Knowledge

Rocks Under The Surface

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“These are spots in your love feasts, while they feast with you without fear, serving only themselves. They are clouds without water, carried about by the winds; late autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, pulled up by the roots; raging waves of the sea, foaming up their own shame; wandering stars for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever.” Jude 12-13 (NKJV).

Consider a ship at sea. Now, I have never been on a ship at sea, or even a small boat at sea, but I am sure that the captain of a ship has eyes watching, even though he may know the sea, eyes are watching for hidden obstacles in those waters. Remember the Titanic? The crew slipped up; they were sailing the unsinkable ship, overloaded with passengers on its first and last cruise. The Titanic sank to the bottom of the sea, and over 1,500 souls were lost.

Jude likens the heretics, these false teachers, these liars, and deceivers to hidden spots, rocks, just underneath the surface. They pretended to be Christians, but denied the faith, denied Jesus, denied the truth oofGod’s Word, and the authority of the apostles. These claim to believe in Jesus, but they twist the true Scriptures to suit their own understanding. Some times those who receive them need to go deeper than just their words. What is their view of Jesus? Is He deity? What about the cross? What about grace and faith? They were with many churches as Jude was writing this and he is warning us of them.

These enjoy the gathering with the true believers in their breaking of the bread and drinking of the cup; and their fellowship meals. The Lord’s Supper, communion as it is also called is right and good for the worship of the Lord, but heretics can come in under false pretenses, and leave uncorrected, undisturbed. “These are spots in your love feasts, while they feast with you without fear, serving only themselves.”

This is also a problem within the Christian churches today. You can identify these false teachers by their denying of the power of the cross, they deny the work of Jesus Christ. There are many pastors in the pulpits who never preach against sins of greed, lust, sexual immorality in adultery, premarital sex, homosexuality or any other form of perversion. Never show the glory of Christ Jesus over the sin in their lives. If there is no revelation of sin in our lives there can be no glory of the power of Christ over sin.

When heretics come into the Churches of our Lord Jesus it should be with fear of being exposed for the heresy they teach. Stay in God’s Word, pray, asking for God’s wisdom and knowledge. He will give it to you.

The Lord willing, there will be more on these verses for your reading.

-Tim A. Blankenship

Corrupted Brute Beasts

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“But these speak evil of whatever they do not know; and whatever they know naturally, like brute beasts, in these things they corrupt themselves.” Jude 10 (NKJV).

Those who would, do, and will pervert the gospel of Jesus Christ have a self made knowledge. They have a knowledge of Scripture, and philosophy, based on their education, but not according to the wisdom and knowledge of God. That is, the wisdom and knowledge which comes only from God.

They claim an authority over the spiritual world which is not of man, thus they do damage to the true message of the cross and of Christ. You will find this in those who claim to speak for God with a new revelation from God, thus they add to the Word of God. Of this God warns us in the final verses of the Revelation of Jesus Christ 22:18-19. Some of the same ones that “do not know”, are taking away from the Word of God the very thing which God honors and magnifies. The deity of the Lord Jesus Christ; the Immutability of God and His Word; the teaching of the Triune God. They claim it cannot be understood, so they deny it.

To deny any one of those things takes the “teacher” out of the realm of true Christianity, and puts them in the realm of the “Cultic kingdom”. These same one’s who deny these things often claim a power of knowledge of Scripture which they do not have. They do not have the Spirit of God in them or on them.

There are many people today who make the claim that, “It doesn’t matter what you believe; as long as you believe something”; and nothing could be further from the truth. The way you truly believe will affect the way you live. If you follow false doctrines and beliefs you will live a false life, which is hypocrisy, leading to sinfulness, immorality, etc..

As, “brute beasts”, they live however they choose. They take advantage of those who do not have. They speak of living in grandeur, mansions, fancy cars, fine clothes, living in the lap of luxury. They do it by grabbing , taking advantage of the little that others have and taking it for themselves.

Christian brother and sister heed the message of the Word of the Lord. Do not be deceived by the liar and deceiver who wants you to know what is unknowable, or to do the undoable. Those who claim faith that is Christless, crossless, and senseless are out to take from your pocket to theirs.

Follow Jesus Christ, and not men or women.

-Tim A. Blankenship

The LORD Pleads…

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Prophet’s Possible Perspective

I am beginning to see that the time ahead for Judah and Jerusalem is not going to be a very pleasant one. We may be “God’s people”, but that could mean, that when we are disobedient we will be punished. That seems to go with being His child. If He loves us He chastises us. His glory is what is at stake here.

