“KNOW NO MAN AFTER THE FLESH!”

 2 Corinthians 5:16-17                                 (KJV)

“16 WHEREFORE HENCEFORTH “KNOW WE NO MAN AFTER THE FLESH”: yea, though we have known CHRIST after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we HIM no more.

17 Therefore if any man be in CHRIST, he is a NEW CREATURE: old things are passed away; behold, ALL THINGS ARE BECOME NEW.”

There is a two hour video of a current minister of THE GOSPEL, of whom I admire greatly, that I listened to recently with great interest.  His skin color is darker than mine, and his view of Scripture is FAR deeper than mine.  Oftentimes we can (and I do!) fail to attribute the completed work of CHRIST to HIM while remembering that HIS SPIRIT is alive within our bodies!  JESUS paid an unimaginable price to redeem us, to complete HIS WORK for us by leveling the playing field for EVERYONE, that we need to be reminded CONSTANTLY for HIS GLORY!

WHEREFORE is defined as “for what reason”, or basically “why the matter is being considered”!  HENCEFORTH is described as “from now on”, or “ from this time forward”!  Since JESUS has paid the price to bring us all onto equal ground, should ever consider myself less than anyone else in the position I find myself?  

How can I find common ground with the wealthiest person alive?  Being a 6’6” male, how do I find similarities with a 5’4” female?  My loud personality and a soft, quiet personality surely would clash!  But Scripture instructs us to “KNOW WE NO MAN AFTER THE FLESH”!!!  GOD knew that I needed a counterbalance for my loudness and so almost 40 years ago HE did what only HE could do and provided my wife!  

Just as ALMIGHTY GOD had the perfect mate for me, HE created me to compliment others, and them to compliment me, so that we can work in ONE ACCORD for HIS GLORY!  Because of the FINISHED WORK OF CHRIST, we ALL are commanded to “KNOW WE NO MAN AFTER THE FLESH”, rather to see CHRIST living inside of them!  “Therefore if any man be in CHRIST, he is a NEW CREATURE: old things are passed away; behold, ALL THINGS ARE BECOME NEW”.  

WHEREFORE HENCEFORTH, if I see skin color first, or I see a persons ancestry, or allow their wealth to enter into my eyes, I am NOT seeing them as CHRIST SEES them!  When we “KNOW NO MAN AFTER THE FLESH” we see either CHRIST in them, or the need for CHRIST!  Race, social status, political parties shouldn’t figure into the equation.  We must “KNOW NO MAN AFTER THE FLESH”!!!

“GRACE AND TRUTH!”

 John 1:14-17                            (ESV)

“14 And the WORD became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen HIS glory, glory as of the only SON from the FATHER, full of “GRACE AND TRUTH”.

15 (John bore witness about HIM, and cried out, "This was HE of whom I said, 'HE who comes after me ranks before me, because HE was before me.'")

16 For from HIS fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.

17 For the law was given through Moses; “GRACE AND TRUTH” came through JESUS CHRIST.”

With so many avenues of knowledge these days, it can be frustrating to rummage through various sources of information searching for “GRACE AND TRUTH”?  Discovering genuine “GRACE AND TRUTH” relegates everything else to being a cheap replication, a counterfeit with NO HOPE of equaling the ORIGINAL!  

JESUS CHRIST is full of “GRACE AND TRUTH” and they only come through HIM!  There simply is no substitute for the hole we are created with.  We can ONLY be completed by our CREATOR, by the ONE WHO is all about “GRACE AND TRUTH”!  The very breath that we currently have in our lungs is the definition of GRACE, we do not deserve it.  

We should be aware of the happenings of “this world”, but we must remain aware that GOD’S PLAN WILL BE FULFILLED, we are only here to serve HIS PURPOSE for a brief time.  True PEACE can only be experienced when we are in the midst of HIS PLAN, even if that PLAN is walking through the valley of the shadow of death!  GOD wants us to WALK with NO FEAR because HE is forever with us with “GRACE AND TRUTH”!  Our adversary will offer a plethora of distractions to attract and maintain our focus, but ultimately “GRACE AND TRUTH” are where we need to set our minds!  

