God Blog

• “Son of man, take up a dirge (funeral poem to be sung) for the king of Tyre and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “You had the full measure of perfection and the finishing touch [of completeness], Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. “You were in Eden, the garden of God; Every precious stone was your covering: The ruby, the topaz, and the diamond; The beryl, the onyx, and the jasper; The lapis lazuli, the turquoise, and the emerald; And the gold, the workmanship of your settings and your sockets, was in you. They were prepared on the day that you were created. “You were the anointed cherub who covers and protects, And I placed you there. You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked in the midst of the stones of fire [sparkling jewels]." Ezekiel 28:12-14 AMP

• “You were blameless in your ways From the day you were created until unrighteousness and evil were found in you. “Through the abundance of your commerce you were internally filled with lawlessness and violence, And you sinned; Therefore I have cast you out as a profane and unholy thing from the mountain of God. And I have destroyed you, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire. “Your heart was proud and arrogant because of your beauty; You destroyed your wisdom for the sake of your splendor. I cast you to the ground; I lay you before kings, That they might look at you. “You profaned your sanctuaries By the great quantity of your sins and the enormity of your guilt, By the unrighteousness of your trade. Therefore I have brought forth a fire from your midst; It has consumed you, And I have reduced you to ashes on the earth in the sight of all who look at you. “All the peoples (nations) who knew you are appalled at you; You have come to a horrible and terrifying end and will forever cease to be.” Ezekiel 28:15-19 AMP

• “Can you believe it? The tyrant is gone! The tyranny is over! God has broken the rule of the wicked, the power of the bully-rulers That crushed many people. A relentless rain of cruel outrage established a violent rule of anger rife with torture and persecution. And now it’s over, the whole earth quietly at rest. Burst into song! Make the rafters ring! Ponderosa pine trees are happy, giant Lebanon cedars are relieved, saying, “Since you’ve been cut down, there’s no one around to cut us down.” And the underworld dead are all excited, preparing to welcome you when you come. Getting ready to greet you are the ghostly dead, all the famous names of earth. All the buried kings of the nations will stand up on their thrones with well-prepared speeches, royal invitations to death: “Now you are as nothing as we are! Make yourselves at home with us dead folks!” This is where your pomp and fine music led you, Babylon, to your underworld private chambers, A king-size mattress of maggots for repose and a quilt of crawling worms for warmth. Isaiah 14:4-11 MSG

• "What a comedown this, O Babylon! Daystar! Son of Dawn! Flat on your face in the underworld mud, you, famous for flattening nations! You said to yourself, “I’ll climb to heaven. I’ll set my throne over the stars of God. I’ll run the assembly of angels that meets on sacred Mount Zaphon. I’ll climb to the top of the clouds. I’ll take over as King of the Universe!” But you didn’t make it, did you? Instead of climbing up, you came down—Down with the underground dead, down to the abyss of the Pit. People will stare and muse: “Can this be the one who terrorized earth and its kingdoms,  turned earth to a moonscape, wasted its cities, shut up his prisoners to a living death?” Other kings get a decent burial, honored with eulogies and placed in a tomb. But you’re dumped in a ditch unburied, like a stray dog or cat, covered with rotting bodies, murdered and indigent corpses. Your dead body desecrated, mutilated—no state funeral for you! You’ve left your land in ruins, left a legacy of massacre. The progeny of your evil life will never be named. Oblivion! Get a place ready to slaughter the sons of the wicked and wipe out their father’s line. Unthinkable that they should own a square foot of land or desecrate the face of the world with their cities!" Isaiah 14:12-21 MSG

• "Pray like this: Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy. May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us today the food we need, and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us. And don’t let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one." Matthew 6:9-13 NLT

• “And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon: and the dragon and his angels fought, but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down. “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. “Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has cone down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time.” Revelation 12:7-12 NKJV

• Satan and his fallen angels are not on earth but in Heaven. “And war broke out in heaven…The dragon and his angels fought.”
• They have been in Heaven for eons. Perhaps since the Ascension of Christ or even Lucifer’s insurrection: "nor was a place found for them in Heaven any longer.”
• Up to this point Satan the Devil, acts as Accuser or Prosecutor, revealing a trial in Heaven's Supreme Court.
• This and other Scriptures suggest that the original Luciferian rebellion has yet to be completely judged and dealt with.
• Satan, accompanied by his angels, accuses mankind and the church "day and night,” while his demonic cohort carry out his earthly campaign of deception and worse.
• This Heavenly Supreme Court Trial may well have begun with the angelic rebellion, possibly predating the creation of Earth. Or even that of the universe.
• Any such trial would be far from a farce, requiring real rules and consequences. Implying an Agreement and perhaps a Wager.
• The trial ends with full scale war. Likely the first throughout the history of Heaven.
• Only after the Devil's expulsion from Heaven is Christ's Kingdom and power announced.
• Heaven rejoices at Satan and his angels being cast to the Earth.
• Earth is warned of the Devil's wrath and of further Great Tribulation.

It can’t be overstated that according to the context of Scripture, spiritual conflict is not a mythical analogy, but rather eternity’s reality. In fact, in a variety of ways, a myriad of Biblical passages and conflict Scriptures attest to the unpleasant fact that all creation is at war with (alongside or against) God. There is no neutral territory.

