MITHRAISM: WORSHIP OF THE SUN GOD - THE RELIGION OF THE EMPEROR CONSTANTINE

CHOOSE TO HEAR THE TRUTH OR CONTINUE IN DECEPTION.

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.

Rev 12.9

 

 

Mithraism was predominately practiced in Rome in the fourth century and also by the emperor Constantine in 312 CE. Although Constantine “converted” to Christianity and made Christianity the religion of the Roman Empire, he never totally gave up Sun worship. In fact, he worshipped many gods just as the Romans had from the very beginning of the Empire centuries before.

The tenets of Mithraism are:
 

A celestial heaven and an infernal hell
A resurrection and a final judgment

Mithra (‘Light of the World’) descended from heaven, symbolized by the setting of the sun.

Mithra has redeemed mankind from sin by shedding his blood.

Purification through a ritualistic baptism in bull’s blood, becoming ‘born again’ into eternal life.

A communion of bread (a round wafer representing the sun, the monstrance in Catholic practice) and wine is taken.

The bread and wine are thought to turn into the actual body and blood of the bull.

Sunday is sacred and dedicated to the sun. Services are held with bells, candles, and praises. Several days of the week are named for Roman gods.

Holy people are depicted with haloes signifying the blessing of the sun.

The birthday of Mithra is celebrated on 25^th of December.

Easter is a high holy day of devotion to Mithra’s mother, the Queen of Heaven. The root of the word Easter is Ishtar, a pagan goddess.

At the end of his earthly mission, Mithra had a ‘last supper’ with 12 disciples.

Bishops/priests wear mitres, are called father, and are a brotherhood of eunuchs. The mitre is also the headwear of the Philistine Fish god Dagon.

The Mithraic ‘Holy Father’ wears a red cap and garment, a ring, and carries a shepherd’s staff. Many Catholic symbols are taken from various pagan religions and incorporated in the clothing and buildings at the Vatican.

An effigy on a cross is a symbol of Mithrasim.

Men worship Mithra: women worship his goddess mother the Queen of Heaven, Madonna, Our Lady, as well as a host of other names.

Mary, the mother of Jesus was not a perpetual virgin. She gave birth to many other children after she birthed Jesus. Matt 13.55 is merely one scripture that points this out clearly. Mary is venerated as the Perpetual Virgin, Mother of God, Madonna, Our Lady, and Queen of Heaven. These are all ancient pagan goddess titles. Mary is worshipped by many Roman Catholics in her own capacity as a co-redemptory with Christ--equal to Christ as a mediator between God and man. This is blatant idolatry--and Catholic tradition!

Similarities between Mithrasim and Roman Catholicism are striking!

Jesus said, “Salvation is of the Jews” in John 4.22. Our Christian faith is born out of Judaism. God is a spirit and those who worship Him must worship Him in spirit and truth. In Judaism there are to be no images of God. We worship in spirit. No statutes, no images, no other gods--only YHVH. The Roman religion violates all these with its many statutes, images, saints, and Mary worship. It is in effect practicing paganism.

The Catholic Church claims there is no salvation outside of the One True Church, meaning the Roman Catholic Church. Therefore, the Church has appropriated the salvation function of Messiah.

Roman Catholicism practices seven sacraments which must only be dispensed by a Roman Catholic priest. This is not Biblical. As a priesthood of believers, no person has spiritual authority over another. Jesus said, “Call no man father.” Matt 23.8-9

The assembly is a priesthood of believers that is self administered. 1 Tim 2.5. A celibate priesthood is an unbiblical concept. In Israelite society a man was not considered whole unless he was married and had a career. Perhaps the sexual problems in the church are a result of this unbiblical concept?

The Bible itself defines scripture as the books between and including Genesis to Malachi. (2 Tim 3.16) The only scrolls available to Jesus, the Apostles, and the early assembly are what we call the Old Testament. The New Testament was written late in the first century and became canon after the first century. Our heritage and proof of who Jesus is has been handed down to us by our Jewish brothers. They were given the task of writing and preserving the scriptures. The New Testament was written by Jews except for the two books Luke wrote. Paul preached Jesus from the O.T. scriptures. Every believer should be able to lead a person to Yeshua only using the O. T. , just as Paul the Apostle did.

The Roman Catholic Church claims that it created the Bible and has sole right to interpret it, stating: “Scripture and Church Tradition should be both accepted and honored equally.” In Mark 7.6-9 Jesus condemned this approach. Jesus always railed against the "traditions of men" in His ministry.

By the time the Council of Nicaea was held the Roman Church had commanded that anything Jewish was heretical and banned all things Jewish from the religion. They threw away their Hebraic roots (just as Esau threw away his birthright) and began to make their own traditions. Jesus was Romanized or ‘repackaged’ in name, appearance, clothing, and identity. In fact, Jesus was a Torah observant Jew who fulfilled the law and revealed to man how to please God. Now the Roman Church would dictate how to please God and do exactly what Jesus railed against the Pharisee’s and Sadducees for doing: creating and clinging to traditions of men, rather than obeying the Word of God.

Christmas and Easter are undeniably pagan festivals and even if they are ‘sanitized’ by ‘Christianizing’ they are still not prescribed by God. The Biblical Holy Days are described in Lev 23. It is not possible to ‘cleanse’ pagan rituals--they will always be an unclean mix of worship devoted to idols. Scripture clearly shows this attempt to sanitize is an abomination to God. Man made traditions conflict with pure worship. God abhors this type of mixture.

There is much more that can be said, but it is clear that the Roman Church has adopted many pagan practices, traditions of men, cast aside their Hebrew roots, and has become a temporal power with the look of spiritually. A close look at the scriptures requires a man to put away many traditions of men. Most will choose their traditions rather than seeking spiritual truth. Jesus was not about creating the temporal institutions of Christianity we now see. He was about an assembly of men and women who moved in the spirit and served God and each other. The Catholic and Protestant churches we see today are a far cry from what Jesus died for on the cross.

In the past God has "looked the other way" but as we approach the end of the age it is important to understand what God desires of us. The truth will make us uncomfortable at first but if we earnestly seek the Lord He will show us His way. The world is caught in a great deception. We are living in the fourth kingdom as revealed in Daniel 7.15-28. Times and laws (Dan 7.25) have already been changed by this fourth and final kingdom. He who has ears to hear and eyes to see will understand.

　

　

　
　

　

　

FIRST COUNCIL OF NICAEA

The first Council of Nicaea was when the church officially discarded their Hebraic Roots and began to embrace paganism.

The First Council of Nicaea was a council of Christian bishops convened in Nicaea in Bithynia (present-day İznik in Turkey) by the Roman Emperor Constantine I in AD 325. This first ecumenical council was the first effort to attain consensus in the church through an assembly representing all of Christendom.

Its main accomplishments were settlement of the Christological issue of the relationship of Jesus to God the Father, the construction of the first part of the Nicene Creed, settling the calculation of the date of Easter, and promulgation of early canon law.

EasterAnother result of the council was an agreement on when to celebrate Easter, the most important feast of the ecclesiastical calendar, decreed in an epistle to the Church of Alexandria in which is simply stated:

We also send you the good news of the settlement concerning the holy pasch, namely that in answer to your prayers this question also has been resolved. All the brethren in the East who have hitherto followed the Jewish practice will henceforth observe the custom of the Romans and of yourselves and of all of us who from ancient times have kept Easter together with you.
The first Sunday after the 1^st full moon after the spring equinox, not before March 22^nd."At the council we also considered the issue of our holiest day, Easter, and it was determined by common consent that everyone, everywhere should celebrate it on one and the same day. For what can be more appropriate, or what more solemn, than that this feast from which we have received the hope of immortality, should be kept by all without variation, using the same order and a clear arrangement? And in the first place, it seemed very unworthy for us to keep this most sacred feast following the custom of the Jews, a people who have soiled their hands in a most terrible outrage, and have thus polluted their souls, and are now deservedly blind. Since we have cast aside their way of calculating the date of the festival, we can ensure that future generations can celebrate this observance at the more accurate time which we have kept from the first day of the passion until the present time...." — Emperor Constantine, following the Council of NicaeaAs early as Pope Sixtus I, some Christians had set Easter to a Sunday in the lunar month of Nisan. To determine which lunar month was to be designated as Nisan, Christians relied on the Jewish community. By the later 3rd century some Christians began to express dissatisfaction with what they took to be the disorderly state of the Jewish calendar. They argued that contemporary Jews were identifying the wrong lunar month as the month of Nisan, choosing a month whose 14th day fell before the spring equinox. Christians, these thinkers argued, should abandon the custom of relying on Jewish informants and instead do their own computations to determine which month should be styled Nisan, setting Easter within this independently computed, Christian Nisan, which would always locate the festival after the equinox. They justified this break with tradition by arguing that it was in fact the contemporary Jewish calendar that had broken with tradition by ignoring the equinox, and that in former times the 14th of Nisan had never preceded the equinox. Others felt that the customary practice of reliance on the Jewish calendar should continue, even if the Jewish computations were in error from a Christian point of view. Constantine:"Resplendent in purple and gold, Constantine made a ceremonial entrance at the opening of the council, probably in early June, but respectfully seated the bishops ahead of himself." As Eusebius described, Constantine "himself proceeded through the midst of the assembly, like some heavenly messenger of God, clothed in raiment which glittered as it were with rays of light, reflecting the glowing radiance of a purple robe, and adorned with the brilliant splendor of gold and precious stones." He was present as an observer, and did not vote. Constantine organized the Council along the lines of the Roman Senate. Hosius of Cordoba may have presided over its deliberations; he was probably one of the Papal legates. Eusebius of Nicomedia probably gave the welcoming address.
Source: Wikipedia

A BRIEF HISTORY OF REPLACEMENT THEOLOGY IN THE CHUCH

321 CE - Constantine forbade work on the day of the sun. He worshipped the Sun god Mithras. Sunday was the “day of the Sun.”

