33. The Way Home To God

In John 14:6, the Lord Jesus Christ makes a universal statement of truth in answer to a disciple:

"I am the way, the truth and the life. No man cometh unto the Father but by me."

That's pretty sacrosanct - for those of you from Miami-Dade County, Florida, that means "there's no two ways about it". Not what you would call ambiguous. He didn't beat around because he was the final authority for that day and time; the ultimate embodiment of the Truth, God's Word.
Popular dogma is that Jesus Christ is not The Way to God, the Father, but another god, or one of three gods, and salvation, eternal life and other "merits" are parceled out through man-made, religious bureaucracy according to one's "good works". John 3:16 says "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." Not only do the familiar terms of "father" and "son" connote one has authority over the other, but that the latter could not exist without the former. Also, if God had intended the life which is more than abundant to be a slave trade, it seems illogical from the Word's perspective that He would have given up the most precious thing He had for it and contradicted Himself in the process!

"For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself, The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand,
Until I make thy foes thy footstool.
Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ."
- Acts 2:34-36

We note here Jesus did not make himself Lord and Christ, but became that Way by God's power and providence; by the authority by which God spoke the universe into existence...A power among others He has committed unto all His children through Christ (Matthew 28:18, John 14:12).

"Now in the morning as he returned into the city, he hungered.
And when he saw a fig tree in the way, he came to it, and found nothing thereon, but leaves only, and said unto it, Let no fruit grow on thee henceforward forever. And presently the fig tree withered away.
And when the disciples saw it, they marvelled, saying, How soon is the fig tree withered away.
Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done unto the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, be thou removed and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done.
And whatsoever things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive."
- Matthew 21:18-22

A lot of religious folks who should know better brand this "hyper-faith" or foolishness. It's always to the political advantage of those who instruct same to keep them in as much doubt, confusion and speculation as possible. If God cared enough about something to teach it in His Word, from the lips of His own Son, we aught to wise up, pay particular attention and take note...Especially since it's the same principle by which anyone can become born again:

"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.
For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation."
- Romans 10:9 & 10

Twenty-six years ago today I took God up on that offer and got on The Way home. Faithfulness is realizing where you've strayed and coming home, getting back on the Path to deliverance, power & might. The mercy and truth manifest by God's love and power and declared throughout His Word makes the believing Believer whole...The only question remaining, is that in John 5:6
"Wilt thou be made whole?"

32. The God Of All Comfort

The more we know, by experience and proof, The Word, the more we know it's Author. The more we know the God of the Bible; the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the more the Believer is comforted, regardless of worldly circumstances! The greatest comfort in life is believing the Truth of the Word of Almighty God:

"Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort;
Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God."
- 2 Corinthians 1:3&4

We grow strong in The Word and our believing of it, and in the courses of life we come across others with whom we share the great Truths which have built and made us strong.
As the Word becomes the basis by which a Believer thinks, chooses and acts, he is enabled to edify the Household of God by bringing new believers into same, and operating the manifestations of Holy Spirit.

"Follow after charity, and desire spiritual gifts (literally, spiritual matters or the spiritual), but rather that ye may prophesy.
For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh not unto men, but unto God: for no man understandeth him, howbeit in the Spirit he speaketh mysteries.
But he that prophesieth speaketh unto men to edification, and exhortation, and comfort."
- 1 Corinthians 14:1-3

I hasten to add that one can read the entire context of 1 Corinthians 12-14 and never read anything where the Believer is encouraged to jump up and down, scream and shout, jump over pews, swing from the rafters, roll all over the floor &c. Empty-headed-emotionalism and its inherent foolishness are not part of operating the manifestations "decently and in order" (1 Corinthians 14:40), so it's not at all surprising they were introduced by the women who concocted and launched the modern charismatic/"Penny-cost-all" strain within denominational religion, giving birth to more foolishness in the dogma of salvation-maintained-by-WASP-CULTure-adherence, or saved today, lost tomorrow "IF YOU DON'T (insert constriction here)!!!" It certainly imparts no comfort to those attending the meeting in hopes of being built up and inspired! When the manifestations of Holy Spirit are operated properly, it is a blessing and inspiration to the Body of believers.

"But Jesus turned him about, and when he saw her, he said Daughter, be of good comfort; (a figure of speech that literally means set your thoughts in order/your mind at ease on this point;) thy faith hath made thee whole. And the woman was made whole from that hour."
- Matthew 9:22

The greatest healing reality in life is the Word of God. When we believe it, we're believing Him. It allows us to "be of good comfort" by setting our minds at ease with clarity and truth! Practical examples abound in the old testament, including the gospels, where Jesus Christ not only showed the grace and power of God through many infallible proofs, but told His disciples they would do the same and greater (John 14:12).

"For whatsoever things were written aforetime (before the day of Pentecost, the birthday of the church of the body of Christ; the Household of God) were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope."
- Romans 15:4

There is much more in the Word for the edification of men and women than for their destruction. We often only get to hear the tearing-down parts from the pulpits of religion (man-made forms of worship) but God has proclaimed great resources and benefits of spiritual truth. It's only those who dare to believe them that get to see themselves as a living, working part of it.

"The Spirit of the LORD God is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;
To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;"
- Isaiah 61:1&2

Believing does not guarantee us a charmed life. It does equip us with the resources and ability to live above disappointments and issues. If we live long enough in this world, those we love are going to depart it. Instead of leaving one in a state of powerlessness, mourning and fear regarding those who "fall asleep" in or outside the Household, God's Word assures the Believer of Christ's return, and that because He conquered death, we have been made super-conquerors (Romans 8:37).

"But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also that sleep in Jesus will God bring with (raise like) him.
For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent (precede) them which are asleep
For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
Wherefore comfort one another with these words."
- 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

We may lose a battle here and there in this world, but there's great comfort in knowing the greatest competition has already been won, and that victory over the adversary is sure, for in Christ, the God and Father of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ has already made certain and secure our redemption!

31. Serving The Lord With Gladness

WARNING: You may encounter something on this blog/in this post that "rubs your fur the wrong way": At that point you should at least consider the all-too possibility the cat needs to turn around!

Yes, it is available:

"Serve the LORD with gladness: Come before his presence with singing."
- Psalm 100:2

This command has some corresponding, documented obedience in our administration; in our day and time, and it wasn't meant to end in the first century. Toward the end of Acts 2, which documents the beginning of the church, God's Word testifies of the believers:

"And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart,
Praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved."
- Acts 2:46&47

Their gladness was a result of the fellowship they had with God first, and also with one another. Gladness is also a result of received deliverance and answer to prayers. In Acts 12:1-15 is a record of persecution against God's Household where Peter was delivered from the hand and harm of Herod by the intervention of an angel. His return to the body of Believers brought gladness.

"And there sat a certain man at Lystra, impotent in his feet, being a cripple from his mother's womb, who had never walked:
The same heard Paul speak: who steadfastly beholding him, and perceiving that he had faith to be healed,
Said with a loud voice, Stand upright upon thy feet. And he leaped and walked.
And when the people saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying in the speech of Lycaonia, The gods are come down to us in the likeness of men.
And they called Barnabas, Jupiter; and Paul, Mercurius, because he was the chief speaker.
Then the priest of Jupiter, which was before their city, brought oxen and garlands unto the gates, and would have done sacrifice with the people.
Which when the apostles, Barnabas and Paul, heard of, they rent their clothes, and ran in among the people, crying out,
And saying, Sirs, why do ye these things? We also are men of like passions with you, and preach unto you that ye should turn from these vanities unto the living God, which made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all things that are therein;
Who in times past suffered all nations to walk in their own ways.
Nevertheless he left not himself without witness, in that he did good, and gave us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness.
And with these sayings scarce restrained they the people, that they had not done sacrifice unto them."
- Acts 14:8-18

Here in the midst of an outreach situation, the response was religion rather than reality, so Paul got everyone on the same page by proclaiming the gladness the TRUE God brings. In the old testament, gladness is mentioned many times in conjunction with joy, the second fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22, 23). It's the joy of believing the Word that establishes and gives us strength; it's knowing and acting upon the Truth that results in gladness

"Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows."
- Hebrews 1:9

There's that "singleness of heart" spoken of before. Contrary to the adversary and his world's portrayal of things, Life More Abundant consists of serving the Lord with gladness!

