The Congregation, The Pleiades, Our Hope Hidden in Christ

When considering the heavens there seems to be mysteries upon mysteries.  At least with me it takes time for God to unravel these mysteries in my understanding.  I have a tendency to think on and wrestle with some things because for whatever reason they seem curious to me. The Pleiades is one of those curiosities for me because God says it in his word three times.  That in and of itself should cause us to look at it, as the number three denotes a divine perfection and a completeness. So as I’ve pondered this idea of the Pleiades in scripture; read and re-read and studied some more, I started noticing something peculiar; the Pleiades in the scope of Taurus tells us a tremendous story.  It would seem that in our culture we have had teachings and Bible teachers that cluster together times or events and that seems to be the way they are taught to the general population.  However the word of God was first written in the heavens, and the heavens were of old, not recreated when the earth was recreated.  Each constellation is telling us a story; I realized it would be better to cluster subjects for teaching in the way the heavens do.  When we put together the stories of the heavens, combined with the Bible we see something deeper, a bit more of the mysteries of our Heavenly Father, and taught to us in the order he wanted it known.

Pleiades is not a constellation itself, but part of the constellation of Taurus.  Taurus is a constellation symbolizing a bull that denotes the Lord, who comes judging and to judge.  This year the sun is in Taurus from about May 14^th to June 21^st, 2012.  This is one of the longer constellations for the sun to travel through. The constellation has two star clusters in it which is unique.  One called the Hyades means the congregation, and the other star cluster the Pleiades which means the congregation of the judge or ruler in the Septuagint.  What was it about this part of Taurus that God wants to draw our attention to?  In the Hebrew,   the word kiymah is a cluster, to store away like jewels.  So by its Hebrew name the Pleiades means a cluster of hidden gems.  In Arabic the Al Cyone means the center.  As we explored once before some may have thought this was the center of the universe, but probably more so, this was the center of the congregation of the sons of God or the place of the departed saints.

OT:3598 Kiymah (kee-maw'); from the same as OT:3558; a cluster of stars, i.e. the Pleiades:

KJV - Pleiades, seven stars.(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

OT:3558 kuwmaz (koo-mawz'); from an unused root meaning to store away; a jewel (probably gold beads): KJV - tablet.

(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

The Pleiades is translated in the Syriac as Succoth, or booths as well.  With these ideas in mind we should look at the word congregation. 

Sometimes on these research trails we come across something that needs a side note of explanation.  

Ps 82:1 God [Elohim 430] standeth in the congregation[5712] of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods [Elohim 430].

God OT:430 'elohiym (el-o-heem'); plural of OT:433; gods in the ordinary sense; but specifically used (in the plural thus, especially with the article) of the supreme God; occasionally applied by way of deference to magistrates; and sometimes as a superlative:(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

Standeth OT:5324 natsab (naw-tsab'); a prim root; to station, in various applications (literally or figuratively):KJV - appointed, deputy, erect, establish,  Huzzah [by mistake for a proper name], lay, officer, pillar, present, rear up, set (over, up), settle, sharpen, establish, (make to) stand (-ing, still, up, upright), best state.(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

Congregation OT:5712 `edah (ay-daw'); feminine of OT:5707 in the original sense of fixture; a stated assemblage (specifically, a concourse, or generally, a family or crowd): KJV - assembly, company, congregation, multitude, people, swarm. Compare OT:5713.

Mighty OT:410 'el (ale); shortened from OT:352; strength; as adjective, mighty; especially the Almighty (but used also of any deity):KJV - God (god),  goodly,  great, idol, might (-y one), power, strong. Compare names in "-el."(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

Judgeth OT:8199  shaphat (shaw-fat'); a primitive root; to judge, i.e. pronounce sentence (for or against); by implication, to vindicate or punish; by extension, to govern; passively, to litigate (literally or figuratively):KJV -  avenge,  that condemn, contend, defend, execute (judgment), (be a) judge (-ment),  needs, plead, reason, rule.(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

In this verse we have to gather the context of who the elohim are that Elohim is going to judge.  In context we see they are the sons of Elohim, ben elyown from verse 6, sons of the most high but they will be judged in the congregation of the Almighty.  In verse seven we see that these sons of God will die like men.  This tells us they are not men, so in this Psalm we see a congregation where God judges the angels in the congregation.  This must also mean that there are some angels, sons of God, that did something wrong and they will be judged.  Some would speculate that these are the Nephilim, but that does not seem possible as the Nephilim were the sons of the fallen angels who cohabitated with earthly women.  The Nephilim were never called the sons of the most high. These may be the angels themselves who did the cohabitating, but also may include any other angel that rebelled at any time. In the Old Testament the sons of God are known as the angels but in the New Testament, we believers are called the sons of God.  However, this verse is not talking about men because we are men and will die as men. Therefore this is expressly talking about sons of the Almighty, those in the spiritual beings category, who did something (s) wrong and will be judged in the congregation and die like men.  As of today that judging has not happened as we have wicked spirits, fallen angels, principalities, powers, rulers of darkness; that are all still influencing our world or age. 

Ps 82:1 God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods.KJV

2 How long will ye judge unjustly, and accept the persons of the wicked? Selah.

3 Defend the poor and fatherless: do justice to the afflicted and needy.

4 Deliver the poor and needy: rid them out of the hand of the wicked.

5 They know not, neither will they understand; they walk on in darkness: all the foundations of the earth are out of course.

6 I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High.

7 But ye shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes.

8 Arise, O God, judge the earth: for thou shalt inherit all nations.KJV

What we see then is a picture of the constellation of Taurus, the judge coming to judge in the congregation.  There are two clusters or congregations in Taurus, the Pleiades as we have seen, and the Hyades.  Pleiades is located in the shoulder of Taurus the bull and the Hyades is located in the head of the bull.   Which is the congregation we are speaking of in Psalm 82?  That is hard to tell but some further research may give us the answer.  For now, we should remember that there are two congregations, thought of as sisters in mythology. The Hyades were five sisters, while the Pleiades were seven sisters. 

Ps 1:5 Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation [5712] of the righteous.KJV

This would seem contradictory if we did not understand that there are two congregations.  It is obvious that the sons of God who did something wrong are going to be punished in the congregation of the Almighty, but here in Psalm 1 we see the sinners won’t be in the congregation of the just.  Since Taurus has two congregations the Psalms do not contradict each other. Let’s look at the word congregation again.

Congregation OT:5712 `edah (ay-daw'); feminine of OT:5707 in the original sense of fixture; a stated assemblage (specifically, a concourse, or generally, a family or crowd): KJV - assembly, company, congregation, multitude, people, swarm. Compare OT:5713.

OT:5713 `edah (ay-daw'); feminine of OT:5707 in its techn. sense; testimony: KJV - testimony, witness. Compare OT:5712.(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

OT:5712 `edah —a congregation, a gathering

OT:5713 `edah —testimony, witness; always plural and always of laws as divine testimonies(from The Online Bible Thayer's Greek Lexicon and Brown Driver & Briggs Hebrew Lexicon, Copyright © 1993, Woodside Bible Fellowship, Ontario, Canada. Licensed from the Institute for Creation Research.)

