I enjoy writing because is helps me keep my eyes on the long game of my goal. Writing helps me come to know what I know. It organizes my thoughts. As well as share what I’ve learned and my thoughts with others.
I remember in school we learned to read and write. I had to write 2000-word essays on a book the entire class was reading. That is not so anymore. We have a generation that cannot or will not read anymore. It’s a “Hey look it up on “Google” attitude and if it’s there it’s true attitude.
“Writing is thinking. To write well is to think clearly”
Spiritual blindness is being unable to see the truth of God through Jesus. We are all born into a state of blindness because of sin. Ever sense Ada, sinned in the Garden of Eden, every generation and every human being had been born spiritually blind and spiritually dead to their sin.
Our human sin soaked natures permeates us to the heart, blinding our eyes and leaving us in the dark. We cannot do anything to change our condition within ourselves
Just being dead in sin before we come to know Jesus we are spiritually blind. We are blind to the things of the Spirit. We are unable to perceive them. It is Jesus who is the light of the world and it is Him who opens our eyes to the truth of who He is.
Jesus is the Word of God and had been with the Father in the joy of the Holy Spirit from the beginning. There has always been a relational love between God and His Son, Jesus. It is in Jesus we can find true life, and His life is the light of all humanity. Even the thickest darkness cannot overcome His light.
Before Jesus came no one had ever seen God the Father. But Jesus being God’s one and only Son, who is God Himself has made known to us (John 1:18).
When we see Jesus, we see what God is truly like. Jesus is the exact representation of the Father’s likeness. Hebrews 1:14 says,
“The Son is the radiance of God’s glory, the very image of His substance, and upholding all things the word of His power, who, when. He had by Himself purified us of our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.”
When Jesus came into the world He had created. The world did not recognize Him. (John 1:10). His own people, the Jews did not see that He was the promised Messiah, and eventually the Gentiles would not recognize Him either. People loved darkness more than light (as it is today), even though Jesus, the light of the world, had come to them (John 3:19). Although the light of the world was among them, spiritually blind people could not see Jesus for who He was. Even Jesus’s own family at the time believed He was, “out of His mind” ( Mark 3:21).
Those who are spiritually blind cannot see the truth of God. Even those who are ‘religious’ can be spiritually blind. The spiritual leaders (the Pharisees ) of the day were spiritually blind when they should have understood like Jesus telling Nicodemus the Pharisee that he must be born again, yetNicodemus did not understand this teaching (John 3:1-21). Jesus also spoke with the Pharisees after He healed a man who had been born blind (John 9). It was the man who was born blind who spoke truthfully about Jesus, he knew that he was blind now he could see (John 9:25). In contrast the Pharisees thought they had their eyes opened, but they were spiritually blind to the truth of Jesus. Jesus said, “If you were blind, you would would be guilty of sin, but now you claim you can see, your guilt remains (John 9:41).
Those who were experts in religious law and who prided themselves on their knowledge, were self-righteous, hypocritical and did not see the prophecies about Jesus the Messiah being unveiled before their eyes. The religious leaders would eventually be the ones to lead the crucifixion of Jesus. They were spiritually blinded, and their sin left them in darkness, unable to see the true light of Jesus Christ.
The Darkness and the Light that Overcomes it
Satan is behind blinding the minds of those who are alienated from God. He was there in the Garden when he tempted Adam and Eve to not trust God who gave them life and walked with them in close relationships daily. Satan the enemy of God has blinded the minds of unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light that Jesus came for us to see (2 Corinthians 4:4).
However, Satan does not have the final word. God has the final word when Jesus says “It is finished” ( John 29:31) as He gave up His last breath, dying on the cross and atoning for the sins of His people once and for all, Because of the cross of Christ, there is hope. Because of Jesyx, there is light in this dark and present evil age.
Since the resurrection and rising of Jesus, the Holy Spirit has made it possible for us to be born again and to discern the truth. If we believe we can be transformed with renewed minds, and be willing to discern God’s pleasing and perfect will (Romans 12:2),/
However, those who are dead in sin and unbelief remain spiritually blind. 1 Corinthians 2:14 says, “The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolish, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.” The minds of unbelievers are in darkness and they cannot see the wisdom of God, and follow the pattern and powers of this world,
I saw a clip of a man standing by some homosexual people reading the Bible on a street corner a few weeks ago. The homosexuals were screaming in the many face of the man that he was speaking lies. He man was reading about Sodom and Gamorrah and abomination. This is a prime example of spiritual blindness.
How the Spiritually Blind can see
Jesus came and opened physical and spiritually blind eyes. John 9:39 He said, “For judgment, I have come into this world, that they which see not might see, and that they, which see might be made blind.” He was prophesied to be light and one who would open blind eyes. As it is written in Isaiah 42:6-7.
“I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness and will hold your hand, and will keep you, and make you a covenant for the people, as a light for the nations, to open the blind eyes, to bring the prisoners out of the dungeon, and those who sit in darkness out of the prison”
We can read about the truth of who Jesus is and what He did in the Bible. When we hear the truth of Jesus through scripture, we can respond in faith as faith comes by hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ Jesus (Romans 10:17). As we turn toward Jesus, the Holy Spirit works on our hearts and changes us to be more like Jesus. We are saved by faith alone. It is God’s grace to us that saves and opens our eyes (Ephesians 2:8-9).
We all face the struggle of dealing with our flesh. Paul told us in Romans 8:6-7:
For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind of the Spirit is life and peace because the mind of the flesh is hostile towards God, for it is not subject to
Our flesh does not magically vanish when we become believers. Jesus said, ‘The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” The flesh is old, carnal nature. It must be dealt with. Think of it as a weak-willed person in us. Our fallen nature has a side to it that has no character, no resolve, no backbone, and no self-control.
The Bible says in Romans 6:19 that the flesh is a slave to impurity and wantonness, that serves the law of sin and has passions and desires that bring corruption and had its own wisdom which wages war against the soul (Romans 7:25, Galatians 5:24, 6:8, 2 Corinthians 1:12, 1 Peter 2:11, Romans 7:18). It is the flesh that desires and generates immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, and envy, (Galatians 5:19-21). It is the weak willed man.
When I speak of the flesh, or the carnal nature, keep in mind that I am primarily referring to mind set, a way of thinking. It is the insanity which keeps up bound up in sin that we know (when we are in our right minds) is destroying us.
If a person is struggling with a powerful pull of sexual temptation, the conflict between flesh and spirit becomes a relevant issue in life. Paul said in Galatians 5:16,
“Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.“
The key to overcoming life-dominating habits is to walk in the Spirit. I have never seen anyone in sin who was walking in the Spirit. We can not follow God accurately if we don’t crucify our flesh.
You can spend years on a psychologist’s couch or regularly attend support group meetings but if you want to overcome habitual sin, you must learn to walk in the Spirit.
The process is a lifelong battle. Pail said in Galatians 5:17,
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“For the flesh lists against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh, and these are contrary to one another, that you may do the things that you desire.”
There is a battle raging inside every believer who wants to please God yet finds that part of them simply wants to indulge in pleasure and sin.
Every day we make choices about which part of us will be in control. We can choose to give in to the flesh, vent our anger towards others, be sarcastic, indulge in sexual thinking, and be wrapped up in ourselves. We can sit in front of a television, listen to carnal music, or we can choose to shield ourselves from the sensualities of the media, control out minds, bridle our tongues, and show kindness to others. Minute by minute throughout our lives, we will face choices about our behavior.
A person does not mature into godliness simply because their salvation experience happened a long time ago. They grow into the likeness of Christ only by daily cooperating with God’s work in their inner being.
This is where a typical believer gets bogged down and discouraged. When it seems that change will never come and they are bound to live in defeat. We must realize that it is not God’s desire for us. While it’s true that one aspect of the Spirit vs flesh occurs in our daily lives, it is equally true that we strive after righteousness, and fight against the desires of flesh, and continue to pursue a course of holiness, which gradually gain ground in us. This process takes time and requires us to diligently cooperate with the Holy Spirit’s work.
If we are sincere in this we will begin to notice that temptation no longer grips us with overpowering power. Our intimacy with God increases, and this helps us to overcome temptation.
This spiritual growth and development is not automatic. A person does not mature into godliness overnight. They grow into holiness by daily cooperating with God’s work.
