, for that reason (Genesis 29:32, NKJV). However, her hopes Jacob would love her because of this son and the next two that followed were dashed (Genesis 29:33-34). From the seed of her third son, Levi, would come her descendants Aaron, father of Israel’s priesthood and God’s great lawgiver, Moses (Exodus 6:16-27). On her fourth son, Leah seemed to get that God should be praised for her fruitful motherhood and declared: ‘“Now I will praise the Lord.’” So, she named him, Judah, which means praise (Genesis 29:35, NKJV).
From the seed of Judah came Israel’s second king, David, and an eternal, royal dynasty terminating in “Shiloh” God foretold first through Jacob and promised several centuries later by the prophet, Nathan, to the king (Genesis 49:8-12; 2 Samuel 7:1-17, NKJV). This Shiloh, is none other than He Jacob had wrestled with and who came to earth to begin to fulfill all that was written of Him forty-two generations after Abraham (Genesis 32:22-32; Matthew 1:1-17). Of the things written of Him were His birth to a virgin also a descendant of Leah through David and the first priority of His work as Israel’s final King embodied in His name, “JESUS,” (Matthew 1:18-25; Luke 3:23-31, NKJV).
Indeed, Jesus Christ, King of the Jews, completed His work to save His people from their sins as foretold (Psalm 22:1-21a; Matthew 27:32-50; John 19:17-30). On the same day before sunset, He was buried in a rich man’s tomb and on the third day after God resurrected Him (Psalm 22:21b; John 19:38-20:18).4 Following that on the fortieth day, “He was taken up” and glorified; seated at God’s right hand to await His return to rule not only Israel, but the whole earth! On the fiftieth day, “Pentecost,” He sent the Holy Spirit to indwell those who believe and enable His apostles to preach the Gospel about as well as “be witnesses to” Him “to the end of the earth,” (Psalm 22:22-31; Isaiah 53; Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:14-20; Luke 24:36-53; John 20:19-29; Acts 1:4-2:40, 3:11-26, NKJV).
Leah continued to compete with Rachel for Jacob’s love through childbearing; making the same mistake as her sister in giving him her maid for a wife, but to no avail (Genesis 30:1-21). He did honor her above all at her death. Also, not only did Leah prevail in the fruitful bearing of six to Rachel’s two sons, but unknown to her God’s favor ran much deeper. She bore one from who would come Israel and history’s greatest King; even He who is “the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David,” (Revelation 5:5, NKJV)! From what God did through unloved Leah, both His aspiring strong men and great women in the image of Christ are reminded He has worked and wills to work in us far beyond what we could have ever imagined to His glory (1 Corinthians 1:26-31)!5 Let Him have you!
1 Read the May 21, 2023 post, Lessons From Rachel For Aspiring Great Women, under the category, The Cause.
2 Another reason was the universal reverence given to fathers and modeled by God as the heads over their daughters until marriage only rebelled against in this latter days generation (Genesis 2:18, 21-22, 24:47-51; Numbers 12:14-16) though, Leah out of greater reverence for God and as a matter of character could have objected to being a party to deceit.
3 Christian women please note how the Holy Spirit led me to write broadly of women in marriages with husbands that do not love them. In His perfect will and your obedience to marry “only in the Lord,” such a situation should not exist for you. However, if for whatever reasons you are in a situation like this, you all the more know seeking God in prayer is the first right step followed by doing what His Word teaches in longsuffering while you wait on Him to act as He wills. And yes, the same goes for any Christian man in similar circumstances as it is written (1 Corinthians 7:10-16, 39; 1 Peter 3:1-2, NKJV).
4 Because Christ is risen from the dead, we Christians do not look to tombs or graveyards to remember and honor Him as One still slain in battle. But we exalt and magnify Christ within our hearts as our living Savior, Warrior-King and Lord; fellowshipping with and serving Him who is “alive forevermore” as He promised (John 14:18-24; Revela- tion 1:17-18, NKJV). If as a professed Christian you are not inwardly enjoying the resurrection life of Christ, disobedience in sin may be the reason. Watch our latest Strong Man Of God Online Rally on YouTube, Return To The Lord, to hear His summons!
5 Learn more about this by reading my book, The Strong Man Of God; Back To Basics! Get your Hard or Soft Cover or E-Book Edition of the book as well as companion Strong Man Of God Men’s Group Study and Great Woman Of God Women’s Group Study in the Strong Man Store, among internet booksellers and brick and mortar book- stores.
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