Another word for congregation can also be translated as seasons. 

Ps 104:19 He appointed the moon for seasons [4150]: the sun knoweth his going down.KJV

Isa 14:13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation [4150], in the sides of the north: KJV

OT:4150 mowed` (mo-ade'); or moed` (mo-ade'); or (feminine) mow`adah (2 Chron 8:13) (mo-aw-daw'); from OT:3259; properly, an appointment, i.e. a fixed time or season; specifically, a festival; conventionally a year; by implication, an assembly (as convened for a definite purpose); technically the congregation; by extension, the place of meeting; also a signal (as appointed beforehand): KJV - appointed (sign, time), (place of, solemn) assembly, congregation, (set, solemn) feast, (appointed, due) season, solemn (-ity), synogogue, (set) time (appointed).(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

This word mowed, is seen as the appointed time of the meeting of the congregation which is where Lucifer wanted to set up his seat to judge as we explored in a previous blog.  In this next verse we have the word congregation with judgment, again a picture of Taurus.

Ps 75:2 When I shall receive the congregation [4150] I will judge [8199] uprightly.KJV

OT:8199 shaphat (shaw-fat'); a primitive root; to judge, i.e. pronounce sentence (for or against); by implication, to vindicate or punish; by extension, to govern; passively, to litigate (literally or figuratively): KJV -  avenge,  that condemn, contend, defend, execute (judgment), (be a) judge (-ment),  needs, plead, reason, rule.(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

Another word for congregation qahal is used as a multitude of saints.

Ps 89:5 And the heavens shall praise thy wonders, O Lord: thy faithfulness also in the congregation [6951] of the saints.KJV

OT:6951 qahal (kaw-hawl'); from OT:6950; assemblage (usually concretely):KJV - assembly, company, congregation, multitude.(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

Next we have a usage of an assembly of people that divine lies, and will not be in the assembly of his people.  Being in the assembly or congregation seems to be conditional. 

Ezek 13:9 And mine hand shall be upon the prophets that see vanity, and that divine lies: they shall not be in the assembly [5475]of my people, neither shall they be written in the writing of the house of Israel, neither shall they enter into the land of Israel; and ye shall know that I am the Lord God.KJV

Ps 25:14 The secret [5475] of the Lord is with them that fear him; and he will shew them his covenant.KJV

OT:5475 cowd (sode); from OT:3245; a session, i.e. company of persons (in close deliberation); by implication, intimacy, consultation, a secret: KJV - assembly, consel, inward, secret (counsel).(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

In our understanding the word assembly and congregation are interchangeable, but here one word is for a holiday while the other is a multitude that will be sanctified. Interesting this is in regard to the bride and bridegroom.

Joel 2:15-16 Blow the trumpet in Zion, sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly[6116]:16 Gather the people, sanctify the congregation[6951], assemble the elders, gather the children, and those that suck the breasts: let the bridegroom go forth of his chamber, and the bride out of her closet.KJV

OT:6116 `atsarah (ats-aw-raw'); or `atsereth (ats-eh'-reth); from OT:6113; an assembly, especially on a festival or holiday: KJV - (solemn) assembly (meeting).(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

As we look at the New Testament we have to understand that there are multiple translations in English of the same Greek word, sunagoge. It is translated Synagogue, congregation and assembly. 

Acts 13:43 Now when the congregation  [4864]was broken up, many of the Jews and religious proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas: who, speaking to them, persuaded them to continue in the grace of God.KJV

James 2:2 For if there come unto your assembly [4864] a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment; KJV

Matt 4:23 And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, [4864] and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people.KJV

NT:4864 sunagoge (soon-ag-o-gay'); from (the reduplicated form of) NT:4863; an assemblage of persons; specifically, a Jewish "synagogue" (the meeting or the place); by analogy, a Christian church: KJV - assembly, congregation, synagogue.(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

NT:4863 sunago (soon-ag'-o); from NT:4862 and NT:71; to lead together, i.e. collect or convene; specifically, to entertain (hospitably):KJV -  accompany, assemble (selves, together), bestow, come together, gather (selves together, up, together), lead into, resort, take in.(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

NT:4864 sunagoogee, sunagoogees, hee

1.         an assembly of men: Rev 2:9; 3:9

2.         a synagogue,

·         an assembly of Jews formally gathered together to offer prayer and listen to the reading and exposition of the Holy Scriptures

·         the building where those solemn Jewish assemblies are held

(from Thayer's Greek Lexicon, Electronic Database. Copyright © 2000, 2003, 2006 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.)

We see the word sunagoge as it applies to the church as well as a synagogue.  As we look back at the Pleiades and the Hyades we see two gatherings where according to the Bible there must be one congregation for judging the sons of God and one for the righteous, where sinners are not judged. The mystery of the church being hid before the beginning can be looked at as a treasure hidden away.  Like hiding treasures from a robber, God hid the church.  Now we have to think, if God went through all the trouble to hide the church and his plan to make us joint heirs with Christ, and to keep secret that our citizenship is in heaven, he must have wanted to preserve the way to enter into His Kingdom until the time was right.  As the Bible tells us, the devil would never have crucified Christ if he would have known. 

Rom 8:17 And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.KJV

Rom 16:25-26 Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began,26 But now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith: KJV

1 Cor 2:7-8But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory:8 Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.KJV

Eph 1:9-12Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:10 That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:12 That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.KJV

We are citizens of heaven.

Phil 3:20 For our conversation [4177] is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: KJV

NT:4175 politeuma (pol-it'-yoo-mah); from NT:4176; a community, i.e. (abstractly) citizenship (figuratively):KJV - conversation.(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

Phil 3:20-21 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself. NKJV

Our citizenship is in heaven, we are of the ones who look for new bodies when Christ comes.  Now that we have established the mystery of hiding the church we should look at the rest of the words for congregation in the New Testament.  And we will have one more rabbit trail to follow to understand this next verse.

2 Thess 2:1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming [3952] of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together [1997] unto him,KJV

NT:1997 episunagoge (ep-ee-soon-ag-o-gay'); from NT:1996; a complete collection; especially a Christian meeting (for worship): KJV - assembling (gathering) together.(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

NT:1997 episunagoogee, episunagoogees, hee

• ·         a gathering together in one place, 2 Thess 2:1
• ·         (the religious) assembly (of Christians): Heb 10:25

(from Thayer's Greek Lexicon, Electronic Database. Copyright © 2000, 2003, 2006 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.)

NT:1996 episunago (ep-ee-soon-ag'-o); from NT:1909 and NT:4863; to collect upon the same place: KJV - gather (together).(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

NT:1909 epi (ep-ee'); a primary preposition; properly, meaning superimposition (of time, place, order, etc.), as a relation of distribution [with the genitive case], i.e. over, upon, etc.; of rest (with the det.) at, on, etc.; of direction (with the accusative case) towards, upon, etc.: KJV - about (the times), above, after, against, among, as long as (touching), at, beside,  have charge of, (be-, [wherefore-]), in (a place, as much as, the time of, -to), (because) of, (up-) on (behalf of), over, (by, for) the space of, through (-out), (un-) to (-ward), with. In compounds it retains essentially the same import, at, upon, etc. (literally or figuratively).(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

Our word episunagoge is used as a reference in one of two events.  Epi is an over or above congregation, a complete collection of a Christian meeting.  The first event is the coming, the parousia, where Christ comes to punish Jerusalem.

Coming NT:3952 parousia (par-oo-see'-ah); from the present participle of NT:3918; a being near, i.e. advent (often, return; specifically, of Christ to punish Jerusalem, or finally the wicked); (by implication) physically, aspect:KJV - coming, presence.(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

We see here that there is a time when Jesus comes to judge Jerusalem and also when the church is congregated up.  As we have previously seen we are saved from the wrath to come if we are of the church.  But the unrighteous are not saved from the wrath.  We have to see the difference, if we are of the church we are not like everyone else, we are not appointed to wrath.  During the tribulation there will be two separate wraths, the wrath of the Lamb and the wrath of God. By definition the parousia is the wrath of the Lamb.  But the Church is not on earth at that time.  Who endures punishment? The unrighteous and the disobedient. 

Rom 1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; KJV

Rom 5:8-10 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.KJV

Eph 2:3-6 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: KJV

We were children of wrath but now we’re made alive in Christ and raised us up and we will be made to sit in heavenly places.

Col 3:6 For which things' sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience: KJV

1 Thess 1:10 And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.KJV

1 Thess 2:13-16 For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.14 For ye, brethren, became followers of the churches of God which in Judaea are in Christ Jesus: for ye also have suffered like things of your own countrymen, even as they have of the Jews:15 Who both killed the Lord Jesus, and their own prophets, and have persecuted us; and they please not God, and are contrary to all men:16 Forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles that they might be saved, to fill up their sins alway: for the wrath is come upon them to the uttermost.KJV

The wrath is coming upon whom? The ones who persecute the church. Those in Thessalonica were just like the Jews who were persecuting Paul and the other Apostles, even contending for them not to speak the word of God to the Gentiles so that they could be saved.  The wrath is coming upon them to the uttermost. The question to ask yourself is, are you one who hinders the work of the Lord on earth? If so the wrath will come upon you, not just a little but to the utter most.

1 Thess 5:9-11 For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,10 Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.11 Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.KJV

He didn’t appoint us to wrath, but to salvation. What is the purpose of salvation if we aren’t saved from the wrath of God? What is he supposed to be saving us from?

Rev 6:15-17 And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:17 For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand? KJV

Here we see the all the important people who were not saved, wanting to hide in caves because of the coming punishment of Christ.  Wouldn’t it be better to get these people saved instead of crying like Chicken Little saying the church is going to suffer the wrath of the Lamb?  Did he save us or didn’t he?

  

Rev 14:10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: KJV

Here we see that the traumatic events have continued and now the Father brings his wrath while the Lamb and angels watch. Surely that will be a sad day for those people.  So our charge should be to encourage each other with the understanding of the hope we have in Christ.  Saved, spared and not appointed to wrath, but congregated up.  If we are of the congregation of the righteous then one of those congregations in Taurus denotes us, while one denotes the judgment of the angelic class.  Some speculate that the seven visible stars or the Pleiades are likened to the seven churches of Revelation.  Interestingly, one star is sometimes not visible leaving only six to be seen by the naked eye. Some go on to wonder if that would not be the church of Ephesus which was in danger of losing its star. Jesus is the one who holds the seven stars in his hand. 

Rev 1:12 And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.KJV

Who was speaking here was the Alpha and the Omega, as we previously saw in a blog, Jesus from the Old and New Testament called the beginning and the end the first and the last.  If Jesus is holding the seven stars, and God tells us in Amos 5:8 to seek the one who made the seven stars, there is something about those seven stars we should look into. 

Rev 1:20 The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches. KJV

The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches and the seven candlesticks are the seven churches, the congregation in the constellation of Taurus would appear to be the church and its angelic representatives.  The Pleiades and the Hyades are sisters, meaning relationship; we are now sons of God just as the angels are known as the sons of God.  The unrighteous and the disobedient are not part of the congregation. This is the mystery that the sons of God on earth would be spared from the wrath of the Lamb and this would appear to be the place of the church in the heavenlies.  Here is another usage of episunagoge.

Heb 10:25 Not forsaking the assembling [1997]of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.KJV

The day, what day?  Why would we forsake worshipping together? I suspect we will be worshipping together in heaven and that is the day we are looking toward.  Here the general assembly is also used to denote a heavenly gathering.

Heb 12:22-23 But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,23 To the general assembly [3831]and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, KJV 

NT:3831 paneguris (pan-ay'-goo-ris); from NT:3956 and a derivative of NT:58; a mass-meeting, i.e. (figuratively) universal companionship: KJV - general assembly.(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

This is the only usage of paneguris.  Again denoting a heavenly gathering. 

From the Old Testament we saw the congregation as a place of judgment for the angels. As in Job where the angels come to present themselves before God at regularly scheduled times, satan also comes to present himself.  From this place God will judge the fallen angels.  This is where Lucifer wanted to put his throne to judge the congregation, but God said no. Then we see there is a place for the congregation of the righteous.  This is exactly what Taurus is telling us, there are two different congregations. This is what we should be reminded of when we look at the night sky and see the constellation of Taurus, the judge coming to judge and his two congregations, one for the righteous and one for the heavenly sons of God.  We should also be reminded that today, we have the opportunity to be saved from the wrath to come.  We do not have to go through the wrath, the judge is coming to judge but we are already saved, spared and not appointed to wrathful judgments.   E W Bullinger notes that when Jesus comes to rule on earth, the church is with him, and in him.  This is what we want to learn from God pointing out the Pleiades, the one who made the seven stars is the one who hid the church, congregation, in Jesus, until he could reveal the mystery. Now Jesus holds the seven stars in His hand. 

As an end note there are many who will think that they can predict future events by looking at the heavens.  There have been date setters all through history; however God tells us that we should not be doing that.  E W Bullinger, writing from before Israel became a nation in 1947 spoke of this idea of date setting in the context of Palestine. Bullinger writes “After all, they can be only approximate, for man has so misused every gift that God has ever given him, that even with such wondrous heavenly time-keepers he cannot really tell you what year it is!” (E.W. Bullinger Witness of the Stars , Kregel Publishing, 1983 edition pg. 194) That made me laugh, to think just because our calendar says 2012 we really don’t know what year it is do we?

