SURE and STRONG

 

JESUS said:

Matthew 7:24-25

King James Version

24 Therefore whosoever heareth 

these sayings* of mine, and doeth them, 

I will liken him unto a wise man, 

which built his house upon a rock:

25 And the rain descended, 

and the floods came, 

and the winds blew, 

and beat upon that house; 

and it fell not: 

for it was founded upon a rock.

What makes us certain about life?

What makes us strong in this world?

The world is filled with tons of temptations.

And tons of traps, that aim to ensnare us all.

We all need to be born again, to have a robust heart.

SPIRIT, through Scripture, will guide us every moment.

We will know the things that matter.

Such as being aligned with GOD's will.

We will know the commands we need to obey.

That our life, and our family's life, can be secure.

Not through fame, or fortune, but through FAITH in GOD.

Unless we follow JESUS, we cannot survive this world.

We need the strength of His mind, that we may survive.

Satan will wear us out, every chance he can get.

Unless our foundation is rooted firmly in CHRIST, we will succumb.

A TRUE BORN AGAIN is steady.

Because of these things:

We LIVE by the BIBLE.

It is the NONNEGOTIABLE gospel.

It is NOT a gospel of accommodation.

We are FREE from ambivalence.

We live FREE of distraction.

We are CONFIDENT in CHRIST.

We are HAPPY with JESUS.

We have VICTORY through JESUS.

We are SOLDIERS of CHRIST.

We are ROCK steady.

We know GOD's PLAN of SALVATION.

We have PEACE through JESUS.

He is our CHIEF Corner Stone.

GOD is STEADY.

JESUS is CONSISTENT.

The ONLY thing that will REMAIN is GOD's WORD.

GOD's WORD stands forever.

As WATCHMEN, we are STEADY at our posts:

"We remain steady, at our posts.

Waiting for our Master's command.

That we may know what to do, where to be, how to act.

We rely on His EVERY command.

Thus, we wait, watch, warn, worship.

His will, ways, and wisdom are planted upon our hearts."

-- "The WARRIOR's protection"

Our pillar is CHRIST.

Our pillow is the WORD.

Our peace is JESUS.

Our homes are fortified with GOD's TRUTH.

Our souls are safe from sin.

Our hearts belong to GOD.

Our minds are fixed on JESUS.

We wear the FULL ARMOR of GOD.

We sleep good nights because of the LORD.

Confident, and grateful, in His LOVE.

We are His.

John 10:27-28

King James Version

27 My sheep hear my voice, 

and I know them, and they follow me:

28 And I give unto them eternal life; 

and they shall never perish, 

neither shall any man 

pluck them out of my hand.

*NOTE:

Matthew 7:1-23 refers to what JESUS said about "these sayings of mine" .

The things we need to do.

Related material:

WORD of GOD

GOD's GLORY blogs

BORN AGAIN classics

Image: Omer Saridas on Pexels

FORTIFY your HOMES

 

Jeremiah 51:12

King James Version

12 Set up the standard 

upon the walls of Babylon, 

make the watch strong, 

set up the watchmen, 

prepare the ambushes: 

for the Lord hath both devised and done 

that which he spake 

against the inhabitants of Babylon.

I had been dreaming, the past two days.

Had an urgent dream about the Rapture yesterday.

Today, I dreamt of securing my family's "house".

Three black-shirted men wanted to enter the house.

One pushed aside the screen door and made his way in.

Of course, I got angry, and asked him to leave.

When they left, I secured the two sliding screen doors.

Instinctively, I headed for the back door, aiming to secure it.

But first, I needed to check the front of our house.

There was a balustrade, whose design seemed all wrong.

The workers had not constructed it well.

It should have been parallel to the front wall.

Thing is, it was shaped outwards.

That was a no-no.

The wider gap would invite people to squeeze in.

Giving them access to our windows.

Funny, even in my dream, I was thinking architecturally.