Hope is considered a positive emotion. It’s a feeling of optimism and anticipation about a positive future, and it can be triggered by some degree of difficulty, uncertainty, or negativity. People who have a lot of hope may experience benefits like better mental and physical health, a strong sense of purpose, fewer chronic illnesses, and lower levels of depression to name a few,
Hope by definition, is an optimistic state of mind that is based on the possibility or expectation, of positive outcomes with respect to specific goals.
“You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You because he trusts in You. Trust in the Lord forever for in Yah, the Lord is everlasting strength” – Isaiah 26:3-4
God made an amazing promise through Isaiah. “You will keep him in perfect peace” God promises that we can have perfect peace, and be kept in a place of perfect peace.
In the original Hebrew text the term “perfect peace” is actually Shalom Shalom. This shows how the Hebrew language repetition communicates intensity. It isn’t just Shalom, it’s Shalom Shalom, “perfect peace“. It is as if God wasn’t satisfied to give us one door of peace to walk through. He opened up the double doors of peace and said, “Shalom Shalom.” If one assurance of peace is not enough for us. He will follow it what a second and then put on top of those two the promise to keep us there
Some can have this peace, but it is fleeting and they are never kept there. Others can be kept in peace of the wicked, the peace of spiritual sleep and ultimate destruction. But there is a perfect peace that the Lotd will keep us in.
Who are the people who enjoy this peace? Isaiah tells us, “Whose mind is stayed on You.” This is the place of perfect peace and even the source of it. When we keep our minds focused on God, settled on, and established on the Lord Himself, then we can be kept in this perfect peace.
To be kept in this perfect peace, our minds must stay on Him. What sustains your mind? What is your mind established upon? Who does your mind lean on? To have perfect peace, your mind cannot occasionally come to the Lord, it has to stay on Him.
If our minds are focused on ourselves, or our problems, and the problems of other people in our lives, or anything else, we can not have perfect peace.
Paul said in Philippians 3:10,
“That I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, becoming conformed to His death.”
Satan loves our minds on anything except God and His love for us.
When we trust in the Lord, we keep our minds on Him. The battle for His trust begins in our minds. If we trust in the Lord, it shows in our actions, but it begins in our minds.
If the Lord calls us to rely on Him completely with our minds. He appeals to our minds with a rational reason why we should trust Him, because of His everlasting strength.
We live in a stress-filled world. Thankfully one of God’s promises is that He will provide us with His peace in the midst of trouble.
“Peace I leave with you; My peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled do not be afraid” -John 14:27
With a promise like that, believers should be happy and secure in a troubled world. While we face the same kind of problems everyone else does, the peace that God gives enables believers to cope and rise above them. Through faith and getting to know God through His Word we are able to overcome hardships and rejoice -even in the midst of adversity.
Most people think of peace as the absence of conflict or strife, but God’s concept of peace is much more than that. In Hebrew the word “Shalom” us used with means peace and health and stems from complete or perfect. My Pastor describes Shalom as the peace that comes when God had completely destroyed the enemy.
Is t really possible too have this kind of peace in troubled times? Absolutely. But many miss out on it because they look for peace in all the wrong places.
Fear is a secret enemy that invades everyone of every age, skin color, and walk of life, it is subtle and can devastating, it poisons our thinking, and robs our inner peace, and squelches our zest for living. It makes us nervous, uneasy, alarmed, disturbed, upset and faint-hearted,
We fear conflict and change, failure and frustration. Some people fear sickness and suffering. Others fear harm will come to their loved ones. Some fear other people and their opinions. Many are afraid to die and face the unknown. Some as not only afraid to live, but also afraid to die.
Fear enters our minds slowly and silently, we hardly tea, size we are becoming victims of its damaging influence. Even a little fear, like a drop of dye in a glass of water, discolors everything. When a thin stream of fear is not stopped our thoughts can be diverted.
Life is complex, we live in a violent world, but outward troubles don’t need to mar our inner peace. It is the fear from within we must face. Fear enters when our most important needs are not met. We saw this during the coronavirus scare. – If you don’t take this vaccine you will die, if you don’t stay six feet apart you’ll be infected. Our souls are made in the image of God, and we should cry out for Him during situations like this. When we don’t call on God, we can expect to be filled with fears and phobias.
Satan takes full advantage of our fears. At every opportunity, he intensifies them and makes them seem even more real and logical. Our way becomes darker and darker, and our burden becomes heavier and heavier until we lose hope of any deliverance.
