(02/10/2017) Plantings of the Lord

Today, the discussion of revelation and spiritual growth is continued.  Because the makeup and substance of divinity are eternal and immutable, outcomes for many divine operations (e.g., forgiveness, Incarnation, proclamation, promise, rebirth, the second death) will be enduring, fixed, and unchanging.  The GODhead is the fullness of all sacred spirit, however, can only be realized by created beings and living creatures through discrete persons and specific events.  Thus, the process of GOD for mankind is one of revelation wherein things that are active, present, and unchanging become known through discovery, gradual growth, instruction in sacred knowledge, and operations of ones own inner spirit.  The believer suffers no loss through relationships and transactions with divinity.  GOD does not lie, cheat, or “bait and switch.”  Divine truth is eternal and does not change; however, mankind’s acceptance, awareness and willing submission to the truth does.  It is by no means a betrayal or a violation of the trust appearing among created beings and living creatures that the Creator is also a God of Judgment.  Very early, all the necessary instruction regarding sin and judgment are available through the simple account of Adam’s fall.  That divine law also entails obligation and consequences for disobedience are described, and those who rely on divine love for their existence and the benefits of life are to acknowledge the word spoken by GOD always expresses sovereign authority and power.  Judgment is an ongoing sacred process that allows the completion and perfection of Creation, and is not intended for annihilation, destruction, and elimination of life.  The wrath of GOD against sin is a permanent aspect of divine makeup, not merely the expression of emotions and feelings that may come and go.  Divine wrath is not concealed or made something secret; and must be understood as kept in balance with other aspects of the divine nature (e.g., compassion, joy, longsuffering, mercy, restraint).

THE GOLDEN ARROW:  For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.  Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin.  And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him:  6 For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.  7 If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?  8 But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons.  9 Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?  10 For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness.  (Hebrews 12:  3-10, King James Version, KJV)

THE BATTLE AXE:  Acorns Become Oak Trees? (02/09/2017)—(5.)  Genesis 2:  15-17, King James Version (KJV):  15 And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.  16 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:  17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it:  for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

(6.)  Exodus 20:  1-7, KJV:  1 And God spake all these words, saying,  2 I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.  3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.  4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.  5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them:  for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;  6 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.  7 Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.

(7.)  Deuteronomy 30:  19-20, KJV:  19 I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing:  therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:  20 That thou mayest love the LORD thy God, and that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him:  for he is thy life, and the length of thy days:  that thou mayest dwell in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.

(8.)  Micah 1:  2-7, KJV:  2 Hear, all ye people; hearken, O earth, and all that therein is:  and let the Lord GOD be witness against you, the Lord from his holy temple.  3 For, behold, the LORD cometh forth out of his place, and will come down, and tread upon the high places of the earth.  4 And the mountains shall be molten under him, and the valleys shall be cleft, as wax before the fire, and as the waters that are poured down a steep place.  5 For the transgression of Jacob is all this, and for the sins of the house of Israel. What is the transgression of Jacob? is it not Samaria? and what are the high places of Judah? are they not Jerusalem?  6 Therefore I will make Samaria as an heap of the field, and as plantings of a vineyard:  and I will pour down the stones thereof into the valley, and I will discover the foundations thereof.  7 And all the graven images thereof shall be beaten to pieces, and all the hires thereof shall be burned with the fire, and all the idols thereof will I lay desolate:  for she gathered it of the hire of an harlot, and they shall return to the hire of an harlot.

(9.)  Revelation 3:  17-22, KJV:  17 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:  18 I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.  19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten:  be zealous therefore, and repent.  20 Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.  21 To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.  22 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

(10.)  Mark 4:  28-32, KJV:  28 For the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself; first the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear.  29 But when the fruit is brought forth, immediately he putteth in the sickle, because the harvest is come.  30 And he said, Whereunto shall we liken the kingdom of God? or with what comparison shall we compare it?  31 It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth:  32 But when it is sown, it groweth up, and becometh greater than all herbs, and shooteth out great branches; so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it.

(11.)  Isaiah 60:  19-22, KJV:  19 The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee:  but the LORD shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory.  20 Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself:  for the LORD shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended.  21 Thy people also shall be all righteous:  they shall inherit the land for ever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified.  22 A little one shall become a thousand, and a small one a strong nation:  I the LORD will hasten it in his time.

