The Scourge Of Racism
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How sad to end last week’s post noting the hostility of our nation’s deepening secular atheist culture toward the God ordained human family, its related roles, responsibilities and order from His creation. America the beautiful; my nation among the nations is tearing itself apart in pride, arrogance and iniquity turning its back on, forgetting and renouncing God, His will, way and Word! For God’s Word is very clear on what a male and female are; the family as He designed it. But on this 245th Independence Day a rebellion against and war for independence from God the King of Heaven and all creation is now, underway as it took place against the king of England (Psalm 2:1-3)!1
Even many offended professed Christians and their churches have forsaken God and His Word; American Christianity with the nation a divided house consumed by betrayal, contention and falsehood in the most basic of biblical instruction as the Lord Jesus foretold of these latter days (Matthew 24:10-11). As I recently experienced because of this state of affairs, the on looking rebels of the world believe themselves all the more justified in their rebellion against God seeing the division and bedlam among professed Christians. Some pray and look for revival, but like fellow citizens that reject God altogether, they too, refuse to repent from their iniquities. Acting as Lot “in the gate,” my soul is greatly troubled by the wickedness I see and hear (Genesis 19:1-3; 2 Peter 2:6-8, NKJV).
Therefore, on this Independence Day I lament the should have been expected, ongoing judgment of God upon my nation made up of fallen mortals refusing to repent from forgetting and renouncing God among all the nations that are doing likewise as it is written (Psalms 2:4-9, 9:1-8, 15-10:18).2 Meanwhile, though the nation has passed the point of no return in its rebellion, there is still hope of deliverance through the Gospel for individual citizens and their families that by faith will “Kiss the Son” (Psalm 2:10-12, NKJV)! To this end, I also pray that God will continue to use me and other faithful preachers to preach the Gospel for the saving of many as I do on this Ministry’s new Strong Man Of God Online Rally YouTube Channel set to debut Saturday, July 17, 2021 at 1PM PST!3
1 See among my posts addressing the ongoing revolt against God, the one on March 26, 2017, The 2012 Presidential Election, under the category, Biblical Worldview and
those referenced in the lone footnote.
2 Pestilence, destructive wildfires, flooding storms, drought and out of character severe heat etc. are among the clear indicators of divine judgment upon this nation. Only the
hardest of hearts deny the evidence. You can and will not prevail against the Almighty God!
3 Channel content will also be available to view as on this occasion at https://thestrongmanofGod.org/Webcast.
The anniversary eve of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack upon our nation is a fitting jump off point to briefly consider the so much lengthier topic of the American heritage. Our nation’s reaction to that attack pulls together many of the character qualities, traditional values and classic features of what it means in a generic sense culturally to be an American going back to its founding. However, while there was a time our American heritage once widely involved pledging allegiance to the flag as “one nation under God,” even this former nearly consensus sentiment has fallen prey to an increasingly testy national divisiveness in political, racial and spiritual matters among others.
Possibly for the last time like it in our nation’s history, September 11th galvanized it as one after receiving the painful bloody nose from a sucker punch thrown by terrorists. This was so because one of the character qualities of America drawn from the large number of professed Christians attempting to live out a biblical morality since its inception is not to go around picking fights with others. It was after all, only after feeling bullied and overwrought by king George’s colonial taxes and policies that a desire for independence was fueled with war to obtain it only if necessary. The colonists determined war was necessary and prepared a document declaring their reasons for seeking independence.
I will come back to the aforementioned document in just a moment. Here though, just like those colonists of American history, I want to acknowledge what has become a traditional value when the nation in 2001 rallied to our leaders who determined war was necessary in this case to defend the homeland and deter any others that would consider such a brazen attack upon our citizens. As a classic feature of the American heritage, our citizen soldiers (of which many of the men in my family have stood among in serving our country) bravely went out to foreign lands to accomplish their assignments with resolve, honor and great sacrifice as some returned wounded; others deceased.
