We live in an age where the family is under attack as never before.
Abortion, abandonment, estrangement, suicide, divorce, single parenthood, no parents, too many parents, abusive parents, neglectful parents, troubled children, runaway children, addicted parents and children, the list of problems within the modern family can go on and on.
Almost all of us can site problems within our families, some minor, some tragic.
It is undeniably true that if the families of a society are destroyed, that society will eventually crumble also:
"If the foundations are destroyed,
What can the righteous do?"
Psalm 11:3
"Some remove landmarks;
They seize flocks violently and feed on them."
Job 24:2
Job 24, teaches about things that hide in the darkness to steal, to rob, to destroy. The landmarks in the verse above, refer to protected territory. Throughout the chapter of Job, the thief moves the landmark in order to go into an area and steal. The enemy contrives and schemes to assault that territory. To steal from the fatherless, and the widow. Children are snatched and held for ransom.
The family is similarly like a fenced off, landmarked territory.The enemy assaults the family continually. We are vulnerable to these attacks because we do not understand the strategy of the enemy, or if we do understand, we do not know how to stand against it.
Even as the natural families come under increasing attack, how much more have we seen spiritual families and households attacked by the same evil? Countless churches suffer turmoil, strife, and are torn apart by these same things. Our brothers and sisters in church are our spiritual family. Our pastors are our spiritual fathers and mothers. We need to have a better understanding of the forces at work.
King David was a great king in Israel. God prophesied to David that the Messiah would come from David's family. But David's family was attacked continually. One son abused his step-sister. Another son avenged that act by killing that brother. Wives competed against each other in order that their children would be favored. One of David's sons treacherously plotted against David, and David was exiled from his kingdom for a time. That son was also eventually murdered. We can guess that David's family was so ruthlessly attacked by evil spiritual forces because of that Messianic prophetic word that had been spoken about David's coming descendant.
But today's families are attacked just as fiercely.
There is an interesting scripture in Ephesians:
"For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named."
Eph. 3:14-15
In the original Aramaic language, this same scripture reads as the following:
For this cause I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ
for whom all fatherhood in heaven and in earth is named."
Families are named after our Father in heaven. No wonder they become a target of the wrath of the enemy of God, Satan! As Satan attacks the family, he is attacking the very Name of God.
Our Father has always taken an interest in whole families in scripture. He has appointed Himself as caretaker of those who have lost family, like widows, and children:
"A father of the fatherless, a defender of widows,
Is God in His holy habitation.
God sets the solitary in families;"
Psalm 68:5-6a
"The LORD watches over strangers;
He relieves the fatherless and widow;
But the way of the wicked He turns upside down."
Psalm 146:9
"For you will forget the shame of your youth,
And will not remember the reproach of your widowhood anymore.
For You Maker is your husband,
The LORD of Hosts is His name;"
Isa. 54:4b-5a
"Cursed is the one who perverts justice due the stranger, the fatherless, and widow.
And all the people shall say "Amen!"
Deut. 27:19
Psalm 68 above, tells us that God even desires to set those who are alone into a family. How important the family, and each individual in it is to God.
In the Old Testament, the LORD intervened miraculously to provide for widows and the fatherless. By His prophet, He multiplied oil in a household in order to sustain the family against ruin. He raised the dead child of another woman, who had blessed His prophet.
In the New Testament, Jesus interceded in family tragedies, and made them triumphs. In one case, as Jesus came to the gate of the city of Nain, a widow was about to bury her only son. In losing her only son, she would also have no one to care for her. The scriptures continue the story:
"When the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her and said to her, "Do not weep."
Then He came and touched the open coffin, and those who carried (him) stood still. And He said, "Young man I say to you, arise."
So he who was dead sat up and began to speak. And He presented him to his mother."
Luke 7:13-14
Jesus felt compassion for the poor widow who had lost her only son, and gave her son back to her.
Jesus held the same compassion for His own mother, even as He hung on the cross:
When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to His mother, "Woman, behold your son!"
Then He said to the disciple, "Behold your mother!" And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home."
John 19:26-27
Even while in the torture of His crucifixion,Jesus made sure His own mother would be looked after, and included in a believing family.
As the Holy Spirit began to fall on believers in the Book of Acts, scripture tells of a man named Cornelius, a Gentile, who sent for the Apostle Peter to come to his household, based upon a vision Cornelius had received from God (Acts 9). When Peter came to his home, he found that Cornelius had assembled his whole family, and many friends to hear what Peter would tell them. Peter began to tell them about Jesus, and as he was speaking, the Holy Spirit fell on all in the house. Cornelius' whole household was converted that day.
