Will you choose the red pill of truth, or the blue pill of the world’s lies? Which is it going to be? With a completely sovereign God at the helm of life, some are asking the fundamental question, “Does man really have free will, or simply the illusion of free will?” Really??? Spankings notwithstanding, every two-year-old knows the answer to that question. Because he knows that if he wishes, he may say “No” to his mom a thousand times a day. Yes, freewill is real as real can be. So too, God is real, and the devil is real. Good is real, and evil is real. Blessing is real, and cursing is real. And, heaven is real, and hell is real too.
The right to choose is sown into the very fabric of our souls. With our human will, we may select our way. That is our choice, but God alone decides our destiny. Controlling our destination is solely his prerogative as sovereign God (Rom 9:10-23). This is the line between human freewill and God’s sovereignty. So, our free will only gives us the opportunity to say ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ to God. It does not extend to the realm of destiny. So, from Genesis to Revelation, God admonishes us to respond to Him with an answer that will secure from Him our own wellbeing, and a joyful destiny. And, nobody is going to twist your arm. For God says,
15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve… 15 See, I have set before thee this day life and good… death and evil, [blessing and cursing]; 19 I call heaven and earth to record this day against you… therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live.
Joshua 24:15, Deut 30:15,[19]
20 I am crucified with Christ; nevertheless, I live, YET NOT I, BUT CHRIST liveth in me. 14 By whom the world is crucified unto me, and Iunto the world. Galatians 2:20; 6:14
Since the world and us are now mutually crucified unto each other, we owe the world nothing, and the world holds nothing for us. Now, Christ has set us free to exclusively love, worship, praise, honor, and adore our God (Luke 10:38-42). The more fully we do that, the more fully He can FILL us with His glory; and afterwards do whatever HE wants to do in the world, through us. For, only when we KNOW God fully, can we SHOW God fully.
4 John to the seven churches which are in Asia: GRACE be unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come… 3 And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and his servants shall serve him. 20 He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus. 21 The GRACE of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen. Revelation 1:4; 22:3, 20-21
We are about to embark on the journey of a lifetime, the climax of the ages, the consummation of history — the Revelation of Jesus Christ. Knowing there are a lot of things in that prophecy which rightly concern the heart of believers, I will endeavor to set your mind completely at rest. God is leading us into these prophecies. And, a very faithful saying is this: “The will of God will never lead you, where the GRACE of God will not keep you.” The prophet Zechariah said,
And he will bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, “GRACE, GRACE unto it.” 4:7
The coming of our Lord will proceed from beginning to end with GRACE. Why is that important to know? When I was a young Christian, I had only one fear — that I might fail God. Since then, I have learned that IN GOD, there is no failure. As long as God remains in us, we cannot fail, because the very operation of grace necessitates that we will most assuredly accomplish his will and purpose for our lives. There are a lot of good definitions for grace, like the acronym which says GRACE is: God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense. But, the explanation I like best is contained in Philippians 2:13.
For it is God which WORKETH IN YOU both to will and to do of his good pleasure.
Grace is God’s IN-SOUL guarantee that WE WILL do his will and good pleasure. This means, grace is God’s guarantee to Himself that his elect will serve him faithfully and without fail. So saints, we can’t lose with the grace we use. And, grace is not burdensome. It flows through and sets the course of our free will. Grace creates its own liberty of heart, and fixes our minds on doing what pleases God. It feels divinely natural, and is woven smoothly and seamlessly into our life experience. It cannot be separated from our souls, and causes us naturally to have a craving for what God wants us to do in the first place.
GRACE connects us to the Godhead. It becomes part and parcel of our very identity, because we have become part of Christ’s identity, being members of his body. GRACE makes it certain and sure that we will do God’s will. Because grace is an attribute of God, and we have become a part of Him, it makes His will flow divinely, spontaneously, and easily through us. Therefore, we see grace at the very beginning of Revelation: chapter 1, verse 4. And, we see grace at the very end, in the closing verse of the whole book: chapter 22, verse 21. Fear not therefore, God’s “Grace is sufficient” (2Cor 12:9). Amen.