Consider Christ's quantum parable of the Sheep and Goats. It is an event that will take place at a designated future place and time. It is true that all of mankind will be separated into those entering “everlasting punishment” and “the righteous into eternal life.” It is not true that people are sheep and goats. Although “sheeple” often seems an apt metaphor. It is true that Jesus is “the savior of all men.” Here and elsewhere, Scripture reveals that all humanity is loosed from the power of the first death through universal resurrection. A shared benefit of Christ’s costly atonement. It is not true that this translates to universal salvation. Just ask the goats. As well as “the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.” Here, according to Jesus, not only sins of commission, but omission, carry an eternal penalty:

• “Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’ Then they also will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’ Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” Matthew 25:41-46 NKJV
  

Such conflict theology partially explains the Bible’s harsh or even horrible accounts of earthly conquest. For example, consider one of Scripture’s most gruesome passages of Divinely sanctioned genocide:

• “Moses said to the people, “Some of you must take arms to wage Jehovah’s war against Midian…  And every man of Midian was killed. Among those killed were all five of the Midianite kings—Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba. Balaam, the son of Beor, was also killed. Then the Israeli army took as captives all the women and children, and seized the cattle and flocks and a lot of miscellaneous booty. All of the cities, towns, and villages of Midian were then burned… but Moses was very angry with the army officers and battalion leaders. “Why have you let all the women live?” he demanded. “These are the very ones who followed Balaam’s advice and caused the people of Israel to worship idols on Mount Peor, and they are the cause of the plague that destroyed us. Now kill all the boys and all the women who have had sexual intercourse. Only the little girls may live; you may keep them for yourselves.” Numbers 31:2-18 TLB

• “This plan of mine is not what you would work out, neither are my thoughts the same as yours! For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than yours, and my thoughts than yours.” Isaiah 55:8-9 TLB

Yet, for a variety of reasons, the overwhelming vast majority of modern Christians refuse to accept Biblical insight and warning.

Nevertheless, comprehension of the context of Scripture is vital to understanding its content. While no longer in vogue, Scripture's context is most certainly one of warfare theology. Like the whodunnit story of Job, considered by many to be the oldest Book of the Bible and perhaps its key codex, conflict between God the "Lord of Hosts" (angel armies) and Satan the "prince of the power of the air" (god of this world), provides the backdrop to Job's story. And much, if not all, the entire Old and New Testaments. As exemplified in a couple of familiar passages referencing conflict with the fallen angelic:

• "When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities [those supernatural forces of evil operating against us], He made a public example of them [exhibiting them as captives in His triumphal procession], having triumphed over them through the cross." Colossians 2:15 AMP

• " Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil." 1 John 3:7-8 NKJV 

A mighty Fortress is our God, A Bulwark never failing;
Our Helper He amid the flood Of mortal ills prevailing:
For still our ancient foe Doth seek to work us woe;
His craft and power are great, And, armed with cruel hate,
On earth is not his equal.

Did we in our own strength confide, Our striving would be losing;
Were not the right Man on our side, The Man of God's own choosing:
Dost ask who that may be? Christ Jesus, it is He;
Lord Sabaoth His Name, From age to age the same,
And He must win the battle.

And though this world, with devils filled, Should threaten to undo us,
We will not fear, for God hath willed His truth to triumph through us:
The Prince of Darkness grim, We tremble not for him;
His rage we can endure, For lo! his doom is sure,
One little word shall fell him.

That word above all earthly powers, No thanks to them, abideth;
The Spirit and the gifts are ours Through Him who with us sideth:
Let goods and kindred go, This mortal life also;
The body they may kill: God's truth abideth still,
His Kingdom is forever.

"Let goods and kindred go, This mortal life also; The body they may kill…" Tall order for anyone in any generation. Much less the vast majority of modern Christians which again are not only prayerless (stopping to pray less than 5-10 minutes a day) but Biblically illiterate (unable to quote, much less rightly understand and apply even 5-10 verses in a row). 

Here, and elsewhere, it's clear our spiritual forefathers understood the difference between glorification of the Devil, verse the need to reveal his presence and the peril around us. Out of spiritual insight into our situation, and respect for the authority of God's Word, they were careful to neither ignore nor revile angelic majesties. Both common and costly mistakes against which Scripture warns. A particularly important practice when preparing to survive and thrive in the face of the kind of spiritual warfare conflict theology reveals.

The Bible explains that both personally, and as a species, mankind faces the deadly foe of sin on three fronts. Sin within, resulting from individual and inherited fallen natures. Sin above, in the form of devilish and demonic temptation and deception. And Sin about, the collective and cumulative effect of sin within and above. In regards to sin from above, the New Testament is quite adamant:

• "And that about wraps it up. God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels." Ephesians 6:10-12 MSG

• "Daring, self-willed, they do not tremble when they revile angelic majesties, whereas angels who are greater in might and power do not bring a reviling judgment against them before the Lord. But these, like unreasoning animals, born as creatures of instinct to be captured and killed, reviling where they have no knowledge, will in the destruction of those creatures also be destroyed." 2 Peter 2:10-12 NASB

• "Yet Michael, one of the mightiest of the angels, when he was arguing with Satan about Moses’ body, did not dare to accuse even Satan, or jeer at him, but simply said, “The Lord rebuke you.” But these men mock and curse at anything they do not understand, and like animals, they do whatever they feel like, thereby ruining their souls." Jude 1:9-10 TLB 

• "The Spirit, not content to flit around on the surface, dives into the depths of God, and brings out what God planned all along. Who ever knows what you’re thinking and planning except you yourself? The same with God—except that he not only knows what he’s thinking, but he lets us in on it." 1 Corinthians 2:12-13 MSG

• "For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart." Hebrews 4:12 NIV

• Samson: Birth heralded in a pair of theophanies, arising from two separate visitations by the Angel of the Lord. An Old Testament title denoting the pre-incarnate Christ. In fact, there are more instructions pertaining to Samson’s birth and upbringing than any other personage in all of Scripture. Born and raised under oppression, his anointing was largely waisted. Through a lustful fiasco with Delilah, the name Samson became synonymous with gullibility. Failed to lead Israel into freedom from its oppressors.

• David: Unremarkable birth. Remarkable childhood as a young shepherd dispatching lions and bears. Anointed by Samuel before slaying Goliath. Conquered all enemies and lead Israel into its golden age. Instigated the ruin of much of his family and life’s work through unbelievably out of character capitulation to first ludicrous adultery with Bathsheba (given he had multiple wives and could have taken any and many virgins in Israel), followed by the orchestration of the traitorous murder of her husband Uriah. Inconceivably, having failed to learn his lesson, Satan again successfully tempted David. This time to take a forbidden census, resulting in a death sentence for 70,000 Israelites by means of God unleashing a deadly a 3-day plague.

• Solomon: Gracious birth to David and Bathsheba. Born into the opulence of David’s household and kingdom. Anointed to succeed David as Israel’s third king. Bequeathed exceeding wisdom and wealth directly by God. Allowed to construct the first and only temple of Yahweh on Earth. Oversaw the incredible temple’s dedication. A ceremony lasting two weeks with a sacred assembly sandwiched in the middle. Solomon sacrificed twenty-two thousand bulls and one hundred and twenty thousand sheep and goats, which occasioned not only fire from Heaven, but God’s glory so filling His temple that the priests themselves could not enter. During which time Solomon experienced a second theophany by God. Nevertheless, while an indirect result of David’s sin, unthinkably Solomon built several idolatrous worship sites in later life. A repeated offense, that given the circumstances, may represent the most atrocious act of its kind throughout the annals of Scripture. One that insured the kingdom of Israel would be torn in half, thus speeding the nation’s decent into destruction.

• "Be sober [well balanced and self-disciplined], be alert and cautious at all times. That enemy of yours, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion [fiercely hungry], seeking someone to devour." 1 Peter 5:8 AMP

• "But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ." 2 Corinthians 11:3 NIV

• "And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve." 2 Corinthians 11:14-15 NIV

• "For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect." Matthew 24:24 NIV

• "The coming of the [Antichrist, the lawless] one is through the activity of Satan, [attended] with great power [all kinds of counterfeit miracles] and [deceptive] signs and false wonders [all of them lies], and by unlimited seduction to evil and with all the deception of wickedness for those who are perishing, because they did not welcome the love of the truth [of the gospel] so as to be saved [they were spiritually blind, and rejected the truth that would have saved them]." 2 Thessalonians 2:9-10 AMP

• "The Beast had a loud mouth, boastful and blasphemous. It could do anything it wanted for forty-two months. It yelled blasphemies against God, blasphemed his Name, blasphemed his Church, especially those already dwelling with God in Heaven. It was permitted to make war on God’s holy people and conquer them. It held absolute sway over all tribes and peoples, tongues and races. Everyone on earth whose name was not written from the world’s foundation in the slaughtered Lamb’s Book of Life will worship the Beast." Revelation 13:7-8 MSG

• "Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes." Ephesians 6:11 NIV

• "But the [Holy] Spirit explicitly and unmistakably declares that in later times some will turn away from the faith, paying attention instead to deceitful and seductive spirits and doctrines of demons, [misled] by the hypocrisy of liars whose consciences are seared as with a branding iron [leaving them incapable of ethical functioning]." 1 Timothy 4:1-2 AMP

• "Opponents must be gently instructed, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will." 2 Timothy 2:25-26 NIV

• "I have told you now before it happens, so that when it does take place, you may believe and have faith [in Me]. I will not speak with you much longer, for the ruler of the world (Satan) is coming. And he has no claim on Me [no power over Me nor anything that he can use against Me]." John 14:29-10 AMP

• "You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies." John 8:44 NIV

• "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." John 10:10 NIV

• "But be on your guard. Don’t let the sharp edge of your expectation get dulled by parties and drinking and shopping. Otherwise, that Day is going to take you by complete surprise, spring on you suddenly like a trap, for it’s going to come on everyone, everywhere, at once. So, whatever you do, don’t go to sleep at the switch. Pray constantly that you will have the strength and wits to make it through everything that’s coming and end up on your feet before the Son of Man." Luke 21:34-36 MSG

• "But you, believers, [all you who believe in Christ as Savior and acknowledge Him as God’s Son] are not in spiritual darkness [nor held by its power], that the day [of judgment] would overtake you [by surprise] like a thief; for you are all sons of light and sons of day. We do not belong to the night nor to darkness. So then let us not sleep [in spiritual indifference] as the rest [of the world does], but let us keep wide awake [alert and cautious] and let us be sober [self-controlled, calm, and wise]. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who are drunk get drunk at night. But since we [believers] belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet, the hope and confident assurance of salvation." 1 Thessalonians 5:4-8 AMP

• "You may as well know this too, Timothy, that in the last days it is going to be very difficult to be a Christian. For people will love only themselves and their money; they will be proud and boastful, sneering at God, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful to them, and thoroughly bad. They will be hardheaded and never give in to others; they will be constant liars and troublemakers and will think nothing of immorality. They will be rough and cruel, and sneer at those who try to be good. They will betray their friends; they will be hotheaded, puffed up with pride, and prefer good times to worshiping God. They will go to church, yes, but they won’t really believe anything they hear. Don’t be taken in by people like that." 2 Timothy 3:1-5 TLB