Satan works best in darkness. He can not work in the light because “God is light, and in Him of no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). Satan knows our weaknesses, and in these areas, he presents thoughts and fears. He seeks to destroy truth and confuse us with falsehood. If we keep these things converted in the darkness of our hearts and minds, Satan will continue to do his evil work of discouragment and fear. But He can be defeated and his powers can be driven back when they are exposed to the light.
In all my experiences I have learned that sin causes an overwhelming fear that springs from one’s life in not pleasing to God. It was a tragic day when Adam and Eve embraced the suggestion from satan to disobey God’s command not to eat of the tree in the garden. Through disobedience, they sinned and then hid from God, when He called. In Genesis 3:10 Adam said,
“I heard your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked, and I hid myself.”
Through generations since Adam, all mankind has come under this shadow of sin. The fear of judgments of God. If we move to a place of repentance it can become a positive force in one’s life. Psalm 111:10 says,
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.”
This is reverential respect and the awe we feel when we see God’s greatness, His righteousness, His judgments, His love, His mercy, His wisdom, and His eternal being. He is all-knowing, all-powerful, and all-present. Our existence is entirely in His hands and we are before Him in His creation. We should be afraid to displease God. God’s righteousness condemns to hell those who live in sin.
“For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remains no more a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fierceness of fire which will devour the adversaries“ – Hebrews 10:26-27
This knowledge brings a fear of sin. As we come to know God as a friend through our repentance, forgiveness, and obedience, our service to Him motivates a godly fear, and by love and thanksgiving for His unspeakable gift of salvation.
“There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out all fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears had not been made perfect in love” -1 John 4:18
Our fear of Him is not one that strikes terror in our hearts, but one that deepens our love for Him. When fully applied in our lives, this is one fear that can overcome all others. Why do so many people allow clouds of fear to grip their hearts, trouble their minds, and darker life’s pathway when God’s way is a way of peace and trust?
There’s a story told about a small child who was afraid to walk alone in the dark, but when their father walked beside them and held their hand all fear vanished. The darkness no held no fear, because they loved and trusted their father, and they knew he would take care of them. The key here is for us to be free from fear, we must learn to know our heavenly Father well.
When become so acquainted with God, we can trust our lives completely to Him, placing our hands safely into His. We can humbly ask Him questions that plague our minds, and those sorrows of life that would plague us to despair.
In Matthew 14:24-31 we get an example of this from Peter. When Jesus bade him to walk on the water of the Sea of Galilee. Peter was not afraid until he took his eyes off Jesus and began to look at the waves. Then he began to sink.
When we seek freedom from fear and place our confidence in God, His Holy Spirit will speak to us in a still small voice. And as we look to Him rather than our fears, the storms calm around us. He can then answer our questions and replace our doubt with assurance, and take our hand, and comfort us. By His grace, we can overcome the crippling effects of fear.
The mysterious unknown of the future makes many people feel uneasy. Each morning they wake up to an unpredictable day. They face those “what ifs” as their minds wander down the road of imaginary dread.
“In nothing be anxious, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God” -Philippians 4:6
Every morning we have an opportunity to pray and ask God for a blessed day, and for Him to watch over us. By putting the future into God’s hands and trusting Him we can surrender to Him the burden of the unknown. Try it and see!
Many fear the future because they lack direction in their lives. Not knowing where they are going, they have a sense of apprehension. God knows what lies ahead, their lives will not be an aimless journey, but a way home.
God promised to be faithful to those who trust Him even though we face an unknown future. No matter how severe the storms of life are in the dark of night or how high the mountain, He will take you through it.
We all have a desire to achieve things, but we fear that we will fail ourselves, our families, or life itself. We fear we will make a wrong choice or carry out a wrong plan. But God said in Joshua 1:9,
“Haven’t I commanded you! Be strong and courageous. Don’t be afraid. Don’t be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
When we place our lives under the direction of our Master, past failures are not final, they can become stepping stones to success.
We all cringe at the thought of bodily pain, the but of criticism, the pangs of loneliness and grief. God will not shield us from all suffering, but He has promised grace to help us bear it. He had promised peace and assurance in the midst of our troubles.
