Strangers & Pilgrims in Faith, Hebrews 11:13-16

The Hall of Faith is teed up at the end of chapter 10 by saying:

You have need of endurance so that after you've done the will of God you may receive the promise. For yet a little while and He who is coming will come and will not tarry.

Now, the just shall live by faith; but if anyone draw back My soul will have no pleasure in him. (Heb. 10:36-38).

Then, the first thing we see in Hebrews 11 is a powerful pillar:

“Faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1).

Then a second powerful pillar appears in Hebrews 11:6: “Without faith it's impossible to please Him.”

In between we read amazing feats of faith.

By faith the elders obtained a good testimony. (Hebrews 11:2)

By faith we understand the worlds were framed by the Word of God (Heb. 11:3).

By faith Abel offered a more excellent sacrifice (Heb. 11:4).

By faith Enoch did not see death, for he had this testimony, that he please God (Heb. 11:5).

By faith Noah being Divinely warned, prepared an ark for the saving of his household (Heb. 11:7).

By faith Abraham went out and dwelt in the land of Promise with Isaac and Jacob, seeking a city whose Builder and Maker is God (Heb. 11:8-10).

By faith Sarah received strength and conceived life judging Him faithful who had promised. (Heb. 11:11-12).

On and on the Hall of Faith names heroes of faith by name.

Then, it closes in a climax of courage with the spotlight on unnamed faith heroes.

"Who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, became valiant in battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. Women received their dead raised to life again.

Others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection. 

Still others had trial of mockings and scourgings, yes, and of chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented—  of whom the world was not worthy.   They wandered in deserts and mountains, in dens and caves of the earth. 

And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise.

God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us." Hebrews 11:33-40.

Tucked quietly in the midst of these powerful pillars and courageous feats of faith is a diamond in the rough.

With just a few verses the Lord graciously allows us to see as He sees, into the thoughts and intents of the hearts of these faith heroes.

And then, even better, He reveals His response.

That diamond in the rough is what we have the honor of examining today.

Hebrews 11:13-16
These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced (greeted) them and confessed (admitted, acknowledged) that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. 14 For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland. 15 And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.

An outline of our text, and/or, a profile of the Hall of Faithers, may look like this:

1.    Endurance. Died in faith (13a)

2.    Selfless. Not having received the promises (13b)

3.    Patient. Saw and greeted them afar off (13c)

4.    Perspective. Understood they were strangers and pilgrims (13d)

5.    Committed. Seek a Homeland (14-15)

6.    Covenant. Desire a better, heavenly...(16a)

7.    Unashamed. The glorious response of our Lord. (16b)

1.    Endurance

These all died in faith.

Well, all but Enoch and Elijah. They walked with God, until one day they were taken, raptured, caught up, they did not die. Enoch, simply “was not” for God took him. Genesis 5:24.

Elijah was caught up in a chariot of fire. 2 Kings 2:11.

They didn’t need to find faith at the last minute. No death bed repentance needed.

These Hall of Faith Saints lived by faith and died in faith.

They endured to the end.

They crossed the finish line in faith.

This is important because how we finish matters.

All the good we’ve done before will be forgotten if we turn from Him to sin. 2 Peter 2:20-21, Ez. 3:20, 18:24, 33:12-20.

They lived with their eyes on the Prize, the Promise, their bags packed, ready to go at any moment.

Do you?

Do your loved ones?

Do those God’s given you?

Have you asked them?

If they say, “Maybe someday, not today.”  

Give them warning: To not live by faith, but to live by flesh may make it impossible to die in faith. And without faith, it’s impossible to please Him. Hebrews 11:6.

Saving faith takes more than lip service for fire insurance, it takes repentance of the heart. Matthew 3:2, 4:17, Mark 1:15.

It’s rare and hard for a person to change their mind and heart at the flip of a switch. Saying, “sorry” just because you’re in trouble, doesn’t count.

So, to be safe, be like the just, and just live by faith. Then, dying in faith will take care of itself.

They endured and died in faith.

2.    Selfless.

Not having received the promises

What promises?

Well, a few verses back Heb. 11:9, says, ^“By faith he (Abraham) dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise.”

Specifically referring to God’s promise to Abraham beginning in Genesis 12:1-3, that He would make him a great nation with an abundance of prosperity and property, and people and that through him all nations of the earth would be blessed. Of course, that was referring to the coming of the Messiah, Jesus Christ.  

Additionally, there was the first promise that pointed to the Seed of the woman that would crush the serpent’s head. Genesis 3:15. Of course, that too, was referring to the coming of the Messiah, Jesus Christ.

Now, since the Promised Messiah has come, He has given us even more promises.  

2 Corinthians 1:20. For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.

2 Peter 1:2-4. Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, ³ as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, ⁴ by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

Speaking of partaking of His Divine Nature, Jesus promises His Holy Spirit filled with exceedingly great and precious fruits and gifts. (Luke 24:49, Acts 1:4).

According to Jesus His Holy Spirit is our, Helper, Teacher, Guide, and Spirit of Truth; He abides with us, reminds us, testifies through us, and tells us of things to come.  John 14:15-16, 15:26, 16:13.

And that, is just a small introduction.

He has a whole basket full of fruit, just waiting for you to taste and see that the Lord is Good.

The Holy Spirit is not only a fruit maker, but a gift giver:

All those are characteristics of folks filled with the Holy Spirit.

Do they describe you?

The Saints in the Hall of Faith, received not the promises, yet they selflessly endured looking not to themselves, but forward to the Promise.

3.    Patient.

They did not receive the promises, but having seen them afar off, embraced them

The faith heroes needed patience to embrace God’s promises when He revealed that His plan was a multigenerational marathon.

Through faith and patience they greeted, welcomed, embraced God’s big picture, even though it would be fulfilled after their life on this earth.

James 1:2-4. “Count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.”

Like the shot of energy produced in a marathon runner who presses through the pain of “the wall” by looking to the joy of the afar off finish line, so too, are you, when you press through the testing of your faith, by looking to Jesus.

Faith heroes know, tests of faith produce patience muscles needed to finish the race strong.

4.    Perspective

They confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.

They knew they were just passing through.

Having that Eternal Perspective makes all the difference in the world.

Faith heroes know they are just pilgrims in search of a city whose Builder and Maker is God.

This earth is not our home.  

5.    Committed

For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland. 15 And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had opportunity to return.

Faith heroes are not double-minded, not looking back like Lot’s wife, not calling to mind their old lifestyle, but seeking a Heavenly Homeland.

Casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. 2 Corinthians 10:5.

Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. Luke 6:45.

Faith heroes are committed to keeping their words and thoughts set on their Homeland.

6.    Covenant

But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country.

Endurance, selflessness, patience, eternal perspective, commitment, leads to covenant.

Psalm 37:4. Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.

Their heart’s desire is heavenly.

That comes from being in covenant with the Lord.

Being in covenant with God, releases the world’s gravitational pull.

When you have the Best, the world has nothing to offer.  

7.    Unashamed

Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared for them a city.

“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. ² In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. ³ And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. John 14:1-3.

“Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you.” “I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the LORD Almighty.” 2 Cor. 6:17-18.

 

Let’s pray.

Lord Jesus, we know Your Word is True that says, “For yet a little while, He who is coming will come and will not tarry.”

Help us obey Your Word that says, “Now the just shall live by faith.”

And please keep us in remembrance that You also said, “But if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him.”

We pray that we are not of those who draw back to perdition, but of those who believe to the saving of the soul.

Now Lord, will You make us to be soul winners and disciple makers, so we, and all those You’ve given us, will indeed be, Your sons and daughters.

Thank You.

We love You, forever.

Amen.

