October 14
Jer 23:21-25:38 | PS 84:1-12 | Prov 25:15 | 2 Thes 2:1-17
In Psalm 84:10, we read, "For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God Than dwell in the tents of wickedness." This was written by the sons of Korah, who served as doorkeepers in the temple, and were in charge of the chambers and treasuries within. Could you say what they said and mean it? Our world is crumbling before our eyes as we know it. It doesn't matter which political stance you take, if you can't see this you are blind. We are not evolving. We are devolving into a level of moral filth which is scarcely recognizable. Despite this two things remain. People hold onto their lives tenaciously, people seek longevity above all else. This results in fear, and ears that will listen to anyone and anything which holds a promise that might extend their lives. No matter how miserable things become, this seems to be what make people tick. The other thing is that lies are disseminated as truth. It is paraded around, backed up by others telling lies, so much that these lies are taken as truth. God is truth. His Word is truth. Everything that contradicts this is a lie.
People love to now call themselves "spiritual", yet having no root in the Holy Spirit or the truth of God's Word. They claim visions and dreams, they state narratives diametrically opposed to what the bible states, yet they exalt themselves above the rest of humanity as somehow being at a higher plane, not seeing things horizontally, but vertically. But unless your vertical sight takes you to the One True God, and is confirmed by what His Word contains, you are moving in the wrong direction. Dreams and visions must be seen in terms of His authoritative Word, not the other way around. Read God's Word through Jeremiah in 23:21-24, "“I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran. I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied. But if they had stood in My counsel, And had caused My people to hear My words, Then they would have turned them from their evil way And from the evil of their doings. “Am I a God near at hand,” says the Lord, “And not a God afar off? Can anyone hide himself in secret places, So I shall not see him?” says the Lord; “Do I not fill heaven and earth?” says the Lord." We must all realize, we don't gather into God's presence when we want to, when we are feeling "spiritual", we are always in His presence. In fact, with God, there is no place to hide. We see the truth behind these so called prophets in 23:25-27, "“I have heard what the prophets have said who prophesy lies in My name, saying, ‘I have dreamed, I have dreamed!’ How long will this be in the heart of the prophets who prophesy lies? Indeed they are prophets of the deceit of their own heart, who try to make My people forget My name by their dreams which everyone tells his neighbor, as their fathers forgot My name for Baal."
We should all desire to stand on the firm foundation of Scripture. We read in Jeremiah 25:11, "And this whole land shall be a desolation and an astonishment, and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years." Daniel read these prophecies, and took them to heart, such that we read in Daniel 9:2, "in the first year of his reign I, Daniel, understood by the books the number of the years specified by the word of the Lord through Jeremiah the prophet, that He would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem." Daniel was not after longevity. Daniel sought God's counsel in all matters. He lived many years in Babylonian captivity and never wavered from his stance, despite threats to his life, and harsh conditions. We each have a choice. We can focus on the here and now. We can fasten our eyes on what is temporary or what is eternal. Everyone can choose to believe what they will, but one day life as we know it will end for us individually, and prophetically, and at that time, there is a guarantee exactly where you will be, as we read in Philippians 2:9-11, "Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." So, with that in mind, focus on that which is truly important.
Messages from Pastor Lloyd Pulley: