Noah and the Flood (Part 3) – The Family's Promise

It's been nearly three years since I first began reading the Genesis account of the flood. I can't tell you the number of times I've read Genesis 6-9. Each time the Lord has pulled back a little more of the curtain to help me see and understand the account in a way I never imagined. 

He is developing an image in me of the story that I'm still praying out. I hesitate to use the word "story" because this is not fiction. It is a spiritually-inspired retelling of the Scriptural account. 

What you are about to read is what the Lord is birthing in me. I have no idea how long the process will take. I'm not in charge. I'm simply the vessel that is blessed to be used and I am looking forward to the journey. 

http://barryojohnson.blogspot.com/2015/08/noah-and-flood-part-1.html

http://barryojohnson.blogspot.com/2015/08/noah-and-flood-part-2.html

Noah sits and now his family sits. He looks at his sons. “How long has it been now Shem? A hundred years?” He looks at them and says, “Time passes and you forget a lot of things, and sometimes that’s a good thing.” They are nodding their heads in agreement. “But what the Lord did 100 years ago, I will never forget. How about you boys?” You could hear them say “No sir,” almost in unison.

Noah looks at his family. His face is stern. He slowly rises from his seat. He takes his staff in his right hand and slowly points to his family. It’s almost as if he’s following an invisible line from on one side of the meadow to the other. 

“And I don’t want you to forget either.” His voice is firm and commanding and increases with each admonition. “I tell this story year after year because when I’m gone, I want you to tell this story to your children and to your grandchildren and to their grandchildren!” 

He’s now pounding his staff, up and down, on the stone slab and it startles some of the little ones. They're crying as they rush into their mother's arms. The older children, who have heard the story many times before were talking and laughing. They are quiet now and looking at grandpa. He has their full attention.

“And when you’re gone I want your children to tell this story to their children and to their grandchildren,” he says, as he continues to pound his staff on the stone slab. He looks at the staff as he’s about to pound it again and stops. The tears are starting to flow freely again. He closes his eyes and breathes slowly to let the emotions pass. 

“This story,” he says slowly, deliberately and slightly above a whisper, “will not die with me. Do you hear me? It – will – not – die – with – me!" He looks at Shem, then Ham and then Japheth and says, "Promise me this! Promise me!” 

His family is silent. The seriousness of the occasion is sinking in – again. In the silence, Shem stands. All eyes are now focused on him. He looks at Ham and Japheth and nods and they slowly stand. “You have our word father,” he says. The eldest son has spoken for the family.

Noah takes a moment to look at his family and then he sits. He closes his eyes just for a moment and then looks up toward heaven and sighs. "The story must be told again Lord," he says in a soft whisper as he wipes away the last of the tears. He will tell it again because, for Noah, it’s a story of necessity.

To be continued

Noah and the Flood (Part 2)

It's been nearly three years since I first began reading the Genesis account of the flood. I can't tell you the number of times I've read Genesis 6-9. Each time the Lord has pulled back a little more of the curtain to help me see and understand the account in a way I never imagined. 

He is developing an image in me of the story that I'm still praying out. I hesitate to use the word "story" because this is not fiction. It is a spiritually-inspired retelling of the Scriptural account. 

What you are about to read is what the Lord is birthing in me. I have no idea how long the process will take. I'm not in charge. I'm simply the vessel that is blessed to be used and I am looking forward to the journey. 

Shem, Ham and Japheth worked on the boulder off and on for nearly a year. They were determined to have it ready by the time their father told the story again. 

Noah slowly sits down on the stone, which is layered with fresh hay and blankets. His sons want him to be as comfortable as possible because they know he will not rush the telling of the story -- a story they know first hand and oh so well.

Noah pauses before he sits. He smiles as he looks at his family, who will remain standing until he takes his place on the stone seat. The Lord has blessed him. He had told Noah, his sons and all the animals to be fruitful and multiply – to have lots and lots of children. 

”Make me happy Noah,” the Lord said, "by filling the earth with people again. And be sure to tell them why I commanded you to do this.” "Yes sir," Noah says to himself, again.

Noah knew the Lord was entrusting him with something very sacred. He would be the keeper of the record of mankind's destruction and, most importantly, of mankind's rebirth and redemption. 

"Noah, I will never again destroy the whole earth with flood waters," the Lord said. "Listen to me Noah. The time of this judgment has passed. I am going to make a covenant with man and the animals. From this day forward I promise you that mankind will never be destroyed from the face of earth with flood waters again. You have My word.

