Then, as He was now drawing near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen, saying:” ‘Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the LORD!’ Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” And some of the Pharisees called to Him from the crowd, “Teacher, rebuke Your disciples.” But He answered and said to them, “I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out.” – Luke 19:37-40.
We as a people, and yes, I am speaking to those who claim to be Christians, get so wrapped up in the affairs of the world system, the local happenings, the global situations, politics, celebrities, etc., that we have a tendency to forget the rest of creation.
Now before you raise your eyebrow at me, I am not an environmental activist. I do care about the environment, but insomuch that it was given to man to care for AND to enjoy. Yes, I said enjoy, NOT abuse, but this is not an essay or lesson on that so much. I want to direct your thinking to something else, something that is all to often overlooked.
God Almighty created everything that we are able to see and perceive and even that which is beyond the scope of our natural senses. As our Heavenly Father, He set us right in the middle of all this creation. To much of the time, we admire and are in awe of that creation (as we should be) but without giving it much thought other than what science tells us. Even scientists today leave out a big part of creation due to the fact that if they can’t perceive it or quantify it, it must not exist! Yet the very science, and I’m talking hard science, not theoretical, is known to them because of the originator of science, God, Himself. He is ALL knowledge, Omniscient. But again, since the scientist who is part of the natural world cannot see, perceive or quantify, they can’t acknowledge God.
But think of this the next time you look at the Milky Way through a telescope, or view cells through a microscope; God didn’t just create ALL that there is, He also spoke into existence the very laws that science is so fond of that governs the very actions of the universe and galaxies all the way down to why the smallest cells perform as they do. We have galaxies that are ever expanding, the moon and sun rising and setting, the tides coming and going creating a filter effect that cleanses the oceans. We have forests of trees that “breathe” in carbon dioxide and give us oxygen to keep our very air breathable. I could go on and on and God did all this by speaking those laws into existence.
The earth itself is created in such a way that the magnetic fields shield us from solar radiation. The core is surrounded by a liquid, molten fluid that is continually moving through convection. The very ground that we stand upon that we perceive as solid, is floating upon that liquid. All with the laws implemented by the Lord Himself, to allow mankind to live and flourish on this same earth.
But man, in his natural wisdom has become arrogant and has substituted a lot of THEORY for facts and when they speak, scientifically, they speak as if their theories ARE facts, which they are not! They are conjecture, they are hypothesis that need to be verified, but that has never stopped most worldly scientists from expressing them, and especially theories that have become popular and traditional as fact.
But I’m not letting some Christians off the hook either. In this age we live in where God has opened up more of His knowledge to us, AND especially to His children, we still have those who refuse to believe in what is factual, believing that the Bible contradicts true science, factual, hard science, when in fact it doesn’t. They will ARGUE, just to hold on to long traditional THEORIES of Biblical interpretation, when in fact the very Bible itself tells us that “in the last days knowledge (true facts) will increase and our understanding will grow!” These Christians, and I still call them Brother and Sister, have put God Almighty into a box that their finite minds can comprehend, thus putting the awesome nature and character of God into something they can comprehend.
Instead of recognizing that we were made in the likeness of God, they have made God into their likeness and thus limited the unlimited expanse and existence of His very Nature and Character! Those who have drawn closer in an intimate way with their Heavenly Father THROUGH Christ Jesus and empowered by His Holy Spirit have come to realize, the more we come to the/a knowledge of Who He is as our Father, the less we truly do know. To some of us, that drives us even closer to Him, to get to know Him even greater and it will never end until He calls us home to be with Him where the natural, carnal nature will no longer be an interference!
Now I’ve said all that just to point something else out that most Christians don’t give thought too. We, mankind as a whole, are only a small part of God’s creation. He made all the rest of creation that we can perceive for us and for His purposes. But that creation that has been touched by mankind, has also been tainted with mankind’s sin and thus is also not what it was created to be!
