SPIRITUAL ADULTERY - AUDIO
Revelation 3: 14 - 22
14 And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;
15 I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.
16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.
17 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:
18 I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.
19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.
20 Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.
21 To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.
22 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.
The enemy does play a part in deception, because
being the father of lies, he only needs to present the lie, but in the end it
is up to us whether we believe it and go with it. Whether out of ignorance or willful
disobedience. Either way, a choice from
our side is always involved. In the end the same will once again take place as was with the fall in the Garden of Eden, where all will be held accountable for their choices, even if they were deceived. We are not victims of deception, we are partakers.
The focus of this devotional is not the enemy’s
part, but ours. When we consider ourselves as victims of deception, we will be bound to look upon Him as a cruel
judge when we stand before Him. Whether by ignorance or
willful disobedience deception is allowed into our lives and if not exposed and
brought into the searching light of His Word, will we be able to stand before
Him? The question I would like to submit
to you is, “Just how bad is deception allowed into our lives to Him?” Is it really that bad? Or is it just one of those things that we have
to contend with or has the enemy blinded the Church specifically regarding the
seriousness of the matter? I submit to
you that it is by far more of importance than what we think, because by
the subtleness of deception the enemy has taken many captive for the purpose of
not only to lure them away from the truth, but to turn the Bride of Christ into
an adulterous whore. Us not knowing just
how serious it is, is the very reason why we are willing to compromise with
it.
Of blatant deception there are no
shortage and we only have to type in certain names to see thousands of
followers of the Prosperity gospel, Word of Faith, New Apostolic Reformation,
Kingdom Now, Once Saved - Always Saved, Universalists and Hebrew Roots movement, just to name a few. These doctrines are all carefully woven into the fabric of teachings we deem as safe and our lack of knowledge is the cause of us being deceived. We are responsible for that lack of understanding. Do you know what these movements
believe and stand for? Have you made it your business
to know? It is by this ignorance that the enemy
creeps in unawares? Which simply means,
you think you are safe, but are you? We
listen to the same preacher for years, and consequently we stop asking whether
what he is preaching is legit. Is what
he is saying still lining up with the only plumb line that matters? Many teachers or prophets start out with utmost sincerity and being sold out to the Most High, but along the way, usually as the money starts pouring in, they lose sight of Him and start to focus on their followers. We become slack in discerning just because we have
always received and learned so much from them through the years,
as if these people are infallible. We think that they are "kosher", but in our familiarity with them, we subconsciously give them a
pass. After all, they have always proven to be of great encouragement and growth.
Indeed what a subtle web he weaves.
I sense in my spirit that there are many out there who are first on the
bandwagon about these blatant false teachers, but are blinded to those they have always followed and revered. Somehow becoming less alert and relaxed with them as if we are all buddies. All the enemy needs is
for us to lower the plumb line when listening to our favorite teacher or
prophet…or those who proclaim themselves Apostles. We are dumbed down by clichés spoken over and
over, repeating it with them, coming up with cute phrases, but never questioning the scriptural ligitimacy of what we are saying. Christian lingo
becomes the accepted and approved for that which is actually deception. It sounds like the Bible, therefore it must
be from the Bible. We cannot afford to be lazy when it comes to discernment. We also cannot afford to hold on to anyone and think they are not subject to deception. We have to test what they say with the Word of God.
In Proverbs 8 and 9 we have a
comparison between two women. The one
woman is called Wisdom and the other is the foolish woman. It is no coincidence why woman are chosen to depict wisdom and deception. Deception comes with the perception of something that
is lured away, such as an adulterous woman would do with a man. Although the foolish woman is an adulterous
woman in chapter 9, the context is that of a comparing her with Wisdom, which
would make the adulterous woman in this case synonymous with deception. We should therefore read it in this context
as well and take note of the differences.
Proverbs 8: 1 - 11
1Doth
not wisdom cry? and understanding put forth her voice?
2 She
standeth in the top of high places, by the way in the places of the paths.
3 She
crieth at the gates, at the entry of the city, at the coming in at the doors.
4 Unto
you, O men, I call; and my voice is to the sons of man.
5 O
ye simple, understand wisdom: and, ye fools, be ye of an understanding heart.
6 Hear;
for I will speak of excellent things; and the opening of my lips shall be right
things.
7 For
my mouth shall speak truth; and wickedness is an abomination to my lips.
