Month: August 2018

The Spread of Lawlessness (Part 2)

Today we can alter our DNA and bodies through chips, A.I. and DNA genetic mutations. Is humanity dooming its future by playing God?

“Now it came about, when men began to multiply on the face of the land, and daughters were born to them, that the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful; and they took wives for themselves, whomever they chose. Then the LORD said, “My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, because he also is flesh; nevertheless his days shall be one hundred and twenty years.” The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of men, and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown.” ‭‭Genesis‬ ‭6:1-4‬ ‭NASB‬‬

The fires have dispersed and your prayers have been a blessing to my family and the city that we live in. Thank you for your kind thoughts and prayers.  In a previous blog post, we asked the question, “Why is there sin in the world?” Please read, The Spread of Lawlessness (Part 1),to catch up. Most pastors and teachers are afraid to even cover this passage out of fear of sounding like a lunatic. Augustine of Hippo dismissed this passage as well as many others; to be interpreted as allegoric. So lets be clear, I believe the Bible is true and it is inspired by God. The Gnostic influences of a mostly heretical Augustine must be dismissed and scripture must be used to interpret scripture. One must also take into account historical reference to also bring clarity to the passage. In part one, we stated that the first reason for why there is sin in the world is because of the rebellion of Adam and Eve.

The second reason for why there is sin in the world is because of the sins that the “sons of God” (the Watchers) committed against humanity.

This is a real story that must be taken literally, so let us take a deep breath and begin. Scripture states that the sons of God (angels) took  wives of their choosing. This both went against the design and will of God. These angels were granted the ability to think for themselves. The book of Daniel mentions them three times in the fourth chapter (4:13,17,23). He referred to them as the watchers. There are good ones and bad ones. In Daniel 4:17, these watchers made a decision and passed a sentence (a ruling or judgement) against Nebuchadnezzar. From this passage the watchers were empowered and given authority from heaven. Angels who lived in obedience to God did not marry. Jesus made this clear in the following passage:

Matthew 22:30 (NKJV) 30 For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels of God in heaven.

Jesus did not say they can’t, He is saying that they don’t. There is a difference. The ones that don’t; are loyal and obedient to God in heaven. Jesus is also making it clear that eternal beings have no need to procreate. Procreation is for the purpose of extending a race that can die off.

Luke 20:34-36 (NASB) 34 Jesus said to them, “The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage, 35 but those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry nor are given in marriage; 36 for they cannot even die anymore, because they are like angels, and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection.

The sin of the watchers was sexual corruption. They did force their ways upon the daughters of humanity and bore them children. This evil act corrupted the DNA of man as a defiant act against God. This act was to distort what God had made in His image. Peter makes mention that this was a sin and emphasizes it with a comparison to Sodom and Gomorrah. In Part 1, we learned that sin mutated the world, man and all of creation. It separated us from God. The lawless act of the watchers was to alter our image into their own twisted image. This eventually would destroy man, the planet and all of God’s creation.

2 Peter 2:4 (NKJV) 4 For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast themdown to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment;

These two cities were known for their delight in raping unsuspecting strangers and visitors. Now Genesis does use the word,”marry,” this does imply some consent on the part of some. The transgressions led to a world of darkness, that God had to deal with. Jude also confirms the sin as sexual in verses 6-7.

Jude 6-7 (NKJV) 6 And the angels who did not keep their a]”>[a]proper domain, but left their own abode, He has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day; 7 as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities around them in a similar manner to these, having given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh, are set forth as an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.

So why does this matter?

We are made in the image of God. The fallen angels were polluting our DNA with an image that is not of God. A hybrid of man and fallen angel. These hybrids were called Nephilim. How was God supposed to send a Messiah into a world full of hybrids? These hybrids were not His creation, but an abomination. Read this phrase again, “My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, because he also is flesh; nevertheless his days shall be one hundred and twenty years.” This implies that if God did not react to this abomination, salvation for humanity would not come. It also implies that the Holy Spirit could not reside in us. Jesus came to die for man, to reconcile man back to God. Our souls, when we die, go to be with God.

2 Corinthians 5:8 (NKJV) 8 We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.

This is why God told Noah that He was going to destroy the world by a flood. He had to remove the Nephilim from humanities blood line. Humanity needed to remainin the image of God, so that when Christ died, His blood would purify us from the virus of sin. cleansing us from all unrighteousness that separates us from God. This is why we need Gods forgiveness.

According to Jude the watchers were put in everlasting chains for the Day of judgement. The humans who do evil go to the lake of fire. So what happened to the Nephilim? Many second temple era Jews and followers of Christ believed that these Nephilim are now the demons who torment us on the earth. This view comes from the historical book of Enoch, but does have some basis in the Bible. According to the Book of Enoch, when the Nephilim died in the flood they were cursed to roam the earth and torment man kind until the day of Judgement. (Enoch 15:8-11) We do have to give some credibility to the Book of Enoch since both Peter and Jude both reference it and Jude even quotes from it. There are also some early church fathers who thought Enoch should have been part of the cannon of scripture.

There are also hints to the credibility of Enoch’s claim in the Bible. In Mathew 8:28-34 there is an interesting account of Jesus dealing with demons. These demons recognized Jesus as the Son of the Most High God, and they reminded Him that it was not their time to be sent to hell. Many people falsely think that the angels, who rebelled against God and that left with Lucifer, are demons. This is not the case, as Paul points out in Ephesians.

Ephesians 6:12 (NKJV) 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

Paul separates them into two groups the ones who rule this dark world (Principalities could mean nations and powers could mean rulers of nations.) and the spiritual hosts (The word hosts often refers to angels.) of wickedness in the heavenly places. Angels have their  proper domain (Jude verse 6) and demons have theirs on the earth. Could the legend of Hercules be true? Could Hercules who was half man and half “god” actually have been a Nephilim? Many Scholars such as Dr. Michael S Heiser argue this point in his books, The Unseen realm and Reversing Hermon. Many of the “gods” were fallen angles or Nephilim. Genesis six actually refers to them as “mighty men” and as “men of renown”. Many people worshiped them as gods. This is why so many early church Christians and the disciples gave legitimacy to the book of Enoch. Which then makes sense when you read:

1 Corinthians 10:20-21  (NKJV) 20 Rather, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice they sacrifice to demons and not to God, and I do not want you to have fellowship with demons. 21 You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the Lord’s table and of the table of demons.

Later, Paul warns Timothy in the last days some will even follow these demons and be taught by them.

1 Timothy 4:1 (NASB) 4 But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons,

So to sum this up, the second reason why there is sin in the world is because of the sexual sin of the angels and the blending of their seed, causing further corruption of all creation. The Nephilim could then be the demons that torment and tempt us into doing sin. To this day, the goal of the demonic realm is to corrupt the image of God. They are still trying to convince humanity to alter our image away from God’s. This is what God meant in Genisis when he told them that He would put enmity between his seed (Satan) and her Seed (Jesus Christ). The Nephilim are the seed of the fallen watchers and Christ is the promised Seed of God, the Restoration. Jesus made an interesting observation and prophecy about the last days, when He said:

Matthew 24:37-39 (NKJV) 37 But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 38 For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39 and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.

Did Jesus provide a warning us, that in the last days we would try to alter our image away from God, just as in the days of Noah? Would we try to bring back the Nephilim? Was he referring to the marriage of the fallen angles and the daughters of man? Today scientists want to alter our DNA, modify us into our image (or the watchers), removing God from the equation. Could this be a mechanism in regard to the mark of the beast? Could man be made into a new image one in which God could not reside in? Could we be removing the temple of our bodies that Christ dwells within? Read this quote below, as a christian it disturbed me greatly.

Evolving Ourselves—Redesigning the Future of Humanity byJuan Enriquez—Managing Director, Excel Venture Management “In just 150 years, the human species has changed. We have redesigned our world and our bodies while at the same time becoming an ever more domesticated and smarter species, one that lives far longer. Alongside nature, we are now the fundamental driver of what lives and dies. Darwin’s natural selection no longer holds true in a world where little remains natural and free of the hand of man. There is now a second, parallel, large-scale determinant of evolution, one driven by two new rules: unnatural selection and nonrandom mutation. The future of humanity depends on the geographic choices we make to design our places and the genetic choices to design ourselves and how these two sciences intersect.”

