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Christian Soapbox, I die devotionals, Journal

Journal Entry 9

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So they were saying to him, “How then were your eyes opened?” He answered, “The man who is called Jesus made mud, and spread it on my eyes, and said to me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash’; so I went away and washed, and I received sight.”

John 9:10-11

PRAYER

I pray our neighbors will have hearts’ genuine to the answers you’ve provided by sending the Holy Spirit to reveal the nature of your Word that makes our eyes see the miracle that you are; you’re seated at the right hand of the throne of God. I pray we are faithful in communicating the testimony of your work in us and the world. Please help us not use our ability through grace to see the world as an opportunity to sin by wrong motives and ideas, but for righteousness in serving the cause of your good news. In your Name, Jesus Christ. Amen.

DEATH

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. (Genesis 2:17)

The nature of death is quite difficult for me to contend with, not because of fear, or…at least, the fact it will happen in its finality one day, but rather because the experience of impending death distracts from its twofold nature—the nature of its physical process and spiritual process. So while the experience of death has a physical hold on me due the condemnation of man; how I choose to die is of another nature to death entirely. Observe…

When you open your bible and turn to 1 Corinthians 15:51-58, what does it say?

Or how about when you turn to Revelation 20:13-15, what does it read?

The two biblical passages—of which there are more—presented, reveal two realities about death, at least, from my perspective. There is (1) a biological reality and (2) a spiritual reality of death. Lets proceed to understand the biological reality…

BIOLOGICAL REALITY

I don’t think it requires much explanation for understanding our biological experience of death, but the fact of its experience, is what is of interest to me, because the law of conservation of energy states that energy can neither be created nor destroyed – but can only be converted from one form of energy to another—of which, admittedly, am totally uneducated about. The only way that that makes sense to me as a human being of energy is that an eternal God (Father) [energy] exists outside our reality and is emitted as God (Son) [energy] inside our reality for emitting [energy] God (Holy Spirit)—LOGOS—to an eternal reality. It doesn’t make sense that life would randomly come into being only to evolve to death, intelligently—”the end”. How does that make any sense to anyone?

I can testify that I experience pain in the process of death, and that communicates something beyond the scientific resolve—it’s not a biological issue. Yes, biology is the study of life, the living, so how is death biological when the very definition contradicts. Death is not biological, it’s a consequence.

I can hear you smart people… “Don’t give me that! That’s not the definition!” Nonsense! I googled the study of death, and you’re correct, it’s the study of thanatology, but the point is… It’s a thanatological (Is that even a word?…) process of a biological reality (… It is a word! Yeahhh… I’m a stewpid smart person!!!). And that means the energy of death is a process of elimination; it will eventually conclude it’s purpose (converting into another form of consequence); whereas, the energy of biology will transcend (converting into another form of experience); we can see that, especially, in our Revelation 20:13-15 passage. That brings us to the second reality of deaths’ nature.

SPIRITUAL REALITY

Since our Lord, Jesus Christ, is the propitiation of our sins, but not ours only, the entire worlds (1 John 2:2). We now have the spiritual reality to die a different death given by the Holy Spirit of God to help in our time of need. We can choose to die a death in faith by believing in Jesus Christ, entrusting Him with our soul by the Word of God. That may sound simple, but the discipline of change is not pleasant nor the process easy.

When death converts into another form, the reality will be—figuratively and literally—Hell (lake of fire). Death and Hades will be thrown into the lake of fire, the lake of fire is the second death (Revelation 20:13-15). That is a spiritual truth from a biblical God, and one not to be taken lightly as we see the world taking it. The consequence for neglecting the discipline of the Holy Spirit’s work in sanctification that saves and seals the believing soul is…a spiritual reality and of eternal significance.

If anyone reading this comes short of the fear of the Lord, then I pray you’ll consider this another plea for your souls’ salvation. I pray you’ll turn your mind and heart off to the world and “die” (For whoever wants to save his life will lose it; but…) for the sake of Christ the Lord (…whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.), our gift of salvation; Jesus, is the Savior of those in the world who might believe (John 3:16-20). Do not wait for the days where you will wish you could die, but cannot:

And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them.

Revelation 9:6

Christian Soapbox, I die devotionals, Journal

Journal Entry 6

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When He had said this, He spit on the ground, and made mud from the saliva, and applied the mud to his eyes, and said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which is translated, Sent). So he left and washed, and came back seeing. 

John 9:6-7

PRAYER

I pray we come back seeing, Lord. Amen.

INQUIRY

So then what is the biblical nature of each path and their interconnected significance? And, Who is Jesus?

Okay *interlock fingers and crack knuckles* …pause… Let me get some coffee for this *gets up from seated position, proceeds to coffee maker with haste, dumps enough coffee in filter to kill a small horse* LETS DO THI— …pause… *laughs it off* Get focused; alright, here we go!

While my coffee is brewing, Lord, please grace me/us with the power and glory of You, for understanding the will of God in our lives. Thank you Father, in Jesus Christ; amen.

Figure 1

To understand the interconnected web in our figure 1 image, we first need to understand the biblical nature of each path.