"And Noah, when you see clouds forming in the sky, just remember My covenant with man and the animals. I am going to do a new thing. Water will fall from those clouds to nourish your crops and cause plants and trees to grow and it will provide drinking water for you and the animals."   

Noah smiles and shakes his head. It seems that every year, just when he's about to tell the story, the Lord reminds him of this promise. He knows that without the promise there would be no story to tell.

The family is patiently waiting on its patriarch. Everyone knows he is about to pray so they're standing. They are still. They are quiet with eyes closed and heads bowed. Everyone in the meadow is holding someones' hand. The little ones look up at their mothers and fathers and then close their eyes and bow their heads too.


Noah thinks to himself and chuckles and again he looks at his family. “Well, Lord, take a look at what your blessings have produced.” At that moment a gentle breeze sweeps through the meadow as if the Lord is replying, “Noah, you did well, my friend. You did well.”

Noah, balancing himself with both hands on his staff, pauses and looks up toward heaven and he thinks about the promise the Lord made when the dirt was again loose and dusty on his feet. 

“Lord, this family, the one you’ve blessed, has gathered together again," Noah says. "You've kept your promises to me. I knew you would. Our families have grown and each year we spend this time together to honor you. Lord, I have no words to express how deeply thankful and humbled I am because of what you have done for my family.

“But so many died in the waters Lord, and they didn’t have too. My heart still aches. But you know that already, don't you? We all lost family in those waters.” He pauses and breathes deeply. “But, I imagine your heart aches more,” he says slowly and barely above a whisper.

Noah feels tears running down his cheeks. He takes a moment, bows his head to wipe them away. “I’ve told this story each year for more than one hundred years,” he thinks to himself. “Why am I so tore up about telling it again? Why am I still crying after all this time? It’s been one hundred years for God’s sake.” 

He again pauses and breathes deeply. He slowly raises his head and glances at his sons. They are brushing away tears too. Their wives are crying softly and rocking back and forth. Shem and Japheth’s wives are holding newborns. Noah’s beloved is looking down at her hands. He knows his wife is wiping away tears too.

Noah continues to pray. 

"Lord, we owe you everything and that's why we spend this time together. We want the young ones to know that they are a part of this story and they are part of the blessings that you spoke to us all those years ago. 

"This story, Lord, will be told from generation to generation as a memorial to your great love and mercy for man. Lord, again, we owe you everything. You are our God. You are our God. Amen."

Everyone says, "Amen."

(To be continued)

Noah and the Flood (Part 1)

It's been nearly three years since I first began reading the Genesis account of the flood. I can't tell you the number of times I've read Genesis 6-9. Each time the Lord has pulled back a little more of the curtain to help me see and understand the account in a way I never imagined. 

He is developing an image in me of the story that I'm still praying out. I hesitate to use the word "story" because this is not fiction. It is a spiritually-inspired retelling of the Scriptural account. 

What you are about to read is what the Lord is birthing in me. I have no idea how long the process will take. I'm not in charge. I'm simply the vessel that is blessed to be used and I am looking forward to the journey. 

It was a nice breezy morning. Noah was sitting under the tent’s awning and watching his grandchildren. He had great grandchildren. He had great, great grandchildren. He had great, great, great grandchildren. (I could go on but this would really slow down the telling of this story.) The older ones were playing games; some of the younger ones were playing what looked like a game of tag while others watched their fathers feed the animals.

Noah smiles. He begins to daydream.

It has been more than 100 hundred years since he and his family and the animals had left the ark. He still remembers the grinding sound the doors made as the Lord opened them more than a year after He had closed them. Everyone, including the animals, stood in amazement watching the doors open by themselves. It took nearly a half an hour for the doors to open completely and seconds for the air from the outside rushed in. It smelled so sweet. It felt wonderful to the skin. But oh was it cold!

Noah remembers how orderly the animals had been during the days when they walked into the ark. But now, it was all he and his family could do to get out of the way of the stampede as the animals, in all their excitement, made a mad dash for the outdoors.

The animals missed the outdoors – just like Noah and his family.

The ark had been their home – their sanctuary, their covering – for more than a year. As they left the ark, Noah and his family saw a world they didn’t recognize. There was a newness. Or was it simply, he mused, a restoration? It looked nothing like the world they had seen every day while building the ark. All of the buildings were gone. The familiar landmarks were gone. The rivers somehow seemed to be out of place. They were flowing in a different direction.

That’s when it really hit him: the old world is gone.

This new world was empty. There was a sense of sadness as he looked at his wife, his sons and their wives. There is only eight of us now, he thought to himself. Eight of us. No other people. Just animals and fish – lots and lots of fish. A thought that causes Noah to smile.

