Now therefore, thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning this city of which you say, ‘It shall be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence.’ Jeremiah 32:36  

In Jeremiah we have the story of the Babylonian invasion. The northern kingdom of Israel has already been taken away by Assyria. We have Judah left. They are going to be killed or taken captive to Babylon. In Babylon is where we have the story of Daniel. The Israelites will exiled there for seventy years.

In the book of Revelation, we see Babylon as a wealthy, sinful nation. When she is destroyed, all the merchants of the world weep because they were the ones who bought all their stuff. It’s not hard to see that as America today. I’m sure we are by far the world’s largest consumers. Personally, I see in history how satan has always been working to bring about the end times when he will rule over all the earth. We see empires rise up and fall. We see antichrist like leaders rise up and fall. I think satan is always working toward it and always building up a Babylon, always within the confines of what God allows for His greater purposes.

In the verse from Jeremiah it says how they are going to be given over to Babylon, by sword, famine, and pestilence. That made me think of the tribulation, there will be sword, famine, and pestilence. That stood out to me and made me think of Revelation 6.

The tribulation is a shaking. It will separate the wheat and the chaff. Will you stand firm or get carried away? There will be two choices, relying on God or not. You can trust God to protect and provide and save and be your God, or you can rely on yourself to be your own god and turn to your own understanding to save yourself.

If you couldn’t use money, couldn’t buy or sell, couldn’t work, etc. could you walk away from all that and trust God? Or, would it be much easier for you to justify doing whatever was asked so that you can do those things, justifying that God understood you needed those things and would forgive?

Anytime you catch yourself justifying, giving reasons, stop dead in your tracks! That’s what the enemy does. God doesn’t give reasons. He asks us to act in faith.

And, yes, there is forgiveness, but not when we are in living in the continued conscious choice of sin. That’s not how that works. We need to repent. You can’t repent if you are planning to just keep living in it. If we deny God, He denies us. That’s a Bible promise.

There is one way through, and that’s in the only way, THE WAY, Jesus Christ. We must be in Christ. He is our protection, provision, the very way through. Relying on self will leave you like these…

They will pass through it hard-pressed and hungry; and it shall happen, when they are hungry, that they will be enraged and curse their king and their God, and look upward. Then they will look to the earth, and see trouble and darkness, gloom of anguish; and they will be driven into darkness. Isaiah 8:21-22

Or, you could be among the faithful.

These will make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, for He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and those who are with Him are called, chosen, and faithful. Revelation 17:14

…I see a different law in the parts of my body waging war against the law of my mind, and making me a prisoner of the law of sin, the law which is in my body’s parts.

Romans 7:23 NASB

This is a verse I have struggled with. I’ve sometimes thought this person isn’t saved because a saved person is a slave to righteousness, not sin. Other times, I’ve thought they are saved because they aren’t a slave, but a prisoner.

I was thinking this past week about what it would mean to be a prisoner. Suddenly I thought of it in a way I had never before, in terms of the kingdom.

I think of the kingdom of God as wherever Jesus is submitted to as king. Certainly Jesus rules over all, but not everything acts in full submission to Him, though He could demand and enforce submission at any time.

Every part of my life that is submitted to Christ as my king has been brought into His kingdom.

He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love. Col. 1:13 NKJV

So, if we were living in His kingdom, what would it mean for someone in prison? They are in the kingdom. If they weren’t in the kingdom, they wouldn’t be in prison. They were under the rule of the king but had broken a law and were being held captive.

Now, it’s sin keeping the Romans 7 person captive. BUT, it’s the king that had him thrown in prison, namely gave the person over to their sin. Why does God do that? God’s desire is for our salvation. Sin kills and destroys and leads to hell. Why would God throw someone in the prison of sin? Because He desires our salvation!

If we are treating sin lightly, He will show us the seriousness of it. Sin is a matter of life and death. Sometimes we need to feel the desperation of it otherwise we won’t cry out to our Savior. The Romans 7 Christian is in trouble. They haven’t been thrown out of the kingdom. Their future is either release or deportation, maybe execution. We don’t stay in prison. We cry out for release and trust our Savior’s words are true that He will cleanse us from all sin!