The Father of Lies; Jesus I AM. Witchcraft Part 6

In this very unusual world we live in there is twisting, spinning and continual fighting for control of others. In this series on witchcraft I’ve pointed out a few different ways this happens. One reason people twist and spin the truth as we saw in part one is in covering for their own mistakes and not being man (or women) enough to admit the truth.  The second way we looked at witchcraft was with the King and Queen who were greedy and lusted for what was not theirs.  The Third way we saw witchcraft’s twisting was with rulers who wanted to subdue a perceived enemy.  The forth way of witchcraft included drugs and fortunetelling, again in an attempt to rule over others.  The fifth way we looked at witchcraft is in fear motivation, attempting to get someone to do something or buy something they would not originally want to. That leaves us with a summation that is twisted and spun in every direction and in everyday life. The only truth on this earth is Jesus Christ.  This is where our focus should be every day, not on anything or anyone else which includes church activities, political parties and good causes.  Now that I’ve offended just about everyone, I’ll proceed to explain why our focus should be on Jesus Christ. 

We have to travel skyward, to the 40,000 foot view of the earth.  When we get there the earth looks very different.  If we could stay there, suspended in the sky, while we read our Bibles’ we might be able to understand God’s governmental plans and Kingdom plans a bit better. When we read from Paul how we are to share what we gather with those who cannot gather as much, from earth it seems rather socialistic, and from the grand social experiments of socialism on earth, we can see why socialism doesn’t work.  But from our perch skyward how would it work? It would work if we were all on the same page with God as our focus, not motivated by sin but love, that’s how 2nd Corinthians works.  When we read Peter telling us to obey all ordinances, on earth we dig our heels in, refusing to obey what secular people impose on us.  But again from sky high we can see how it would work if again everyone knew God and was not motivated by sin.  As we read the Acts of the Apostles, we then would see why dunimas (power) is connected with salvation. The inherent power of the Holy Spirit is manifest when people are getting saved, not for what we want to use it for, or when we think we should use it.  From our view point we can now see why healings are most times hit or miss, we distort the things of God to fit our understanding and then try to do what we think is best in operating the gifts of the Spirit.  But from 40,000 feet up, the things of earth look small and insignificant.  Yet God’s Kingdom comes to us, on that little ball when we believe, and we then have a different citizenship.  While the problems and pressures on earth can seem overwhelming living on earth, from the heavens we realize something important.  We’ve been lied to.  There is no other purpose for believing believers of the Lord Jesus Christ but to make disciples of the unsaved.  When we witness, we have dunamis, and then we have added to the Kingdom of God on earth.  This in turn makes the saved/unsaved scales on earth tilt in favor of God Almighty.  Who would lie to us? Ultimately the burden falls on the father of lies, the devil.

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.KJV

As Jesus spoke with the Pharisees we can see he was speaking from firsthand knowledge.  In this section He told the Pharisees’ that they were not of His Father but that their father was the devil. Jesus also said that whoever sins is a servant to sin.  Keeping this in mind let’s look at a few cultural spins that can bind us if we allow it, then we will see our victory in our Savior Jesus. 

Personally I hate the doom and gloom prophets that just tell us all the bad news and make us feel hopeless and helpless.  That is not my intent; stay at 40,000 feet, cruising altitude, while we see the schemes of the father of lies and put them into perspective with who we serve, the Lord Jesus. 

Throughout history there have always been those who dominate people and try to overtake them.  In past blogs I wrote about what happened with Cain and Able, some of the historical stories that we can see from Jasher and Jubilees.  Remember Rikayon the first Pharaoh, he was the smart guy who came from Babylon to Egypt and figured out a way to tax people by setting himself up as a tax collector.  Today we might look at him as a smart business man; incidentally it is surprising how many searches people do for Rikayon, which lead them to my blog.  Fast forward a bit to Constantine who made a one world religion by combining a few religious sects. Rome was also the governing authority of the world, ruling from Rome and Constantinople.   When Rome fell apart, Constantinople continued under Byzantium.  Some think Constantine was a smart ruler, uniting and unifying religion.

Jumping ahead to more modern history, there was a man with the last name of Bauer.  He had a bright idea, he would loan people money and charge interest.  His son took that a step further and decided to lend money to governments and charge interest.  Well someone today might say that they were smart businessmen, as they made a fortune.  To insure their continued wealth these men, who now had changed their name to Rothschild had to influence and at times strong arm governments.  Numerous secret societies popped up worldwide to promote the interests of these individuals.  While the free market countries are under this ruling authority there are those nations that are not under this arrangement, and there is conflict, sometimes manufactured conflict, to eventually bring us all together in a one world government.  At least that’s someone’s great idea.  Mix in with this free market capitalist culture, religion, and now we can see the mixing, spinning and twisting of propaganda by the devil to distract us from the one thing. 

If you’ve ever seen the card game Illuminati: New World Order (you can view the playing cards on line) you will understand how the devil has set up spinning and twisting in every direction of our world culture to keep us from the mission of the one thing. On one hand we have greedy big business (boo they are bad). Then there are militant counter big business groups that fight the big business’ (yay, they are supposed to be the heroes). Yet both are propagated and supported by the same people.  Surprise!  Here’s another example.  On the one hand there are the scientists who are attempting genetic engineering to find ways to help human sickness using animals for testing (boo more bad guys).  And on the other hand there are the animal rights activists who don’t want any animal testing (yay they are the heroes again).  But both are supported and funded by the same group.  Surprise again! We can now see how the song Crazy Train by Ozzy Osbourne makes perfect sense!

Just like we talked about with genetic engineering in Part 5, sometimes this is very beneficial to people, yet some fight against it because of the testing on animals.  Then there are people who call themselves Christians who try to scare people into thinking scientists are building the Nephilim.  Then there are the sick people who are trying to raise money for funding to help with scientific advancement for their sickness.  Then there are the desperate that are willing to be the guinea pigs in testing.  And of course there are the scientists and doctors with the ideals of relieving human suffering with genetic advancements.   Some have died without treatment. And sadly there are those who tried the approved medications or surgeries who did not benefit from it.  Then there are the heartbroken families who wish a cure was available for their loved one who died. I think of Michael J Fox and his life with Parkinson’s disease. There are so many aspects to each issue, whether that of medicine, world politics, world religions, world economies, this is the devil twisting spinning, and setting up witchcraft to keep us away from the one thing.  If you hear a one sided diatribe on a subject, before forming an opinion, do some research to find out for yourself.  Better than being gullible to every lie of the devil.

