Spirit of Truth/The Bible on Trial

"It's hard to imagine that things could get much worse!" This past week I have heard this expressed in one form or another by several people as I have worked at my fairly new part time job at the hardware store in town. The store has put up an end cap display of items that are typically used in emergency kits for both home and car; duct tape, first aid kit, water purifier, and another dozen or so items that could help get people through an earthquake or other disaster.  I am a big believer in keeping emergency supplies both at home and in our cars because you never know when you will need them. I even keep a fully prepared 'go bag' in my car, so that should the need arise I could climb on 'shanks mare' and 'hoof it' home should the need arise. So when I hear this expression about 'things getting worse', I want to say, "You ain't seen nothing yet!" And as much as I believe in this type of preparedness mind set I also know that we are coming to a time when this kind of preparation will not be enough to keep you safe and secure, because it is 'just' physical. There is a time coming to the world, and indeed is already here, when it will be essential for people to KNOW THE TRUTH in order to win through to eternal life. Note, I did not say LIVE through, because many people that know the truth, and teach this truth to others, will be required by God to give up their lives for the sake of others. Yet knowing this truth brings a peace that makes all of the terror to come worth the result; that is, the knowledge of the truth that brings eternal life. When we learn the truth from the words of Jesus, and understand prophecy and what is just on the horizon, we will be fully prepared to 'do the will of the Father', and we will remain steadfast in our understanding of truth that will seal us into the Kingdom of God.

This morning I was thinking about sourdough starter. Go figure! Don't ask me why, it just came into my head. Now this will not be a cooking class, but REAL sourdough started takes a LONG time to achieve, and reminded me that it is similar in texture and application to what it is like to combine knowledge with understanding to reach wisdom. The sourdough process consists of starting with whole wheat flour (or rye flour) and PURE water (water without chlorine or other impurities). And during the long feeding process (7-14 plus days) you pull off about half the starter and 'discard' it, and then add more flour (unbleached white) and water to feed the natural yeast that was in the original whole wheat. After a few days the loose dough with begin to bubble and expand; and then you feed it, discard, feed, discard until the dough has a beautiful sour smell. Then you pull off enough to use in bread (8 oz.), and save the rest in the fridge. Truth is like sourdough in that it takes time to bring it to a usable place, where it bubbles up out of your mind and heart, and becomes ready to use in the bread that brings everlasting life. The flour is the knowledge of the truth, and the water is understanding that comes from the Holy Spirit, the pure water of life. The feeding and discarding is adding new information that is true, and discarding that which is not truth. Just as it takes great care to make sourdough starter that will make wonderful sourdough bread, so it takes great care and determination to find and make usable the truth that comes from heaven through the words of Jesus that He gave to His own eyewitness disciples. But OH, is it worth the glorious result in flavor and nourishment when you taste this 'bread of heaven'. When this happens, nothing will ever taste the same.

The recent tragedy in Las Vegas has confirmed one point about 'news coverage', and that is this; "No one knows the truth, and no one cares what the truth really is". The emotional firestorm during the aftermath of this tragic shooting has demonstrated that what people believe about what they see and hear during news coverage of these kinds of events is based solely on what they have already decided that they WANT to believe, not what is actually true. No one in the media is asking 'hard' questions (defined as rock rolling-leaving no stone unturned) that if answered would give a totally different picture about what happened than what simply 'meets the eye'. The same is true for what is seen in the study of Truth that is found in the Bible. What people WANT to believe is what they see, which is often not what IS. God told Moses that Their name was "I AM". Jesus told His disciples the "I AM the Way, the Truth, the Life". I AM is the indicator that what God says through HIS words IS TRUTH. So why to most 'believers' in God believe lies AS IF they were truth? It's simple: they prefer lies to truth, darkness to light, death to life.  "This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil.  "For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.  "But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God." John 3:19-21. "See, I have set before you today life and prosperity, and death and adversity; So choose life. Deut.30:15,19.