• "A faithful, sensible servant is one to whom the master can give the responsibility of managing his other household servants and feeding them. If the master returns and finds that the servant has done a good job, there will be a reward. I tell you the truth, the master will put that servant in charge of all he owns. But what if the servant is evil and thinks, ‘My master won’t be back for a while,’ and he begins beating the other servants, partying, and getting drunk? The master will return unannounced and unexpected, and he will cut the servant to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Matthew 24:45-51 NLT

• "For his Holy Spirit speaks to us deep in our hearts and tells us that we really are God’s children. And since we are his children, we will share his treasures—for all God gives to his Son Jesus is now ours too. But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering." Romans 8-16-17 TLB

• "Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will give us later. For all creation is waiting patiently and hopefully for that future day when God will resurrect his children. For on that day thorns and thistles, sin, death, and decay—the things that overcame the world against its will at God’s command—will all disappear, and the world around us will share in the glorious freedom from sin which God’s children enjoy." Romans 8-18-21 TLB

• "Here is a trustworthy saying: If we died with him, we will also live with him; if we endure, we will also reign with him. If we disown him, he will also disown us; if we are faithless, he remains faithful, for he cannot disown himself. 2 Timothy 2:11-13 NIV

• "It's in Christ that you, once you heard the truth and believed it (this Message of your salvation), found yourselves home free—signed, sealed, and delivered by the Holy Spirit. This signet from God is the first installment on what's coming, a reminder that we'll get everything God has planned for us, a praising and glorious life." Ephesians 1:13-14 MSG

• "And so here I am, preaching and writing about things that are way over my head, the inexhaustible riches and generosity of Christ. My task is to bring out in the open and make plain what God, who created all this in the first place, has been doing in secret and behind the scenes all along. Through followers of Jesus like yourselves gathered in churches, this extraordinary plan of God is becoming known and talked about even among the angels!" Ephesians 3:8-10 MSG

• "But everyone knows that you stand loyal and true. This makes me very happy. I want you always to remain very clear about what is right and to stay innocent of any wrong. The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The blessings from our Lord Jesus Christ be upon you." Romans 16:19-20 TLB

• "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." 2 Corinthians 5:21 NIV

• "He has forgiven you all your sins: Christ has utterly wiped out the damning evidence of broken laws and commandments which always hung over our heads, and has completely annulled it by nailing it over his own head on the cross. And then having drawn the sting of all the powers ranged against us, he exposed them, shattered, empty and defeated, in his final glorious triumphant act!" Colossians 2:17-19 PHILLIPS

• “They wondered what the Spirit of Christ within them was talking about, for he told them to write down the events which, since then, have happened to Christ: his suffering, and his great glory afterwards. And they wondered when and to whom all this would happen. They were finally told that these things would not occur during their lifetime, but long years later, during yours. And now at last this Good News has been plainly announced to all of us. It was preached to us in the power of the same heaven-sent Holy Spirit who spoke to them; and it is all so strange and wonderful that even the angels in heaven would give a great deal to know more about it.” 1 Peter 1:11-12 Living Bible - Emphasis QC’s

• “But friends, that’s exactly who we are: children of God. And that’s only the beginning. Who knows how we’ll end up! What we know is that when Christ is openly revealed, we’ll see him—and in seeing him, become like him. All of us who look forward to his Coming stay ready, with the glistening purity of Jesus’ life as a model for our own.” 1 John 3:2-3 MSG

• “For our earthly bodies, the ones we have now that can die, must be transformed into heavenly bodies that cannot perish but will live forever. When this happens, then at last this Scripture will come true—“Death is swallowed up in victory.” O death, where then your victory? Where then your sting? For sin—the sting that causes death—will all be gone; and the law, which reveals our sins, will no longer be our judge.” 1 Corinthians 15:53-56 TLB

• “Don’t you know that someday we Christians are going to judge and govern the world? So why can’t you decide even these little things among yourselves? Don’t you realize that we Christians will judge and reward the very angels in heaven? So you should be able to decide your problems down here on earth easily enough.” 1 Corinthians 6:2-3 TLB

• “Are not all the angels ministering spirits sent out [by God] to serve (accompany, protect) those who will inherit salvation? [Of course they are!]” Hebrews 1:14 AMP

• “To everyone who overcomes—who to the very end keeps on doing things that please me—I will give power over the nations. You will rule them with a rod of iron just as my Father gave me the authority to rule them; they will be shattered like a pot of clay that is broken into tiny pieces. And I will give you the Morning Star!  “Let all who can hear listen to what the Spirit says to the churches.” Revelation 2:26-29 TLB

• “That is what is meant by the Scriptures which say that no mere man has ever seen, heard, or even imagined what wonderful things God has ready for those who love the Lord.” 1 Corinthians 2:9 TLB

• “Each thing was made for Him. He is the center. Because we are with Him, each of us is at the center. It is not as in a city of the Darkened World where they say that each must live for all. In His city all things are made for each. When He died in the Wounded World He died not for me, but for each man. If each man had been the only man made, he would have done no less. Each thing, from the single grain of dust to the strongest eldil (angel), is the end and the final cause of all creation and the mirror in which the beam of His brightness comes to rest and so returns to Him. Blessed be He! In the plan of the Great Dance plans without number interlock, and each movement becomes in its season the breaking into flower of the whole design to which all else had been directed. Thus each is equally at the center and none are there by being equals, but some by giving place and some by receiving it, the small things by their smallness and the great by their greatness, and all the patterns linked and looped together by the unions of a kneeling with a sceptred love. Blessed be He!”

• "I have a lot more to say about this, but it is hard to get it across to you since you’ve picked up this bad habit of not listening. By this time you ought to be teachers yourselves, yet here I find you need someone to sit down with you and go over the basics on God again, starting from square one—baby’s milk, when you should have been on solid food long ago! Milk is for beginners, inexperienced in God’s ways; solid food is for the mature, who have some practice in telling right from wrong." Hebrews 5:11-14 MSG

• “So let us stop going over the basic teachings about Christ again and again. Let us go on instead and become mature in our understanding. Surely we don’t need to start again with the fundamental importance of repenting from evil deeds and placing our faith in God. You don’t need further instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. And so, God willing, we will move forward to further understanding." Hebrews 6:1-3 NLT

• "He had gone only a short distance, when Elisha's servant Gehazi said to himself, "My master has let Naaman get away without paying a thing! He should have accepted what that Syrian offered him. By the living Lord I will run after him and get something from him." So he set off after Naaman. When Naaman saw a man running after him, he got down from his chariot to meet him, and asked, “Is something wrong?" "No," Gehazi answered. "But my master sent me to tell you that just now two members of the group of prophets in the hill country of Ephraim arrived, and he would like you to give them three thousand pieces of silver and two changes of fine clothes." "Please take six thousand pieces of silver," Naaman replied. He insisted on it, tied up the silver in two bags, gave them and two changes of fine clothes to two of his servants, and sent them on ahead of Gehazi. When they reached the hill where Elisha lived, Gehazi took the two bags and carried them into the house. Then he sent Naaman's servants back." 2 Kings 5:19-24 GNT

• "He went back into the house, and Elisha asked him, "Where have you been?" "Oh, nowhere, sir," he answered. But Elisha said, "Wasn't I there in spirit when the man got out of his chariot to meet you? This is no time to accept money and clothes, olive groves and vineyards, sheep and cattle, or servants! And now Naaman's disease will come upon you, and you and your descendants will have it forever!" When Gehazi left, he had the disease—his skin was as white as snow." 2 Kings 5:25-27 GNT

• "So, my son, throw yourself into this work for Christ. Pass on what you heard from me—the whole congregation saying Amen!—to reliable leaders who are competent to teach others. When the going gets rough, take it on the chin with the rest of us, the way Jesus did. A soldier on duty doesn’t get caught up in making deals at the marketplace. He concentrates on carrying out orders." 2 Timothy 2:1-5 MSG

• "God, our God, will take care of the hidden things but the revealed things are our business. It’s up to us and our children to attend to all the terms in this Revelation." Deuteronomy 29:29 MSG 

• " Have you ever come on anything quite like this extravagant generosity of God, this deep, deep wisdom? It’s way over our heads. We’ll never figure it out." Romans 11:33 MSG

• "When the thousand years are up, Satan will be let loose from his cell, and will launch again his old work of deceiving the nations, searching out victims in every nook and cranny of earth, even Gog and Magog! He’ll talk them into going to war and will gather a huge army, millions strong. They’ll stream across the earth, surround and lay siege to the camp of God’s holy people, the Beloved City." Revelation 20:7-9 MSG

• "They’ll no sooner get there than fire will pour out of Heaven and burn them up. The Devil who deceived them will be hurled into Lake Fire and Brimstone, joining the Beast and False Prophet, the three in torment around the clock for ages without end. I saw a Great White Throne and the One Enthroned. Nothing could stand before or against the Presence, nothing in Heaven, nothing on earth." Revelation 20:9-11 MSG

• "For the rule and authority over all things has been given to Christ by his Father; except, of course, Christ does not rule over the Father himself, who gave him this power to rule. When Christ has finally won the battle against all his enemies, then he, the Son of God, will put himself also under his Father’s orders, so that God who has given him the victory over everything else will be utterly supreme." 1 Corinthians 15:27-28 TLB

• "I saw Heaven and earth new-created. Gone the first Heaven, gone the first earth, gone the sea. I saw Holy Jerusalem, new-created, descending resplendent out of Heaven, as ready for God as a bride for her husband. I heard a voice thunder from the Throne: “Look! Look! God has moved into the neighborhood, making his home with men and women! They’re his people, he’s their God. He’ll wipe every tear from their eyes. Death is gone for good—tears gone, crying gone, pain gone—all the first order of things gone.” The Enthroned continued, “Look! I’m making everything new. Write it all down—each word dependable and accurate.” Then he said, “It’s happened. I’m A to Z. I’m the Beginning, I’m the Conclusion. From Water-of-Life Well I give freely to the thirsty. Conquerors inherit all this. I’ll be God to them, they’ll be sons and daughters to me. But for the rest—the feckless and faithless, degenerates and murderers, sex peddlers and sorcerers, idolaters and all liars—for them it’s Lake Fire and Brimstone. Second death!” Revelation 21:1-8 MSG

• " In a vision he took me to a towering mountain peak, and from there I watched that wondrous city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of the skies from God. It was filled with the glory of God and flashed and glowed like a precious gem, crystal clear like jasper. Its walls were broad and high, with twelve gates guarded by twelve angels. And the names of the twelve tribes of Israel were written on the gates. There were three gates on each side—north, south, east, and west. The walls had twelve foundation stones, and on them were written the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. The angel held in his hand a golden measuring stick to measure the city and its gates and walls. When he measured it, he found it was a square as wide as it was long; in fact it was in the form of a cube, for its height was exactly the same as its other dimensions—1,500 miles each way… No temple could be seen in the city, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are worshiped in it everywhere. And the city has no need of sun or moon to light it, for the glory of God and of the Lamb illuminate it. Its light will light the nations of the earth, and the rulers of the world will come and bring their glory to it. Its gates never close; they stay open all day long—and there is no night! And the glory and honor of all the nations shall be brought into it. Nothing evil will be permitted in it—no one immoral or dishonest—but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life." Revelation 21:10-16, 22-27 TLB

