Jeremiah 23:32 Behold, I am against them that prophesy false dreams, saith the Lord, and do tell them, and cause my people to err by their lies, and by their lightness; yet I sent them not, nor commanded them: therefore they shall not profit this people at all, saith the Lord.
It’s the end of the week Friends; Sabbath Time! Remember we’ve got to keep it holy; fellowship with each other, give thanks and praise, revitalize, rejuvenate our minds, bodies and souls. Those things enable us to face another week of serious battle with Beelzebub and his evil cronies. And Today’s Bit is a very telling piece of scripture in that area. First though, let’s check out this quote: ‘Night brings our troubles to the light, rather than banishes them.’ That’s courtesy of Seneca, the teacher and philosopher in Roman times, during Nero’s reign. And though it seems illogical, it is the living truth, for we have all noticed that when darkness falls, our troubles suddenly become more up front and pronounced, our illnesses seem to get worse, and we’re always more afraid in the dark than in the light. Who knows why? One would think that when everything’s peaceful and quiet, our troubles would quieten too, but they certainly don’t. Perhaps in all the activity and light of the day time, we can more easily face our fears and problems, because we’re moving around, interacting with others and don’t have as much time by ourselves to think, worry and fret. And it was the same way with the priests and prophets in Jeremiah’s day; what was expected of them wasn’t forthcoming. The Lord was angry at those who claimed to prophesy in His Name. ‘I have heard what the prophets said, that prophesy lies in my name, saying, I have dreamed, I have dreamed. How long shall this be in the heart of the prophets that prophesy lies? yea, they are prophets of the deceit of their own heart.’ (Jer.23:25-26) Oh Friends, that’s the worse thing that could have happened to the Israelites, for it caused them to go astray, to turn away from the God of their fathers. ‘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 should have turned them from their evil way, and from the evil of their doings.’ (Jer.23:21-22) Oh my people, it’s sad, but the same thing is happening today. A lot of false prophets, priests and otherwise who claim to be of God are actually wolves in sheep’s clothing, agents of the enemy, and unfortunately are leading many of God’s people astray, either with outright lies, or slanted messages or whatever best suits their selfish, ungodly purposes. Everyday you hear about supposed men of God committing atrocious, ungodly acts; fraud against their own parishioners, sexual immorality, even actual devil worship. It’s also very sad that so many of us fall for their lies and deceit and thus end up going against God’s will rather than with it. And to think that the Lord won’t forcefully root them out and make examples of them because He knows them all. But His mental capacity is much higher than ours and consequently His plans more far reaching and complicated. Believe me though Friends, all those ungodly felons who pretend to be men of God will eventually get their comeuppance, just in the Lord’s own time. Oh my brethren it was just yesterday we talked about the numerous divisions and schisms in the church, and this is one cause of it. Too many people are interpreting the Good Book in their own fashion, thus splintering Christ’s body into too many small pieces, with no cohesion. And Friends, once there’s no cohesion, then all falls down, nothing will be built, at least not on a solid foundation. I know the Bible is a great book, but can it truly bear as many interpretations and conclusions as currently abound. It not only lead’s God’s people astray, but it also calls down His wrath upon us when we follow these false teachers. ‘Behold, I am against them that prophesy false dreams, saith the Lord, and do tell them, and cause my people to err by their lies.’ It seems in Jeremiah’s time though, that the Lord brought some of them to heel, like Pashur, son of Immer the priest and chief governor in the Lord’s house. He imprisoned Jeremiah, smote him and placed him in the stocks. But on release, Jerry prophesied against him and his friends. They would be taken captive to Babylon, ‘and there thou shalt die, and shalt be buried there, thou and all thy friends, to whom thou hast prophesied lies.’ (Jer.20:6) Like the prophets in Jerry’s time were telling the people not to serve the king of Babylon, against the words of the Lord. ‘And it shall come to pass that the nation and kingdom which will not serve the same Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, and that will not put their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, that nation will I punish, saith the Lord, with the sword, and with the famine, and with the pestilence, until I have consumed them by his hand….But the nations that bring their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him, those will I let remain still in their own land, saith the Lord, and they shall till it, and dwell therein.’ (Jer.27:8,11) Ah my people, there’s another instance of the Lord’s apparent contrariness. We would think that He wouldn’t want His people to serve a heathen king, but He obviously had His reasons for it. Oh Friends there are too many religions, denominations, and smaller entities supposedly under the umbrella of God’s church, and with each having their own axe to grind, it’s highly unlikely that we’ll see sufficient cohesion anytime soon to make any impact against the forces of evil, much less a lasting one. However, let the false teachers and preachers beware, for they will meet their maker eventually and pay the price for their lies and deceit. And as Jeremiah so aptly lamented; ‘Who is he that saith and it cometh to pass, when the Lord commandeth it not?’ (Lam.3:37) My people, in these troubled and evil times, please be careful in whom you place your trust and your assets, for the enemy is out there ravenously seeking the blood of the righteous. We’ll continue this tomorrow. Till then, God willing, Much LOVE!…to know who’s false or true…we must know what the Good Book says…so read it…