The significance of the dream?

It's all about "fortifying".

Is our whole person secure through JESUS?

It's about "alignment".

Is our whole person aligned with GOD's WORD?

It's about "family".

Is our family one with GOD?

It's time to fortify self, and families, now.

More than ever.

For the enemy lies in wait.

1 Peter 5:8

King James Version

8 Be sober, be vigilant; 

because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, 

walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

We must be FULLY aligned with the LORD.

Look where "thieves" can come in.

JESUS spoke of parables, to that effect:

Luke 8:4-5

King James Version

4 And when much people were gathered together, 

and were come to him out of every city, 

he spake by a parable:

5 A sower went out to sow his seed: 

and as he sowed, some fell by the way side; 

and it was trodden down, 

and the fowls of the air devoured it.

Luke 8:11-12

King James Version

11 Now the parable is this: 

The seed is the word of God.

12 Those by the way side are they that hear; 

then cometh the devil, 

and taketh away the word out of their hearts,

lest they should believe 

and be saved.

John 10:6-8

King James Version

6 This parable spake Jesus unto them: 

but they understood not what things they were 

which he spake unto them.

7 Then said Jesus unto them again, 

Verily, verily, I say unto you, 

I am the door of the sheep.

8 All that ever came before me 

are thieves and robbers: 

but the sheep did not hear them.

John 10:9

King James Version

9 I am the door: 

by me if any man enter in, 

he shall be saved, 

and shall go in and out, 

and find pasture.

John 10:10

King James Version

10 The thief cometh not, 

but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: 

I am come that they might have life, 

and that they might have it 

more abundantly.

John 10:11

King James Version

11 I am the good shepherd: 

the good shepherd giveth his life 

for the sheep.

John 10:12

King James Version

12 But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, 

whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, 

and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: 

and the wolf catcheth them, 

and scattereth the sheep.

John 10:13

King James Version

13 The hireling fleeth, 

because he is an hireling, 

and careth not for the sheep.

John 10:14

King James Version

14 I am the good shepherd, 

and know my sheep, 

and am known of mine.

John 10:15

King James Version

15 As the Father knoweth me, 

even so know I the Father: 

and I lay down my life for the sheep.

John 10:16

King James Version

16 And other sheep I have, 

which are not of this fold: 

them also I must bring, 

and they shall hear my voice; 

and there shall be one fold, 

and one shepherd.

John 10:17

King James Version

17 Therefore doth my Father love me, 

because I lay down my life, 

that I might take it again.

If you're a born again parent, this you must do.

That you, and your family might be safe:

Deuteronomy 11:18-21

King James Version

18 Therefore shall ye lay up these my words 

in your heart and in your soul, 

and bind them for a sign upon your hand, 

that they may be as frontlets between your eyes.

19 And ye shall teach them your children, 

speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, 

and when thou walkest by the way, 

when thou liest down, 

and when thou risest up.

20 And thou shalt write them 

upon the door posts of thine house, 

and upon thy gates:

21 That your days may be multiplied, 

and the days of your children, 

in the land which the Lord sware 

unto your fathers to give them, 

as the days of heaven upon the earth.

Lastly, be aware of the "black-shirted" ones.

What we call the "copycat".

Observe how he copies --

GOD has His TRIUNE GOD.

The enemy tries to have his, too.

Secure your homes.

Secure your families.

Secure your souls.

Pray to be born again now.

That SPIRIT may teach you how.

The Rapture is imminent.

It can occur, any moment GOD chooses.

I'm not dreaming these dreams in a vacuum.

There is real urgency, dear brothers, and sisters.

Only through JESUS are we safe.

And saved.

Related material:

POWER of JESUS

DEFINITELY a copycat

JESUS and Satan

The devil's DEVICES

Sin AWARENESS

SALVATION

HOLINESS

Image: Clipart Library

The FISH gate

 

JESUS declares:

Luke 11:11

King James Version

11 If a son shall ask bread 

of any of you that is a father, 

will he give him a stone? 

or if he ask a fish, 

will he for a fish give him a serpent?