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Shaved by a Sword, Ezekiel 5

Son of man, build a model of your beloved Jerusalem under siege. Build a siege wall around her, a siege mound against her, place battering rams at her gates, and the enemy camped all around her.

You will lay on your left side 390 days for the sins of Israel. And then on your right for 40 days for the iniquity of Judah. During these days you will not roll or change from side to side, for these words are established and set, and I will not turn aside or change My mind.

When you cook use fuel of dung, for the iniquity of Israel and Judah is a stench in My nostrils. Thus, they will eat defiled bread.

That summarizes the prophetic vision of Ezekiel 4, that continues into chapter 5.  

Before we cross the threshold into Ezekiel 5, imagine you sit down in the Barber's chair for a trim and shave and the next thing you know...

He pulls out a sword, and hands it to you.

Ezekiel 5:1
“And you, son of man, take a sharp sword, take it as a barber’s razor, and pass it over your head and your beard; then take scales to weigh and divide the hair.

Take a sharp sword as a barber’s razor and shave your head and beard?

What? Wait! Something’s not right here.

Priests are not supposed to shave their head and beard. Their unshaved hair represents consecration to God.

Shaving reflects loss of consecration, great disgrace, or mourning.

But Zeke was super consecrated. He built the model of Jerusalem under siege just like God asked. 

He laid for hundreds of days without complaint. He even ate food cooked over poop (cow dung).

Now this? Why would God ask Zeke to be disgraced like this?

Well, for one thing, Ezekiel wasn’t a priest, he was a prophet.

The prophet spoke for God.

And what God wanted to say through the prophet’s action was that the iniquity of Israel had brought on them a loss of consecration, great disgrace and mourning.

Ezekiel used a sword to show judgement would come by way of the sword.

Ezekiel cut his own hair, his own beard, to show their own sin, brought this upon their own head.

And the warning must be taken personally.

Listeners dare not say, “sucks to be them,” and go on about their merry way.

No. You must take heed and consider your own roll in sin. 

I swung the hammer, I held the nail, my sins nailed Jesus to the tree.

“Take scales to weigh and divide the hair” reflects that God’s judgments are weighed, balanced and just, to a hair’s breadth and width.

He sees not just our outward deeds, but our inward thoughts and motives.

Hebrews 4:12-13 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. 13 And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.

You have been weighed in the balance and come up wanting.

 ² You shall burn with fire one-third (of his hair) in the midst of the city, when the days of the siege are finished; then you shall take one-third and strike around it with the sword, and one-third you shall scatter in the wind: I will draw out a sword after them.

Through Ezekiel, the Lord dramatized another prophetic warning of what would happen to the Jews in Jerusalem about a half-dozen years later. (In 586BC Babylon’s third siege destroyed Jerusalem).

One third were burned.

One third struck with the sword.

One third scattered to the wind.

Several believe, “burn with fire one-third in the midst of the city” was carried out on the clay tablet Ezekiel made with the drawing of Jerusalem under siege (Ezekiel 4:1).

Which makes sense since he was a captive in Babylon, so he couldn’t travel 500 miles west to Jerusalem to burn a third of his hair in the city.

 ³ You shall also take a small number of them and bind them in the edge of your garment. ⁴ Then take some of them again and throw them into the midst of the fire, and burn them in the fire. From there a fire will go out into all the house of Israel.

There was small number of poor Israelites left in Jerusalem. (Jer. 39:10).

Even they faced the weight of God’s judgment.

(2b) From there, I will draw a sword out after them... (4b) a fire will go out into all the house of Israel.

Meaning, of those who stay and those who go, none will escape the long arm of the Lord’s judgement.

Hebrews 12:29. For our God is a consuming fire.

Deuteronomy 4:24. For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.

Galatians 6:7-9. Be not deceived; God is not mocked: whatsoever a man sows, that shall he also reap... (That’s good news or bad, depending on what you’re sowing). ⁸ sow to the flesh and reap corruption, sow to the Spirit and reap life everlasting ...⁹ weary not in well doing for in due season you shall reap if you faint not. 