8 All
the words of my mouth are in righteousness; there is nothing froward or
perverse in them.
9 They
are all plain to him that understandeth, and right to them that find knowledge.
10 Receive
my instruction, and not silver; and knowledge rather than choice gold.
11 For
wisdom is better than rubies; and all the things that may be desired are not to
be compared to it.
Wisdom speaks in purity of
the Word with no defilement whatsoever.
Nothing perverse or froward. The
word perverse in the Strong’s Concordance is the number H6141, which means distorted; hence false: and crooked. Froward in the
Strong’s Concordance is the number H6617, which means to twist or to be morally
tortuous. The word tortuous in the
dictionary also means serpentine. I imagine that the word contort comes from the word tortuous. It is
the nature of the serpent to twist the truth.
Wisdom says that when she speaks there is nothing twisted or false in
what she says. Nothing. Not even a drop. She is pure, unadulterated, virginal truth. She is not hiding or makes
herself unattainable, but she stands at the gates of the city on top of the
high places and by the way of the places of the paths. On your journey with the Lord she will meet
you to give you unadulterated truth that is not twisted or
perverted. All her ways are peace.
Furthermore
she is saying that instruction is better to receive than silver or choice
gold. This makes me think of Revelation 3 to the Laodicean Church where He is saying that she is to come to Him and buy gold from Him. It is easy to see this silver and gold as earthly riches, but in verse 18 we read
the following:
Proverbs 8: 18 - 19
Riches and honour are with me; yea, durable riches and
righteousness.
My fruit is better than gold, yea, than fine gold; and my
revenue than choice silver.
And in verse 21...
Proverbs 8: 21
That I may cause those that love me to inherit substance; and
I will fill their treasures.
Yeshua also told us that where our
heart is, there our treasure will be.
The durable riches and treasures are not those that are physical,
because anything that is physical, has an expiry date. Only that which is eternal lasts
forever. Our bank is in heaven and the
currency is that which comes from Wisdom.
In Proverbs 9 we read of how she has
made a feast for those who want to come into her house and partake of what she
has prepared.
Proverbs 9: 1 – 5
1Wisdom
hath builded her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars:
2 She
hath killed her beasts; she hath mingled her wine; she hath also furnished her
table.
3 She
hath sent forth her maidens: she crieth upon the highest places of the city,
4 Whoso
is simple, let him turn in hither: as for him that wanteth understanding, she
saith to him,
5 Come,
eat of my bread, and drink of the wine which I have mingled.
She herself has prepared a
feast of that which is not twisted or perverted.
The foolish woman, contrary to Wisdom, has not many verses ascribed to her, but they are quite telling.
Remember, we are still talking about subtle deception.
Proverbs 9: 13 – 18
13 A
foolish woman is clamorous: she is simple, and knoweth nothing.
14 For
she sitteth at the door of her house, on a seat in the high places of the city,
15 To
call passengers who go right on their ways:
16 Whoso
is simple, let him turn in hither: and as for him that wanteth understanding,
she saith to him,
17 Stolen
waters are sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant.
18 But
he knoweth not that the dead are there; and that her guests are in the depths
of hell.
Contrary to Wisdom the foolish woman
sits at the door of her house, but notice where this house is. She sits on a seat at the high places of the
city. In other words, nobody can miss
her either. She makes it her
business to be where there is great influence.
The judges used to sit at the gates and decisions were made at these
gates for the city. It is the place of decision making
and she makes sure that there she can raise her voice to be heard. Wisdom sits also at the gates on top of the high places and at the gates of the city. We are that city. The place of decision making is our will. When we think of the foolish woman it is so easy to
see somebody that is scantly clothed and seductive. But we need to ask whether such a
woman would be allowed in such circles of decision making? I think not.
But rather, would it not be reasonable to think that if anything, she
would be dressed as to come in the guise of Wisdom? Her ultimate plan would be to twist and
seduce the truth, but also true to the nature of the subtle snake, she would come as
an angel of light. She would come with
truth, slightly twisted, enough for her followers to follow her all the way
into the pit of hell, whilst all the while thinking that they were following
Wisdom. She too is offering understanding,
but contrary to Wisdom, she stole the water, saying it is sweet and that the
bread should be eaten in secret. Remember, she is still offering understanding, just like Wisdom, but hers is mixed with deceit. This
word "stole" is H1589, which means to deceive and "secret" is H5643, which means to
cover or hide. What she serves is
deception and this deception is hidden.