Though they were divided in convictions within the context of divergent practices of Christianity, political, economic, social and educational philosophies, a group of European descended white men gathered together to craft their Declaration of Independence. In it was written this key phrase: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.…”1 These amazing words penned in unity out of diversity pay tribute to the excellence of biblical morality that teaches human equality and God as Creator who is the Teacher!
Of all the character qualities that emerged as the American heritage from the nation’s fight for independence was at least the stated recognition of the Bible’s God as righteous Sovereign over mankind who created all equal. How the black forefathers in colonial times must have had every hope that such biblically sound, noble and inspiring words about equality and a God given right to life and liberty would apply to them when the smoke of the Revolutionary War for independence cleared and which many of them fought including the most famous, Crispus Attucks, and died.2 But this did not happen as slavery was retained and its horrors also made a part of the American heritage.
Unfortunately, after the war for independence came a Civil War less than a hundred years later that divided the nation against itself over the equality of men as a moral principle which had not held up in law or practice.3 Indeed, racial bigotry and discrimination practiced by white Americans in the majority against blacks and other minorities became common practice even after the Civil War up to this very hour as another part of the American heritage.4 It cannot be denied that centuries of tolerating and practicing racism caused it to become systemic though, some calling themselves conservative Christians are trying; defensively angry that their white heritage is negatively put upon when the true American history of racism is presented as if there is some other responsible group.5
Slavery, Jim Crow Segregation and systemic racism carried out by guilty whites are just as much a part of this ignoble aspect of our American heritage as the racial minorities harmed. Keeping it real, America as a melting pot ostensibly and ideally forged together as one in unity has not happened to any outstanding degree except in times of major national crisis of which September 11th has been among them. A racially diverse nation in unity under God is a bygone ideal at this juncture of a divisive 21st century America at large and tragically in Christ’s Church that should be exemplary.6 God’s intervention is possible, but not without repentance first among all who profess to know Him as Christians.7 Blessed is he who has the Lord as his untarnished eternal heritage (Psalm 73:25-26)!
1 See America’s Founding Documents at the National Archives.
2 Learn more about Crispus Attucks who was a mixed race African and Indigenous man; carrying the banner of hope for equality in the fight for independence for both as well as all future Americans.
3 Read the February 12, 2023 post, Leaders Can Get Their Nations In Trouble, under the category, Call To Repent.
4 And right on cue a young white male murdered three black persons the police concluded out of racial bigotry and hate in Jacksonville, Florida this past August following a recent string of these types of incidents in other parts of the nation.
5 See the two-part post beginning January 16, 2022, Arriving At These Times, under the category, Call To Repent. Also, in the book, The Unsaved Christian by Dean Inserra, Copyright 2019, Moody Publishers, Chicago, pastor Inserra as a conservative white evangelical makes it clear beginning on page 171 that the practice of cultural Chris- tianity especially in the American South is a credible reason defensiveness and anger would feed a completely morally indefensible denial of racism in the American and white American heritages. In biblical Christianity, we own our sin and repent of it!
6 Because His Church is not exemplary of unity racial or otherwise, I am pleased to announce the soon release of the latest Strong Man Of God Brand Resource the Lord has granted me to author for evangelical men white, black and all others: The Scourge Of Racism. Learn more at this link. I tie this updated work as an urgent application to my book, The Strong Man Of God: Back To Basics. It is available right now, in a Hard or Soft Cover or E-Book Edition in the Strong Man Store, among internet booksellers and brick and mortar bookstores.
7 Unity busting racism is sin that must be repented of by every guilty soul professed to be a Christian! Let the Lord speak to your heart about how serious He is regarding pro- fessed Christian repentance from all sin through this Ministry’s Strong Man Of God Online Rally, Return To The Lord, available to watch free on its dedicated YouTube Chan- nel.
I ended my last post of 2021 citing Daniel 9:26c of two prophetic Scriptures supporting the truth “things are not going to get better before the glorious Second Coming of Jesus Christ, but worse.”1 The content of Daniel 9:26c is near the end of four pure prophecy verses out of twenty-seven that make up a powerful chapter as context. The prophecies are delivered to Daniel in answer to his prayers by the angel, Gabriel, and are intended to give him the ability “to understand” further and more deeply from God about what He intended for Israel after their Babylonian captivity (vs. 20-23, NKJV). It was not an easier to read Bible, but God’s help he needed to get that understanding!