If you don’t quit, you win.

Ezekiel’s True but painful prophecy about Jerusalem being burned, struck with the sword and scattered to the wind, contradicted false prophets promising a golden age of peace and prosperity.

God speaks Truth, even if it hurts.

He tells us because He loves us.

Proverbs 3:11-12, My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, nor detest His correction; for whom the Lord loves He corrects, just as a father the son in whom he delights.

⁵ “Thus says the Lord God: ‘This is Jerusalem; I have set her in the midst of the nations and the countries all around her. 

I have set her (Jerusalem) in the midst of nations and countries.

This is True spiritually and physically.

Israel is the apple of God’s eye. Zechariah 2:8, Deuteronomy 32:10.

Salvation is of the Jews. John 4:22.

Israel is the centerpiece of God’s plan.

Ø Where the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. John 1:14.

Ø Where the Son of God was born, lived and died for the Salvation of the world.  

The timepiece of His earthly clock.

Ø Where He split time from BC (Before Christ) to AD (Anno Domini; Latin: in the year of our Lord).

Ø Where He will return to end the age, destroy evil and set up His earthly Kingdom from Jerusalem. Rev. 19:11-21.

Ø Where He will lead us through the millennial reign to the end of time.

Upon His return it’s the Jews who will recognize Him as the One whom they pierced. They will mourn as one mourns for their only son and all Israel will be saved. Zech. 12:10, John 19:37, Rev. 1:7. Rom. 11:26.

So be not deceived, God loves Israel, has an everlasting covenant with Israel. Genesis 12:3, 13:15, 17:8.

If you have a problem with Israel, you have a problem with God. He says of Israel and no other nation, “I will bless those who bless you, and curse those who curse you.” Genesis 12:3, 27:29, Numbers 24:9.

To even think God replaced or abandoned Israel due to her sin is an insult to God’s integrity and sovereignty. 

God knew they’d screw up before He ever laid eyes on them, yet He chose them.

God knew You would screw up too, yet He chose you.

God never makes mistakes.

While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Rom. 5:8.

⁶ She has rebelled against My judgments by doing wickedness more than the nations, and against My statutes more than the countries that are all around her; for they have refused My judgments, and they have not walked in My statutes.’ 

⁷ Therefore thus says the Lord God: ‘Because you have multiplied disobedience more than the nations that are all around you, have not walked in My statutes nor kept My judgments, nor even done according to the judgments of the nations that are all around you’— ⁸ therefore thus says the Lord God: ‘Indeed I, even I, am against you and will execute judgments in your midst in the sight of the nations. ⁹ And I will do among you what I have never done, and the like of which I will never do again, because of all your abominations. 

God is just.

His judgements are right.

That does not mean equal.

God does not do DEI (Some say that means diversity, equity and inclusion. However, in God’s eyes, it’s probably more like, demons entertaining idiots).

Israel was given His judgements and statutes. So, they are held to a higher standard.

To whom much is given much is required. Luke 12:48.

Therefore, they should be examples of Godliness.

Instead, they rebelled and refused. They did not walk, nor keep, nor do, His statutes and judgements.

So, they receive a stricter judgement, a greater condemnation. James 3:1.

It’s no surprise the nations around her, Islamic nations, like Iran, Iraq, Libya, Turkey, etc. have Jew hating leaders that do not follow God’s laws and ways.

That can be expected.

It doesn’t make it right.

They will be held accountable.

There will be a day of reckoning. They’ll be judged by God for yielding to hate instead of following their God given conscience.

Also, they will be judged by how they treated Israel. Matthew 25:31-46.   

Speaking of nations being judged, let’s look at US.

America was built on God’s judgements and statutes.

We are held to a higher standard. We receive a stricter judgement, a greater condemnation.

Let’s look even closer.

For American Christians to allow evil to rise to power as it has, is inexcusable.