But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. 1 John 1:7 NKJV

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9 NKJV

You know that He appeared in order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin. 1 John 3:5 NASB

My word for the year is truth. I am praying it for myself, my family, my church, the whole church, and the nations. I pray for the light of Christ to make manifest what is true and false. I pray for the light of Christ is expose lies and deception. I pray for false doctrine and teaching to be exposed for what it is. I pray for worldly philosophies and falsehoods in psychology and science to be exposed. And I pray for the truth to be revealed in Christ Jesus for all to be draw to its light.

For it is shameful even to speak of those things which are done by them in secret. But all things that are exposed are made manifest by the light, for whatever makes manifest is light. Therefore He says: “Awake, you who sleep, Arise from the dead, And Christ will give you light.”

Ephesians 5:12-14 NKJV

He shall speak words against the Most High, and shall wear out the saints of the Most High, and shall think to change the times and the law; and they shall be given into his hand for a time, times, and half a time.

Daniel 7:25

One of Satan’s goals is to wear out the saints. This verse even says that’s exactly what he’s going to do. What’s the saint to do? Do you know the secret to not growing weary?

I have had practice with this for the past year, with one thing after another to just bog me down. I would grow weary so quickly when I allowed my thoughts to go to the trouble. It would instantly take away my ability to get work done. It makes you just want to retreat.

But there is an alternative. It’s so simple. All I have to do is look to Jesus. I literally look at Him. I look up and see Him there. I smile. The weary burden is lifted. All I have to do is keep Jesus before me. To be in the Lord’s presence is to have the fullness of joy. There is no weariness in joy! In fact, the joy of the Lord is your strength. There’s the secret to joy. And the way to joy is to be in His presence. The way to stay in His presence is to live in the knowing of your oneness with Christ, to abide in His Word and in His love. 

I’m going to try to walk you through what the Lord showed me. I had been asking Him about His glory. I didn’t feel like I understood what it was. Everyone in His holy temple cries glory (Ps. 29:9) and His glory filled the temple. The two “glories” seemed like two different things.

When Solomon had finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices; and the glory of the Lord filled the temple. And the priests could not enter the house of the Lord, because the glory of the Lord had filled the Lord’s house.

2 Chronicles 7:1-2 NKJV

I didn’t see how those two glories fit together.

I’m not sure how long that had been on my mind, at least for several weeks. It had been a while. The Lord gave me this as a birthday present. He led me to Exodus 33. Moses asks to see God’s glory. What does God show him? What does God make pass before Moses?

And he said, “Please, show me Your glory.”

Then He said, “I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you.”

Exodus 33:18-19 NKJV

His goodness! Moses asks to see His glory and he was shown God’s goodness.

This was very special to me because if there’s one thing the Lord has shown me, it’s His goodness. I like to say all my teaching can be summed up by saying: God is good. Sin is bad. I went through a long trial of trying to accept God’s unchanging love for me, which led into a trial of struggling to see God’s goodness. I went months where it seemed like all I could see in the Bible was the murder of women and children. I knew that wasn’t right, that wasn’t God. I just had to hold on until I got through and I could see it. And I did hold on. And I did get through. Now I live basking in the glow of My father’s love and goodness. I can’t not see God’s goodness everywhere. He helps me see it in any Scripture.

He has shown me His goodness, so He has shown me His glory.

Several days later, I came back to this and asked about how this definition of glory, God’s goodness, fit with the display of God’s glory filling the temple so that the priests couldn’t even enter.

By the time I was getting to the end of my question, I was crying because of the answer He just dropped into me. And I started praying that I (the temple) would be filled with His goodness so that nothing else could enter, that my mind would be filled with His goodness so that nothing else could enter, that my heart would be filled with His goodness so that nothing else could enter.

Read the response of God’s children when they see His glory. This is the next verse from what’s above.

When all the people of Israel saw the fire come down and the glory of the LORD on the temple, they bowed down with their faces to the ground on the pavement and worshiped and gave thanks to the LORD, saying, “For he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.”

2 Chronicles 7:3 ESV

When they see His glory, they praise His goodness and His love.

Send out your light and your truth;

let them lead me;

let them bring me to your holy hill

and to your dwelling!

Then I will go to the altar of God,

to God my exceeding joy,

Psalm 43:3-4a

Lord, who may abide in Your tabernacle?

Who may dwell in Your holy hill?

He who walks uprightly,

And works righteousness,

And speaks the truth in his heart;

Psalm 15:1-2

Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord?

Or who may stand in His holy place?