Now think of this. As great as the scientists of NASA and other space agencies are, as great as the oceanographers are who have delved into the deepest regions of our oceans, they have NOT been able to keep the taint and stain of humankind from those pristine environments. Right now, at the deepest part of the oceans, the Mariana Trench in the Pacific Ocean, almost a full seven miles deep, has garbage and waste on it’s ocean bed thanks to man’s abuse.
The Voyager missions, both 1 and 2 from the middle to late ’70s have now reached into what the scientists refer to as interstellar space. In other words, they are beyond the pull of our Sun, in the far reaches of our solar system and are now in a space beyond our solar system and they are still going. Everywhere that those spacecraft go, they take along with them, the taint and stain of mankind’s sin and corrupt every part of space that they inhabit! They could have been the most sterile objects in the universe, but they cannot be sterilized from the taint of mankind’s sinfulness.
It is no wonder then, that as each day goes by, Creation groans for release. The rest of Creation is tied in with man’s redemption and creation as a whole must realize it. I want you to carefully read and think about what the Apostle Paul wrote to the Romans. It explains a lot of what we are seeing today and should be a reminder that redemption MUST be close!
“For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance.” – Romans 8:19-25.
Creation was subjected to futility along with mankind, but unlike mankind, it was NOT done willingly. Now in case you think the Apostle is speaking of mankind as the creation, you will see that he is tying creation WITH mankind’s hope for redemption in verse 21 and verse 23. The redemption of the rest of creation is tied in with the hope of salvation and redemption that we have and hope for in Christ Jesus!
My wife and her sister follow this person who keeps track of earthquakes and volcanoes all over the earth, Dutchsinse, on Facebook and we were discussing some of the things going on. Many attribute the number due to social media and the availability of instant reporting but the facts remain according to those who watch for activity like this, that there most definitely IS an increase in circumstances and those instances are actually increasing daily. The earth IS groaning.
Now here is my take on it and yes, I have been told numerous times throughout the years that I OVER spiritualize situations. Well, my contention is that there is far more going on in the spiritual realm than natural man will EVER be aware of!
Now some may put this down to judgement coming and growing and that well could be, but I want you to consider this in light of the Bible. As mankind continues to reject God as Heavenly Father and Sovereign Lord, rejecting the very truth of His existence, and as fewer and fewer are praising Him for the blessings we DO have, maybe, just maybe the rest of creation is taking mankind’s place to do the praising. For if mankind as a whole is not looking for God’s Kingdom to come, then creation, which according to the Apostle Paul is definitely looking for their redemption.
As Jesus stated in the Gospel of Luke, if man refuses to praise Him, then the very rocks, the very earth will cry out! Now before you think I’m “off my rocker,” I do believe this is all leading to the Lord’s coming back and the tribulation, which after the initial seven years will bring peace to the earth and creation as Christ Jesus takes His Throne for the next one thousand year, millennial reign. Remember, it was God who spoke into existence the very laws governing the workings of all of creation, so creation is only doing what it has been “programed” to do. But, I would like to think that as mankind refuses to give God Almighty praise through His Son, Christ Jesus, maybe, just maybe, the rest of creation will take up the chorus of praise with those few saints who are willing to join in!
Remember, according to Jesus, the way to salvation is narrow and few find it, but broad is the path to destruction. We MUST continue to pray for the lost; knowing that many will refuse the Lord’s gift doesn’t negate the fact that we must pray, but just be aware, the Lord’s Word has always been true and is ultimately FACT, not theory!
Now, I give this to you not to advance some new doctrine, but rather just to make you look at what is happening in the world and when you pray and commune with our Heavenly Father, consider all that is at stake. The whole world and the universe itself is waiting for our Redemption so that IT can also be redeemed. How amazing is that fact?!!
August 5, Sue and I became Great-grandparents and what a blessing. It was a couple of days later when we greeted the little man, but once we held him, we knew beyond reservation that our family had been blessed by a tremendous miracle. He was perfect. I know, I know, it sounds so biased, but little newborns usually have misshapen heads and are all purple and such, but he was, just after a couple of days, bright and oh so alert. But then, why not, for there had been much, much prayer that had preceded his birth.