What is the significance of Jerusalem's "Fish Gate"?

SPIRIT led me to this verse today.

Definitely a Bible prophecy.

Which we must pay attention to.

Zephaniah 1:10

King James Version

10 And it shall come to pass in that day, 

saith the Lord, 

that there shall be the noise of a cry 

from the fish gate, 

and an howling from the second, 

and a great crashing from the hills.

What "day" was that?

Zephaniah 1:7

King James Version

7 Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord God: 

for the day of the Lord is at hand: 

for the Lord hath prepared a sacrifice, 

he hath bid his guests.

Why was the LORD angry?

Why was judgment to be meted out?

What must Israel expect?

These I found:

Zephaniah 1:2-6

King James Version

2 I will utterly consume all things from off the land, 

saith the Lord.

3 I will consume man and beast; 

I will consume the fowls of the heaven, 

and the fishes of the sea, 

and the stumbling blocks with the wicked: 

and I will cut off man from off the land, 

saith the Lord.

4 I will also stretch out mine hand upon Judah, 

and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem; 

and I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place, 

and the name of the Chemarims with the priests;

5 And them that worship 

the host of heaven upon the housetops; 

and them that worship and that swear by the Lord, 

and that swear by Malcham;

6 And them that are turned back from the Lord; 

and those that have not sought the Lord, 

nor enquired for him.

Zephaniah 1:14-16

King James Version

14 The great day of the Lord is near, 

it is near, and hasteth greatly, 

even the voice of the day of the Lord: 

the mighty man shall cry there bitterly.

15 That day is a day of wrath, 

a day of trouble and distress, 

a day of wasteness and desolation, 

a day of darkness and gloominess, 

a day of clouds and thick darkness,

16 A day of the trumpet and alarm 

against the fenced cities, 

and against the high towers.

Zephaniah 1:17-18

King James Version

17 And I will bring distress upon men, 

that they shall walk like blind men, 

because they have sinned against the Lord: 

and their blood shall be poured out as dust, 

and their flesh as the dung.

18 Neither their silver nor their gold 

shall be able to deliver them 

in the day of the Lord's wrath; 

but the whole land shall be devoured 

by the fire of his jealousy: 

for he shall make even a speedy riddance* 

of all them that dwell in the land.

The fish gate must be that important, if the cry, during the day of the LORD, would originate from there.

I remembered SPIRIT and I wrote an earlier post about the fish gate.

Which was the second gate rebuilt by Israel, through Nehemiah:

Nehemiah 3:3

King James Version

3 But the fish gate did the sons of Hassenaah build, 

who also laid the beams thereof, 

and set up the doors thereof, 

the locks thereof, 

and the bars thereof.

Another verse about the fish gate could be found here:

2 Chronicles 33:14

King James Version

14 Now after this he built a wall 

without the city of David, 

on the west side of Gihon, in the valley, 

even to the entering in at the fish gate, 

and compassed about Ophel, 

and raised it up a very great height, 

and put captains of war 

in all the fenced cities of Judah.

That verse referred to the builder as Manasseh, the 14th king of Judah.

He began to rule at age 12, and did so for 55 years.

Only thing, he did evil in the eyes of the LORD.

So, GOD sent him judgement.

But was brought back to his kingdom, when he repented of his sins.

That's why he built the outer wall of Jerusalem, even to the "entering in at the fish gate".

We also learn that his son, Amon, did evil in the eyes of the LORD.

After which, his son, Josiah, became king.

2 Chronicles 33:25

King James Version

25 But the people of the land slew all them 

that had conspired against king Amon; 

and the people of the land made Josiah 

his son king in his stead.