The heartbreaking part is that her guests are the dead in the depths of
hell. This simply means that where she
serves her feast is from the depths of hell.
When we look at the contrast between these two women, we can easily expect
the contrast in real life to be just as obvious when it comes to deception, but the reality is that in some cases it is very subtle. The areas where it is not so obvious is in the areas where we who have served the Lord for years have grown familiar and feel safe with. Amongst the truth she lies hidden, waiting to strike. When we think that we have this discernment
thing in the bag, we stand a chance to fail horribly and easily be ensnared in
her web.
Let us go on to the part we play in all of this deception. The Word states that we are to guard our hearts with all diligence for out of it flows the issues of life. This is true especially when it comes to deception. Our heart plays a vital role in being deceived. The reason we fall for deception is two things. An inaccurate and lack of understanding of the Word of God, and the disposition of our heart. What is in our heart is the filter by which we tend to read and perceive the Word of God.
James 1: 14 – 15
14 But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.
15 Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.
This includes traditions of men. For example, if we come from an abusive background and still have some emotional baggage, we tend to gravitate to certain messages and follow certain people. When we have been burned by deception a few times, it is also easy to want to gravitate to literature and teachings exposing false doctrine. Another example is that when you are set in manmade traditions you could also possibly fall prey to teachings that focus only on the letter of the Word, wanting to ensure that you follow all the rules meticulously. Note that the enemy is not to blame here, but the lusts of our own hearts. Those disposition and lenses we view the world and Word of God through. Those needs and desires, even if they are to be closer to the Lord or to be used by Him, are the very thing that causes us to be enticed. This is not to say that we are not to watch any teachings that speaks to our need, but we have to remember that our needs and wants can blind us to the deception laced within the words spoken that feeds our needs. There is a spirit behind the speaking that draws people, depending on their dispositon. We all wear certain color glasses when we read the Word or listen to teachings. Who is right? Only the Word of God is right and so it is vital that we deal with these issues of our hearts, because this is exactly what the enemy will use in order to ensnare us. When our needs are met it is easy to give credit to the Lord, when in fact the need was met through deception that sounds like the Lord, not lining up with the Word of God. It takes nothing of the enemy to use certain words that will catch our attention that we may see as confirmation. He will use your particular disposition to guide you to certain teachings that will feed that need and desire. And because you are saved, he will come as an angel of light.
Please do not think that this only
applies to a disposition of being hurt in the past. This also applies to our desire to be “closer”
to the Lord or to be used more by Him.
It is at times like these that we are drawn to words that stroke our
ego with regard to words like “you are chosen, elect, anointed, prophet, dreams and
visions, higher levels and new dimensions etc”, having a desire for greater spiritual reality. We are drawn to these because by these affirmations our need to be
accepted and approved of the Lord is validated and we love it so. Proverbs 27: 7 says “The full soul loathes a
honeycomb; but to the hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet.” Isn’t that the truth! These are the tickling of the ears. The true prophets’ most prevalent problem in
the Old Testament was not the sin of the nation, but the false
prophets that these disobedient people followed. Over and over the true prophet received instructions to call them out and make it known the seriousness of the people’s
offence in following them. If a prophet is not doing this we can rightfully question his legitimacy. They kept on speaking "peace, peace" , when in fact the Most High called them unto repentance and obedience. Do you find these two words in your favorite prophet's messages? When you remove the cross, you have successfully removed the true gospel. Following a false
prophet or teacher is no small thing, because at the heart of it is the exchanging of the
truth for a lie. And we know Who the
Truth is, as well as who the Lie is. At
the heart of following false doctrine and false prophets lies adultery. To adulterate something is to mix, pervert or twist it. Many have been guilty of adultery, not only in the
physical sense, but in the spiritual sense and somehow think this to be not as
serious. The enemy has successfully caused us to take physical adultery more serious than spiritual adultery. Once again, I am referring to
the subtle deception and the not so obvious. I put myself in this category and so should you. If we are deceived, are we excused from judgment?
Proverbs 30: 20
Such is the way of an adulterous woman; she eateth, and wipeth her mouth
and saith, I have done no wickedness.