The Apostle Paul wrote it this way, 
Other people and truth itself testify to the goodness of this man. I read somewhere where it stated, “if truth could speak, if it had a voice, it would speak on behalf of this man, Demetrius.” Now think of it, that is a pretty high compliment and especially in light of such an utter warning concerning the self-appointed leader, Diotrephes. John has a real tendency to contrast light and darkness, truth and falsehood and he does so in truly practical ways. He doesn’t just teach a Spiritual Principle or concept, but when readily available also gives a practical example as in this case.
“if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” – 2 Chronicles 7:14.
Yes, I combined the verses with the appropriate paragraphs for ease of reading, AND I boldened and italicized the verse that everyone is using out of context! So tell me, did it change the Spirit of the text in anyway? I’ll take that as a rhetorical NO!
In ancient Israel, the Prophets were CONSTANTLY sent to give a message, from the Lord, to HIS people, to turn from their wickedness and idolatry and back to the LAW, the Covenant, established between Him and them! Their plight and the plight of their “promised” land was always tied to their obedience.
I’m sorry if a Scripture like that is hard, but come on, we are way past the time when the Church, the TRUE Church, the Body of Christ should be leading! But now for that BETTER and more effectual way of praying as taught by Jesus:
There was and is a purpose to His creating all that is and putting us right smack in the middle of it and He has not withdrawn His Hand once from the events of human-kind. The reason is, He is letting mankind decide for themselves if they want a relationship with the One Who created them and the choice is totally that of the individual. But, and here’s the catch, there is a time limit on when you can check the box marked YES, I want to be a part! We don’t know the time. Even Jesus said to His disciples that He and the angels don’t know the time, only the Father in Heaven. Yet He DID tell us to look out for certain things to take place and then we would know that those who check the box YES, would be aware their redemption was very, very close. (
Now before you start to think that God was just mean and vindictive, let me explain to you what the problem was. It’s right there in the text. 
God, our Heavenly Father, Whom we tend to take after in spiritual ways, is a Creator, thus it only stands to reason that the man that He breathed His Spirit into, would have a tendency and desire to be creative. God knew this, God was not against that, nor is He against it today. BUT – where man differs is that God is Holy, Pure and Undefiled in any way. Man has a choice and ability to be Holy, but due to sin entering the world (to offer man the ability to choose) oftentimes man chooses NOT to be Holy. However, this does not negate some of his abilities, such as wanting to create and to gain and pursue more knowledge, etcetera.
So, God knew the heart of man. He knew the arrogance and pride and he knew man would at least continue to attempt what he wanted rather than what God wanted, no matter what and since it was NOT God’s time or place, He did just what they feared the most; He scattered them over the earth and confounded their speech so that they were no longer just one language. Do you ever wonder why all over the world there are ancient structures still partially standing that have so many similarities and yet are different in their own ways? God didn’t confound their knowledge, just the way they communicated, think about it. God still retains control of His creation.
According to Scripture, God’s Holy Spirit filled children will not suffer God’s wrath though we might suffer some of the persecution, but it is the same Holy Spirit within each of us that is keeping the final foundation of the one world order at bay. When that is removed from the earth, the Anti-Christ and his false prophet will be able to step to the forefront and deceive and amaze those that were blind to the truth. But here’s the thing; there will be those who WILL remember others prophesying and predicting what they are going through and there will be a remnant that WILL acknowledge Christ Jesus to there own death. God ALWAYS has a remnant that will be true to Him, for you see it throughout the whole of Scripture!
Evidently this man looked upon himself as a self-appointed dictator, deciding which direction the church under his control should go and it didn’t matter, for what ever reason, the experience and wisdom that others displayed. He definitely demonstrated a prideful arrogance, an inflated ego to be sure, apparently jealousy that others garnered more respect, all for what he apparently, for whatever reason, he considered his right. It is apparent from these brief comments from John that this man had forgotten that the “church” was established by Christ Jesus and that Jesus IS the head of the church and that the Holy Spirit is the Representative of Christ to the Church!
many of these “personalities” forget that their ministry is a SERVICE to the Lord AND to others. They are not, “high and lifted up” above the sheep, but rather, they need to remember that they need to learn first from the Master, the Great Shepherd, before they can serve in the capacity of teaching (feeding) others.
