God has spoken the following to me, and I pass it on to you, "The punishment of America has been decreed. It cannot be turned back. Privation and hunger are determined. America the proud will be debased. And with the church which calls itself by My name, I am especially furious. The earthly church which has cast its lot with those who cried out for the crucifixion of My Son will be burned as stubble. This is only the first punishment. Repent not, and the trumpets of Revelation will sound." (December 29, 2006)
Spirituality is defined in many very different ways. But the best and most sound definition can be derived from the teachings of Jesus. He taught that true spirituality consisted of participating in the Kingdom of God. For Jesus, the Kingdom existed in the here and now, as well as in the world beyond. And the Kingdom of God was and is the Spirit of God operating among a community whose members have centered their hearts in God.
To center your heart in God, a type of death must first occur. Jesus said, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit." (John 12:24) Jesus went first. He died on the Cross for our sins to give us life. And then we must follow. The death we must experience is the pathway to life for it involves dying to that which keeps you out of the Kingdom of God.
The first great barrier to entering the Kingdom is self; self-absorption and self-sufficiency. The self-absorbed self looks to his own needs first and last to the needs of others. He is arrogant and vain. He is often cruel, and at his best, he is simply indifferent. And the self-sufficient self is closed to God's help. Such a person is nothing but a cripple who believes he can go it alone. He will not turn to One Who can transform his life, and grant him power for living.
The words of Jesus have no place in the self-centered person's life. Matthew 20:27, "And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant:" Matthew 23:12, "And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted."
Self-absorption must die. That is why Jesus said, "And he said to [them] all, If any [man] will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me." (Luke 9:23) Death to self-absorption is a struggle, and must occur again and again. Salvation in Christ is a one-time event as Jesus' death for sin was a one-time event (Romans 6:9-11). But the struggle with the sins of self-absorbtion and self-sufficiency must be fought continuously. That is why Jesus said to take up your cross daily.
The need, though, for death to self does not mean self-hatred. As Paul rightly taught in his epistle to the Romans, sin is the cause of death (Romans 6:23). We cannot enter the Kingdom of God until we repent of sin and turn to God for cleansing and healing through the blood of Christ. But, despite our condition, Jesus considered us important enough to die for. Jesus' love for us makes us important. And God wants nothing more than to save us.
In the Parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-31), Jesus portrays God's never-ending love for the lost sinner. The Father continues to love that child even though the wayward son had literally wished his father to be dead. For in demanding his inheritance while his father was still alive, the prodigal was saying to his father, "I consider you to be the same as dead. Give me my inheritance now, dead man." Despite this evil attitude borne of self-absorption, the Father forgives the son fully and completely when the prodigal chooses to return home. Remember this, God's desire is to forgive us and to restore us to fellowship with Him.
The second great barrier to entering the Kingdom of God is the world. For the world’s values are in opposition to God’s. For instance, the world says that individuals have differing levels of worth. The Fortune 500 CEO is better than the janitor. The pregnant mother is more important than the unborn child. The physically beautiful person should be adored more than the plain looking person. The powerful and famous should be shown deference. Those without wealth and power do not deserve any special respect.
But Jesus taught us differently. He was more impressed by the widow who gave her last penny than by the rich who donated huge sums, but had even greater sums remaining. Nor was He the least bit impressed by those who held positions of honor in society. He said of the Pharisees:
But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments, And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues, And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi. But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, [even] Christ; and all ye are brethren. And call no [man] your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven. Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, [even] Christ. But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted. (Matthew 23:5-12)
We are all immortal souls on a human journey. Some souls are dressed in the clothes of a rich man; some are arrayed in the clothes of a poor man. But no soul has greater worth than another. We are all sinners in need of salvation. The only distinction is between saved and unsaved. As Jesus said to His followers in the passage above, "ye are all brethren."
Moreover, the world teaches us to treasure material things above the spiritual. The good life is the materially rich life. But Jesus said:
"And he said unto his disciples, Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat; neither for the body, what ye shall put on. The life is more than meat, and the body [is more] than raiment. Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them: how much more are ye better than the fowls? And which of you with taking thought can add to his stature one cubit? If ye then be not able to do that thing which is least, why take ye thought for the rest?"
"Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. If then God so clothe the grass, which is to day in the field, and to morrow is cast into the oven; how much more [will he clothe] you, O ye of little faith? And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind. For all these things do the nations of the world seek after: and your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things. But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you." (Luke 12:22-31)
Therefore, to the cruel and crude values of the world, we must die, so that we can become alive to God.
And how do you die to self-centeredness and the world? You die by being reborn. As Jesus said to Nicodemus, "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." (John 3:3) And as Jesus went on to explain, the divine power behind this rebirth is beyond our understanding. "The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit." (John 3:8)
It is by the Holy Spirit's power that we are born again. The Holy Spirit baptizes us into the death of Christ and He raises us with Christ. In dying, we become alive. We cannot do this ourselves, we must ask God to do it for us. Ask Jesus into your heart and ask Him to save you.
And then once you know Christ, realize that the Christian life is a journey. You are forgiven and your mind has been set on God. But the sin nature still remains. It will still war against your soul, and you will need to turn to the Holy Spirit time and time again for help. But it is well worth it to enter the Christian life. For we receive the promise of eternal life and our works for Christ will bring everlasting reward.
So trust in God completely, and never trust in the world or in self. Place yourself in God. Let God’s spirit fill you. That is true Christianity. For Christianity is not a matter of affirming a litany of beliefs as many have tried to claim. Christianity means giving your heart to God and following in the footsteps of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is as simple as that.
Luke 22:36 Then said He [the Lord Jesus] unto them, But now, he that hath a purse, let him take it, and likewise his scrip: and he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one.
The Lord so commanded. Therefore, do not argue. Every Christian man, and even woman, should own a gun and know how to use it. Gun control laws do not matter. In Christ's day, the Romans made it illegal for subject peoples to own swords. But, yet, Christ commanded His followers to be prepared for their own self-defense. And it is He Who must be obeyed, not man.
Are you a ready to fight for Christian Civilization?