The blessing of the land is going to be diminished. The bread – there will be drought and due to that there will be no grain for bread. The water for drinking and irrigation will be dried up. It will be a terrible judgment from God.

We have very much taken the blessings of my God for granite. His grace is as granite, His mercy is everlasting, but His blessing in this world are only temporal, and subject to His testing and chastisement.

The knowledge and education of our people will be at stake as well as, their protection, and entertainment; ”The mighty man and the soldier, the judge and the prophet, the diviner and the elder, the captain of fifty and the man of rank, the counselor and the skillful magician and the expert in charms. And I will make boys their princes, and infants shall rule over them.” (Isaiah 3:2-4 ESV).

There will come a time when my people will even oppress one another. The rich will rob from the poor. The young will abuse the elderly and have no respect for them; will give no honor to them and completely insolent toward them. They will take the first person who may have any look of authority as their leader, and practically force them to lead, and he will say, “I cannot heal. I am no leader. I will not lead.”

The deeds and and speech of Jerusalem and Judah are against the LORD. They have fallen. They defy the glorious presence of the LORD. They boast and brag about their sin as though they were Sodom. They do not attempt to even hide it. They have no shame of their sin and rebellion. Woe to them! They have brought evil on themselves.

It will be well with the righteous. The righteous will eat the fruit of their deeds. The fruit of the righteous is sweet and hearty. Woe to the wicked! It shall be ill with him, for what his hands have dealt out shall be done to him. O, my people – infants are the oppressors, and women are your rulers. You have trusted in lies, and you have gone astray. Your guides have destroyed the way of your paths.

The LORD is your judge. He will judge the elders and princes of His people, they have devoured the vineyard, and stolen from the poor. God says, “What do you mean by ‘crushing My people, by grinding the face of the poor?’”

Hear the Word of the LORD:
 

 

“For, behold, the Lord, the LORD of hosts, doth take away from Jerusalem and from Judah the stay and the staff, the whole stay of bread, and the whole stay of water,  The mighty man, and the man of war, the judge, and the prophet, and the prudent, and the ancient, The captain of fifty, and the honourable man, and the counsellor, and the cunning artificer, and the eloquent orator.  And I will give children to be their princes, and babes shall rule over them.  And the people shall be oppressed, every one by another, and every one by his neighbour: the child shall behave himself proudly against the ancient, and the base against the honourable.  When a man shall take hold of his brother of the house of his father, saying, Thou hast clothing, be thou our ruler, and let this ruin be under thy hand:  In that day shall he swear, saying, I will not be an healer; for in my house is neither bread nor clothing: make me not a ruler of the people.  For Jerusalem is ruined, and Judah is fallen: because their tongue and their doings are against the LORD, to provoke the eyes of his glory. The shew of their countenance doth witness against them; and they declare their sin as Sodom, they hide it not. Woe unto their soul! for they have rewarded evil unto themselves.  Say ye to the righteous, that it shall be well with him: for they shall eat the fruit of their doings.  Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him: for the reward of his hands shall be given him.  As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths.  The LORD standeth up to plead, and standeth to judge the people.  The LORD will enter into judgment with the ancients of his people, and the princes thereof: for ye have eaten up the vineyard; the spoil of the poor is in your houses. What mean ye that ye beat my people to pieces, and grind the faces of the poor? saith the Lord GOD of hosts.” Isaiah 3:1-15 (KJV)

It is sad, but I can see so much of this prophetic message happening in our own country of the United States of America. It is time we prayed, as God’s people, repented and seek His face for forgiveness, cleansing and renewing of heart and land.

-Tim A. Blankenship

 

The Power of the Parables

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The Power of the Parables

 

“The same day went Jesus out of the house, and sat by the sea side. And great multitudes were gathered together unto him, so that he went into a ship, and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore. And he spake many things unto them in parables…” Matthew 13:1-3 (KJV).

“And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear. For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.” Matthew 13:10-17 (KJV).

“All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spake he not unto them: That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world.”Matthew 13:34-35 (KJV).

In the first three verses of this chapter we see Jesus beginning to teach a multitude in parables. People like stories. Many of us had stories read to us by our parents or guardians, and we loved hearing them. The love for hearing stories is most likely why the popularity of television and movies is so high. We have all heard the story of Cinderella, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, many stories of King Arthur and his knights of the round table, and Camelot. Many citizens of the United States have heard the American Tall Tales, concerning men like Davy Crockett, Sam Patch, Paul Bunyan, and Pecos Bill, and then there is also John Henry the steel drivin’ man. These are all stories that do not just tell a story, but capture your imagination, and cause you to dream and dream big.