As long as we are at it, here is another one.  There are groups that come out of the Church that say they are like the church, because they believe in the Bible.  But sometimes they don’t believe in many parts of the Bible because they think there are forgeries in the Bible.  Big Church is bad (boo). Small group that has odd ideas is good (yay).  I’ll share a story of some friends of mine here so this makes even more sense.  Once there were some people who were heathens, they accepted Jesus as their Lord.  Now they are called……Christians, right.  But somehow they got disgruntled with the church so they made up a new name for themselves, indicating that they believe in Jesus but not the New Testament.  They decided the New Testament is all made up so therefore people should follow them.  Some of these folks even changed their birth names.  Then they attack the church and bash the church for the things the church believes. Yet they take people out of the church to make them their followers.  Now those new people support the ones who are the church bashing name changers.  What is even more ridiculous is that this unusual group misses the one thing.  They don’t get anyone saved; heathen, Jew, Gentile, or any other category of personhood you can think of. The followers of this group give money to the name changing church bashing leaders for them to live on, instead of the churches who have missions and outreach programs to get people saved.  I have to ask, why would anyone follow these people?   It is another way the devil creates a spin to make you distracted so you forget the one thing.

Another area of spin is the false prophetic ideas that make the United States of America the center of the universe to God. Everything regarding our prosperity is because God likes us, or if something goes wrong its God punishing us as a nation.  The best determination of the America’s in scripture is in the usage of the outer islands.  How did we push the USA up next to Israel? Spin.  While God does not like abortion (and let me say I am against it), He is not going to just punish just the USA for that, what about mass genocide in Rwanda, starvation deaths in Somalia and Sudan, or planned abortion according to gender in China.  How about the awful news report of late that the Chinese capsulate processed fetuses and sell them to South Korea for sexual enhancement.  Who gets punished? The Chinese, the Koreans or both?  We have to take the global view of the world.  We are all sinner nations.  There are no Godly nations, just Godly people in those sinning nations. But wait, where is our citizenship? Is it in the USA or the Kingdom of God? Since the time of Jesus walking on the earth does God look at entire nations or individuals. Good questions.  From 40,000 feet what does it look like to you? 

Now we are getting somewhere.  The devil has twisted world events, world leaders and religious groups in every direction imaginable to keep everyone off balance and contentious with everyone else.  The truth in anything lies somewhere in the middle of the mess.  And again we are not under the kingdom of any man, but of God Almighty, therefore as we live under His authority we do not fulfill the sins of the nations. We are saved from the wrath to come.

Rev 18:3 For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.KJV

Rom 5:9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.KJV

1 Thess 5:9 For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, KJV

Somehow the other side of this type of superstitious thinking is when you go to the mall and get a parking spot in front, God is obviously blessing you, right?  Sure he blesses you in America but is looking the other way in Syria.  Really?  Have we become that superstitious that we believe God is only concerned with how far we have to walk while others are murdered and starved, obviously forgotten by God? Wait don’t they have Christians in other nations? Simply put we prosper here because of the structure of our society and governance that allows individual prosperity. People can invent, and work hard, and figure out a way to make money. But God is not rearranging the parking lot at the mall just for you; that is called hyper spiritualism, attributing good events to God and bad events to the devil.  Look we have bad weather and storms all over the world, but we’ve only been tracking them for 100 years or so.  That is simply not long enough to tell anything.  And 100 years ago, one would be lucky to find out if there was a storm somewhere they didn’t live, forget about details.  I think a key is when Jesus said we would hear of commotions or war etc the key word is “hear”.  One hundred years ago we might hear or might not hear of things happening in a timely manner.  Today we hear almost instantly about a newsworthy event. The key is in the efficiency of hearing, not the event itself. Note Luke 21:9. One hundred years ago we or may not have heard about the happenings in Uganda, but with mass media, we’ve all heard about what has been taking place there.

There are people who say the Bible is full of forgeries or mistakes and we cannot trust it.  If you hear someone say that, they are either working for the devil or they are very uneducated.  Here is why. God protected his word with codes and structures that could not have been engineered by any man, ever. Even today with the usage of computers I challenge anyone to duplicate what God did in the Bible, Old and New Testament.  One type of coding by God is equi-distant letterings, but another is heptadic structure.  I’ll include sites for your consideration in the end notes.  Can you write a paper today, and use only a number of words that are divisible by seven?  Then in your paper make the number of consonants divisible by seven as well as the vowels divisible by seven.  Then make sure the number of repeated words in your paper is divisible by seven, as well as proper nouns, verbs, etc.  Get the point?

Jesus made it clear who he was while he was on earth.  He told us plainly so let’s explore the book of John.  These are the things he said about himself; about who he is and was, but the people didn’t all believe him.  His biggest fighters were the religious leaders who were concerned with rules, laws and their public appearance.  I’ve broken these things down into sections. There are seven plain explanations of who Jesus was saying he was using the phrase “I am”.  Then there are seven figurative “I am” phrases, that then there are fourteen different “I am” phrases which I did not include.  One of the fourteen was his declaration as to himself being from the beginning.  As we look at the verses, we can see that some were restated several times.  In E.W. Bullingers work “Numbers in the Scripture”, we have an explanation of the numbers in scripture.  I will site them following this section.

Who He Is

1. Name:           John 5:43 I am come in my Father's name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive.KJV

2. From Him:     John 7:28-29 Then cried Jesus in the temple as he taught, saying, Ye both know me, and ye know whence I am: and I am not come of myself, but he that sent me is true, whom ye know not.29 But I know him: for I am from him, and he hath sent me.KJV

3. Above:          John 8:23 And he said unto them, Ye are from beneath; I am from above: ye are of this world; I am not of this world.KJV

4. Son:             John 10:36 Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God? KJV

5. Father:          John 14:10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.KJV

John 14:11 Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works' sake.KJV

John 14:20At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.KJV

6. Not Alone:     John 16:32 Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave me alone: and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with me.KJV

John 8:16 And yet if I judge, my judgment is true: for I am not alone, but I and the Father that sent me.KJV

7. World:           John 17:11 And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.KJV

John 17:14 I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.KJV

John 17:16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.KJV

Jesus tells us about himself in figurative language so that we can get a picture of what he was saying about who he is.  We have seen paintings of Jesus offering bread or as a shepherd. These descriptive words tell us in images that stay in our minds’.

                                               

1.Bread:            John 6:35And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.KJV

John 6:41The Jews then murmured at him, because he said, I am the bread which came down from heaven.KJV

John 6:48 I am that bread of life.KJV

John 6:51 I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.KJV

2. Light:            John 8:12 Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.KJV

John 9:5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.KJV

John 12:46 I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.KJV

3. Door:            John 10:7 Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep.KJV

John 10:9 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.KJV

4. Shepherd:     John 10:11 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.KJV

John 10:14 I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.KJV

5. Resurrection: John 11:25 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:KJV

6. Way:             John 14:6Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.KJV

7. Vine:             John 15:1 I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.KJV

John 15:5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.KJV

The over encompassing “I Am” statement comes after discussing with the Pharisees who he was.  They did not believe on Jesus and therefore Jesus said they were of their father the devil.  What Jesus was saying is that he is the I AM, the one who spoke to Moses.

John 8:58 Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.KJV

To give us a few more clues in this section Jesus tells the Pharisees that before Abraham was, He was I AM.  Now remember in verse 56 Jesus told them Abraham saw his day and he rejoiced.  The Pharisees responded by saying that Jesus wasn’t even 50 how could he see Abraham.  Who was it who walked and talked with Abraham as a friend, during the time of visitations before Sodom?  Who called Abraham a friend?  The same one who gave Moses the commandments is also the same one who stood before them testifying of himself. 

