Earth Bedeviled, Soon De-deviled (Poem)

‘Hey, the devil made me do it!’

Ever heard of, or claimed that in defense,

Of some untoward action of offense,

Or something you did folks thought was ...intense,

So by that your guilt to remit?

Adam and Eve learned the hardest way,

Of devils’ ability to possess and influence,

Leading them to speak and to do things of such gross imprudence,

As to facilitate satan’s earth-power insurgence.

Their imprudence is in us today!

Once-holy, imprudent angels,

Fell to Earth after out of Heaven they were thrown,

Before Adam, and His ascension to Earth’s throne.

Surviving the impact -- deceit skills, Heaven-grown,

By which we are all entangled.

This is The Bible’s brief but spectacular history,

Of how the Earth and everything therein,

Became bedeviled and so full of sin,

And how in their schemes, devils would then win,

Taking us and all things in their hellish fall, slippery.

Good news…

Soon, with no devils to blame or to accuse,

From this excuse, folks will soon be disabused.

For their sinful deeds, there will be no excuse.

Though they’ll still be full of devilish values,

Earth will be 'de-deviled', by The Lord rescued.

Look around the world, and ponder man’s history.

Then imagine the world in that new day,

Earth’s re-birth day, in The Lord’s 'when’ and ‘way’,

When man, beasts or life won't be any devils’ prey,

The day when there’s no spiritual enemy.

Imagine that!!!

Like an old computer, gone totally haywire,

By The Lord, all Earth systems will be …rebooted,

And not one aspect of His reign then disputed.

For unique roles, folks are now being recruited,

For eternal bodies, in luminous attire. ¹

That is how Jesus now looks in His resurrection Glory,

Breathtakingly depicted in prophets' visions:

Two during His pre-incarnate Earth excursions,

One in His post-incarnate, end-time predictions.

   Adam and Eve looked like that before their sin story. ²

Friend, from your ‘devils made me do it nature’,

The Lord’s now offering a unique escape.

With special help your life’s landscape to reshape.

With salvation from Him, He’ll begin to undrape,

A brand new you, culminating in …splendor! ³

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¹ Luminous – emitting light. Sin extinguished Adam and Eve's inner and outer light, and from them, we inherited our sinfully dark nature. Jesus Christ sacrificed Himself and paid the price no human could ever pay to start the long-term process to restore our inner and outer luminosity. He calls that process, salvation.

² See: Ezekiel 1:26 - 28, 8:2, and Revelation 1:12-15. In Genesis 3:11, see the stark question The Lord asked Adam, who suddenly could perceive his nakedness that was previously engulfed in so much LIGHT, he could not discern. 

³ 'And those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting contempt. Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament, and those who turn many to righteousness like the stars [luminous] forever …and ever.' (Daniel 12:2-3)

Does that captivate your imagination, as it does mine?

Free-D.U.M.B. (Poem)

The faster I go, the ‘behinder’ I get. My, my! ¹

So hey, why not slow down and try something different?!

Otherwise there will be no catching up.

I suspect this adage signals more than meets the eye,

That could apply quite broadly, with the right discernment.

Let’s ponder this, and sip from wisdom’s cup.

Have you ever done something to the point of sheer exhaustion--

Work, clean, exercise, study, web surf, play games or instruments?

Afterward, how long did it take you to recover?

Mine took l-o-n-g-e-r  than anticipated. Over exertion! 

It took a while to learn not to be overly persistent,

And patiently to stay within wisdom’s corridor.

I learned patience is a key aspect of diligence,

Though on the surface, some might think they conflict.

With patience, many of us are not well-endowed,

Nor diligent enough to learn from our imprudence.

So I wondered…

On these points what do Bible stories depict?

And on them, what has The Lord Almighty allowed?

Paul affirms in everything, Jesus Christ is pre-eminent,

And He is the bodily fullness of The Godhead,

The sum of God’s essence, perfection, powers and attributes.

