IN the land of the Living!

Heart of God by Gary Rowell

I come today to encourage, bless, testify, declare, motivate and implore!  I have truly AGAIN seen the faithfulness of God in the land of the LIVING!  Are you living in His faithfulness?  Are you being stretched beyond yourself?  Are you SEEING God move in your midst?  You should be.  He wants to move on your behalf...He is SO for you!

Yesterday my son, Jon, was in need of $750 for a down-payment on a mission trip; deadline - TODAY!  He did all he knew to do by working, sending letters, messaging friends on facebook, praying, fasting, praising, giving and then you know what happened?  The Lord showed up...AGAIN!  Faithful God He is!

He came home from school yesterday, a bit late.  I asked him why and he told me he had to get gas for his motorcycle.  He went on to say that while there, he saw a man needing gas too but the man didn't have any money.  My son felt the Lord was saying to trust him for his money by filling a need in this man's life.  So my son used his debit card and bought the man gas!  (Now mind you, I don't go around advocating this as there are MANY who are just scamming but Jon has great discernment so I trust him when he said he heard God telling him to do so.)  Jon didn't go looking for something to do to make God move for him, the opportunity just presented itself in his timeline - just as God does, He meets us where we are at.  See this was about Jon and God, not about a man needing gas.  God set this up.  Jon not only pumped the gas but he also prayed for-and-with this total stranger.  This angel unaware possibly?  Not sure, but hold that thought a minute.  Jon then asked God for provision based on giving out of his very need.  He just said, "God I trust you to provide what I need, just as you provided for this man's need."  See, Jon understands the principles of heaven - sowing and reaping. Read about it - Jesus talks many times about fields and seeds and soil.  You can't "reap" harvest unless you have "planted" and you have to have seed in the soil to produce a crop.  Not only this day, did Jon "plant" but many days before he has "planted".  See - it's a lifestyle, not a situation.  Jon LIVES giving and therefore, God gave back to him when he was in need because Jon reminded God of his promises.  I don't think Jon was visited by an angel but then again, I guess we won't know until THAT day, will we?

Many people give, but they don't dialog with God about it.  The don't "till" the soil. They maybe even give out of compulsion rather than compassion!  See, we remind God NOT because God is forgetful but because WE are!  He wants to see that WE believe Him at His Word and the ONLY way we do this is to talk about it.  Hear me, we don't talk about the problem and how LATE God is or question WHERE God is, we just softly and quietly say, "God, I know you got this because I haven't forgotten and I certainly KNOW you haven't forgotten either!"  Simple.  It's a heart of a child coming before their daddy-God and kissing his checks saying, "but you said, Daddy!"

My Jon lives as a child before His Holy God.  He is SO tender, amazing and trusting because he knows how BIG his daddy is!  Some of this was because Jon has an amazing earthly father, but not all my sons have this same gift so therefore I know it is not about our earthly father's as much as it is about our hearts TOWARD our heavenly father!

Today, when Jon arrived at school he had EXACTLY $750 to meet his deadline in his account!  Praise the Name of the Lord!  He even had one person message him before he got to school this morning saying that they would give him what he needed to meet his deadline - just call 'em with a number.  What?  How cool is God.  Jon didn't even need this awesome gift to meet today's deadline yet God knew Jon didn't know this...YET!  Hahaha - that's just how our God rolls!  Lavishly!

Be encouraged my friends!  This is why I write to you today; not to brag on Jon but to BRAG on GOD!  This SAME God loves you too!  He desires relationship with you.  He longs for your time, your ear, your heart!  He has ALL the provision you will ever hope to need!  MAKE TIME to find Him in the midst of your busyness.  Crawl up into daddy's lap and lay your head on his shoulder and listen to His heartbeat.

The Lord reminded me of one of my favorite scriptures today and I must share it here with you.  It is Zephaniah 3:17.  Here it is in the message bible:  "Your God is present among you, a strong Warrior there to save you.  Happy to have you back, He'll calm you with His love and delight you with His songs."  Isn't that GOOD NEWS!  God is singing over you love songs, just as a mother does with her babe or a lover does to his sweetheart.  Amazing God, You are truly Magnificent!  Thank you Father for your love and power and provision...AGAIN!

Accountability in Benghazi

So tell me again why so many defended Hilary and the president when they stood in the rose garden and blamed a video?  Used to be that when leadership were caught in their lies, they resigned before bringing disgrace on our nation.  Remember Watergate?  How many people were fired, removed and/or resigned?  Today we have four people dead in Benghazi and one is an Ambassador not to mention the two former Navy seals and yet it seems some just want to "sweep this under the rug and move forward" like nothing terrible has really happened.

