October 1, 2024

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart...;" I memorized this scripture, along with mat 6:33, decades ago. I have committed many Bible verses to my memory… But then:

Some years ago, while studying my Bible, I felt the text revealed this thought to me:

“You, Yahweh, have helped us understand that we don’t understand; and, that You are helping us better understand the things we need to understand… Your Word and Your Spirit faithfully enlighten the darkness of our hearts and minds.”

This profound thought caused me to rethink the reading of prov 3:5-6…   are we reading with spiritual understanding, OR with our own understanding? I think this is a big deal, because our own understanding is fleshly [carnal]. It is founded upon our natural thinking (including likes and dislikes and prejudices) and experiences. Until we are born again, born of the Spirit… by the divine Word of God, we will always “see” or “understand” with our natural references (and preferences) and acquired learning, and experience, that is loaded with our own desires and prejudices. 1 Peter 1 closes his admonishment to believers with this:

“Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart, 23 having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever, 24 because

“All flesh is as grass, And all the glory of man as the flower of the grass. The grass withers, And its flower falls away, 25 But the word of the Lord endures forever.” Now this is the word which by the gospel was preached to you.” 1 pet 1:22-25

Our natural thinking [our own understanding] is the fruit of the corruptible seed, by which we think and act until we are born again with [by] “incorruptible seed,” which is Yahweh’s Word. If we are truly born again, we are committed to walk like Yeshua walked, and our new fruit of His Spirit will be:

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control [patience]. Against such there is no law.” gal 5:22-23 nkjv

Now, carefully notice, that “trusting in Yahweh with all our heart,” often times requires us to override the natural understanding we normally walk in… Yet, it is ONLY when we “acknowledge Him,” [obey] that His new direction is given to our paths.

How then are we identified by Yahweh and man? Is it not by how we walk and talk and seek Yahweh’s righteousness, justice, and truth?

“Seek the Lord, all you meek of the earth, Who have upheld His justice. Seek righteousness, seek humility. It may be that you will be hidden In the day of the Lord’s anger.” zep 2:3 nkjv

The Apostle Paul admonished Timothy with these words [aimed at all believers, I think]:

“Nevertheless the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.” 2 tim 2:19 nkjv

We live in perilous times… what does this mean?

“But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: 2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, 4 traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!” 2 tim 3:1-5 nkjv

The thought occurs to me that our “last days” [which I think we live in] are a exact reflection of the description Paul gives above… Now, some will say, well, there have always been bad people; and there are a lot of good people nowadays… etc, etc…

I consider that we have never [ever] lived in a time in which we have needed to seek Yahweh’s counsel more than now; things are rapidly changing and spinning faster and faster in the devil’s centrifuge of insanity that modern culture and society is thirsting for and insisting upon. Without Yahweh’s protection and leading, it is surely the highway to Hell… no pun intended.

That said, the Bible teaches us that these last days will be filled with deceptions, serious deceptions, that unless Yahweh shortens the days, that even the elect will be deceived, false christs and false prophets [inside the body] mk 13:22… what does that mean to you?

To me, it means things will be so out of “normal,” and beyond our natural understanding’s ability to validate reality [Biblical truth too], that we WILL NEED to have Holy Spirit inspired understanding to make our way through the carnage of fallen humanity’s wasteland… the only safe and certain pathway is:

Shalom, John