NOTE: I’m learning that increased access to peered review studies of the ancient texts… especially those found in Qumran (Dead Sea Scrolls) are further insightful of the thoughts, concerns and understandings of the Second Temple Jews, and the emerging followers of Christ. I would love your feedback, so please leave a comment.

The Lake Elsinore Fire, The Aftermath

The recovery from the fire is more of relief and thankfulness. Our community changed for the better. The fire gave us a new hope for the people of Lake Elsinore.

I must apologies to those who were eagerly awaiting Part 2 of “The Spread of Lawlessness (Part 1)“. Due to the events of the Lake Elsinore fire, I felt it was more important to support my neighbors and friends with my writing, The Lake Elsinore Fire, Fear and Faith. The second part will come soon.

The events of the fire that ravaged the surrounding hills of Lake Elsinore, left many of us with anxiety and doubt. Many evacuated their homes, wondering if they would ever return. My wife and children were among those who left voluntarily, due to the smoke and toxins in the air. Our home was at risk to the fire, but our main concern was the health of our young children. The joy of seeing them return the next morning filled my heart with thanksgiving and praise. My wife was relieved that our home was in one piece; but I could see her eyes worn with exhaustion and stress.

“I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.” (‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4:13‬ ‭NASB‬‬)

As neighbors and friends returned to their homes, the impact of the fire could still be felt emotionally and by the senses of the body. Ash can be found in every crevice and crack and the smell of smoke still hangs in the air. Those who stayed, felt the lingering affects of sore throats and headaches, but no one complains.

As the ash begins to clear and the skies turn to blue, one thing is evidently clear; our firefighters did a job that was legendary. They held the line against our ravaging foe.

It is a story of miracles, with all the acres that were scorched and burned, no one lost their home. Deprived of sleep and exhausted from the heat; our beloved firefighters did their job, valiantly.

The tears that flow from Lake Elsinore are those of joy and relief. Other blazes around the state have not been as blessed. So to all the brave men and women that saved our homes,”Thank you”!

With every fire there comes new growth and something to learn. Something amazing happened to the people of Lake Elsinore. We put aside our anger and poisonous speech to help each other in our time of need.

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” (‭‭John‬ ‭13:34-35‬ ‭NASB‬‬)

I saw neighbors talking to one another; building relationships on their streets. When one needed help another was near to provide aid. We put down our tablets and phones long enough to come out of our homes and talk. We worked together and organized a city. The enemy was not each other, but the fire that burned. Prayers were made and friendships developed, all thanks to a fire that raged.

People put aside their anger over race and politics to reflect upon their neighbors well-being. Some talked of organizing neighborhood watch’s, some of block parties and celebrations. Names were exchanged, handshakes were made. Some drank coffee together and others had a beer.

This was exciting to see, what may have turned ugly, united us all. Lake Elsinore has changed. It has united with a love of community. The fire may have purified us all. We put aside all the negative attitudes to love and help each other.

The lessons we learned, needs to be shared. Our politicians and those in the media need to stop their negative rhetoric. Both sides of the political aisle are guilty. The media is just as complicit. All forms of media must stop fanning the insidious flames of hatred. Nobody wants to see a civil war divide us all. Violence leaves us all with heartbreak and loss. So to those of influence, who dance in the realm of politics, please change your speech and find a way to common ground. If we do not change our ways, soon the smoke we see; will come from war.

“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful.” (‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3:15‬ ‭NASB‬‬)

 

The Lake Elsinore Fire, Fear and Faith

The Lake Elsinore Fire, Fear and Faith. The fire is raging. Fear and anxiety are growing, but God is in control. With thankful hearts, we pray.