John 8:18 I am one that bear witness of myself, and the Father that sent me beareth witness of me.KJV

I Am He            John 8:24 I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.KJV

John 8:28 Then said Jesus unto them, When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things.KJV

John 13:19 Now I tell you before it come, that, when it is come to pass, ye may believe that I am he.KJV

John 18:5-8 They answered him, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus saith unto them, I am he. And Judas also, which betrayed him, stood with them.6 As soon then as he had said unto them, I am he, they went backward, and fell to the ground.7 Then asked he them again, Whom seek ye? And they said, Jesus of Nazareth.8 Jesus answered, I have told you that I am he: if therefore ye seek me, let these go their way: KJV

Jesus bears witness of himself and by His coming we can have eternal life.  This is the one we have to keep our eyes on.  This is why nothing else matters in the world, with all of its spin, and twists, and lies.  Remember walking in love is concerned with the here and now, not on what possibly may be or could be some day.  We see that Jesus said things multiple times in some instances. He calls Himself the vine twice and the bread four times, while saying ‘I am he’ five times.  Here is a look at what some of the repetitive numbers mean.

·         One denotes unity and commencement

·         Two denotes difference

·         Three denotes completeness

·         Four denotes creative works/earth

·         Five denotes divine grace

·         Six denotes the human number

·         Seven denotes spiritual perfection

·         Eight denotes resurrection, regeneration

·         Nine denotes finality of judgment

·         Ten denotes ordinal perfection

The Spiritual Significance of Numbers , appendixes 10, page 14, The Companion Bible, EW Bullinger, Zondervan Bible Publilshsers. Reprinted by permission of The Bullinger Publications Trust 1964,1970,1974.

The conclusion to the matter is that our focus should be on Jesus, and if God gives us a passion about something then we should pursue it, be it politics, causes and the like as long as we keep in mind along the way the one thing. The Devil will make us crazy trying to figure out the way things are but we are dead to the world.

Colossians 3:1-3 Therefore, if you have risen with Christ, seek what is above, where Christ sits at the right hand of God. 2 Think what is above and not what is on the earth, 3 for it is dead to you and your life is hidden with Christ in God. (Aramaic  Peshitta New Testament Translation, Janet M Magiera, Light of the Word Ministry, LWM Publications, Copyright 2005, 2006.) 

Now for the one thing.

Matt 28:18-20 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.KJV

Mark 16:15-20 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;18 .They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.19 So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.20 And they went forth, and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.KJV

Luke 24:46-49 And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day:47 And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.48 And ye are witnesses of these things.49 And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.KJV

Acts 28:30-31 And Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house, and received all that came in unto him, Preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ, with all confidence, no man forbidding him.KJV

Rom 11:25 For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.KJV

The one thing is to call people to repentance and make them disciples.  If we get distracted with the world, and the fears of the evil people ruling the world, we will miss the one thing. If Luke were here today he would be writing Acts chapter 29 and following about what we have done since.  According to Romans there is a number of Gentiles that has to be fulfilled, we are not privy to the number but we have the obligation to keep adding to the church.  Therefore keeping our eyes on Jesus is the key. And if we are fighting and contending with each other, we are not keeping our eyes on Him.  The things of this earth are dead to us so now we can live as though they are truly dead. We have victory over witchcraft.

End Notes:

Heptadic structure in scripture.

http://www.khouse.org/articles/1995/102/

http://www.breadoflifebiblestudy.com/Lessons/29BibleNumerology/Articles/Seven01.pdf

http://www.cuttingedge.org/news/n1362.cfm

http://www.bereanpublishers.com/Apologetics/Book_Info_On_Ivan_Panin.htm

History of Money

http://www.xat.org/xat/moneyhistory.html

Fear Motivation or Walking in Love, Witchcraft Part 5

I hope you have been using the right toothpaste because otherwise you might get cavities.  And if you don’t have the right insurance, you might not be covered if a satellite crashes down on your home.  And just in case you are not getting enough nutrition, and really who ever does these days, I hope you are drinking a special vitamin drink.   Marketing companies have a vested interest in scaring you into buying their products.  They really want to sell you something and fear is a great motivator.  Unfortunately you cannot always believe commercials to be true.  Manipulation is everywhere, someone wanting you to believe that what they have is something you need.  It can be hard to not be emotionally swayed by a snake oil salesman but for our own benefit we have to learn.

Sometimes people think that if the medical community doesn’t seem helpful that herbs and natural remedies are the way to go.  However holistic promoters use the exact same fear based marketing that everyone else uses.  No one, not even the holistic marketers, have your best interest in mind only their bottom dollars.  Once I saw that someone was selling an electrostatic mat that you plug into your wall to rid your home of radiation.  What? An electrostatic mat is used in electronic companies for the worker to stand on so that the equipment does not receive a static charge.  So someone told a wild story about radiation in your home being sucked away by an electrostatic mat and people who don’t know anything about science buy these mats, at $400 each.  First of all you cannot get rid of radiation in your home with  your electrostatic mat plugged into your wall.  If you want less radiation, get rid of the granite counter tops, stone fireplace and any other natural materials your house is made with.  We can see that people are gullible and willing to believe the stupidest things because they want to feel better.  Another great product that is promoted as being natural and better for your health than the Teflon alternative is a clay rice cooker.   Well it is natural but what someone isn’t telling you is that clay comes from the ground and has heavy metals in it naturally, as well as insecticides, herbicides, and pesticides.  No one can clean the clay so that the clay does not contain contaminates before making the rice cooker.  What people think is a healthy way to cook rice has now become more dangerous than the man made alternative.  Again, marketing companies get paid to sell us; they don’t get paid to tell us the truth. 

This idea of using fear to get you to buy something is not unfamiliar in the Christian church.  Church has become a big part of the marketing manipulators of the world as churches have become more of a business than a place of worship.  We use fear and intimidation in God’s name to get people saved and coming to church.  And while we should fear God we should not be motivated by men selling fear about God.  As we all have seen from the pulpit, if we don’t buy someone’s latest book we may not make it to heaven.  Better we buy the book just in case.  Also if we don’t ______ (you fill in the blank), the pastor will know we are not good enough to go to heaven.  I’m pretty sure God did not give that judgment to any man, nor has He left it up to any man’s opinion.  We have to see what the Bible says about fear.  

Gen 9:1-3 And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth.2 And the fear [4172]of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every fowl of the air, upon all that moveth upon the earth, and upon all the fishes of the sea; into your hand are they delivered.3 Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things.KJV

OT:4172 mowra' (mo-raw'); or mora' (mo-raw'); or morah (Ps 9:20) (mo-raw'); from OT:3372; fear; by implication, a fearful thing or deed:KJV - dread, (that ought to be) fear (-ed), terribleness, terror.(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

Here God tells Noah that the animals will fear them and that He has given all the animals and herbs to humans for food.  Now let me ask the question, do we fear animals?  They should fear us.

