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• Ties That Bind Lead To Prison

              While men may continue to debate the purpose of earthly prisons to punish or restore, in my blog, God Soft On Crime?, February 7, 2016 under the category, The Cause, the Lord led me to clearly assert from His perspective it is both.  It is the perfect will of God that sin driven crimes be justly dealt with in ordered, human societies.  While there is room for mercy, crime in major part must be deterred by appropriate punishment to include incarceration.  That said, men commit crimes (some repeatedly) because bound by the same spiritual, mental and emotional ties as other sinners, they breach their conscience and natural self-control.  God wills to liberate and restore such men too!

   

              For the record, because men are fallen sinners that in natural pride craft laws and sentencing guidelines, they can and do err with bias and being overly harsh in sending citizens to prison for crimes committed.  However, keeping it real, those not breaking the law do not typically face prison sentences (Romans 13:2-3).  So, while it happens that those who have not committed a crime are wrongly accused, tried and sent to prison (though consider is anyone truly innocent outside of Christ in the eyes of the ultimate Judge and Warden?--Romans 3:9-20), it is primarily those guilty of breaking the law that have this experience.

   

              Christians are not normally supposed to be among those found guilty of crimes and sent to prison since we are being regenerated as the people of God and honor His higher Law as well as the just laws of men through the inner working of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22-25; Titus 3:1-8; 1 Peter 2:13-17).  Yet, professed Christians prior to incarceration are also well represented in American prisons.  Those I minister to, I remind the punishment they endure is Poppa’s woodshed and He wants them to get their lesson (Hebrews 12:5-11)!  The Lord wants all incarcerated men to get their lesson because in Christ, His heart is to restore, not crush men’s lives (Lamentations 3:27-42).

   

              Not inferior in the least bit to mortals in mercy, God gives sinners many chances to repent from their sinful deeds before bringing judgment as I am a witness.  The Lord’s penalty for sin is death which He has every right as Creator-Judge to carry out on the spot!  However, since Eden this has not been done by Him except on occasion as a sober warning and deterrent to all who would consider His typical mercy filled delay to judge, unwilling weakness (Leviticus 10:1-3).  When we sin, though others may not see it right away, we can be sure our sin will find us out; God’s judgment overtakes the guilty (Numbers 32:20-23; Psalm 90:8; Galatians 6:7; 1 Timothy 5:24-25). 

   

              By the time a man ends up in prison even if it occurs as a result of his first crime, the Lord gracious and merciful has already given him as a sinner many chances to repent and be set free from ties that bind.  These ties are common to all mankind and encompass every pathos of the soul and sinful work of the flesh including not looking to or trusting in God (Job 3, 10:1; Psalm 42:1-6a, 77:1-9; 142; Romans 14:23b; 1 Corinthians 10:13; Galatians 5:19-21).  In our day, the tendency is to separate sin and evil crime; sinners and evil criminals.  But in God’s eyes, what starts in the heart of the sinner as sin is evil whether it leads to crimes defined by human law or not (Mark 7:20-23).

   

              Thus, the man that seeks to medicate himself through drunkenness and/or drug abuse (sorcery) to dull the misery of his life, for example, is bound up by the pathos of his soul, his evil conduct in response (having rejected the more excellent way of faith in Christ) and the consequences of violating any human laws as a result in the process.  Upon arrest on whatever charges, the man is now bound with physical ties of various types (among them shackles) and incarcerated.  In God’s permissive will another bound up prospective strong man of God in the image of Christ is put on lockdown; taken away from freedom, family and his other life goods now to be plundered by the evil one stronger than he who first began to bind him up (Matthew 12:29). 