The connection of king Josiah to prophet Zephaniah, can be found in this verse:

Zephaniah 1:1

King James Version

1 The word of the Lord 

which came unto Zephaniah 

the son of Cushi, 

the son of Gedaliah,

the son of Amariah, 

the son of Hizkiah, 

in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, 

king of Judah.

Interesting how Jerusalem's "fish gate" witnessed her sins, ruin, other nations' oppression of her, and will witness GOD's future wrath.

Another interesting revelation is what will happen to the Levant during that "day of the LORD".

*NOTE: there will be a "remnant" of the people of Israel, as this verse says:

Zephaniah 2:7

King James Version

7 And the coast shall be 

for the remnant of the house of Judah; 

they shall feed thereupon:

in the houses of Ashkelon 

shall they lie down in the evening: 

for the Lord their God shall visit them, 

and turn away their captivity.

What will happen to the Levant?

Find it here.

Who are Israel's remnant?

Find it here.

Related material:

REBUILDING the GATES

Related video:

The Fish Gate

Top image: Clipart Library

Bottom image: Free Bible Images

JESUS identifies the enemy

 

Job 1:6-7

King James Version

6 Now there was a day when the sons of God 

came to present themselves before the Lord, 

and Satan came also among them.

7 And the Lord said unto Satan, 

Whence comest thou? 

Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, 

From going to and fro in the earth, 

and from walking up and down in it.

The battles we fight are never that simple.

Unless we are born again, we can't determine who we're really fighting.

Much less know the spirit behind all battles.

Neither would we know how to conquer the battle.

JESUS commands we be born again.

John 3:5-8

King James Version

5 Jesus answered, 

Verily, verily, I say unto thee, 

Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, 

he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; 

and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, 

Ye must be born again.

8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, 

and thou hearest the sound thereof, 

but canst not tell whence it cometh, 

and whither it goeth: 

so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

Being born again gives us accurate discernment.

1 Corinthians 2:14

King James Version

14 But the natural man receiveth not 

the things of the Spirit of God: 

for they are foolishness unto him: 

neither can he know them, 

because they are spiritually discerned.

A true born again believes in the WORD.

And that WORD is CHRIST.

I trust in CHRIST alone.

Herein, the LORD identifies the enemy:

Matthew 6:24

King James Version

24 No man can serve two masters: 

for either he will hate the one, and love the other; 

or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. 

Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

Matthew 16:23

King James Version

23 But he turned, and said unto Peter, 

Get thee behind me, Satan: 

thou art an offence unto me: 

for thou savourest not the things that be of God, 

but those that be of men.

Mark 1:23-26

King James Version

23 And there was in their synagogue 

a man with an unclean spirit; 

and he cried out,

24 Saying, Let us alone; 

what have we to do with thee, 

thou Jesus of Nazareth? 

art thou come to destroy us? 

I know thee who thou art, 

the Holy One of God.

25 And Jesus rebuked him, saying, 

Hold thy peace, and come out of him.

26 And when the unclean spirit had torn him, 

and cried with a loud voice, 

he came out of him.

Luke 16:15

King James Version

15 And he said unto them, 

Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; 

but God knoweth your hearts: 

for that which is highly esteemed among men 

is abomination in the sight of God.

John 8:44-45

King James Version

44 Ye are of your father the devil, 

and the lusts of your father ye will do. 

He was a murderer from the beginning, 

and abode not in the truth, 

because there is no truth in him. 

When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: 

for he is a liar, and the father of it.

45 And because I tell you the truth, 

ye believe me not.

John 15:18-19

King James Version

18 If the world hate you, 

ye know that it hated me before it hated you.

19 If ye were of the world, 

the world would love his own: 

but because ye are not of the world, 

but I have chosen you out of the world, 

therefore the world hateth you.

John 16:7-11

King James Version

7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth; 

It is expedient for you that I go away: 

for if I go not away, the Comforter 

will not come unto you; 

but if I depart, I will send him unto you.