As Daniel 9:26c objectively and literally read in the immediate context of the verse asserts, destruction that brings “desolations” to cities such as did happen to Jerusalem and the second Jewish Temple at the hands of the Romans in A.D. 70 “are determined” by God “till the end of the war,” (NKJV). What war? In the larger context of the whole Bible, the war is the one ongoing in the spiritual and breaking into the physical realm; Satan and his angels warring against God after their rebellion, eviction from residence in Heaven, conquest and conscription of man and ultimate eternal sentence to Hell by His decree (Genesis 3:1-15; Ezekiel 28:11-19; Matthew 25:41; Revelation 20:10).
The ongoing war of the ages as a spiritual and historical context was important for Daniel (and us) to have to understand what God is doing in the world. In Daniel’s specific case, knowing about the overarching spiritual war would help him understand more deeply the why and what for of future events impacting his people, the Jews. Indeed, as recorded earlier in chapter nine, Daniel’s heart to understand the future of his people beyond Babylon was triggered by his having read and “understood by the books” prophecy God gave Jeremiah the prophet that “He would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem”--a span then, near its end (Daniel 9:1-2, NKJV).2
Clearly, Daniel read the Old Testament scrolls containing Jeremiah’s prophecy from God objectively and literally as God expects all of us to do who know and love Him unless the text itself suggests we do otherwise such as with figurative language, symbols or metaphors often used in parables.3 He understood the plain reading of the text in his Hebrew language. He did not need to consult any number of translations--none were even available until the third century B.C. well after his time--for easier reading and a better understanding.4 Daniel took God’s Word at face value as it was written in the Old Testament books that were copies of the originals!
As I discovered to my horror while researching what extant Bible translations Martin Luther may have used when he uncovered again God’s salvation by grace through faith alone plainly stated throughout the New Testament, there are today, over nine hundred (900) just English language translations of the Bible in whole or in part!5 This is a recipe for destructive confusion in great spiritual desolations as Satan has already wrought among so many in the war as ostensibly under the guise of easier reading and a better understanding, many of these translations corrupt God’s Word. A number of the translators wickedly seek not to offend people and pander after what they want, not God.6
I realize my New King James Version Bible of choice (updating the 17th century King’s English) is a translation as are all Bibles apart from the original manuscripts. I consult a few other modern translations (which is how I know what they say) and teach others--aspiring strong men and great women of God--to do the same for possible greater language clarity.7 However, over nine hundred different English translations each with their unique selling points is overkill. Besides, whether easier to read or not, it is the truth in direct assertion, transcendent eternal principles, morality and ethics along with any deeper meanings in application embodied in the Scripture that we students like Daniel are after. These come only from God in the way He in sovereignty chooses to reveal them.
It may be an angel as Daniel experienced, but most commonly as Christians it is the Holy Spirit with Christ resident inside of us that reveals the truth of God in Scripture and anything deeper related to us (John 14:15-18, 16:12-15; 1 Corinthians 2:6-16)! If you are not understanding what you are reading in the Bible, pray and ask God to help you since it is His will in general that you understand what is written though, some prophecies remain closed for now (Luke 24:44-45; James 1:5-8; Revelation 13:18). As the Lord leads, I will continue working through chapter nine of Daniel in each of the posts this month to the end someone else will be helped as we receive understanding of the times Daniel was told of in advance that we are now, living in and which approach their climatic end!
1 See the December 19, 2021 post, Christmas: Love, Joy And Peace, under the category, Holidays.
2 Dating from the year of Babylon’s first invasion of Judah and taking of captives (such as Daniel) in 605 B.C. to 539 B.C. the first year of the Medo-Persian conquest of Babylon as Daniel historically notes in vs. 1, would have been nearing the end of the seventy years pro- phecy.
3 Daniel’s approach to objectively reading, literally interpreting and applying Scripture is that of every godly person in the Bible to include the Lord Jesus Christ (Matthew 4:1-11)! For help, download the free one page document the Lord led me to create summarizing Seven Principles of Bible Interpretation in the Strong Man Store.