In Whom all treasures of wisdom and knowledge are inherent. ²

As such, I conclude everything in man’s ‘wisdom shed’,

Must be results of Him sharing His ‘knowledge and wisdom fruits’.

And though we have used so much of it for evil,

Since Adam’s day, generation-after-generation,

He has generously shared -- precept upon precept,

Line upon line, here a little, there a little. ³

We, a little lower than God, receive …from perfection, ⁴

Yet with so much of it, we have been …grossly inept.

The astute among us will say, ‘It’s due to our sin nature’,

And who among us could dare argue with that?

Yet even among us who through life walk in His Spirit,

Everything that is good we do not consistently nurture.

In life, imperfection we all must combat.

Other than imperfections, are there other key facets??

Freedom of choice to me appears to be,

A major culprit that impacts our life quality.

With this freedom, The Lord endowed both angels and man.

We know how some angels used theirs violently.

And behold, we all have embraced their …‘God-bigotry,’ ⁵

And thus made freedom’s perfection something …other than.

Those angels, now demons, have been really smart,

In finding ways to make our freedom dumb.

I dub the results, Devils Undermining Mankind’s Best.

(Free-D.U.M.B)

Yep, in their Free-D.U.M.B. scheme, we’ve all played our part,

Turning life on Earth into quite a slum.

But our collective madness The Lord God will soon arrest.

How?

His pending Millennial Reign is His long-planned remedy,

To end how by both devils and man, freedom is abused.

For a thousand years, all devils will be locked away,

And no mortals will then be ‘free’ during this time, temporary. ⁶

With freedom, the more we learned, more dumbness we accrued.

Thus, The Lord will try something different …in His day.

…and I can hardly wait~

Can you?

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¹ An adage of unknown origin

² See: Colossians 1:9-18, 2:3, 9

³ See: Isaiah 28 and Psalm 119 which includes 21 references to The Lord’s precepts to mankind.

⁴ See: Psalm 8:5. It is unfortunate that most versions of The Bible apparently misinterpret Psalm 8:6 to position mankind ‘a little lower than angels’, rather than ‘a little lower than The God-Elohim, Himself’. To confirm, compare the Amplified, Orthodox Jewish, and Young’s Literal Bible versions of this verse with several other versions. Man was created in God’s image. Angels were not. How would an accurate understanding of this pivotal verse likely impact your Christian faith and walk??

⁵ See: Working With Angels (Poem, Part 1)

⁶ See: A Forced Reconciliation (Poem) It is interesting that Zechariah 14:16-19 indicate during the Millennial Reign of Jesus, remnant groups of people in nations that will have attacked Israel (See: Revelation - Future Attacks in Israel). They will have a ‘choice’ to disobey Jesus’ command that they or their representatives attend His annual Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot) in Jerusalem, along with Jews (get this) for a thousand years! If they disobey, Jesus promises to send droughts across their lands. Some choice, eh? For more, see: Armageddon (Series). 

Power vs. Message (Poem)

In Eden, The Lord walked with Adam and taught him His way,

Imagine the core messages He taught Adam to obey.

Adam didn’t, then to Him, The Lord’s great power was on display,

Cursed, then evicted, without the power he’d given away. ¹

For decades, Noah warned folks of The Lord’s pending judgment,

They jeered at his boat, but thought his message was not cogent.

By The Lord’s judgment power, their lives were interrupted,

As from the ground, a global inundation erupted. ²

I suppose the ancient Hebrews were thrilled,

The days fear across Egypt was instilled.

To be released from slavery they were elated,

But soon by fear, all of them were baited. ³

They’d appreciated displays of God’s awesome power,

But then they refused to portray His power as soldiers.

They learned freedom comes with a price someone must pay,

And The Lord’s message just wouldn’t turn and go away.

By The Lord’s message, their next generation was confronted,

‘Rid My land of folks by whose sins I am gravely affronted!’

In His power, they upended folks who before Him wouldn’t tremble,

Several decades on, it was these very folks they then resembled! ⁴

By Jesus’ great power, most folks were awed.

But they concluded His message was flawed.