325 CE - Council of Nicea - Easter must not coincide with the Jewish Passover. Constantine said: “We ought not then to have anything to do with the Jews, for the Saviour has shown us another way…we desire to separate ourselves from the detestable company of the Jews.”

341 CE - Antioch - Christians may not eat Passover with Jews. Christians may not enter a synagogue.

350 CE - Council of Laodicea - No Christian may share feasts or gifts from Jews a Christian feasts.

365 CE - Council of Laodicea - Banned keeping Jewish Sabbaths with the result of martyrdoms.

380 CE - Jerome circa this time said, “God gave the Jews the Law with the deliberate intention of deceiving them and leading them to destruction…they worship in the Synagogue of Satan.”

390 CE - Ambrose says a synagogue is “home of unbelief, house of impiety, receptacle of folly.”

451 CE - Council of Chalcedon - No member of the clergy may marry a Jew.

465 CE - Council of Vannes - Christian clergy must avoid Jewish feasts.

506 CE - During Lent, Christians must fast on the Sabbath (Saturday).

538 CE - Council of Orleans III - Jews may not appear in public during Holy Week.

581 CE - Council of Macon - Jews may not converse with Nuns.

589 CE - Council of Narbonne - Jews cannot be judges, tax collectors, or work on Sundays.

614 CE - Council of Paris - Any Jew seeking public office must be baptized.

633 CE - Council of Toledo IV - Jews and Jewish Christians cannot hold public office. Jews cannot hold Christian slaves. Jewish children are to be brought up by Christians. Jews in Spain must be baptized. (Toledo VIII also agrees in 653 CE.)

655 CE - Council of Toledo IX - Jews must spend Christian festivals with ecclesiastical authorities.

692 CE - Trulanic Synod - Christians may not patronize Jewish doctors.

1078 CE - Council of Gerona - Christians may not live in Jewish homes. Jews must pay tithes to support the church.

1179 CE - Third Lateran Council - No Jew plaintiffs or witnesses against Christians in court.

1222 CE - Council of Oxford - New synagogues may not be built.

1267 CE - Synod of Breslau - Ghettos are compulsory for Jews.

1434 CE - Council of Basel - Jews may not attain academic degrees.

1870 CE- ‘Papal Infallibility’ was declared and the Church’s edits became inviolable.

Other notables:

Augustine and Jerome forbade Christians observing the Law and “Jewish” Festivals.

Chrysotom: “it is clear that God hates them (Jews)--duty of Christians to hate them too.”

Martin Luther: “Their synagogues should be set on fire…for the honor of God and Christianity. Their homes should be destroyed, no travel/business/money/education.”
Church of Constantinople degree: Jewish Christians must denounce all Hebrews.

No clergyman could enter a synagogue without being excommunicated.


As you can see the history of the church toward our Jewish brothers has been disgraceful.

The Early Church

The early church began in Jerusalem on the Day of Pentecost. The Holy Spirit fell on the disciples and the church in Jerusalem was born with three thousand new converts. (Acts 2) These new believers held all things common and continued daily meeting in the temple and in their homes. (Acts 2.41-47) They continued in the apostle’s doctrine and fellowship. The scriptures the believers were taught came out of the Old Testament--there was, as yet, no New Testament. The N.T. did not become complete until sometime after the Apostle John’s death around 100 AD.

The church grew in Jerusalem and consisted mostly of Jews from around the world. They worshipped on the Sabbath (Saturday) and fellowshipped the rest of the week in individual homes or meeting places. They were taught from the Hebrew scriptures--this is how Christ was revealed to early believers. (Acts 8.26-38) During this time Paul began to persecute the believers (Acts 9) and then later he was converted.

The first Gentile convert was Cornelius the Centurion. (Acts 10) Peter was told to go to his home, something Jews did not do, and preach Christ to him and his house. Cornelius’s whole house accepted the Lord. In Acts 8.2 Cornelius is called a “devout man.” He was a proselyte of the Jewish religion.

Proselyte’s were of two orders, ‘Proselytes of Righteousness” and “Proselytes of the Gate.” The former were obliged to undergo the rites of circumcision and baptism, undertook to obey all the observations of the Jewish law, and received all the privileges of a born Jew. (Ex 12.43-49; Num 15.14-16) The other proselyte (of the Gate) had a much looser, yet none the less vital attachment to the Jewish community. They were not circumcised and were not bound by the ceremonial observances of the law, but worshipped regularly in the synagogue. They were also bound by the moral precepts of the law, which the Jews regarded as binding on all mankind.

This was the reality of the early church. In addition, Rome recognized the Jewish religion as a legitimate religion. In other words it was a religion that was legal to adhere to in the empire, even though it did not recognize the many Roman gods. Many Romans found Judaism to be the true religion and were proselytes. They found it much more real than the pantheon of gods the Roman’s worshipped.

After Peter converted Cornelius’ household Herod began to persecute the church in Jerusalem. (Acts 12.1-4) At this time the church was growing in Antioch and Paul and Barnabas were teaching gentiles. In Acts 15 we see the Jerusalem Conference that decided the Gentile converts did not need to be circumcised. God was circumcising their hearts. (Ezek 11.19-21) From this time on circumcision would be an issue of conflict for Paul as he taught the Gentiles. Many Jews who had converted insisted on new converts being circumcised. The Jerusalem Conference established the fact that gentiles did not have to be physically circumcised to be of the commonwealth of Israel. (Ephesians 2.12; Galatians 5.1-3)

Paul always began his preaching by entering the synagogue and using the Old Testament scrolls to prove that Jesus was the Messiah. Many Jews would believe and then the remaining Jews would rebel kicking Paul and the new believers out of the synagogue. There is no evidence, that once kicked out of the synagogue, these new believers stopped worshipping on the Sabbath. The Sabbath was still the day of worship for believers. (Acts 13.42-44; Acts 17.2-3, 10-12; Acts 18.11, 27-28; 19.8-10; Acts 20.20-21)

At some point the Jewish people would not tolerate anymore talk of Christ in the synagogues. They refused Christian access. In Acts 18 Jewish opposition mounted and an appeal was made to Gallio pro-consul of Achaia, bringing a charge against Paul of preaching a religion that was not authorized by Roman law. This was a serious charge that could have resulted in Christianity being outlawed by Rome at that time. Gallio ruled that the dispute was purely an internal matter affecting Jews alone and drove those who brought the charge from the judgment seat. (Acts 18.12-17) At his time Christianity was still considered a “sect” of Judaism and not an unlawful religion.

From this time on the Jews would work hard to distinguish Judaism from Christianity. They persecuted Christians and sought to prove to the Romans that Christianity was not a part of Judaism. As Christians lost favor throughout the Roman Empire, due to the fact they worshipped another king, and not the emperor, Jews insisted they were separate from the Christians. At some point in time the empire recognized the Christians as a separate, and therefore illegal religion, and the full scale persecution by Rome ensued. The Jews had achieved their purpose of separation.

When the emperor Constantine made Christianity the state religion of Rome, circa 325 AD, the tables turned on the Jews. The Roman Christian Church now began persecuting the Jews as the murderers of Jesus. Jews were considered to be the most vile of people and they were severely persecuted. The church wanted nothing to do with the Jews. This was the beginning of “replacement theology” in the church and the persecution of Jews by the church for hundreds of years. The church has much innocent blood on their hands!

Prior to Constantine, the church had been gradually moving to worshipping on Sunday in order to distance themselves from the Jews. At the Councils of Nicea and Laodicea the move became official. The day of worship was changed to Sunday (The Lord’s Day) and reliance on the Jewish calendar officially ceased. Anyone who worshipped on Saturday or celebrated the Jewish feasts was considered to be a heretic. The penalty was death. Throughout the next 1300 years many “heretics” would be put to death for these and other reasons.

During these church councils the “Jewish” feasts (Lev 23.2, the feasts of the Lord) were outlawed. The church would distance itself from these feasts by embracing pagan feast days and turning them into the official church holidays. Instead of being celebrated at Passover, Jesus’ resurrection was moved to observed during “Ishtar” a pagan fertility rite day.

It was determined that “Easter” would be celebrated on the first Sunday after the first full moon of the spring equinox and never before March 22^nd. Christmas, the celebration of the Lord’s birth, would be set around the time of the Yule or winter equinox. At this time it was a high pagan winter feast. Even today practicing witches and Wicca followers celebrate the Yule at this time. They actually consider the Christians to have stolen their day. (see: Witches Voice website for confirmation.)

It should also be of interest that our calendar is based on the sun. It was first established by Julius Caesar and later amended by Pope Gregory in approximately 1584 AD. God’s calendar is based on the moon and sun. This calendar is maintained by the Jews today.

God‘s day begins at sundown, whereas the Roman day begins at midnight. God‘s months revolve around the moon revolving around the earth, the Roman month has do with the earth revolving around the sun. (Gen 1.1-5, 7.11; 8.3-4) These are significant facts that we will explore in another study.

In conclusion, we see that the times and seasons (Dan 7.25) have already been changed. It is important to understand God’s times and feasts. We need to understand our Hebraic roots in order to fully understand the scriptures and where God wants to take His church in this day.

THE KINGDOM OF GOD - THE PROCLAMATION OF JESUS CHRIST

Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.” Mark 1.14-15

Jesus began his ministry by proclaiming that the Kingdom of God is at hand. He was talking about the establishment of the kingdom in Jerusalem at the end of what we call the “church age.” The first step is to repent and believe in the gospel, which means, “Good News.”

Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” John 3.3 A person must accept Jesus as savior and Lord before they can even begin to “see the kingdom.”

At the end of the age when Jesus returns he is going to set up His governmental headquarters in Jerusalem and rule the nations with an iron rod. This is the millennial kingdom for which all his saints are being prepared for here on earth. This government will be headed by Jesus and those who have believed in Him down through the ages will rule and reign with him. Our job at that time will be to teach all the nations the ways of God. Zechariah 14.16-19, 14.6-9, Rev 20.4-6

This kingdom’s first principle is love. It operates on giving, rather than getting.

Then one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, perceiving that He had answered them well, asked Him, “Which is the first commandment of all?” Jesus answered him, “The first of all the commandments is: ‘Hear, O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one. And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment. And the second, like it, is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
So the scribe said to Him, “Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth, for there is one God, and there is no other but He. And to love Him with all the heart, with all the understanding, with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, is more than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.” Now when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, He said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” But after that no one dared question Him. Mark 12:28-34

This kingdom does not operate on envy, murder, lust, greed, coveting, lying, stealing, and dishonor, but rather on the fruits of the spirit.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. 24 And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Galatians 5.22-24

“Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah— not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says the LORD. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. Jeremiah 31.31-33

The New Covenant is God writing His law upon our hearts. We will love God so much that we will not want to disobey His commandments. As we see in the above verses from Jeremiah--the commandments will be written on our hearts. We will cheerfully obey them, know, and understand them. “Thy word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against thee.” Psalm 119.11 This is the beginning of the government of God in our hearts.

The millennial kingdom will operate on these principles. Those who rule and reign with Christ will be teaching the nations about the Lord and operating on these love principles. They will be teaching the nations the Law/Torah. The law is a code of conduct. This is the law God gave Moses. The only way the code is truly obeyed is from a spirit of love. If we love God, then we obey His commandments. 1 John 5.1-3

Jesus sent his disciples out to preach the kingdom of God; Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases. He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. Luke 9.1-2

There will be a government; And I bestow upon you a kingdom, just as My Father bestowed one upon Me, that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.” Luke 22.29-30

Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” Acts 1.6

For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9.6

Laws of the Kingdom of God
And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying:

3“ Blessed are the poor in spirit,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Psalm 51.17; Proverbs 16.19; Isaiah 57.15

4 Blessed are those who mourn,
For they shall be comforted. Isaiah 61.2; Joel 1.9; Psalm 30.11

5 Blessed are the meek,
For they shall inherit the earth. Numbers 12.3; Psalm 37.11; Isaiah 11.4

6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
For they shall be filled. Isaiah 65.13; Psalm 35.28; 37.6; 48.10; 96.13

7 Blessed are the merciful,
For they shall obtain mercy. Psalm 41.1; Psalm 37.26; Psalm 119.58

8 Blessed are the pure in heart,
For they shall see God. Proverbs 15.26; 20.11; 21.8; 30.15

9 Blessed are the peacemakers,
For they shall be called sons of God. Psalm 144.3; Proverbs 3.1; 3.11-12; 5.1

The beatitudes that Jesus spoke of on the mountain are all laws written in the Old Testament. He was the living word and was reminding us of the law as a code of conduct for our lives. This is how we are to live in the kingdom of God.

HOSEA PART 5

 

 

Q. God’s love; Israel’s ingratitude 11.1-7 “When Israel was a child…But the more they were called, the more they went away from me. They sacrificed to the Baals and they burned incense to images. It was I who taught Ephraim to walk, taking them by the arms; but they did not realize it was I who healed them. I led them with cords of human kindness, with ties of love. To them I was like one who lifts a little child to the cheek, and I bent down to feed them.

“Will they not return to Egypt and will not Assyria rule over them because they refuse to repent? A sword will flash in their cities; it will devour their false prophets and put an end to their plans. My people are determined to turn from me. Even though they call me God Most High, I will by no means exalt them."

God is using the Father-child relationship to express his love for Israel. The child is stubborn and rebellious and is chastised by the father. The father chastises his son because he loves him deeply. To many people the image of a father severely chastising his son is troublesome, even if the father is presented as loving. This is how our politically correct attitudes have blinded our eyes. Without discipline there is only rebellion and disorder. What many often miss in today’s modern world is that God chastises individuals and nations just as in the Old Testament. It is God’s character to chastise. We often are so caught up in God’s love, that we fail to recognize that love often must chastise.

R. God’s pity for His people 11.8-11 “How can I give you up, Ephraim? How can I hand you over, Israel?…My heart churns within Me; My sympathy is stirred. I will not execute the fierceness of My anger; I will not again destroy Ephraim. For I am God, and not man, the Holy One in your midst; and I will not come with terror. They shall come trembling like a bird from Egypt, like a dove from the land of Assyria. And I will let them dwell in their houses,” says the Lord.

God expresses his love and sorrow that Ephraim/Israel must be chastised. God promises them that they will not be destroyed--the future is bright. There will be a millennial kingdom to come.

S. The sins of Jacob 11.12--12.14 Ephraim has surrounded me with lies, Israel with deceit. And Judah is unruly against God, even against the faithful Holy One. Ephraim feeds on the wind…and multiplies lies and violence. He makes a treaty with Assyria, sends olive oil to Egypt. The Lord has a charge to bring against Judah; he will punish Jacob according to his ways…In the womb he grasped his brother’s heel; as a man he struggled with God. He struggled with the angel and overcame him; he wept and begged for his favor…the Lord God Almighty, the Lord is his name! But you must return to your God; maintain love and justice, and wait for your God always. The merchant uses dishonest scales and loves to defraud. Ephraim boasts, “I am very rich; I have become wealthy. With all my wealth they will not find in me any iniquity or sin.”… will make you live in tents again, as in the days of your appointed festivals….Is Gilead wicked? Its people are worthless! Do they sacrifice bulls in Gilgal?...Jacob fled to the country of Aram; Israel served to get a wife,and to pay for her he tended sheep. The Lord used a prophet to bring Israel up from Egypt, by a prophet he cared for him. But Ephraim has aroused his bitter anger; his Lord…will repay him for his contempt.

Ancestral stories of Jacob from Genesis 25 thru 29 are used as illustrations in this portion. Before that we see Israel making political treaties with Assyria for safety. It would not work. Assyria would be used as the instrument of chastisement. God then uses the ancestral stories of Jacob to illustrate how Jacob was chastised. Jacob was a usurper but was later named Israel (Prince) after he learned from his chastising. God works in the same way in our lives today as individuals and nations. Those events in our life that trouble us is one of God’s ways of chastising us and working the fruit of the spirit into us.

T. The wicked bull worship 13.1-3 When Ephraim spoke, trembling, he exalted himself in Israel; but when he offended through Baal worship, he died. Now they sin more and more, and have made for themselves molded images,
idols of their silver, according to their skill; all of it is the work of craftsmen. They say of them, “Let the men who sacrifice kiss the calves!” Therefore they shall be like the morning cloud and like the early dew that passes away, like chaff blown off from a threshing floor and like smoke from a chimney.

Ephraim created golden calves (King Jeroboam) and looked at them as the gods that delivered them from Egypt. Look at Exodus 32.1-4. The people did not totally leave the Lord, but they created an image of a golden calf and worshipped the image. God is a spirit and is to be worshipped in spirit and in truth. This mixture is what is happening in the church today. Images, statues, new age philosophy, human secularism--all added in but not of God. We have mixed the pagan in just as the Israelites in the wilderness did with the golden calf. God does not want this!

U. The gracious God to bring destruction 13.4-11 But I have been the Lord your God ever since you came out of Egypt. You shall acknowledge no God but me, no Savior except me. I cared for you in the wilderness, in the land of burning heat. When I fed them, they were satisfied; when they were satisfied, they became proud; then they forgot me.
So I will be like a lion to them, like a leopard I will lurk by the path. Like a bear robbed of her cubs, I will attack them and rip them open; like a lion I will devour them—a wild animal will tear them apart. “You are destroyed, Israel,

because you are against me, against your helper. Where is your king, that he may save you?…of whom you said, ‘Give me a king and princes’? So in my anger I gave you a king, and in my wrath I took him away.

The Lord reminds Ephraim/Israel that He is the only God whom they have known and how He cared for them. Now they have grown rich and turned away and forgotten their God. The wild animal ripping them apart will be the nation of Assyria. The kings they wanted were human--God wanted to be their king, but the people wanted a human king like all the other nations. 1 Samuel 8.1-8

V. Inescapable ruin 13.12-16 “The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up; his sin is stored up. The sorrows of a woman in childbirth shall come upon him. he is an unwise son…“I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death. O Death, I will be your plagues! O Grave, I will be your destruction! Pity is hidden from My eyes.” Though he is fruitful among his brethren…The wind of the Lord shall come up from the wilderness. then his spring shall become dry, and his fountain shall be dried up…Samaria is held guilty, for she has rebelled against her God. They shall fall by the sword, their infants shall be dashed in pieces, and their women with child ripped open.