In another part of Acts, Paul and Silas was invited to their prison keeper's home, after the prison keeper had witnessed a great act of mercy. Paul and Silas said to the keeper of the prison:
"Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household. Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house."
Acts 16:31-32
The Lord desires to save whole families, just as much as He desires to save an individual.
As the End Times approach, the Father in heaven promises to send a special prophet, a returning Elijah, to bring reconciliation between fathers and children, even as He desires us, His children, to be reconciled to Him. It is the last prophetic promise from the last verses in the Old Testament, found in Malachi 4:5-6.
Families are very precious in the eyes of God. Families are named after Him.
Our Father is family.
"I Believe"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQBDtKC-cQ0
As I write about this topic, I must say that it is not with a clear understanding. I know that there are many more people out there who would know more about it than myself. There are clergy and those who have studied the Word for years, and prayed and walked in the wisdom of God, who could be clearer in thought on this subject. But more and more, I have a feeling in my gut that I have to try and puzzle out. Perhaps a year from now, or two, or three, or more, I will have a different understanding of this issue. The issue I am struggling with is the issue of righteousness. We believe we know what this word means. In Hebrew, the word righteous or righteousness means "to do or bring justice, to have a just cause, to be just, lawful, correct". I find this definition different from the one I had in my own mind. I had viewed righteousness as being in a condition without sin. I think this is the view of most people. But considering the Hebrew meaning, righteousness pertains to actions or works that reveal justice. A form of behavior that reflects "rightness".
There is an interesting story of justice in John 8. The religious people of the society bring a woman before Jesus. She has been caught in the very act of adultery. The Law of Moses says that such a person should be put to death (Lev. 20:10). The act of adultery is certainly forbidden by the Ten Commandments (Ex. 20:14). The crowd of religious leaders asks Jesus "But what do You say?". They were testing Him, and looking for a reason to accuse Him of breaking the commandments. But Jesus didn't answer them. In fact, never did He answer them directly in any way. He stooped down to the ground, and began to write in the dirt with His finger, as if He hadn't heard their question. They asked Him again. Jesus stood and said "He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first." (John 8:7). Then He stooped down and began writing on the ground again. Everyone began, one by one, to walk away, convicted by their consciences. Only the adulterous woman was left standing there. Jesus asked the woman if there were any accusers left. She answered Him, "No one, Lord." Jesus answered her. "Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more." (Jn. 8:11).
We don't know what Jesus was writing in the dirt that day. There is speculation that He was writing in the dirt all of the sins or unrighteous acts of the religious leaders standing there that day. That they also were guilty of breaking the Law of Moses in one form or another.
The religious leaders in the story did not bring a false accusation. The woman did indeed commit adultery (although her partner in the crime seems to be missing from this event!), and the Law of Moses is clear on the punishment. So what does this mean? Is Jesus telling the leaders that they should ignore the Law of Moses? Well, the Law of Moses doesn't cleanse sin, it just makes us knowledgeable of sin. (Rom. 3:20). The
only remedy the Law of Moses could provide was a temporary one of animal
blood sacrifice, that was a type and shadow of the perfect, and all-time sacrifice
that would be provided in the future by God, Himself, in the form of His only begotten Son. So what was Jesus trying to demonstrate, or teach to this group?
There is a principle in our civil law called "clean hands". If you come to court, making an accusation against someone, you must come to court with "clean hands". In other words a drug dealer cannot sue someone saying the person did not pay him for the drugs that were sold. The drug dealer is breaking the law himself, and therefore, he does not have good standing to accuse the other person. He, himself, does not have "clean hands". The court will not hear his case. Perhaps we can say that Jesus was telling the religious leaders that they "did not come to court with clean hands". Their actions did not come forth out of a condition of righteousness.
So who does have "clean hands"?Of our own strength, none of us do! The scriptures say:
"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."
Romans 3:23
"As it is written: There is none righteous, no, not one;"
Romans 3:10
"They have all turned aside,
They have together become corrupt;
There is none who does good, No, not one.
Psalms 14:3, Psalm 53:3
"For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not."
Eccl. 7:20
What about when we want to please God, and try to exercise control over our thoughts and behavior? Can't we be righteous then? We know right from wrong, and can choose to act righteously, can't we? The Prophet Isaiah says:
"But we are all like an unclean thing,
And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags;
We all fade as a leaf,
And our iniquities, like the wind,
Have taken us away."
Isa. 64:6
It is not possible for us to be or act righteously by our own strength and determination alone.