So they thronged to see and perhaps benefit from His power,

Then flocked to see Him succumb to Rome’ crucifixion pressure. ⁵

All His disciples had heard, but did not understand,

His message about rising from being a dead man.

T’was hard to believe even when it happened, but one refused,

Until rebuked in living power by Jesus, then excused. ⁶

Paul was knocked off his ass by The Lord’s power light,

En route to Damascus, some more Christians to smite.

Then blinded, but with both sets of his ears wide open,

The Lord’s message he received, and by it was smitten. ⁷

Hey…

Does this pattern appear to continue in our day,

How in dealing with us, The Lord seems to alternate,

Between leading with His message array,

Versus with His awesome power displays?

In His awesome Grace that to us is so amazing,

He always leads with picture messages portraying,

His loving directions, with warnings appended.

They’re repeated to ensure we comprehended.

But when His Word is long ignored and then forgotten,

And we then experience His power eruption,

It might appear and feel like with power He is leading,

It ain’t, but just that stubborn hearts and lives were not heeding.

When folks ask me to pray for them, I do indeed,

And The Lord gives me a message for them to heed,

I’m not surprised when, in The Lord’s message, there’s no interest.

They don’t regard His message as their faith test, His easiest!

While mankind prioritizes seeing,

The Lord prioritizes believing.

Being moved only by His awesome power displays,

Puts us on the receiving end of judgment relays.

Faith is what He calls believing,

And it’s our door for receiving,

Good things from His all-loving heart.

Thus, believing His message …is smart!

Across our world today, we are witnessing His power displays,

His invitation: Enter through My Bible history gateways.

Perceive My messages that you have long ignored,

Or brace for more power displays …that’ll be abhorred!

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¹ See: Genesis 3. When Adam sinned, he gave to satan his God-given authority and power as the lord of Earth.

² See: Genesis 7

³ See: Exodus 14 and Numbers 13 and 14

⁴ See: Joshua 24, 2 Kings 17 (10 northern tribes called Israel conquered), and 2 Chronicles 36 (2 southern tribes called Judah conquered)

⁵ See: Matthew 27, Mark 15, and Luke 23

⁶ See: Mark 16

⁷ See: Acts 9. Incredible! His physical AND spiritual ears were wide open!!!

Working With Angels (Poem, Part 4)

See the series here

#4 Their Roles in Binding and Loosening

That we are in an on-going, hot war,

Christ-followers need to be well aware,

And skilled to perform our designated roles.

There’s never been a war like it, by far.

It involves no military hardware,

Nor are there troops couched in trenches and fox holes.

To our eyes, our enemies are unseen,

But to all, their operations are in clear view,

Though to them, most folks might never associate results!

Only with a renewed heart and eyes keen,

Can we accurately discern works of this crew.

Lack of spirit discernment is one of folks’ many faults.

If the first tenet of war is …to know your enemy well, 

And a key principle of war is …to prevent friendly fire,

Imagine how these apply in …a hot war, spiritual.

Then imagine how devils trick us, these two points …to dispel,

As we trade unseen enemies, for ‘people ones’ we desire.

Enemies then unchallenged, with people we’re irritable. ¹

How might this impact our coalition angelic,

Who, to us, are assigned, and in battles, with us, are aligned?

Jesus said, what we bind on Earth, would, in heaven, be bound,

And what we loosed, would, in heaven, be loosed, not static.

Angels stand ready to restrain evil spirits whom we bind,

Then, with our angels, in victory, we both will abound.

Angels minister to us, as we minister to Jesus. ²

Spiritual warfare is a BIG part of our ministry.

But if we, our angels’ coalition partners,

Refuse to equip and prepare for the fight assigned to us,

We both suffer loss, and Heaven may question our loyalty,

And our enemies pursue their evil pleasures. ³

Jesus knew there would be so much confusion,

About the concept, and our roles in spiritual warfare.

Thus, He gave Paul insights and Grace to share them with us.

With these insights, we should broaden our vision.

And not view this concept with trepidation and despair.

