POST SCRIPT
Recently, I have had an email exchange with my sister about the principles set forth in this book. She posed the following question:
“You certainly have a plethora of scriptural evidence backing you and it rings true to me, but a nagging gut feeling keeps tugging a me, reminding me of others who have spoken as you have and are now atheists or agnostics because all it took was one crisis or catastrophe for them to shake their fist at the heavens and curse God, because they believed and he let them down and didn't come through with his promises. Didn't the Holocaust spawn thousands of atheists?”
In my book, on page 78, I address this question about being disillusioned and becoming atheist by the horrors of life. I set up the premise in the first chapter challenging people to stop being wishy washy[1] and make up their minds, is Jesus for real or is he just a mythical character. If he is real, was he really divine and had the powers that he claimed he had? For all of us active Christians, why aren't we able to replicate the miracles of Jesus, especially when he commanded us to? Why can't we literally move mountains? But, more importantly, why can't we be healed? Why are we so subject to the randomness of this world? Being Christian is in vain if we can't have dominion over the elements and over our enemies. Most Christians wrongly think that the blessings and promises of Jesus come after we die and don’t apply to this mortal life. WRONG!
The great message of Jesus is that his promises apply now, in this present life.
So, my book is designed to make people choose, either be a true follower of Christ or don't claim to be Christian, you can't have it both ways. Many have chosen not to be followers of Jesus; they see the horrors of life, the hypocrisy and the disappointment and choose the broad road that leads to destruction. For those who do choose to be a true follower, it is easy and it is not hard, Jesus has made it very easy.
Our great grandfather's name is Job. The story of Job in the bible may be one reason why Grandpa Dewey was so panicked when you did not come home on time. The story of Job is the story of bad things happening to good people. However, my take on Job is that he was very righteous and did a lot of good, but he did not invoke the name of Jesus Christ nor the Lord his God for protection. There is no indication that I could see that he sought the assistance of the legions of angels who are waiting to be asked to help. He assumed that his righteous acts were enough and that he was not required to do anything more.
Personally, I don't believe that the Lord God, Jesus Christ, would ever have an agreement with Satan to bring suffering to any man. Satan seeks to make us miserable and the greater the horror, the greater the blood and pain, the better for him. Jesus' mission is to prevent Satan from being successful and to save us from all enemies while in this life. If it is merely a matter of enduring until we die, then Jesus has really done nothing new for us, we have always had the sweet release of death since the time of Adam. But, if we are like Job and think that our righteousness alone will protect us, then we are in error. If we are living the two great commandments, then we will love with all of our hearts and we will call upon him continually for deliverance and we will be delivered.
Enoch never experienced anything like Job did. The difference is that Enoch sought power from on high to be delivered from all enemies. Adam and Eve learned the true order of prayer and called on the Lord God continually. Satan tried to intervene, but in the case of Adam and Eve, Satan did not prevail and Adam and Eve knew sorrow from their rebellious posterity, but they never had to endure pain and suffering directly from the hand of Satan. Enoch, Adam and Eve, Noah, Abraham and many others had final victory over their enemies. Daniel calmed the Lions. The Christians, who were thrown to the Lions and eaten by them, did not know how or did not believe that they could do what Daniel did. Jesus is no respecter of persons. What he did for Daniel, he would do for anybody.
Jesus said that the wise man built his house upon the rock and the rains came and beat upon the house and it did not fall.[2] The house was not hurt by any destructive forces nor were its occupants hurt. If the beating upon the house meant pain and suffering to the house, then there really is no advantage over the house built upon sand. Jesus is the rock and his promises never fail. Jesus did not say, "Build your house on the rock and most of time I will protect you but the day may come when I will have to allow you to go through some catastrophe even though your house is built upon the rock”.
Jesus, the rock, willingly and voluntarily allowed catastrophes to come upon him in the form of crucifixion and horrible pain and humiliation at the hands of the most vile and wicked on the earth. Why? He did it so we wouldn't have to! When the wicked were allowed to have full free agency and allowed to have their way with him, that was their last chance. He forever foreclosed on them any right that they might have to lay claim to free agency as an excuse for afflicting those who call upon his name. Those who have built their house on the rock, have a fully paid off mortgage and have complete and full protection from their enemies who can do no harm to them by any means. It is only conditioned on believing on him and remembering him always. Any exceptions to this, makes Jesus a liar and he is not a liar.
In allowing himself to be at the whim of his enemies and allowing them to sacrifice him, an infinite power was released and that infinite power forever removed any power that the enemy had over his righteous followers, his seed. The seed of Satan may have power to bruise the heel (sorrow and sweat) of the seed of Jesus but the seed of Jesus would have power to bruise or crush the head of Satan's seed (make them their footstool).
The catastrophes, disasters, horrific events and atrocities of life are atheist making events. Jesus has said that they can be avoided and are not necessary for our eternal life and salvation. They happen because we don't want to believe him, we don't want to take a chance on him.