• "I’m going to make a clean sweep of the earth, a thorough housecleaning." God’s Decree. "Men and women and animals,  including birds and fish—Anything and everything that causes sin—will go, but especially people… So get yourselves together. Shape up! You’re a nation without a clue about what it wants. Do it before you’re blown away like leaves in a windstorm, Before God’s Judgment-anger sweeps down on you, Before God’s Judgment Day wrath descends with full force. Seek God, all you quietly disciplined people who live by God’s justice. Seek God’s right ways. Seek a quiet and disciplined life. Perhaps you’ll be hidden on the Day of God’s anger." Zephaniah 1:2-3, 2:1-3 MSG

• "For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again. If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened. At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you ahead of time." Matthew 24:21-25 NIV

• "The second beast was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that the image could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed. It also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of its name." Revelation 13:15-17 NIV

• "A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives its mark on their forehead or on their hand, they, too, will drink the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. They will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment will rise for ever and ever. There will be no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and its image, or for anyone who receives the mark of its name.” This calls for patient endurance on the part of the people of God who keep his commands and remain faithful to Jesus. Then I heard a voice from heaven say, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them.” Revelation 14:9-13 NIV

• Write to Laodicea, to the Angel of the church. God’s Yes, the Faithful and Accurate Witness, the First of God’s creation, says: “I know you inside and out, and find little to my liking. You’re not cold, you’re not hot—far better to be either cold or hot! You’re stale. You’re stagnant. You make me want to vomit. You brag, ‘I’m rich, I’ve got it made, I need nothing from anyone,’ oblivious that in fact you’re a pitiful, blind beggar, threadbare and homeless. Here’s what I want you to do: Buy your gold from me, gold that’s been through the refiner’s fire. Then you’ll be rich. Buy your clothes from me, clothes designed in Heaven. You’ve gone around half-naked long enough. And buy medicine for your eyes from me so you can see, really see. The people I love, I call to account—prod and correct and guide so that they’ll live at their best. Up on your feet, then! About face! Run after God! “Look at me. I stand at the door. I knock. If you hear me call and open the door, I’ll come right in and sit down to supper with you. Conquerors will sit alongside me at the head table, just as I, having conquered, took the place of honor at the side of my Father. That’s my gift to the conquerors! Are your ears awake? Listen. Listen to the Wind Words, the Spirit blowing through the churches.” Revelation 3:14-22 MSG

• "As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" "Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him. As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work." John 9:1-4 NIV

• "When Jesus saw her, his heart broke. He said to her, “Don’t cry.” Then he went over and touched the coffin. The pallbearers stopped. He said, “Young man, I tell you: Get up.” The dead son sat up and began talking. Jesus presented him to his mother. They all realized they were in a place of holy mystery, that God was at work among them. They were quietly worshipful—and then noisily grateful, calling out among themselves, “God is back, looking to the needs of his people!” The news of Jesus spread all through the country." Luke 11:13-17 MSG

• Sample Daniel Horowitz: "Twice Daily Nose Flushing Can Reduce Covid Hospitalization and Death Researchers Find" by 85%
• Sample Link: Steve Deace **9/15/22 Circumvent Medical Cartels with Dr. Harvey Risch** Simple straight talk from preeminent  honored immunologist and cofounder of The Wellness Company TWC.health 
• Sample Link: **Ivermectin Nobel prize** In 2015, the Nobel Committee for Physiology or Medicine, in its only award for treatments of infectious diseases since six decades prior, honoured the discovery of ivermectin (IVM), a multifaceted drug deployed against some of the world’s most devastating tropical diseases. Since March 2020, when IVM was first used against a new global scourge, COVID-19, more than 20 randomized clinical trials (RCTs) have tracked such inpatient and outpatient treatments. Six of seven meta-analyses of IVM treatment RCTs reporting in 2021 found notable reductions in COVID-19 fatalities, with a mean 31% relative risk of mortality vs. controls. During mass IVM treatments in Peru, excess deaths fell by a mean of 74% over 30 days in its ten states with the most extensive treatments.
• Sample Link: Daniel Horowitz: **9/26/22**The Woman Who Survived American Hospital Holocaust with COVID in Plano TX**: One could make a movie about Gail Seiler’s experience in a Plano, Texas, hospital during the pandemic. Our hospitals have become killing fields. From remdesivir and illegal DNR orders to denial of treatment, forced starvation, and abuse based on vaccination status, Gail experienced the horrors that hundreds of thousands of other Americans suffered in the hospitals. Except, thanks to her husband and help from state Senator Bob Hall, she wound up being forcibly extricated from the hospital after 14 days of torture (7 days no water…). Even though the doctors said she wouldn’t last a day longer, she is now perfectly healthy and is trying to raise awareness about the hospital genocide.
• Sample Link: Daniel Horowitz: **The Risk of Cancer from Both the Shots and Perpetual Mask Wearing with Guest: Dr. Colleen Huber | 6/3/22** “Clot shots. Poisoning of Americans (World) beyond belief, as they prepare to stick babies as young ad 6 months old. HOW IS THIS NOT THE ISSUE OF OUR TIME?  That it perpetuates the virus, destroys the immune system, and causes every ailment known to man… And yet to this day, it’s like it doesn’t exist. It’s a complete lockout…” “If you don’t get it you have your career destroyed. If you do get it you have your body destroyed. And then everything they plan on doing there on down with it. And everything it represents, with biomedical state, track/trace, transhumanism... Dr. Colleen Huber: Neither Safe Nor Effective: The Evidence Against the COVID Vaccines (Cancer Researcher/Get eBook). 
• Sample Link: **Died Suddenly** Documentary featuring video of alien and deadly clots being pulled from arteries and bloods vessels during autopsies, surgeries and from a beating heat. Never before seen clots harming and killing large cross section of population after receiving MRNA “vaccines” and/or boosters. Devastating effects on US military and civilians. Extreme rise in prenatal death and birth defects among newborn. Cover up and collusion by. governments, health care and media industries. Great Reset agenda of elites through population reduction and control.