It’s the end of the week Friends; Sabbath Time! Remember we’ve got to keep it holy; fellowship with each other, give thanks and praise, revitalize, rejuvenate our minds, bodies and souls. Those things enable us to face another week of serious battle with Beelzebub and his evil cronies. And Today’s Bit is a very telling piece of scripture in that area. First though, let’s check out this quote: ‘Night brings our troubles to the light, rather than banishes them.’ That’s courtesy of Seneca, the teacher and philosopher in Roman times, during Nero’s reign. And though it seems illogical, it is the living truth, for we have all noticed that when darkness falls, our troubles suddenly become more up front and pronounced, our illnesses seem to get worse, and we’re always more afraid in the dark than in the light. Who knows why? One would think that when everything’s peaceful and quiet, our troubles would quieten too, but they certainly don’t. Perhaps in all the activity and light of the day time, we can more easily face our fears and problems, because we’re moving around, interacting with others and don’t have as much time by ourselves to think, worry and fret. And it was the same way with the priests and prophets in Jeremiah’s day; what was expected of them wasn’t forthcoming. The Lord was angry at those who claimed to prophesy in His Name. ‘I have heard what the prophets said, that prophesy lies in my name, saying, I have dreamed, I have dreamed. How long shall this be in the heart of the prophets that prophesy lies? yea, they are prophets of the deceit of their own heart.’ (Jer.23:25-26) Oh Friends, that’s the worse thing that could have happened to the Israelites, for it caused them to go astray, to turn away from the God of their fathers. ‘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 should have turned them from their evil way, and from the evil of their doings.’ (Jer.23:21-22) Oh my people, it’s sad, but the same thing is happening today. A lot of false prophets, priests and otherwise who claim to be of God are actually wolves in sheep’s clothing, agents of the enemy, and unfortunately are leading many of God’s people astray, either with outright lies, or slanted messages or whatever best suits their selfish, ungodly purposes. Everyday you hear about supposed men of God committing atrocious, ungodly acts; fraud against their own parishioners, sexual immorality, even actual devil worship. It’s also very sad that so many of us fall for their lies and deceit and thus end up going against God’s will rather than with it. And to think that the Lord won’t forcefully root them out and make examples of them because He knows them all. But His mental capacity is much higher than ours and consequently His plans more far reaching and complicated. Believe me though Friends, all those ungodly felons who pretend to be men of God will eventually get their comeuppance, just in the Lord’s own time. Oh my brethren it was just yesterday we talked about the numerous divisions and schisms in the church, and this is one cause of it. Too many people are interpreting the Good Book in their own fashion, thus splintering Christ’s body into too many small pieces, with no cohesion. And Friends, once there’s no cohesion, then all falls down, nothing will be built, at least not on a solid foundation. I know the Bible is a great book, but can it truly bear as many interpretations and conclusions as currently abound. It not only lead’s God’s people astray, but it also calls down His wrath upon us when we follow these false teachers. ‘Behold, I am against them that prophesy false dreams, saith the Lord, and do tell them, and cause my people to err by their lies.’ It seems in Jeremiah’s time though, that the Lord brought some of them to heel, like Pashur, son of Immer the priest and chief governor in the Lord’s house. He imprisoned Jeremiah, smote him and placed him in the stocks. But on release, Jerry prophesied against him and his friends. They would be taken captive to Babylon, ‘and there thou shalt die, and shalt be buried there, thou and all thy friends, to whom thou hast prophesied lies.’ (Jer.20:6) Like the prophets in Jerry’s time were telling the people not to serve the king of Babylon, against the words of the Lord. ‘And it shall come to pass that the nation and kingdom which will not serve the same Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, and that will not put their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, that nation will I punish, saith the Lord, with the sword, and with the famine, and with the pestilence, until I have consumed them by his hand….But the nations that bring their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him, those will I let remain still in their own land, saith the Lord, and they shall till it, and dwell therein.’ (Jer.27:8,11) Ah my people, there’s another instance of the Lord’s apparent contrariness. We would think that He wouldn’t want His people to serve a heathen king, but He obviously had His reasons for it. Oh Friends there are too many religions, denominations, and smaller entities supposedly under the umbrella of God’s church, and with each having their own axe to grind, it’s highly unlikely that we’ll see sufficient cohesion anytime soon to make any impact against the forces of evil, much less a lasting one. However, let the false teachers and preachers beware, for they will meet their maker eventually and pay the price for their lies and deceit. And as Jeremiah so aptly lamented; ‘Who is he that saith and it cometh to pass, when the Lord commandeth it not?’ (Lam.3:37) My people, in these troubled and evil times, please be careful in whom you place your trust and your assets, for the enemy is out there ravenously seeking the blood of the righteous. We’ll continue this tomorrow. Till then, God willing, Much LOVE!…to know who’s false or true…we must know what the Good Book says…so read it…
SCRIP-BITS 