Ephraim is an unwise son…if he would repent he would be quickly forgiven. The hearts are so hard that this terrible chastisement/judgment is going to come upon them. We often fail to recognize how hard our hearts can really be. There are times God has no choice but to allow severe righteous judgment. The judgment will always come through people around us or nations. This is the character of God--do not fail to recognize this!

3. Israel’s conversion and renewal 14.1-9 O Israel, return to the Lord your God, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity; take words with you, and return to the Lord. Say to Him, “Take away all iniquity; receive us graciously,
For we will offer the sacrifices of our lips…Assyria shall not save us, nor will we say anymore to the work of our hands, ‘You are our gods.’ for in You the fatherless finds mercy”…For My anger has turned away from him…I will be like the dew to Israel; he shall grow like the lily…His beauty shall be like an olive tree…They shall be revived like grain, and grow like a vine…“Ephraim shall say, ‘What have I to do anymore with idols?’… Who is wise? Let him understand these things…For the ways of the Lord are right; the righteous walk in them, but transgressors stumble in them.

This is God’s powerful call to the nation to repent. In Jewish tradition these “classical” verses are read on the Shabbat Shuvah (the Shabbat that precedes Yom Kippur--the Day of Atonement (Redemption). That is the final chance at the end of the age for man to repent. God is always ready to forgive--it is our hardened hearts that hold us back!

Key verses: My God will cast them away, because they did not obey Him; and they shall be wanderers among the nations. Hosea 9.17

“Ephraim has mixed himself among the peoples; Ephraim is a cake unturned.” Hosea 7.8

And she conceived again and bore a daughter. Then God said to him: “Call her name Lo-Ruhamah, for I will no longer have mercy on the house of Israel, but I will utterly take them away. Hosea 1.6

“Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or numbered. And it shall come to pass in the place where it was said to them, ‘You are not My people, there it shall be said to them, ‘You are sons of the living God.’ Then the children of Judah and the children of Israel shall be gathered together, and appoint for themselves one head; and they shall come up out of the land, For great will be the day of Jezreel! Hosea 1.10-11

“It shall come to pass in that day that I will answer,” says the Lord; “I will answer the heavens, and they shall answer the earth. the earth shall answer with grain, with new wine, and with oil; they shall answer Jezreel. Then I will sow her for Myself in the earth, and I will have mercy on her who had not obtained mercy; then I will say to those who were not My people, ‘You are My people!’ And they shall say, ‘You are my God!’ Hosea 2.21-23

Israel is swallowed up; now they are among the Gentiles like a vessel in which is no pleasure. Hosea 8.8



BOOK OF HOSEA PART 4

J. Israel’s idolatry and wicked alliances 8.4-14 They set up kings without my consent; they choose princes without my approval. With their silver and gold they make idols for themselves to their own destruction…My anger burns against them. How long will they be incapable of purity? Israel is swallowed up; now she is among the nations like something no one wants…“Though Ephraim built many altars for sin offerings, these have become altars for sinning.
I wrote for them the many things of my law, but they regarded them as something foreign. Though they offer sacrifices as gifts to me, and though they eat the meat, the Lord is not pleased with them. Now he will remember their wickedness and punish their sins…Israel has forgotten their Maker…I will send fire on their cities that will consume their fortresses.”

Every man is doing what is right in his own eyes. The people vote without understanding who they are voting for. They go to church but live in sin. God is going to send fire on their cities to chastise them. Assyria will be the attacker.

K. The exile of Israel foretold 9.1-9 Do not rejoice, Israel; do not be jubilant like the other nations. For you have been unfaithful to your God; you love the wages of a prostitute…They will not remain in the Lord’s land…they will eat unclean food in Assyria…They will not pour out wine offerings to the Lord, nor will their sacrifices please him.
What will you do on the day of your appointed festivals, on the feast days of the Lord?…The days of punishment are coming, the days of reckoning are at hand. Let Israel know this. Because your sins are so many and your hostility so great, the prophet is considered a fool, the inspired person a maniac. The prophet, along with my God, is the watchman over Ephraim…God will remember their wickedness and punish them for their sins.

What was once considered good is now thought of as evil--and what was considered evil is now considered as good! The nation is close to judgment…the prophets and God are watching.

L. Israel’s ancient apostasy at Baal-peor 9.10-14 “When I found Israel, it was like finding grapes in the desert; when I saw your ancestors, it was like seeing the early fruit on the fig tree. But when they came to Baal-peor, they consecrated themselves to that shameful idol and became as vile as the thing they loved. Ephraim’s glory will fly away like a bird—no birth, no pregnancy, no conception…Woe to them when I turn away from them!

God loves his people and looks with love upon us. If we turn away it is like Israel sinning at Baal-peor when they turned to idols. God will turn away from us for awhile until we come to our senses. He will always reach out his hands to us if we return. The nation will choose--blessing or curse.

M. Israel’s apostasy at Gilgal 9.15-17 “Because of all their wickedness in Gilgal, I hated them there. Because of their sinful deeds, I will drive them out of my house. I will no longer love them; Ephraim is blightedall their leaders are rebellious…My God will reject them because they have not obeyed him; they will be wanderers among the nations.

This word, “…they will be wanderers among the nations” is still true to this very day! Ephraim/Israel lost his identity when dispersed and is only now being re-gathered by the Spirit of God. They are beginning to return to their Hebrew roots! These nations today have lost their way and are moving quickly towards apostasy.

N. Destruction of Baal cult prophesied 10.1-8 Israel is a ravaged vine; he produces fruit for himself. The more his fruit, the more altars he made; the richer his land, the better he made the sacred pillars. Their heart is faithless; now they must bear their guilt. The Lord will break down their altars and destroy their sacred pillars. Surely now they will say, “We have no king, for we do not revere the Lord. As for the king, what can he do for us?”…With worthless oaths they make covenants; and judgment sprouts like poisonous weeds in the furrows of the field. The inhabitants of Samaria will fear for the calf of Beth-aven…and its idolatrous priests will cry out over it…The thing itself will be carried to Assyria s tribute to King Jareb; Ephraim will be seized with shame and Israel will be ashamed of its own counsel…Then they will say to the mountains, “Cover us!” And to the hills, “Fall on us!”

The more the nation prospered the further they turned away from God. They are apostate and vile. God is going to allow Assyria to carry them away. Note the crying out for the mountains to fall on us. Sounds like the book of Revelation. God is very patient but at some point His patience runs thin and judgment begins through foreign nations used as the instrument of chastisement. The attack on the World Trade Center was a warning from God to America. Our hedge of safety was breeched on that day. God is allowing our safety hedge to be broken as a warning to the nation. God is raising up a people who will understand and will be prepared to share God’s mercy with those who turn back to Him.

O. The sin at Gibeah 10.9-10 From the days of Gibeah, you have sinned, O Israel; there they have continued. Shall not war overtake them in Gibeah? I will come against the wayward people to chastise them; and nations shall be gathered against them when they are chastised for their double iniquity.

The days of Gibeah refer to Judges 19-20 and the war with Benjamin. The nation experienced a civil war as God chastised them for the sins of the priests. God tells Israel that they are going to be chastised by a foreign nation for their sins just as in the days of the civil war detailed in Judges 19 - 20.

P. The ruin of Israel 10.11-15 Ephraim is a trained heifer that loves to thresh grain; but I harnessed her fair neck, I will make Ephraim pull a plow…Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground, for it is time to seek the Lord, till He comes and rains righteousness on you. You have plowed wickedness; you have reaped iniquity. You have eaten the fruit of lies, because you trusted in your own way, in the multitude of your mighty men. Therefore tumult shall arise among your people, and all your fortresses shall be plundered…Thus it shall be done to you, O Bethel, because of your great wickedness. At dawn the king of Israel shall be cut off utterly.

Instead of plowing correctly, Israel the trained heifer, plows wickedness. Plowing is necessary for preparing the ground and planting the seed. The Lord is telling Israel to break up their hard ground--the hard ground in their hearts--but they refuse. You can see the Lord pleading with the nation--but to no avail. Chastisement/judgment is at the door! The ethical and moral code of the nation is deteriorating and God is warning them to turn from their ways to His.


NEXT: HOSEA PART 5



BOOK OF HOSEA -PART THREE

 

 



E. Judgment on kings and priests for leading the people astray 5.1-7

“Hear this, you priests! Pay attention, you Israelites! Listen, royal house! This judgment is against you… I know all about Ephraim; Israel is not hidden from me. Ephraim, you have now turned to prostitution; Israel is corrupt. “Their deeds do not permit them to return to their God. A spirit of prostitution is in their heart; they do not acknowledge the Lord.
 

Israel’s arrogance testifies against them; the Israelites, even Ephraim, stumble in their sin; Judah also stumbles with them. When they…seek the Lord, they will not find him; he has withdrawn himself from them. They are unfaithful to the Lord; they give birth to illegitimate children. When they celebrate their New Moon feasts, he will devour their fields.
 