• Sample Link: Steve Deace: **The Thirty Tyrants** USA adopts China’s citizen control polices  
• Sample Link: Steve Deace: **Time To Start Believing In Conspiracy** Theories

• Sample Link: Steve Deace: **A Clarion Call Go On The Offensive** Interview with Dr. Peter McCullough
• Sample Link: Steve Deace: **8/24/22 The jobs/Dr. Ryan Cole**Excellent interview with Dr. Ryan Cole who is treated over 500,000 Covid patients and has impeccable credentials explaining the clot shots are extremely dangerous and genetically mutating. 

• Sample Link: Candice Owens: **George Floyd was a Criminal (Facts)**
• Sample Link: Matt Walsh: **Episode 571: 9/24/20 Summary of BLM "Martyrs"** 
• Sample Link: Matt Walsh: **It’s officially time for BLM to be labeled a domestic terror group.** DNC comments:
• Sample Link: Matt Walsh: **When the media says unarmed black shootings:** Actual case by case review
• Sample Link: Matt Walsh: **Police Shooting Stats:**

• Sample Link: **Crimes or Cover Up** Glen Beck Exposing The Worlds Most Dangerous Lie:  History of C19 conspiracy with dates and facts. 

• Sample Link: Ben Shapiro **Daily Wire. Episode 1159 is entitled, Do You Speak Woke?** 

• Sample Link: Matt Walsh: **Episode 727: The Evil Quacks Mutating Our Children**: Reviews Irreversible Damage The Gender Craze Seducing Our Daughters by Abigail Schreier
• **Transgender Craze Seducing America**: interview with the author Abigail Schreier: Chowchilla prison article

• Sample Link: **Dinesh D'Souza** Author and filmmaker (2,000 Mules) Dr. Simone Gold, the founder of America's Frontline Doctors, tells us how she went from being a guest speaker at the Capitol on January 6 to facing a 60-day prison sentence for doing nothing.  
• Sample Link: **The Real Story of January 6th** Epoch Times New Investigative Report and Video: 
• Sample Link: **Jason Whitlock Fearless Blaze Media** Ep 124 | January 6: Little Lies Lead to Huge Deception | Kamala, Biden, AND Ted Cruz ALL Get It Wrong
• Sample Link:  Matt Walsh: **Might Be Time For A National Divorce:**

• Sample Link: **Texas Tribune Arrests along U.S.-Mexico border top 2 million a year for the first time.** https://www.texastribune.org/2022/09/19/u-s-mexico-border-arrests-record-2022/amp/
• Sample Link: **Tucker Carlson Battle For The Border**

• Sample Link: **CDC Fentanyl Facts** 
• Sample Link: **Carfentanil is a synthetic opioid approximately 10,000 times more potent than morphine and 100 times more potent than fentanyl.**
• Sample Link: **National Institue on Drug Science 92,000 persons in the U.S. died from drug-involved overdose in 2020.**

• Sample Link: **Blaze Media current odds are 1/178 an American resident will be murdered during their lifetime.**

• Sample Link: **Tucker Carlson Insane policies, energy and fuel crises.**
• Sample Link: **Daniel Horowitz The Only Ones Who Can Save Democrats Are Republicans and Diesel Shutdown.**

• Sample Link: **Steve Deace 12 Republicans who voted for the so-called "Respect for Marriage Act."**
• Sample Link: **Daniel Horowitz The Only Ones Who Can Save Democrats Are Republicans and Diesel Shutdown.**

• Sample Link: **Washington Post President Biden declares MAGA Republicans represent extreme and/or greatest threat to US.**
• Sample Link: **Fox News President Biden twice threatens Second Amendment supporters with F15's.**

• Sample Link:  **Monopoly: Who Owns The World**
• Sample Link:  **Great Reset Introduction** Prager U interview with author and commentator Glenn Beck
  

• Sample Link: Eric Metaxas: **Letter to the American Church** Eric Metaxas wrote the definitive 24 hr audiobook biography on Bonhoeffer. His point is the American church is letting unprecedented evil arise and will perish today if we fail to respond to Bonhoeffer’s warning against cheep grace to the German church. 
• Sample Link: Steve Deace: **3/8/22  Americans: A Very Serious People**. (We are the problem. Including republicans & Ukraine is the new Covid).
• Sample Link: Steve Deace: **3/13/22 Weekend Of American Debauchery** (Hopeless…)
• Sample Link: Steve Deace: **8/3/22 The People Are The Problem** (There are no red states)
• Sample Link: Steve Deace: **8/9/22 We’re Quickly Running Out Of Time** Crossing A Line: DOJ - FBI Raid on Trumps House. Coming for you...
• Sample Link: Steve Deace: **11/30/22 Woker and Broker** Day after 22 Senate Republicans pass “Respect for Marriage” embedding Homosexual marriage while refusing religious liberty amendment. Excellent and correct end of podcast rant against politics. Daniel Horowitz interview.
• Sample Link: Steve Deace: **12/1/22 We’re the RHINOs** Now true state of Republicans. Extremely qualified Dr. James Thorp on corruption of OBGYN medicine.