The fires have been raging for 3 days here in Lake Elsinore. Dark smoke and ash are everywhere. Sore throats and massive headaches are a constant. We were told a little while ago, that voluntary evacuations were underway. The stress of fire and evacuation are difficult to endure, emotions are high. After all, who really wants to lose a home. Fear, dread, and anxiety are common among us and our neighbors. Many have started evacuating. This fire is not easy for anyone, especially for a family of Eleven. As planes above dropped fire repellent, I kissed my wife and said, “It is time for you to go”. With tears in our eyes, I hugged my wife and nine children good bye. I gave a few words of wisdom and encouragement, before giving each one a kiss. I reminded everyone how much I loved them. With smoke all around,  I gave a tearful wave and then saw our ash covered, family, van drive away. They mean the world to me. The breaths are weak when they are not around. I promised them I would leave the moment it was mandatory. Our dog, Sasha, stayed as my sole companion to help me watch and pray. In these moments of fear and anxiety I find peace.

Isaiah 41:10 New King James Version (NKJV) “Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.”

Lake Elsinore Evacuation

A year and a half ago, I managed to convince my beautiful wife that we could possibly own a home. It started out as a prayer; asking God to provide for us a home, then it moved to faith. It was a dream and a hope. The wife and kids needed a safe place to live. I also wanted a home that was free of criticism for my oldest son, Jeremiah. Jeremiah has White Matter Syndrome. He likes to scream for no apparent reason and to put holes in the wall, as a way of expressing frustration. He lacks the necessary communication skills and understanding that most of us have. He has a difficult life, filled with love and support. Most Landlords are not to tolerant of their property getting torn up. We live in an era of harsh, judgmental attitudes, so renting was difficult. It was my hope to free my wife and kids from the stress of perfection, a refuge where they could be at ease and call their own. A home where a kid could mess up and it was ok, because it was ours.

God in His goodness, agreed. After a hard search and a miracle loan approval; we moved into our new home in beautiful, Lake Elsinore. Our family loves it hear. The home is not perfect and it needs some work, but it is a place of love, joy and laughter. Lake Elsinore is a wonderful community. We have fantastic neighbors; who put up with our large family. They have shown us such kindness and grace. The church we found is so loving and welcoming. It has been a blessing to live here.

We don’t want to lose our home; but we will trust God. God has given us much, with thankful hearts, we will pray. We will pray for safety, our homes and the firefighters, who are putting their lives on the line for us. God bless those hard working fire fighters. Give them strength and endurance. May the good Lord bring us back to our homes, safe and sound.

Proverbs 3:5-6 New King James Version (NKJV)

Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;
6 In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct your paths.

The Spread of Lawlessness (Part 1)

Humanists believe they can achieve their own morality and perfect man with out the need of God. They Never realize that a virus festers inside us all preventing perfection.

Recently a friend of mine asked, “What is sin and why is it so bad?” Simply put, sin is rebellion against God, a virus that infects all of mankind and mutates all of creation. The Bible says, Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness.” (1 John 3:4)

This brief explanation does not do the subject justice nor does it answer the bigger question of, “Why is there sin in the world?” If you asked a Jew, living in the time of Jesus, this question he would give you three reasons. In order to please my wife, who reminds me that everyone has short attention spans, I will attempt to answer this question in three short posts. I really don’t want to nauseate you with theology but all three of these reasons will help you grasp a better understanding of Sin grace and of end times eschatology.  For extra reading I recommend the book by Dr. Michael S. Heiser, “Reversing Herman”.

The first reason for why there is sin in the world, is because of the rebellion of Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden.

Genesis 2:15-17 New King James Version (NKJV) 15 Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it. 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; 17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”

It is pretty simple, they only had to live with two rules in order to please God. Tend and keep the Garden and do not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. What a life! Be a conservationist and don’t let the knowledge of good and evil out into the world. Sounds pretty good to me, although I might have just chopped down that one tree. Then something bad happens, Satan enters the Garden. Now the first thing Satan does is to create doubt about what God said. “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”(Genesis 3:1) Satan still does that today. Think about all of the doubt questions you may have had. Is the Bible really true? Does God really exist? Does God really love you? Why would God care about you? Is Bible prophecy real?

2 Peter 1:19 New American Standard Bible (NASB) So we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts.

What happens next is that Satan manipulates the situation in order to bring the curse of sin into the world. Adam and Eve both eat of the tree and become afraid and ashamed. Their guilt was so bad that they even tried to hide from God. Think about this for a moment. How many times has guilt, shame and fear controlled parts of your life. Satan uses this to control us. I wrote a post on this, it was the most read and shared post I have ever written. Destroying the Message of Guilt and Shame.