“The beast… which hath the seven heads and ten horns… shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them; for He is King of Kings, and Lord of Lords. And they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful… He that overcometh shall inherit all things, and I shall be his God, and he shall be my son… Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a CROWN OF LIFE… And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony, and they loved not their lives unto the death.” Revelation 17:7b,14; 2:10; 21:7; 12:11
Saints, beloved, fellow servants and warriors of God, what is at stake in this war — this battle of the ages??? That is the question!! Are we fighting for a piece of dirt? No. Is any place on the map down here really our home? No! The Word assures us in Psalm 90:1, “[The Lord] has been our dwellingplace in all generations.” Is any realm on earth our heritage? No. The Word declares, “For our citizenship is in heaven” (Phil 3:20). Is our “motherland” some temporal continent or country on which we originated? No. The scripture says that “Jerusalem above is the mother of us all” (Gal 4:26). Is some political ideology of man worth fighting and dying for? No. In the final analysis, the only thing worth fighting and dying for is our love of God, and our own soul’s salvation. For, if THAT is lost, then ALL is truly lost. As Jesus said,
For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or, what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? Matthew 16:26
The Sovereign Soil to be defended is indeed our own Soul’s State-of-the-Spirit. This is the only hill we need be concerned about in this war. If any free country, even America, falls (and it will; correction, it already has), then no matter. So be it. As long as we are not moved off our faith and confession in Christ Jesus, the victory is ours forever. This is what the holy martyrs have understood for many generations since the cross, and this is the only ground that matters. For the victory of the saints worldwide is won: “Not with guns, and bombs, and tanks; but with Spirit-praises, prayers, and thanks.” The “holy hill of Zion” (Psalm 2:6) was won 2,000 years ago on the cross by Christ Jesus. It is already His and ours eternally. Our only concern now is to NOT GIVE UP OUR OWN PERSONAL PLACE in it through fearfulness, intimidation, or defection. As long as faith lives in you, then your own heart IS “a hill of Zion.” Now then, whatever you do, just don’t give it back.
To be an overcomer is to withstand every worldly challenge to your faith and obedience to God. In this war, material weapons are useless. The enemy is not physical. That’s why the Word declares, “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood… the weapons of our warfare are not carnal [e.g., material], but mighty through God…” (Eph 6:12; 2Cor 10:4). For as long as your heart stands firm, then your personal piece of the Rock stands firm, and your place in eternity is secure. Beloved, amid all the chaos and confusion going on today in the world around us, don’t take your eyes off the prize. Or like JESUS, our True Commander-in-Chief said, “Let ‘no man take thy crown'” (Rev 3:11). Maranatha. Glory. Amen.
For I AM the Lord, I change not, therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed… I will have mercy on whom I WILL have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I WILL have compassion… But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world. For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep… Behold therefore, the goodness and severity of God. Mal 6:3; Rom 9:15; 1Cor 11:32,30; Rom 11:22
Our God is holy — unchangingly holy. Therefore, all violations, breaches, and defilements of his holiness must be dealt with and eliminated. His holiness includes, and is the sum total of, all his other divine attributes — his Eternity, his Omnipotence, his Wisdom, his Righteousness, his Justice, etcetera. That would also include his Love. Even his love cannot break rank, nor be allowed to besmirch his Perfection. Sin violates his perfection, and therefore must be dealt with and terminated. So, either we will end our sin, or our sin will end us — temporally or eternally. Therefore, God says,
Cast away from you all your transgressions, whereby ye have transgressed… As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel? Ezekiel 18:31; 33:11
Herein lies the mystery surrounding the prophetic scriptures. The whole 66-book volume of the Father’s love and promises ends with The Book of Revelation, a wholesale chronicle of God conducting a holy ceremony of first judging, then destroying, and lastly remaking heaven and earth. This is a “HOLY” ceremony, I say; orchestrated by God and his holy angels — NOT THE DEVIL!!! The Father, who loves us eternally, sometimes has to end us suddenly. When in unrepentant and stubborn hearts, we are approaching that zone known as “depravity” and “reprobation,” his love demands both that he “put us out of our misery” and keep us from eternal damnation, “a fate worse than death.” Being then judged by God to be “a danger to ourselves and others,” He retires us from this life, bringing us immediately home to heaven. (And, under any circumstances, that’s always an unqualified blessing.)
This free will God gave us will even allow us to wander that far from spiritual and mental health and well-being. Thus, God sovereignly assures our salvation. Therefore, even in divine judgment, our God shows his children mercy. One of our opening verses, 1Cor 11:30 says, “For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep…” Here, “SLEEP” is just a euphemism for “premature death.”
So, “We know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to his purpose” (Rom 8:28). “ALL THINGS” (no matter how it may seem at the time) — “whether death or life,” or “height or depth,” or “things present or things to come,” or, “tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword” (Rom 8:38,39,35) — all things are affirmations of God’s love for us. All that our God sends to us is “blessings.” He sends both blessings that are blessings IN OUR EYES, and he sometimes sends to us blessings IN DISGUISE. But to his elect children, all God sends is “blessings.” Glory. Selah. Meditate on that. Hallelujah. Amen.
Christian Covenant Community Clarion 