4 See the Encyclopedia Britannica article on the Septuagint--the earliest Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures.
5 Read the 2017 Christianity Today article, The Most Dangerous Thing Luther Did by Ben Witherington III.
6 Woe to those who seek to deconstruct the Bible to make it more amenable to people! Your actions are instigated by Satan as one of many stratagems he is using in his war with God. If he could widely corrupt the Book with God’s direct revelation, expressly stated will and mes- sage of salvation as he has done, the resulting confusion would destroy many souls as it is doing. For this reason, God holds account- able and destroys the corrupters of Scripture as it is written (2 Peter 3:14-16)! See my August 2, 2020 post, Flavorless Salt Is Worthless, under the category, Call To Repent along with part two in particular of Daughters Of This Age, posted April 25, 2021 under the category, God’s Creatures.
7 This approach is especially helpful to all of us that do not normally read, write or speak Hebrew, Aramaic or Greek. Learn about aspiring strong men and great women of God in Christ’s image in my book, The Strong Man Of God: Back To Basics along with companion works The Strong Man Of God Men’s Group Study and Great Woman Of God Women’s Group Study at your favorite internet book seller and in the Strong Man Store.
Many professed Christian whites and some blacks as well do not like when I address the men, their issues, needs and troubles among those I share identity with as black Americans. However, seeking to please God who cares that the biblical Gospel be preached to all mankind and standing in the example of the Jewish Christ and Paul, the apostle to us Gentiles from every hue, I make no apology to those offended by my obedience (Matthew 10:1-15; Acts 1:4-8, 26:12-18; Romans 1:16-17; 1 Corinthians 9:19-23). Indeed, I purposely exclude no one in my preaching of the Gospel, but ensure that those of my own household, extended family and ethnicity are not left out either.
As I wrote in the March 7, 2021 post, black males from slavery have gotten a raw deal by not in many cases receiving an authentic proclamation of the Gospel or representation of biblical Christianity to include God’s will for us as men and manhood.1 The Gospel to all humanity as sinners “according to the Scriptures” is that God in love sent His Son, Jesus Christ, into the world to die on the cross for our sins, be buried and rise again on the third day after to save us from His just wrath. Whoever repents from his sins believing the Gospel is forgiven and receives eternal life by the Holy Spirit (John 3:1-21, 35-36; Acts 2:36-39, 10:34-43; Romans 10:10-13; 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, NKJV).
Now, since the Gospel is according to the Scriptures, every man can read it in the Bible for himself and as I wrote in my recent Black History Month post is without excuse.2 Even so, in His amazing grace God has also purposely ordained that those such as myself He gifts, calls and sends should preach the Gospel as joyful heralds (Romans 10:14-15)! But to be clear, black males with everyone else have the God granted right of free will to reject the Gospel as many have done and do though, I would this were not the case since what God has done for us as sinners in it is so awesome (Romans 10:16-17). Truly, no one has to convince us of our need having been sinners from birth.
God in wisdom has given each one of us a conscience that affirms and condemns us as sinners in our sinful thinking, attitudes, words and deeds. Knowing the sinfulness of our hearts and attempts to alleviate our guilt through deceitfully ignoring, covering or outright denying it, God also as Judge announced His condemnation of all mankind as sinners before Him from Heaven’s bench with no hope of deliverance except by His grace through faith in the Gospel of Christ (Romans 3:9-26). “For the wages of sin is death, but the (free) gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord,” (Romans 6:23, NKJV). Forgiveness of sins and a clear conscience is a great and precious blessing!