   

              Whatever the mix of ties that Satan has used to bind up those that end up being incarcerated--including in extreme cases, demon possession wrongly labeled by skeptics as just mental illness, they too can come to enjoy the difference between them and us who are faithful Christians (Luke 8:26-39).  For we are living by faith in Christ as freedmen, daily put the flesh to death, walk in the Spirit, armor up resisting the devil with perseverance and confess our sins to God as they occur or are revealed in all repentance (Habakkuk 2:4; Romans 6:15-22, 8:12-13; Galatians 5:16; Ephesians 6:10-18; James 4:7-10, 5:7-11; 1 John 1:8-9).¹ 

   

              Otherwise, the only difference between the incarcerated and those bound up on the outside is that those on the outside have not yet breached their conscience and natural self-control to the point of criminal acts or been caught.  They will with all, still have to face the Judge (2 Corinthians 5:10)!  Even so, let faithful Christians be warned that with sinful men what is legal today will be a crime tomorrow (Daniel 6:1-17; Luke 22:47-54; John 15:18-20; Revelation 2:8-11).

   

  1 For this reason, I appeal to you to support our Books To USA Prisons Project to provide another resource through my book, The Strong Man  Of  God:  Back  To Basics God
     can  use  to show unsaved men on lockdown how to become faithful Christians and aspiring strong men of God in the image of Christ!  To learn about the project and to give
     go to https://thestrongmanofgod.org/Give.

• Persecution, Hatred And Betrayal, Pt. 1

              It is wonderful hearing of what God is doing during His Coronavirus judgment to stir the hearts of those bewildered and seeking for answers made up not just of persons never having made a profession of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, but those professed to be Christians living out nominal, spiritually dead lives.  These are flocking in large numbers to the online services and instruction of churches and ministries.  However, gauging by Christian media chatter and actions, it still does not appear there is a widespread appreciation among Christians, churches and their leaders that they are enduring judgment from the Lord and consequently, needing to give full heed to His call to repent!¹

   

              My mother used to always say to us kids growing up, “A hard head makes a soft behind;” a saying passed down to her from her parents and a cultural expression familiar to nearly all black Americans born before the 1970’s.  The expression served to warn stubbornly disobedient children of pending corporal punishment if obedience was not immediately forthcoming!  Only the hardest of heads did not get the message and pressed on to find out mom was not issuing idle threats (that would have been me on too many occasions, I am ashamed to report).  Now, the Lord looks out upon professing Christianity and sees that far too many filled with stubborn pride are being hard headed.

   

              To the Lord’s great displeasure rather than brokenness and repentance, many church and ministry leaders have gone into organizational survival mode with no plans to change anything from what they used to do before the Coronavirus except what is needed to keep from spreading it.  On top of that, they are not taking any of the prophetic signs this judgment presents serious enough to prepare those following them online or that will assemble in their buildings for what is plainly foretold in the written Word to come next.  One reason for this, of course, is psychology 101 in survival mode from ancient times: don’t frighten people with the truth; keep it positive (Jeremiah 38:1-4)!

   

              In the face of God’s judgment, telling the truth to a people having been spoon fed a steady diet of deceitfully crafted ego affirmation using Scripture and “American style home grown,” but not unique to America ancient “false doctrines of perpetual peace and prosperity” as He led me to write in a May 2, 2020 social media post is like biting the human hand that feeds you--not a good thing when men are trying to feed themselves and sustain their organizations!²  But the Lord who hears all that these leaders say and sees all of what they do will judge them as false prophets and teachers without repentance (Jeremiah 14:11-16, 23:16-17; Ezekiel 13:1-16, 34:1-10; 2 Peter 2:1-3).³

   

              Not peace and prosperity fully and perpetually restored now, but more judgment from God is coming upon this world!  For as I wrote earlier in that May 2, 2020 social media post, “From His own words Jesus Christ did not come 'to bring peace on earth' prior to His return, 'but a sword' representing divine judgment and conflict in division over Him (Matthew 10:32-39; Luke 12:49-53, NKJV)."  The Lord will bring perpetual peace and prosperity to the earth at His Second Coming and after the divine outpour of wrath on sinners that have refused to accept salvation by grace through faith in Him!”  If the Lord Himself says there is no peace now, where do you get off contradicting Him?