But what he noticed most was the noise. The noise seemed to be amplified. Not only could he feel the breeze of the wind and smell its freshness – Noah could hear it. It seems like his ears were hearing anything that moved. The rustling of the leaves. The ground cracking under his feet as he walked. The water beating against the rocks as it hurried down from the mountains. The distinctive sounds of the insects. He could even hear the ark as it settled into the ground. And the chirping of the birds – man were they loud!

He remembers yelling “Thank you Lord!” and hearing his words echo far into the distance. “Thank you Lord, Lord, Lord, Lord.” The Lord was right; the human race was starting over.

One hundred years, he thinks to himself. “My God, has it really been that long?” Noah turns his head towards the mountains of Ararat. He sees the hull of the ark. It is still fully intact. The vegetation is beginning to cover most of it. Noah thinks to himself “Pretty soon we will not be able to see it and no one will know it’s there.” After all this time he still looks at the ark in amazement. “We built that. Me and my boys,” he thinks with a sense of satisfaction and also a sense of great sadness.

“The ark,” he sighs and says in a soft whisper. “It was built for so many, so many. Why didn’t they listen to me?” It’s a question that still haunts him. For 100 years he talked about the coming destruction. For 100 years he pleaded with his family to repent and join him. But they refused to believe that the world they knew would be ending.

Noah was a preacher of righteousness but the people only heard the rantings of a crazy man, a fool. Who, in their right mind, would believe God was going to destroy the world? They refused to believe that outside the ark there would only be death. Even his sons were not thoroughly convinced.

A hand touches his shoulder. Noah looks up and sees his wife and smiles. He always smiles when he sees his beloved. That’s what he calls her: my beloved. “It’s time,” she says. Noah turns to his right and sees his family walking toward the open meadow. Most were already gathered there and seated.

For the past 100 years, the family has gathered together to hear great, great, great grandpa Noah tell the story about the old world and why God judged it. The little ones, especially, get really quiet when he talks about what it was like to live with all the animals on the ark. (Noah will never admit it, but that’s his favorite part too.)

Noah gets up slowly from his seat, staff in hand. He doesn’t move as quickly as he used too. His steps are a little more deliberate. After all, he is 701 years old now and he’s not as spry as he was a hundred years ago. He chuckles to himself just thinking about it.

By the time he arrives, Noah’s sons – Shem, Ham and Japheth – have gotten everyone seated. It seems like every inch of the meadow – as far as the eyes could see – is covered with people, blankets and animals. As Noah walks toward his seat, Shem gently takes his right arm and Japheth his left. They steady their father as he makes his way up the slight incline toward his seat.

His sons had chiseled a huge boulder into a flat block of stone for their father about three feet high and four feet long. As Noah told the story the first time, they could see the difficulty he had standing, even when leaning upon his staff. Noah finished the story that day sitting on a mound that was slightly elevated but everyone couldn’t see him.

Shem, Ham and Japheth worked on the boulder off and on for nearly a year. They were determined to have it ready by the time their father told the story again. Noah slowly sat down on the stone, which was layered with fresh hay and blankets. His sons wanted him to be as comfortable as possible because they knew he would not rush the telling of the story – a story they knew first hand and oh so well.

(To be continued)

Adam opened the door to homosexuality

For many years I've said that a person is not born into this world as a homosexual. The Bible says God created the human race male and female and that’s what I believe.

“And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness … So God created man in his image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.” (Gen. 1:26a, 27)

The Bible says God formed, made and created individuals who were total opposites physically, biologically and, in many ways, mentally. (I use “biologically” because it communicates, at least to me, a salient point – birth that is natural. When we are born into this world, male or female, that is who we are born to be.)

Are we limited in how we think about homosexuality?

Even though I know, understand and believe what the Bible says about homosexuality, I’m finding it difficult to dismiss out of hand, or minimize the feelings of people who genuinely believe they were born homosexual.

That’s not to say that I am in any way sympathetic on the one hand or indifferent on the other. Let me be clear: I am not. I am simply saying that perhaps our frame of reference for understanding why a person believes he was born a homosexual is limited.

What we see, observe and hear in the natural is a result of what has taken place, is taking place or will take place in the realm of the spirit. According to the Bible, actions in the spirit result in actions in the natural.

One only needs to look at Genesis 1 to see that God, who is spirit, spoke the world and its original inhabitants, except man, into existence. Man was God’s masterpiece, or as Eph. 2:10 puts it – his workmanship. God formed him. God made him. God created him. In other words, God was intimately involved in bringing man into existence.