Therefore, I appeal to my unsaved black countrymen from the heart not to be proud in the face of the truth. Not “the white man” or “the system” is our greatest issue, need or trouble, but our own selves as embittered sinners who after rejecting the way of humble acceptance of the Gospel, have no other means of liberation from a guilty conscience! Outside of God’s salvation in Christ, I have felt you in feeling demoralized by the heavy-handed oppression we as men wired to be leaders and the sons of West African warriors and kings have experienced in real life and as portrayed in Alex Haley’s Roots for example, when Kunta Kinte was forced to accept his master’s assigned name “Toby.”3
In overwhelming powerlessness and longing for vengeance apart from Christ I have also wanted to be the fictional character played by Jamie Foxx in Django Unchained and surely heard you and myself in the vengeful anger of Michael B. Jordan’s character in Black Panther as he ran down the suffering of our captive forefathers during their transatlantic ship journeys from Africa to the New World. I too, with Jordan’s character and very likely you, missed having my father who was away on long military tours of duty during most of my pre-teen years. However, whatever else may be the issues, needs or troubles you grapple with whether it is in real life or captured as real talk in fiction, angry vengeance is not the God approved way to handle our business (Romans 12:17-21).4
So, the only right way to go is to first deal with our sin problem by turning to God in Christ through the Gospel to be saved from His righteous wrath. After this, let Him help us deal with our just anger at sins perpetrated against us as black Americans, other needs and troubles we have through His living Word and power in accord with what a man is and does by His design and perfectly modeled by Christ. He is the Strong Man of God the Father calls us to aspire to be like as I write in my book, The Strong Man Of God: Back To Basics.5 He wills to set us fully free from all of the ties that bind our souls and keep us from being released to be like Him; walking in His eternal dignity, freedom and overcoming power (1 John 5:4-5)!6 For the Gospel is for black males too!
1 Read the March 7, 2021 post, Restoring Men In The Black Community, under the category, The Cause.
2 See the two-part post beginning on February 21, 2021, Willful Ignorance Destroys under the category, Black History.
3 See the good result for a proud Syrian Army Commander who submitted to God’s plan for healing in 2 Kings 5:1-14. Also, unless you or I are greater in Person and sta-
tus than Jesus Christ, the Son of God and King of Glory, then, we should consider and accept the healing truth that He too, has felt our pain since He also has been hu-
miliated, “oppressed” and “afflicted” (Psalm 69:7; Isaiah 53:7-8a; Matthew 26:46-68, 27:1-2, 11-31; Luke 22:53, NKJV). As a result, Christ in His resurrection victory
knows how to help all in similar circumstances cope and wait in hope for the final display of His overthrow of even the ultimate oppressor, Satan, accomplished on the
cross (Ephesians 6:12; Colossians 2:11-15)!
4 We know deep down venting through violence in vengeance is not right because this too, God has written upon our conscience and demonstrated His opposition or else
we would have lost our minds en masse by now to go for it only to be beaten back in defeat as for example, Nat Turner was in his 1831 slave rebellion and every rioter
thereafter. Turning our rage on each other as is seen in gang violence is not the sensible answer either. Don’t you know that when God disclosed the enslavement of
Abram’s Jewish descendants He also declared and carried out His vengeance on their oppressor while setting them free (Genesis 15:13-14; Exodus 10:7)? Not that we
in Christ hope for such a thing (though, we have seen it in this nation’s Civil War that freed our slave forefathers and the aftermath need for Reconstruction) since this is
our nation too, and we live here. Instead, as eternal sons and king-priests in Christ and His forgiveness, we desire the salvation of those who hate and would continue
to oppress us until the day of His global wrath and vengeance arrives.
5 The book is published by Open Door Communication Ministries, Inc. and is available in print or digital formats at major internet booksellers. You can also purchase a
print copy in the Strong Man Store.
6 See the February 21, 2016 post, Ties That Bind Black Male Souls, under the category, The Cause.
After a biopsy on February 10th this year, I was formally diagnosed with an aggressive form of Prostate Cancer at an advanced, but not untreatable stage. I arrived at the biopsy after nearly a year of prostate issues that began in early spring of 2021 to include a PSA level just over 4.0 (normal is 2.0 or less).1 A doctor’s visit in June led to his referral to a urologist who confirmed my prostate was enlarged which is not unusual for men over 60. Subsequent PSA tests through the fall however, showed levels exceeding 5.0. This concerned the urologist enough to schedule me for a MRI in January that showed evidence of the cancer the biopsy confirmed. Meanwhile, before the diagnosis, God had spoken to me November 30, 2021.