   

              Nevertheless, I wrote, “Now, His Personal peace; the peace of God is only available to His sheep,” (Isaiah 57:19-21; John 10:27, 16:33).  This is His peace in the midst of this world’s troubles and the judgments He brings on it seeking for repentance leading to salvation from “whoever believes in Him” and His fruitless, strayed sheep (John 3:16-21, 36, 15:1-8, NKJV).  Christian leaders and teachers deceive those they teach when they only want to present the shine of the Lord’s face in grace and purposely avoid dealing with the fiery glow of judgment in His eyes to keep it positive for people that will not give unless something is in it and “He is for me.”  This they say not appreciating Christ is Savior and Judge and for the righteous even in judgment (Revelation 1:12-16, 3:19)!

   

              While “famines, pestilences and earthquakes in various places” will continue and intensify to soon be followed by unmistakable acts of God from the sky as warning judgments for all, next up specifically for Christians is hatred fed persecution already rife in many parts of the earth and coming to “all nations” including America according to the Lord Jesus Christ (Matthew 24:7-9; Mark 13:8-10, 13; Luke 21:11, 17, NKJV).  If you do not or refuse to believe the foregoing you are blasphemously calling Jesus Christ a liar!  Too, you are quite deceived and denying reality in arrogance as an American since you must also be falsely believing persecution and suffering is only for those professing Christ in other, unexceptional nations of the earth as God’s throwaways.⁴

   

      1 See the April 19, 2020 post, Does Anybody Repent Anymore? under the category, Call To Repent.

      2 I   am  not  without  empathy on this point as this Ministry too, faces all of the same challenges of trying to raise funds to keep me employed full-time in the work.  The

         The  difference  for  us  though,  is that we will not sell God out, soft pedal the Gospel, compromise the truth, avoid talking about sin and judgment or invent feel good

         messages  that  tickle  hears  to  raise  what we need.  We have struggled for nearly the entire organizational life of this Ministry from 1985 because of this conviction, 

         but have watched God continuously provide what we needed in His will on time, every time!

      3 Like  the handwriting on the king of Babylon’s wall declaring the end of his kingdom, so, this epoch of corrupt, huckster invented and driven Christianity has been sig-

         naled by God through His Coronavirus judgment (Daniel 5)!

      4 Read the November 12, 2017 post, God’s Throwaways?, under the category, Bible Prophecy.

• Watching The Children Play

              While I have a few critics, the Lord controls when and how I occasionally respond and does not allow that I should waste the precious time He has given me to run my life and ministry race doing so more often.  However, this is one of those times.  Indeed, because I am getting older and this Ministry has not garnered the kind of worldly defined success and support of many other Ministries (I don’t compare myself to others as Scripture warns--2 Corinthians 10:12-18), some would urge me to quit since I do not ever intend to soften the messages God gives me to proclaim or corrupt and compromise His Word seeking to get better results (Ezekiel 33:1-9; 2 Corinthians 2:12-17, 4:1-2).

   

              Like the children I talk about in this short, edited 2011 post, my zeal and energy level remain high after over 40 years of service to the Lord to include thirty-four years leading Open Door Communication Ministries, Inc. as its Founder/President.  The children run with natural youthful energy; I run with the supernatural strength of Christ!  Until the Lord takes away my strength or physical faculties, I intend to keep running my life and ministry race whether full or part-time until I finish with my last breath as is presented in the newest short video to soon be added to this Ministry’s fundraising platform dedicated to raising my 2020 full-time salary.¹  I appeal to God’s faithful to come to my “aid” at this “opportunity” (Philippians 4:10-20, NKJV)!

   

  Originally Posted October 30, 2011

   

              Yesterday, I was pleased to fulfill part of my commitment as chaplain to the Alberta Park Panther Football Team by attending a couple of games.  The 7^th and 8^th grade players had just finished winning a close game and yet, what did I see not long after?  They were mostly out of their uniforms playing more football on adjacent fields.  And then there was the 3^rd and 4^th grade level of the team.  They were so eager, so teachable, so trusting as they listened to their coaches and were likewise full of seemingly boundless energy.  As were these boys, so is the aspiring strong man of God in the image of Jesus Christ of all ages (Mark 10:13-16)!  Get my book, The Strong Man Of God: Back To Basics to learn more about how and why.²

   

  1 Go to FundRazr Salary Campaign.

  2 The  book is available in print or digital download formats at major internet booksellers such as Amazon, Barnes & Noble, ChristianBooks.com and Apple (digital only). 