30. The Fountain Of Living Waters

WARNING: You may encounter something on this blog/in this post that "rubs your fur the wrong way": At that point you should at least consider the all-too possibility the cat needs to turn around!

The Word of God confronts a serious issue with which we have to deal on a constant basis everyday:

"For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water."
- Jeremiah 2:13

Vanity and egotism are powerful motivators, and the adversary never fails to make avail of them. I spent most of the day in the working company of a very nice, unsaved gentleman who has been taught, as most nominal Christians have, that one can "brown nose" one's way into heaven. Usually accompanying this dogma are the same, tired old traditions of men about three gods and life after death; that there's "one, true and only church" and it's something you go to and play everyday (where you take your spiritual "dump", so to speak) instead of something you are. I like good, kind, moral people. The sad fact is, all too many of them are whizzing their lives away in broken cisterns like that, enabling evil with altruism under the tutelage of spiritualism.
Going through all the motions, jumping through hoops on cue are generally the product of doing all the right things for all the wrong reasons. We can be ever so prim and polished, have all our WASP CULT-ure morays in place and everything, but if the only motivation is to look good as a precursor to getting what you selfishly want out of "god" or someone else, it's the world that's being obeyed and followed, not the rightly-divided Word.

"There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death."
- Proverbs 16:25

For the majority of people, the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free (Galatians 5:1) is not what they desire, but rather a program, a regimen or a liturgy. They want someone else to do their thinking for them and tell them in detail what to do from sunrise to sunset, and from cradle to grave. It's manifest from our socialist politics to our collectivist FOOL-osophies, to especially, our spiritualist, pseudo-Christian religions, and it looks very good...Feels good too, in some cases. And good it is, but it's not the best.
It has accomplished little but producing the societal equivalent of byubonic plague: Full of breeding and culture no one can tolerate.
It was that way in the world of Jesus Christ's time, so he warned his disciples of the crossroads, exhorting them to choose God's Word over man's:

"Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:
Because straight is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it."
- Matthew 7:13 & 14

"Few there be that find it" because all that look-alike counterfeit crap is cluttering up The Way!!! My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge (Hosea 4:6) and in many cases, that lack of knowledge is due to willful ignorance, rejection of The Word in favor of a comfortable pablum heresy. Contrary to the comfortable, popular ease of worldly, armchair, pseudo-Christianity, God's call to His Sons remains the same today as it was in the first century:

"To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me."
- Acts 26:18

When you know the Truth, you can operate the Power of God and truly make a difference in your life and in those of others, and God's Word is the fountain of living waters: It washes away confusion and doubt and brings clarity and substance to the lives of men and women who dare to believe it. That's life more abundant!

29. Living More Abundant In God's Peace

WARNING: You may encounter something on this blog/in this post that "rubs your fur the wrong way": At that point you should at least consider the all-too possibility the cat needs to turn around!

Anyone following the headlines more faithfully than God's matchless Word certainly has cause to be troubled! With the economic gloom and doom has come much religious prediction - predictably - of the end of the world (Gee, how novel!). Well, here at home, we'll just stoke up on Truth and keep the believing fire burning, because God's power and authority are greater in the Believer than that of the god of this world (1 John 4:4). Believing Truth disciplines our minds for victory!

"Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee."
- Isaiah 26:3

We don't have to be tossed to and fro in our minds, and carried about by every wind of doctrine by the slight of men and cunning craftiness by which they lie in wait to deceive (Ephesians 4:14) because God speaks to the Believer - not the hoper, thinker or guesser - the sound foundation of Word on which we can pray, plan and act to find deliverance.

"These things have I spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."
- John 16:33

"That ye might have peace" indicates the peace is conditional, cotingent upon whether or not we discipline our thinking to The Word. Tribulation is going to be in the world because of mankind unknowingly or willfully rejecting the Word and reaping the consequences. Ralph Waldo Emerson said "Nothing can give you peace in life like the triumph of principle," and this is a true statement. Jesus Christ overcame the world by choosing day by day and moment by moment to hold fast the Word God showed Him.

"Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,
According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust."
- 2 Peter 1:2-4

It's the knowledge of God that gives the victory in life, so...Is biblical research worth it? It's like mining a vein of pure gold! You end up with what your mind was always designed to think, instead of the lies and propaganda that tear it apart. Ever wonder why God gave you a brain (Why you're different from a dog, a cow, a herd of cattle, or even a chimpanzee)? It's because you have the ability to think, and therefore believe. This Word of God is the owner's manual for the human mind, and you own one - free and clear! We can't control the circumstances around us, but we can navigate through and control our responses to them with our thinking and confession lined up to the Truth.

"Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
And the peace of God which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things."
- Philippians 4:6-8

Knowing the right thing to do doesn't guarantee one will do it. Once we have The Way to go, we need to make use of it faithfully to see the benefits; the promised end come to pass. The least common denominator holding us back is fear, and fear is always wrong, once we know the Word. If we believe, and are faithful to come back to believing when and where we don't, God can work for us, and we can for Him:

"For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind."
- 2 Timothy 1:7

28. Bridging The Reality Gap

WARNING: You may encounter something on this blog/in this post that "rubs your fur the wrong way": At that point you should at least consider the all-too possibility the cat needs to turn around!

Some have said it's as small as 18 inches (the approximate, average distance from the brain to the heart).
In politics, it can best be measured in light-years!
The reality gap is the distance between knowing and believing. In certain areas of my own life, it's infinitesimal. In others, it's a good bit of space. Everyone has doubt and uncertainty, and when it comes to processing sense-knowledge information - especially what we're fed by the propaganda machinemedia outlets - one is best to keep them handy! When it comes to the rightly-divided Word however, they can be a huge stumbling block.

"But the natural man receiveth not the things of the spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned."
1 Corinthians 2:14

Anything you or I were ever blessed to know and learn of God's Word came to us because God worked within us to will and do of His good pleasure, enabling our receiving it with meekness (Philippians 2:13). God has His hand on the lives of His kids, even before they're born again (John 6:44 & 65)! We choose to believe, because God chose us before the foundation of the ages.

"All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I shall in no wise cast out."
- John 6:37

This remarkable verse sets forth succinctly not only the simple interplay of God's foreknowledge and man's freewill, but the utter folly of the dogma of saved-today-lost-tomorrow-"IF YOU DON'T (place WASP CULTure idiot-syncracy here)!!!" Lots of denominational religious preachers will spew forth today hellfire and damnation against Clay Aiken for example, because he flipped out...I mean "came out" last week. All that proves is just because someone gets born again (Romans 10:9&10) doesn't necessarily mean they renew their mind to the rest of the Word (Romans 12:1&2). In most churches, they are very fortunate to get enough Word to believe to get born again, and then some alleged "minister" is trying to take that away from them right and left...What a crock, and it doesn't take much more than a good sniff to tell what it's full of (Give you a hint: It ain't the Holy Ghost)!
People, we live in a fallen world, in the midst of a corrupt and perverse nation, and almost everything coming at us is engineered to drive us by fear or instant gratification to develop habits that contradict the Word and Will of God. Nevertheless, God's grace and love are as great as His power, and He's given us space to repent; to make up our minds to go from knowing The Truth to believing, and therefore, living it!

"Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near.
Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon."
- Isaiah 55:6&7

This was written in the Old Testament, long before Christ had died for our sins and God had raised Him. Whenever The Word is available, it's available to seek God by Way of it. Make hay while the sun shines. Strike while the iron's hot.
He's calling out the faithful here, and all faithful means is, you keep bringing yourself back to The Truth until you believe it solidly. Losers who refuse to accept defeat and keep fighting, eventually become winners.
Salvation is for lost sinners. Confession of sins and mercy are for saved ones (1 John 1:9)! Then we get back to work on ourselves with The Word, where sound mindedness and deliverance lies; back to changing our thinking, and therefore, our confession and believing.
If it was easy everyone would be doing it, but it's the very fact it isn't that makes it worthwhile!