• "Be honest in your judgment and do not decide at a glance (superficially and by appearances); but judge fairly and righteously." John 7:24 Amplified Bible, Classic Edition

• "But the spiritual man [the spiritually mature Christian] judges all things [questions, examines and applies what the Holy Spirit reveals], yet is himself judged by no one [the unbeliever cannot judge and understand the believer’s spiritual nature]. For who has known the mind and purposes of the Lord, so as to instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ [to be guided by His thoughts and purposes]." 1 Corinthians 2:15-16 Amplified Bible

• “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” Philippians 4:8 New International Version

With Hell to loose, and Heaven to gain, few questions in life are as important as where God draws the line in regards to Biblical Salvation. What does Scripture teach we must do to be saved? Is following Christ, the authentic Jesus, different in the the modern world than the 1st century?

When aboard a massive ocean liner, in certain respects it doesn’t seem as if you’re moving. Because you’re not, when judged by those around you aboard ship. To plot your course and speed, you need a waypoint off ship.

The same holds true for entire generations. There may be no sense of momentum, because we’re all aboard the same massive ocean liner. But actually, we may be moving at a rapid pace, into dangerous waters. Or in our case, questionable if not heretical doctrine and worldly lifestyles.

As noted above, few recognize the growing gap between 1st century Biblical Christianity and 21st century Modern Churchianity. Or even the requirements of salvation popularized by a pair of well known sermons by two of the primary architects of the 18th century First Great Awakening.

Jonathan Edwards’ Sinners In The Hands Of An Angry God may simultaneously be the most famous and infamous sermon of all time. Lightyears from the “cheap grace” of modern Christianity, it’s as interesting as it is a difficult read.

While not religiously correct, the God of the Bible is simultaneously awe-full and awful, and should be approached as such. While Churchianity considers itself exempt from judgment, Jesus and His apostles tell a different story.

Fully grasping the message and exacting meaning of this sermon is crucial if we are to recover even a fraction of what has been lost. Beginning by developing living faith rather than presumption, whereby we assume salvation rather than seeking and serving God acceptably by means of serious sanctification and radical discipleship. All necessary foundational requirements should we realistically hope to experience Biblical Revival, much less Kingdom Reformation, in our generation.

Instead of reading GodBlog's classic 18th Century version, we highly recommend downloading "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God: Updated to Modern English Kindle Edition" by Jason Dollar. It can be read for $2.99 on any device by downloading the Kindle app or simply on the Amazon cloud. It is a far easier and meaningful read when updated into modern language and format. The author also includes a balanced introduction and second sermon entitled "Love The Sum Of All Virtue" to present Jonathan Edwards in a more accurate light.

Nevertheless, reader be warned. When Edwards uses the phrase “Born Again” in the 18th century, it is not with the same flippancy as in the 21st, whereby we erroneously grant blessing to have our cake and eat it too. Doctrinally justifying continuing our pursuit of the Christian/American Dream, while living mostly worldly lives.

To understand the difference, you will need a sermon by his contemporary, John Wesley, founder of the once puritan Methodist Church, entitled "The Almost Christian.”

Another crucial consideration is that of the Cruise Vs. Battleship analogy. While you won't find it taught in seminaries or churches, Conflict Theology is actually the underlying context of Scripture. Widely recognized for nearly two thousand years, the modern world long ago changed course, sailing far from puritanical definitions of repentance and morality, faith and discipleship and sanctification and holiness. The result has been the nearly wholesale substitution of assumed salvation for repentance, presumption for faith and inappropriate worship for sanctification.

Decades old, the increase of temptation and deception, has resulted in a devilishly cunning strategy of incrementalism that over time has all but uprooted millennia of spiritual and sociological gains. Part and parcel of the dramatic and disastrous deterioration in the Times and Seasons in which we live, and vastly worse on the horizon. Evidence of the spirit of the Antichrist terraforming the entire planet for the beginning of Divine judgment and Great Tribulation.

If Christianity’s a cruise ship, sailing merrily from here to Heaven, then certainly Christ’s costly atonement is more than sufficient passage. The cross of Jesus is indeed all anyone could ever need. If however, Heaven and Earth are at war with fallen angels and devils, Christianity is a battleship and we must follow our Commander and Chief’s example and directives by daily shouldering our own.

Even if Christianity could be likened to a pleasure cruise, given Churchianity’s collision course with so many modern temptations and deceptions, up to an including immorality and the blood red mountainous iceberg of abortion, in certain respects might even many well intended ministries be reduced to simply arranging deck chairs on the Titanic?

So is Christianity a cruise or gunship? We must decide. And do so quickly and carefully. Military directives and drills, cramped quarters and sea rations, would be absurd on a pleasure cruise. So too, civilian itineraries and activities, opulent suites and sumptuous banquets, would be anathema during a time of war.

Click here to read QC's parable, "Water World: Cruise Vs. Battleship."

Much has been lost and our situation dire. Nevertheless, QC dares to hope against hope that while as in the account of Christ's debut miracle at the wedding feast of Cana, we have clearly run out of wine, still today Mary's perfect intercession, through timely and appropriate brokenness and repentance, yields insight as to how we may yet find Jesus has once again saved the best for last.

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