     You  can  also  get  the  Hard or Soft Cover print versions of the book in the Strong Man Store.  Additionally, listen to the recent energetic interview, Jim Ramos, Presi-

     dent of Men In The Arena conducted with me about the book’s content on his Podcast.

• Valuing Human Life

              Let no one believe I spoke of the death penalty for gang bangers found guilty of murder in some cold, heartless religious detachment in my 2012 Commentary “Curtailing Gang Violence,” under the category, Call To Repentance posted August 12, 2018.¹  In the warmest love of God, I am for human life and fervently preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ to see dead souls live (Ephesians 2:1-7)!  However, urban communities across America are lawless killing fields where too often those not involved in gang conflicts such as children going to and from school are murdered.  We all cry and cry and cry, but our sons and some of our daughters too, continue to hurt, maim and kill one another.

   

              As I write in this edited, 2012 follow up Commentary, God has authorized human government to punish evildoers to include putting to death those that murder.  This is because human life is of high value to God and He wants us to share His view of ourselves.  God knows the horrible track record our nation has with minorities in its justice system and I do too.  So, I am surely also calling for reform that brings it into line with His Word and the engagement of revived Christians in advance of prosecuting our sons in death penalty cases.  It is hypocritical for us to insist to the world that black lives matter and we do not care enough to turn in and righteously punish our sons that cheaply murder them.  The bloodshed in our streets as judgment proves God does not share in this hypocrisy!

   

  Originally Published September 2012

   

              I am not unaware of how those without a biblical worldview among professed black Christians processed advocating the death penalty as a means to deter and curtail gang violence in my August 2012 Commentary.  Say what you will about the way of suffering our people have endured, self-destruction through murder as victims is not an appropriate response.  This may be what is happening for many, but any so-called Christian and preacher that is only content to rationalize the slaughter rather than preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ and enforcing the divine value placed on human life to curtail it is in complicity!  Still, the death penalty is to be done God's way also.

   

              It is true that the devaluing of human life in this land has been going on since the colonizing of what was called a “New World.”  Violence played a major role in subduing the Indians and turning captured Africans into slaves.  These souls were treated with the utmost contempt in violence and murdered with impunity.  After this came the dehumanizing Theory of Evolution and Margret Sanger who wished to control population by way of eugenics.  Through the deceitful advocacy of women’s reproductive rights, feticide became national law and blacks now murder our own children in the womb at a higher rate than other groups.  Survival in a harsh, often violent urban setting is daily life.

   

              Daily too, is the saturation of violence in the media.  Contrary to what a real "Christian nation" with a biblical worldview would look like, America has a history and culture of violence, murder and death that serves as a broader context and contributing factors for gangs among its many outlets.  While there is always an outcry when an increase in gang violence and murder occurs, a couple of arrests and short prison terms later rather than being deterred in the main, these men are released morally unchanged to do it all over again.  This is a vicious cycle that must and can only be broken when faithful Christians get involved with the Gospel, God's Word, power and accountability.

   

              God Almighty, who declares in His Word without equivocation that He is man's Creator (Genesis 1:26-27), made him and all of creation at the beginning "very good," (Genesis 1:31, NKJV).  Made in the image and likeness of God, human life is esteemed by God as the most precious of all since man is to be an eternal son.  When man sinned, God, the Son of God and Word wrapped Himself in flesh to effect man's redemption that men of faith may even be raised from the dead to live with God forever (Psalm 49:1-15; John 1:1-5, 14, 10:10, 11:25-27; Hebrews 2:5-18).²  The death of Jesus Christ on the cross thunderously exclaims human life is of inestimable value to God!

