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The church
world has conditioned society to accept a false perception of God by proclaiming
a message that gives assurance of salvation to millions yet because of its false
precepts, makes millions literal strangers to the true demands of salvation and
the righteous and Holy character of God. As the Lord's anger waxed hot against
Israel because of her sin, can we not expect the same reaction upon a blessed
nation such as America if we refuse to repent? The solemn truth is unless there is bible repentance on
a national scale the nation's fate may be settled yet there will always remain
an individual call to repent by the Holy Spirit until Jesus comes.
By Chris McDonald
TEXT: Judges 10:7 - And the anger of the LORD was hot against
Israel, and he sold them into the hands of the Philistines, and into
the hands of the children of Ammon.
If an individual has a false concept of God, who is both love, yet
also Righteous, that individual will more than likely not have a
true concept of Biblical salvation and deliverance. There must be a
balanced view of God's character, nature and holiness if we are to
lead people to a proper relationship with Him through the Lord Jesus
Christ, who Is truly the ONLY way we know God and can approach God –
both here by faith on the earth and one day in eternity.
I know that there are some who paint God as strictly an angry tyrant
all the time, wanting to judge at the least little thing, almost
living in heaven holding out a big stick to strike the earth as He
whims and desires. Churches with this view tend to be extremely
legalistic and preach that the responsibility of righteousness is on
the individual instead of dependence on the grace that God gives
those who are in Christ to fulfill His righteous laws and demands.
We are not saved by the Law nor are we kept by the law; we are saved
by GRACE through FAITH in Christ Jesus, in whom there is NO
condemnation!
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John 1:17 - For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came
by Jesus Christ.
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Romans 8:1-3 -There is therefore now no condemnation to them which
are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the
Spirit. [2] For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath
made me free from the law of sin and death. [3] For what the law
could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his
own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin
in the flesh:
We're not saved because we sing in the choir, our hair is cut above
our ears, or because we "do" or "don't" do this or don’t do that;
we're saved because we have placed our faith and trust in the
Finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ and what He accomplished for
us at the Cross. In placing our faith in the Cross we humble
ourselves, confess our sins and REPENT of our sins in coming to
Christ, who in turn places His Spirit in us that we may be conformed
into HIS image and walk free from the power and penalty of sin. That
is the gospel! The gospel of Jesus Christ however does not us IN our
sin and leave us, it saves us FROM our sins!
On the flip side, another perception that is just as wrong of God is
that He is all love and never gets angry at sin or judges nations
because of their rebellion. His love does not allow Him to condone
sin, nor does it wince when His covenant people wind up in idolatry,
sin and rebellion. Our text today speaks of a time in Israel's
history known as the time of the judges when such a cycle of
idolatry and rebellion played out in the nation constantly. Israel's
experiences in scripture are serious warnings to us today, both
nationally and in the modern church, as to what happens when we
forsake God and enter into a covenant with demons and false gods.
The modern gospel that a growing number of preachers
continue to embrace and preach promotes this false perception of God that
ultimately produces a false salvation, a path which millions embrace yet
unless they find the true path to God will wind up lost and
separated eternally from God. God IS LOVE; that Love was proclaimed
through Christ and what He did at the Cross 2,000 years ago for
those who recognize their sin as well as recognizing that they have
broken God's law. While we can't be redeemed by law, the law does
POINT us to CHRIST, in that we see that we are sinful, wicked and in
danger of judgment if we don't repent and come to the One who
fulfilled the righteous demands of the Law through His sacrifice.
The curse of the Law (death because of sin) has been placed upon
Christ who offers clemency and pardon to all those who will but bow
and humble themselves at His feet and repent of their sins.
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Galatians 3:23 But before faith came, we were kept under the law,
shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. [24]
Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that
we might be justified by faith. [25] But after that faith is come,
we are no longer under a schoolmaster.
The Lord’s Disposition To Israel; Is His The Same To Us Today?
I want to take you back to the time of the judges in Israel’s
history to gain an understanding of this text and see how Israel
found herself in such a state the Lord's anger waxed hot against her. It is worth noting that
many times during this cycle of the judges Israel would call on God and thus God would raise up
military leaders whom God raised up to deliver His people from their
enemies. After Joshua, the nation would experience a 300-year cycle
of apostasy, rebellion, repentance, deliverance by 12 different
leaders over time, only to fall back into apostasy. In each instance
after a period of faithfulness and security, the people once again
forgot God, renewing the cycle of unfaithfulness all over again.
This theme of sin-punishment-repentance-deliverance runs seven times
throughout the book of Judges, it is introduced by the refrain, "The
children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the Lord".
As we find Israel in our text, the anger of the Lord had waxed hot
again against her. This speaks of the Lord’s disposition to Israel
as one of anger; it was not just anger but an anger that literally
“was hot,” against the chosen people. This phrase “was hot,” or
“waxed hot,” actually occurs 10 other times in Scripture, four in
the book of Judges:
· Judges 2:14
· Judges 6:39
· Judges 3:8
· Judges 10:7 (OUR TEXT)
This entire phrase “and the anger of the Lord waxed
hot,” is found in other passages, but only one other time in the
book of Judges:
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Judges 2:14 - And the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel, and
he delivered them into the hands of spoilers that spoiled them, and
he sold them into the hands of their enemies round about, so that
they could not any longer stand before their enemies.
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Judges 10:7 - And the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and
he sold them into the hands of the Philistines, and into the hands
of the children of Ammon
This divine displeasure was manifested in delivering them into the
hands of the Philistines and the Ammonites. The former dwelt on the
western side of Jordan; the latter, on the eastern: and it appears
that they joined their forces on this occasion to distress and ruin
the Israelites, though the Ammonites were the most active. Neighbor,
when a nation loses its way with God, distress and ruin are always
the result and many times the distress will come from MANY
directions.
The term or phrase is used also in Exodus 22:24, 32:10-11, 22; Deut.
9:19; Psalm 6:1 and 38:1. It comes from the Hebrew word, “charah,"
which means to “be hot or furious; to burn; be incensed.” Thus, God
is spoken of as becoming hot in anger ten times in Scripture. Ten is
the number of divine government which speaks of God’s disposition
over nations and how they rule the affairs of men. With such a
background God's attitude shows that He does get angry and He gets
angry at nations.
As I write this journal my heart is extremely troubled over the
state of our nation at the present time. It seems with the direction this
nation took nearly 18 months ago that we are steadily continuing
to fall into a spiritual abyss that won't easily be gotten out of.
It seems we get more angry over the death of animals and dogs than
we do the death of the newborn. We call evil good and good evil. We
say things through our leaders that denigrate all things spiritual
and godly while we uphold such things as perversion, homosexuality
and lesbianism and claim they are normal and those who do not
embrace such as haters. The powers that be in Washington D.C. at
this very moment are working hand in foot together to eradicate all
forms of Christianity from the American landscape; many of them
would have already done it but they didn't have the power they do
now to succeed in it. When we voted as a nation in 2008 the way we
did, we did more than just put a socialist leaning politician from
Chicago in the White House, we opened the flood gates for the forces
of hell to seek the end of everything that resembles God in this
nation. We can't sing Christmas carols in our schools but we can
sing songs that praise our current President and laud his name as
children were required to do under Hitler and Mao Se Tung. In Cuba,
the rise of Castro began with the indoctrination of the children.
As we witness this the nation's soul itself continues to sink into
greater depravity. Our young people are strung out from coast to
coast with sexually transmitted diseases, bound by alcohol, bound by
the powers of darkness, bound with drugs and bound by the spirit of
greed, lust and immorality. While we look and appear happy on the
outside the nation suffers in misery as Israel's state reached so
long ago that God literally "grieved" over the misery of His chosen
people.