Ps 2:11 Serve the Lord with fear [3374], and rejoice with trembling.KJV

OT:3374 yir'ah (yir-aw'); feminine of OT:3373; fear (also used as infinitive); morally, reverence: KJV -  dreadful,  exceedingly, fear (-fulness).(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

Here we see we are to serve the Lord with fear. We are to be conscious in the way we serve, morally and with reverence.  That is truly how we are to come before God.  So if we are sitting in front of the television and someone tries to make us afraid of the political election candidates, we are to remember that the fear we have is not godly fear, it is human fear.  Instead when we serve God, no matter what we do to serve, we should be conscious of what we are doing, are we doing a sloppy job or our best?

Matt 10:24-33 The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord.25 It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of his household?26 Fear [5399] them not therefore: for there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; and hid, that shall not be known.27 What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light: and what ye hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the housetops.28 And fear [5399] not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear [5399] him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.29 Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father.30 But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.31 Fear [5399] ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.32 Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.33 But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.KJV

NT:5399 phobeo (fob-eh'-o); from NT:5401; to frighten, i.e. (passively) to be alarmed; by analogy, to be in awe of, i.e. revere:KJV - be (+sore) afraid, fear (exceedingly), reverence.(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

Jesus says that if they call Him Beelzebub what do you think they will call you, his servants? What the people were trying to do is instill fear into the hearts of those who were not followers. Beelzebub is another name for satan, also known as the dung god.  In essence people were calling Jesus the god of dung and that was to inspire fear into those who might think about following along.  Jesus says if they call me the god of dung what are they calling you? Jesus says not to fear them because one day it will be revealed who said what and why.  Then he goes on to say not to fear those who can kill your body because those people cannot kill your soul, instead we should fear God who can destroy both body and soul in hell.  People use fear, intimidation, to make you do what they want, and killing people is a good motivator.  However if Jesus points out that all people can do is kill your body we must be more than just our bodies.  At that time the Holy Spirit had not come, and the day of Pentecost had not come, people’s spirits were not born again.  Therefore since people were body, soul and spirit un-renewed, Jesus points out to them that they should be more concerned with God who can destroy their soul in hell.  He then points out that nothing happens without God knowing, even our ever changing number of hairs does not go unnoticed. Jesus says not to fear because we are worth more than sparrows. Then He says something we should be concerned about.  Jesus says if we confess him before men (remember people were saying Jesus was the god of dung) he will confess us before the Father in heaven, and if we deny him before men, well, he will deny us.  If there is something to fear here it would be that we continue confess him until the day we die.

In this passage we see that there are people that will use fear to keep us from God just as they will use fear to drive us to God.  There is only one way to live our lives that is to not be afraid of what people are saying.  We can turn off the television, we can stop reading the papers, we can stop reading the news on the internet, but at some point we will have to deal with people.  How can we live in the world and not deal with people?  All we can do is weigh everything that we hear and see, and not make snap or rash decisions.  If you hear someone asking for money, don’t give any right away.  Wait a day or two and pray about it.  If the need is still there and God says give then do so, but after a day or two if God is not leading you to do it, don’t. Do not be motivated by the pictures of sad children. God knows they have need too, it’s not just the Americans He sees, He knows the number of hairs on their heads as well. 

1 Peter 2:13-20 Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake: whether it be to the king, as supreme;14 Or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well.15 For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men:16 As free, and not using your liberty for a cloke of maliciousness, but as the servants of God.17 Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear [5399] God. Honour the king.18 Servants, be subject to your masters with all fear [5401]; not only to the good and gentle, but also to the froward.19 For this is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully.20 For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God.KJV

NT:5401 phobos (fob'-os); from a primary phebomai (to be put in fear); alarm or fright:KJV - be afraid,  exceedingly, fear, terror.(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

This section in Peter, no one likes to read, I think we all read this with a cringe.  Submitting to ordinances, or corrupt kings or governors seems so awful, we surely should be justified to not follow the laws of the corrupt.  But as Peter says, that with well doing, the foolish men who call us followers of the dung god will be put to silence.  Again he says here fear God, and as servants be subject to our masters with fear.  Again meaning use concern and morality and reverence in all that we do at work or in service to God, by doing so we will be a great example of the followers of Christ.  And if we suffer for something we have done wrong, there is nothing wrong with that but if we suffer for serving God and we patiently endure, we will be rewarded by God. 

1 John 4:18 There is no fear [5401] in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.KJV

Love NT:26 agape (ag-ah'-pay); from NT:25; love, i.e. affection or benevolence; specially (plural) a love-feast: KJV - (feast of) charity ([-ably]), dear, love.(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

Perfect NT:5046 teleios (tel'-i-os); from NT:5056; complete (in various applications of labor, growth, mental and moral character, etc.); neuter (as noun, with NT:3588) completeness:KJV - of full age, man, perfect.(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

Casteth NT:906 ballo (bal'-lo); a primary verb; to throw (in various applications, more or less violent or intense):KJV - arise, cast (out),  dung, lay, lie, pour, put (up), send, strike, throw (down), thrust. Compare NT:4496.(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

Torment NT:2851 kolasis (kol'-as-is); from NT:2849; penal infliction: KJV - punishment, torment.(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

Perfect NT:5048 teleioo (tel-i-o'-o); from NT:5046; to complete, i.e. (literally) accomplish, or (figuratively) consummate (in character):KJV - consecrate, finish, fulfil, make) perfect.(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

Literally there is no terror in benevolence but complete benevolence violently throws out terror because terror has punishment and penalties.  He who has terror is not consummated in benevolence. 

What we see in first John is a verse of scripture we should memorize and teach everyone around us.  If we think with the filter of love, if we act with the filter of love, if we do with the filter of love, hence if we walk in love, then we should not be fearful.  If we are motivated by love, love will override our fear.  When we act in love, our actions will cast out fear.  People who have fear are tormented, tormented in every area of life where there is not perfect love.  Not only are people who have fear tormented, they are not made perfect in love.  This is where we need to understand that witchcraft wants us to live and abide in fear.  Then we will not live fully in Jesus.  The soul purpose of fear motivation, or witchcraft, is to make you imperfect in loving others.  If you are fearful, you will make others fearful.  Instead we should be motivated by love and benevolence which will keep us from being afraid of things in this life. 

One of the biggest motivators of Christian fear is in trying to get Christian people to think they are helpless, being ruled by evil doers and that every scheme and plan evil people have will somehow harm us.  This is where we need to grab hold of our minds and again put on love.  It is true that evil people run the governments of the world, if not there would not have been genocide in Rwanda, or starvation in Somalia.  There would not be wars or threats of wars either.  There would not be corrupt people stealing, lying and taking advantage of others, large scale and small scale.  Yet in all of that we have to understand that we are still sons and daughters of a God who knows when one of my hairs falls off my head and onto the floor.  He is a God who knows me, even if I don’t understand Him very well.  Therefore there should not be anything that inspires fear into us, which motivates us fearfully, instead we should walk in love and not fear.  There are evil people ruling the world but by doing as Peter suggests, we make them ashamed.  If we live a life of benevolence we will not be caught up in useless fears.