8 And when he is come, 

he will reprove the world of sin, 

and of righteousness, 

and of judgment:

9 Of sin, because they believe not on me;

10 Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, 

and ye see me no more;

11 Of judgment, 

because the prince of this world 

is judged.

Revelation 2:12-13

King James Version

12 And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; 

These things saith he which hath 

the sharp sword with two edges;

13 I know thy works, 

and where thou dwellest, 

even where Satan's seat is: 

and thou holdest fast my name, 

and hast not denied my faith, 

even in those days wherein Antipas 

was my faithful martyr, 

who was slain among you, 

where Satan dwelleth.

Revelation 2:14-15

King James Version

14 But I have a few things against thee, 

because thou hast there them 

that hold the doctrine of Balaam, 

who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock 

before the children of Israel, 

to eat things sacrificed unto idols, 

and to commit fornication.

15 So hast thou also them 

that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes, 

which thing I hate.

The LORD's apostles warns us about this same enemy.

Head over to the next post.

Here's your arsenal of truth:

JESUS the WORD

JESUS on the WORD of GOD

On Knowing the Enemy of Christ

JESUS and Satan

The HOLY SPIRIT

The devil's DEVICES

Satan's SECRET weapon

spirit behind wars

being free of the spirit of war

SPIRIT of INFIRMITY

KNOW the world

The HOLY SPIRIT's REPROOF

WARRIOR of the SPIRIT

Sin AWARENESS

HOLINESS

Related material:

The SAFE house

Image: Clipart Library

FORTIFICATION from GOD

 

Philippians 4:13

King James Version

13 I can do all things through Christ 

which strengtheneth me.

Nothing like GOD's WORD to give us peace, safety, security.

And a good night's sleep.

Nothing like His Word to reassure us, each day.

Let His Word tell us so.

What could be stronger than a fortress?

Exodus 15:2-3

King James Version

2 The Lord is my strength and song, 

and he is become my salvation: 

he is my God, 

and I will prepare him an habitation; 

my father's God, 

and I will exalt him.

3 The Lord is a man of war: 

the Lord is his name.

What makes the enemy flee?

James 4:7

King James Version

7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. 

Resist the devil, 

and he will flee from you.

How must we fortify?

Acts 16:31

King James Version

31 And they said, 

Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, 

and thou shalt be saved, 

and thy house.

What strength do we have?

Ezekiel 3:8-9

King James Version

8 Behold, 

I have made thy face strong against their faces, 

and thy forehead strong against their foreheads.

9 As an adamant harder than flint 

have I made thy forehead: 

fear them not, 

neither be dismayed at their looks, 

though they be a rebellious house.

Where do we get power from?

Luke 24:49

King James Version

49 And, behold, 

I send the promise of my Father upon you: 

but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, 

until ye be endued with power from on high.

How do we conquer fear?

2 Timothy 1:7

King James Version

7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; 

but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

What ensures freedom?

2 Corinthians 3:17

King James Version

17 Now the Lord is that Spirit: 

and where the Spirit of the Lord is, 

there is liberty.

Who oversees everything?

Psalm 127:1

King James Version

127 Except the Lord build the house, 

they labour in vain that build it: 

except the Lord keep the city, 

the watchman waketh but in vain.

Who is the head of our army?

Acts 4:10-12

King James Version

10 Be it known unto you all,

and to all the people of Israel, 

that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, 

whom ye crucified, 

whom God raised from the dead, 

even by him doth this man 

stand here before you whole.

11 This is the stone 

which was set at nought of you builders, 

which is become the head of the corner.

12 Neither is there salvation in any other: 

for there is none other name under heaven

 given among men, 

whereby we must be saved.

Of course, we need GOD to fight our battles.

And to help fortify us, in spirit, and in truth.

Especially it's not an ordinary enemy.

JESUS tells us who the enemy is.

That's for the next post.

Related material:

The SAFE house

Image: Clipart Library