On a related note, one of the reasons that most have a hard time believing God addresses
nations through such events as earthquakes, calamities and other
judgments is because the
church world has conditioned society to accept a false perception of
God by proclaiming a message that gives assurance of salvation to
millions yet because of its false precepts, makes millions literal
strangers to the true demands of salvation and the righteous and
Holy character of God. Ray Comfort who heads one of the most
powerful evangelistic organizations along with actor and Christian
Kurt Cameron said recently, "I believe most who hear the American gospel
today are like the blind sinner who is unwittingly heading for a
thousand foot-cliff. This modern form of evangelism draws alongside
him and says, “Blind man, I am going to give you a wonderful gift
that will give you great peace.
We in the church then hand the blind man a CD player and adjust its
earphones over his ear. The sightless man hears “Amazing Grace”
being sung by a choir of ten thousand voices. His blind eyes widen
with delight. He smiles and says, “What you said is true. This is
truly wonderful Thank you very much.” He shakes the man’s hand,
turns up the volume on his newfound gift, and continues tapping his
way toward the thousand-foot cliff.'"
The problem is this. Because modern evangelism has failed to awaken
the blind sinner to his true plight and given him a false peace, he
is not only still heading toward a horrible death, but he is deaf
toward any further verbal warning. This is not by accident, but by
demonic design that millions have been given so many versions of
true salvation their ears are actually deaf to the true message of
salvation that will keep them from eternal hell!
The modern church holds to a theology that leaves out the fact the
Law of God has declared men as sinners and lawbreakers, as well as
rejecting the operation of the Holy Spirit. As a result, there is no
conviction upon the Word of God, what precious little of it is still
preached behind pulpits today. As Jeremiah declared in 8:11, the
prophets and priests of Israel healed the daughter of the people
“slightly,” by saying, “peace, peace,” when there was no peace!
False peace to the sinner means false conversions which in turn
produces professing Christians who are not born again and thus lost
and without God. These same people believe in sincerity that when
they die they will go to heaven, when in fact, if they die in this
state of embracing a false salvation, they will in fact go to hell.
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Jeremiah 8:11
For they have healed the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly,
saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.
In addition to promoting a gospel that promises false peace without
repentance, the modern gospel refuses to address the fact our nation
has lost God’s blessings and God’s anger is kindled greatly against
America, though laced with mercy. This is in part the same
disposition and anger He portrayed to Israel of old, whose
experiences are a warning to us today, that God is the same and He
changes not!
Most refuse to deal with the obvious before our eyes. The American
Cancer society estimated that in just one year there were 1,382,400
new cancer cases. Add to that an onslaught of killer bees, massive
hurricanes, devastating floods, earthquakes, droughts and as we
witnessed last week ravaging and deadly tornadoes that can destroy
property and end lives in a moment’s notice. After years of
evangelization by modern preachers, including many household names
who regularly parade their wares over Christian television, a
concept of God as a benevolent figure ONLY has engulfed the thinking
of most who are offended when faced with the concept that God just
may be angry at our nation because of its sin and rebellion and
despite decades of merciful warnings to us, has backed off and is
allowing the enemy to run rampant across our land.
Therefore, when terrible tragedies of “natural disasters” and deadly
diseases come our way, those are considered the mere rumblings of
Mother Nature, El Nino, la Nina, global warming, global cooling and
a myriad of other things - ANYTHING BUT the dealings of a Holy God
with a sinful nation. And to speak otherwise, one risks being
labeled a hate or fear mongerer not just from within the nation but
from within the church.
A certain black preacher I will leave nameless that has one of the
biggest national ministries in America was on Fox News a week after
Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and asked point blank, “do you think God
is dealing with us a nation through these natural disasters?” His
response was typical of the modern crop of preachers with huge
followings when he said, “the God I serve didn’t have anything to do
with this.” While I will be the first to proclaim that God does not
steal, kill or destroy human life - the enemy does that - God at the
very least allowed these events to happen and even greater still WAS
then and IS NOW
trying to get the attention of the nation through these tragedies.
