I've recently been reading through the prophets. It's a difficult journey, because there are so many negatives, but I'm finding that many people don't attach enough importance to "Who I worship." Many folks say things like, "All roads lead to the same place;" and, "Religion is good;" The problem with those sentiments is that the nation of Israel tried that. They worshipped a variety of gods, despite being commanded to worship ONLY the Lord:
Exodus 20:2 "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 3 "You shall have no other gods before Me.
4 "You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. 5 "You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, 6 but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.
Deuteronomy 6:5 "You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. 6 "These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart.
When the nation of Israel was sent into captivity for their sins, the foremost reason was their rejection of God:
2 Chronicles 36:14 Furthermore, all the officials of the priests and the people were very unfaithful following all the abominations of the nations; and they defiled the house of the LORD which He had sanctified in Jerusalem. 15 The LORD, the God of their fathers, sent word to them again and again by His messengers, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place;
16 but they continually mocked the messengers of God, despised His words and scoffed at His prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against His people, until there was no remedy.
It's pretty clear (this is just one passage of many I could use) that the real reason God sent His people into captivity was their worship of other gods.
So can you come back from this spiritual blindness? YES. However, it takes your wholehearted effort: The Scriptures say, "You will search for me and find me, when you search for me with all your heart."
It's important to keep in mind that Satan doesn't exactly have your best interests at heart. He wants to destroy the human race. You're included. Every one of his actions translates into: Defy God. Destroy people.
It was the same in other eras:
In ancient times, worship of the true God disappeared from Israel. Israel moved into a vicious downward spiral that could be characterized as, "the worse they were, the worse they got," moving ever downward until they were empty of good and of God, and God judged them without pity because they chose this. The prophets tried to stop the people, to call them back, to beg them to do good for themselves and not to allow themselves to be suckered into worshipping the things that not only would destroy them, but things that made no sense at all, such as a piece of wood.
Exodus 20:2 "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 3 "You shall have no other gods before Me.
4 "You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. 5 "You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, 6 but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.
When the nation of Israel was sent into captivity for their sins, the foremost reason was their rejection of God:
2 Chronicles 36:14 Furthermore, all the officials of the priests and the people were very unfaithful following all the abominations of the nations; and they defiled the house of the LORD which He had sanctified in Jerusalem. 15 The LORD, the God of their fathers, sent word to them again and again by His messengers, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place;
16 but they continually mocked the messengers of God, despised His words and scoffed at His prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against His people, until there was no remedy.
It's pretty clear (this is just one passage of many I could use) that the real reason God sent His people into captivity was their worship of other gods.
Now this is intimately connected with the book of Revelation, which we are discussing in the blog. The basic problem with us humans is our rejection of the living and true God. Once we do that, we get seduced by the evil one, and eventually listen to his lies about religion... (or no religion), and then about right, wrong, and evil. This will culminate in many of the people of the world selecting the Dragon as their god and the Beast (Antichrist) as his representative. You ask me, "how can this happen?" Well, really, it's pretty simple. Once you reject God, your mind gets blinded, and you are then susceptible to all sorts of false teaching.
Paul put it like this:
1 Thess. 2:10: because (people who eventually worship the dragon) did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved. 11 For this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence (KJV, "Strong Delusion") so that they will believe what is false, 12 in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness.
Paul put it like this:
1 Thess. 2:10: because (people who eventually worship the dragon) did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved. 11 For this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence (KJV, "Strong Delusion") so that they will believe what is false, 12 in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness.
In other words, when you reject God, it's like taking red-hot nails and poking your eyes out intentionally. When you choose to do that, you can be led in any direction and false teaching seems as true to you as any other. Add to that enough pressure (you have to believe or die, for example), and you'll swear allegiance to anything or anyone because you are blind to the consequences.
Idols (which the ancients worshipped, and which are still worshipped today by some) are mere representations of the Dragon ("the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons [not idols]...").
So can you come back from this spiritual blindness? YES. However, it takes your wholehearted effort: The Scriptures say, "You will search for me and find me, when you search for me with all your heart."
It's important to keep in mind that Satan doesn't exactly have your best interests at heart. He wants to destroy the human race. You're included. Every one of his actions translates into: Defy God. Destroy people.
There is a gigantic spiritual conspiracy to keep you from the truth about the importance of worshipping the living and true God and His Son Jesus Christ. It comes from the Dragon, and that conspiracy will come to its full fruition in the future, as the Dragon takes control of the world in ways that he's never been allowed to do before. People who believe in Jesus Christ will not just be despised or persecuted in some areas of the world. They will be murdered wholesale and everywhere to show that the Dragon is a mightier being than Christ (utterly false, of course). There will, by the way, be no atheists or agnostics in those days. All people who reject Jesus Christ will worship the Dragon. OR ELSE.
It was the same in other eras:
In ancient times, worship of the true God disappeared from Israel. Israel moved into a vicious downward spiral that could be characterized as, "the worse they were, the worse they got," moving ever downward until they were empty of good and of God, and God judged them without pity because they chose this. The prophets tried to stop the people, to call them back, to beg them to do good for themselves and not to allow themselves to be suckered into worshipping the things that not only would destroy them, but things that made no sense at all, such as a piece of wood.
The people refused, and eventually they were destroyed by the Northern armies of the Assyrians and the Babylonians.
It's the same today. Influences that drag you away from the living God destroy you, and you become easy prey for Satan and his demons. Once you stop worshipping the living and true God, who made the world we live in, you are "deceivable." You have a hard time telling right from wrong (look around you at the world; isn't that just what's going on today?), and you justify the greatest evils with deceptive words.
See what Paul says in Romans 1:
21 For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
22 Professing to be wise, they became fools...
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24 Therefore God gave them over in the desires of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them.
25 For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever...
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28 And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper, 29 being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful; 32 and although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them.
This is what happens in a society that rejects God--Satan takes up the vacuum with his ideas and temptations, and the society and its people disintegrate, destroy themselves and find themselves permanently separated from God (there's lots more in this passage, and the dashes represent material I've left out).
The key to human life is the worship of the living and true God and His Son Jesus Christ. The worship of any other being or creature (or yourself, or money or power) destroys you. It's an idol, which you've set up in your heart. That idol in your heart is like a burning poison that consumes you.
See what Paul says in Romans 1:
21 For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
22 Professing to be wise, they became fools...
---
24 Therefore God gave them over in the desires of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them.
25 For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever...
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28 And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper, 29 being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful; 32 and although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them.
This is what happens in a society that rejects God--Satan takes up the vacuum with his ideas and temptations, and the society and its people disintegrate, destroy themselves and find themselves permanently separated from God (there's lots more in this passage, and the dashes represent material I've left out).
The key to human life is the worship of the living and true God and His Son Jesus Christ. The worship of any other being or creature (or yourself, or money or power) destroys you. It's an idol, which you've set up in your heart. That idol in your heart is like a burning poison that consumes you.
So please don't say, "All roads lead to the same place;" in fact, all roads BUT ONE lead to the same place, but it's not the place you may think. Jesus is the ONE WAY.
Jesus said, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life." NOBODY comes to the Father, except through Me."
That is the truth. There is no exception, and there is no reprieve, if you reject the living and true God and His Son Jesus Christ.
So what do you intend to do about this?
"He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; he who does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him."
So what do you intend to do about this?
"He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; he who does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him."
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