If God was in need of a person to do a specific job for Them, how would Elohim go about hiring that person? What would be the incentive for a person to leave everything that they know and love to go to work for Elohim? Does God pay wages for work rendered and a job well done, or do They simply assume that the person they are going to hire will do it for free? In the parable of the Laborers in the Vineyard in Mathew 20 Jesus reminds us that a laborer is worth his/her hire price, and that those that work at the end will recieve the same pay as those that began the work at the beginning. God ALWAYS pays His debts, for good or ill, and we should do the same for those that work or serve us here on earth.  Rev 22:12  "Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man according to what he has done.

"Truth Will Out". William Shakespeare was the greatest writer in the English language that ever lived. I know this may seem a little sac-religious to some, but remember Jesus never wrote down a word of what He said to His disciples, they did. One of the most poigniant phrases the Bill said (he and I are on speaking terms) is from his play The Merchant of Venice, written in 1596, in which a character named Launcelot (correct spelling-not the knight) said it. Here is not the time to explain the plot twist that precipitated this phrase, but here is the sentence out of which comes our opening today - "I will tell you news of your son: give me your blessing; truth will come to light; murder cannot be hid long; a man's son may, but at the length TRUTH WILL OUT". Tonight from 6-9PM at the Bob's Big Boy restaurant in Calimesa California the TRUTH WILL OUT, because the truth cannot be hidden forever, much to the shagrin of the author of lies. We hope you will join us at this event, because what you are going to hear will change your life forever, one way or the other. Jesus told Pilate that "For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice." (John 18:37) Spirit of Truth Ministry is dedicated to the forwarding and bringing out the truth from the shadows in to the light. Because of this goal, we will be streaming this seminar live on our Face Book group page, and later on our You Tube channel, and right here on our Blog Talk Radio station. Come prepared to hear things that will astound you, and bring you to the realization that we are actually living in the Appointed Time of the End.

Spirit of Truth Ministry will be holding a Seminar/Study on September 29 through October 1, 2017, at the Bob's Big Boy Restaurant in Calimesa California (540 Sandalwood, 92320). This will be an eye opening presentation that will challenge the beliefs and faith of all that attend, so that minds and hearts can be opened to Truth. Join us for this wonderful event.  Today we will be introducing some of the topics that will be presented at this Seminar.

What do you do when a medicine that you are taking to correct a physical problem does not work? There are all kinds of responses to this situation; from getting mad at the company that manufactured the medicine, to blaming the doctor for prescribing the 'wrong' medicine, to blaming God for allowing you to get the problem in the first place. There are two things that most people do not do (at one time or another);  the first is to admit that it is their lifestyle choices that are causing the problem; to have the courage to admit culpability in causing the problem yourself, by your actions, or inaction; the second it to admit that it is the fault of 'no one', that it is just life, and sometimes bad things just happen. We try to assign responsibility for our deteriorating condition of someone or something, when in reality the ubiquitous 'no one' is the responsible party. This situation does not occur in our spiritual lives, and that is because the 'cure' already exists, is avaiable, although (for the most part) not recognized, and if used according to the directions on the lable guarantees a successful outcome. The cure is THE TRUTH. If we hold on to 'old time medicine', AKA 'that old time religion' of our parents and grand parents, our church, our pastor, or other authority figures, then we are not taking the medicine that Jesus brought to earth from His Father, which (in the words of my father) wlll "fix what ails you".  Unfortuately, eternal life is NOT a gift, as we have been taught. This concept is medicine that will ultimately cause death to those that believe in it. The medicine of Truth is the very Words of God, that the Father gave to His Son, Jesus, who gave it to His own eyewitness disciples, who by remembering them writing then down cause others to believe as did they did. Choose life, not death.