Just as I knelt to pray the Lord began speaking to me and said among other things, “This is not unto death; I will deliver you.” As of this writing the Lord has said nothing else. But His promise has sustained me through the realization even before the doctor gave me the news that something was wrong if God is already talking to me about deliverance! Researching options and prayerfully waiting on the Lord, it has now, become clear His deliverance and glory will come through hormone and radiation treatment I will have this summer if He does not heal otherwise. I am asking every Spirit-filled reader to stand with me, my family and our Board of Directors to pray for God’s promised deliverance to be fulfilled so, He might be glorified and I enabled to keep on running for Him a little while longer!
1 Prostate Specific Antigen is a protein produced by tissue in the prostate with levels that can be tested for in the blood.
As the Lord led me to write about earlier this month and celebrate from Palm through Resurrection Sunday, God’s Messiah was foretold by Him through His Jewish prophets in the Bible to come twice.1 The first coming of God’s Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth, during the first century A.D. was all about sacrificing Himself to save willing mankind from our sins. He finished this part of the mission on Calvary’s cross with His death. After His burial, resurrection and ascension back to glory, at God’s appointed future time He is slated to return “a second time” to fulfill every promise of salvation God has made to those of us who have put our faith in and wait on Him (Hebrews 9:28b, NKJV).
“Scoffers” living captive “to their own lusts” as foretold, for nearly 2,000 years have scoffed at the faith of faithful Christians in our willingness to wait on “the promise of His coming.” “They willfully forget” the Bible’s instruction on God’s mighty Word in creation and past visitation in destructive wrath using water; foretelling of yet another to come with fire in judging earth’s “ungodly men,” (2 Peter 3:1-7, NKJV). What the scoffers and apparently many professed Christians also fail to realize is that the return of Messiah has been purposely delayed by God this long out of His love and “longsuffering” to save the willing He foreknows from His wrath and eternal damnation (2 Peter 3:8-9, NKJV).2
As the apostle Peter soberly warns, the return of Messiah entails the outpour of God’s wrath in the eternal onset of “the day of the Lord” as earth is reclaimed for His dominion from fallen angels and men, then later, destroyed to make way for “new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells,” (2 Peter 3:10-15; Revelation 11:15-19, 21:1-8, NKJV). His wrath does not fully unfold, however, until after Messiah gathers His two elects--Israel’s mortal remnant and His followers from all nations--to Himself (Mark 13:24-27; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:11, NKJV).3 These events fulfilled are among the promises of salvation God has made to both elects in His Word!
The next promises of salvation to be immediately enjoyed by the faithful followers of Messiah gathered to Him from Heaven who are resurrected and those relative few mortals alive on earth at His Second Coming are glorified immortal bodies and eternal righteousness (1 Corinthians 15:50-57; 2 Timothy 4:8)! For in God’s justification by grace through our faith in Messiah looking to that Day, is our being clothed now, with His righteousness as both a spiritual position we occupy and experience we have despite the endless attempts of sin to reassert its dominion over us with the aid of Satan and his temptations we are to vigorously resist (Romans 6-8:17; Galatians 5:16-25; 1 Peter 5:8-11).