We cannot buy righteousness, we cannot earn it, we cannot deserve it. We cannot follow a law to achieve it. Righteous words, thoughts and deeds, come from out of a re-created, a converted, spirit and soul. It is a flow that should come forth out of the Christ that we have asked to reside in us, the Holy Spirit that dwells in us to lead us into all the righteousness of our Father (Rom. 3:22):
"(for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth)".
Eph. 5:9
So often, we, the Church, think this means that we can look at all those around us for the purpose of identifying others' unrighteous acts. Now that we are righteous, we can speak of the unrighteousness of others. But this does not sit well in my soul. It is said that a person cannot repent unless they know they have sinned. So we need to bring that sin to their consciousness. But then, it seems to me that we are no more effective than the Law of Moses was, only giving a knowledge of sin, but not providing the remedy. We are telling people to free themselves of unrighteousness, but we do not tell them that their freedom is not found in the natural, but in the supernatural gift of Christ. I think sometimes we have made people aware, but we do it to accuse, not to remedy. How can we be so quick to point out the sins we see around us, without looking, first, at the sin and unrighteous acts within ourselves? When the world sees us genuinely dealing with, and repenting of our own unrighteousness, they will then be able to take seriously our message to them of repentance and cleansing through the righteousness of God, which is Jesus Christ.
Does this mean that the Church should never call sin what it is - harm, death, decay? Isn't that the truth? Shouldn't we stand for the truth without compromise? So what is the answer?
Inside me, the suggestion comes that if I am indeed a vessel of that free, merciful gift of righteousness through Jesus, shouldn't my life reflect that grace? Though my sin may be visible, regardless of my desire to live righteously, shouldn't there be a quality about my life that leads others to ask: "What is the source of that difference I can see in you? How can I have that also?"
If the only way I can bring the attention of others to the need for repentance is by pointing a finger at them, then haven't I failed in my walk with Christ? Shouldn't my life be an open book of the fruits of my own repentance? Shouldn't righteous thoughts, words and deeds flow out of my saved spiritual condition?
In Eph. 5, scripture tells us to be the same kind of light that Jesus was, and is. It tells us to walk as children of light (Eph. 5:8). This light that dwells in us shines onto works of darkness and exposes them, even unrighteousness covered and hiding in secret (Eph. 5:11-13).
In another place in scripture, Jesus said to the crowd who followed Him, who felt justified in righteousness based on the fact that they were descended from Abraham,
"Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, "We have Abraham as our father." For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones."
Luke 3:8
They thought they achieved righteousness by who their ancestor was. We are not born into the condition of righteousness. Righteousness is a way of life that mirrors the Father's words, and actions.
In the story of the woman who was caught in adultery, wouldn't Jesus have been speaking the truth to agree with the crowd, and convict the woman of adultery? Yet He didn't do that. He showed her, and the crowd, something completely different about the condition of righteousness, and then said to her "...go and sin no more."
We, on the other hand want to tell the world "go and sin no more", without showing them the "something different" that comes from the character and wisdom of God. Isn't it so, that the world has become weary of hearing us tell them how they do not walk in righteousness, when they see that we do not either? We call others to repentance, but where is our repentance for our own thoughts, words, and deeds? Don't we want the fruit that comes with repentance that Jesus told us to seek? Isn't it so hard to examine ourselves truthfully, see our personal faults and shortcomings, and ask for forgiveness for them? Yet, we want others to do this, without them even knowing or understanding Who our Father is, Who Jesus really is? Scripture instructs God's own people to humble themselves and repent (2 Chron. 7:14).
Even within the Church, we look at our brothers and sisters, and so easily discern their shortcomings. We point the finger at the other, and talk about their errors and mistakes, but fail to see our own. This is self-righteousness. We are back to thinking that we are righteous by our own goodness and strength, or by who our parents were, or because of what church we attend, or for other reasons of the flesh. It is not possible to be righteous by our own ability, as we saw in the scriptures above.
If we do not examine ourselves first, and do so continually, we are coming to court without "clean hands". If we insist on standing in our own righteousness, then the righteousness of God through Christ, can no longer do a work in us. We will have chosen to stand before God in our own strength, rather than in His strength, in our own righteousness, rather than His righteousness. This is not wisdom.
If I was standing in that circle of religious leaders accusing the woman of adultery, what sins of mine would Jesus be writing in the dirt? I hate to even think of it, but for the woman's sake, as well as my own, I need to take it very seriously. If I want to see her restored and saved, and myself walking in righteousness, I have no choice but to examine what Jesus is writing in the dirt about me.