Even when seemingly “good” options are presented, if we fail to keep our minds on JESUS CHRIST then we are settling for less than THE ORIGINAL!  “GRACE AND TRUTH” is the FOUNDATION of everything that matters.  Unless we keep HIM elevated, we are missing the mark.  Don’t allow anything to come before “GRACE AND TRUTH”!!!

“I WILL PUT MY SPIRIT WITHIN YOU!”

 Ezekiel 36:22-28

“22 "Therefore say to the house of Israel, Thus says the LORD GOD: IT IS NOT FOR YOUR SAKE, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of MY HOLY NAME, WHICH YOU HAVE PROFANED among the nations to which you came.

23 And I will vindicate the holiness of MY GREAT NAME, which has been profaned among the nations, and WHICH YOU HAVE PROFANED among them. And the nations will know that I am the LORD, declares the LORD GOD, when through you I vindicate MY holiness before their eyes. 

24 I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries and bring you into your own land.

25 I will sprinkle clean water on you, and YOU SHALL BE CLEAN from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you.

26 And I WILL GIVE YOU A NEW HEART, and A NEW SPIRIT WILL I PUT WITHIN YOU. And I will REMOVE the heart of stone from your flesh and GIVE YOU a heart of flesh.

27 And “I WILL PUT MY SPIRIT WITHIN YOU”, and CAUSE YOU to walk in MY statutes and be careful to obey MY rules.

28 You shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers, and you shall be MY people, and I will be your GOD.”

When ALMIGHTY GOD spoke to the Prophet Ezekiel it more than likely wasn’t in an audible voice surrounded by a group of people who were busy with the happenings of current affairs.  GOD’S SPIRIT spoke to Ezekiel (Ezekiel 2:2) and gave him a message to deliver to the Children of Israel that started out being anything but music to their ears.  Ezekiel 3:7 states “But the house of Israel will NOT be willing to listen to you, for they are not willing to listen to ME: because all the house of Israel have a hard forehead and a stubborn heart.”  GOD spoke through Ezekiel to get HIS message through to the Israelites when they were “not willing” to hear TRUTH!!!

GOD instructed Ezekiel to tell the Children of Israel in verse twenty-two above “... Thus says the LORD GOD: IT IS NOT FOR YOUR SAKE, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of MY HOLY NAME, WHICH YOU HAVE PROFANED among the nations to which you came”.  GOD wanted them to know that it WASN’T because they were being “good”, rather because of MY GREAT NAME that HE was going to do miraculous things.  HE used imperfect, reviling people to display HIS LOVE for eternity to SEE how HIS forgiveness and mercy is extended to us.

How many times has ALMIGHTY GOD tried to speak to me and I was too busy with my own agenda that I refused to BE STILL and listen to HIS STILL SMALL VOICE?  GOD has chosen me and has said “I WILL PUT MY SPIRIT WITHIN YOU”, but do I really understand the gravity of THE LORD OF CREATION wanting to use me to speak to others at times?  FATHER IN HEAVEN, cause me to NEVER be too busy listening to “this world” that I miss hearing from YOU!  “I WILL PUT MY SPIRIT WITHIN YOU” isn’t a privilege that I should take lightly?!?!?

“GOD WILL NOT BE MOCKED!”

 Galatians 6:6-10                           (ESV)

“6 Let the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches.

7 Do not be deceived: “GOD IS NOT MOCKED”, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.

8 For the ONE WHO SOWS TO HIS OWN FLESH will from THE FLESH REAP CORRUPTION, but the one who sows to the SPIRIT will from the SPIRIT reap eternal life.

9 And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.

10 So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.”

Briefly today, a scorekeeper in an athletic game only keeps up with the good and bad of the participants of the game!  The SCOREKEEPER of LIFE is also the JUDGE WHO discharges the payment for the deeds HE observes!  I’m so happy that CHRIST’s perfect LIFE was imputed to me, and my unlawful life was imputed onto HIM!  GOD WILL JUDGE the sin of everyone, either through JESUS on Calvary, or eternal JUDGMENT on those who reject JESUS on that day!  “GOD IS NOT MOCKED” needs to be considered, before it is too late!!!