LEARNING

  • REWARD
  • SIN
  • BELIEF
  • UNBELIEF
  • DEATH
REWARD
Figure 2

The biblical nature of reward revealed by the Holy Spirit (John 14:26; 16:7,13), from my perspective, is as follows. *Coffee now at hand* …Rejoice on that day and jump for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven… (Luke 6:23). Jesus taught of reward in heaven by our faithful endurance against the hate of the world… Blessed are you when the people hate you, and when they exclude you, and insult you, and scorn your name as evil, on account of the Son of Man… (Luke 6:23). Which then begs the question. Am I hated by the world? Are you hated by the world? Being hated by the world is a tangible evidence to those blessed by God (which we’ll talk more about in future posts Lord willing), their reward is great in heaven. But lets back up to the first part of that phrase, Rejoice on that day… Why does Jesus say “…on that day” and not ‘today’ or ‘tomorrow’? What does Jesus mean by “day“? What is a ‘day’ to God?

[Lets see how studied we are in the Word of God; you’ll have an idea—or quite possibly know exactly—where I’m about to go by the Holy Spirit revealing His presence in you, assuring you of whether we’re on the right path; if you’re not someone studied in the Word of God, but are hungry and thirsty for learning righteousness, that appetite is the Holy Spirit serving your soul with spiritual food for growth and maturity, examine this with trusted believers; if you’re someone resisting the Spirit of Truth in the Word of God—presented in the passages of scripture following—then please consider softening your heart to the knowledge of the truth, seek the Lord at His Word and His people the Church, because God loves you.]

There are several passages to consider (Psalm 90:4; Ecclesiastes 6:6; 2 Peter 3:8; Revelation 20:2-7), but look at what the apostle Peter writes regarding the meaning of a “day” to God:

“But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.“

—Cephas (Peter)

Peter instructs us …be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day (2 Peter 3:8). So when we look back to what Jesus said—Rejoice on that day…—we can see that the day our Lord is referring to is a future day, the day of a thousand years; the millennial reign of Christ our Lord, Jesus. This is the first resurrection (Revelation 20:6). When a disciple—such as the apostles—suffer in this world of hatred by bearing the name of Jesus, then …your reward is great in heaven. So how are the apostles’ reward great in heaven? These men will sit on thrones, just take a moment to think about that … they’ll sit on thrones!

The scripture I’m about to present to you will reveal the nature of our great reward, and it’s such an encouragement as those of us suffer for the sake of Christ; that does not mean we inflict suffering upon ourselves by annoying people to death with what the world does not care to understand, and then call that “suffering”, because that is not suffering with Christ, that’s a desperate escape from putting in the labor of learning the Word of God and from experiencing the necessary discipline of our Father, and Lord, in heaven, by the Holy Spirit, while alive on earth. Now lets dive deep into the Word of God.

And Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you, that you who have followed Me, in the regeneration when the Son of Man will sit on His glorious throne, you also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. (Matthew 19:28)

The gospel according to the apostle Matthew records the prophetic Word of Christ to our consciences by reading …the regeneration when the Son of Man will sit on His glorious throne, you also shall sit upon twelve thrones… and so now, right now, is that time of regeneration (Titus 3:4-6) by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8) as Jesus is already sitting on His glorious throne (Hebrews 12:1-2) mediating (Hebrews 8:6) from above through the portal [Promises/Providence]—like a ladder (John 1:51)—of His covenant down below to us here and now alive on earth awaiting with patience this great reward; the crown of the first resurrection (2 Timothy 4:7-8; Revelation 20:6) at His appearing; the millennial reign of Christ our Lord.

If you’re concerned that you are not among those of this reward. Then please listen to the Holy Spirit about the nature of that concern. I’m still exploring this revelation with prayer. Test everything presented with the Word of God by the Holy Spirit.

Until tomorrow…

Christian Soapbox, I die devotionals, Journal

Journal Entry 5

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Jesus answered, “It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents; but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him. We must carry out the works of Him who sent Me as long as it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. While I am in the world, I am the Light of the world.”

John 9:3-5

Father, thank you for the sovereignty of Christ our Lord. I pray that your readers will honor the Light that you are in this world as the people of salt and light you’ve graced them to be. Thank you for our gift; He is our Helper, the Spirit of Truth, the Holy Spirit, according to your Word (John 14:26; 16:7,13). Amen

Our featured image has evolved. In it, you’ll notice the green lines interconnecting the paths:

  • REWARD
  • SIN
  • BELIEF
  • UNBELIEF
  • DEATH

In my previous journal entry I’d expressed my concern about the nature of our green path of belief because belief, I believe, is the portal between the divine nature and human nature of which reveals the spiritual condition of a person for the sake of ministry to him or her. However, if the minister is not believing in Jesus Christ (The Minister) to be the Son of God sent of the Father for the proclamation of good news to the sinners’ remission of sin by grace through faith in Him [Jesus Christ] as salvation…then the portal to the divine that inspires that minister is being inspired by a different spirit, an evil spirit, not the Holy Spirit. And that might well be you or I if not checked, examined, and evaluated by the Word of God—which is what I mean to do by journaling the nature of my concern for discernment in following obedience (John 15:12-17).

So then what is the biblical nature of each path and their interconnected significance? For the sake of time, I may need to hold off until tomorrow, but as a note to self… Who is Jesus?—Why did I theme that? I don’t remember why I put that question in there, but whatever, I’m sure it will come back to me.