27. The Power In Knowing Truth

WARNING: You may encounter something on this blog or even in this post that "rubs your fur the wrong way": At that point you should at least consider the all-too possibility the cat needs to turn around!

Just like "money is the root of all evil", we often hear it said "the truth shall make you free"; another classic mis-quote of Scripture. The truth does nothing of the kind, it's the knowledge of the truth that liberates. As proof of this, let's examine the Source to see how verse and context illuminate.

"Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."
- John 8:31&32

The Lord Jesus Christ is speaking to the Judeans who believed on Him unto this point to let them know that just a one-time mental assenting to the Word of God incarnate was not enough. They needed to be meek and stay meek to what would be revealed later. If they did that, they would be true disciples, because they would know by test, by experience, that what they were taught was the truth.
The Greek word for "know" in John 8:32 is ginosko it implies wisdom, or experiential understanding of a concept.
Anyone whose been through a really good, hands-on vocational school knows their training by experience. When I took machining in college, we didn't just sit around and read books. If I wanted to prove I knew what I had learned, there were projects that had to be completed and turned on actual lathes and presses. So it is with knowing the truth of the Word, if one ever wants to have power and impact, or get to the place where one can be in the right place at the right time to make a difference.
Here I'm going to present three points, which - if applied - will serve you flawlessly in experiencing the power of knowing the truth. As mentioned in previous posts, the simple key is believing; the more detailed ridges and cuttings of that key are obedience. Believing obedience (self-discipline) requires three things:
1. Believe the Word.
2. Confess the Word.
3. Act on the Word you believe and confess.
Confessing and believing are what got us born again to begin with! This same process programs us for success or failure from the beginning of our lives to the end. It works for saint and sinner alike, because what we agree upon in our belief and confession eventually becomes manifest in our actions and what we attract in our lives. Read that again: Our attitude and whether or not we experience Life More Abundant, hangs on what we habitually confess and believe.
Earl Nightingale said "A person with a poor attitude becomes a magnet for unpleasant experiences. When these experiences come, they tend to reinforce his poor attitude, thus bringing more problems, and so on."
Your attitude is based directly on what you habitually confess with your mouth, and believe in your heart!

"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.
For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation."
- Romans 10:9&10

As salvation operates, so does the rest of the Word. That's why it is so crucial to rightly-divide The Word of truth (2 Timothy 2:15) and shun private interpretation (2 Peter 1:20&21), as it provides the "what" and the "how" to right believing. It's fairly easy to find out where your believing attitude is: What do you think about most of the time, when you don't have to think about anything else (Luke 6:45)? What's the first thing you think about in the morning? What's the last thing you think about before you go to bed? This is your attitude; your mental home-page and spiritual base-position. On this foundation hinge all your actions - whether you're aware of it or not.

"We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak;"
- 2 Corinthians 4:13

Some have learned these first two principles, and use them greatly to achieve monumental things in the senses realm. Most people are completely unaware of them and how they interact for good or ill, and therefore manifest a syncopated, disjointed existence: They drift on aimlessly through the world, or live from fear to fear, constantly seeking sanctuary or security instead of the walk of spiritual power and Divinely-ordained authority that only believing God's Word can provide.
Now, we're going to move to the third point. This is the stage many never reach, but for those who do, the rewards are exponential and endless as well as eternal:

"And herein I give my advice: for this is expedient for you, who have begun before, not only to do, but also to be forward a year ago.
Now therefore perform the doing of it, that as there was a readiness to will, so there may be a performance out of that which ye have.
For if there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man hath, and not according to that he hath not."
- 2 Corinthians 8:10-12

It's fitting that this passage is not only in a reproof epistle, but the same reproof epistle. Believing and confessing the Word help us set ourselves for victory, but unless we act upon the truth we know, that "setting" (willingness of heart) eventually dissipates. Believe, confess, act, Paul's saying...And by the Way, you don't have forever, so stop dawdling. Get on with it!

"Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness ("abundance of destructive evil" is the literal translation - the end result of belief and confession of error), and receive with meekness the engrafted word which is able to save your souls.
But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:
For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.
But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed."
- James 1:21-25

"Filthiness" in verse 21 could be rendered confusion; the result of no alignment of belief and confession. This passage deals with failing to even take the first step in disciplining oneself to truth. It goes on into confession and its role, but the point is, once you believe and confess the rightly-divided Word, you have to make it your own with action, and run to serve.
So the great power in knowing spiritual Truth is in believing it, confessing it to yourself and in prayer, then acting upon the Word you believe, and therefore speak. Simple concepts. Maybe not so simple to apply in every category, but as we make the effort, we see the results in a life which is more than abundant with God's blessings!

26. Family Matters

WARNING: You may encounter something on this blog/in this post that "rubs your fur the wrong way": At that point you should at least consider the all-too possibility the cat needs to turn around!

Crucial issues have kept us away from the keyboard here, but safe to say, our work is not done, and we shall be returning to it with zeal and fervor (between football games, of course) as the Summer winds down and Autumn ramps up.
We're going to be exploring in detail what I like to refer to as The Great Spiritual Law, or what Earl Nightingale called "the strangest secret", as it works for saint and sinner alike.
Details forthcoming.

25. Biblical Principles To Which Workmen Must Adhere

WARNING: You may encounter something on this blog/in this post that "rubs your fur the wrong way": At that point you should at least consider the all-too possibility the cat needs to turn around!

Some of this has been stated before, but it is essential to rightly dividing the Word of Truth, so consider well this review.

1. ADMINISTRATIONS (To Whom The Word Is Addressed):
An administration can be understood as periods of time on God's timetable governed by certain policies and spiritual truths.
The same introductory truths set forth in the Paradise Administration - the time when the first man and woman tended the garden of Eden; From the Creation to the Fall of Man - do not at all apply to the Law Administration, from Moses until Christ.
2. UNDERSTAND DIFFICULT VERSES IN LIGHT OF CLEAR.
This cannot be stressed enough! The part of the denominational religious world that calls itself "Christian" bases most of its doctrine on bits and pieces of the difficult verses, or Word not addressed to this Administration...It's easier to accommodate spiritualism that way.
3. APPLICATION - LET ALONE INTERPRETATION - is ALWAYS with respect to whom addressed.
For example, it would be inappropriate - to say nothing of inconvenient - for us as Believers to sacrifice bulls and sheep...Even most of modern Jewry acknowledges this as common sense.

24. The Word Interprets Itself In Prior Usage

WARNING: You may encounter something on this blog/in this post that "rubs your fur the wrong way": At that point you should at least consider the all-too possibility the cat needs to turn around!

If neither the words of the Word in the verse, nor the verse itself are clear, nor again the context, prior usage becomes helpful in resolving difficult-to-understand Scripture. The first usage of a word, phrase or expression usually conveys the essential meaning, and if a meaning changes, one can find the expanded meaning by tracing the word through its usages (for which concordances are available).
As an example, we're going to explore one of the most privately interpreted (2 Peter 1:20) passages of Holy Writ ever:

"And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.
For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me.
And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me."
Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: For when I am weak, then am I strong."
- 2 Corinthians 12:7-10

Paul's thorn in the flesh has been a thorn in the flesh for guess-working atheo-illogians for centuries, now. I'm just about certain that whatever private interpretation comes up, it's almost always something the speculator himself is dealing with. And the gambit runs all the way from bad eyesight to foot problems. The scariest one was when I heard some Jesuit say Paul was a pervert! Uh, yeah...right: God just happened to pick a pederast to write all the revelation directly to the first-century Church, and training for its leaders. These people might be sincere and well-meaning in their endeavors, but sincerity is no guarantee for truth...I've never been hoodwinked or flim-flammed by the insincere, it's the sincerely deceived who have always managed to deceive. Here's a radical thought: Let's check prior usage of the phrase and leave speculations and other private interpretation by the side of the road, with the other horse-apples!