There were some preachers who refused to acknowledge God was
speaking to our nation in the events of 9-11-2001. God is speaking
whether we’re listening or not!
From hence a position comes a tragic dilemma in which the Church
finds herself: how do we go from preaching “God loves you” no matter
how you’re living or how deep in rebellion and sin you are to “God
is angry at the wicked every day” and a God whose love cannot be
true love unless He deals with sin!
This dilemma to be frank is too great a leap for most to take; in
fact most don’t take it and opt out for a message void of any
demands for repentance because if they did take the leap, they would
not have stadiums full of people listening to their message and
millions coming into the coffers! Instead, they’d be hard pressed to
fill the front row!
Consequently, few preachers have the courage to say that America is
under any form of God’s judgment, and those who do so are considered
a little fanatical. Again, this is simply because just over one
hundred years ago, modern evangelism forsook the scriptural
preaching of the Gospel which includes the revelation of God’s holy
law, without which the world cannot conceive that God would be angry
at humanity. Let me tell you this.
God is not a tyrant who sits in heaven wanting an excuse to get mad.
He wants to always deal with His creation in mercy FIRST, LOVE
always and grace whenever possible. Even in His wrath, He always
tempers such with MERCY and Grace. The act of destroying Sodom and
Gomorrah was an act of mercy on the rest of the Earth. Had God left
Sodom and Gomorrah alone, the sin that infested those two cities
would have spread and destroyed all of humanity like a cancer.
EVERYTHING God does, even in judgment, is rooted in HIS LOVE and
GRACE for this fallen sin cursed Earth.
When God’s anger waxes HOT, as stated in our text, it should tell us
that there is a deep rooted reason for such and not something that
takes place on a regular basis. In Israel’s case, she had reached
such a state that brought this type anger on not over night, but
through a series of rebellions, periods of apostasy and idol
worship. God warned Israel over and over and over that if she
persisted in this pattern this would cause His anger to kindle
against her; yet the nation refused to listen. I cannot help but
think that this blessed nation of America of which I am proud to be
a citizen of, sits on the same precipice today, yet so very few want
to address it because it flies in the face of this cotton candy,
soda pop psychology laced gospel of the modern era.
When preachers preach about future punishment most respond and say
“God loves you, ask Jesus into your heart right now!” When most are
asked where people go when they die without Jesus Christ, one would
be shocked at how few grasp they will not go to heaven. The word
“hell” has become almost a four-letter word in the church because of
the severity of its sound and the hard truth of its reality.
Comedians mock its existence; sinners use it as a curse word in
their anger; yet preachers of the gospel are scared to use it from
behind pulpits to warn their listeners of the consequences of
eternity without God.
The Reason’s for God’s Anger Waxing Hot Against Israel
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Judges 10:6
And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the Lord,
and served Baalim, and Ashtaroth, and the gods of Syria, and the
gods of Zidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the children of
Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines, and forsook the Lord, and
served not him
Why was God’s disposition such to Israel? I know that when we hear
that God is “angry” it messes up this modern view of God many in the
church have produced in the hearts in millions. Let’s look at a bit
closer at the reason God was as angry as He got and why it reveals
the reasons we should tremble in holy fear for our nation of America
today.
Number one, Israel worshipped many gods other than the TRUE and
LIVING GOD. Not did they worship and embrace their old demons Baal
and Ashtoreth, which the Canaanites had worshipped, but, as if they
would proclaim their folly to all their neighbors, they served the
gods of Syria, Zidon, Moab, Ammon, and the Philistines. It looks as
if the chief trade of Israel had been to import deities from all
countries and by doing so rendered them despicable, for no nation
that had any sense of honor changed their gods. Israel changed her
worship of the true God for that of idols. Let that sink in friend.
The source of this idol worship was
money, which should come as no
surprise to any of us who see what is taking place in our nation
today, especially the modern church. Idol worship is big business
and it brings in money to those who embrace such.