“BUT HE SAID TO ME!”

 2 Corinthians 12:7-10                     (ESV)

“7 So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited.

8 Three times I pleaded with the LORD about this, that it should leave me.

9 “BUT HE SAID TO ME”, "MY grace is sufficient for you, for MY POWER IS MADE PERFECT IN WEAKNESS." Therefore I (Paul) will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of CHRIST may rest upon me.

10 For the sake of CHRIST, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”  

Growing up I was always known as “country strong”.  In the weight room at school I could barely hold my own, but doing things around the farm I seemed to do a better job.  Admitting that I was WEAK during the recovery from the brain hemorrhage was something that I was not accustomed to, no comfortable with.  Praise JESUS that my recovery didn’t take long, probably because I was “country strong” from my youth on the farm.  

The Apostle Paul was given a “thorn” in his flesh to prevent him from becoming conceited, from thinking too highly of himself.  In chapter twelve of 2 Corinthians began with Paul writing about being “caught up to the third Heaven”, something that I’m sure was an event to brag about, something he wanted to tell everyone about!  There are very few people in the BIBLE that have experienced Heaven then came back to earth to live for CHRIST!  Evidently Paul was being limited by the HOLY SPIRIT because not everyone will experience the “third Heaven” phenomenon, but not everyone was willing to go through “the suffering” that Paul was exposed to either!  

1 Corinthians 7:17 says “Only let each person lead the life that the LORD has assigned to him, and to which GOD has called him. This is my rule in all the churches.”  While it is true that Scripture is given to us by GOD to direct us down the path HE leads, we should ever be seeking HIS guidance, not just winging it the best we can.  WALKING BY FAITH is a constant growing process.  The closer we get to the LIGHT, the more we are expected to reflect HIS LOVE, MERCY and GRACE.  Paul walked very closely with the LORD, and he spent a lot of time imprisoned because of his FAITH!  He wasn’t locked up for doing wrong.  His mission was to carry JESUS wherever he was led.  

How do we KNOW when THE LORD is leading us down a path that might lead us into “prison”?  Convincing me that a Brain Hemorrhage would have been part of the future for me when I went to bed on July 08,  2007 would have seemed asinine.  It was made evident that I would be unable to recover “on my own”, so GOD removed my ability to assist for seventeen days, and HE handed everything like only HE can!  “BUT HE SAID TO ME” became easier to HEAR when the clutter of “this world” was removed from my life.  My prayer is that I will take the time to LISTEN FOR INSTRUCTION from ABOVE and not be mesmerized by “this world” and its busyness!  “BUT HE SAID TO ME” is the sweetest thing a person can hear!!!

“IF YOU ABIDE IN MY WORD!”

 John 8:31-38                              (ESV)

“31 So JESUS said to the Jews who had believed HIM, "IF YOU ABIDE IN MY WORD”, you are truly MY disciples,

32 and you will know the TRUTH, and the TRUTH will set you free."

33 They answered HIM, "We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that YOU say, 'You will become free'?"

34 JESUS answered them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin.

35 The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever.

36 So if the SON sets you free, you will be free indeed.

37 I know that you are offspring of Abraham; yet you seek to kill ME because MY WORD finds no place in you.

38 I speak of what I have seen with MY FATHER, and you do what you have heard from your father."”

This account of JESUS speaking to the Jews who has believed HIM seemed to indicate that HE was speaking to HIS “followers”?  But JESUS knows our HEARTS and MINDS, as a matter of fact HE CREATED them, so HE KNEW  that they were seeking to kill HIM because MY WORD finds no place in them!  They were trying to tell JESUS where they were from and who they were, when they couldn’t SEE WHO HE is!  

Do I find myself in similar predicaments?  When my focus is on me instead of HIM, do I try to explain where I am instead of where HE is going to deliver me?  Why do I attempt to assist GOD in getting where only HE can take me?  Do I think HE needs my help when I SEE evidence of HIS HANDIWORK in every breath I am granted?