Jesus told His stories with a different purpose, and they were powerful stories that were life changing; if you had the heart to hear them. Someone once defined a parable as “A earthly story with a heavenly meaning”, and I don’t think that is far wrong. These are stories of things most people were familiar with, and so should understand. It seems however, that the religious leaders, being hard of heart, were so set in their ways, and their spiritual understanding that they had no heart for understanding simplicity. There are seven or eight parables in this chapter. That depends on if you consider verses 51-52 a parable or not. It seems to me to be a parable, and may be the hardest to understand of the others.

The power of the parable is to hide the truth from the hard of heart (v. 11). A simple and some would call avoiding answer. The longer answer is that spiritual things are meant for the spiritual. The unspiritual or natural man cannot know the things of God, and Jesus is speaking of the Kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 2:14). The things of God are revealed by the Spirit of God otherwise known as the Holy Spirit. The natural man, unspiritual individual, has no heart for the things of God. The scribes and Pharisees though having a knowledge of God, the Scriptures, and rituals had no heart for God or knowing and doing His will. All they had was merely pretense and hypocrisy.

The things of God are revealed to those who are willing to receive them. Those who are drawn to God’s Son by God’s grace. The hardened heart has little or no understanding of grace, and knows only law and its condemnation. Jesus has warned of casting our pearls before swine (Matthew 7:6). To continue giving the gospel of Jesus Christ and the Word of God whose heart only grows harder with each word is a waste, and we should leave such individuals to God. When we have presented the truth of the gospel to them we have done what is required of us. I heard someone say, “No one has the right to hear the gospel twice, until all have heard it at least once”.

The power of the parable is to teach and grow those who do or will understand (v. 12). In the parable is the power for understanding the simplest of things. Those who are familiar with agriculture, and those to whom Jesus spoke would have been, understood about the soils, the seeds, and the sower. Many of these listeners had probably seen or been involved in the farming process, and knew exactly the picture that was given. Jesus was, however, giving more than an agricultural story; He was applying an area of life to the spirit of men. In this those who would understand would be receiving more than those who just saw or see it as just a story. In the study of these eight parables it is clear to me that they are all related to one basic lesson. I will not reveal that fully now, but will as we go along. One thing I think that should be obvious to us all is that it is related to the “Kingdom of heaven”.

What about these parables? Whoever has understanding will receive more understanding and grow in their knowledge of Christ Jesus, put on the things of Christ, and put away the things of the flesh and evil. This will be dependent upon the Christian’s obedience to what they have already received. If the Christian has heard the Word of the Lord, understanding what has been said, but will not obey, let not that Christian believe that they will receive anything further from the Lord, concerning His will. For example – If you ask God’s will concerning something of a moral issue, you have Scriptural evidence that it is wrong, and you go ahead and commit the sin, want to continue in that sin, though you know it to be sin; until you repent, agreeing with God and His Word that it is sin, you will not be given understanding on much else. Disobedience will bring you loss.

If someone shuns the desire of God they lose even the possibility of knowing Him. They lose any sense of morality through their conscience that they may have had. They lose their ability to think reasonably – think of the plight of Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel chapter four, and that is God being merciful. They lose their lives to sins bondage. ” Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen. For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:” Romans 1:21-26 (KJV).

Abundance of understanding will be given to those who hear these parables, and not only understand the story, but its heart and spirit. These parables are positive in their meaning, however, they all have a negative aspect to them.

The power of the parable is to fulfill the Word of God spoken by the prophets (vv. 13-15). When we look at the writings of the Old Testament prophets we see that the people of God would not hear and heed the message the messenger brought them. They might listen, and probably did hear, but they usually did not like what they heard, and they would stone, imprison in a dungeon, or a waterless cistern, and sometimes killed the messenger/prophet; almost always shunned by the people. Isaiah the prophet was told when he was called and had surrendered to the call, “Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not. Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed. Then said I, Lord, how long? And he answered, Until the cities be wasted without inhabitant, and the houses without man, and the land be utterly desolate, And the LORD have removed men far away, and there be a great forsaking in the midst of the land. But yet in it shall be a tenth, and it shall return, and shall be eaten: as a teil tree, and as an oak, whose substance is in them, when they cast their leaves: so the holy seed shall be the substance thereof.” Isaiah 6:9-13 (KJV). The people would not listen to Isaiah. How long was he to continue to preach without anyone repenting and changing their lives? The basic answer here is “Until the people are gone, and you are gone.” How many preachers do we know who would want a ministry with no converts, no believers repenting, and no changed lives; and God forbid; no baptisms?