There is far more to be said, correctly applied, and spiritually apprehended.  Even so, I trust this fragment will be useful.  Be it unto you according to your faith.

THE BLACK PHOENIX
Washington, DC

(02/09/2017) Acorns Become Oak Trees?

Today, focus is on changes the living must undergo through the divine life processes that reveal an immutable, unchanging GOD.  Coming to know GOD requires multiple operations of ones own content and makeup imparted as breath, life essence, and spirit.  Sacred events must appear that establish growth, maturity, ripeness for harvest from the earth at the coming of the Lord, and perfection.  There must be regular communication, exchange, and interaction among the inseparable aspects of the Creator through contemplation, praise, prayer, service, and worship.  Included are faith, holiness, hope, longsuffering, lovingkindness, wisdom, and wrath against sin.  The fighter at “Yahoo! Answers” using the ID “SupaStar” (Level 5 with 6,228 points, a member since August 07, 2014) posted the following:

When did Christianity go from "The religion of love" to "Some day, very soon, Jesus is going to KILL YOU ALL!"?

Update: For those who don't know, that is when Jesus comes back and kills everyone on the planet, except his good buddies.

THE GOLDEN ARROW:  There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.  For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.  For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:  That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.  For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.  For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.  Because the carnal mind is enmity against God:  for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.  So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.  But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.  (Romans 8:  1-9, King James Version, KJV)

THE DOUBLE DAGGER:  Sharing The Correct Message (01/30/2017); Destruction of the Adversary? (01/06/2017); Events During Final Judgment? (11/28/2016); Spirit Content From GOD? (09/26/2016); Spirit Process not Feelings? (09/21/2016); Mustard Seed Faith? (01/16/2014); The Judges Who Condemned Jesus? (01/17/2014)

“SupaStar”, your question seems intended only to make your  point to blaspheme GOD, however, for the sake of those seeking truth, here is a reply:  The divine focus is existence and life.  The living complete their mortal existence by passing through multiple cycles, phases and stages (e.g., infancy, puberty, aging) that make them appear different, yet, they remain the same individual.  To become fruitful and productive all Christian believers must undergo permanent changes and spiritual growth.  The gifts from GOD must be placed within a context and setting that responds to GOD (i.e., the seed must be planted in good soil).  In the same way an acorn contains all the elements and possibilities to become a full oak tree, yet, does not shoot up as a new plant overnight, for mature Christian believers the process of divinity using created beings and living creatures on the earth is one of providing unchanging sacred knowledge; comfort, edification, and exhortation (we say, prophecy); and an interrupted stream of revelation (making Deity knowable, known, and “visible”).  The character, makeup, and substance of GOD appear as “spirit” in their form and nature, yet, the Creator has put forth carnal, material, and social beings, their spheres of life, and multiple frameworks (e.g., time, space, emotion, mind) that provide meaning, order, quality, structure, and value for their awareness and self-will.  GOD is immutable and unchanging, therefore the tool of diversity appears.  The eternal purposes of divinity remain the same, and may be manifest using different events, forms, messages, and proclamations.  Sinners, whose consciousness and self-will are repeatedly dominated by opposition to divine law must gradually come into an adult understanding of doctrine and practices that were introduced to them while they were children.  Defiance, ignorance, rebellion, and separation make it that sinners can not correctly discern and recognize the things of divine Spirit without first becoming “born again.”  Consider once more the following:

(1.)  1st Corinthians 14:  20 King James Version (KJV):   20 Brethren, be not children in understanding:  howbeit in malice be ye children, but in understanding be men.

(2.)  1st Corinthians 13:  9-13, KJV:  9 For we know in part, and we prophesy in part.  10 But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.  11 When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child:  but when I became a man, I put away childish things.  12 For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face:  now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.  13 And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

(3.)  1st Corinthians 12:  3, KJV:  3 Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed:  and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost.

There is far more to be said, correctly applied, and spiritually apprehended.  (For example, (4.)  Romans 1:  16-21, KJV:  16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ:  for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.  17 For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith:  as it is written, The just shall live by faith.  18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;  19 Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them.  20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:  21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.)  Even so, I trust this fragment will be useful.  Be it unto you according to your faith.

THE BLACK PHOENIX
Washington, DC