The more I read, study and meditate the Scriptures, the more I see God’s fingerprint in the specificity of the language. God is never ambiguous. What He says He means.

Our understanding of why a person believes he is born homosexual must be examined in light of what the Bible says, in particular, Genesis 3 and 6.

Eve, “an help meet for” Adam

There is a phrase that exemplifies the exactness and precision of God’s use of language. It is only used twice – in only one book and in only one chapter of that book.

“And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make an help meet for him.” (Gen. 2:18)

“…but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him.” (Gen. 2:20)

While the word “help” is used in several other passages in the Bible, it is only used with “meet for” in these two verses. Together, the words “help meet for” describe a person who is suitable, adapted and complementary for another person.

The word “meet” is used nowhere else in the Bible. When combined with the word “for” – a marker of comparison – it indicates, in this case, Eve’s likeness (not exactness) to Adam. Eve was not a replica of Adam; she was similar to him.

The Bible drives home the differences between them in verse 23 of the same chapter. God is making it crystal clear how we are to understand the phrase “an help meet for.”

“And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman (isha), because she was taken out of Man (ish).”

God used Adam’s DNA to make Eve, his help meet. He used ish to make isha. Eve was physically and biologically similar to her husband; she was a part of him. But she was also different from him. If this were not so, why the distinction ish and isha?

At this point, we see the godly design for the relationship between the husband and wife – they were to be “one flesh” (verse 24).

“Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.”

God formed man and He took part of man and made woman for him. (Some may take offense at my wording “made woman for him,” but that’s what the Bible says.) Adam and Eve were husband and wife. They were similar in design yet uniquely different in function.

Sidebar: If God is this meticulous in showing us the connectedness of the first husband and wife, doesn’t it stand to reason that, even today, every “Adam” has an “Eve” that God knows is best suited for him and every “Eve” has an “Adam” that God knows is best suited for her?

Why the uniqueness?

One reason the man is to be permanently glued to (cleave) his wife is for the purpose of having children. God makes this clear in Genesis 1:28.

“And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply…”

God wanted Adam and Eve to populate the Earth with children – beings who were similar to themselves yet distinctively different. In God’s plan, only a husband and wife are to produce offspring. In God’s plan, only a husband and wife have the unique differences that make producing offspring possible.

But Adam’s rebellion to God’s expressed commandment (Gen. 2:16-17) changed all of that. Adam’s blatant disregard in Genesis 3 for the “Word of God” had a devastating and chilling effect on creation.

All of this is background for viewing being born homosexual from a biblical foundation that begins in the book of Genesis.

Adam gives Satan access to creation

When Adam ignored God’s direct and clear prohibition to not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, he unleashed into creation a death producing spiritual typhoon so indescribable, so horrible and so destructive that it forever corrupted the genetic code of every living thing on planet Earth.

For the first time in history, creation was no longer subject to the spiritual life of a son of God. Its new spiritual “ruler” thrived on death and destruction. Satan now had something he didn’t have before the fall – influence and power in this world through the sin nature. Everything he is could now be released upon creation unhindered and without opposition.

Remember how Jesus describes Satan in John 8:44?

“Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own, for he is a liar, and the father of it.”

Satan lies. The Bible says the Body of Christ needs to know how he operates (2 Cor. 2:11). When you read Galatians 5:19-21, for example, you are reading verses that describe who Satan is. He is the “works of the flesh” and the reason why they are manifesting on Earth.

Satan is:

• an adulterer
• a fornicator
• promiscuous
• a prostitute
• filthy
• religion
• cults
• a witch
• a warlock
• unforgiveness
• hostility
• a drunk
• strife
• contention
• division
• jealousy
• anger
• a schemer
• a self-promoter
• dissension
• rebellion
• the false prophet
• the false teacher
• homosexual

This is the “thing” that Adam let loose on creation in Genesis 3. His evil is measureless, his knowledge of man is vast and his wisdom is corrupted. And only knows how to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10).

Corruption produced the opportunity

As I examine homosexual behavior through the lens of what happened as a result of Genesis 3, it’s clear to me that Adam’s disobedience corrupted man's way of thinking – his very thought processes. More devastating though was the fact that it blew the doors wide open for Satan’s unbridled deception upon man’s soul.

Corrupted thinking

With the corruption of creation and the introduction of the sin nature, the "wiring" in our brains was corrupted and made exponentially more susceptible to Satan’s ungodly influences.

We know that we are spirit beings who have a soul and live in a body. Satan is a spirit and the father of lies and has complete access to our spirits, souls and bodies through the sin nature until we are born again.