   

              Having such esteem for the life of man, after destroying a world of evil and violence (like our own) in Noah's day (Genesis 6:5-22), God gave him and all mankind an irrevocable edict.  Man's life is so precious to God that not an animal or any man is to willfully shed his blood.  If either creature does kill a man, as governing authorities men under God are to shed that creature's blood; that is, take the responsible animal or man's life as a statement of absolute opposition to the willful killing of a human (Genesis 9:4-6).  Later, God in the Ten Commandments declares, "'You shall not murder,'" (Exodus 20:13, NKJV) which Jesus affirms and expands in application (Matthew 5:21-26).

   

              God gave Israel just commandments, laws, statutes and ordinances (and thereby all mankind as a blueprint) for righteously dealing with those who murder.  All persons accused of murder must first be given a trial where the facts of the case are determined.  Given the historical and blatant corruption of American jurisprudence in the cases of minorities, every jury of peers in murder trials must include a fair number of the accused person's ethnic group or other minorities.  There must also be a minimum of two eyewitnesses to consider the death penalty.  All penalties must be handed out consistently to be an effective deterrent.  Accountability and deterrence are the Lord's goals in the death penalty for murder (Exodus 21:12-14; Numbers 35:9-34; Deuteronomy 19:15-21).

   

              It is now far past the time for Christians to have a biblical worldview on crime in general and gang violence in particular.  Our compassion for the community ought to be displayed first in proclaiming the Gospel and God's Word on sin in unity.  Our church ministries should be proactive in reaching our boys before they are introduced to gangs.³  They must be taught the truth that a holy God loves them, but hates their sins.  Also, they are to value human life as God does or face man's justice and without repentance, His eternal condemnation (1 Peter 2:13-14; Revelation 21:8, 22:12-15).  The risen, living Christ continues His cry among American churches, "Who is on the Lord's side?"

   

  1 Have I not confessed to murder in allowing the death of my unborn children as an unsaved youth?  Back then I would not have understood why I merited the death

     penalty for my crime against humanity, but I do now and appreciate to the fullest measure the grace of God that did not treat my sin as it deserved in the midst of a

     society  that  had  legally  and falsely decided aborting the unborn is not murder.  I did not get away with anything since until my last breath, though forgiven, I must

     endure public shame while with others, fighting to persuade our society to return to God’s view of murder in the face of His staggering judgments for refusing!

  2 As  the  Lord  leads, I present the reality of the divine eternal purposes and destiny of man as God’s redeemed creature in my book, The Strong Man Of God: Back

     To Basics.  It is available at all major internet book sellers, by order at your favorite brick and mortar bookstore or in the Strong Man Store.

  3 Our  Ministry  is  doing  this  through our Urban Radio Campaign and its Strong Man Minute Page as well as the Strong Man Academy.  We welcome Kingdom dri-

     ven Christians and churches that want to support us in the work!  This can be securely done on the Give Page of our Web Site.

• Rachel’s Children Live!

            I will soon wrap up the series of posts the Lord Jesus Christ has led me to make since November 27, 2022 examining His foreknowledge then, literal experience of persecution to the death in God’s will as an instructional example to us Christians.  Before this though, I want to revisit an event and a person in those posts that impact critical issues in our times.  Today, on this Sanctity Of Life Sunday dedicated to urging every citizen in our nation to treat human life beginning at conception as from God and sacred (Psalm 139:13-16; Isaiah 44:24; Luke 1:30-35), I bring the Lord’s Word and a warning to those who continue to wickedly clamor for the right to murder the unborn.