Thus, in Messiah Jesus, I am a sinner made righteous in the sight of God through faith and understand myself to be a righteous man who sins when I do in the weakness of the sinful flesh. In sin, I confess and repent of it availing myself of God’s readiness to forgive and cleanse me through the finished work of Messiah on Calvary’s cross as often as needed (Hebrews 4:14-16; 1 John 1:5-2:2). So, when I say I am a sinner to sinners as a Christian, it is not because I am going about practicing sin as a way life any longer, but I am humbly and honestly acknowledging that I still sin as one redeemed by and righteous before God in my mortal journey toward perfection!4
Today, secular films and television programming regularly mock and belittle God’s social and moral order He established at creation for the good of mankind in favor of what they call “progressive” correctives, but which are evil. Contrarily, another promise of salvation Messiah will fulfill in the Day of His Second Coming is the restoration of God’s will and way now, declared in His Word across every aspect of surviving mortal human earth existence in which He will reign as King and Judge (Psalm 72; Micah 4:1-3; Matthew 25:31-46).5 Indeed, we His glorified redeemed followers and saints from all time will reign and judge with Him (Psalm 149; Revelation 1:4-8, 2:26-29, 5:8-10, 20:4-6)!6
At the end of Messiah’s millennial reign in this present earth and age, by His Father’s election as God and Man, He shall resurrect “those who have done evil” and judge for eternity every human who has ever existed that He had not already judged (John 5:16-30; 1 Corinthians 15:20-23; 2 Corinthians 5:9-11; 1 Peter 4:1-5; Revelation 19:11-21, 20:11-15, 22:12-15, NKJV).7 Daniel in his book where we started back on January 9th this year among the prophets of the Bible were shown the coming resurrections of the righteous and the wicked along with their final judgment by Messiah (Daniel 12:2-3).8 Clearly, things will not go well in the judgment to eternal fire for the unsaved who have shown contempt for God’s Word. But the saved who love God’s Word will delight in it forever!
1 See the April 3, 2022 post, Messiah Comes Twice: Once For Sin, under the category, The Faith.
2 Read the two-part post beginning July 18, 2021, No Repentance, No Peace, under the category, Call To Repent. Also, consider the February 6, 2022 post, The Divine Delay, under the category, Bible Prophecy, to appreciate if you will, that as He gave sinful humanity in Noah’s day time to repent and be saved from His wrath, so, all in these last days since He offered up His own Son on the cross to make our salvation possible nearly 2,000 years ago!
3 See the August 15, 2021 post, The Honor Of Bypassing Death, under the category, Bible Prophecy.
4 The Christian journey toward perfection is about allowing God to make us over into the image of Messiah Jesus, His Son. This is the rallying cry and content of my book, The Strong Man Of God: Back To Basics and its companion Strong Man Of God Men’s Group Study as well as Great Woman Of God Women’s Group Study all available in the Strong Man Store, at your favorite internet bookseller or brick and mortar bookstore.
5 That’s right! The same transcendent eternal spiritual principles, morality and ethics contained in the Bible the wicked now, mock and belittle as well as many professed Christians corrupt and compromise, will be put in play and enforced by Messiah since as He Himself teaches, neither the content of God’s Law or any of His Words will fail to endure forever (Matthew 5:17-20, 24:35)! See the August 1, 2021 post, Jesus Christ King And Judge!, under the category, Instruction.
6 Read the August 8, 2021 post, Kings And Judges With Christ, under the category, Encouragement.
7 Behold the perfect justice of God the Father to allow His Son, Jesus, as perfect Man to judge His fellow man (Acts 17:29-31)!
8 See the January 9, 2022 post, Easier To Read Bibles, under the categories Bible Prophecy and Instruction.
As the Lord leads, I write to encourage the hearts of His faithful saints in the aftermath of my posts from July 4, 2021. In particular, I remind you that all we temporarily now, and will suffer through to the end of our mortal lives or the return of our Lord Jesus Christ is worth it since we are richly rewarded by Him eternally (Romans 8:18)! Until then, you know that it is our privilege to suffer to whatever extent we do in His likeness and cause to His glory (1 Peter 4:12-16). Trust me; I already know this is easier said than done. Yet, this is God’s will for us in spite of the falsehood in much of American Christianity that makes personal dream fulfillment, health and material prosperity its focus.
What exactly are we suffering for at the end of the day as Christians? Is it not for the sake of Christ as His followers and the Kingdom of God He represents as King and Judge?1 Yes, and He does not deceive us about the cost of following Him until He returns to bring the Kingdom of God to earth declaring plainly to all: “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross (an instrument of suffering and death), and follow Me,” (Matthew 16:24; Mark 8:34; Luke 9:23, NKJV). Moreover, He soberly urges such ones to “count the cost” which is very steep in prioritizing first love for and sacrificial service to Him in His Kingdom causes (Luke 14:25-35, NKJV).2
This is just as He also lived and served His Father during His earthly sojourn; suffering the agony and humiliation of being crucified naked on a Roman cross to bring about our salvation as foretold (Psalm 22:1-18; Isaiah 53:1-9; John 3:13-17, 19:28-30). As our example in everything, He who insists we be prepared to suffer for Him and His Kingdom causes, suffered first and far greater than any of us that follow Him ever will (Matthew 10:16-33; John 15:18-25; 1 Peter 2:18-25)!3 Thus, as those redeemed for the Kingdom we suffer for its present message in the Gospel from God calling mankind to repent of sin and believe on King Jesus for salvation (Luke 24:46-48; Acts 17:30-31)!