"But if ye will not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you; then it shall come to pass, that those which ye let remain of them, shall be pricks in your eyes and thorns in your sides, and shall vex (trouble, disturb) you in the land wherein ye dwell."
- Numbers 33:55

"Know for a certainty, that the LORD your God will no more drive out any of these nations from before you; but they shall be snares and traps unto you, and scourges in your sides, and thorns in your eyes, until ye perish off this good land which the LORD your God hath given you."
- Joshua 23:13 (See also Judges 2:3)

One of the fronts of the adversary against God's Household is other people. Evil associations corrupt good manners. If you hang around folks with ticks long enough, pretty soon, you're going to wind up with them, too. Take a look at Romans 9:1-5, and you'll discover Paul was too close to the people that hated God's Word; who had been shown the truth time and time again, and time and again rejected it (2 Chronicles 36:15 & 16, Acts 7:50-53 13:45 & 46, 18:6). When Believers are too closely associated to radical unbelievers, even if they are religious, disastrous consequences can result. This preoccupation with attempting to share the Word with those hardened in heart against it resulted in numerous whippings, punishments and imprisonment (2 Corinthians 11:24-26). Spiritually speaking, unrequited affection is usually a prime indicator that one's affection is misplaced. In the book of Acts, starting at 19:21 and going to the end of the record, you see in excruciating detail the terrible consequences that befell this great Apostle for this misplaced affection. "After these things were ended"...What things? Read the verse before it: The Word no longer mightily grew and prevailed, because the man in charge was no longer there to be the catalyst of its movement.
In summation, Paul's thorn in the flesh, by prior usage, can be determined to be other people he thought he could reach with the truth, who hated it, and persecuted him vehemently for it.

23. The Bible Interprets Itself In The Context

WARNING: You may encounter something on this blog/in this post that "rubs your fur the wrong way": At that point you should at least consider the all-too possibility the cat needs to turn around!

Knowing first that no prophecy (nothing told forth by, or foretold) of Scripture is of any private interpretation (2 Peter 1:20 & 21), if you master this simple context key to the Word's interpretation of itself, you will successfully immunize yourself against most traditional heresies, ethical fads and designer doctrines of our day.
God not only wants His sons to be saved, but to come to the practical understanding of the whole truth (1 Timothy 2:3&4). This requires that we not be ignorant of the adversary's devices (2 Corinthians 2:11) and separate truth from error (1 John 4:6).
The only thing that separates truth from error is the rightly-divided Word.
Perhaps the best example of the Word interpreting itself in context is in Matthew:

"Another parable put he forth unto them, saying The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field:
But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way.
But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also.
So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou so good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares?
He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?
But he said, Nay, lest when ye gather up the tares, you root up also the wheat with them.
Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say unto the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn."
- Matthew 13:24-30

You can read this passage time and again, and the parable will not reveal what the good seed is. This comes further along, in context:

"Then Jesus sent the multitude away, and went into the house: and his disciples came unto him, saying, Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field.
He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man;
The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one,
The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels."
- Matthew 13:36-39

If the interpretation is not clear by way of the words of the verses, or the verse itself, the next step is to check the context. Let's look at some verses commonly quoted out of context and find out if they really mean what religion has spun them to mean. One in particular that's oft quoted at funerals. Some faithful disciple of the congregation has fallen asleep and is awaiting the return, and the alleged "minister" at the lectern starts propounding some fantasia about harps, halos and floating around in the sky, pausing only to whip out

"...God is not the God of the dead, but of the living."
- Matthew 22:32

The saint's body is lying in the casket...Everybody can see he's dead, and yet they're led to believe he's alive, somehow. What about the context?

"The same day came to him the Sadduccees, which say that there is no resurrection, and asked him,
Saying, Master, Moses said, if a man die, having no children, his brother shall marry his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother.
Now there were with us seven brethren: and the first, when he had married a wife, deceased, and, having no issue, left his wife unto his brother:
Likewise the second also, and the third, unto the seventh.
And last of all the woman died also.
Therefore in the resurrection, whose wife shall she be of the seven, for they all had her.
Jesus answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God.
For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage but are as the angels of God in heaven.
But as touching the resurrection of the dead, have ye not read that which was spoken unto you by God, saying.
I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living."
- Matthew 22:23-32

I've italicized the words that give away the true subject of the passage. So we begin to see what a crucial tool context is in separating truth from error: The only "life after death" that can be legitimately claimed as of the Scripture is in the resurrections, or when the dead in Christ are raised at His return! Death is not a permanent state, but it's not an instant ticket to Heaven or Hell either.
What about when missionaries come to church, usually during a revival, and build their entire message around

"Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost part of the earth for thy possession."