   

            The event that inspires this post is Herod’s massacre of the male children two years old and under in Bethlehem and its surrounding districts in his attempt to destroy the Lord Jesus Christ as a young Child he feared as a rival to his throne.¹  Make no mistake about it; the dark and evil heart that could murder babies and toddlers out of the motives of fear and narcissism is the same one in those that would take out the unborn in their mother’s wombs.  I know this from the forgiven guilt and shame of having been a teen father that gave consent as well as relieved endorsement to the abortion of my children before and during the days of Roe v. Wade as I wrote in previous posts and my book.²

   

            The apostle Matthew is led by the Holy Spirit in his Gospel to comment on Herod’s massacre of the children that it “fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying: ‘A voice was heard in Ramah; lamentation, weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, refusing to be comforted, because they are no more,’” (Matthew 2:17-18, NKJV).  At first glance, it seems that the Lord simply foretells this event over 600 years in advance rightly acknowledging the grief of the Bethlehem mothers figuratively represented by a woman named Rachel, but quite unfeelingly offering no explanation of why or comfort.  However, deeper Bible study bears great fruit showing otherwise!³

   

            Led by the Holy Spirit, a deeper Bible study involves examining the background of Rachel and God’s prophecy as it originally appears in context.  Indeed, Rachel is the second of two wives of Jewish patriarch, Jacob, that were sisters when he was sent to get one by his father, Isaac, from his mother’s people (Genesis 28:1-5).  He meets and falls in love with Rachel and works seven years per agreement with her father, Laban, to marry her.  But Laban deceitfully sent in his older daughter, Leah, when it was time to consummate the marriage and gave Rachel to Jacob only if he served him another seven years--he did (Genesis 29:1-30).  The women competed to bear him children.

   

            Leah and her maid gave Jacob eight sons and one daughter, while the maid of barren Rachel bore him two sons.  By God’s grace Rachel was finally able to conceive and bore Joseph to Jacob (Genesis 29:31-30:24).  She also bore him the last of his twelve sons, Benjamin; dying in the process with great sorrow and was buried as the family made their way from Bethel to “Ephrath” “(that is, Bethlehem),” (Genesis 35:16-20, NKJV).  Though she had borne him fewer children than Leah, Rachel is considered the mother of all Israel because Jacob loved her.  Her burial location would prove significant in what are actually two future events involving Rachel’s children.

   

            In Jeremiah’s day hundreds of years later, Babylon’s invasions of Judah as God’s judgment yielded captives that were marched in chains on the well traveled road northward from Bethlehem and other cities to various staging locations that included Ramah (Jeremiah 40:1-6).  The Lord used Rachel as the mother of Israel to figuratively represent all the affected mothers weeping at their children being taken away.  But this Word was given in the larger context of Jeremiah 30-33 as God spoke of a future day when He brings a remnant back to the land complete with Messiah their King and “a new covenant,” (Jeremiah 31:31-34, NKJV).  So, He tells Rachel to ‘“Refrain your voice from weeping, and your eyes from tears for your work will be rewarded…,’” (Jeremiah 31:16-17, NKJV). 

   

            There was hope for the future because God would bring Rachel’s children that were taken back as a remnant to Israel’s border (Isaiah 49:8-26)!  But they are not all of them.  As this prophecy is true in the natural, so too, in the spiritual and applies to the male children Herod killed instead of Christ.  They live as does every unborn child ever aborted (Ecclesiastes 12:7)!  The innocents killed by Herod died in Christ’s place so He could live and die for them and all mankind on the cross!⁴  As a result, the innocents will be raised at Christ’s command among all who have ever lived and with the saints, enjoy immortal glory (Psalm 90:3-4; Isaiah 26:19; Luke 20:37-38; John 5:24-30, 11:23-27).  Woe to all the unrepentant murderers of the unborn (Genesis 9:5-6; Revelation 20:11-15)!⁵

   

  1 Read the December 18, 2022 post, Christ Persecuted As A Child, under the category, Instruction.

  2 Concerning previous posts see for example, the one on January 21, 2018, Protecting Our Children, under the category, Biblical Worldview.  You can pick up a Soft or Hard
     Cover copy of my book, The Strong Man Of God: Back To Basics at your favorite internet bookseller or brick and mortar bookstore and the Strong Man Store.

  3 If you want to learn how to get the most out of your Bible study, I invite you to take the layman’s Fruitful Bible Study Self-Paced Video Course the Lord led me to develop to
     help.  Get an overview of the course in the introductory first session at https://youtu.be/uufAkc3aYSc on our Strong Man Virtual Institute YouTube Channel.