He who has clean hands and a pure heart,

Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol,

Nor sworn deceitfully.

Psalm 24:3-4

A month ago I wrote on those last verses above. We seem to still be on the same theme. I read Psalm 43 this morning. It talks about going to that Holy Hill. But, they are asking to be led there. They are not there yet. If you aren’t dwelling in the secret place of His presence, then you can ask to be led there. He wants to bring you to Himself.

The prayer is that God would send His light and truth to lead them. Jesus, of course, is the light and the truth. So is God’s word. We walk in the light of Christ, asking Him to shine His light to expose any harmful way in us, and we read the Bible and search our lives in light of the Scriptures. We ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to us truth in the Scriptures, to make it alive to us where we need the sword to cut away the flesh.

The outcome is being, dwelling, never moving from God’s presence. That’s where exceeding joy is found, in His presence. 

…They devoted themselves to doing evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking Him to anger…and He removed them from His presence. 

2 Kings 17:17-18 BSB

I published a book on sin last week and it’s main point you could say is that sin separates us from God, so these verses stuck out to me. Devoting themselves to evil was also a very dramatic way to say it. 

It seems to beg the question: What are you devoted to?

Maybe we need to define devotion. I searched up this definition. 

Devotion: love, loyalty, or enthusiasm for a person, activity, or cause

By this definition, would you say you are devoted to God? They were devoted to evil. Could we have that devotion for righteousness?

It’s easy to picture sports fans showing their love, loyalty, and enthusiasm. When you aren’t in church, does your love, loyalty, and enthusiasm for the things of God show? Does it show early in the morning? Does it show at the end of a long day?

How are you spreading enthusiasm for God and His righteousnses?

May you receive the gift of faith to be saved by grace. Ephesians 2:8

May you seek Him with all your heart until you find Him and cling to Him. Jeremiah 29:13, Joshua 23:8

May you know the love of God that never fails. 1 Corinthians 13:8

May you increase in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men. Luke 2:52

May you be comforted, gaining all riches of the full assurance of understanding of the mystery of God,
both of the Father and of Christ. Colossians 2:2

May you have a heart of compassion, kindness, gentleness, humility, perseverance, and forgiveness. And
above all to walk in love. Colossians 3:12-14

May you not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you
may prove what is the good, well-pleasing, and perfect will of God. Romans 12:2

May the words of your mouth and the meditation of your heart be acceptable in God’s sight. Psalm
19:14

May God teach you His way so that you will walk in God’s truth. May God make your heart undivided to
fear His holy name. May you praise the Lord your God with your whole heart. May you glorify the name
of Jesus forever more. May you know God’s great mercy, which delivers your soul from hell. Psalm
86:11-13

May you love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with
all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself. Luke 10:27

May you live to declare the works of the Lord. Psalm 118:17

May you devote yourself to prayer with thanksgiving. Colossians 4:2

May you take refuge in God and rejoice. May you shout for joy because God is your defense. May your
love for God always make you joyful. Psalm 5:11

May the Lord keep you from all evil. May God keep your soul. The Lord will guard your going out and
your coming in, from this time forward, and forever more. Psalm 121:7-8

May you love like Jesus and patient and kind. May you never envy or brag, or be proud. May you not
behave inappropriately or seek its own way. May you not be provoked or keep a record of wrong. May
you never rejoice in unrighteousness, but may you rejoice with the truth. May you bear all things,
believe all things, hope all things, and endure all things. Ephesians 5:1-2, 1 Corinthians 13:4-7

May you know the love of God that never fails and trust it always. 1 Corinthians 13:8, Psalm 13:5

May God give to you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him, being enlightened, that
you may know what is the hope of His calling, and what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in
the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe. Ephesians 1:17-19

May the peace of God rule in their hearts. Colossians 3:5

May God grant you, according to the riches of his glory, that you may be strengthened with power
through his Spirit in the inner person, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, to the end that
you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be strengthened to comprehend with all the saints what is
the width and length and height and depth, and to know Christ’s love which surpasses knowledge, that
you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Ephesians 3:16-19

May your love abound more and more in knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve the
things that are excellent, that you may be pure and blameless. Philippians 1:9-10

The Lord bless you, and keep you. The Lord make his face to shine on you, and be gracious to you. The
Lord lift up his face toward you, and give you peace. Numbers 6:24-26