That would gladden our enemies …and sadden Jesus. ⁴

I get it…

Spiritual warfare is something we prefer to avert,

But binding evil and loosening righteous spirits,

Are not  ‘just for Christian-heavyweights’, as some folks adjudge.

Nor are they ‘just for Peter and popes’, as other folks assert!

Ponder this if my lesson you’re prone to discredit:

Devils we’re now to bind, are they whom we will …one day judge! ⁵

Angels fought and won their war in Heaven so long ago.

Jesus fought and won His war and gave us His victory,

To occupy both heaven and Earth until He returns. ⁶

On this, both devils and Christians find dispersions to throw,

And thus, flip and annul The Lord’s …strategic mystery!

Lord Jesus, please help us, all errant teachings …to un-learn!

Connecting Bible puzzle-pieces, this is what I see:

From before creation-to the Great White Throne Judgment,

There is warfare in the realm of spirit.

Being freed from sin’s power, doesn’t mean from war we are free!!!

Yet of this, many folks may not be in agreement.

How and why are some of us …missing it??

To be strong in God’s whole armor, with no deficits,

To love and forgive folks who don’t deserve it,

And to pray fervently with all manner of prayers,

Equip us to perceive, and then bind wicked spirits,

And to perceive, and then loose righteous spirits,

Leaving results to The Lord -- in this war—that’s our share.

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¹ It’s a considerable challenge to keep our focus on resisting unseen evil spirits when dealing with people whom these spirits influence and catalyze to do wicked deeds. This can only be done successfully as we walk continuously in The Spirit of God.

² Hebrews 1:14 affirms angels minister to/serve Christ’s born-again saints. It is unfortunate that most versions of The Bible apparently misinterpret Psalm 8:6 to position mankind ‘a little lower than angels’, rather than ‘a little lower than The God-Elohim, Himself’. To confirm, in Biblegateway.com, compare the Amplified, Orthodox Jewish, and Young’s Literal Bible versions of this verse, with several other versions. Man was created in God’s image. Angels were not. How would an accurate understanding of this pivotal verse likely impact your Christian faith and walk??

³ See: Laodicean Lackadaisicalness (Series).

⁴ The entirety of Paul’s writings is essentially on how Heaven intends us to achieve and maintain victory in Christ, as we renew our soul (mind, will, emotions, intellect, imagination), and walk in The Holy Spirit. Within this broad context, Paul frequently elaborates on aspects of our warfare. For example, see Romans 7:23, 2 Corinthians 10:1-6, Ephesians 6:10-20, 1 Timothy 1:18-19, 6:11-16, 2 Timothy 2:4, 4:7. See also: 1 Peter 2:11.

⁵ See: 1 Corinthians 6:2-3, 2 Peter 2:4 and Jude 6. The latter verses indicate devils who became human men, and corrupted the human race (pre-flood), have been taken out of commission, and are being reserved for judgment, possibly STILL as men, but immortal. See: Humans’ DNA Hacked (Poem). It would be ‘poetic justice’ if The Lord would turn their, and all devils’ and demons’ judgment over to His resurrected saints, just before He implements Revelation 20:10! Agree??

⁶ This refers to the second heaven – beyond Earth’s atmosphere. See: Ephesians 6:12, 2 Corinthians 12:2,  The Three Heavens and Three Heavens, Not Just One. It is interesting to note how The King James Bible interprets Luke 19:13 quite differently (with a military-type connotation) from other versions (with a commercial connotation). The differences between these perspectives are indeed STARK, as is the timing between them. (KJV likely was the first one!) In context of the broader message of The New Testament, on this verse, the King James Bible seems much more accurate. This is especially relevant when considering: (1) Matthew 10:34, plus (2) predictions about the War of Armageddon in Revelation 19, and (3) the 2nd War of Gog and Magog, the final war of human history predicted in Revelation 20:7-10. See: Revelation - Future Attacks in Israel. For more on The Lord’s ‘Spiritually occupy!’ command and commission, see/listen to: Album 9: Occupy! (Lyrics & Video).

