Let’s argue over who has faith and who lacks it and that will prove what exactly? It will prove to be a foolish task and that’s the truth.
Rather than argue things unseen, let us stay focused on the Lord and stay in the full armor of God in these wicked days for the wickedness and deceit of the devil is very cunning. When the devil has us arguing over how the devil does and how God does and or does not… and all the things that are misunderstood for lack of understanding…all you need to do is add to that mess judging each other’s heart and faith based on man’s little ideas of what faith is.
Let each take their perceptions to the Holy Spirit for edification and wrestle with the Lord for understanding.
As I have said before, How the thief plans to enter into your house and steal your belongings and how he shall kill you is not the most important thing to focus on. That is a fear creator. Instead of that, we must focus first on preparation so when the thief enters you are not sleeping and without protection. Focus on filling up on all of the Word of God and take all you have found and all your questions to the Holy Spirit for edification for man’s ways and man’s ideas are not God’s ways, and not God’s ideas.
When we depend on the interpretations of others, we have no point of reference to weigh against to know if we are being deceived or not. When we read asking the Holy Spirit to explain to us what things mean… we begin to learn. Sometimes our questions are deep and in order to understand, the Holy Spirit takes us on a long journey learning things we might think are not what we asked, but when we finally get to the answer, we find that all the things that we had to learn and know first were exactly what was needed for us to come to the understanding that we asked for. So, take the journey. There are no shortcuts to where the Holy Spirit needs to take you for you to see and to hear.
To be deep rooted in the Word of God, you must take the journey with the Holy Spirit. If you can read, you can take the journey. Now is the time to begin.
Your journey with the Holy Spirit is special for you. What God needs to do with you to get you to move to where he desires you to be is unique. No two people are in the exact same place in their faith and learning to follow the way of the Lord. So, learn to heed the direction you are being led to follow, and follow. Take all things before the Holy Spirit to see if a thing is of God or of the devil and wait for an answer, pray unceasing. Ask as many questions as you need for guidance and reassurance.
When you are being led by the Holy Spirit, follow. At times you will be so excited in what you have learned you will share it with someone who has another opinion. Do not get caught up in vain arguments over interpretations, church indoctrinations and or other people’s opinions. If your core belief in Jesus Christ is that He is the Son of God, died for our sins and has risen and conquered death and hell and is seated on the right Hand of God and is our King of Kings for all eternity, then we agree on what is most important.
Stay away from deceptive dogma. Many have problems drinking the milk, let alone chewing on the meat… and the “Big Fat Food Dogma” that has been layered into all of it is a maze that takes us away from the task the Lord given us to read the scriptures for ourselves and taking all things to the Holy Spirit ourselves for direction and discernment. Some scriptures have many depths and layers of meaning. Remember in the new covenant there is no Greek, nor Jew, nor male, nor female but we are all one in Christ. God will prepare each one for their journey for each ones life has a purpose different from another.
Galatians 3:28 Context
25. “But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster. 26 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. 27 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham‘s seed, and heirs according to the promise.”
When the Lord was asked which of the commandments was the greatest, he said to Love God with all your heart, mind, strength and soul is the first commandment and the second one is to love your neighbor as yourself. And that if we do those two commands, we shall have done all the commandments of God. And so, let us do as the Lord instructed us to do and hold tight to the new covenant and know we are living stones each one making up the Temple of the Living God. Amen.
Romans 10:4-114 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth. 5 For Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the law, That the man which doeth those things shall live by them. 6 But the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise, Say not in thine heart, Who shall ascend into heaven? (that is, to bring Christ down from above:) 7 Or, Who shall descend into the deep? (that is, to bring up Christ again from the dead.)
8 But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; 9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. 12 For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. 13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
Remember, Jesus our Lord made our yokes light. He sat among the sinners and taught them the way to eternal life with the Father in Heaven.
He did not teach mathematics of the Kabballah, nor taught numerology to anyone. He did not show us how to use numbers to come up with all sorts of ideas, nor teach us of numbers to prove his words true or false. He spoke clearly and in easy to understand words. Even though they were used at the time he walked the earth. In fact, it was an ancient and esoteric tradition. Philosophers looked at numerology as a tool for divination, and a method of acquiring knowledge beyond that of the five senses, even as a path to know the divine itself. Yet, Jesus not once ever told the people how to use such divination. Nor did he even suggest the use of it to understand the Word of God.