It is clear from scripture that
the Lord will not excuse adultery, how much less spiritual adultery with
Him? This adultery is the stolen waters and bread eaten in secret with
the foolish woman that leads straight to the depths of hell. That which causes the Church to be neither hot nor cold, thinking that they can see, thinking that they are clothed and thinking they are rich when in fact the opposite is true. And who of us in our Christian walk have not been
guilty of this spiritual adultery? But
the question I am asking all listening or reading is, “How do you know that you
are not now still practicing adultery?” Are you so secure in those you listen to that you are not willing to question what they say?
In Hebrews 12 we read the following:
Hebrews 12: 14 - 15
14 Follow peace with all men, and
holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:
15 Looking diligently lest any man
fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you,
and thereby many be defiled;
The requirement of God is still to follow peace with all men, and holiness. This has not changed. When a wife does everything perfect for her husband, she makes the most delicious food, she decks the table and cleans the house, she loves on her husband and makes him feel like a million dollars, but secretly she is an adulterer, the husband will rather eat from the floor than to sit at the same table as her. He will have nothing to do with her. There can be no mixture allowed, no perversion or twisting, for this is the very food that the foolish woman, those false prophets and teachers have decked the table with. Spiritual adultery has always been an absolute slap in God's face so to speak, and He have never and is not about to take it lightly. In this society of tolerance, we have been successfully brainwashed to think that because we tolerate a little bit of lie with our truth, that He will tolerate it as well. But we would be very wrong. Our God is not the God of second best. Not the God of mediocracy. He is not the God of compromise. He is perfect and holy. A God who says, "Be ye perfect as your Father in heaven is perfect".
1 Corinthians 6: 9 - 10
9Know ye not that the unrighteous
shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor
idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with
mankind,
10 Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards,
nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.
Somehow we have decided the parameters
of the words fornication, adultery and idolatry, but not so for the Most High. In Hebrews 12 Esau is charged with fornication.
16 Lest there be any fornicator, or
profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright.
17 For ye know how that afterward,
when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no
place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears.
Why is Esau seen as a
fornicator? This word fornicator also
means whoremonger. And Esau sold his
birthright, like a prostitute would sell her body, in order that he would get what he wanted…soup. This act to the Lord is not
just seen in the physical context, but also in the spiritual. Spiritually he was a fornicator. Bitterness defiles and this led to Esau
becoming a fornicator. Simply stated, commerce is that
of exchanging something for another. Exchanging the truth for a lie is also
commerce and what we stand to lose in the end when feasting at the table of the
foolish woman is more than truth. We fornicate with truth and lies. Take into consideration what we have read in 1 Corinthians 6 we now know
that adulterers and fornicators will not inherit the Kingdom of God, amongst
some other choice sins. The Most High is
not playing around with these issues.
At the heart of deception lies idolatry as well. That is to say self-idolatry. "Self" needs to hear that He loves us. Needs to hear that He approves of us, that He wants to use us, or that we are going to the next level. I know that there are many wounded people out there. I was in counseling for 16 years. I have empathy and understanding. But make no mistake, wounds are like open sores that attract flies, in this case demons. When we have sought Him in our season of healing, we are to move on in maturity and be done with the things of milk. We are to go from faith unto faith. We are to graduate from having to have to hear how special we are and how much He loves us. There is a time and season for that. Somewhere along our journey we no longer need the affirmations and are called to walk by faith growing from children to sons in maturity. This is why many people get so offended when they hear the truth, because they still want to be cuddled. Yes, there are times when He showers His love on us, but I have found in my lifetime that the most special moments of an outpouring of His love was when I did not ask for it. At the heart of these needs and desires lie the "self" that needs to be affirmed and loved. This may be very difficult for some to hear, but I have lived this kind of life for many years and it is a means by which the enemy stifles our growth. If it was not for His grace, I would still be trying to get all these things by listening to false prophets telling me how special I am to the Lord and how He will use me. All the while my focus solely on me and not on Him. When you listen to a sermon or prophetic word, ask yourself, "Is this about Christ or me? Is the cross central and is the message requiring something of me?" This will usually be to repent, but will also be more specific requirements. It will NOT only be about how the Lord wants to bless and love you. This idolatry of self in a sense is to fornicate with yourself.
What does
self-idolatry look like? It is carefully
disguised as an over self-investigation to the point where it becomes an
obsession. This usually because we want
to be holy, perfect and acceptable to the Lord.