Too, we suffer now, as He did for the Kingdom’s transcendent eternal principles, morality and ethics well articulated in the Bible (Psalm 119:89; Luke 21:33). God has given men freewill and the right to refuse the Gospel and Kingdom. Stirred by demons and hardened in heart by sin, many who reject the Gospel and Kingdom are not simply content with rejection, but feel it necessary to persecute believers among other wicked motives to justify themselves. The uncompromising stand of the faithful our God is “the only true God,” His Gospel the only means of mankind’s salvation and His Word the sole “truth” infuriates them (Isaiah 43:10-13, 44:6-8; John 3:18-21, 17:1-3, 14-17, NKJV).
Atheists, other secular unsaved, jaded unbelieving professed Christians as weak or outright false brethren and religionists along with apostates persecute the faithful around the earth with hostile mockery, scoffing, exclusion from family and community relations as well as support, destruction of personal and church properties, incarceration, physical violence and martyrdom as foretold. As also foretold, however, God will vindicate the suffering His saints have endured and our long wait in faith since the 1st century A.D. for it beginning with the destruction of counterfeit Christianity’s mother (Revelation 17:1-19:4). This is followed by Christ’s glorious return (2 Thessalonians 1:3-12)!
On that special one of a kind day, God in Christ will show the world how much He valued the faithfulness of His saints by glorifying us for all to unavoidably see. For the dead in Christ that are raised and His mortal remnant will receive from Him their immortal bodies aglow with the brilliant eternal glory of God shining from them against the backdrop of the darkened heavens as we obey His summons to join His glorious presence in the sky (Isaiah 13:9-10; Daniel 12:2-3; Zechariah 14:5b-7; Mark 13:24-27; 1 Corinthians 15:50-57; Philippians 3:20-21; 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17)! For most of the unsaved on that day, our eternal glorification will be among the last things they see alive on earth.
Gentile survivors with the protected elect Jewish remnant will see our reign with Christ over this earth and universe follow our glorification and full outpour of divine wrath (Daniel 7:13-14, 21-22, 27; Revelation 7:1-8, 20:4-6). We will reign as kings and judges as with all things pertaining to the eternal Christian life, in the image of Christ!4 This is exceedingly greater than Noah and Lot’s after wrath experiences! So then, let the faith in our God of the faithful--even every aspiring strong man and great woman of God in the image of Christ--take to heart all He has promised us as vindicating victory and be comforted in “the whole counsel” of His Word (Acts 20:27, NKJV).5 This is as I wrote to you in a previous word of encouragement.6 Our suffering for Christ is not in vain (James 5:7-12).
1 Read the August 1, 2021 post, Jesus Christ King And Judge!, under the category, Instruction.
2 See the two-part post beginning August, 18, 2019, Lined Up Behind Jesus, under the category, Instruction.
3 See the two-part post beginning May 17, 2020, Persecution, Hatred And Betrayal and Persecution Of American Christians Intensifying on November 29, 2020, both under the category, Bible Prophecy.
4 Read the July 19, 2020 post, Ruling The Earth Under Christ, under the category, Bible Prophecy.
5 As I write in my book, The Strong Man Of God: Back To Basics, aspiring strong men and great women of God in the image of Christ are the Lord’s faithful! The book and companion Strong Man Of God Men’s Group Study and Great Woman Of God Women’s Group Study are available at your favorite internet book seller and in the Strong Man Store.
6 See the August 16, 2020 post, To The Word Of God!, under the category, Encouragement.
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