"Sweeping things under the rug and moving forward" seems to be a "spell" over many these days, not only in politics but I have seen this personally in my family and even in the church.  What happened to accountability?  How about responsibility?  Integrity?  Repentance?  Restitution?  When we allow people/leadership to do this, we are basically saying that this "injustice" (whatever it may be) is no big deal and we hear them saying "get over it".

Really?  I have seen this same demon manifesting in pastors taking this same stance over issues in their church when it comes to family disputes.  They want to "sweep things under the rug".  No one wants to get their "hands dirty" and so they "wash their hands" of involvement in anything "messy" so they don't loose tithes or members because too many people today are not about truth; they are about easy.

It reminds me of Meg Ryan's line in "You've Got Mail".  Kathleen Kelly is dealing with the loss of her business and she keeps hearing this line as if it is truth.  She is told that it is nothing personal; it's business.  She finally responds with this dialog, "What is that supposed to mean? I am so sick of that. All that means is that it wasn't personal to *you*. But it was personal to me. It's *personal* to a lot of people. And what's so wrong with being personal, anyway?"

I have seen SO many things in the past few years (even aside from politics) where people act like personal attacks are nothing personal.  Really?  Or where accountability and leadership don't want to get involved with "this or that" because that is a "family issue" or they use the line of it's "personal".

"And what's so wrong with being personal, anyway?" - Kathleen Kelly

We seem to live in a day where accountability and restitution seem to be a thing of the past.  Tragic!

He Loves Us

Wow - He LOVES us!  Do you know this?  He LOVES us!  Do you know it personally?  Do you?

I can hear you saying, "Sure, sure, but you don't know what I'm going thru.  He may love you and that's great but you don't have my life."

Well, did you know where the song originated, He Loves Us?

Let's look at it.  John Mark McMillan wrote the song the morning after he heard that a close friend (Steve) died from suffering injuries in a car crash the night before.  He was angry, upset, hurt and needed to vent what he felt, and for him that meant write a song.  He said even when making this video, seven years later, he still hurts and misses that friend.  See Christianity isn't always perfect.  It can be messy!

So, think about it.  Life can be hard but what are you going to do about it?  I encourage you to press into the Lord.  Love is not always pretty, clean and fabulous, sometimes it is very difficult and gross.

So let's listen to the song as sung by Kim Walker and take a minute to think about where the song came from...from the anger and desperation a of man before his God; a man who knew his God knew that he was angry and yet that God WOULD LOVE HIM THROUGH IT!

What do you need to take before the Lord and just pour out your heart about?  Let Him LOVE YOU!  What a great way to start the year!  In His LOVE!  Do you think He doesn't know what is eating you?  Really?  Pour out your heart; He knows, He cares and HE LOVES US!

One New Man

I was listening to Sid Roth today as he did this teaching that aired on his show

from October 29, 2012.  All around us are signs that America is at a crossroads with this upcoming election, and with that, we as people in this nation too are facing a crossroads as well.

America has been the most blessed nation on Earth to date many would argue and we have been the ones blessed to live here, but in my lifetime, I have seen our country continue to slip away from the things of the Lord.  We continue to grow darker and darker as a nation and the church has been ill prepared to face the onslaught of destruction.  Why? Because the church has been preaching a watered-down gospel. In fact, the church as "ridden the wave" with the world in many cases. We have secret sins in the church and abominations being practiced, even by church leaders, ministers, and supposedly "Godly folks" who think grace is enough.  Hear me, I am all into grace, but grace doesn't give us permission to sin.  We are to be "holy" people. The devil has been working rather diligently at this task of watering down what the Bible clearly states.

According to Sid, he said the Lord told him that there are "two end-time demonic entities that have been loosed on America to prevent America from fulfilling her destiny."  The following is a transcript from this show on the One New Man.  God is up to something; He is merging the Jew and the Gentile - in fullfillment of the scriptures. He went on to say,

 “ 'I, God, will bless those who bless the Jewish people and I, God, will curse those who treat you with contempt.' Genesis 12:3.

It’s that simple. God has multiple reasons for this. But that’s all we should need to know. God judges, a lot of people misunderstand this, God judges Israel for sin. I happen to be Israeli as well as an American. God judges us for sin personally. But He uses Israel to judge the nations. 