Jesus never said to do the math. He said have FAITH.
Even faith the size of a mustard seed and you can say to this mountain move to yonder place and it shall be removed, and nothing shall be impossible for you. Matthew 17:20. 20 And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.
And why did he say this to the disciples? Let us put the scripture in its context as the disciples had failed to cast out demons in a man’s son that was a lunatic (epileptic) due to demonic possession. Let us read the scripture in its fullness.
Matthew 17:143-21
“14 And when they were come to the multitude, there came to him a certain man, kneeling down to him, and saying, 15 Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatick, and sore vexed: for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the water. 16 And I brought him to thy disciples, and they could not cure him. 17 Then Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him hither to me.
18 And Jesus rebuked the devil; and he departed out of him: and the child was cured from that very hour.19 Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out? 20 And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you. 21 Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.
In the Peshetta, the Aramaic translation presents the scripture this way , “14And when they came to the multitude, a man came unto him and knelt on his knees. 15And he said to him, “My lord, have mercy on me, my son has a lunatic demon and has become ill, for he has fallen many times into fire and many times into water.” 16“And I brought him to your disciples and they were not able to heal him.” 17Yeshua answered and he said, “Oh, faithless and twisted generation! How long shall I be with you, and how long shall I endure you? Bring him here to me.” 18And Yeshua rebuked it and the demon went out from him and The Boy was healed from that moment.
19Then the disciples came to Yeshua himself alone and they said to him, “Why were we not able to heal him?” 20Yeshua said to them, “Because of your unbelief, for amen, I say to you, that if you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you may say to this mountain, ‘Move from here’, and it will move, and nothing will be difficult for you”. 21“But this kind does not go out except by fasting and by prayer.”
Doing your own thing is surely not abiding in the Lord’s word? Jesus is pointing out, this is not what or how I told you to do. It sounds like His concern was more so their falling away through lack of faith. Like going out and forgetting to pray and fast and stay close as in God’s rest, for every day is in His rest. As we learned that the Sabbath was entering into God’s rest which was a shadow of things to come. When we don’t enter into His rest, His Sabbath which is His rest… we are easily deceived even in our own idea of our faith… we can lose our sight based on our own ideas of what we have. Matthew 11:28 “Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest,”
Hebrews Chapter 4
“1 Therefore, let us fear if, while a promise remains of entering His rest, any one of you may seem to have come short of it. 2 For indeed we have had good news preached to us, just as they also; but the word they heard did not profit them, because it was not united by faith in those who heard. 3 For we who have believed enter that rest, just as He has said, “As I swore in My wrath, they shall not enter My rest,” although His works were finished from the foundation of the world. 4 For He has said somewhere concerning the seventh day: “And God rested on the seventh day from all His works”; 5 and again in this passage, “They shall not enter My rest.” 6 Therefore, since it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly had good news preached to them failed to enter because of disobedience, 7 He again fixes a certain day, “Today,” saying through David after so long a time just as has been said before, “Today if you hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts.”
8 For if Joshua had given them rest, He would not have spoken of another day after that. 9 So there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God. 10 For the one who has entered His rest has himself also rested from his works, as God did from His. 11 Therefore let us be diligent to enter that rest, so that no one will fall, through following the same example of disobedience. 12 For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. 13 And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do. 14 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. 16 Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”
The gift of the Holy Spirit is not something we can just go about and loosely speak of and act as though we can command such powerful Godly Authority by our own whim. Faith is not a machine. Faith is believing that God shall deliver that which is needed to overcome the evil in the world through our faith in Christ our Lord by God our Father.
Because we command something to be, is NOT how the Holy Spirit works in our lives. The Holy Spirit is not a Jinn. Nor can such a gift from God be purchased as Simon Magus the Sorcerer tried to do. (Acts 8:9-25) Prayer and fasting are still part of drawing closer to God. Nor is the Holy Spirit given to one who is non repentant of their own sins.
Imagine being there and hearing the words, “Oh faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I suffer you? Bring him hither to me.” Or “Oh, faithless and twisted generation! How long shall I be with you, and how long shall I endure you? Bring him here to me.” However you translate it, the words are such they should sink in and make you reevaluate your actions. When they were alone with the Lord they asked him why they weren’t able to heal the boy. They really didn’t understand. Jesus told them it was because of their unbelief. Even pointing out that all they needed was the tiniest bit the size of a mustard seed. But not only that, they also needed to fast and pray.