“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we won’t be afraid, though the earth changes, though the mountains are shaken into the heart of the seas” – Psalm 46:1-2
If we love the Lord, He will use suffering for our good. Suffering provides an opportunity to know the presence and upholding power of God. It also brings depth of character and an understanding heart. Suffering can either make us or break us. When we are suffering we can get closer to God by praying or reading His Word.
Fear of death is very common in our lives. Saying goodbye is a painful assignment. But when we come to grips with the old age question,
“If a man does, shall he live again?“ – Job 14:14
Jesus came to deliver us from the fear of death. That is why He died and rose again, and that is why He promised,
“Yet a little while, and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me. Because I live, you will live also” John 14:19
With Him, death is not a don’t into nothing less, but a shining gateway into a new life.
“Don’t let your heart be troubled. Believe in God. Believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many homes. If it weren’t so, I would have told you. I am going to prepare a place for you” – John 14:1-2
Have you repented of you’re sins? Repentance brings remorse of a life of sin and a turning away from that old life.
Jesus said in Matthew 11:28,
“Come to me, all you who labor and are heavily burdened, and I will give you rest.”
When you come truthfully, prayerfully, hopefully, you will have peace of mind.
Come and you will know the gentle joys of restful living. God invites us to trust Jesus and be free.
“Enter in by the narrow gate, for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many are those who enter in by it. How narrow is the gate and restricted is the way that leads to life. Few are those who find it” – Matthew 7:13-14
If Jesus wants to save all, why didn’t He make it easier to be saved, why doesn’t He simply let everyone into heaven?
When I read this as a new believer My first thought “Well, this is a kind of prejudice.” It sounded as though God had rated us on a scale of acceptability and only allowed a select few to enter heaven. But Jesus also said,
“Ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened” – Matthew 7:7-8
Jesus made it clear, the path to eternal life is open to everyone who asks.
However, the gate to heaven is narrow in the sense of a requirement for entrance -faith in Jesus. Salvation is found through Jesus. The wise gate. Is nonexclusive, and takes human effort.
Jesus says that the narrow gate leads to a hard road, one that will take us through hard times and difficult decisions. Following Jesus requires crucifying our flesh (Galatians z5:24-26, living by faith, enduring Christlike patience, and living a lifestyle separate from the world.
When faced with a choice between a narrow, bumpy road and a wide, paved highway, most people choose the easier path. Human nature gravitates toward comfort and pleasure. When faced with the reality of denying themselves to follow Jesus, most people turn away. Jesus never sugar-coated the truth, and the truth is that not many people are willing to pay the price to follow Him.
God offers salvation to everyone who accepts it. But it is on His terms. We must come the way that He provided. We cannot create our own paths or try to come using our own efforts. Isaiah 64:6 says that compared to His righteousness we are filthy. God cannot excuse or overlook our sins. He is merciful, but He is also just. Justice requires that sin be paid for. It was at a great cost to Himself, Jesus paid that price. Without the blood of Jesus covering our sins, we stand guilty before God that we rejected (Romans 1:20).
The way to God was closed off before Jesus came, and sin was the road block (Romans 5:12’. No one deserves a second chance. We all deserve to stay on the wide road the leads to destruction. But God loved us enough to provide a path (through Jesus) to eternal life anyway (Romans 5:6-8). However, He also knows that in our self-centered, sin-saturated works there are not many who will desire Him enough to come to Him on His terms (John 6:44).
Satan paved the highway to hell with fleshly temptations, worldly attractions, and moral compromises. Most people allow their passions and fears to dictate the course of their lives. They choose temporary, earthly pleasures over the self-sacrifice required to follow Jesus (Mark 8:34, Luke 9:23, Matthew 10:37).
The narrow gate is ignored. Most people create their own religions and design their own gods. You can see this throughout the Bible as well as today. So it was with sorrow, not discrimination, that Jesus declared that the road to eternal life is “narrow, and only a few will find it.”
Once we have been adopted into God’s family by His redemptive grace. We have a new way of life, and although will fail and sin, the Holy Spirit if we are listening will say “No, no, that’s not how we act in God’s family.” We make those changes in our lives through God’s grace because we are His sons and daughters, not because we can become a son or daughter but because we already belong to Him.
The process of learning how to act in God’s family is known as sanctification. Sanctification is the process of God’s grace by which the believer is separated from sin and becomes dedicated to God’s righteousness.