Now notice, according to the Apostle, this man didn’t just REFUSE other true believers, but he excommunicated his own people, as it were, from his church if others did receive these other traveling ministers and teachers! What other, than a self-styled dictator is that?! It appeared that he was exceptionally power-hungry, mad with keeping control of things within the “church.” John even goes so far to say that this man was openly MALICIOUS with his speech towards those who were called and others in authority! Because of social media and the use of camera-phones and such, we see this very thing happening all too often all around us.
In this letter, John gives us two extremes and there is no doubt which is which. Gaius, whose life is actually based in service to others and especially to those doing the Lord’s work, and Diotrephes, who desires the spotlight all to himself, refusing to even acknowledge those doing the Lord’s work, all under the guise of being “religious.” Again, I have to say it, how like what we see so much today. Big, mega-ministries, and I use the term “ministries” lightly, always wanting more, more people, more money, more power, more prestige, all in the NAME of “religious” works, but all the while instead of sending out, instead of encouraging others in good works, instead of sending out to make disciples, bring them in so I can make disciples! Yet they hold up the same Bible you and I read and try to emulate, they say some of the same “Christianese” speak that we use in our conversations about our Lord, yet always with a twist, or emphasis on more, more, more! And sadly that more is hardly or ever about more souls in the Kingdom of God.
Yes, people are getting sick. But they are also getting better with stronger immune systems. People are dying, yes, but they are mostly those that already have compromised immune systems, just like how the yearly flu causes deaths in those susceptible. Just because the government agencies today wish to inflate the statistics, (yes, the truth has come out), doesn’t mean those stats are the truth and yet, so many accept them as truth and in fact the media AND liberal social media sites continue to push those falsehoods! In fact, according to statistics I provided to my followers on Facebook a month back, the flu season between 2017 and 2018 was far worse than anything we have seen from COVID-19 today! What them makes this so different?
Jesus is clearly speaking in spiritual terms and in fact, the Jews He was speaking too, could not fathom the spiritual implication, but kept referring to His words in the natural. He actually chastised or admonished them because of their lack of spiritual insight.
There are liberal leaders who are doing things behind the scenes while everyone is focused not just on COVID-19, but on our response to it, our responsibility to one another, whether we truly care for fellow man or what ever. While we are debating the merits of something that comes and goes each and every year (the flu), because the media (which is owned and paid for by liberals), is keeping each and everyone’s focus centered on that AND keeping everyone divided into camps of compliance or non-compliance!
What we are being told in the news daily and by our liberal politicians is that COVID-19 is SO bad, and the deaths have been so many, that anyone who would think about it would start to see refrigerator trailers parked near the morgues and most likely overrun the parking lots. Yet we don’t see even a hint of that in the news and THAT would be newsworthy! We have seen major cities set up triage centers in the parks, with no occupants and even the Navy sending hospital ships to help the overflow of dead with having to depart due to nothing happening. Even missions organizations like Franklin Graham’s Samaritan’s Purse, had to pack up and leave New York because there was not the activity that was reported.
Understand this; the Anti-Christ will come forth as it’s most likely he is right now waiting in the wings for the liberal agendas that will call upon him. But, right now, because the Holy Spirit IS revealing truth, and the Church of Christ Jesus IS aware and praying, the Anti-Christ’s hands are tied more or less from coming on the scene unfettered. The One-World Order WILL come about, because the Bible, the very Word of God says it will. We will NOT be able to stop it, nor do I believe we should. For in doing so, we would ALSO be praying against the coming of the Kingdom of God, (even though not meaning too), for our Heavenly Father has a plan, a wise plan AND a timeline.