  4 The unborn and young children are not without the nature and taint of sin from Adam (Psalm 51:5; Romans 5:12).  So, it must be atoned for as Christ accomplished on Cal-
     vary.  They  are  however, innocent of willful sin because of not having yet reached the age of accountability before God which is generally when they have the ability to un-
     derstand biblical right from wrong (Proverbs 20:11; James 4:17).

  5 While  I  and  to  be sure, every other born again, biblically conservative Christian advocate for the unborn in America continue to rejoice in the Supreme Court’s reversal of
     Roe  v.  Wade  in  June  of  2022,  the spirit of murder behind legalized abortion remains intact and influential throughout the land (John 8:44).  This is evident in the protest
     marches  and  persecution of Christians to include attacks on associated properties such as churches, businesses and pregnancy resource centers that have erupted.  It is
     also  seen  in  the  efforts State by State to retain legal sanction for murdering the unborn and once again grant it nationally, this time through congressional legislation.  Let
     all  deceived  and  led  by  the  spirit of murder to kill the unborn recognize if you will that the Lord is being gracious to allow you the opportunity to give heed to His warning
     and repent now, since no such opportunity will be offered on judgment day (2 Corinthians 5:9-11)!

• Christ Persecuted To The Death

            I open the New Year as the Lord leads continuing in this post to hold Him and His experiences up as our instructional example in having to endure persecution even to the death according to His Father’s will and purposes.  As post titles beginning November 27, 2022 reflect, Christ was the Lamb slain prior to creation and persecuted before and to His birth along with shortly after as a young Child.  This post briefly chronicles Christ’s persecution to His death on a Roman cross.  We know this was all for our salvation, but what many are struggling with at this hour is why His followers must also suffer persecution as He?  The Lord and His apostles provide instruction that is biblical Christianity to us.

   

            While we know nothing about Satan’s persecution in attempts to tempt Christ to sin, corrupt, compromise or kill Him between His Childhood and the beginning of His ministry as an Adult, we know plenty from that point on thanks to New Testament writers.  For example, no temptation was successful since commenting on the whole of His life the writer of Hebrews says He “was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin,” (Hebrews 4:15, NKJV).  God the Father’s protection kept Satan from killing His Son during His formative years as it did through the three years or so He preached, taught and ministered throughout Israel starting “at about thirty years of age,” (Luke 3:23a, NKJV).

   

            The launch of the Lord’s ministry followed His baptism by John the Baptist and being purposely “led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil” at the conclusion of “forty days and forty nights” of fasting from food (Matthew 3:13-4:2; Mark 1:12-13; Luke 4:1-13, NKJV)!¹  After His wilderness temptations, He “returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee” to begin His ministry (Isaiah 9:1-2; Mark 1:14-15; Luke 4:14-15, NKJV).  Coming to “Nazareth, where he had been brought up,” the Lord Jesus offered His biblical credentials as the Messiah in its “synagogue on the Sabbath day;” reading from “the book of the prophet Isaiah,” (Isaiah 61:1-2a; Luke 4:16-21, NKJV).

   

            It did not go well as those who knew the Lord from Childhood were incredulous of His claim to be the Messiah, then infuriated by His rebuke of their unbelief.  They next put hands on and tried to kill Him by throwing Him “over the cliff” “of the hill” “their city was built” on.  But He miraculously passed right “through the midst of them” escaping and “went His way,” (Luke 4:22-30, NKJV).  This violent attempt to kill Christ was followed by several more as those in unbelief “persecuted” and “sought to kill Him,” (John 5:1-18, 8:48-59, 10:22-39, NKJV).  Persecutors included His brothers and among those who would kill Him, Israel’s religious leaders (John 7:1-9, 11:38-57).²

   

            Ultimately behind all the persecution and every attempt to kill the Lord Jesus was Satan as he in pure hatred had been seeking to do from before, at and after His birth.  For he fully knew Christ was the foretold “Seed” of the woman that would crush him (Genesis 3:15, NKJV).³  According to the Lord, Satan is also a “murderer” and has been “from the beginning.”  This is how it is that the Jews of that time sought to kill Him when they did since they carried out “the deeds” and “desires” of their “father the devil” as do all murderers (John 8:37-47, NKJV).  However, no one could harm the Lord “because His hour had not yet come,” (Psalm 31:14-15; John 7:25-32, 40-52, 8:13-20, NKJV).