We’ve willingly been so lukewarm and lazy, that our apathy led to such atrophy, that we can’t even keep deranged men out of our daughter’s shower.

Almost a fifth of our population is missing. Over sixty-three million babies, slaughtered. It still continues by over a million a year.

We let it happen.   

We allowed a handful of, not so supreme judges, to overrule God, the Supreme Judge of all the Universe.

We allowed them to hand us abortion and gay marriage.

We allowed them to take Bible reading and prayer.

We’ve made them commander in chief over the president in the tariff war.

On our watch, we’ve allowed people to rise to positions of power that our founding fathers might’ve hung as treasonous traitors.  

We just handed the keys for the most powerful capitalist city in the world, to an anticapitalist; Muslim Marxist Mayor Mamdani.

That’s insanity. An awful antithesis. A flashing warning of wickedness.

Anti-constitution, Israel hating, congresswoman, Ilhan Omar said "Praise be to Allah" over Mamdani's win.

In Tehran Iran, they celebrated Mamdani’s election.

Iran wants to destroy America "big satan" and Israel "little satan".

Fouad Izadi, political theorist and lecturer at the University of Tehran, said that Zohran Mamdani’s victory was built on slogans reflecting, the Iranian spirit on the day the US Embassy was seized, and that future candidates who embrace these principles will be the next rulers of the United States.

When those who want us dead, celebrate the victory of the mayor of our most powerful city, and compare it to when they seized our US Embassy, we are under siege from within.

Charlie Kirk was sounding the alarm, warning: “Immigration without assimilation is invasion.”

The enemy silenced him. The puppet who shot him didn’t have a clue, but the demons that tempted him knew.

Mamdani’s ideology is anti-constitution, anti-Christian. It’s opposite everything America stands for.

And sadly, what many of America’s youth are ignorantly clamoring for.

This awful antithesis is a flashing warning of wickedness.

Why?

Because evil is always an inversion. It calls evil good, and good, evil. It accuses others of the very thing it is guilty of.

Matthew 16:18, Jesus told us, “I will build My Church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it.” That means Jesus expects His Church to be shining His love and Light in the darkness, marching forward, prevailing against the gates of hell.

If only His Church will unite and stand and shine, darkness will flee.

Jesus rebuked the Compromising and Corrupt Churches of Pergamos and Thyatira for allowing deceptive doctrines and the immorality of Jezebel. Revelation 2.

You may be a great Christian, who never sins, (much).

But what do you allow?

There are times you’re not supposed to turn the other cheek (as in turning a blind eye to evil).

The Church must stand up, confront evil, speak Truth, in love.

Lest we become comfortable, complacent and complicit in sin.

Our disobedience isn’t always about what we’re doing, but often because we’re doing nothing.

All it takes for evil to prevail is for good men to do nothing.   

James 4:17, Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.

¹⁰ Therefore fathers shall eat their sons in your midst, and sons shall eat their fathers; and I will execute judgments among you, and all of you who remain I will scatter to all the winds.

¹¹ ‘Therefore, as I live,’ says the Lord God, ‘surely, because you have defiled My sanctuary with all your detestable things and with all your abominations, therefore I will also diminish you; My eye will not spare, nor will I have any pity. ¹² One-third of you shall die of the pestilence, and be consumed with famine in your midst; and one-third shall fall by the sword all around you; and I will scatter another third to all the winds, and I will draw out a sword after them.

¹³ ‘Thus shall My anger be spent, and I will cause My fury to rest upon them, and I will be avenged; and they shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken it in My zeal, when I have spent My fury upon them. ¹⁴ Moreover I will make you a waste and a reproach among the nations that are all around you, in the sight of all who pass by.

¹⁵ ‘So it shall be a reproach, a taunt, a lesson, and an astonishment to the nations that are all around you, when I execute judgments among you in anger and in fury and in furious rebukes. I, the Lord, have spoken. ¹⁶ When I send against them the terrible arrows of famine which shall be for destruction, which I will send to destroy you, I will increase the famine upon you and cut off your supply of bread. ¹⁷ So I will send against you famine and wild beasts, and they will bereave you. Pestilence and blood shall pass through you, and I will bring the sword against you. I, the Lord, have spoken.’ ”

This severe prophecy was fulfilled exactly as the Lord through Ezekiel foretold.

Lamentations 4:10, paints a heart wrenching picture of this time saying: “The hands of the compassionate women have cooked their own children; they became food for them in the destruction of the daughter of my people.”

The famine, wild beasts, pestilence and sword, not only tell history past, but HIStory future, in the quickly approaching Tribulation shimmering on our horizon.

However, dear child of God, do not lose heart or hope, as noted in the Epoch Times article, The New Moral Revival: Why Socialism Feels Like Faith to a Generation Searching for Meaning, which reads in part:    

Yet another revival is quietly rising alongside it. Religious devotion is growing again among young Americans, particularly young men. They say they are drawn not to institutions but to discipline, virtue, and community—the very things missing from modern life. The same hunger that drives some toward socialism is leading others back to faith. Both recognize the world’s moral collapse. One begins with the transformation of the self, the other with the transformation of society. One teaches repentance and forgiveness, the other teaches resentment and control. One redeems the soul, while the other reengineers the world.

There’s hope and healing available as long as there’s a Christian still standing. Dear Church, fight, fight, fight, the good fight of faith, until the Lord calls us Home.

Let’s pray.

Lord Jesus, thank You for telling us the Truth, even though it hurts. Help us not fear darkness but face it and chase it, prevailing against it by uniting with You, standing strong, shining bright, Your Love and Light. So together we, and all those You’ve given us, will hear You say, “Well done.”

Thank You.

We love You, forever.

Amen.  

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This was feed for you to read. Now it’s Seed for you to sow.

Thank you for sharing.

Prepare Plant Receive by Faith, Hebrews 11:7-12

For ten chapters we looked at Jesus the Author and Finisher of our Faith.

Now, in chapter 11, we’re called to walk by faith. To leave the nest. To step out of the boat. To trust and obey.

To live a testimony, leave a legacy, of God honoring faith.

Like the saints who’ve gone before.

Like the Elders, and Abel and Enoch. (Heb. 11:1-6).

Now our eyes turn to Noah, and Abraham and Sarah (Heb. 11:8-12).

Noah prepared an ark to save and warn against impending judgement.

Abraham believed and planted seed that would lead to the Promise.

Sarah received, conceived, gave birth, carried and nurtured new life.

⁷ By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.

Divine Warning

Matthew 24:37. But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 

Noah was Divinely warned.

Ezekiel was Divinely warned.

Both were commanded by God to build a sign of the judgement to come.

Noah built a boat.

Ezekiel built a mini-Jerusalem under siege (Ez. 4).

Noah’s sign was to the whole world.  

Ezekiel’s was to the whole nation of Israel.

In both cases the judgement was because of continual unrepentant sin.

In both cases the judgement was imminent.

The Divine warning was not to prevent judgement, but to repent and be on the right side of the Lord on the day of judgement.

Amos 3:7. God does nothing unless He first reveals His plan to His prophets.

Therefore, if we, like them, have fallen into sin, and if we, like them, are also facing imminent judgement, then, will God who Divinely warned them, also do the same for us?

WARNING SIGNS:

Annual US Death Statistics.

Heart disease: 680,981.

When speaking of the end times, Jesus gives us Luke 21:26, Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth

Cancer: 613,352.

Abortion: 1,037,880.

Sadly, egregiously, abortion is not included in death statistics. The number one cause of death in our nation, is the slaughter of innocent babies.

The statisticians simply ignore it.  

God doesn’t.

If the innocent blood of one man named Abel got God’s attention (Gen. 4:10), how much more a million plus per year?  