"What On Earth?" This is an expression my mom used time and again when she would notice something out of place in the house, or not up to her standards of excellence in the homework, music practicing, house cleaning, bed making, personal interactions between us siblings, or any of a hundred other things that did not fit her idea of 'proper' behaviour, decorum, neatness, or grooming. For those of you that are in Gen-X and beyond the translation into common vernacular used today in texting would be (to put it bluntly) "WTF?" However, I heard this expression used nearly every day during the mid 1960's (the mini-skirt era) when my sisters would attempt to go to high school with skirts rolled up higher above the knees than was appropriate to my mothers idea of 'lady-like' dress (not to mention school standards); which was then immediately followed by "You are going out looking like that over my dead body!" When people in public view test the 'norms' of behavior of 'polite' society is when many people would use a derivative of "What on earth? in expression shock or distain. Yet today we are so innundated with visual and audio input that though shocking has become so normal we just don't even notice it anymore. This is true for our spiritual belief systems as well. We are so used to hearing pastors, preachers, religious teachers of all stripe, and family and friends expressing religious beliefs with regard to 'social justice', life style choices, etc., expressing lies as if they are the truth, not even know they are doing it, that 'normal' has taken on new context.  How could 'followers of Jesus' respond when this takes place? How about using a shortened version of what Jesus said in the "Lord's Prayer: "What In Heaven?"

Do you enjoy tests? This seems like a rediculous question, because for most people testing of any kind is a pain in the neck. Why? In order to pass a test you have to study for it, and studying for anything is a pain in the neck. But preparing for a test is the ONLY way in which a person can know ahead of time whether they will pass the test, or not. The prayer of the unprepared goes something like this: "Dear Lord, please help me to remember everything that I never studied!" But really, what are the chances of that happening. There are tests in which you can guess your way to success, but those types of tests are not designed to find out whether the student (what ever subject) knows enough to be compitent, it only tests their ability to guess well, given insufficient data. Salvation and eternal life is not something that can be 'guessed at' and passed. This is not a 'pass/fail' grading system, where the student can get any grade just over failing and still pass the course. Yet according to the words of Jesus Salvation requires 100% understanding of the subject, with a 100% perfect grade in order to pass into eternal life. Today Christians believe with all their hearts that they will not be judged/tested by any standard, because they are 'saved by grace through faith'. They believe this because their teachers believe this, and their teachers believed it. This is why it is so difficult to gain eternal life; this is the 'eye of the needle' of which Jesus spoke, through which it is nearly impossibe for someone that 'thinks' they are rich in the understanding of how salvation works to pass. 'Because you say, "I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing," and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked." Rev. 3:17.

No amount of persuasion can convince a person that is sure of themselves that they are believing a lie, if they believe that lie is the truth. Hurricane Irma is bearing down of Florida with a vengence, and people en mass are fleeing before it, but there are still people that believe that they will survive it 'in place'. I truly hope that it turns out to be true, but the likelyhood of everyone that is caught in the high wind and waves will survive unharmed is statisically nil. One of these people is my younger sister, Debra, and I am very worried or her safety. My wife's nieces husband is visiting his home country of Trinidad/Tobago and has been caught as well, unable to get a flight out of danger. Why do people wait until the very last minute to realize that danger is hurtling toward them, and they better take precautions, and make preparations for unexpected outcomes? This is a very human condition that is based in the optimizm that 'it can't happen to me'.  The study of end-time prophecy in Scripture shows that there are going to be lots of people with this viewpoint, that will be caught off guard by and 'unexpected return' of Jesus. And that happens because they are looking for His return to happen one way, when in reality it actually happens another way. The same is true for those that believe that there is only one 'salvation', and that is through faith by grace, as described by Paul in his gospel. These people will be 'caught off guard' when it is shown to them that this 'gospel' was a lie, and will not believe the alternative because they have never looked for that alternative. Spirit of Truth Ministry offers that alternative; the gospel of the process of sanctification through the words of Jesus that He gave to His own eyewitness disciples. This gospel is very different than what is being taught by Christianity, yet it offers the only true salvation.