   

            Even so, the Lord Jesus was fully aware of what was going on and foretold His impending suffering, death and triumphant resurrection to His disciples (Luke 9:18-22).  And indeed, it came; the Lord’s hour ordained from eternity.  It arrived by way of betrayal by a disciple possessed of Satan, “Judas, surnamed Iscariot,” (Luke 22:1-23; John 13:18-30, NKJV).  He called this man ‘“Friend’” as he led “troops” out to arrest the Lord; ‘“betraying’” Him ‘“with a kiss,’” (Psalm 41:7-9; Matthew 26:47-50; Mark 14:43-46; Luke 22:47-51; John 18:1-3, NKJV).  Consistent with His words about laying down His life saying, ‘“No one takes it from Me,’” the Lord surrendered to the throng (John 10:15-18, 18:4-11, NKJV).⁴  He told them too, it was their ‘“hour and’” Satan’s also--finally (Luke 22:52-53, NKJV).

   

            After beating, whipping and humiliating Him, they crucified my Lord.  But just as He said, He rose again on the third day certifying our salvation and on the fortieth day ascended back to His Father after instructing His apostles (Isaiah 53; Luke 24:36-53; Acts 1:4-11; Revelation 12:5b).  As He made clear, His followers face the same satanically driven persecution as He resulting in suffering and leading to death for many as has occurred from the first century until now, because we are identified with Him (Matthew 10:16-42, 24:1-9; Luke 9:23-26, 21:12-19; John 15:18-16:4; Acts 9:1-5; 1 Thessalonians 2:13-3:8; 2 Thessalonians 1:3-8; 2 Timothy 3:10-12).  Also, with Israel, our spiritual mother, there is still more to come until Christ’s return because she bore Him (Revelation 12:6-17)!⁵

   

  1 See the January 29-February 12, 2017 three-part series and especially part two, Jesus, Son Of Man, under the category, The Cause.  Interestingly, Luke 4:13 says, “Now,
     when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time,” (NKJV).  This plainly asserts that the devil was relentless in his persecution of
     the Lord.

  2 The tragic historical conduct of Christianity the religion of men and its leaders awaiting God’s final judgment parallels that of first century Judaism’s religious leaders.  Pro-
     fessed  Christian religious leaders have also violently persecuted and murdered the righteous as opposition (Revelation 16:19b, 17:1-6, 18:1-19:4).  Read Foxe’s Book of
     Martyrs.

  3 Isn’t  that  amazing?   More  so  than the unsaved and professed Christians he deceives to ignore or disparage it, Satan actually believes God’s Word!  Read the January
     9,  2022 post, Easier To Read Bibles, under the categories Bible Prophecy and Instruction to be reminded again of the truth: there is a war going on between God’s King-
     dom and Satan’s kingdom of darkness.  All mankind is in play as participants on one side or the other!  On whose side do you stand?

  4 Here  is the reason faithful Christians--every aspiring strong man and great woman of God in the image of Christ--does not take up arms to resist persecutors.  He taught
     and  set  the  example  for  how we are to conduct ourselves.  The Lord led me to write about this in my book, The Strong Man Of God: Back To Basics.  Get your Soft or
     Hard Cover copy at your favorite internet bookseller or brick and mortar bookstore and the Strong Man Store.

  5 Satan is the original anti-Semite.  He hates and will violently persecute the Jews until Christ returns and rescues God’s elect remnant from among them (Isaiah 10:20-23;
     Micah 5:3-4, 7:14-20).  Consequently, the historic and ongoing rise of anti-Semitism in the world at this hour should not baffle professed Christians that take God’s written
     Word seriously!