Who Should I Believe?

For since the world began, no ear has heard and no eye has seen a God like you, who works for those who wait for him! [Isaiah 64.4] 

Five years ago today, I wrote the article Wait For God (God Alone). In that article, I was transparent about a physical infirmity in my body for which I had committed to trust God alone to heal. The physical infirmity I referred to is a chronically stiff and painful neck. 

Since writing the abovementioned 2021 article, my neck has become even less moveable and more painful - I am effectively disabled as far as being able to turn my head in normal movement. I am in great pain even as I write this article today. I am in a deep struggle not to feel sorry for myself. 

I want so much to lash out at someone or something. I am constantly fighting off thoughts that the Bible is a lie and that God doesn't give a rat's ass about my condition even though everything I read in the Bible says otherwise. Yes, I have struggled with all manner of sin, unforgiveness, selfishness, lust, hate, and pride - but I persist to confess my faithlessness to God in repentance taking hope that He is indeed merciful and gracious and has given Jesus on my behalf. I have purposefully tried to focus on praying and interceding for others, trusting that God knows my own condition and wills me well.

By insisting that I will trust God alone as my Healer, I have "put off" many a sincere well-wisher who has encouraged me instead that 'God uses medicine' and that I should "see a doctor." However, if the Bible suggests that God indeed uses anything else, my eyes are completely blind to it. All I can see is that God wants my undivided trust in Him alone. I have been as jealous to defend His name in that regard as much as the Bible says He is jealous for my undivided faith. And yet, my disability worsens.

I feel alone, but the Bible says God is with me. I feel like a fool, but the Bible says God seeks those who trust Him alone. I feel more incapacitated daily, but the Bible says I am an overcomer. I feel unworthy and dirty, but the Bible says I am forgiven.

Am I indeed a fool to keep waiting on God? The Bible says I am not... The alternative is to do something for myself...

Who should I believe? I will believe in God through His Son, Jesus Christ. My help comes from Him.

Father in heaven, as Jesus hung naked on the Cross on my behalf, I bare myself before You today on my own cross - I am vulnerable and have nothing to hide. I just want to wait for You. I want Your Word to be proven true in my life. I want Your Word to be proven true in my death. I want Your Word to be proven true in my resurrection. I just want You. Be glorified in me. So be it.

Religious Pretense - Powerless Actuality

“Shout with the voice of a trumpet blast. Shout aloud! Don’t be timid. Tell my people Israel of their sins! [Isaiah 58.1]

What the rest of Isaiah 58 describes are the selfish and therefore powerless conditions of those who are "His people" who are "religious" in pretense, but are, in actuality, powerless.

When God's people are immersed in sin, He doesn't send comforters to softly soothe their ears with words of gentle encouragement. Instead, He makes a big and loud deal of it calling them out on their sin.

If however, God's people turn from their selfish deception, there is an easily-identifiable, quantifiable, and qualifiable promise attached:

“Then your salvation will come like the dawn, and your wounds will quickly heal. Your godliness will lead you forward, and the glory of the LORD will protect you from behind. Then when you call, the LORD will answer. ‘Yes, I am here,’ he will quickly reply. [Isaiah 58.8-9]

Father, may Your spokesmen clearly declare Your call to repentance in the earth today and may Your people hear and turn from their powerless ways. May then Your glorious power manifest in Your people. So be it.

It Was Just A Dream, Right?

“I have created the blacksmith who fans the coals beneath the forge and makes the weapons of destruction. And I have created the armies that destroy. But in that coming day no weapon turned against you will succeed. You will silence every voice raised up to accuse you. These benefits are enjoyed by the servants of the LORD; their vindication will come from me. I, the LORD, have spoken! [Isaiah 54.16-17] 

I had a dream before waking today. It was unlike any dream I can ever recall...

I was in a place with people all around. I don't recall knowing any of them.

At one point a group of people presented weapons, started shouting demands, and everyone else began to panic (as would be expected) most of them falling to the ground. I don't know what the intention of the armed people was. I distinctly remember feeling compelled to simply walk away whether they shot me or not - which I did - down a long hallway - fully aware that at any moment, a shot could ring out and I could take a bullet in the back and it would all be over. I could hear the perpetrators shouting asking what I was doing, but no shot was fired. I remember that my walking away was not at all in their plan evidenced by their disbelief at my actions. Why they did not shoot me, only God knows. Everyone else was paralyzed in fear for their lives.

Once I reached the end of the hall and turned the corner into what felt like was "safety," I was compelled once again to turn around and walk right back into the place where the gun-wielding perpetrators were. And so, I did, much to their disbelief. By this time, I felt I was safe and that the LORD's hand was upon what I was doing and that He had a purpose in it.

A woman, the ring-leader of the perpetrators, came straight up to me and we began to talk. Although I was aware that she could simply kill me, I was unafraid - and she knew it. By this time I was keenly aware that God had kept me safe thus far, and so I spoke to her from that confidence. I knew this was an opportunity to share Jesus Christ with this woman.

My mind began racing to try to think about what I should say to her. I wondered about the Romans Road, I wondered if there was any other scripture..., I regretted not having a plan of my own... By this time, she had laid her own weapon down and was knelt down beside a bench (or something) and ready to hear whatever I had to say. I told her that I believe the Bible and almost simultaneously, one of her cohorts came to her and told her none of that was true. But she kept listening to me even though, unknown to her, I was struggling to know what to say.

And then, I believe the Holy Spirit made clear to me that I had already "said" everything I needed to say when I, at first, simply walked away from the danger she and her group presented, and then turned and purposefully walked right back to them. My actions had already spoken clearly to them what my words were struggling to say. 

And, just as I recall my eyes opening to the reality that it was all a dream, my final "dream thought" was that my actionate testimony to the lady and her group was that I had no fear... As my eyes opened to the dim light of dawn creeping around the curtains into my bedroom, I lay there in extraordinary peace. I don't recall ever waking from any kind of dream without some kind of anxiety, expectation, or some sense of let-down... But this dream was different...

As is my custom, I started my day in my office reading the One Year Chronological Bible reading of the day. I was fully expecting that something I would read today would relate to the dream I had just awakened from. And, the passage above met that expectation.

My takeaway from it all today is that I should have no fear. As my life is hid with Christ in God, what should cause me to fear? The correct answer is: absolutely nothing.

What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else? Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for his own? No one—for God himself has given us right standing with himself. Who then will condemn us? No one—for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and he is sitting in the place of honor at God’s right hand, pleading for us. Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. [Romans 8.31-39]

Over the last few years, my life and writing has spoken much to the subject of idolatry. Without beating that worthy drum again today, suffice it to say that every idol man has made for himself was made out of fear that God would not provide or care for him. Finance, insurance, medicine and technology have no foothold at all on a person who fears nothing but takes God entirely at His Word.

For many, even institutional church holds a 'fear foothold' keeping them from walking in pure Spirit-led fellowship with God and man.

So, in my dream, was I being foolish or 'tempting God' to leave my place of "safety" and walk back down the hall in the midst of certain death?

Our lives serve a purpose on earth. Fear stands between us and that purpose just as idols stand between us and God. In fact, idols employ fear.

The question today is not, "Who will walk down the hall away from danger?" but instead, "Who will walk back down that same hall away from safety and straight into danger?"

Jesus said it best:

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]

It was just a dream, right? If this article turns out to be my "swan song," I am at perfect peace with it.

Father, help us all to be at peace because our lives are hid with Christ in You. Help us to face every day and every situation with only one goal - to follow Jesus - understanding that He at once walked out of danger and then ultimately walked right into it - all for Your purpose and for Your glory. So be it. Yes, so be it.

Live In Your Own Light - Warm By Your Own Fire (Good Advice??)

Who among you fears the LORD and obeys his servant? If you are walking in darkness, without a ray of light, trust in the LORD and rely on your God. But watch out, you who live in your own light and warm yourselves by your own fires. This is the reward you will receive from me: You will soon fall down in great torment. [Isaiah 50.10-11] 

What does it mean to "live in your own light and warm yourselves by your own fire"? It actually sounds like something a modern life-coach might tell us to do. To best answer this question though, me might make a contrasting statement of what it is not! Obedience to God is living in His light and being warmed by His fire.

Living in God's light is living by His Word. Human reason, in this case, is the opposite of God's Word. Man's knowledge and wisdom have, through the years, increased exponentially but, at their very best, are still only darkness. Living in God's light is living in the fear of the LORD, obeying only Him regardless how circumstances might look.

In contrast, Adam and Eve (in Genesis 3), at Satan's suggestion, 'lived in their own light' (instead of God's) - they utilized their own reason (knowledge and wisdom) believing that they knew better than God about what they needed. He told them to stay away from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, but they reasoned that they wanted and needed it anyway. And so, they ate - they disobeyed God because they "thought" they knew better. 'Living in their own light' was, in fact, disobedience to God.

Not ironically, Adam and Eve also 'warmed themselves by their own fire' after 'living in their own light': They sewed fig leaves together for themselves to cover their nakedness. As soon as anyone begins to live in their own light, thinking they know more than God, they are compelled to immediately set out to take care of (provide for) themselves. 'Warming ourselves by our own fire' is doing for ourselves what God said He would do.

Can we identify with 'warming ourselves by our own fire' and 'living in our own light' today? We can, but only if we know and accept God's Word for what it says...

Where do we start? The Ten Commandments! The first two commandments deal specifically with 'living in our own light' and 'warming by our own fire.'

God said:

“I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. “You must not have any other god but me. [Exodus 20.2-3]

There is no possible way to 'walk in God's light' unless the 1st Commandment is given priority over every thought of our own. The phrase "God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt" is God's way of reminding His people of His single-handed provision for everything they needed. In the context of 'rescuing His people from Egypt,' God met their every need both during and after their exodus from there. God's provision for Israel is a long list of remarkable miracles attributable only to God and His power. In this way, being in 'God's light' leaves no need for our own light.

It is almost as if God knew exactly what man's tendency to 'live in his own light' would lead to...

“You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me. But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands. [Exodus 20.4-6]

'Living in our own light' ALWAYS leads to 'building our own fire.' Every idol of man is a 'fire he built for himself.'

It MUST be understood here that "bow down to" and "worship them" IS the equivalency of making idols. To make an idol is to bow down to it and worship it. Bowing down and worshiping is, in fact, receiving the benefit of the idol - receiving 'warmth from the fire.'

If we think about man's modern industries of finance, insurance, medicine and technology, it only takes a moment to understand the undeniable truth that these are all 'fires man made for himself.' If we look long enough, we might also conclude that the modern institutional church is also a 'fire man made for himself.' As man receives benefits from these industries of his own making, he is effectively and conclusively bowing down to and worshiping them.

The tendency of anyone 'warming himself by his own fire' is to defend his actions. So brilliant are the Ten Commandments that God gave a preemptive rebuttal to man's proud defense that "God gave the ability to man to build his own fire." That rebuttal is the 3rd Commandment:

“You must not misuse the name of the LORD your God. The LORD will not let you go unpunished if you misuse his name. [Exodus 20.7]

Any true student of the Bible will concur that idolatry is a (if not "the") repetitive theme in the Bible. This fact proves the continuity of the entire Bible in the message of Jesus that is also found from cover to cover as the solution to man's repeated idolatry (manifested in all manner of sin). In perfect synchronization with the Bible's repeated identifications and warnings against idolatry, Jesus provided and declared the "simple" solution:

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]

To 'give up your own way' can mean nothing less than NOT living in our own light and NOT warming ourselves by our own fires. To 'take up your cross' can mean nothing less than that death cannot deter us from living ONLY in God's light and ONLY warming ourselves by His fire. Simple? Yes. Easy? No.

People today are nothing if they are not well-exercised in living in their own light and warming by their own fire. But, that has to change... Isaiah reveals that the end of that is great torment.

Father, in heaven, Your Word is amazing because You are amazing. I want to live by Your light!. I want to warm by Your fire! I want to give up my own way, take up my cross, and follow Jesus. So be it.