I’ve included the following article I read last week in my End Notes.  This is sure to inspire fear into the hearts of Christians.  For what purpose?  In the Christian worldview, we could be “made” to think against Jesus and our moral compass. Here is where we see the need for us to walk in love. What matters in love is the here and now. Not the possibility of what could happen in the future.  Most of those who will read this article will probably think the same way I did and ask, ‘aren’t they already doing that?’ ‘Isn’t the media the puppet of political agendas, and doesn’t the media already only tell us what someone else wants us to hear?’ That’s what I thought.  Again, here is a partial solution, turn off the media that scares you, read the Bible that empowers you.  Look at the world from the seat of a 747, things look different.  Everyone, whether Christian, witch or pitchman, wants to sell you something, throw out what is foolish, and cling to that which is good.

When confronted by people who want to put you in fear, ask the question, ‘what can I do about that’.  If it is something that is in the realm of your ability to change, then change it.  If it is out of the realm of your ability to change, then don’t waste time worrying about it, simply walk in love.  The distraction of witchcraft is to keep us from the one thing we are called to do, which is to make disciples. If we live scared, in a corner, away from everyone else, we will be safe from witchcraft but we will not be making disciples.    The entire purpose of the devil’s tricks and schemes is to keep us from making people disciples of Jesus. 

End Notes:

New Bill Would Make It Legal To Target Propaganda And “Psychological Operations” Directly At U.S. Citizens

http://www.infowars.com

Should it be legal for the U.S. government to spend billions of dollars on propaganda designed to change public opinion in the United States? Should it be legal for the U.S. government to use television, radio, newspapers, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, blogs and Internet forums to conduct “psychological operations” targeted at the American public?

An amendment that has been added to a new defense bill in Congress would make it legal to target propaganda and “psychological operations” directly at U.S. citizens. The latest version of the National Defense Authorization Act would overturn the Smith-Mundt Act of 1948 and the Foreign Relations Authorization Act of 1987. Those two laws essentially make it illegal for propaganda that is used to influence public opinion overseas to be targeted at U.S. citizens back here at home.

If those two laws are struck down, there will be essentially very few limits to what the U.S. government can do to shape our opinions. The government would be able to bombard us with propaganda messages on television, on the radio, in our newspapers and on the Internet and there would not even be a requirement that those messages be true.

In fact, just as happens so often overseas, it would likely be inevitable that the government would purposely disseminate misinformation to the American public for the sake of “national security”. That is why it is imperative that this bill not become law.

As an article posted on LegalInsurrection.com correctly noted, this bill has already been passed by the U.S. House of Representatives….

Their bill was included as amendment 114 to the Defense Authorization Act and passed out of the House on Friday, May 18. It would amend two existing acts: the Smith-Mundt Act of 1948 and the Foreign Relations Authorization Act (1987).

Fortunately, it looks like this amendment might run into some trouble in the U.S. Senate. But during an election year, not many politicians want to appear “soft” when it comes to national security, so it is definitely not a sure thing that the Senate will reject this amendment.

This amendment has been kind of “flying under the radar”, so now would be a good time to contact your U.S. Senators and let them know exactly how you feel about this.

So precisely what would this new amendment do?

A recent article by Michael Hastings of Buzzfeed.com did a good job of explaining how it would change things….

The new law would give sweeping powers to the State Department and Pentagon to push television, radio, newspaper, and social media onto the U.S. public. “It removes the protection for Americans,” says a Pentagon official who is concerned about the law. “It removes oversight from the people who want to put out this information. There are no checks and balances. No one knows if the information is accurate, partially accurate, or entirely false.”

Do you want the Obama administration to use mass media in the United States to push a particular political or social agenda?

Do you want the State Department and the Pentagon to conduct psychological operations targeted at you, your family and your friends?

Do you want to see and hear government propaganda everywhere you go?

In a previous article I detailed 25 ways that America is becoming more like Nazi Germany, and I suppose I now have another item to add to the list.

Sadly, the government is already “pushing the envelope” when it comes to using the media. In his recent article, Michael Hastings detailed some examples of how the Pentagon is already attempting to shape public opinion in the United States….

In December, the Pentagon used software to monitor the Twitter debate over Bradley Manning’s pre-trial hearing; another program being developed by the Pentagon would design software to create “sock puppets” on social media outlets; and, last year, General William Caldwell, deployed an information operations team under his command that had been trained in psychological operations to influence visiting American politicians to Kabul.

According to U.S. Representative Mac Thornberry, one of the sponsors of the bill, current law “ties the hands of America’s diplomatic officials, military, and others by inhibiting our ability to effectively communicate in a credible way.”

Apparently we cannot think for ourselves and we need the government to help us to see things more clearly.

But when it comes to “psychological operations”, the people that run them do not always play nice.

Just check out what happened recently to two USA Today reporters….

A USA TODAY reporter and editor investigating Pentagon propaganda contractors have themselves been subjected to a propaganda campaign of sorts, waged on the Internet through a series of bogus websites.

Fake Twitter and Facebook accounts have been created in their names, along with a Wikipedia entry and dozens of message board postings and blog comments. Websites were registered in their names.

If this new bill becomes law, there will be very few limits on what the government can do.

And just like the two USA Today reporters, you could end up being a target.

If the government propaganda experts decide that they don’t like you, it is quite likely that you could end up being the target of a massive misinformation campaign.

It could come down to the fact that they simply do not like your blog or what you are saying on Facebook. They could decide that it is best to destroy your reputation for the sake of “national security”.

These kinds of “Big Brother tactics” are absolutely disgusting, but they are becoming part of who we are as a nation.

According to one recent DHS report, if you revere “individual liberty” or if you “believe in conspiracy theories” you are a potential terrorist. And if you are a potential terrorist, then it would only make sense to conduct psychological operations against you before you become an “active” threat.

Sadly, many Americans already act as if they have been brainwashed by propaganda. Recently, a shocking video from North Carolina of a teacher yelling at a high school student and telling him that disrespect of Barack Obama is not permitted in the classroom went viral all over the Internet.

The teacher honestly seemed to believe that it was forbidden to “disrespect” Barack Obama.

That is frightening.

Our founders insisted on a limited federal government for a reason.

They greatly feared what might happen if the federal government became too large and too powerful.

At this point, not only is our freedom of speech under attack, but our freedom of thought is under assault as well.

If we are not very careful, America is going to be turned into a giant prison.

Those of us that still love freedom and liberty must be willing to speak out now before it is too late.

Once our freedoms and liberties are gone they will be incredibly hard to get back.