Martyr Charlie Kirk. The strongest voice of Truth and Freedom silenced. People of vile, reprobate, corrupt, debased minds celebrated, some wore Halloween costumes mocking his fatal wound.

Muslim Marxist Mayor Mamdani. An anticapitalist mayor of the most powerful capitalist city in the world.

That awful antithesis is a flashing warning of wickedness. Why? Because evil is always an inversion. Calling evil good and good evil. Accusing others of what they themselves are guilty of. Mamdani’s ideology is anti-constitution, anti-Christian, pro-islamic revolution in America, or as Obama puts it, “Fundamentally change the United States of America. It is the opposite of what America stands for.   

Ilhan Omar said "Praise be to Allah" over Mamdani's win.

In Tehran Iran, the regime is celebrating Mamdani’s election.

Iran, who wants to destroy America "big satan" and Israel "little satan".

Iran, who 20 years ago (1/17/16) received $400 million in cash from muslim president Barack Hussein Obama. Then, within a few weeks two more plane loads of cash for an additional $1.3 Billion.

Fouad Izadi, political theorist and lecturer at the University of Tehran, said that Zohran Mamdani’s victory was built on slogans reflecting, the Iranian spirit of the day the US Embassy was seized. That future candidates who embrace these principles will be the next rulers of the United States.

When our enemies liken the victory of the mayor of our most powerful city to our US Embassy being seized; we are under siege from within.

Charlie Kirk was sounding the alarm, warning: “Immigration without assimilation is an invasion.”

The enemy silenced him. The puppet who shot him had no idea, but the demons that tempted him did.

Government shutdown.

We are 38 Trillion in debt.

Interest on debt $881 billion.

National defense $874 billion.

Dems demand $1.5 Trillion.

That is suicidal insanity. Or, genius if your goal is to collapse our Constitutional Republic.

No country ever recovered from being this upside down financially.

That is why Trump works around the clock and around the world on trade deals and tariffs.

That’s the reason for the DOGE overhaul.

Last-ditch efforts are being made to salvage our nation, while others fight against them at every turn.

Which brings us to the last warning sign we’ll look at:   

Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing (Matthew 7:15).

People disguised as, Conservative Christians, Patriots, but are possessed with the demonic deception of Jewish hatred.

They sow seeds of deceit and discord, blinded by demonic hatred for our greatest ally, and the apple of God’s eye, Israel. The only nation that comes with a promise from God. “I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you.” Genesis 12:3, 27:29, Numbers 24:9.

HIStory has repeatedly proven those words to be True.

Founding father, John Adams, rightly said:

"Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other"

Jesus says, “A house divided cannot stand.” Matthew 12:25.  

Matthew 24:37. But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 

He warned them back then, in the days of Noah, and so, He has, and does, and will warn us.

The question is: What will we do?

Will we follow the world and not heed the warning?   

Genesis 6:5-8. Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. 7 So the Lord said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.”

Or will we be like the few, with Noah and crew, and heed God’s warning?

Genesis 6:8. But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.

By faith Noah being Divinely warned of things not yet seen.

He didn’t have to see it to believe it.

 When it comes to the Word of God, circumstances are irrelevant.

2 Cor. 4:18. While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.

Heb. 11:3, the worlds were made by the unseen Word of God.

Noah had never seen rain, never built a boat, never saw a boat that big, it would’ve been the biggest boat in the world, for centuries.

It didn’t matter if he didn’t understand.

Obedience brings understanding.

By faith Noah being Divinely warned of things not yet seen moved with Godly fear (reverential respect).

Proverbs 9:10. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.

Noah moved with Godly fear and prepared an ark for the saving of his household.

Whatever God tells you to do will leave room for the saving of your household. They may not come on board, but in God’s plan there will always room and an outstretched hand for the saving of those God has given you.

Let’s ask the Lord, here and now:

Lord, what kind of ark do you want me to prepare for the saving of my household?

An open door.

A place at the table.