According to the great commentator, Matthew Henry, much of the
wealth of Israel was carried out, in offerings to the temples of the
false deities they worshipped in several of the countries from
whence they came; thus, the temples of Israel were expected to
pledge their allegiance to these false temples and ally themselves
with their neighbor’s false gods for monetary gain. The priests and
devotees of those sorry deities would follow their gods, no doubt,
in crowds into the land of Israel, and, if they could not live in
their own country, would come back to Israel and bring their false
gods with them, take root there, and thus strangers would eventually
devour Israel’s strength. America’s immigration issues are a
precursor of things to come that unless we repent, strangers are
going to, if they have not already begun, devour our strength!
Some commentators believed Israel also worshipped these gods to
compliment her neighbors as a sign of gratitude. America does the
same today with its increasing allegiance to Islam and the false god
of Allah. Islam has just about taken over Europe and America is next
if our leadership in both Washington and the modern evangelical
church community don’t wake up. When six mosques are going up weekly
for every one church, friend that should be a warning to us that
America is turning heathen and embracing a religion that will in
time both control and destroy us in spite of our platitudes of
gratitude to it, as what has been spoken by our President recently.
It was a shame and disgrace to see President Bush, whom I like, but
disagree vehemently on this issue with him about Islam being a
“peaceful” relgion, when he visited Saudi Arabia in January, holding
the sword of Islam up with the Saudi prince. That sword when lifted
up means “Islam will rule the world,” and is the heart felt feeling
of ALL Islamic nations and dictators. When our American President
embraces this religion and promotes it as just another way to God,
we are opening the door for disaster and destruction!
Yet, as Israel found out the hard way so will America. The same
nations whereby they turned to and embraced their wickedness and
idolatry, thus making alliances and friends with, became their
enemies AND OPPRESSORS through the righteous declarations of God!
America needs to heed this warning. If we want to embrace the false
god of Islam and declare Allah as god, then we will suffer the
consequences of Allah’s religion – the bloody sword of Islam which
seeks the total destruction of Jews and Christians world wide. We
have not gotten it in six and a half years that the events of
9-11-2001 was NOT the work of a few extremists, but the workings of
the basic foundations of this very religion we try to appease. What
happened on 9-11 is what Islam teaches that is RIGHT in the sight of
Allah and Mohammed, Islam’s so-called prophet.
A God among Many Gods
Neighbor, hear this writer. Man uses the term “God” today like some
generic brand of bread or grocery item. When seeking to define
whether one believes in God, most state they “believe in God,” yet
not knowing just who God really is! Where the rubber hits the road
is through the revelation of Whom God revealed Himself to man
through – His ONLY BEGOTTEN SON, the Lord Jesus Christ.
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John 3:16 -For God so loved the world, that he gave his only
begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but
have everlasting life.
When one says, “I believe in JESUS,” then the discussion changes and
the temperature rises quickly! Jesus Christ IS God and God is
revealed through Jesus Christ! They are part of a Triune Godhead –
God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Three distinct
personalities; yet there being one unique Trinity.
Yet, the Lord Jesus Christ has become a “god” among many gods that
millions worship, including many in the professing, yet apostate
church. As stated, Islam is spreading over this land as a cancer
without treatment with its false worship of Allah. Other false
religions such as Buddhism and Hinduism are gaining hold in our
schools and universities where when one mentions the term “god” most
believe that means ALL paths and all beliefs go to the God of
heaven. Many literally think God of the Bible is the same god of
Hinduism, Islam and Buddhism. The Catholics promote a religion based
on harlotry, a worship of works and praying to a man who they fell
forgives sin. Friend, it’s not the POPE you will standing before on
judgment day! In addition, the Catholic Church declares itself as
the “true” church and only way one can be a Christian.
LET THIS WRITER BE CLEAR AND STATE THIS WITHOUT FEAR OR FAVOR - ALL
PATHS DO NOT LEAD TO GOD and if one comes any other way except
through the Blood stained hands of Jesus Christ – that person will
be eternally lost and wind up in a devil’s hell forever and forever.