The mixture in the church is abominable to God, but the church refuses to repent. Prostitution is symbolic of all the pagan mixture in the church--the Lord is withdrawing Himself from them. The church is birthing illegitimate new age human secular children--an abomination to God.

F. Disastrous foreign policies of Ephraim (Israel) and Judah 5.8-15

“Sound the trumpet in Gibeah, the horn in Ramah…Ephraim will be laid waste on the day of reckoning. Among the tribes of Israel I proclaim what is certain. Judah’s leaders are like those who move boundary stones. I will pour out my wrath on them like a flood of water. Ephraim is oppressed, trampled in judgment, intent on pursuing idols…“When Ephraim saw his sickness, and Judah his sores, then Ephraim turned to Assyria, and sent to the great king for help. But he is not able to cure you, not able to heal your sores. For I will be like a lion to Ephraim, like a great lion to Judah. I will tear them to pieces and go away; I will carry them off, with no one to rescue them. Then I will return to my lair until they have borne their guilt and seek my face—in their misery they will earnestly seek me.”

Israel looks to political alliances to solve their problems, rather than looking to the living God. We need to trust God and not in ourselves. As a nation that once relied on God for direction their political alliances will fail. The nation is sick.

In many ways the apostate church is sick and does not know what to do. They once preached the gospel but now it is defiled with new age philosophy and worldly desires. Judgment begins at the house of God!

G. Israel’s plea and God’s reply 6.1-6
“Come, let us return to the Lord. He has torn us to pieces but he will heal us; he has injured us but he will bind up our wounds. After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will restore us, that we may live in his presence. Let us acknowledge the Lord; let us press on to acknowledge him. As surely as the sun rises, he will appear; he will come to us like the winter rains, like the spring rains that water the earth.” “What can I do with you, Ephraim? What can I do with you, Judah? Your love is like the morning mist, like the early dew that disappears. Therefore I cut you in pieces with my prophets, I killed you with the words of my mouth—then my judgments go forth like the sun. For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.


A voice urges repentance. The appearance of God is assured. The people are urged to pursue obedience towards God and He will come and refresh like rain. The Lord laments, “What can I do for you, Ephraim? What can I do for you, Judah? Their good intentions evaporate like clouds. The people are not sincere. God does not desire empty sacrifice, but rather our obedience to his word.


H. The crimes of Israel 6.7--7.7
They have broken the covenant; they were unfaithful to me there…as marauders lie in ambush for a victim, so do bands of priests; they murder on the road to Shechem, carrying out their wicked schemes. I have seen a horrible thing in Israel: There Ephraim is given to prostitution, Israel is defiled…whenever I would heal Israel, the sins of Ephraim are exposed and the crimes of Samaria revealed. They practice deceit, thieves break into houses, bandits rob in the streets…I remember all their evil deeds. Their sins engulf them…“They delight the king with their wickedness, the princes with their lies. They are all adulterers, burning like an oven…All of them are hot as an oven; they devour their rulers. All their kings fall, and none of them calls on me.


The nation descends into depravity. The leaders care not for the good of the nation, they only think of themselves. The people are so busy practicing sin they pay no attention to the horrible state of the nation.


This sounds like America today. No one is paying attention. Politicians pander to the people and don’t attempt to fix the financial problems--the people don’t care, they want handouts. We see apostasy not only in the church but in all of society. There will be a price to pay. The day is coming.

I. Israel’s disastrous foreign policy 7.8--8.3
“Ephraim mixes with the nations…Foreigners sap his strength, but he does not realize it. “Ephraim is like a dove, easily deceived and senseless—now calling to Egypt, now turning to Assyria…I will throw my net over them; I will pull them down like the birds in the sky. Woe to them, because they have strayed from me! Destruction to them, because they have rebelled against me! I long to redeem them but they speak about me falsely…I trained them and strengthened their arms, but they plot evil against me. They do not turn to the Most High; they are like a faulty bow. Their leaders will fall by the sword because of their insolent words…Israel rejects what is good.


Ephraim would literally be mixed with the nations…Ps 106.35. When we desert God we become like silly doves. Our leaders become more and more like children. God wishes to redeem us when we stray--if we refuse to return He will allow us to pursue our own desire until we reach our end. Israel would lose their identity after they were scattered and now after 2,000 years they are beginning to understand who they are.

 

NEXT: HOSEA PART 4

 

 



BOOK OF HOSEA - PART TWO

 

 

E. Hosea’s redemption of his faithless wife 3.1-5 The Lord tells Hosea to befriend a woman, an adulteress, just as the Lord loves Israel, but she/they turn to other lovers (gods). Hosea hires her for 15 shekels of silver, a homer of barley, and a lethech of barley. Then he tells her she must go for a long time without either fornicating or marrying. Hosea tells her even he will not cohabitate with her.

 

 

He uses this example to tell Israel that they will go a long time without king, officials, sacrifice, images, or a priesthood. Afterward, they will turn back and seek the Lord their God and David their King and will fear the Lord and His goodness in the later days.

 

 

In the last days the lost tribes of Israel/Ephraim/Gentiles will discover their roots and return to worshipping the Lord as he desires. Now the church is filled with paganism and mixture because they have turned away from their Hebraic roots of the faith. Judah and Ephraim will be the two sticks coming together in Ezekiel 37.11-28. This mystery has been hidden from us until this day! He who has ears to hear will hear.

2. Israel’s unfaithfulness and consequent judgment 4.1--13.16The remainder of the book consists of a collection of prophetic speeches that accuse Israel and Judah of unfaithfulness, announce the judgment that will befall them, but also foreshadow the hope of restoration and return--unity and joint heirs.

A. The guilt of the people 4.1-3 Hear the word of the Lord, O people of Israel; for the Lord has an indictment against the inhabitants of the land. There is no faithfulness or loyalty, and no knowledge of God in the land. Swearing, lying, and murder, and stealing and adultery break out; bloodshed follows bloodshed. Therefore the land mourns, and all who live in it languish; together with the wild animals and the birds of the air, even the fish of the sea are perishing.

God is not pleased with Israel or for that matter mankind. This sounds like our society today. Without faith in and obedience to, man cannot please God.

B. The guilt of the priests 4.4-8 The Lord tells the priests that they have caused the people to stumble. They have rejected the Torah (law, also means ‘teaching’) of God. God is rejecting the priests for their disobedience.

Even today there are so many interpretations of the word. Men turn and twist it, take it out of context, refuse to seek truth when presented with it. The preachers say, “We are not under the law!’ That is not exactly the truth. We are not under the curse of the law, but we are to follow Torah (the 10 commandments) as a righteous code of living. We cannot do whatever we please. The Lord also has instructed us what feasts to observe (Lev23), but the church refuses to observe them. The church clings to their feasts which are rooted in paganism.

C. Punishment for all 4.9-12 And it will be: Like people, like priests. I will punish both of them for their ways and repay them for their deeds. “They will eat but not have enough; they will engage in prostitution but not flourish,
because they have deserted the Lord to give themselves to prostitution; old wine and new wine take away their understanding. My people consult a wooden idol, and a diviner’s rod speaks to them. A spirit of prostitution leads them astray; they are unfaithful to their God.

The people are just as disobedient as the priests. They continue to follow after idols and reject the teaching. This is exactly what is taking place in the church today. They reject the truth of history and Hebraic roots, instead stubbornly clinging to false teaching. They do not want to change or seek the truth in the word (Luke 6.24-26). They do not realize that they are missing out on their millennial rewards. God will teach and be merciful to them in the millennium, but their tears will have to be wiped away when they realize the opportunity they have missed.

D. Immoral cult practices 4.11-19 God continues to list the sins of Israel. They offer sacrifices to idols on the mountains, stray away from God, they offer to idols in the shady groves of oaks, poplar, and elms. God gets sarcastic and says he will not punish the whoring daughters because their husbands are whoring around just as bad! It says that Ephraim is addicted to idols! Israel is a stubborn cow. (Beth-aven means ‘House of Iniquity’)

Israel is referred to as Ephraim as the first king, Jeroboam came from Ephraim and Ephraim was the heart of the Northern Kingdom’s territory. In Genesis 48 Ephraim was given a national blessing of greatness which included the future mixing with the gentiles.

The apostate church in our day often mixes in new age, Wicca, and many other pagan rituals in order to appeal to a larger group. They have become all inclusive wanting to appeal to all. God does not want this mixture. He desires we be holy as He is holy. As the apostate church goes astray, the seekers of truth are returning to Hebraic roots.

NEXT: HOSEA - PART THREE




BOOK OF HOSEA - PART ONE

The book is set in the last period of political strength of the Northern Kingdom of Israel/Ephraim. While the threat of Assyrian invasion hovers in the background, the book focuses on the behavior of Israel, which it evaluates and condemns in very sharp terms. It is a period of apostasy, of social disintegration, of wrongful leadership, of failed alliances, in sum a period in which knowledge of and reverence for the Lord are lacking. Just as in the time we now live!

Hosea employs sexual and family metaphors to express the relationship between God and Israel. God takes the role of an angry husband who condemns, severely punishes, and publicly dishonors his unfaithful wife, who fails to recognize how good he had been to her. After his violent and shaming punishment is carried out, God will be willing to take her back.

