If it seems bad to you to serve Adonai, then choose today whom you are going to serve! Will it be the gods your ancestors served beyond the River? or the gods of the Emori, in whose land you are living? As for me and my household, we will serve Adonai!” Joshua 24:15
The message the Lord keeps showing me this morning in many different ways is about who you are serving. This verse was the first part of it, as it was the first thing I saw. Then I saw a video from a true believer who spoke of how difficult it is to get people to turn to know Yeshua. The religious christians do not listen because they have their religion and think they are good. And those who do not believe in God or just do not care if he exists or not, won’t listen either.
I know the frustration with this personally, because I know Yeshua and what God expects from us in order to find the “life” Yeshua speaks of while on earth as well as eternal salvation. The working out of what God is working in us to make ourselves worthy of the Kingdom.
If you are a religious “christian” about now you already are arguing or tuning out because I said we need to do work and make ourselves worthy. The majority of the “christian” religions tell you the opposite, that Jesus Christ (who never existed) did it all on the cross. You can do nothing to help your salvation; it is a free gift.
Here is the verse (using the Compete Jewish Bible, which is more accurate translation even calling the son of God by his real name, Yeshua the Messiah). It is from Ephesians 2:7-10 – “in order to exhibit in the ages to come how infinitely rich is his grace, how great is his kindness toward us who are united with the Messiah Yeshua. For you have been delivered by grace through trusting, and even this is not your accomplishment but God’s gift. You were not delivered by your own actions; therefore no one should boast. For we are of God’s making, created in union with the Messiah Yeshua for a life of good actions already prepared by God for us to do.
Note a few differences with the way it is translated verses other more popular translations. They use the word trusting instead of faith. They make it clear we must be united with the Messiah Yeshua. It stresses you are not delivered by YOUR OWN actions, but this means we are delivered by the good actions we do when in union with Yeshua the Messiah. Which this union is the “being born again,” where we stop doing things our own way and start doing them the way of Yeshua.
The main thing or point the Lord is making is many believe they are good the way they are. If “christian” then because they believe in this man Jesus Christ who again never existed. And he did it all on the cross, then I am good. It does not matter how I am or what I do, he saved me.
Then the Lord reminded me of the first church I went to when I moved to Baja Mexico. At the time I had just died unto myself and was born again, I know I received the Spirit at this time, because I felt him in me like I never had before. Even though the religions told me I had him because of their religious beliefs. Yeshua showed me the bad religious ways of this church which is the biggest one around here. Also keep in mind the reason people go to a certain church or vote for a certain person in politics is almost all the time because they tell you what you want to hear.
In this church, they do a great job of telling you what you want to hear. I can give many examples, but a few for the purposes of this post.
First was a conversation about a man who had just died, and I was talking with the preacher and he said “he is in a better place now.” Something everyone says to comfort others who mourn. I responded in a tough way which kind of caught him off guard. Although I do not remember the exact comments, it had something to do with how do you know for sure? Making the point that this false saved by grace doctrine is a lie. He agreed with me to make things smooth or agreeable, even though I know he did not agree and his preaching never changed. It was not the only time he agreed to just keep me appeased.
Another time he had started a bible study, and after the first one it stopped. Mainly because the verses he showed us to make their point, I untwisted to make the opposite point. If memory is correct it was about once saved, always saved. Anyways, in the end he said I think we came to the conclusion you are not always saved. That was the last bible study he had or at least I was invited to.
Another time, he said let me pray for you, and his prayer was “Lord give Scott wealth and health…” The normal prayer these false teachers do to make you feel good. I then said let me pray for you. And my prayer was much different. I said “Lord, give Mike what he needs to be right with you, that he seeks you and your wisdom and righteousness.”
Many other things I can say, but hopefully you get the point? Which is, it is not about your comfort and your feelings and everything is good with God because of your religious beliefs which make it OK. The verse reminds us that the Hebrews after leaving Egypt had already made themselves a false god. They knew the real God, they saw his amazing power and miracles first hand, yet when Moses disappeared for a few days, they made their own god and worshiped him instead, and only complained about the God who brought them out of Egypt.
This is the same ongoing story over and over, we do not like the real God Yahweh and his son Yeshua, because their ways are difficult and demanding. We do not want to do any work or make any changes in our life, we prefer to follow some man who tells us what we want to hear and assures us we have salvation because of their religious beliefs and how they twist the bible. Which every man teacher twists the bible and why we have all these different religions and translations of the bible. None of which is truth, the only truth is in Yeshua.
Over and over, man has made their religious beliefs about anything and everything except what it must be about. Which is knowing and obeying the Lord. Yes his ways are extremely difficult and demanding. His level of living is not obtainable without his Spirit guiding you 24/7, and why Yeshua had to die to send the Spirit back into the world so you can be saved.
The main point is that we must know and obey Yeshua onto perfection, righteousness and salvation which comes with following him. And then you will know what it really means to live, and have a life of abundance. And you will also know that even though you could go back and do evil works like your old days, you never would consider it because you love the Lord and his ways and the peace, joy and true love that comes with it, more than the sinful short term enjoyment you had.
The verses which make it sound like you are saved no matter what you do, are really saying the above. That after you have fought the good fight and finished the race, you would NEVER consider going back to the life of sin and how you used to live. It is not that you can’t, it is that you won’t. And those who are perishing and telling the lie that it is different than this, cannot understand this because they never had the Spirit. They only believed they got the Spirit of truth because of some religious tradition they did. But they did not receive anything.
In 1 John 2:17 it is written “As for you, the Messianic anointing you received from the Father remains in you, so that you have no need for anyone to teach you. On the contrary, as his Messianic anointing continues to teach you about all things, and is true, not a counterfeit, so, just as he taught you, remain united with him.”
Note “you have no need that anyone teach you…” Yeshua said “do not call anyone your teacher (or Rabbi) for there is one, the Messiah, and you are all brothers.” Matthew 23
This brings up one last point the Lord showed me or reminded me of for the millionth time. Which is the religions believe we are all brothers, every man, woman and child ever born. But the Lord is telling us that the ones who know him and obey him are the only ones who are brothers in him. Read all of Matthew 23, it is tough speaking against the Rabbis and Pharisees. In this passage Yeshua is speaking to the masses of people, making it clear the true believers will worship him in Spirit and truth (see John 4).
The bible is full of verses which tell us clearly we are to know and obey Yeshua, and no one else. He has been given all authority in heaven and on earth, at least to those of us who hear and obey him. If you do not hear and obey him, you are obeying the evil one by default. There are no other options. And that makes you all brothers with each other also, except your father is not Yahweh, the Father of Yeshua. No different than being a republican or democrat for example, those who believe democrats are the best think alike and are one in that thinking. Same with republicans. It is in everything, even cartels and gangs. You love your own, and hate the rivals. Many cartel, mafia and gang members think they are saved even doing seriously evil things. And they are all brothers with their group, but not with the rivals.
Do not be fooled, do not feel comfortable in your religion and sin. Repent and turn to the Lord!
Last quick point, God also made it clear to me many times, when we speak of the Spirit, the people cannot understand. The only way to understand is obedience to him. That is the simplest message. Our job is to not teach, but to share the revelations the Lord shows us, a somewhat similar yet different thing. We are to lead people to the Messiah and to pray for the people who we are leading. They will NEVER come to know God because of us teaching them. It is not possible, the teacher must be Yeshua. Our message must be simple: come to know him and hear him and obey him, he will be the one who does the work in you to make you righteous and worthy of the Kingdom of God. And you must work out what he works in, in other words be a doer of the word he gives you and not just a hearer. And then pray for the person so the Spirit can help them to come to understand.