The problem that faced God was that Adam and Eve brought not only sin into the world but the curse (or virus) that came with it. When you read the Genesis 3, there are two things that you must pay attention to. (1) God is not bringing the curse on man, but is telling them that it is the consequence of their actions. In other words, because you exposed yourself to the disease, you now get the disease and its symptoms. God did not curse Mankind. Mankind cursed itself because it chose to believe the devil over God. (2) The virus of sin infects all of creation and mutates it. What was good is now corrupted by mutations. Animals, plants, soil, water, humanity and the planet are all affected by these mutations. God did not create the Black Widow spider, sin mutated it from its original purpose into its current scary state. It is why we have weeds in our soil, plagues and pestilence and other nasty thing. (Oh and let us not forget dirty diapers, they have to be part of the curse. Yes our newborn is doing great, but man does he fill the diaper pail, but I digress…)

Anyways, this is what Paul meant when he wrote:

Romans 8:22-23 New King James Version (NKJV) For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. 23 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.

It is because of this virus that all of mankind was cursed. This death spread to all..

Romans 5:12 New American Standard Bible (NASB) Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned—

God promised Adam and Eve a hope to restore them from sin and the curse of its mutations.

Romans 15:4 New American Standard Bible (NASB) For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.

That hope is Jesus.

John 20:31 New American Standard Bible (NASB) But these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.

It is clear that God loves His creation and Satan hates it. Satan is the greatest environmental terrorist in history. He needed to bring sin into the world to destroy God’s creation. The good news is that God loves us and kept his promise to Adam and Eve by sending Jesus into the world. In the next post we will look at the second reason there is sin in the world. Keep the faith and remember redemption from lawlessness is a #proofofyourfaith.

Why are we failing Millennial’s?

We need to disciple. Millenials want authentic mentoring that pours out your life into theirs. It denies selfish agendas, gives love & anchors their life to a living Christ.

It continues to baffle me when I hear that churches do not understand why they can’t reach young millennial’s. They continue to disregard them by listing their flaws but fail to see their real potential. This is not love. Love is viewing people as God does. God see’s the potential in us all. Young people today are wanting to be apart of a real movement of change. They want to do something that will change the world. God wants to change the world. Millennial’s desire transparency and truthfulness. God calls us to live a life of righteousness that reveals Christ and His truth. This generation wants to have deep, meaningful relationships. God is relational. So what seems to be the problem? These ideals are great! The problem is not millennial’s, the problem lies with the abandonment of Biblical principles.

Churches have abandoned discipleship. Discipleship is the process of reproducing the life of Christ that is in you, into the life of someone else. It teaches self denial and the reproduction of the fathers love to others.

Luke 9:23 New American Standard Bible (NASB)

And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.

One reason the world laughs at us is because of our hypocrisy. We love to quote scriptures but we fail to follow them. Many Christians condone behavior that God is against. We claim to love God, but relish in disobedience to His commandments. The biggest argument against the Church is that we love to sin to much. The world looks at our hypocrisy and laughs. We must deny the lusts of the world. This is not just sexual lusts, but any area that leads to selfishness. Our selfishness leads to our own deception; in which we cling to worldly things instead of Christ. We must deny ourselves, follow Jesus and prepare to die. When we truly live in Christ it leads to selfless love for others. This love changes the world.

John 13:34-35 New King James Version (NKJV)

34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 35 By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

The second way we fail millennial’s is that we do not reproduce the love of Christ in others. The best way to influence and inspire is to genuinely love and care for the person that you are trying to reach. Find the common ground, demonstrate your love for them and shine Christ brightly. True love puts aside an agenda and invests time and energy necessary to cultivate an authentic relationship. To demonstrate Christ’s love, it requires a soft and gentle approach that meets the person where they are in life. This requires the Christian to remove all judgmental attitudes. Jesus always had compassion and reached people specifically to their needs and understanding. To truly love someone; you must be patient with them. After all, hasn’t God been patient with you? Discipleship is a #proofofyourfaith.

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