Adam and Eve were told that by the sweat of their brow they would make their bread and that in sorrow they would conceive and bear children. Hard work, sweat, and sorrow even befell Jesus in spite of his power. He made most of his bread with sweat. Only when necessary for a wise purpose, did he bypass sweat and multiply the loaves and the fishes. Likewise, he experienced much sorrow. But, I can handle the sweat and I can handle the sorrow caused by the unnecessary suffering of others, what I can't handle is having a little child of mine abducted, tortured and abused. That is not what Adam and Eve signed up for nor is it what God expects of us. When Adam and Eve came into the cold and dreary world, they were told that they would have dominion over the whole earth. THAT PROMISE WAS NOT REVOKED WHEN THEY PARTOOK OF THE FRUIT! Jesus was subject to the same curse as Adam and Eve but he, like them, remained with dominion over the elements. That dominion remains today, especially among his chosen and those who take upon them his name and always remember him (see page 68 of my book).
If I use the name of Jesus Christ to place a shield of protection around my children and if I ask for angels to be round about them and to prepare the way for them, then they will not deny my request. When Enoch called upon the name of Jesus Christ to be protected from his enemies, the Lord did not say unto Enoch, "Look Enoch, the wicked and evil have their free agency and I simply can't stop them from doing their evil work or I would be taking away their free agency. Sorry, you came to this earth to let them work out their free agency and perform works of horror on you and your loved ones. But, be of good cheer. The suffering of your little ones in Satanic ritualistic ceremonies will be but a small moment, and I will heal them afterwards. Yes, it will be indescribably painful for a while, but at some future day beyond the veil, they will get over it. Now Enoch, endure to the end, accept what is dished out to you, stop calling on me and my angels to intervene because we won't. Deal with it." Did Jesus say that to the lepers, the blind, the afflicted with evil spirits? Did Jesus say, "Look, the evil spirits that possess your son, they have free agency and I can't stop them from doing their work. You will have to learn patience while they continue to possess his body and exercise their free agency." Did he tell the adulteress, "My dear, these men who are about to stone you have their free agency and as such, you will have to endure the horrible pain of stoning but be of good cheer, some day you will get over it after your spirit is released from its body." ? Did he tell Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, "My sons, you will be burned alive in the furnace because King Nebuchadnezzar has his free agency and it would not be right to force him to believe in my power through a miracle because to do a miracle would take away his free agency. You must suffer and die in the furnace so that Satan and his followers can't accuse me of taking away their free agency." Did the Lord tell them that?
Many of the Jews and many millions of others in captivity, raised their voices in terrified screams and pleadings to God, and received no deliverance, became atheists or became indifferent to religion. They were not as Enoch and they were not as Moses because they did not love the Lord their God with all of their heart and all of their souls. They did not enter in at the strait gate and command the elements in the name of Jesus Christ to deliver them. They did not call upon the angels in the name of Jesus Christ. I would assert that the few Jews, who did enter the strait gate and called upon the name of Jesus Christ, never were required to go to the concentration camps in the first place. They were given a way to escape and were delivered.
The problem with most Jews and with most Christians is that they do not love the Lord their God with all of their hearts and they do not take the name of Jesus Christ upon them. They do not recognize that they are Gods, as Jesus said, and do not even try to have dominion over the elements.
It is important to remember that the foolish man who built his house upon the sand because he did not heed or do the sayings of Jesus, saw his house fall and great was the fall thereof or great was his suffering. This causes great sorrow to Jesus because such suffering can be avoided.
If the catastrophe comes, if the child is abducted or whatever horrible thing you can think of, then we really don't believe in Jesus and we do not invoke his powers because we continue to "draw nigh unto him with our lips but our hearts are far from him, we teach for commandments, the commandments of men and practice a form of godliness, but deny the power thereof". We have rejected the fullness of the gospel, we are as salt that has lost its savor.
One Million Dollars in Doubt and Denial, Two Cents in Belief and Faith
In this book, I have written about the importance of the widow’s two (2) mites in relation to living the first and great commandment given by Jesus Christ. What Jesus was trying to tell us with that actual real life example (not parable) was that most of us are in the same position as the widow and all we have are two mites to give. He is not trying to tell us that we are counted among those rich with money, but to the contrary, that we have something to give but we don’t give it, even our two mites.
We can be likened unto a Christian man who has $1,000,000. But, I will call it a bank account of $1,000,000 in doubt and denial. In another account, this man has 2 pennies, 2 cents, I call the account of belief and faith. This man goes through life spending liberally from his big account of doubt and denial. His million dollar account is spent on many church callings and in going to meetings and doing various service projects. He replenishes his account through many traditions, associating with other like minded people that support his traditions, seeking to understand and obey countless written and unwritten laws and regulations. One of the biggest ways he keeps a big bank account is through his reliance on man-made technology including man-made medicine, man-made security, and man-made information systems and media.
Technology is not bad. Technology has its place and can be good. It is allowing me to write this book. It only becomes bad if it weakens or denies our resolve to live the First and Great Commandment. Loving and relying on the Lord our God first, then using our powers of technology as a supplement to the First and Great commandment.
Why do I call this big account, doubt and denial? Because, through his doubts, denials and fears, he has created a large account of man-made traditions, man-made laws, man-made security, man-made weaponry, man-made science and man-made technology upon which he relies to handle his fears about the dangers and evil in the world. It is denial because he denies the promises of Jesus. Denial says, “Jesus made the promise that all things are possible but I have no idea how to apply them to my life so it is better to just ignore them. I can see and handle man-made technology, therefore, I will trust in it and deny the promises of Jesus and his miracles,” Because he is so driven by doubt and fear of what this life can dish out, he has created a comfort zone of doubt and denial supported by his big account.
Meanwhile, he never touches his 2 cents of belief and faith. Why? He relies so much on the man-made things of this world, that which can be seen and felt empirically, that he has not saved hardly anything based on belief and faith, that which requires reliance on Jesus Christ and his promises. His false traditions from years of going to church make him think he is spiritual and that he has faith, but in reality, he does not because he does not replicate the miracles of Jesus nor do his great works. He does not believe Jesus when he says “nothing shall be impossible unto you”. Most importantly, he hides behind his big bank account of doubt so he does not have to dip into his tiny account of belief and faith.
He does not want to use his small belief and faith account because his doubt account is so big, that he sees no need to do so. Moreover, if he does dip into his belief and faith account, he fears spending it and then getting no results! What if he spends his two cents of belief and faith and no miracle comes? His fears about spending his small belief and faith account give him more deposits in his doubt account. Now, his doubt account is fatter than ever!
All of us are like this man. We are like the rich people to whom Jesus referred in the experience with the widow with two mites. We give of our abundance from our doubt and denial account, but we give nothing from our belief and faith account. The story about the widow with two mites is not only about material wealth, but it is also about relying too much on anything that is related to the flesh and the products of men.
Jesus said,
“It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God”
It is not money or material wealth that keeps the camel from going through the eye of the needle or the rich man from entering the kingdom of God, it is his huge, fat bank account of doubt and denial. There are many people with lots of money who will enter into the kingdom of God. Their money is not keeping them out.
What God is asking us to do is to give him the two cents from the belief and faith account. He is not asking us to suddenly have a big faith and belief account. He is asking us to give all that we have, even if it is only two mites, or one mite or a half a mite, whatever we have and it will be counted as giving our all. He is asking us to take the leap of faith and trust in him with all our heart, no matter how small that trust might be.
It is what he meant when he spoke of the mustard seed. It is small. Almost not worth talking about but if it is all we have to give, he will take it and miracles will happen. But most people are not even willing to give that. They will not give their two cents because that is too risky, it means giving up their large, fat doubt account on which they have built their traditions. It has served them well in many cases. It has been a distraction, it has kept them busy, it has made them comfortable.
When a little girl in their neighborhood is abducted and atrocities committed, they throw more deposits of doubt in their big account rather than spending the two cents of belief and faith that the abduction could have been avoided if they would have believed in the words of Jesus, “nothing is impossible unto you”. And, “be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”
Even as you read my words, you cringe with some discomfort. Who does the author think he is to presume that kidnappings and abductions can be avoided? Does he presume to say that people who have horrible things happen to them are not good people? No, that is not what I am saying. I am saying the same as Jesus, take his yoke upon you for it is light and easy to bear, learn of him and he will give you rest. An abduction of a little child is not an easy burden to bear and will take years before you find any rest, no matter how much you may try. Jesus is not asking for years. Jesus is not saying, “I can’t take away the free agency of a bad person who may want to abduct your child. But what I can do is help you cope with it and make you feel better about it.” That is NOT what he is saying. He is saying, “I will deliver you from your enemies”. “They can by no means do any harm unto you”. Just give me your two mites, your two cents of belief and faith, or whatever you have. This is exactly what happened in the case of the loving father with the afflicted boy,
Mark 9:23” Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth. 24And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.”
Did you catch that? Not some things are possible, all things are possible! Even the deliverance from horrible calamities of life! Jesus did not say to the father, “Look, if I heal your son, you will not learn the lessons of adversity that you need to learn. Yes, your son’s affliction is painful but that pain will make you stronger. Endure to the end and you will be blessed with treasure in heaven.” That is NOT the message of Jesus! That is the message of Satan, the destroyer, who seeks that all men be miserable like him.
The father was still spending from his huge doubt account, but he dared dip into his scanty belief and faith account and gave Jesus what little he had, his two mites. Jesus did the rest. He deposited huge amounts of belief and faith in his little account, converting the doubt into belief and faith. Jesus will do the same for us.
[1] Rev 3:16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew thee out of my mouth.
[2] Matt 724Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: 25And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. 26And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: 27And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.