“And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” (Gen. 6:5)

The only avenue Satan has available to him to weave his deception into our lives are our thoughts. This applies not only to the person with a sin nature but also to the person who has the life of God. This is the reason the Bible repeatedly tells us to guard our thoughts.

Enter the homosexual spirit

Earlier I said that even though I know, understand and believe what the Bible says about homosexual behavior, I’m finding it difficult to dismiss out of hand, or minimize the feelings of people who genuinely believe they were born homosexual. I know from Scripture this is not true. Then, what is the truth?

Remember the list from Galatians 5:19-21 that identifies who Satan is? The last thing on the list, out of order by the way, was that Satan is homosexual. This really shouldn’t be a surprise and the reason why it’s so important that society believes homosexuality is a natural occurrence. It keeps him hidden. It keeps him under the radar.

In Genesis 3 he had “likeminded” devils who were like rabid dogs on a leash waiting to be turned loose. They were set free when Adam rebelled. These homosexual devils have been attacking and “ripping to shreds” their unsuspecting prey ever since.

What does a homosexual spirit have to use to deceive people? They have the same avenue for entering a person’s life as their master – thoughts.

Let’s think about this strategically. If you want to inoculate someone with a homosexual mindset, when would be the most opportune time to do so? The absolute best time is when he is a child – when he is the most “teachable.”

If a homosexual spirit can enter into a child’s thoughts at age three or four or even earlier, and “teach” him “line up line, precept upon precept” the homosexual lifestyle, is it possible that the child would believe he was actually born a homosexual? 

Notice how I phrased the question. Satan is very methodical, strategic and cunning in how he introduces “the works of the flesh” into our lives (Eph. 6:11). He doesn’t care how long the inoculation process takes because he is determined to do whatever it takes to rob us of an eternity in presence of Love.

So what's my point? It is possible for a person to be born into this world with a mind that is more open and susceptible to the whispering of a homosexual spirit because of the sin nature. (This same possibility would apply to anyone who is a habitual liar, a smoker, an alcoholic, who watches pornography, commits adultery, steals, etc.)

A glimpse into the homosexual inoculation

A few years ago an evangelist told of a young man who attended one of her meetings. At the end of the service he came up for prayer. He whispered to her that he had been a practicing homosexual for more than 20 years and that wanted to be free.

He told the evangelist that he had begun having dreams of homosexual men when he was about three years old. In his dreams, the men would come into his room, dance and play with him, and “touch” each other. With each dream they became bolder. When he was five years old they would take off their clothes and tell him to “touch” them.

When he told his father about his dreams and how the men were undressing and “touching” each other and then telling him to “touch” them, his father dismissed them as nothing more than dreams. He told the evangelist that after talking with his father and seeing his response, he thought that his dreams were – now listen to me – natural.  

Sometime later, in addition to taking off their clothes, the men had him take off his clothes and join them in “touching” each other. By the time he was 12 years old the young man said he was having sex with the men in his dreams.

Satan doesn’t care about people.

Homosexual spirits were in his dreams – when he was the most vulnerable. Satan turned these devils loose on a child. We need to understand this. He doesn’t care about people, young or old. All he wants is company in the lake of fire. Jesus told us that he was a murderer from the beginning (John 8:44).

A different level of understanding

Now that we have a glimpse into how Satan promotes and spreads spiritual death through homosexuality, perhaps we will view the struggles of those trapped in this sin with a little more compassion and a little less condemnation.

Perhaps we will be better able to see them through our Father’s eyes – the lost and broken who need to be loved and who need to hear about the only grace that saves and the only blood that cleanses sin.

Then all they have to do is bow the knee to Jesus and say, “Jesus, I’m so sorry. I want you to be my lord and savior. I want to spend eternity with you. Please forgive me and make me clean.”

This is where my heart is. I don’t want the enemy of the soul to win this battle. I want every homosexual delivered and saved and part of the family.

More attacks are coming

My son, Stephen, texted me this morning with the words “You were spot on dad.” So I replied “What do you mean?” “Another church was set on fire,” he responded. “It was on Yahoo news. When I read that, I immediately thought about what you said on Sunday.”

Stephen was referring to the comments I made at our church, Grace Christian Center. I went back and listened to what I had said and decided to transcribe it with minor editing and share it. It’s sobering.

“I asked pastor (Dr. Jim Martin) for a minute or so to talk about something that’s been on my mind since Friday. I started thinking about this and things just started jelling for me.

“Satan – the bible says we’re not to be ignorant of his devices. I was thinking about Emanuel A.M.E. Church in Charleston, SC and when it happened one of the first things that was talked about was the need for gun control.