There are people who have physical eyes, but cannot see the God of creation in His creation. They, also, can not see Him in His works and/or Word. They are blinded by their own way. They really do not want to see God or His work. It would take too much away from them and their good deeds. They will see the darkness as light. They have ears, but do not hear. The Word of God and the gospel of Jesus Christ can be clearly presented and all they hear is an argument against their lives. Those type of people rejected the words of the prophets in their days. They had ears, but could not hear. They only loved the sounds of their own voices, their own hearts; wicked though they were. When people are satisfied with their own spirituality they will believe almost anything but the truth. They believe they will succeed and make it to heaven by their good works and deeds, and they have none. The truth of Christ, His cross – death, His burial, and resurrection, ascension and promise of His return will be the very Truth which judges them on judgment day. Jesus will be their Judge, rather than their Savior – What of His mercy then?

The power of the parable is to reveal what the prophets desired to see. In some ways I would have loved to spoken with Elijah, Moses, Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel. I will one day be able to sit down with them in God’s Kingdom. As I read the prophets today I can hear their hearts, there are times I can almost feel their pain because they see a people, who are supposed to be God’s people who will not bow before their God, except in pretense and hypocrisy. You can hear and feel the heart of Jeremiah as he says, “Oh that my head were waters, and mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people!” Jeremiah 9:1. The prophets desired to see the people of God quit their idolatry, their gross rebellion, their pretense and hypocrisy. God has always been a jealous God. Jealous meaning that He is the only one worthy of worship, and that He deserves our complete, total, and whole admiration. The prophets foretold of One who would come to redeem the world, restore Israel to her land, and bring the Gentiles into the promise. They longed to see the “Promised One”. They are now in His presence rejoicing in His glory. We can yet hear their words as we read them. They have been kept and preserved that we may hear and know the one true God, His Son Jesus Christ; hear Him and believe and live forever.

The prophets had a longing heart to see the fulfillment of the Word they had penned down. Jesus Christ Himself is the fulfillment of the prophets messages. The apostle John wrote, “And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” Revelation 19:10 (KJV). The main focus of that verse which I wanted to point out is that “…for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” All of the prophetic Word is concerning Jesus. Of Jesus, after His bodily resurrection, it is said, “And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.” Luke 24:27 (KJV). If one wants or desires to understand these and all the parables of Jesus one first needs to know Jesus.

Let’s look at a contrast of hearts:

1. The dull of hearing rebel against the preacher; The Illumined ones hear and support the preacher.

2. The dull of hearing pull away from service and regular worship to the Lord, worship their own way; The Illumined ones desire to be active in solely the worship of the Lord, and with other believers.

3. The dull of hearing increase in hypocrisy by their ritual and tradition; The Illumined ones despise hypocrisy, especially in themselves, and yearn for genuineness.

4. The dull of hearing have a lack of spiritual understanding, often thinking they are the really spiritual, but what spirit are they of; The Illumined ones are enlightened by the Holy Spirit of God and Jesus Christ.

5. The dull of hearing rationalizes personal sin; The Illumined ones hate personal sin and judge it by the Spirit of God andHisi Word.

6. The dull of hearing lose any understanding they may have when they refuse the truth: The Illumined ones increase in spiritual understanding.

-Tim A. Blankenship

Science, Christianity, and The Bible

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Science, Christianity, and The Bible

There are some who are trying to tell us that science and the Bible cannot agree. That, Christianity and the Bible are in complete opposition to science. There really could be nothing further from that thought.

Just what is the meaning of “Science”? The word itself means knowledge. The Bible cannot be in opposition to “Knowledge” because that is what is within the pages of God’s Word – the Bible. There must be some thought put to having knowledge.

There is a so-called knowledge which endeavors to tell us that the earth, and the universe in which we reside; as well as the occupants of this world and universe are products of an accidental explosion, without any order, and all of this just happened to come forth out of the chaos. Is that real “Science”? Is that “Knowledge”? Real science would acknowledge that there is order in the universe. The order allows the true scientist to figure out the time of the morning “sunrise”, and the setting of the evening “sunset”.

Real science can give you the dimensions of an archaeological discovery of an ancient city wall, and tell you that it had a maker, and can sometimes even discover who that maker was. Real science can tell you that 1 + 1 = 2, and that if there was no order to this universe they would not be able to tell you anything of any real significance.