No weapon formed against you shall prosper.…” Isaiah 54:17

May you be led in the everlasting way. Psalm 139:24

May God teach you to do His will. Psalm 143:10

May you keep your eyes on Jesus. Hebrews 12:2

May you keep your mind be Jesus and trust Him in all things. Isaiah 26:3

May you give everything to God in prayer, always thanking Him for all things, and receive from Him
peace that will guard your heart and mind. Philippians 4:6-7

May you set your mind on the things of the Spirit and receive life and peace from the Lord. Romans 8:5-
6

May you know the rest of salvation and may quietness and trusting confidence be your strength. Isaiah
30:15

May you know the joy of His presence and the pleasures of being at His right hand. Psalm 16:11

May you be cleansed and kept pure to be used as a vessel for honor, sanctified, and suitable for the
master’s use, prepared for every good work. 2 Timothy 2:21

May you honor your father and mother and receive the promise. Exodus 20:12

(verses adapted from the World English Bible)

³ Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord?
Or who may stand in His holy place?
⁴ He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol.

⁷ Lift up your heads, O you gates!
And be lifted up, you everlasting doors!
And the King of glory shall come in.

This is from Psalms 24. Who gets to stand in the Lord’s presence? It is he who has clean hands and a pure heart. We see that repeated in James. He urges that we draw near to God that He may draw near to us. But it comes with an order!

Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

James 4:8 ESV

We can be in God’s presence if we are washed clean of our sins and our hearts are fully devoted to God, single minded.

If we have sin, we come before the throne bowed down. We come before Him knowing our need for mercy, forgiveness, cleansing.

When the Lord has lifted our heads, we come before Him knowing we’ve received mercy, forgiveness, and cleansing. We are blameless before Him. Our heads are lifted high. We are robed in righteousness and crowned with loving devotion and seated in the heavenly places.

There can be no continuing in sin and maintaining our position in the heavenlies. But, when we repent and reject all sin and allow Him to cleanse us, we can live in a continual state of blamelessness. When He shows us something in us that is not of Him, we don’t hide, but we thank Him! We confess and repent and receive that enduring mercy and cleansing and remain in His presence, today and always.

The word shalom actually means complete, as in not lacking anything. You could state Psalm 23:1 in the positive by saying, “The Lord is my Shepherd. I have shalom.” What I will put below I wrote just this morning. It’s chock full of Scripture references, but I don’t reference them. I will point out one that is probably more obscure. When I am speaking about the Sabbath, I’m referring to Isaiah 58, specifically verse 13.

I am one with Christ and He is one with me.

I dwell in shalom, the fullness of rest. I will do no work. My salvation is accomplished. I will not work to save myself. I will rest.

I dwell in shalom, the fullness of peace. There are no emergencies in shalom. There is no hurry in shalom. The Father holds all things in His hands and performs all things for me.

I dwell in shalom, the fullness of joy. I will honor the Sabbath and not find my own pleasure for in Him is the fullness of joy and the fullness of pleasure. There is no more to be desired.

I dwell in shalom, the fullness of hope. I will not be disappointed. I am kept in Christ of the Father’s will. I am kept from sin and the evil one by Christ Himself.

I dwell in shalom. I am whole. I lack nothing. The Father withholds no good thing from those who seek Him and walk uprightly.

I dwell in shalom, the fullness of rest. There are no works of salvation, for His work is finished. His work in me is finished. My righteousness is secured by the blood of Jesus and the indwelling of His Spirit. I am saved and have the fullness of my salvation when I have shalom. I am blessed with every spiritual blessing. There is no want. There is nothing needful.

I dwell in shalom. I will honor Him and the Sabbath rest and will not speak my own words. I will honor Him and the Sabbath rest and will not do my own way. I have a spring of waters in me that will never fail and rivers of living water flow through me to do His bidding.

I will delight in His Sabbath. My delight is to remain in Him and I do not seek anything else. There is no search. He leads and guides me continually for His name sake. There is no questioning. There is no confusion.

I dwell in shalom. There is no fear. There can be no fear because there is no unbelief. How can we not believe the one who is in us? For I am one with Christ and He is one with me. We can trust Him with His own life.

I dwell in shalom, the fullness of love. I will live loved and live to love. His love is poured into me and I pour it out to others.

I will honor my Father and surrender into His arms, His arms of love, His strong arm to save. There is nothing more for me outside of Him.

I am one with Christ and He is one with me.