Babylon: Man's Idol Industries

“Come down, virgin daughter of Babylon, and sit in the dust. For your days of sitting on a throne have ended. O daughter of Babylonia, never again will you be the lovely princess, tender and delicate. [Isaiah 47.1] 

Isaiah 47 is about the fall of Babylon.

For all the context of the entire Bible, I cannot help but see Babylon as representing the idolatry of the world, namely, man's idol industries of finance, insurance, medicine and technology. Much of Isaiah 47's descriptions of Babylon also describe these idol industries.

Then, the last verse of Isaiah 47 clinches it for me:

And all your friends, those with whom you’ve done business since childhood, will go their own ways, turning a deaf ear to your cries. [Isaiah 47.15]

There it is: business. Finance, insurance, medicine and technology are all businesses that revolve solely around money.

Here's the thing: these industries that revolve around money have to get that money from somewhere. So, they get it from people! Of course they offer a "service" in return, but the business is not about the service as much as it is about the money.

God's anger against His people for trusting idol industries instead of Him ALONE is described:

For I was angry with my chosen people and punished them by letting them fall into your hands. But you, Babylon, showed them no mercy. You oppressed even the elderly. [Isaiah 47.6] 

People who have become beholding to idol industries must 'pay tribute' to those idols. That 'tribute' is money - it is exactly what people pay in inordinate amounts to finance, insurance, medicine and technology. Is it any wonder that Isaiah 47.6 mentions the oppression of the elderly? I think not. It is the punishment of God that people become bound to paying tribute to idols. 

But what happens when money fails? That's where verse 15 again comes into view:

And all your friends, those with whom you’ve done business since childhood, will go their own ways, turning a deaf ear to your cries. [Isaiah 47.15]

Babylon is destined to fall. Man's idol industries of finance, insurance, medicine and technology are destined to fall. Why? Because they are idols and have exalted themselves 'above God.' So, God will prove His dominion, and what better way to do that than to cause the complete collapse of money? 

This should cause us to meditate deeply upon Jesus' entire discussion about money in Matthew 6, and particularly verse 24:

“No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money. [Matthew 6.24]

Religion will do everything within its power to distract people from the truth about money and the idol industries that operate off of it. Man's failure to trust God ALONE is the driving force that keeps man's idol industries afloat while man, in proud religious denial, vehemently argues otherwise. Yes, false religion argues that "God uses man's idol industries." And, in blatant violation of the 3rd Commandment, false religion goes so far as to deceptively justify that "God gave idol industries" much the same as Aaron tried to cover up Israel's betrayal of God with the gold calf by declaring a "festival to the LORD" (see Exodus 32).

For everything the complex idol industries of man's ways promote, Jesus demanded a simplistic alternative:

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]

And, what does that look like?

“Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be. “Your eye is like a lamp that provides light for your body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is filled with light. But when your eye is unhealthy, your whole body is filled with darkness. And if the light you think you have is actually darkness, how deep that darkness is! “No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money. “That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? “And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith? “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today. [Matthew 6.19-34] 

Idol industries will not acknowledge God's Word. Religion will effectively water it down with abstract spiritualization. And, "Babylon" will survive ...at least until God causes a collapse of money.

“You felt secure in your wickedness. ‘No one sees me,’ you said. But your ‘wisdom’ and ‘knowledge’ have led you astray, and you said, ‘I am the only one, and there is no other.’ So disaster will overtake you, and you won’t be able to charm it away. Calamity will fall upon you, and you won’t be able to buy your way out. A catastrophe will strike you suddenly, one for which you are not prepared. [Isaiah 47.10-11]

Isaiah's prophecy is a harsh warning to Babylon and all who are part of Babylon's money-grubbing systems, the idol industries of finance, insurance, medicine and technology. Regardless the 'wisdom' and 'knowledge' claims made by these idols, God will prove Himself supreme and ALONE worthy of all glory. Isaiah 46.2 describes idolatry's demise well:

Both the idols and their owners are bowed down. The gods cannot protect the people, and the people cannot protect the gods. They go off into captivity together. [Isaiah 46.2]

Father in heaven, help us see the warning to Your people today to separate ourselves from "Babylon" -- the idol industries of man's making that revolve around money. May our focus be on Jesus as we give up our own way, take up our cross, and follow Him. So be it.

God Wants Us All To Himself

Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand. [Isaiah 41.10] 

What if God showed up today and said the words above to you?

Well, He did. You just read them!

He just said them to me too. I needed them today.

What else do we need from God to finally trust Him?

What else do we need from God to finally trust Him ALONE?

When our eyes behold all manner of "solutions" (and there are many), our focus on any one solution is diluted and weak. For this reason, God gave us His commandments. Let's consider the first three:

“I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. “You must not have any other god but me. “You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me. But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands. “You must not misuse the name of the LORD your God. The LORD will not let you go unpunished if you misuse his name. [Exodus 20.2-7]

God alone is God. He demands that we have no other god.

God is jealous. He demands that we make nothing else for ourselves in which to trust.

God's name is powerful. He demands that we not associate His name with anything or anyone else. 

When God says, "I am with you..." that means He is all sufficient. He is all we need.

When God says, "Don't be discouraged, for I am your God," that means we have no excuse to worry or fear and certainly no reason to seek help elsewhere.

When God says, "I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand,," that means He does not need any assistance whatsoever.

The worst thing a prospective lover can do on a date is bring another friend. No matter how one views that scenario (purely or impurely) it is just wrong. So, "Jealous" God wants us all to Himself.

Father, may we see our impasse against You when we show up to be with You but we bring an idol. Help us to keep our relationship with You pure and holy. So be it.

Living At All Cost Is Not "Life" (It Is The Trap Of Idolatry)

About that time Hezekiah became deathly ill. He prayed to the LORD, who healed him and gave him a miraculous sign. But Hezekiah did not respond appropriately to the kindness shown him, and he became proud. So the LORD’s anger came against him and against Judah and Jerusalem. Then Hezekiah humbled himself and repented of his pride, as did the people of Jerusalem. So the LORD’s anger did not fall on them during Hezekiah’s lifetime. [2 Chronicles 32.24-26] 

On this date in the year 2021, I wrote the following article Mortality Is A Blessing (?). Hezekiah's story is intriguing.

The only thing I would add to that article from 2021 is that the living at all cost "life" most people pursue is not reality. It is instead the elevated euphoric "carrot" dangled just out of reach by marketing schemes to keep people spending money in pursuit of it. In fact, the idyllic "life" most of these advertisements portray is nothing more than a baseless promise made by idols.

Man's industries of finance, insurance, medicine and technology all lure people with "better life" to secure their "bottom line" profits. And, mankind (God's people included) is none the wiser to this idolatry. All the while, it is no secret that even the most successful people with seemingly "everything" have been documented as some of the most miserable.

There is only one worthy pursuit in "life" and that is the pursuit of God through Jesus Christ. Jesus clarified this fact:

“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. [John 14.6]

And, speaking of pursuit, the pursuit of "life" as depicted by the idols of finance, insurance, medicine and technology, is the polar opposite of what Jesus taught and demanded:

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]

The Bible has NEVER been unclear on this subject. However, as we saw in Hezekiah, the pursuit of life did nothing more than give place to his pride. This pursuit of "living at all cost" is indeed the pie-in-the-sky selling point used by man's idols of finance, insurance, medicine and technology.

Any and everything selling "life" that is not God Himself should be suspect as an idol. It is time that God's people get real about what is and what is not life. Living at all cost is NOT the Biblical definition of "life."

Father, You have been gracious to allow me to see the truth of Your Word as I have faithfully read and considered it for many years now. Everything I am seeing points me to Jesus Who demands that I give up my own way, take up my cross, and follow Him if I am to have real life in You. May I no longer be deceived by the idols of this world and the traps they lure me into simply to secure their own "bottom line." May I see and help others see that "living at all cost" is the trap of idolatry. So be it.