What Happened to WWJD? (Poem)

A fleeting cultural fad?

A plan to unite kids in a group?

A clever marketing ad?

Much money from merchandize to scoop?

Or a meaningful way to prompt folks

To stop and think for a moment before they act,

And from their lives, better actions coax?

Another religious movement by devils hacked?

What ever happened to the WWJD movement

That fired-up so many folks in the ‘90s? ¹

Why do passions that were then stirred now seem so dormant?

About what happened, there are many theories!

The answer to this question, pivotal,

Cannot be found examining matters carnally,

It’s best found in the realm, spiritual,

Understanding Christ’s ministry strategically. 

Re-establishing The Kingdom of Heaven on Earth,

Has been and remains His core mission, passionate,

Restoring to every strata of life, glorious worth, 

Man, animals, plants and nature inanimate.

But though His end-game targets such things that are physical,

His means to accomplish His ends are on a higher plane. 

Thus He recruits us for war that is spiritual,

A war for which Christian recruits must diligently train. ²

The first tenet of war is …know your enemy. 

A principle of war is …prevent friendly fire.

Failure to follow these basic points, astutely, 

Will turn any battleground into a quagmire! 

The core answer to the question WWJD poses,

Is found in how Jesus daily lived life, unseen. 

Not in His many life vignettes The Bible discloses.

The core answer is clearly found in John 5:19.

 

Paul affirms the weapons of our warfare are mighty,

And He details God’s whole armor with which we should be clad.

But re. what to do once we’re clad, some do minimally --

Praying, loosening good things, binding things that make God sad. ³

This keeps our focus on spiritual entities, 

And helps us see people as worthy of loving Grace.

Otherwise, we’ll quickly see them as our enemies,

And become ill-equipped our real enemies to face! 

So if in prayer we are feeble, lacking rigor,

If it’s not based on skillful use of The Word of God, ‘our sword’, 

Then in battle, we won’t be The Lord’s soldiers, but just actors.

When we don’t see desired results,

we’ll lose passions that once soared. ⁴

When in feeble prayer, we are unable to move The Lord’s hand,

Devils then tempt us: Try something different; take a U-turn!

Might that be why folks took off WWJD t-shirts and wrist bands,

And why much of Church Americana took …a hard, right turn?? ⁵

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¹ ‘What Would Jesus Do?’. This question morphed from a book written in 1896, to a massive movement a century later across the US in the 1990, largely among white evangelicals. It then quickly fizzed out after much money was made on movement merchandize. See: What Would Jesus Do? The Rise of a Slogan and also The W.W.J.D. Fade-out 

² In a pre-death parable (Luke 19:11-27), Jesus signaled to all Christ-followers a commission to invade and occupy Earth’s spiritual realm in His (then pending) victory, until He returns to establish His earthly kingdom. This is the realm devils occupy, and of which Paul speaks in Ephesians 3:10 and 6:12. But without a clear perception of this meaning, spiritually, we are easily tempted to change our focus to things carnal, physical (including on other people), political and other means to achieve our own desired results. When that happens, we become lukewarm believers, and eventually useless in Heaven’s strategic plans. Ponder The Lord’s promised response: Laodicean Lackadaisicalness (Series)

³ Keeping our focus not on people, but on good and evil spirits who motivate people. See: Ephesians 6:8, Matthew 16:19 and 18:18. These are core aspects of spiritual warfare to which Christ-followers are called, though many may not be aware of, or prepared to engage in, earnestly and rigorously. See: Working With Angels (Series)

⁴ ‘Christians-lite’, i.e., inauthentic, fake believers. Apostle Paul, by The Holy Spirit, predicted a great falling away from the faith towards the end of this 3rd age of history, formerly committed Christians leaving the faith, becoming spiritually saltless, and having a form of Godliness, but not denying/ not displaying any of His power. In many respects, THIS is Church Americana today. 

⁵ A hard-right political stance, seemingly/reportedly abandoning both traditionally-held ‘conservative values’ and some Christian virtues. See: When Church Hurts (Poem)