It does sound that they had either become complacent and or not fasted and prayed in order to be prepared for their anointed position. For Jesus had selected from among the disciples 12 to be his apostles and to do as He did. In Matthew Chapter 10 it says that Jesus called his twelve chosen ones to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness. The names of the twelve apostles were: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him. He sent them out instructing them to go to the lost sheep of Israel. As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.
They did as they were instructed and came back with much success. Pondering this, one can see he sent them out without purse, nor weapons and they relied on prayer and faith that they would do as Jesus said. It sounds like somewhere along the line they had become over confident and forgot to fast and stay in prayer to grow their faith as Jesus had done in the wilderness and they were shown to do even through the prophets in order to be close with God and in His favor. This is a good lesson for all of us.
Basically, lip service is not belief. Saying you have faith, is not faith. Words and action are different. We must be careful not to deceive ourselves because of past blessings and stay in prayer unceasing to the Lord in all that we do. It is so easy to fall back into old patterns or forget to be as wise as the serpent and gentle as a dove. To ignore the Holy Spirit and not even aware that you are doing that. Fasting and being alone with God and the power of the Holy Spirit in prayer brings you back to that oneness and building of faith.
The Lord taught many things to his disciples, and they were growing in all their ways little by little. None of them understood everything right off the bat, it was a learning process. We see in the scriptures how they had to be corrected and have things explained when in private. The Lord said that he spoke in parables so those who had eyes to see would see and those who had not eyes to see would not see. And that those who had ears to hear would hear and those who had not ears to hear would not hear. The Holy Spirit gives us eyes to see and ears to hear.
That being said, we must each work on strengthening our faith and walking in belief. No one can take that journey for us. We must each step out and take that journey on our own and pray unceasing for our own understanding with the Holy Spirit leading us and showing us what it is that we must learn in order to see with our eyes and hear with our ears. For we each have our own personalities and ways about us that only the Lord knows how to move around to get us to be where He wants us to be.
How many times have you suffered something bad in order to move in another direction that held many blessings for you? God’s ways truly are not man’s ways.
Keep on pressing into the Kingdom of God! Press, press, press!
Dianne
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We all must work on strengthening our faith and walking in belief…Agreed. I love math and number synchronicity, but do I believe you need a certain mathematical mind to be saved or unlock a code? No. Do I think you see what your mind has been made aware of? Certainly! It’s the original AI 🤣For instance, I never noticed how many Jeep’s where on the road until I bought one! I have found it’s the same with anything else you become aware of.
Many things have happened along my journey to help my faith grow. That doesn’t mean everything has gone smoothly, learning is hard. For example, I once had a job where I received excellent ratings for years, but then the manager retired. The new manager harassed me and gave me poor reviews. I became so worried about what would happen if I was fired and that I wouldn’t be able to get another job in that company. I ended up quitting the job because of the harassment. Years later I applied for another job with that company, I had the interview and was hired. All the worry that was expended on what if….and the years I thought about that situation and what I could have done differently and what I would say about his reviews. It wasn’t until years later that my current manager told me that I was the only candidate that supplied all the information that the job announcement had requested, making me the only choice. Hearing that was as if the heaven opened, clarity entered my mind and I actually heard an audible heavenly chord! I knew immediately that God had made that possible. Gods ways are not our ways, worry and fear are a waste of time.
Archiax:
Breaking the Chains of Historical Cycles with AlfaVedic
Thanks for this teaching Dianne about faith. Fasting is something I’ve been thinking about and feel led to do. Also, celebrating the sabbath is another thing I’ve been led to do. The true sabbath and not the pagan Roman day given to us as deception. I feel led to share a dream with the readers here. I know I’ve mentioned the vivid dreams I’ve been having and a lot of them are profound. Like this one…
…I was at a house I didn’t recognize with people I’ve never met. It was a large house with many rooms and we were staying in a room where someone else lived. The first part of the dream I was organizing the room as it was quite disheveled with bobbles and books every which way and out of place. Suddenly, I became aware of a huge storm heading for the house like a freight train. I couldn’t see it in the dream but knew it was a tornado. At the same time, I became aware of a room full of people who were sick and sleeping, unable to move out of the house and away from the coming storm. I realized I didn’t have time to move them all before the storm hit the house. So, I began praying for super natural strength so I could pick up these comatose people. The Holy Spirit told me “All you need is faith the size of a mustard seed.” So I ran into the face of the storm and with the wind whipping around me I yelled at the storm’s fury “CAN YOU SEE MY MUSTARD SEED?!?” Next, I was in the room and watched all the people being moved to safety! God moved them before my eyes. Then, I realized the storm was about to hit the house. It was so loud it was shaking the house. So again I yelled “CAN YOU SEE MY MUSTARD SEED?!?” And I watched as a protective dome was placed over us and the house. We were all in wonder as we listened to the storm rage over us while we stayed untouched. What an amazing dream!
“Can you see my mustard seed?!!” Wow, what great words! The most impossible situations are the hardest to believe…and yet, the Lord made it so simple for us that all we need is faith the size of the tiniest seed, a mustard seed. He didn’t tell us we had a long list of things that needed to be done first… all we need is to have that small size of faith and He will do the rest. And that faith grows and grows with each shout of “CAN YOU SEE MY MUSTARD SEED?!!? AMEN!
Contemplating the scripture about Jesus’s words to his disciples about the mustard seed it strikes me how annoyed Jesus became hearing they had been unable to heal the boy. It’s one of the few times the Bible talks of Him becoming exasperated like he must have been when He said “oh faithless and twisted generation! How long must I endure you?” And every time I read this scripture I can’t help but to notice that He doesn’t say ‘with faith the size of a mustard seed….” He says “faith like a grain of a mustard seed.” What an odd thing to say and I feel as if I am missing something. Do mustard seed’s have faith? What could He have meant by saying to have the faith of a mustard seed? We can infer he meant the size but that isn’t what He says. We need to dig out John’s Hebrew & Greek key word study Bible today. I feel as if there is more to learn with Jesus’s rebuking of his disciples and with His instruction about having the faith of a mustard seed.
Great dream!
“To be deep rooted in the Word of God, you must take the journey with the Holy Spirit. If you can read, you can take the journey. Now is the time to begin.
Your journey with the Holy Spirit is special for you. What God needs to do with you to get you to move to where he desires you to be is unique. No two people are in the exact same place in their faith and learning to follow the way of the Lord. So, learn to heed the direction you are being led to follow, and follow. Take all things before the Holy Spirit to see if a thing is of God or of the devil and wait for an answer, pray unceasing. Ask as many questions as you need for guidance and reassurance.”
Once again Dianne, another confirmation of a conversation I recently had. Was talking to my daughter and s.i.l. the other night about spiritual headship in the family, and my daughter who was raised in the church and received the Holy Ghost at 6 made the comment that she was the spiritual head in their marriage because her husband just received the Holy Ghost less than a year ago. I told them that even though she had more time and experience in her journey that she was ultimately not the head and that she needed to submit herself unto him, and he needed to start reading the Word more in order to gain wisdom and understanding. I was telling him how my husband and I were different when it came to gaining understanding. I am not what I would say, a learner with great comprehension skills. However when it comes to the Word, my understanding came by way of the Holy Ghost and discernment. But my husband on the other hand, has great comprehension skills, and gained much understanding in a short time after being saved, and he’s been able to retain that understanding and wisdom.
Thank you again, I’ll be sharing this with them both.
There are some things in the Bible that are not up for debate.
Jesus is the son of God is one.
There is no other name given under heaven whereby mankind can be saved except Jesus Christ.
If the Bible says it is a sin then it is.
Hell was not created for man but for the devil and his angels.
With the heart man believes and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
It’s appointed once unto man to die and after that the judgment.
If you die having never accepted Christ as your personal Savior then you will spend eternity in the lake of fire.
I will stick with these Truths and leave the debate to others.
JP, thank you for joining Dianne in calling out some of the places where many Bible versions have omitted certain verses. I study the Word with KJV and NASB versions because they have not left those verses out.
One glaring example that you have pointed out before is in Acts, chapter 8, where a disciple of Jesus overhears someone from another country reading the book of Isaiah out loud. That disciple speaks with the man and explains what Isaiah is saying about Christ. The man wants to be baptized immediately. He says, “What prevents me from being baptized?” in Acts 8:36?
Then, this next verse is omitted from many modern translations. That verse says — And Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” And he answered and said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”
Why on earth are those words left out? “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God”
One explanation I’ve heard is that, after Christ’s resurrection, there are three huge conversions that happen in Acts 8, 9 and 10. The first in chapter 8 is this man, an Ethiopian who served in a royal court in that country. The second is a Pharisee named Saul who hated Christians, as JW points out in comments below. The third is a Roman named Cornelius. The picture here, as I have heard, is a conversion of three people who are descendants of the sons of Noah. Shem, Ham and Japheth apparently settled, after the Flood, in three areas — Shem in the area of Israel, Ham in the area of North Africa, and Japheth in the area of southern Europe.