We also see here the metaphor of the lost tribes of Israel and their grafting into the olive tree. Israel/Ephraim are the lost sheep of Israel being reunited with Judah in the last days. The Northern Kingdom was dispersed throughout the world and mixed in with the Gentiles, in effect, losing their identity. The ‘Church’ lost her Hebraic roots, Israel lost her identity and the two have mixed together for millennia. Now God is bringing them back into the fold and revealing to them who they really are.

1. The prophet’s married life….1.1--3.5
A. His marriage to Gomer 1.1-9 Hosea is told to get himself a wife of whoredom and children of whoredom; because the land (Israel) will stray from following the Lord. He marries Gomer and she bares him a son whom they name Jezreel. The name Jezreel means “El/God sows,” and means “to scatter seeds”. God is going to scatter Israel because of their idolatry (whoredom).

Gomer then gives birth to a daughter whom the Lord says to name her Lo-ruhamah. This name means ‘unpitied’ or ‘not accepted’. God is no longer going to accept Israel or pardon her.

After weaning Lo-ruhamah Gomer conceives a son who she names Lo-ammi. This name means ‘not my people’. God is telling them He will no longer be their God because of their idolatry.


B. A message of hope 1.10-11 Now God says that the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea. God says that then, “In the place you where told you are not my people, there it will be said ‘You are the sons of the living God!’ Then God says Judah and Israel will be gathered together and appoint themselves one head over them.

This has not happened yet…it is a future event as Judah (Jews) and Israel/Ephraim (Gentiles) come together under the head of the body Jesus Christ! Jezreel becomes a place of future redemption. The valley of Jezreel is also known as Armageddon.

C. Judgment on faithless Israel 2.1-13 The brother is now called ‘My people’ and the sister ‘Lovingly accepted’ as the chapter begins. The mother or nation (Israel) is then rebuked for her harlotry. The rebuke in Hebrew means ‘reprove’ as in the hope of correcting the bad behavior. The punishment for such behavior is shaming. Going after other lovers is idolatry and/or unethical political alliances with other nations.
As the nation behaves this way and is finding her way a hedge of thorns she will think about returning to her first husband (God). She begins to see that it was her husband who provided all good things for her. None of her lovers will be able to help her against her angry husband the Lord. God is going to shame her for her sin. There will be no rejoicing, not even in the feast days.

D. The restoration of faithless Israel 2.14-23 Marital reconciliation will occur as the Lord will bring the wife (Israel) back. The fertility of the land will also return. She will call God ‘Ishi’ an adoring term for husband and not ‘Baali” which means ‘Master’ or ‘My Baal’. The Lord than speaks of betrothal to Israel (the Church-a better translation is assembly) and they will be devoted to the Lord in that day. God will take her back in favor. He will say, “You are my people” and they will say, “You are my God!”

What a wonderful promise God gives to his wayward church. At the end of the age the church will be apostate, the true believers will know who they are and will return to their roots. Then Jew and Gentile will become the ‘One new man’ that Paul speaks of in Ephesians 2.15.


NEXT: HOSEA PART TWO

 

Lucis Trust

The Lucis trust was originally called the Lucifer Publishing Company but the name was later changed to Lucis Trust. It was established by occultist Alice Bailey. What is interesting about this organization is that it has representation at the United Nations. There is a chapel with a large black stone near the entrance of the U.N. where spiritualists gather monthly to pray. Most Christians have no idea this organization exists. Their influence in the U.N. says a lot about the New World Order and their agenda.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

The Lucis Trust is a nonprofit service organization incorporated in the United States in 1922 by
Alice Bailey and her husband Foster Bailey, to act as a fiduciary trust for the publishing of Mrs. Bailey's twenty-four books of esoteric philosophy published under Alice Bailey's name, and to fund and administer activities concerned with the establishment of "right human relations". These include the Arcane School, a school for esoteric training, World Goodwill, Triangles, a lending library, The Beacon magazine, as well as the Publishing Company. In the early 1920's the Lucis Publishing Company changed their name from Lucifer Publishing Company. In Latin lucern ferre translates to "light-bearer" and lucis means "of light." The Lucis Trust has always maintained the same name. It has headquarters in New York City, London, and Geneva.

The objectives of the Lucis Trust as stated in its charter are: "To encourage the study of comparative religion, philosophy, science and art; to encourage every line of thought tending to the broadening of human sympathies and interests, and the expansion of ethical religious and educational literature; to assist or to engage in activities for the relief of suffering and for human betterment; and, in general, to further worthy efforts for humanitarian and educational ends."

The World Goodwill group, founded in 1932, has been recognized by the United Nations as a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO), and is represented during regular briefing sessions for NGOs at the United Nations. The Lucis Trust has consultative status (roster level) with the United Nations Economic and Social Council.

The Trust is established in Great Britain under the title "Lucis Trust Ltd.", in Switzerland as "Lucis Trust Association", and in Holland as the "Lucis Trust Stichting."

Alice Ann Bailey (June 16, 1880 – December 15, 1949), known as Alice A. Bailey or AAB, was an influential writer and theosophist in what she termed "Ageless Wisdom". This included occult teachings, "esoteric" psychology and healing, astrological and other philosophic and religious themes. Alice Bailey was born as Alice LaTrobe Bateman, in Manchester, England at 7:32 am GMT. She moved to the United States in 1907, where she spent most of her life as a writer and teacher.

Her works, written between 1919 and 1949, describe a wide-ranging system of esoteric thought covering such topics as how spirituality relates to the solar system, meditation, healing, spiritual psychology, the destiny of nations, and prescriptions for society in general. She described the majority of her work as having been telepathically dictated to her by a "Master of the Wisdom", initially referred to only as "the Tibetan", or by the initials "D.K.", later identified as Djwal Khul. Her followers refer to her writings as The Alice A. Bailey material, or sometimes, as the AAB material.

Her writings were influenced by the works of Madame Blavatsky. Though Bailey's writings differ from the orthodox Theosophy of Madame Blavatsky, they also have much in common with it. She wrote about religious themes, including Christianity, though her writings are fundamentally different from many aspects of Christianity and of other orthodox religions. Her vision of a unified society includes a global "spirit of religion" different from traditional religious forms and including the concept of the Age of Aquarius.

Controversy has arisen around some of Bailey's statements on nationalism, American isolationism, Soviet totalitarianism, Fascism, Zionism, Nazism, race relations, Africans, Jews, and the religions of Judaism and Christianity. Yonassan Gershom and others have claimed that her writings contain "racist" material.

According to Robert S. Ellwood, her philosophy and publications are still applied by the groups and organizations she founded, such as the Arcane School,and the Full Moon Meditation Groups that follow her teachings.

H.P. Blavatsky
Well-known and controversial during her life, Blavatsky was influential on spiritualism and related subcultures: "The western esoteric tradition has no more important figure in modern times." She wrote prolifically, publishing thousands of pages and debate continues about her work. She taught about very abstract and metaphysical principles, but also sought to denounce and correct superstitions that, in her view, had grown in different exoteric religions. Some of these statements are controversial. For example, she quotes Dr. A. Kingsford’s book "Perfect Way" (section "The Secret of Satan"): "It is Satan who is the god of our planet and the only god" and adds "and this without any allusive metaphor to its wickedness and depravity." In this reference Blavatsky explains that he whom the Christian dogma calls Lucifer was never the representative of the evil in ancient myths but, on the contrary, the light-bringer (which is the literal meaning of the name Lucifer). According to Blavatsky the church turned him into Satan (which means "the opponent") to misrepresent pre-Christian beliefs and fit him into the newly framed Christian dogmas. A similar view is also shared by the Christian Gnostics, ancient and modern.

Throughout much of Blavatsky's public life her work drew harsh criticism from some of the learned authorities of her day, as for example when she said that the atom was divisible, that the Bodhisattvas choose to give up Nirvana in order to help humanity and other controversial statements that were later found true. There are, however, many statements that remain to be verified.

Critics pronounced her claim of the existence of masters of wisdom to be utterly false, and accused her of being a charlatan, a false medium, evil, a spy for the Russians, a smoker of cannabis, a spy for the English, a racist and a falsifier of letters. Most of the accusations remain undocumented.

ELIJAH THE PROPHET - PART TWO

THE CONFRONTATION ON MOUNT CARMEL

After three and a half years of waiting on the Lord Elijah is told to go and show himself to wicked King Ahab. The Lord tells Elijah that then it will rain upon the earth. At this time there was a severe famine in Samaria the capital area of the Northern Kingdom of Israel.

At this same time King Ahab called upon Obadiah (means servant of Jehovah) to assist him in going through the land to see if they can find water and grass to keep the horses, mules, and cattle alive. Obadiah was truly a servant of Jehovah. When wicked Queen Jezebel went on a rampage killing the prophets of God Obadiah hid two groups of fifty each in a cave and fed them.

God had his man right there in the house of His enemy. Obadiah was a godly man serving in the ungodly king’s home! This is an amazing story. You would have thought that Obadiah would have quit that job and gone somewhere else. Obadiah was right where the Lord wanted him. He heard the voice of the Lord and was God’s inside man to save the hundred prophets. God often will put us in uncomfortable places for a purpose! That was where Obadiah was. He is a great example of God working outside the box of human understanding.

Obadiah and Ahab divided the land between them and each went his own way. Obadiah met Elijah as he was on his search for water and grass. Obadiah recognized Elijah and fell on his face before Elijah. Elijah told him to get up and go tell Ahab that Elijah was coming to meet him.