Could a tornado hit a scrap metal yard, and a car just happen to pop up out of the chaos? What would the chances of that be? I have heard the figures on that, but it is so astronomical, there wouldn’t be enough room for anything but zeros in this article. So there would be absolutely no chance of that happening. How about a house being built by that same tornado as it swept through a forest? Probably the same amount of zeros. Where is the science – the knowledge – in evolutionary thought. It seems to truly be without thought.

Let’s think about this thing called SCIENCE. True science recognizes that there is order to the universe. True science knows that 1 + 1 = 2, and 2+2=4. It also knows that it takes a builder to build a wall or a house; and true science will truly recognize that there was a builder, designer for something so much more grand, beautiful, and larger as this universe; and all that is in it. True science would recognize the grandeur of the human body; its design, its many vessels throughout, the muscles, the eyes, the ears. Not recognizing a designer is to deny sense, sensibililty and true science.

The true scientific mind will recognize the truth. Science will rely on the evidence, and all evidence for the universe and all that is in it is clearly to the clear thinking, and knowledgeable mind; there is a Creator. He designed it and everything within the universe. He designed the earth, and all life upon it; and He designed and made one special creation in His own image. That is man.

In my mind it is a bit unclear why some of those who are made in their Creator’s image want to say that their Creator does not exist. They try to throw out the Creator for the lie. They want to rule their own lives, and never have to answer to anyone, but themselves.

The Bible, Christianity and Science fit quite well together. As a Christian I recognize that there is order in the universe; and recognize that houses are designed by designers/architects, and built by builders. I know that, because I have helped build a few, and worked on remodeling others, and it does not happen by accident. To say anything else would just be clear foolishness.

The Bible tells us that “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7). That tells me that science, ie., true science must begin with God. If you begin anywhere else it is faulty science. Science will not give you knowledge of the Bible, but the Bible will give you knowledge of science. In this previous sentence it could really be worded like this: “Knowledge will not give you knowledge of the Bible, but the Bible will give you knowledge of knowledge.” Strange right? But nevertheless correct. Do not fall into the trap of interpreting the Bible with science; interpret science with the Bible.

If you are searching for truth in science, then you must begin with God. Remember, “In the beginning God…” (Genesis 1:1). Beginning anywhere else will lead to grave and dangerous error; and it could be at the expense of your God – given eternal soul.

I once met a man, an atheist, who was highly educated. I introduced myself, and told him what I was doing, making visits as the pastor of a small town church, and meeting some people; and I started to question him of what he believed about God. His answer somewhat surprised me. “Haven’t you realized that the geological evidence clearly proves that the earth has no creator”, not necessarily verbatim, but close. He proceeded to say he did not believe there was a god of anykind. My answer was, “You mean to tell me that you can believe that the house you live, the one you are standing in now, could’ve just popped up here by accident?” Do you know what his answer to that was? “That has nothing to do with it.” Then he proceeded to tell me of his education, his major in geology, and his degree in geology; as though that should be proof enough. It really did not do anything profound for me. He asked my degree of education, to which I responded, “NO college”. I do have enough sense to know that it takes a Designer to build something so vast and wide as this universe, and its living inhabitants. Christians do not despise education, nor science; true science.  All science must begin with God.  Anything else, science, religion, or education that begins with man, or earth, or anything worldly will fall short or truth.  That is SCIENCE; that is BIBLE; and that is what I believe as a CHRISTIAN.

-by Tim A. Blankenship

Third Woe and a Promise

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EARTH FILLED WITH GLORY

“Woe to him that buildeth a town with blood, and stablisheth a city by iniquity!  Behold, is it not of the LORD of hosts that the people shall labour in the very fire, and the people shall weary themselves for very vanity?  For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.” Habakkuk 2:12-14 (KJV).

The third woe is here presented. So far the “Woes” have had to do with unjust increase, and increase at the cost of another’s fall, by the profiteer’s own doing. Remember these woes are being pronounced against Babylon. It seems that there are lessons the Christian and the world of today should hear and heed. If these things were evil for Babylon to practice, then they are evil in any society.

This again is a continuation of the charges against them. They have been pillaging, robbing, killing, and taking all the treasures of every land. They were using means which would not meet with God’s approval. There was much injustice in their dealings with the people of God and others.