Has HIS WORD found a place in our lives, to mold us, to transform us, into the reflection of HIM that we are created to be?  Or do we become so caught up in assimilating to “this world”, to what society says is acceptable, that we neglect HIS wishes and PLAN for our lives?  These Jews ultimately wound up being responsible for having JESUS crucified (Matthew 27:25), all to fulfill THE PLAN OF SALVATION for everyone.  

Even though we find ourselves in spots that are very uncomfortable, we have to understand that we are NOT ALONE, that JESUS will NEVER leave us (Matthew 28:20)!  How can we KNOW that we are one of the CHOSEN?  Not by simply saying a prayer, or doing what a pastor, priest, or rabbi instructs us to do!  JESUS says “”IF YOU ABIDE IN MY WORD”, you are truly MY disciples, and you will know the TRUTH, and the TRUTH will set you free."  “IF YOU ABIDE IN MY WORD”, not the societal norms from “this world”!  

“YOU ARE NOT OF GOD!”

 John 8:39-47                                         (ESV)

“39 They (the Pharisees) answered HIM, "Abraham is our father." JESUS said to them, "If you were Abraham's children, you would be doing the works Abraham did,

40 but now you seek to kill ME, a man who has told you the TRUTH that I heard from GOD. This is not what Abraham did.

41 You are doing the works your father did." They said to HIM, "We were not born of sexual immorality. We have one FATHER-even GOD."

42 JESUS said to them, "If GOD were your FATHER, you would love ME, for I came from GOD and I am here. I came not of MY own accord, but HE SENT ME.

43 WHY DO YOU NOT UNDERSTAND WHAT I SAY? It is because you cannot bear to hear my word.

44 You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because THERE IS NO TRUTH in him. When he lies, he speaks out of HIS OWN CHARACTER, for HE IS A LIAR and the father of lies.

45 But because I tell the TRUTH, you do not believe ME.

46 Which one of you convicts ME of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe ME?

47 WHOEVER IS OF GOD HEARS THE WORDS OF GOD. The reason why you do not hear them is that “YOU ARE NOT OF GOD”."”

FRUSTRATING!!!  Trying to explain to someone TRUTH when the ability to select precisely the WORD that they need to hear can be a trying time.  When my Brain Hemorrhaged, the portion of my brain that was affected was the word recall portion.  Finding the words that I am looking to use can be almost maddening sometimes, and I probably don’t handle it as well as I need to.  

JESUS, GOD IN FLESH, was trying to explain to the Pharisees, the hierarchy of the earthly Jewish faith, that they were of their father the devil, and that was very offensive to them.  The problem was these Pharisees, even though their ancestry was through Abraham, they had NOT been CHOSEN before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4), so they had NO IDEA what JESUS was speaking about.  Even with JESUS witnessing to them, they could not have their EYES opened!

When people are unable to SEE TRUTH, it may not be because they are “bad people”, they may not have been CHOSEN before the foundation of the world?  GOD still has a PLAN for them to REJECT HIM, so we cannot just allow them to go to hell without knowing their fate.  They may persecute us, or even kill us (Matthew 24:9), but our calling is to reflect HIS LOVE to a lost and dying world!

Now we can’t know who is apart of “YOU ARE NOT OF GOD”, so we need to follow HIS leadership, just like the Children of Israel followed THE CLOUD on there journey to the Promised Land.  We might not be a Billy Graham sharing with millions of people, but wherever GOD leads us we should be reflecting HIS LIGHT on those in our midst!  There are some who will ridicule and mock us, but they must be a part of the “YOU ARE NOT OF GOD” crowd!  Praise GOD, we won’t ever have to hear “YOU ARE NOT OF GOD”!!!

“BRING ME THE EPHOD!”

 1 Samuel 30:6-7                                  (ESV)

“6 And David was GREATLY DISTRESSED, for the people spoke of stoning him, because all the people were bitter in soul, each for his sons and daughters. But DAVID STRENGTHENED HIMSELF IN THE LORD HIS GOD.

7 And David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelech, "BRING ME THE EPHOD." So Abiathar BROUGHT THE EPHOD to David.

8 And David inquired of the LORD, "Shall I pursue after this band? Shall I overtake them?" HE answered him, "Pursue, for you shall surely overtake and shall surely rescue." 

“Eliphaz, son of Esau (the patriarch Jacob’s brother and sworn enemy), and his concubine Timna had a child named Amalek.  Amalek grew up in Esau’s household, imbibing (soak up) Esau’s pathological hatred of Jacob’s descendants along the way. His offspring became the nation of Amalek, and they lived to the south of the Land of Israel, in what is now known as the Negev Desert.”  So Amalek was the grandson of Esau, the brother of Jacob, who bought Esau’s birthright from him when he was hungry.  Esau hated Jacob (later known as Israel) so much that his hatred was passed on to his ancestry.  The Amalekites had hate instilled in them, and regrettably allowed that hate to ultimately kill them.  

David, already anointed as the King of Israel by Samuel, was off trying to join the Philistines in a war.  But even though David was a man after GODS OWN heart, GOD evidently had other Plans than for Israel to join with the Philistines at that time.  Whilst David was busy with his plans, the aforementioned Amalekites were burning the camp of the Israelites and kidnapping their women and children.  They carried them off with them so that the only things left upon David’s return was the ashes of the fire from the Amalekites.  

Upon learning that ALL of the women and children were taken, David was GREATLY DISTRESSED and was trying to answer the complaints of his army.  David could have reacted with fear and uncertainty, “But DAVID STRENGTHENED HIMSELF IN THE LORD HIS GOD”!  GOD led him to call to Abiathar the priest, “BRING ME THE EPHOD."  Now traditionally THE EPHOD was only worn by the PRIEST, but in an act of humility David inquired of THE LORD, “Shall I pursue after this band? Shall I overtake them?" HE answered him, "Pursue, for you shall surely overtake and shall surely rescue." David captured all that was taken from Israel, his two wives, sons and daughters, flocks and herds, EVERYTHING was restored.  Even the spoils of war was said to be “This is David’s spoil”!

Had David and the Israelites NOT been rejected by the Philistines, the misdeeds of the Amalekites might have been permanent!  We don’t need to fret when our plans are superseded by HIS PLANS!  When David said to “BRING ME THE EPHOD”, he did so to let GOD know that he was willing to do whatever it took for GOD to intervene in his situation.  We don’t need to think that our situation is not important enough for DIVINE INTERVENTION!  We might need to declare “BRING ME THE EPHOD” and allow ALMIGHTY GOD to do what ONLY HE CAN DO!!!

“AND THEY LACKED NOTHING!”

 Nehemiah 9:16-21                                (ESV)

“16 "But they (Children of Israel) and our fathers acted presumptuously and stiffened their neck and did not obey YOUR commandments.

17 They refused to obey and were not mindful of the wonders that YOU performed among them, but they stiffened their neck and appointed a leader to return to their slavery in Egypt. But YOU are a GOD ready to forgive, gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and did not forsake them.

18 Even when they had made for themselves a golden calf and said, 'This is your God who brought you up out of Egypt,' and had committed great blasphemies,

19 YOU in YOUR great mercies did not forsake them in the wilderness. The PILLAR OF CLOUD to lead them in the way did not depart from them by day, nor the PILLAR OF FIRE by night to light for them THE WAY BY WHICH THEY SHOULD GO.

20 YOU gave YOUR good SPIRIT to instruct them and did not withhold YOUR manna from their mouth and gave them water for their thirst.

21 Forty years YOU sustained them in the wilderness, “AND THEY LACKED NOTHING”. Their clothes did not wear out and their feet did not swell.”  

It can be deceptively easy to allow our focus to be switched from what we KNOW it should be on to that which is easier, sometimes less challenging, especially when our confidence is in ourselves and not in WHO is residing within us!  The Children of Israel had been released from captivity after 400+ years of slavery to the Egyptians with a tremendous amount of wealth, watched the Egyptians get swallowed by the Red Sea, and “for forty years YOU (GOD) sustained them in the wilderness, “AND THEY LACKED NOTHING”. Their clothes did not wear out and their feet did not swell.”