Before we can even begin to hope to impact the world with calls for repentance and a demand for righteous behavior, we each need to read what Jesus is writing in the dirt about us. If we sincerely deal with these things before Him, then and only then, can we be effective in our call of repentance to the rest of the world. Then and only then, can the righteousness of our Father become a part of our lives. Then our words will ring true and shine with Light, and reveal the works of darkness. Yes, the world seems full of sin, but the Word says, "Where sin abounds, grace does more abound". The power of the birth of Christ lies in the fact that God has good will toward men, and declares peace and reconciliation between men and Himself. All heaven is rejoicing that the Savior who has come to take man's sins away is born!
In Rev. 19, the Marriage of the Lamb is about to take place. The Bride has made herself ready, and is clothed in fine white linen, clean and bright. This fine linen is "the righteous acts of the saints." (Rev. 19:8). It is time not to just speak righteousness, but to BE righteousness.
I believe we need to declare the righteousness of God, our Father (Psalm 40:9-10), to speak the truth of the need and the privilege to walk in righteousness, but the Psalmist also declares this:
"I delight to do Your will, O my God,
And Your law is within my heart."
Psalm 40:8
In Zechariah, the angel of the LORD says to the priest, Joshua, as He clothes him in righteousness:
"If you will walk in My ways,
And if you will keep My command,
Then you shall also judge My house,
And likewise have charge of My courts;"
Zech. 3:6-7
As the verses above say, the way of righteousness starts with a change in my own heart. Why would the LORD want someone to judge His House, who does not himself, walk in the righteousness of our Father? This righteousness is found through Jesus only, not by my own power.
I do not know if I have the right understanding of this, but I know that what we are now doing, isn't working. We need to really think about this issue, and try to discern what the heart of God truly is in this. Time grows short, souls are in the balance, and there is much work to be done.
Our Father is Righteousness.
"Lord, I Need You"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKjmy5pGyqA
"You Are My Hiding Place"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EF5ieYJCqnw
The Hebrew letters at the top of this page make up the Name of God. In English, they would be represented as YHWH, and pronounced "Yah-way". Jewish worshippers of God do not pronounce this Name out of reverence for God. They may use the term Hashem, meaning "The Name". Throughout the Torah, or Old Testament, our Father revealed His Names to Israel. Although Jewish worshippers do not consider these as names, they consider them revelations of His character. The first Name He revealed was Elohim, which is a plural form of the word "God". His different Names, revealed at specific times in the history of Israel, were given as ministry to His people, so His people would know that their God had the desire and intention to help them. For example, He revealed His Name, Jehovah Shalom, in the Book of Judges. This Name means The LORD is Peace. The Peace of the LORD was given to Israel in this Name, when they were continually being oppressed and ruled over by neighboring enemies.
Here are some of the other Names which the LORD revealed to His people:
These Names all represent the same God, but bring revelation of the different qualities of His character for the benefit of His people.
Our Father has also revealed His Name in the New Testament. Jesus revealed the following:
"I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive."
and
"...The works that I do in My Father's name, they bear witness of Me."
John 5:43, John 10:25
Jesus informs us that He, the Savior of the world, did not even come in His own Name. He came in His Father's Name. The Name of Jesus in Hebrew is Yehowshuwa, pronounced Yay-ho-SHOO'-wa. According to Jesus in the above verses, this is His Father's Name. It means "Jehovah is Salvation". This is the revealed Name of God in the New Testament. The Hebrew word study of this Name is the following:
Jehovah- the existing One (root meaning: to become, come to pass, exist, happen, come about, come into being, to abide, to remain, to accompany)
Ya-sha'- to save, be delivered, liberated, victorious, save from mortal troubles, spacious, ample, oppulent.
This is the great revelation of the Bible. For this Name, Yehowshuwa, is the Name that seals us in the re-birth, the New Creation. In this Name, exists the following mercies and grace:
- By this Name, we are baptized into the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. (Acts 2:38)
- We are washed, sanctified and justified in this Name. (1 Cor. 6:11)
- We are healed in this Name. (Acts 3:6)
- This Name is glorified in us. (2 Thess. 1:12)
- We all speak in unity, without division, in the same mind, by this Name. (1 Cor. 1:10)
- Whatever we do, we are to do it in this Name, giving thanks to the Father. (Col. 3:17)
- Every knee bows, and every tongue confesses at the sound of this Name. (Phil.2:10-11)
- By this Name, we are sealed from the destruction of judgment. (Rev. 9:4)
The power and majesty of this Name is so great, that this Name has been exalted even above the Word of God. This Name is the transforming power of the Father, that delivers us from death unto eternal life. There is no other Name that is greater in heaven or earth (Phil 2:9).
Our Father is Yehowshuwa, salvation.
"Your Great Name"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXH0MjGe10s
"Names of God"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5-6gwssX0Y