Another powerful impact on American society and thought is the New
Age Movement’ whose teaching has brought the worship of other false
deities and more importantly the god of “self” into the world, and
now into the Church. This new gospel of “self,” that man “evolves”
into Godhood through improving his “self” instead of repentance
through the Cross. That is what 70% of all preachers are preaching
and proclaiming today behind American pulpits.
That is why building up one’s self-esteem is looked on in the modern
church as the solution; thus modern psychology is embraced as
gospel, instead of embracing what the Word of God says about fallen
humanity. The Bible says self is the problem and there is NO other
place where man’s “self” can be dealt with except at the Cross! We
DIE to our old sin nature at the Cross. Our life ENDS at the Cross,
so His life can begin anew in us through the power of the Holy
Ghost! Man doesn’t need a revamping of his “self-image,” man needs
to repent! Man is a sinner, not one whose self-esteem needs to be
adjusted to he can function in life. SIN is why man does not
function and his life is out of kilter!! Sin’s power is broken in
man, not by man gaining more self-esteem, but by man admitting he is
a SINNER and coming to the foot of the Cross for deliverance and
salvation!
One of the leading New Agers of our time is television host Oprah
Winfrey, whose gospel is being embraced by millions, including many
Christians who view her as some religious icon because she talks so
uplifting to women and others. Oprah’s actions however PALE in
comparison to the New Age teaching that is being promoted and
proclaimed by so-called preachers of the gospel! New Age gurus,
dressed up in suits, proclaiming messages that push works,
self-esteem, self-help, and a myriad of other doctrines laced with
humanistic psychology, other than the doctrine of the CROSS!
Neighbor, it’s at the CROSS where we meet the true God of heaven –
in the person of Jesus Christ. It’s at the Cross where man sees
himself as God sees him – a sinner, lost and undone without hope and
mercy; it’s at the Cross where however, God’s judgment on sin has
been dealt with through the sacrifice of Christ and if man will but
repent, believe the gospel and by faith walk in obedience to God,
man will be saved from that same wrath that is upon ALL who refuse
to embrace such.
If my 15-year old son starts trying to read the Purpose Driven Life
book and puts it down after reading 3 pages, telling me “dad,
something is very wrong with this book,” why can’t preachers and
ministry leaders see it as such? If my 21-year old step-daughter,
who is not a theologian by any stretch of the imagination, can watch
Joel Osteen’s program on Sunday morning then turn the channel in
disgust saying to me, “what he is preaching isn’t right – it’s not
telling people the right way to be saved,” why do preachers and
ministry leaders ooh and awe over him like he’s some Guru, and not
see his error? Joel Osteen has a serious problem in being able to
discern what being a true believer is. When asked in December by Fox
News Sunday whether he thought Mormons were Christians he said “of
course they are.” They are?
You mean a Mormon who believes Christ is but of thousands of other
gods and that Joseph Smith has the same divine capacity as God’s son
is the same as a Christian? Umm, that’s interesting Joel. And I’m
sure that the Mormons who embrace such error and damnable doctrines
will die and just be ushered into heaven without question because
they have their faith in thousands of other gods and believe man
will evolve into Godhood himself and thus does not need redemption
by the blood of Jesus; Don’t count on it! Don’t count on it. That is
a shame that a preacher of the gospel with such a following cannot
clearly tell people the truth! But it’s yet another sign we’re
living the last of the last days and the apostasy foretold by
apostles is HERE and growing darker by the moment.