It is a wicked people who take from the weak to establish their own homes, villages, towns and cities. It is a vile thing in the eyes of our Just God to see those who gain and gain and gain never to return anything to God for His glory. The one’s who have against those who have not. Those who have money can “legally” charge those who cannot afford it 30 percent or more for the credit. That should be illegal in this country. “O, that is capitalism – that’s the way it works”. That is capitalism run amuck. It is foul, it is a stench in the nostrils of holy God. To correct this there should be a fair exchange of money. What you charge the wealthy should be the rate you charge the poor man or woman. Really it would be a delight in the eye of God to charge less to the poor, than to the rich. Laugh if you will, but you laugh at holy God.

The wealthy put people to work, and some do not pay a wage consistent enough to live on. Then, they charge an enormous amount of money for their product, what that same person needs, and take even more. God help the business people of our land to open their eyes and be a benefit to our society rather than dividing the classes even further.

Let me assure you, that all these things for which we labor and toil; these things that we find so dear and important, will one day fade to naught. What will you have left when it is all gone?

There is a prize in these verses. “For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea”. The leaders and rulers of Babylon sought to build a great kingdom by the shedding of blood, and taking what belonged to others, and often at the expense of their lives. There is a Kingdom coming in which there will be no war, but only peace. The peace of God that passes all understanding. Notice the vastness of this “knowledge of the glory”; it is “as the waters cover the sea”. How much do the waters cover the sea? The sea is water, thus this filling with the knowledge of the glory covers the whole realm of the Kingdom. All the bloodshed, and such will have been done away. Jesus Christ will reign supremely. The knowledge of His glory will fill the earth.

Building Insignificant Towers

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An Insignificant Tower

Genesis 11:1-9

“And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there. And they said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them throughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for morter. And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth. And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded. And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do. Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech. So the LORD scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city. Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the LORD did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the LORD scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth.” Genesis 11:1-9 (KJV).

At this time, which according to any records, that are of around the time of Nimrod (10:8-11); tell us that Nimrod was probably the builder of this city and religion. The whole earth – the Japhethites, the Hamites, and the Shemites were all still hanging around together. They all still had the same language and speech.

They journeyed together, found a fertile, pleasant plain in which to farm, build, and to erect a monument to man’s achievements – the tower of arrogance. This would indeed come to nought. Human government without God will always fail. In Daniel 2 Nebuchadnezzar had a dream and in the dream he saw four Gentile Human Governments fall, and come to ruin.

In the Second Psalm we find these words, “Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against His anointed saying, ‘Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us.'” (Psalm 2:1-3). The purpose of human government; because the devil is the prince of the power of the air; is to overthrow the God of Creation. Don’t you believe for an instant that he has any sincerity in it; because he knows he is already a defeated foe. He has already lost the battle. Jesus won the victory on the cross; and the resurrection is all the evidence that we need.

The building of the tower was really only a monument to the achievements of man. So soon following the flood they are still filled with arrogance, and haughty spirits. There are Insignificant Towers we build even today. One of those towers of insignificance is the Space Program [NASA]. Has anyone noticed the arrogance involved in this program, yet we are reminded occasionally of how small, and fragile we really are. With the space shuttle exploding in 1986 and killing all on board, then again, another one burning up coming back down to earth, and killing all on board in February of 2001. Yet we persist in its foolish endeavors Let me tell you this – the idea of space adventure fascinates me. I think it would be a glorious sight to be in space and look back down to earth and see this wondrous globe as it rotates and revolves, just as God ordained it to be. But, there is so much, too much pride and haughtiness involved. When we exalt ourselves over God we fail.

Another tower of insignificance would be technology. Medical, electronic, automotive, communication, etc.. Again, don’t take me wrong. I appreciate all this stuff. It is great to have, at least until it breaks down or just outdates itself; or I don’t know how to use it. The problem with the things are that our pride leads to the place of exalting ourselves over God, and that brings His judgment upon us.

That is what happened at Babel “the gate of god”. Then, because it became a place of exalting self over God; God came down and confused the languages, making it a place of “Babel” or “Confusion”. God puts no approval in Global Human Government. He commanded the people to scatter over the earth, and that is clearly what He did by the confusing of the speech. It seems that He did it with care keeping the families all together. Husband and wife went together with their children if they had children. The families of Japheth were with Japheth. The families of Ham were with Ham. The families of Shem were with Shem.

I believe that it was at this time or not long following that there was the massive earthquake that makes mention in chapter ten verse 25. This set each one in a different area on the globe. When God brings Global unity, togetherness it will be by His holy Son Jesus Christ, and He will rule on earth.