Let me explain this to you. Matthew 25 [31-46] talks about a shepherd separating sheep from goats. You know what a goat is. A goat has a mind of its own. A sheep follows the shepherd. And there’s one single issue that causes the separation of nations in the last days, according to Matthew 25. Whether you’re a goat nation or whether you’re a sheep nation, Matthew 25:40 says, 'As you have done unto the least of these my brethren you’ve done unto me.' And the word 'brethren' in the Greek means 'from the womb'. 

Who were Jesus’ brethren? From the womb. You see this? It’s so clear you need help to be confused. 

Now Obadiah 1:15 says, 'The day is near.' And whenever it says 'the day' it’s talking about the day of the Lord. 

'The day is near when I the Lord will judge all godless nations. As you have done to Israel so it will be done to you.' Can’t get any stronger than that. But there is a tipping point with Israel. It’s amazing. 

And here’s the tipping point with Israel. It’s sort of like God puts up with sin, layer and layer of sin, but there comes a tipping point. This is the tipping point: Joel 3:2, 'I will gather all nations.' Note the word 'all'.  

'I will gather all nations and bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat, and I will enter into judgment with them there on account of my people.' He’s talking about the Jewish people. My heritage, Israel, in case you didn’t get it straight, is not just the Christians. Christians are God’s people. But he’s saying, 'My people Israel', that’s what He’s saying, 'whom they have scattered among the nations, they have divided up MY land.' Very important. It’s not, contrary to popular opinion, the Jewish people’s land, the land of Israel. It’s not, contrary to popular opinion, the Arab people’s land, Israel. God says, 'It is MY land.' 

Then He tells us what He did with the land. He leased it. Any attorneys here? Any attorneys in the audience? I want you to tell me about this lease, how air tight it is. He leased it to the Jewish people.

I don’t know about you, but I have never seen the morality in America go downhill so fast. I mean, it’s usually like the boiling frog in all the slow boil, but it’s a hot flame right now. And I have to tell you, I know the cause. There are two deadly demonic demons instituting two deadly sins.

One is to make sure that America is on the wrong side of the fence in reference to God’s position on the Jew and on Israel. That’s the first one. The second is a lack of holiness." 

Genesis 12:3, 'I will bless those who bless you.' Did you catch that? There is a truth here that if you can grab hold of just this one truth it will be so life-changing for you. 

In the New Living translation, God says, people, and here is the length of the lease: three ways. Psalm 105: 8-11, 'He remembers his covenant forever.' Remember, 'forever'. Say it. Forever. 

'The word which he commanded for a thousand generations.' Repeat. A thousand generations. 

'The covenant which he made with Abraham and his old ties and confirmed it to Jacob for statute to Israel for an everlasting covenant.' Say, ever-lasting covenant. 

Saying to you, 'I will give the land of Canaan as the allotment of your heritage.' Here’s the terms of the lease: forever, ever-lasting, a thousand generations. God has to say it three different ways. But could the lease be revoked? I think we have a Philadelphia attorney here. 

Romans 11, just for you, God wrote, Romans11: 28-29, 'Concerning the Gospel, they, (that’s the Jewish people), 'are enemies for your sake. But concerning the election, they are beloved for the sake of the fathers, for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable,' signed God. ' 

Now I just explained the first deadly sin. And I’m going to tell you something, and I know it’s true. If you are on the wrong side with God in reference to the Jew and Israel, you will go into further deception and God will not use you in this last great move of God’s spirit. Be careful. This is what the Living Bible says in Zachariah [2:8]: 'He that touches Israel is the same as someone that pokes their finger in God’s eye.' Pretty strong. Okay. 

The second deadly sin, a lack of holiness. You see, coming from a Jewish background, I was involved in the new age. I had an encounter with the demonic. I know what’s back there. I cannot relate to a backslider. If you just knew what was back there you would run, run from what is evil. 

Let me give you a definition of holiness*. My friend Dr. Michael Brown told me this. Holiness is becoming like Jesus in thought, word and deed. Let me repeat that. Holiness is becoming like Jesus in thought, word and deed. 

Oswald Chambers would often say, 'God is not an eternal blessing machine.' Very different than what is taught today. God is not an eternal blessing machine. We were not saved out of pity. We were saved to walk progressively more each day in holiness. 

There used to be a bumper sticker, you’re familiar with it, 'What Would Jesus Do?' Would Jesus sacrifice children in the womb? Is He the God of pleasure? Would Jesus change the definition of marriage to include men marrying men? God have mercy on America. We live in an anything goes society. 