These are not personal attacks on these individuals. We DO however
have a right to question their MESSAGE! Because it is the MESSAGE
that people hear and embrace either for eternal salvation or for
eternal damnation. This is not some isolated incident either. The
lines are being blurred so much today that people who call
themselves Christians yet question whether Christ is even God. Some
question whether there is a hell; some question whether men really
need to repent and believe the gospel to be saved. It’s a sad
indictment of the state of any ministry when the Purpose Driven Life
is read word for word to people in lieu of the teaching and
preaching of the Word of God. Yet, SCORES of ministries and churches
do just that every Sunday and every week! I know what I’m talking
about because I witnessed it up close and personal just last year in
the city we live. Let this writer say it! If a ministry or theology
is not centered on the Cross of Christ, it is a false theology that
promotes the worship of a false god and is being produced by false
and demon spirits!! Get offended at that if you like; many will. But
friend there is no other alternative of salvation outside the path
of the Cross of Christ!
Secondly, while worshipping so many false deities,
Israel did not so
much as admit or recognize the God of Israel to be one of those many
deities they worshipped, but literally cast Him off. In other words,
it was bad enough that Israel worshipped so many false gods, but in
the process of time, the nation simply forsook the True Lord of
heaven, and served not him at all.
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Judges 10:6
And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the Lord,
and served Baalim, and Ashtaroth, and the gods of Syria, and the
gods of Zidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the children of
Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines, and forsook the Lord, and
served not him.
That is why we scream so much through this website about the mixing
of religions and trying to promote a false unity. One cannot think
to serve both God AND the false gods of humanism, psychology and the
theologies of false religions, for in doing so it is always
inevitable one will soon come entirely to forsake God, and to serve
these false gods only! If God have not all the heart of man, He will
soon have none of it. Yet this sickening mixture of the gospel
continues to cause many to embrace a false Christ, driven by false
spirits, promoting a false gospel.
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2 Cor. 11:4- For if he that cometh preaches another Jesus, whom we
have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have
not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye
might well bear with him.
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Matthew 6:24-25 - No man can serve two masters: for either he will
hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one,
and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
That is what is taking place in greater magnitude and scope in
America today. We don’t even hide our idolatry anymore but openly
proclaim it to our utter and eternal shame and the destruction of
millions who will wind up in hell because of it. When churches tell
people that you can be a Christian and a homosexual at the same
time, neighbor we have forsaken God! When we tell women they can go
out and abort babies and support and vote for candidates who believe
the same, we have forsaken God! When churches send the drug addicts
and alcoholics among us to rehab centers because we don’t believe in
the operation and moving of the Holy Ghost to deliver men, we have
forsaken God! When we call that which is God “of Satan,” and that
which is of Satan, “of God,” then we have forsaken God!
Israel became oppressed by the same enemies incidentally, whose gods
she had embraced. That is a serious warning to the American church
and nation as I write this!
As I close this journal, listen to me friend. Had Israel fallen into
the hands of the Lord immediately, they would have found His mercies
were great; yet because of their unwillingness to admit their state
and continued rebellion, God let them fall into the hands of man,
whose tender mercies are cruel.
The Bible said “HE,” meaning God, sold them into the hands of the
Philistines that lay south-west of Canaan, and of the Ammonites that
lay north-east, both at the same time; so that between those two
millstones they were miserably crushed, as the original word is (v.
8) for oppressed.
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Judges 10:8 - And that year they vexed and oppressed the children of
Israel: eighteen years, all the children of Israel that were on the
other side Jordan in the land of the Amorites, which is in Gilead.
Because the church has embraced idols, sin has CRUSHED millions!
Because we have refused to preach the Cross, the oppression and
bondage of drugs, alcohol, lust, pornography, homosexuality,
lesbianism, unbelief, idolatry, deceit, fraud, and the list could go
one, grips MILLIONS to where they are literally CRUSHED under sin’s
dominion! For those who are not gripped with the sins of the flesh,
the oppressive spirits of depression, mental disorders, and suicide
grip others. Because of this sin curse upon us, the earth convulses
and wreaths back and forth in utter disgust at its condition, thus
the violent storms and displays of nature’s wrath and fury that
crushes lives as well.
In Israel’s case, God had appointed her oppression, if any of the
cities of Israel should revolt to idolatry, then one of the
judgments pronounced would be Israel declaring war upon them and
cutting them of. Yet, because Israel became idolatrous and forsook
God herself, the same judgment pronounced upon her enemies, now fell
on her.