Even after the MIRACLES that they had personally experienced, the Children of Israel “stiffened their neck and appointed a leader to return to their slavery in Egypt”!  Why would they forget where they had come from and their MIRACULOUS history?  Why would ALMIGHTY GOD bring them this far to abandon them and let them return to slavery?  Moses pleaded for them before GOD reminding GOD that “YOU are a GOD ready to forgive, gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and did not forsake them”.  

Am I just like the Children of Israel, forgetting where GOD has brought me from and focusing on the current Wilderness?  We stiffen our necks and set our ways against the SPIRIT OF GOD desiring what we have determined to be best for us.  GODS PLAN most likely will NOT be our plan.  HIS WISDOM is is in a totally different realm than ours.  While they wondered in the wilderness for forty years complaining and wishing this or that was better, HIS CLOUD was always before them “AND THEY LACKED NOTHING” on their journey!  GOD provides what we NEED, and a lot of what we want, but I pray that my wants and desires will so mirror HIS PLAN that “AND THEY LACKED NOTHING” will be my testimony!!!

Psalm 28:1-4

 Psalm 28:1-4                          (ESV)

“1 To YOU, O LORD, I call; my rock, be not deaf to me, lest, if YOU be silent to me, I become like those who go down to the pit. 

2 Hear the voice of my pleas for mercy, when I cry to YOU for help, when I lift up my hands toward YOUR most holy sanctuary. 

3 Do not drag me off with the wicked, with the workers of evil, WHO SPEAK PEACE WITH THEIR NEIGHBORS while EVIL IS IN THEIR HEARTS. 

4 Give to them according to their work and according to the evil of their deeds; give to them according to the work of their hands; RENDER THEM THEIR DUE REWARD.”

“HOW LONG?”

 Numbers 14:11-12                        (ESV)

“11 And the LORD said to Moses, "”HOW LONG” will this people despise ME? And “HOW LONG” will they not believe in ME, IN SPITE OF ALL THE SIGN that I have done among them?

12 I will strike them with the pestilence and disinherit them, and I will make of you a nation greater and mightier than they."”

Not long ago while reading a commentary, my EYES saw Numbers 14:11, only the translation was slightly different than what I had ever seen.  The version I read then says “Then the LORD said to Moses, “How long will they refuse to believe in ME, in spite of all the miraculous signs I have performed among them? I will strike them down with a plague and destroy them”. That reminded me of my medical records from the first doctor visit following the Brain Hemorrhage.  My doctor wrote “However, he had had a remarkable recovery that could only be defined as a miracle from GOD”!  The words “miraculous signs” and “miracle from GOD” caused a pause in my hurried reading.  

Sometimes I get so busy with what “my plans” are for the Kingdom that I begin ask ALMIGHTY GOD “HOW LONG” until I am able to do something different than that which HE has for me to do today.  GOD places many people in our paths explicitly for us to reflect HIS GLORY!  So why is it that I would want to miss an opportunity to GLORIFY HIS NAME just because I want “my way”???

The Children of Israel had just sent spies into the Promised Land to see what GOD had in store for them.  They found a land “flowing with milk and honey” and “cut down from there a branch with a single cluster of grapes, and they carried it on a pole between two of them; they also brought some pomegranates and figs” (Numbers 13:23)!  But the inhabitants of the Promised Land were very big and mighty.  They appeared to be far too strong for the Israelites to conquer. But GOD knew that the battle was HIS, and HE didn’t want the Israelites thinking anything about their foes, only about GODS MIGHT!!

We need to remember that the same GOD WHO delivered the Israelites has promised to never leave us nor forsake us!  We need not be concerned about “HOW LONG” until we get what “we want”, rather that HE is being Glorified with our actions WHERE HE HAS US!

“THOSE WHO FEAR HIM!”

 Psalm 34:4-8                          (ESV)

“4 I sought the LORD, and HE answered me and DELIVERED ME FROM ALL MY FEARS. 

5 Those who look to HIM are radiant, and their faces shall NEVER BE ASHAMED. 

6 This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him and SAVED HIM OUT OF ALL OF HIS TROUBLES. 

7 The angel of the LORD ENCAMPS AROUND  “THOSE WHO FEAR HIM”, and DELIVERS THEM. 

8 Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in HIM!”