A friend on the other end of the phone.

A visit, a letter, a note, an email, a text, a gift left by the door.

An hour of prayer in the middle of the night.

A Godly example.

Words of wisdom.

A well lived life...

By which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.

He wasn’t condemning the world with words of hell, fire and brimstone, but shining as “a preacher of righteousness...,2 Peter 2:5.

Quiet peaceable Godly character speaks louder, convicts deeper, than a thousand shouting preachers.

⁸ By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. ⁹ By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; ¹⁰ for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.

I’m leaving my home in Ur of the Chaldeans (modern day southern Iraq).

Why?

God told me to go. He said He’d make me into a great nation and through me all families of the earth will be blessed. So, I’m going.

Where?

I don’t know, He said He’d show me.

He did.

Genesis 13:14-18. And the Lord said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him: “Lift your eyes now and look from the place where you are—northward, southward, eastward, and westward; ¹⁵ for all the land which you see I give to you and your descendants forever. ¹⁶ And I will make your descendants as the dust of the earth; so that if a man could number the dust of the earth, then your descendants also could be numbered. ¹⁷ Arise, walk in the land through its length and its width, for I give it to you.”

¹⁸ Then Abram moved his tent, and went and dwelt by the terebinth trees of Mamre, which are in Hebron, and built an altar there to the Lord. (not himself).

The land mass promised to Abraham was about 300,000 square miles. Genesis 15:18, Numbers 34:1-12.

However, we see nothing of Abraham laying a foundation, building a building. No houses, barns, not even a sign saying, “Abe’s Place. Given by God.”

He lived as a foreigner, on the move, in tents.

Once he planted a tamarisk tree, by the well he dug in Beersheba. Genesis 21:33.

Other than that, he planted his sights on a city with foundations, whose Builder and Maker is God.

His Eternal Perspective kept his priorities in place. So, in faith, he was able to offer his beloved son Isaac, when God asked. Knowing, that God was able to raise him from the dead (Heb. 11:19).

Planting toward Eternity, puts everything in proper perspective.

 He planted God’s Eternal Promise into the hearts of Sarah, Isaac and Jacob as well.

God said as much in Genesis 18:17-19. “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing, ¹⁸ since Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? ¹⁹ For I have known him, in order that he may command his children and his household after him, that they keep the way of the Lord, to do righteousness and justice, that the Lord may bring to Abraham what He has spoken to him.”

¹¹ By faith Sarah herself also received strength to conceive seed, and she bore a child when she was past the age, because she judged Him faithful who had promised. 

By faith, Noah built.

By faith, Abraham obeyed and planted toward that heavenly city.

Sarah had to internalize, pause and ponder. Perhaps like the virgin Mary say, “Be it unto me according to your word.”

She received strength to conceive seed in her 90 year old barren womb.

Strength for nine months of pregnancy, at 90 years old.

Strength to give birth and nurse and nurture a baby, at 90 years old.

Faith to build and prepare and plant is one thing. You can put feet to your faith.

However, Faith to conceive, where you’ve ever been barren.

Now doubly barren, due to age.

That kind of faith takes judging Him faithful who had promised.

Lord, there is absolutely nothing I can do, it’s all up to You.

In my weakness Your strength is made perfect (2 Cor. 12:9).

In myself I can do nothing, but in You all things are possible (John 5:30, Phil. 4:13).

No matter what, I trust You.

¹² Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born as many as the stars of the sky in multitude—innumerable as the sand which is by the seashore.

Faith to birth New Eternal Life, makes angels sing and heaven crowded.

Let’s pray.

Lord Jesus, help us face the flood, build the ark, plant toward Eternity and keep our eyes set on You and not on this earth. Lord, give us the strength

to birth to new life, to be soul winners and disciple makers, so we and all those You’ve given us will hear You say, “Well done.”

Thank You, Lord.

We love You, forever.

Amen.

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This was feed for you to read. Now it’s Seed for you to sow.

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