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Deut. 13:12-16 - If thou shalt hear say in one of thy cities, which
the Lord thy God hath given thee to dwell there, saying, [13]
Certain men, the children of Belial, are gone out from among you,
and have withdrawn the inhabitants of their city, saying, Let us go
and serve other gods, which ye have not known; [14] Then shalt thou
enquire, and make search, and ask diligently; and, behold, if it be
truth, and the thing certain, that such abomination is wrought among
you; [15] Thou shalt surely smite the inhabitants of that city with
the edge of the sword, destroying it utterly, and all that is
therein, and the cattle thereof, with the edge of the sword. [16]
And thou shalt gather all the spoil of it into the midst of the
street thereof, and shalt burn with fire the city, and all the spoil
thereof every whit, for the Lord thy God: and it shall be an heap
for ever; it shall not be built again.
As we close, let me give you two quick points that describes
Israel’s oppression: One, it was very long. It continued eighteen
years during which some of those years were part of the judgeship of
Jair, who could not prevail to reform and deliver Israel as he
would. In times past when God raised up judges, they would do just
that – deliver Israel from her oppressors, but her sin had gotten so
bad, even a new leader could not change her course of bondage. Let
that sink in friend as we face elections here in America in November
2008. Just because we “change” direction or parties, doesn’t mean
America will change.
Secondly, this oppression was very grievous. Israel’s enemies, who
themselves were wretched and grossly violent, vexed them and
oppressed them. The children of Ammon began with those tribes that
lay next them on the other side Jordan, here called the land of the
Amorites (v. 8) because the Israelites had so wretchedly degenerated
and made themselves so like the heathen, they had become, in a
manner, perfect Amorites. We will become like those who oppress us!
By their sin Israel forfeited their title to this land, so that it
might justly be looked upon as the land of the Amorites again, from
whom they originally had taken it. This invasion came in degrees as
they pushed forward, came over Jordan, and invaded Judah, and
Benjamin, and Ephraim (v. 9), three of the most famous tribes of
Israel.
Judges 10:9 - Moreover the children of Ammon passed over Jordan to
fight also against Judah, and against Benjamin, and against the
house of Ephraim; so that Israel was sore distressed.
Israel, as mighty as a nation she was at the time, was unable to
make head against the invader. Now the threatening was fulfilled
that they should be slain before their enemies, and should have no
power to stand before them, as was warned by Moses in the Law.
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Leviticus 26:17 - And I will set my face against you, and ye shall
be slain before your enemies: they that hate you shall reign over
you; and ye shall flee when none pursueth you.
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Leviticus 26:37 - And they shall fall one upon another, as it were
before a sword, when none pursues: and ye shall have no power to
stand before your enemies.
Why did all of this happen? Because the anger of the Lord waxed HOT
against Israel. Neighbor, if you are in open rebellion and sin today
and not living right, you are under this same disposition from the
Heavenly Father! He loves you enough today to warn you through the
words of this journal to repent, believe the gospel and be saved!
Backslider, He’s warning you today to make things right before He
has to move in judgment. He wants to move in MERCY, but when mercy
ends, the only remedy for apostasy is judgment.
To the nation of America; heed the warnings of what happened to
Israel. Israel found herself in a mess and became utterly oppressed
and invaded by foreign powers. In our next journal, we’re going to
look at how Israel got herself out of this mess, which led to a new
Judge and deliverer, Jephaeth, who was raised up who delivered her
from the hands of the Ammonites. This which we will speak of next
week is America’s only hope as well!
Neighbor, it’s getting late. We need to examine our hearts and see
if there be anything within us that makes the Lord’s anger wax hot
over us! We need to examine ourselves to see whether we be in the
faith, and not reprobate. And the anger of the Lord waxed HOT
against Israel. What is His disposition to you today? Please ask
yourself that question before it is eternally too late! God Bless.
Questions, comments:
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