As I recently found myself scrolling through a social media site, Psalm 34:7 was posted.  As I tried to move past my attention was drawn back to the verse, so I had to go to the BIBLE and see exactly what it says.  Apparently the same translation I use was being used by the person that posted it. “The angel of the LORD ENCAMPS AROUND “THOSE WHO FEAR HIM”, and DELIVERS THEM” really speaks to me where I am in my journey through “this world”!  

“THOSE WHO FEAR HIM” is not meant to imply that we walk around trembling that we will “mess up” and do that which we know we shouldn’t.  The statement is saying that we who have a reverence for HIS HOLINESS and righteousness will be ENCAMPED AROUND and guarded by we who HE DELIVERS!  HE protects HIS CHOSEN and leads us in the paths of righteousness.  

This is not to imply that our paths will always be smooth sailing.  When JESUS was asleep in the hull of the boat (Mark 4:38-40) the disciples were fighting for their lives as a storm had found them.  When we are in the “THOSE WHO FEAR HIM” crowd, our instincts are changed to reflect HIS Presence!  

The angel of the LORD ENCAMPS AROUND  “THOSE WHO FEAR HIM”, and DELIVERS THEM is more than a memory verse written by David.  It is a peaceful and assuring knowledge that THE CREATOR lives within our bodies and will DELIVER US through our storms!  Those who RESPECT HIM might be used in the place of “THOSE WHO FEAR HIM”, but the main thing I have to remember is that HE IS GOD, and I AM NOT!!!

“I WILL THWART!”

 1 Corinthians 1:18-21                    (ESV)

“18 For THE WORD OF THE CROSS is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of GOD.

19 For it is written, "I WILL DESTROY THE WISDOM OF THE WISE, and the DISCERNMENT of the DISCERNING “I WILL THWART”." 

20 Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not GOD made FOOLISH THE WISDOM OF THE WORLD?

21 For since, IN THE WISDOM OF GOD, THE WORLD DID NOT KNOW GOD THROUGH WISDOM, it pleased GOD through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe.”

In my writings, I typically use capital letters on the word SEE to delineate what might be better known by some as DISCERNMENT.  When we 

DISCERN something, we have a better understanding of what we are being taught.  

Since the word DISCERNMENT isn’t common in modern day language. In times past, Moses developed DISCERNMENT over the years shepherding his father in laws sheep in the wilderness.  That DISCERNMENT was used by GOD when Moses was leading the Children of Israel in Exodus 14.  GOD is able to use what man sees as bad times for HIS GLORY (Genesis 50:20)!  

In Jeremiah 8:9 Scripture records “The wise men shall be put to shame; they shall be dismayed and taken; behold, they have rejected the word of the LORD, so what wisdom is in them?”  Unless GOD grants us HIS WISDOM to SEE things that will Glorify HIM, what our eyes behold will put us to shame!  The ironic thing about this is that we haven’t the foresight to know what we will need for our future?  Unless we examine our plans through HIS WORD and HIS PRECEPTS we are apt to make decisions that will bring about pain, or even destruction!

GOD isn’t only capable, but HIS WORD says “I WILL DESTROY THE WISDOM OF THE WISE, and the DISCERNMENT of the DISCERNING “I WILL THWART”."  That can indicate that GOD will send a storm to redirect our paths, or HE could send calamity to end our time on earth! GOD used a serious health concern to open my EYES to SEE that I was moving far too quickly. HE continues to reveal to me that I must SLOW DOWN and DISCERN what HE is wanting me to do, NOT what I desire to accomplish!!!

Although I may have an inclination of what GOD has planned for my life, only HE knows what is going to lead me to DISCERN what will GLORIFY HIS NAME.  The Children of Israel were instructed to turn back and encamp (Exodus 14:2) so that the Egyptians would catch them!  In doing so, GOD was able to “get GLORY over Pharaoh and all his hosts!  We might have to WAIT FOR THE LORD to set up the events surrounding our Red Sea moment, but we are NOT GOD, and we MUST understand that only HE has the ability to say “I WILL THWART” the plans of the enemy!!!