Oblivious to the reality of the context

"Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel."
- Psalm 2:8&9

Inappropriate, to say the least! And if you thought that was the most amazing thing you never saw in context, let's go to one of the most popular one-verse-doctrines taught today:

"And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it."
- Matthew 16:18

Catholics say it's Peter. Protestants say it's Jesus. Let's check the context:

"He (Jesus) saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am?
Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou Simon Barjona; for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in Heaven."
- Matthew 16:15-17

Peter heard the Word pertaining to Jesus Christ and believed. When you and I make an unqualified commitment to be workmen who need not be ashamed by rightly-dividing the Word, laying aside private interpretation, God is able and willing to reveal in-depth spiritual truths and principles to us, so we may believe also (Galatians 1:11&12). The rightly-divided Word of God, the revelation without private interpretation, is the foundation of the church.
These are but a few examples of how the Word interprets itself in context.

22. The Bible Interprets Itself In The Verse

WARNING: You may encounter something on this blog/in this post that "rubs your fur the wrong way": At that point you should at least consider the all-too possibility the cat needs to turn around!

It's safe to say - at a conservative estimate - 85% of The Word interprets itself in the verse. It's what Thomas Jefferson would have called self-evident truth. Like the STOP sign on the corner, it needs no interpretation, simply read it and believe it.
For example:

"In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth."
- Genesis 1:1

That is about as far removed from rocket science or brain surgery as you can get. If there's anything hard to understand about this verse, someone PLEASE point it out. Seems pretty cut-and-dried. The problem is not that the meaning is vague or obscured, but that we either have not read what was written or forgot what we read.

"Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."
- Matthew 11:28

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
- John 3:16

Not much left to speculate, ponder or consult commentaries or research references for, here. Thousands of verses are open and straight-forward like this. One issue few have addressed, is one must understand the words of the verse according to their usage at the time the translation was made. For example, the word "gay" used to mean happy and upbeat. Today it's almost exclusively associated with homosexuality, and the previous meaning has all but been forgotten. This is particularly key to understanding the King James, or 1611 Authorized Version. Words change their meaning and definition almost by the month anymore, so a translation going on 400 years old will require a bit of work to understand as opposed to one that was just completed...And don't even get me started on watered-down "paraphrase"s!

"Bring no more vain oblations; incense is an abomination unto me; the new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with; it is iniquity, even the solemn meeting."
- Isaiah 1:13

"I cannot away with" means "I can't stand it anymore". The context reveals the vanity and egotism of religion (man-made forms of worship). It was nothing more than a chore or ritual to the participants. Even though Israel had been given the proper methods and orthodoxy, it was all form and no substance because the adherents did not mean it, and it turned God's condescensio gut.

"And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God that ye may keep your own tradition."
- Mark 7:9

"Full well" means "with complete knowledge".

Since verses that are self-interpreting must be in harmony with all other Biblical references on the same topic, we have to understand the unclear ones in light of the clear. Take for example one of the few half-rendered verses in Scripture:

"And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
- Matthew 27:46

Observation and common sense tell us there's something the matter with this verse.
Whenever you see foreign words left in a verse, it tells you the translators could not really be certain how to render them. If allowed to stand as is, this verse contradicts John 10:30, 2 Corinthians 5:19, Colossians 2:9, Matthew 26:53 and countless other verses regarding the open, intimate, unshakable fellowship between the Lord Jesus Christ and God his Father. The foreign language is not Hebrew, but Aramaic and literally translated from the ancient Eastern text as "My God, my God, for this I was spared!" For what purpose? Your redemption and mine. This was the only-begotten Son of God. He had a dozen legions of angels at his beckoned call, and could have walked off that cross at any time. His love for us kept him there til it was accomplished. It was a cry of triumph, not defeat.
To recap: Most of Scripture interprets itself right in the verse. The words of the verses must be understood in light of their usage at the time of the translation, and difficult or unclear verses must be understood in light of the clear.