Although this is a right motive, often behind it is a very poor self-image
that can never come to the point of walking in the faith that He has accepted
you in the Beloved. Self-idolatry is
also disguised in worship when we secretly worship Him in order to receive from
Him. Receiving from Him during worship
is an outflow of His goodness and presence, but never our aim. Worship is only to focus on Him. This is when people are easily deceived that worship is anointed because they "feel" something, but in the process they forget to test the spirit as well as the lyrics. It can be very subtle. He is the object of our worship, not
self. Self-idolatry can also be in
fasting where we boast about how long we have fasted. It can also be hidden in our
testimony by how much suffering we have endured, relishing in the sympathy and
attention we receive. There is a lot
more, but here we have the act of idolatry and it has nothing to do with a
physical idol in our house, but rather we ourselves are the idol and are guilty
of worshipping "self". So far we have covered
fornication, adultery and idolatry of which no one who are guilty of this will
inherit the Kingdom. I realize this is a
harsh word to receive, but lives are at stake and we need to address this issue before He comes.
I recently asked Father why He wants me to write
all these books knowing He will come to get His Bride soon? He told me that the criteria for the left
behind will still remain the same in order to inherit the Kingdom. Saying no to the mark of the beast is good
and well, but will this be enough when you are a fornicator, adulterer or
guilty of idolatry?
In Isaiah 1 the Lord rebukes the nation because they have forsaken Him and He says that even if He should punish them, they would not change. He tells them that they should stop their oblations and sacrifices amongst other ceremonial things. Here in lies the fact that though deceived, the spiritual worship and love for the Lord is still there without knowing that one is actually deceived. We can feel immensely close to the Lord and still be deceived. And because we feel so close to HIm, we take this as being in His perfect will. In verse 22 it says, Thy silver is become dross, thy wine mixed with water. Wine mixed with water is to take the pure quality of that wine and make it a lesser quality. You dilute the wine, and in this case the truth. This was done when there was not enough for all the guests and were usually served last. This watering down of the wine was in order to satisfy a need, pretty much like us who because of our lusts of our hearts are willing to drink watered down wine in order to fulfill our needs and thereby be enticed. Also the false teacher or false prophet will "dilute" the pure wine of the Word in order to cater to those who follow him or her. In other words, he will speak the truth, but not the whole truth, leaving certain scriptures out as to not offend the hearers. Being portrayed as such a nice guy.
Right at the beginning of this devotional silver is mentioned in Proverbs 8. Silver has some unique qualities. It is ductile, which means that it can easily
be manipulated into something either for good or for bad. Such is our hearts. It is a conductor and transmitter and when it
is tarnished it is of lesser value than base metals to transmit a current. When we are deceived the truth is tarnished and twisted in us. Silver also becomes a carrier. In this context when we give ourselves over
to false teachings and prophets, not only are we corrupted, but we corrupt others
in the process. In Isaiah 1: 25 we read,
And I will turn my hand upon thee, and purely purge away thy dross, and take
away all thy tin: It is as if the Most High is comparing their silver to tin. Tin,
very much a counterfeit of silver, is thinner and even more ductile. It serves most of the time as a coating to
cover something. This makes me think of the bread eaten in secret where the word "secret" means to cover. Silver is synonymous
with righteousness and needs to be polished, which is another word for buffet. Over and over until it shines.
In Isaiah 1 we read the following. Please hear the heart of the One we betray with our fornication, idolatry and adultery.
Isaiah 1: 1 – 6; 10
4 Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters: they have forsaken the Lord, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, they are gone away backward.
5 Why should ye be stricken any more? ye will revolt more and more:
the whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint.
6 From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness
in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been
closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment.
11 To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me? saith the Lord: I am full of the burnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts; and I delight not in the blood of bullocks, or of lambs, or of he goats.
12 When ye come to appear before me, who hath required this at your
hand, to tread my courts?
13 Bring no more vain oblations; incense is an abomination unto me;
the new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with; it
is iniquity, even the solemn meeting.
14 Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hateth: they are
a trouble unto me; I am weary to bear them.
15 And when ye spread forth your hands, I will hide mine eyes from
you: yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear: your hands are full of
blood.
16 Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from
before mine eyes; cease to do evil;
18 Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.
19 If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land:
20 But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword:
for the mouth of the Lord hath
spoken it.
