October 5
Jer 4:19-6:15 | PS 77:1-20 | Prov 24:23-25 | Col 1:18-2:7
I mention daily to people the importance of reading the entirety of Scripture. I will state it again now, how can anyone know truth without doing this. The teachings in our school system, in universities, from politicians, from the media has time and time again shown to not be trustworthy, yet this is what the multitudes choose to quote and literally to stake their lives upon. Many view the Bible as too tedious, too voluminous, sadly, too unnecessary to "waste" their precious time with, yet, truth can be found nowhere else. As Jeremiah discusses terrible destruction which will occur in Jerusalem, with his people, he writes in Jeremiah 5:19, "And it will be when you say, ‘Why does the Lord our God do all these things to us?’ then you shall answer them, ‘Just as you have forsaken Me and served foreign gods in your land, so you shall serve aliens in a land that is not yours.’" Like them, we in America are an arrogant and prideful people, as we read in 5:23-25, "But my people have stubborn and rebellious hearts. They have turned away and abandoned Me. They do not say from the heart, 'Let us live in awe of the Lord our God, for He gives us rain each spring and fall, assuring us of a harvest when the time is right.' Your wickedness has deprived you of wonderful blessings. Your sin has robbed you of all these good things."
We are warned in Jeremiah 5:31, "the prophets give false prophecies, and the priests rule with an iron hand. Worse yet, my people like it that way! But what will you do when the end comes?" Our God can change the weather, change the climate simply by speaking His Word. Yet religious and political leaders continue to put forth the nonsense of "climate change" as though we are somehow in control. Yes, we should be good stewards of God's creation, but God and God alone will decide when our world comes to an end, not us. We read in Jeremiah 6:14, "They offer superficial treatments for my people's mortal wound. They give assurances of peace when there is no peace." Yet religions and their leaders put forth one false teaching after another: whether it be "woke" policies, gender confusion (negating the fact that God was never confused when He decided on that individual's gender), social justice (forgetting that we are all one race descended from one set of parents: Adam and Eve), cancel culture, etc. Paul in Colossians 2:4, states, "Now this I say lest anyone should deceive you with persuasive words."
We read in Colossians 1:21-22, "And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight—". God clearly states throughout His Word that you are either His friend or His enemy, His child or an alien, holy and blameless or full of guilt. It really is up to each and every one of us. One can go their own way, develop their own narrative of truth, defend it, argue it, etc. But we all die, and we all go before the throne for judgment. It's not that those in Christ necessarily led better or cleaner lives, for even many of God's enemies lead fairly moral lives. Even one sin excludes us from eternity with an all perfect, all holy, pure God. Just one! It is only through Jesus, the Messiah, who bore our sins on the cross that we can be cleansed and presented holy and blameless. No amount of good works or charitable deeds can rectify our sinful thoughts and actions. This makes no sense to the masses who are schooled in the "wisdom" of education, politics, and media, but it makes perfect sense to those who choose to be students of God's Word, the Bible. So, this day choose for yourself what is it that you are placing your trust in. For me, I will stake all of my trust and hope in the Living Hope, the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, in Jesus the Christ, who alone offers the perfect sacrifice to pay for my sins: past, present, and future.
Messages from Pastor Lloyd Pulley: