On the hill in Jerusalem where God decided to put His name and house the portals of justice and enlightenment the appointed family created a business for themselves. It is not a Christian or Gentile observation. As early as the 12th century BC Samuel (1:2:12) documented the signs of abuse, and he was as close to the action as one could get.

Jeremiah (7:11) witnessed it and reported Yahweh’s evaluation.

Is this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, even I have seen it, saith the Lord.

The crimes the priests perpetrated in the name of God included extrajudicial death sentences, theft of property and by New Testament they had non-priestly allies in their oppression of the people. Scribes, who should have known better, joined them. The extremist and moderate parties were all part the lucrative temple business.

Shades of worthlessness rising

The excitement about new wealth and influence in America too closely mirrors the developments in antiquity to be bypassed. The facts, the confessions, the findings of many courts, and the speculation point to a criminal heart beating in Washington, in the Republican party, and in the newly legislated rights of churches and schools to use propaganda and innuendo. The 45th president himself is disappearing in a howling storm of criminal activity. The office itself shields him, for now.
Next, a calamitous crash,  as surely as there is a wailing wall in the Holy Land.

The more noise we make about humanity (“us”), our competence, achievements, and our distinctions only serves to highlight the face that hates its nose. The people who make the most noise about their own tribal lives are likely to be mediocre and trashy. We usually find them uncomfortably squirming in a scornful seat, semi-saved, semiconscious, semi literate, talking loud and saying nothing. We cannot make gold medallists of third rate athletes.

Parse that video

Truth can be a thing we fear

Truth needs minds not lips saying “yea”

Of all the things that could convince the unbelievers of Christ’s interest one would suppose that reversing death or life, nullifying the effects of angels, principalities, powers, future or present things would top the list. God has not promised anyone an innoculation against tribulation, distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, peril, sword.

What killed Moses?

Who condemns us for not walking in the Spirit? Romans 8:1

Can you pray away the futility of life? Romans 8:20

It is good also that we keep the boundaries of authority in the right perspective because, unlike His Majesty at Mount Sinai, we are not commissioned to test the people. Our calling is to love as Christ loves, and neither fable nor miracle can turn a lie into the truth.

We are drinking the rushing and muddy waters of the ugly shepherds. Even when the messenger says that the message is “Christian” the line to Christ is blocked more often than not by imprecise slogans, unrelated verses, and the covetous pursuit of comfort and victory.

These are truly dark days. The voice of good shepherd is unmistakable and largely unheeded. The sheep need to drink in quietness, away from the miracle threshingfloor, and one cannot conflate his voice with any other’s. His message wakes the dead and pardons sinners. Eternal life does not include the comforts of this life. The cream of this life’s crop is fellowship with God the Father and that suffers no loss.

Incomprehensible peace

I have noticed that we give more commands than we follow. Two examples are telling others to praise God and pressing people to have faith in God.

Praise Con

How do we command more than we comply when it comes to praise? Saying the word hallelujah as if it was a thing we say to God. It ain’t and some demon has infected us with “hallelujah is the highest praise”. If we knew what hallelujah means we would not harbor the thought that we can say it to God.

Faith Con

“Have faith in God” seems to shake a tree with no fruit. Remember when our Lord said that the faith of a woman was rare in all of Israel? Luke 7:9

When Jesus heard these things, he marveled at him, and turning to the crowd that followed him, said, I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.

The con in our DNA

That was an early signal that faith is neither a Jewish (Judaic) nor a Messianic exclusive. So why is so much time devoted to getting people who are BELIEVERS to believe that God is just waiting to see their faith and give them a miracle?

In for a con or conning for an in?

Are we more in love with what God can do than with what he does?

Solomon tell us “money answers to everything” and we follow him at great peril.

Attachment to mammon ends in sorrow

For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. 1 Timothy 6:10

Godly riches are internal

But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness. 1 Timothy 6:11

Enjoyment of life hardly needs mammon’s sorrows

Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy; 1 Timothy 6:17

If we have few rich and highminded friends duty calls, and it is not to emulate them

If nothing was said about our cross-bearing we might justifiably excuse ourselves from being followers of the Lamb. We are on a battlefield that threatens our temporal life. Our trust for security and success are in-Christ graces. The conflict rages in the inner person as it gets less attention than the things that appeal to our appetites our our esthetic sensibilities.

Every desire is a potential assault

So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.

Genesis 3:6

There are desires of the mind that we need to curb along with all the others of the “old man”.

Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul.

1 Peter 2:11