“Do you remember the story in Acts 16 where the young lady (who was possessed by a spirit of divination) followed Paul and, I believe it was Barnabas, saying “These are the great men of God”? She was saying that these men are just like us, like me. But they were not just like her. 

“Satan is a master of misdirection and so when this happened in Charleston and politicians and news media started talking about gun control that was a misdirection.

“Then the news media started talking about racism, and I’m not denying racism wasn’t part of it, but racism is a misdirection. Ladies and gentlemen, you have to understand that and Satan’s been using that to keep us from seeing him in action and he uses it very well.

“And the third thing the news media talked about was the attack being a hate crime. That’s a misdirection also.

“I’m not saying any of the three are not true. What I’m saying is that they’re keeping our eyes off of what’s really happening.

“Satan is a master strategist. So he takes this young man and he uses him like a pawn on a chessboard. So he (Satan) takes this young man and attacks a black church. He (Satan) attacks a black church. So the first thing we think about is racism. Right?

“Ladies and gentlemen, the attack was on the Body of Christ. The church just happened to be black because Satan chose a black church. He doesn’t want us to think about this as an attack on the Body of Christ.

“It’s the first shot ladies and gentlemen. More is coming.

“I wanted to say this because it’s very important that we’re not ignorant of how Satan operates. He will use whatever is at his disposal and, in this case, it happened to be a troubled young man who he had been feeding thoughts of racism for years and years until it finally came to fruition.

“But racism is only on the surface. What’s really happening – we are being attacked. Next time it could be Grace Christian Center. Now the salvo has been launched and I say this (to help you understand that the attack was on the Body of Christ), like the Father helped me understand this. Our Father wants us to keep things in the perspective they should be in.”

Epilogue

The last text I sent to Stephen: So Satan is going to attack enough black churches so that when he starts attacking white and black churches he’ll already be undercover (more invisible).

Satan will sit back and watch his demented plan unfold. The Body of Christ will be wounded and possibly becomes prisoners of fear while we talk about gun control, racism and hate crimes.

Before he went to bed every night, my father would get on his knees and pray. I think it high time we spent more time on our knees and less time believing any misdirection that we hear and see. 

It's a lie. God is not punishing you.

It’s been nearly 25 years since he held the press conference in 1991. The venue was the Forum in Los Angeles and it hosted one of the greatest NBA teams of all times, the Los Angeles Lakers, who were simply known as “Showtime.” Magic Johnson stood before a room full of reporters and announced his retirement from the game. He had the HIV virus.

At that time, Magic and Larry Bird were two of the most visible faces of the NBA. They entered the league in 1976 after facing each other for the collegiate National Championship a few months earlier.

During the press conference, this highly recognized and well liked athlete made a statement that gave voice to the thinking and beliefs of many, including Christians: “God gave me the HIV virus to teach me and young people about the danger of having unprotected sex."

That day, Magic “confirmed” and “legitimized” what most Christians believed and sadly, still believe today – God will punish you with disease or sickness to teach you a lesson.

But it’s a lie.

It’s a lie birthed by Satan that has been strategically and methodically propagated for centuries. Sadly, it is one of the strongest ungodly beliefs living in the hearts and minds of many Christians.

It’s odd. Christians, who say they love and serve God, are holding on to and believing a lie about Him.

Many Christians point to God’s interaction with people in the Old Testament as justification for believing this lie. Why? Because they don’t understand they are not like the believers of the Old Testament.

God dealt with them differently than He does with those of His own household because they were different. They didn’t have His life living inside of them. And even then, God didn’t place sickness and disease on them.

He couldn’t.

“This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.” (I John 1:5) The Amplified Bible renders the latter part of the verse this way: God is Light, and there is no darkness in Him at all [no, not in any way].

The word “no” in the Greek is ou and expresses the strongest negation possible. In other words, there is no possible way to attribute to God the bad things that happen to people unless you reject the witness of Scripture.

Let’s look at one more witness.

“Let no man say when he is tempted (tested or tried), I am tempted (tested or tried) of God: for God cannot be tempted (tested or tried) with evil, neither tempteth (tests or tries) he any man.” (James 1:13) The Amplified says it this way: “Let no one say when he is tempted, I am tempted from God; for God is incapable of being tempted by [what is] evil and He Himself tempts no one.”

If there is nothing in God that can cause Him to be tempted to do evil, how can He be the one who gave Magic Johnson the HIV virus to teach him a lesson?

He didn’t.

Then how did Magic get the HIV virus?

In this situation, the 14^th verse has the answer.

“But every man is tempted (tested and tried) when he is drawn away of (by) his own lust, and enticed.”