Obadiah asked Elijah what sin he had committed that Elijah would want to send him to deliver this message. Obadiah was afraid Ahab would kill him if Elijah didn’t show up. “Don’t you know that I’m the guy who hid the hundred prophets in the cave? Ahab will slay me if you don’t show up!” Elijah assured Obadiah he’d show up so Obadiah went and told Ahab to go meet Elijah.

When Ahab sees Elijah he asks, “Are you he who troubles Israel?” Elijah replies, “I have not troubled Israel, but it is you and your father’s house that have forsaken the commandments of the Lord and followed Baal.”

Elijah hasn’t been seen for 3 ½ years but Ahab knows there has been no rain because of Elijah’s prayers. Our tough bird Elijah is not afraid to tell Ahab that he has refused to obey God. Elijah challenges Ahab to gather 450 prophets of Baal and 450 prophets of the idols (who eat at Jezebel’s table) and meet him at Mount Carmel.

Ahab asks no questions but does what Elijah has demanded. Ahab and 900 false prophets meet Elijah at Mount Carmel. In addition there was a large gathering of the people waiting there when Elijah arrived. Elijah glares at the crowd and tells them, “How long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him, but if Baal is god, then follow him!” The crowd was silent answering not a word.

Elijah declares he is the only prophet of the Lord that remains in Israel but Baal has 450 prophets. He tells the prophets of Baal to get two bulls and to choose one for themselves and to prepare it for sacrifice. Elijah will take the other bull and prepare it for his sacrifice. Elijah tells them to prepare their bull first and put it on wood with no fire.

Elijah will prepare his bull in the same way--cut up upon the wood with no fire. “You call on the name of your gods”, he tells them, “and I will call on the name of my God. The God who answers by fire, he is God.” All the people said, “You have spoken well.”

The prophets of Baal proceed to prepare their bull and they called on the name of Baal from morning until noon saying, “Oh Baal answer us!” There was no voice nor any that answered. They prayed vehemently and began to cut themselves upon the altar but there was no answer.

At noon Elijah began to mock them sarcastically, “Cry with a loud voice, for he is a god, perhaps he is meditating or is on a long journey. Maybe he is sleeping!”

They shouted louder and cut themselves with daggers until their blood gushed out upon them. When midday was past the prophesied until it was time for the evening sacrifice, but there was no answer or any to listen. At his time Elijah told them to move aside so that he could prepare his burnt offering. Notice Elijah said, “to prepare my burnt offering.” He knew that the Lord was going to answer him in a big way.

Elijah takes 12 stones according to the number of the tribes and rebuilds the broken down altar of the Lord. Then he build a trench around the altar, put the wood in order, cut the bull in pieces and laid it on the wood. He then told some men to get four jugs of water and pour it on the burnt offering and the wood. This he had them do three times until the water filled the trench.

Elijah is a man of faith. There has been a 3 ½ year drought and Elijah is pouring all this water on the altar. Nobody said a word--they did as Elijah asked.

At the time of the evening offering Elijah prayed, “Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel and I am Your servant, and that I have done all these things at Your word. Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that You are the Lord God, and that You have turned their hearts back to You again.”

The fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt offering, the wood, stones, and even the dust and water that was in the trench. When the people saw this they fell on the ground face down and cried out, “The Lord, he is God, the Lord he is God!”

Elijah told them to seize the prophets of Baal and bring them down to the brook of Kishon. There Elijah slew them all.

After that bloody event Elijah told Ahab to go and eat and drink because the rushing sound of heavy was in his ears. Ahab does what Elijah says with no argument--he had seen enough to silence him.

As Ahab went to eat and drink Elijah went up to the top of Mount Carmel and put his face upon his knees. I’ve been on top of Mount Carmel and as you look to the east you can see the Mediterranean Sea. Elijah told his servant to go look toward the sea. His servant looked and told Elijah he saw nothing. Elijah had to tell him to go look seven more times.

On the seventh look the servant said he saw a small cloud that looked like a hand rising from the sea. Elijah told his servant to go and tell Ahab to get on his horse and get down before the rain stopped him. The heavens became black with clouds and wind and it started to rain heavily.

Ahab rode through the storm towards Jezreel. The hand of the Lord was upon Elijah and he ran swiftly before Ahab into Jezreel.

SUMMARY

After 3 ½ years of waiting on the Lord Elijah confronts the prophets of Baal and Jezebel on Mount Carmel. I appreciate the discipline of Elijah to wait for the Lord to speak and tell him to move. We could all use this type of discipline and obedient spirit. We are always in a hurry and have to do things right away--not Elijah.

Obadiah was obedient to the Lord in a job most of us would have quit. God had him there for a reason. He saved 100 prophets from the wicked hand of Jezebel. God’s ways are above our ways. Even in a difficult situation God has a plan to use us if we allow Him.

The people saw the what the Lord did but only gave lip service. They acknowledged that the Lord was great but their actions did not reflect their words. Their hearts were not right. There was no change in them or the king after this great event. Only God knows what is in the heart of man.

　

　

　

　

　

　

ELIJAH THE PROPHET - PART ONE

ELIJAH - MAN OF GOD - 1 KINGS 17

Elijah the Tishbite, an inhabitant of Gilead was a “Man of God”. Elijah means: “My God is Yah”. Tishbite means: Captivity, a captive; adding. You shall lead captive. Gilead means: Perpetual fountain. A heap of testimony; a witness; mass of testimony; strong.

My God is Yah who is a perpetual fountain will lead you captive by a strong heap of testimony! What better way to describe Elijah!

Elijah is God’s gunslinger. He is one tough hombre. He comes on the scene out of nowhere and tells wicked King Ahab that there will be no dew or rain until I say so (1 Kings17.1). Then immediately the Lord tells him to go to the brook Cherith (Separation). The tells him in advance that there he will drink of the waters of the brook and be fed by the Ravens.

We see God taking His prophet to a place of separation. There he will drink from the brook (fountain of water) where he will receive God’s testimony and become strong in the Lord. He is told ahead of time that he will be fed by the Ravens, which according to Torah, are unclean birds because they are scavengers. They will bring him meat and bread that they have scavenged!

The Bible does not record Elijah’s thoughts, but he must have been concerned with what God was doing to him. To be fed by unclean birds the road kill and bread they scavenged must have been abhorrent to him. Tough guy Elijah said nothing. He obeyed. He sat there for a long time--until the brook dried up. He was separated from all men as he sat, ate his unclean food, and waited on God. This would have been a most difficult task as it was not going according to the Torah. God was having him break all the rules. It was God who put him there so Elijah did what he was told. Just like those Ravens Elijah was a tough old bird. I can just see those Ravens preening at him as he ate their hard won road kill.

When the brook dried up God told Elijah to go to Zarephath of Sidon and stay with a widow I have designated to feed you there. So he went at once. Must have sounded like a good deal after sitting at the brook with the birds for who knows how long.

When he gets to town up there in Sidon north of Israel he see the widow woman gathering wood. How did he know it was her? I think he knew the voice of the Lord after all that time alone at the brook--he knew. He asked her to bring him a piece of bread. The widow replied that she had only enough flour and oil to bake a small cake for me and my son which we will eat and then die. She was a tough bird. Elijah knew a lot about tough birds.

Elijah says, “Go and do what you said, but bake me a cake first and bring it to me. Then make some for you and your son. For thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, the jar of flour and jug of oil will not run out until the Lord sends rain upon the ground.” One tough bird to another tough bird. Who does he think he is--bring me a cake first! Elijah’s head turned sideways like a Raven eyes penetrating.

She probably shrugged her shoulders and thought, “OK, I’m gonna die anyway so I do what that tough old bird says and maybe it will be OK.” That jar and jug didn’t run out just like Elijah told her.

You have to understand. There is a drought, its very hot, and there is nothing to do but sit around and wait. Then wait some more. Something tells me the conversation between Elijah and the widow wasn’t exactly sparkling. She did recognize she was in the presence of a man of God. She felt the strength and peace of God surrounding her and her son as they sat there. She watched him go off and sit in God’s presence. She felt the presence of God. God is one tough old bird.

One day after awhile her son became ill and he quietly passed on in the heat. She asks Elijah why he came here and caused her sinfulness to be exposed causing the death of her son. Without missing a beat Elijah tells her to give him the boy and carries him upstairs to the even hotter room he has been staying in.

Elijah cries out to the Lord not to let the child die as this woman has enough calamity in her life. He stretches out over the child three times (three days and resurrection) crying out to the Lord to restore life to the dead body. The Lord brings the child back to life, Elijah brings the kid down and says, “See, your son is alive.” Mister cool. Tough bird. Didn’t let on how he begged God to restore the child.

The widow replies, “Now I know you are a man of God and that the word of the Lord is in your mouth.” Well, thank you very much Elijah must have thought. Not easy living around birds, peck, peck, peck. Elijah goes back and waits upon the Lord. The word of the Lord is about to come.

SUMMARY PART ONEElijah has been chosen and separated by God for an important mission. Elijah seems to already be a seasoned prophet of God and a man of few words. He listens and develops his sense of hearing. He sees the wickedness of Ahab (and Jezebel) and calls for drought on their kingdom. Blessing comes from above, Torah comes from above, like dew on the ground or rain from heaven. God is a perpetual fountain. You don’t want to hear? OK, the blessings from above will stop. Drought, dryness, aridness.