It’s growing in holiness because God has declared us holy in Jesus; it is a holy cleansing; it is daily overcoming the power and presence of sin in our daily lives through the power of the Holy Spirit and the work of God’s Word.
My pastor always says “I’m glad you’re not robbing banks and killing people, but there are some sin you need to work on getting rid of.”
It doesn’t happen overnight and the reason it doesn’t is that we haven’t always been part of God’s family. In today’s world we are alienated from God’s family. So, we have been children of disobedience.
“In which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the air, the spirit who now works in the children of disobedience” – Ephesians 2:2
But God saves us and we become part of God’s family and learn how to live as God’s children in God’s family we will become tough, but it will take time. Overcoming our sinful behaviors and living obediently as His children is what the Bible calls sanctification.
Sanctification is sanctifying ourselves from ungodliness and associating ourselves with God and His Word, like the blessed person in Psalm 1:1
“Blessed is the man who doesn’t walk in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stand on the path of sinners, not sit in the seat of the scornful, but his delight is in the Lord’s law. And on His law, he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season. Whose leaf also shall not wither, and whatever he does shall prosper.”
In John 17:17 Jesus prayed,
“Sanctify them by Your truth. Your Word is truth.”
Specification is living as those who have been brought from death to life.
“Don’t let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. Also, do not present your members to sin as instruments of unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness God” Romans 6:12-13
Sanctification is possible only through God through His grace,
“Now may the God is peace Himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Yeshua Messiah” – 1 Thessalonians 5:2
We need to live a life that is pleasing to the Lord.
If you were going to open up a shop, what would you sell?
I live in a small town with only one department store. So, naturally, everything is either cheaply made or expensive mid-grade merchandise. So if I were to open a shop. I would open up a small discount warehouse for good quality discounted items tailored to the needs of the town I live it.
They have these shops in the city but when you live 100 miles from any city it is hard to make a trip on a regular basis. A discount outlet is about clearing our items and offering real savings.
If you’re trying to figure out what going on in America the Bible tells us. (I am paraphrasing this). In the Old Testament of Deuteronomy 28 and Leviticus 20, some verses indicate that God instructs Moses to give rules of heaven on how His people should walk and live on earth.
God told Moses, “If you are willing to do what I say, your life is going to be much better. Your spiritual walk will be deep. Your physical body will stay healthy. But, if you refuse to follow me. I’m going to lift the hedge of blessing in favor and protection and you’re going to experience negative circumstances,
The Blessing And Curse Of The Law
I believe this is for America as well,
When Israel followed the Lord obediently, they experienced the blessings and fruitfulness that God had for them (as shown throughout the Old Testament). However, when they walked away from the Lord, being disobedient to the commands He asked of them, they lost their favor with God.
When people choose disobedience, it would follow acts of terror, drought, and a reduction in cattle and the roadways would become desolate. Division is also promised to come to a nation that had failed away from the Lotd’s good and perfect path. These are all issues that America has faced at one point in time over the last 15 years,
If America, which was founded on the principles of Christ, turns its back on God, then what kind of curse would we likely experience?
In Deuteronomy 28:28 it says,
“If you abhor My commandments, if you mock My covenant, if you disobey Me and you go into rebellion, here’s what’s going to happenThe Lord will smite you with madness, blindness, and astonishment.”
This warning is not for individuals but for entire nations of madness, astonishment and blindness is one we must heed today. These are types of trials that lead us out of peace and wisdom and toward deception and the feelings of anger and bitterness. It is this type of madness that leads us to become reactive and furious.
The word madness in Hebrew means “craziness, irrational behavior, being furious in anger.”
This is noticeable in the attack of Bible-believing people with allowing men to compete in women’s sports and irrational, divisive arguments. it living in this emotionally driven nature that the Pharisees were accustomed to, and it is this kind of madness we must be careful of.
The Pharisees would go as far as to make up an outright lie about Jesyd just so they could defend their belief system.
America now faces issues and calamity on many sides. And we are seeing the same issues that Israel dealt with to come to fruition in America today.
The things that God warned Israel of that would happen to them if they broke the covenant are happening in America.
It is time that America intercede for our land and pray Chronicles 7:14
“If My people, who are called by My name, will humble themselves and pray, and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”
This is summarized by a podcast given by Perry Stone
From Pity to Praise 