The words “drawn away,” “own lust” and “enticed” create an image of a person whose desire is so strong that he is baited like a fish and fulfills it. And when this happens, verse 15 says "Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth (gives birth to) sin." 

Now read the last part of verse 15: “and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.”

When we open the door to sin and sin runs its course (fully matures), it can lead to our physical death. If we don’t repent of the sin, it can lead to our spiritual death. Sobering thoughts.

Is God causing the death? No. The person causes the death by his or her actions. In the case of Magic Johnson, he contracted the HIV virus by his actions, not because God was punishing him for those actions.

Let me end with James 1:16 and 17.

“Do not err, my beloved brethren. ("Don’t err in thinking that God brings evil into your life to tempt you child of God.") Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no (ou) variableness, neither shadow of turning.”

Doesn’t this sound a lot like I John 1:5?

Never again believe the lie that your Heavenly Father will bring sickness or disease or any kind of hardship into your life to teach you a lesson.

I am a father and I wouldn’t do that to my children. Am I a better father than God? I think not!

When does a black life matter?

When black men die at the hands of white police officers, the national media plays and replays the incident and the "reaction" of the black community. Very rarely do we see the "reaction" of the white community. (But that's a blog for another day.)

When black men die at the hands of white police officers, "black leaders" will shout loud and long about how the culture of white entitlement must be changed. When riots occur, in the black neighborhoods, these same "black leaders" tell us that what we are seeing is frustration lashing out as a result of years of systemic abuse and neglect.

There will never be a justifiable reason for rioting and then destroying another person's property.

But society does have the right to hold accountable those who are charged with protecting society and enforcing the law when they betray the public trust.

What bothers me about Ferguson and Baltimore (and others to come) is this: when one black man was dying at the hands of a white police officer, many were dying at the hands of other black men.

Think about this.

Where was the national news coverage crying for justice for the black men who were killed by other black men?

Where were the organized marches seeking justice for the black men who were killed by other black men?.

Where were the riots for the black men who were killed by other black men?

Where was the black community's outcry and anger for the black men who were killed by other black men?

Where were the "black leaders" when the black men were killed by other black men? Why were they silent?

It really bothers me that the life of a black man only matters to the national news media, the black community and "black leaders" when it is taken by a white police officer.

Ask the black mother whose son was killed by another black man if his life mattered? Do you believe she will grieve less because her son did not die at the hands of a white police officer or that she will have fewer sleepless nights? Do you really?

A white police officer does not make a black life more important.

A black man does not make a black life less important.

And the news media doesn't care. All it wants is a story.

I, for one, am tired of the hypocrisy.

Pray for the Supreme Court Justices

So many Christians today support same-sex marriage. And that saddens me and I know it saddens our Heavenly Father even more.

And for those of us who believe what the bible says about marriage, many are feeling helpless and are buying into the lie that it’s a foregone conclusion that the Supreme Court will legalize same sex marriage – a concept that God condemns in scripture.  

Why it a lie? The issue has yet to be adjudicated. But Satan, the enemy of the soul, and his demons have unleashed a full court press to convince Christians that “the game is over and you have lost.”

I don’t believe a word this rascal says.

Don’t you think it’s time that we confront this liar and derail the destruction that he is orchestrating?

Pray that the justices’ personal views and biases will not override reason.

Pray that God will enter their dreams and give them a glimpse of what will happen in and to America if same-sex marriage is legalized. (Trust me, it will be worse than anything you can imagine.)

Pray that angels surround the Supreme Court building and that the demonic powers that have been pushing this issue find themselves and their influence locked out.

Pray that God’s peace saturates the court room and the minds of the justices are clear and they hear what the enemy of the soul doesn’t want them to hear.

Pray that the justices will follow the rule of law.

Folks, we are sons and daughters and have been given authority over all the works of the enemy. It’s time for us to exercise what our Father has given to us.

Imagining the Genesis 3 Story

When Lucifer persuaded one third of the angels in heaven to take a position against God, he was cast out of heaven. What did he do to warrant such severe punishment? He was cast out of the place where eternal life dwelled because of pride and what it produced in his life. (Ezekiel 28:17a)

Lucifer’s pride manifested itself in behavior that have become the hallmarks of his presence.  

·        He began to think more highly of himself than he should have. (Ezekiel 28:13-15, Romans 12:1-3; Psalms 10:4)

·        He began to murmur against God which led to his rebellion. (Isaiah 14:12-14. Numbers 14:27-30a)

·        He sowed deceit and false doctrine among the angels. (Revelations 12:7-9, 2 Corinthians 4:1-2)

Lucifer and his angels turned their backs on an eternity in the presence of God. Now their eternity is death – separation from God forever with no possible reinstatement of life.

Having been stripped of everything that was dear to him, Lucifer’s rage increased against his Creator. God had to pay for what he had done to him, he reasoned. So he waited.

Lucifer saw God create a universe and then the earth. Day after day he watched as God brought forth life – birds, fish, animals, plants. But it was on the day that God made man that Lucifer saw, once again, God’s heart.

He saw God’s love and tenderness as He formed, made and created man. And when man took his first breath Lucifer saw an expression on God’s face that he had never seen before. He saw the love of a Father for His son. (Genesis 2:7)

God had never looked at him that way, he thought, as he looked on with anger and disgust. “I was the cherub of cherubs. I was the one the other angels followed. I served God but He never looked at me that way,” he said.  

So he watched. The bond between Father and son began to grow so strong that the Father brought all of the animals to His son and said “I want you to name them and whatever you decide that will be its name.”

Lucifer saw the Father’s heart even more when He brought Eve to Adam. When His son saw his spouse and smiled, the Father smiled too. But someone else also smiled.

God had told Adam he could eat from every tree in the garden but one – the tree of knowledge of good and evil. “If you eat of that tree,” God said as He placed His hand on Adam’s chest, “one day the beating of your heart will stop and when it does you will die.”

Then God looks at Adam and said sternly, “But that’s not the most important reason my son. If you eat of the tree you will no longer be my son and I will no longer be your Father.”

Lucifer hears God’s instructions to His son. “Ah,” he said to himself, “now I know how I can hurt the one who is now a father. I will go after the son and his wife. I will make them like me.”

He watches the son and his wife and he sees how they interact and respond to each other. He’s fascinated by the humans. The more he studies them the more clearly he sees a pattern emerge. The woman can influence the man.

Lucifer, the serpent, approaches Eve with the same seductive prowess that he used to condemn one-third of God’s angels to eternal damnation. He is like the strange woman in Proverbs 7, who, from her window, smiles as she sees her unsuspecting prey.

The serpent woos Eve. His deadly doctrine is so easy to hear and seemed so right – “If you eat, you will not die but you will be like a god yourself,” he whispers to her over and over again. The more she listens, the more she begins to believe his lie. She looks at the fruit and images its sweetness and how it can make her more like God and she wants to be more like Him. So she yields. (Genesis 3:6)

Like the unsuspecting suitor in Proverbs 7, Eve never sees the deadly dart the serpent’s flattering lips produces until Adam eats the fruit from the forbidden tree. The dart strikes Adam and Eve, ripping through the very life of God.

When Adam and Eve believe the serpent’s doctrine of death that sound so much like life, they walk away from love. They walk away from an eternity that would have been lived in the presence of God into a death and into a place where eternal life did not dwell.

Eve was deceived because she listened to the voice from without that spoke deceit and death into her life. But to her, it didn’t sound like death at all. It sounded like “being more like God.”

I can see her letting the serpent’s words roll around in her mind and smiling. “I know God loves me. I can feel it when I’m in His presence. Why wouldn’t He want me to know more of His love and be more like Him? The serpent isn’t telling me I can’t be more like God. In fact, he’s saying I can be more like God just by eating of the tree.”

Eve chooses to listen to the voice from without that appeals to her soul and emotions. She is seduced and persuaded to believe in “a life” that was different from the life that God had “planned for her”. She is deceived into doing what pleases her rather than what pleases her Creator. In her mind, there was no difference.

The serpent had convinced Eve that “roaming from the safety of truth” – ignoring God’s command to not eat of the tree – was not really that unsafe when in fact, it was deadly. (Romans 2:13-15) The check in her spirit – the voice from within – went unnoticed. She didn’t hear the life in her screaming “Eve, don’t eat of the tree. Don’t do it.” She didn’t hear the life that was just like the life of her Creator.

However, with one simple act of obedience, Adam could have preserved the course of human history. He simply had to obey God’s command not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. (Genesis 2:15-17) He could have prevented the devil’s free and unrestrained access to man’s soul and emotions. Adam ignored the voice from within too. (I Timothy 2:13-14; Genesis 3:17)

Again, all it would have taken to preserve eternal life for man was one man’s simple act of obedience. Fortunately for us, our story doesn’t end with Genesis 3. It only pauses. Another man’s simple act of obedience gave us an opportunity to choose life. That man was Jesus Christ.

Now think about how different your life, lived through simple obedience to God through your born again spirit, can be from this day forward. I have!