Jesus said, 'If you love me, keep my commandments.' Homosexuality is becoming the norm. Pornography, in the church and out of the church, people are addicted in droves. Abortion, sex without marriage, new age, addictions of all kinds, so quickly our society is turning. We’re not only in an anything goes society, we’re in an anything goes Christianity. Christianity is being dumbed down. We look like the world, we act like the world, we think like the world, we talk like the world and we wonder why we’re not walking in the presence of a Living God. We wonder why revival isn’t here. We don’t have messages today about the blood, about repentance, about the crucified life, about the power of God. Sadly, there’s little difference between the world and Christianity. 

Hebrews 12:14 says, 'Pursue holiness without which no one will see the Lord.' Anyone here interested in seeing the Lord? Pursue holiness without which no one will see the Lord. Whatever happened to the fear of God? Whatever happened to a word that is actually eliminated from many Gospel messages today? Whatever happened to repentance? Things are about to change. I’m going to be on God’s side. Me and my house, we’re going to follow the Lord. How about you? How about you? Do you like that? 

I’ve been talking about the two deadly demons being on the wrong side of the fence in reference to the Jews in Israel and not walking in holiness. God says, in 1 Peter 1:16, 'Be ye holy for I am,' that’s another name for God, 'I am holy.' 

What is wrong with the popular grace message of the day? It’s not what is being said, it is what is being omitted. Grace without repentance, hear me and hear me well will lead to the following sins. It will be a license to sin. I understand grace. I would not be here without God’s grace. There is a wonderful blessing from God unmerited, unwarranted, but because He loves us, of God’s gift of grace. But there is a counterfeit grace which will lead to a license to sin, no hell or perhaps don’t stay in hell permanently, and the heretical belief of eventual reconciliation of all people. 

Well my Bible says there’s only one way. There’s no other way to be saved but the name of Jesus. And I’ll tell you, while I’m speaking on this, there are many Christians, and by the way, people are being physically right now as I’m speaking. Someone with a neck problem, the pain has just gone. Their backs are being healed right now. 

I am concerned about my Jewish people because we Jewish people are loved by many Christians, and praise God for that. But if you love us tell us about God’s grace with repentance. Don’t just tell us you love us. Tell us the good news that Jewish people do not go to Heaven with sin on our hands. And the Bible says there’s none righteous, no not one. 

Romans 6:1-2 talks about the true grace message. 'What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?' Certainly not. 

Romans 2:4, 'The goodness or the grace of God is what leads to repentance.' It doesn’t eliminate repentance. 

Now get this. The call of the Jewish believer in Jesus. Most of you don’t know that. Jewish people and Jesus have a call. It’s found in John 4:22, 'Salvation is of the Jew.' Every gentile that names the name of Jesus owes a debt of gratitude to some Jewish person who was faithful because the job of the Jew was to reach the gentile with the good news.  

So, what’s the job of the gentile Christian? Romans 11:11, 'To provoke them,' the Jewish people, 'to jealous, salvation has come to the gentile.' The job of the gentile is to reach the Jew. Now look at it from a spiritual DNA viewpoint. If you reach the Jew and the gentile, who have you reached? The whole world. And when these two spiritual DNAs co-mingle, listen to what Paul says. He’s almost beside himself in the Book of Ephesians 2:14, 15 and 22, 'For He,' that’s Jesus himself, 'is our peace who has made both,' that’s Jew and gentile, 'who has made both one and has broken down the middle wall of separation so as to create in himself one new man from the two, thus making peace.' Now this is in the Greek. But in the Hebrew, since Paul was Jewish, the word 'peace' is shalom. The word 'shalom' has several meanings, one of the meanings is completeness. So it’s as if a Jewish believer in Jesus is incomplete without a gentile believer in Jesus, and a gentile believer in Jesus is incomplete without a Jewish believer in Jesus. 'So as to create in himself one new man from the two, thus making peace,' or completeness, 'in whom you are also being built together for a dwelling place for God in the spirit.' 

But what kind of dwelling place? He just spoke about peace, shalom. A complete dwelling place. So if we want the full measure, the former reign of God and the later reign of God coming down in one day, that middle wall of separation, where it’s separated between Jew and gentile would form one new man, one new creation. We are at the fullness of the gentile age. 

You don’t realize this. Two places in scripture it’s mentioned. Luke 21:24 says, 'Jerusalem shall be trampled down by the gentiles until the times of the gentiles is fulfilled.' You know what happened in 1967? Jerusalem in Jewish hands. So the first thing to look for is Jerusalem must be in Jewish possession. 

The second thing to look for, Romans 11:25 talks about a mystery that should not be a mystery to God’s children. Blindness in part has happened to Israel. I’m Jewish, I see Jesus. So that’s why it’s just in part. 'Blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the gentiles has come in.'

Second thing to look for, spiritual scales come off of the eyes of Jewish people. I tell you, I see it. I just got a phone call a week or so ago from Ann, listen to this, an 88-year-old orthodox Jewish woman that got my book in the mail, and she said, 'All my orthodox Jewish friends in the neighborhood are talking about your Jewish evangelistic book that you mailed to them.' And then she said, 'Sid, I have to tell you, it was my birthday, my 88th birthday, and on my birthday I had a visitation from Jesus.' 

Thousands, tens of thousands of Jewish people are coming to the Lord because we’re at the fullness of the gentile age. But just as the spiritual scales are off the Jewish, they have to come off of Christians, too. How can we call on him if we not heard him? How can we hear unless those called by name tell us who? Romans 11:11, 'Salvation is come to the gentile to provoke Jew to jealousy.' 

Why is this so important? Because Amos 9:11-13 talks about the End Time revival, the greatest revival the world has ever seen, ever, ever. It’s never happened before. You should read this sometime, Amos 9:11-13, but read it through Jewish eyes. Listen to this, 11th verse, 'On that day I will raise up the tabernacle of David.' The word 'tabernacle' in the Hebrew means house or family. Who is the family of David? The Jewish people. 'I will raise up that tabernacle, that family of David that they may possess the remnant of Edam and all the gentiles who are called by my name.' 

In other words, whence the tabernacle of David, the family of David, the Jewish people are restored to God it’s going to release a revival among gentiles. Here’s the part that’s never been before, Verse 13: 'Behold the days are coming, says the Lord, when the plowman shall overtake the reaper, the treader of grapes will sow seed.' Do you know what this is saying? 

It’s saying it’s going to be such a harvest of souls that you will not be able to get the fruit off of the vine before the next harvest is beginning, and it’s going to be a harvest, when? When that one new man comes together. It doesn’t make sense to me. But a lot of things God says don’t make sense to me, and that’s why He’s God. It’s that simple. But God says, you want a complete dwelling place of God by the spirit? You want to see the greatest revival the world has ever seen? You want to see America fulfill its End Time destiny? Reach the Jew to combine with the gentle Christian, the spiritual DNA with the Jew, the spiritual DNA of the gentile Christian, put the two together and you have a complete dwelling place of God by the spirit. 

Repentance in the Greek means a change of mind. Repentance in the Hebrew means a change of action. That’s what true biblical repentance is. You need the Jew and the gentile. We need each other. It’s time to repent. Repentance is to turn from your sin, believe the blood of Jesus was enough to wash it away, but turn all the way to God for the power to walk away from the sin, not keep walking back. The Gospel is repent and believe. We’re about ready to see the greatest outpouring of God’s spirit in history, in Jesus."

*Holiness is becoming like the Lord, in thought, in words, and in deeds. In Philippians 4:6-9 we read about what we are to think on. God has something to say about our thoughts.  In I Peter 1:16 there is a command from the Lord to be holy, because He is holy.  God addresses Holiness in several Old Testament scriptures as well, including: Leviticus 11:44-45, Leviticus 19:2, Leviticus 20:7, Leviticus 20:26, Leviticus 21:08, and Exodus 19:6.

Are You a Good Person?

So many people today think they are a "good person" what does that mean?  What does that look like? What are we really saying when we think we are "good"?  Are any of us truly good?  Hmmm, that requires deeper investigation.

Ray Comfort has some incredible teachings and this one too will not disappoint. I have yet to listen to something from him that doesn't make me grow or challenge me.

In this video he will explore the Genius of John Lennon and what motivated him and his artistic expressions in song and music. Fascinating information about his upbringing, his early years, events on the road and even the news around his death are shared in this intriguing look back at the Beatles and "being happy".

Please take the 35 minutes to view this entire video; you will never be the same.  I have shared this with SEVERAL people from all types of backgrounds; people who are "saved", people who think they are "saved", people who hope they are "saved" and even those who have really never been questioned the topic and ALL of them walk away from the video in the least full of conviction and even some needing to make some things right.  See none of us plan on dying; John Lennon certainly wasn't expecting to die at 40.

I encourage you to not only watch the video but then share it with those you love and care about.  It is an easy way to bring up one of the most important questions ANY of us can face - where will we go when we die?

I pray that the eyes of your heart will be enlightened and that you too will find the peace that only can come from the truth of the gospel message found in Jesus Christ.  Blessings my brothers in Christ and may your 2013 start off strong, with the Lord on your side!