Interesting picture, if that is a valid analysis. God showing us that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is spreading to the entire world. After the Flood, the entire world restarted with Noah’s sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth, and their wives. That reflection of Noah’s sons seems to appear again in Acts, just as the Gospel was going out through the disciples of Jesus.
Yet, the declaration made by that first man from Ethiopia, a Gentile who was becoming a Christian, says, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God” and that is irrelevant in many modern Bible translations? Are they trying to ignore that God’s plan was to spread the Gospel to the entire world, even as far back as the three descendants of Noah so long ago, after the Flood?
Anyway, sorry for the lengthy words. Thank you for your faith in these days of deception and confusion. I see many things from “churches” today that don’t agree with the Word of God, or situations where they seem to have torn certain pages out of the Bible, to make it easier to embrace a modern culture that wants to ignore God.
And yet, we have been placed here for such a time as this.
John832
Thank you Dianne!
Since the 2020 election and the frustration it brought to my heart, I have been asking God for understanding. Early in that process, He gave me five words to use when lifting up prayers about our country—
“Expose the corruption. Bring justice.”
Since that time in 2020, I have seen so many articles and interviews where people claim to have “inside” information about what happens next. They use words like “Boom” and “It’s time” and so on. Even specific nonsense about dates, because if you add today’s date to the number 17 and assign a number to each letter of the initials JFK, … blah, blah, blah …
Difficult to find Truth in the midst of all that stuff.
You Dianne have been a shining light through that whole time, pointing us back to God’s Word, the source of Truth. I join others who read your words, and we thank God for the wisdom He has given you, which you diligently share with us.
I don’t know how things will be resolved, but I do know that God has conquered evil plans by evil people ever since Creation.
Your work Dianne is a constant reminder of one of my favorite quotes from Jesus —
So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine;
(John 8:31 – NASB95 version)
It’s an ‘IF — THEN’ statement. Stay in His Word and then you will be His disciple.
And the second part of His statement is in the very next verse, where He shows us the result of doing what He said to do —
… and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”
John832
Amen!
Yes John… We would all benefit from turning off these speakers..
“Since that time in 2020, I have seen so many articles and interviews where people claim to have “inside” information about what happens next. They use words like “Boom” and “It’s time” and so on. Even specific nonsense about dates, because if you add today’s date to the number 17 and assign a number to each letter of the initials JFK, … blah, blah, blah …”
Isn’t that the truth on the math!!! Today at 8:22 = 12=3… A.M. 5-2-2024 = 15 =6. we find the 3 and 6 smacking us in the face where Tesla said if we only knew the power of these numbers???? And in 2017=10=1 Trump said he would MAGA, and on 5-2-2024 – 15=6 that he would MAGA! So we add the 1 with the 6 and come up with 7 which is a heavenly number. And now we add the numbers bla, bla, bla.
Oh aren’t they so smart with their little Pythagoras tree of knowledge? They can put that on someone elses cave wall and dance in glee at the shadow of it. The light is not in it. So thankful that God’s ways are NOT MAN’S WAYS!!!
Good, sound, Godly advice. Many of us found this site trying to figure out what’s going on in the world. What’s really important though is what’s going on between us and God. Thanks Dianne for the reminder. The thought came to me the other day of the time Jesus asked, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?. You think the Lord didn’t know the answer? My point is that Jesus most certainly did know the answer; and that Saul would become the example of just how vile a person God can turn around and use for good. Also, in considering the innocent lives lost under Saul’s hand, it must be acknowledged that God allows many unpleasant events to unfold in order to fulfill His purpose. This thought has helped me deal with the blatant population reduction campaign we have been living through. This flesh will surely die some day; but until then, may He give us the necessary discernment to recognize current and future deceptions.
Well said, JW.
Our little neighborhood Bible study group this week is going to get an introduction to Saul and his conversion to Paul. Thank you for mentioning that, and I wonder, as you might, if there is a prominent person today who is as deeply opposed to God as Saul was, but primed for a blinding light experience to open those eyes to our Lord and Savior?
It could happen. Either way, God has it all under control.