Elijah is separated by himself to the brook Cherith. There he is put into the uncomfortable eating situation. He must deal with uncleaness. Was God showing Elijah some areas in his life that need to be purified during this period? Oh, yeah, cause God is a tough old bird. He gets dumped on daily and retains His cool. He puts up with insults daily. He puts up with disrespect no real housewife from Miami would ever put up with.--daily. One tough old bird. Get over it Elijah we are movin’ on!

When the brook dries up Elijah is sent to a Sidonian widow. What is true religion according to James? Caring for widows. God is going to provide for Elijah while he blesses a poor widowed mother. Elijah waits. The widow wonders, “Who is this guy?” Elijah’s self is dying. He’s getting buried waiting. Then the widow’s only son dies.

“This is what I get for having you as my guest?” she says. Dead old bird Elijah says, “Give me the boy” and goes up stairs to his small hot room. Dead old Elijah is going to be resurrected! Hallelujah! He breaths on the boy three times begging God to restore the boy. Repentance, resurrection, revival!

The boy is brought down to his widowed mother. God cared for her. She has been transformed. “Now I know I have been in the presence of God and his man!” She will never be the same and God will be glorified in pagan Sidon.

Three and a half years of drought, dryness, and aridness are about to become a flood. Elijah has been made ready. God is going to shake Israel and bring down Ahab and his wicked queen Jezebel--herself a daughter of Sidonian king and priest. God is one tough bird!

NEXT: THE CONTEST ON MOUNT CARMEL 1 KINGS 18

　


　

THE HIDING PLACE

In the books of Isaiah and Micah there are several apocalyptic verses relating to the Second Coming of Yeshua that are rarely, if ever, mentioned by Bible teachers. These refer to a place of captivity and safety called Bozrah. The scripture verses are found in Isaiah 63 and Micah 2.

Ancient Bozrah was a city south of the Dead Sea in the land of the Edomites. The Edomites are the children of Esau as Esau is Edom. Jacob and Esau made peace between each other in their life times, but the Edomites became bitter enemies of Israel throughout history. The book of Obadiah is, in fact, a judgment on the descendants of Esau or the Edomites.

Bozrah means: fortification, a vintage, sheepfold; (root = to gather the vintage; to render inaccessible). Besieged. We see in this meaning that Bozrah is a fortified sheepfold that is inaccessible, and a vintage (ready for harvest).

As we look at the scriptures we see Bozrah as a fortified place of captivity for the sheep. The “Breaker” or Shepherd comes and rescues the sheep by breaking down the rock wall and leading them out.

“I will surely assemble all of you, O Jacob, I will surely gather the remnant of Israel; I will put them together like sheep of the fold, like a flock in the midst of their pasture; they shall make a loud noise because of so many people.
The one who breaks open will come up before them; They will break out, pass through the gate, and go out by it;
Their king will pass before them, with the Lord at their head.” Micah 2.12-13

Who is this who comes from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrahthis One who is glorious in His apparel, Traveling in the greatness of His strength?—“I who speak in righteousness, mighty to save.” Why is Your apparel red, and Your garments like one who treads in the winepress? “I have trodden the winepress alone, and from the peoples no one was with Me. For I have trodden them in My anger, and trampled them in My fury; their blood is sprinkled upon My garments, and I have stained all My robes. For the day of vengeance is in My heart, and the year of My redeemed has come. I looked, but there was no one to help, and I wondered that there was no one to uphold; Therefore My own arm brought salvation for Me; and My own fury, it sustained Me. Isaiah 63.1-5
In these verses we see a gathering of the people like a flock and the breaker coming up and breaking them out. We see the Lord as the breaker in Isaiah 63 coming and saving his flock. It appears the flock is in captivity but alive and waiting for their Shepherd to come and bring them out.
This is definitely an end time scenario. This gathering of people would include not only Jews (Judah) but also Joes (the people of the lost ten tribes or Joseph (Ephraim). Zephaniah sees a place of hiding for God’s people.

Gather yourselves together, yes, gather together, O undesirable nation, before the decree is issued, or the day passes like chaff, before the Lord’s fierce anger comes upon you, before the day of the Lord’s anger comes upon you! Seek the Lord, all you meek of the earth, who have upheld His justice. Seek righteousness, seek humility. It may be that you will be hidden in the day of the Lord’s anger...Zephaniah 2.1-3

These verses point to a final refined remnant of God’s people being rescued at the end of this age. This would be the time the Lord appears at His Second Coming in the latter half of Daniel’s 70^th week, towards the end of the great Tribulation or Jacob’s Trouble. God’s people have a hiding place that is a place of captivity but yet is a place of safety as they await their deliverance. This may be what these verses in Revelation 12 allude to.

Now when the dragon saw that he had been cast to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male Child. But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of the serpent. So the serpent spewed water out of his mouth like a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away by the flood. But the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the flood which the dragon had spewed out of his mouth. And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ. Rev 12.13-17


It appears that there are two groups of God’s people striving against the Antichrist. The group in the wilderness may represent the Bozrah group interceding for the events which are taking place. The other group is resisting while under severe persecution. Could the protected group be those who have been radically obedient and the persecuted group be the rebellious ones who are now learning through trial and tribulation to obey? The word in Zephaniah above seems to indicate this.

There is no doubt that God is gathering His people in the state of Israel in this present day. This is clearly seen in the books of the prophets as Jerusalem is ground zero at the end of this current age. Many Jews as well as those who call themselves “Christians” are relocating to Israel. When you understand the study on the lost tribes this begins to become clear (See the blog postings beginning in January 2014 for the 12 part series). God is re-gathering His people and restoring their identities. This is a re-gathering of the “Commonwealth of Israel” as seen in Ephesians 2.11-3.7.

Those of us who understand that the pre-tribulation rapture is false teaching realize there is a place of safety until the Lord returns. I cannot, and am commanded not to be, a judge in those things concerning my brothers/sisters in the Lord. I cannot discern the heart of man--that is for the Lord. One thing is obvious when studying scripture--the Lord wants His people to be obedient to Him. He also is calling them out of the Babylonian church system. Those who respond to His call and obey His commands will have a special place of safety in a place like Bozrah.

This is what the return to Hebrew Roots is all about. It is about understanding the truth of church history and coming out of the apostate church. It is a return to understanding and observing the feasts of the Lord and His true Shabbat. It is not about salvation--it is about obedience and a change of culture. We must change our culture and become holy unto the Lord in the way He desires. It is not about legalism--it is about love and obedience. Those who have ears to hear and eyes to see will understand.

The Lord said, “There are many mansions in my Father’s house.” He was speaking of the rewards of the Millennial Kingdom. As we see in the parables of the talents there are rewards in the next life. Those who have ears to hear will yield to Yehovah’s leading in these areas.

Those who have been “reborn” are saved. There is, however, a higher calling to follow the Lord where ever He leads. Those who fail to respond in this life will have their “tears wiped away” in the Millennial Kingdom (MK) by our gracious Lord and then be sent back to school! They will realize at that time all that they’ve missed out on. They will learn in the MK what they should have learned in this life.

A Remnant - The Lord Preparing His Bride
“Awake, O sword, against My Shepherd, against the Man who is My Companion,” says the Lord of hosts. “Strike the Shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered; then I will turn My hand against the little ones. And it shall come to pass in all the land,” says the Lord, “That two-thirds in it shall be cut off and die, but one–third shall be left in it: I will bring the one–third through the fire, will refine them as silver is refined, and test them as gold is tested. They will call on My name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘This is My people’; and each one will say, ‘The Lord is my God.” Zechariah 13.7-9

The Principle of Division
The Lord refines His people through the process of division. There is no true unity until we have been reduced. The Lord reduces those who yield to Him and are obedient. This is allowing our willful self to be crucified with Yeshua.

When you take a whole number and divide it you reduce that number to it’s mean. This is what the Lord does with His people. It is a threshing process--a whittling down. We are reduced in order that Yeshua may come forth in our lives. It is a voluntary process. Many are called but few choose this way. Has the Lord been putting you in places where you feel you are being reduced? Yield--this is a good place.

Until we yield to this division or reduction there can be no unity. All inclusive unity allows sin to creep in--we want to embrace all that we think is good. That is why so many churches have turned from the Word to human secularism. They embrace abortion, gay marriage, and other sins. This is not the mixture or unity that the Lord would desire. “Come out of her my people.” The Lord will continue to divide and reduce until His Bride is without spot or winkle.

SUMMARY
There is much to think about here. God’s people are not “raptured” out of this world but are told to expect persecution. This is Yehovah’s refining fire. This is the dividing asunder of flesh and marrow to the things of the Spirit. The more we love Him and lean on Him the easier it becomes to obey Him. It is obedience fueled by a deep love and affection for Yeshua. A generation is coming wherein these things will be very important to understand.

There is a Bozrah hiding place for some. Only Yeshua knows who they are. There is a place of captivity which is in reality a place of safety. I would like to be one who is this close to our Lord. Only eternity will tell. There is much we do not understand in this life. There is a coming kingdom where we rule and reign with Yeshua. What we do now in this life will determine many things in the MK. Now is the time to press into getting to know Yeshua and grow in love that will fuel obedience. Allow the cross to work a deep work in your life in this day. This was how Yeshua walked as He abided in the Father. This is how the end time generation will walk.