21 How is the faithful city become an harlot! it was full of
judgment; righteousness lodged in it; but now murderers.
22 Thy silver is become dross, thy wine mixed with water:
25 And I will turn my hand upon thee, and purely purge away thy dross, and take away all thy tin:
Hosea 1: 2
2 The beginning of the word of the Lord by Hosea. And the Lord said to Hosea, Go, take unto thee a wife of
whoredoms and children of whoredoms: for the land hath committed great
whoredom, departing from the Lord.
This assignment of the prophet Hosea was to serve as a prophetic act of the adultery of Judah. She kept on turning away to other lovers. I listened to a well known "prophet" the other day that actully had the nerve to say that the dispensation of the Old Testament prophets has passed since John the Baptist and no longer should there be any talk about judgment. When Paul was speaking to the Corinthians, was he speaking to Christians or unbelievers? He was speaking to Christians. This broke my heart in pieces as I cried before the Lord. The prophets of the Old Testament serve as a means for us to know the plumbline when it comes to prophetic words. Not in their severity only, but in their fear of God. The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom.
As with all
deception or enticement there always comes a promise of great things. This is not to say that the Most High does
not want to bless us. We are His
children. But this enticement and
deception comes always with a promise, but with no call for repentance or obedience. It comes without a cross or it will tell you
how much the Lord have seen your suffering and therefore He is promoting you. The Most High told me once, "The only sacrifice that matters, is the one I made." Need I say anything further to that? We are nothing. The cross is not central and therefore it is
indeed another gospel, a watered down, diluted gospel. Yes, there may be talk about the benefits of the cross, but not the one you are to bear. This is the idolatry
and adultery that the Bride is guilty of and the cry of His heart is that she
will return to Him with ALL her heart. In Ezekiel 16 the Most High addresses this adulterous wife. In this you will hear both His heartache, but also His judgment. Also, when you listen, pay attention to what we have spoken of that Wisdom has prepared at her table, and Revelation 3.
Ezekiel 16 – only certain verses (please read the whole
chapter)
1Again the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, cause Jerusalem to
know her abominations,
4 And as for thy nativity, in the day thou wast born thy navel was not cut, neither wast thou washed in water to supple thee; thou wast not salted at all, nor swaddled at all.
5 None eye pitied thee, to do any of
these unto thee, to have compassion upon thee; but thou wast cast out in the
open field, to the lothing of thy person, in the day that thou wast born.
6 And when I passed by thee, and saw
thee polluted in thine own blood, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood,
Live; yea, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live.
7 I have caused thee to multiply as
the bud of the field, and thou hast increased and waxen great, and thou art
come to excellent ornaments: thy breasts are fashioned, and thine hair is
grown, whereas thou wast naked and bare.
8 Now when I passed by thee, and
looked upon thee, behold, thy time was the time of love; and I spread my skirt
over thee, and covered thy nakedness: yea, I sware unto thee, and entered into
a covenant with thee, saith the Lord God,
and thou becamest mine.
9 Then washed I thee with water;
yea, I throughly washed away thy blood from thee, and I anointed thee with oil.
10 I clothed thee also with broidered
work, and shod thee with badgers' skin, and I girded thee about with fine
linen, and I covered thee with silk.
11 I decked thee also with ornaments,
and I put bracelets upon thy hands, and a chain on thy neck.
12 And I put a jewel on thy forehead,
and earrings in thine ears, and a beautiful crown upon thine head.
13 Thus wast thou decked with gold
and silver; and thy raiment was of fine linen, and silk, and broidered work;
thou didst eat fine flour, and honey, and oil: and thou wast exceeding
beautiful, and thou didst prosper into a kingdom.
14 And thy renown went forth among
the heathen for thy beauty: for it was perfect through my comeliness, which I
had put upon thee, saith the Lord God.
15 But thou didst trust in thine own
beauty, and playedst the harlot because of thy renown, and pouredst out thy
fornications on every one that passed by; his it was.
16 And of thy garments thou didst
take, and deckedst thy high places with divers colours, and playedst the harlot
thereupon: the like things shall not come, neither shall it be so.
17 Thou hast also taken thy fair
jewels of my gold and of my silver, which I had given thee, and madest to
thyself images of men, and didst commit whoredom with them,
18 And tookest thy broidered
garments, and coveredst them: and thou hast set mine oil and mine incense
before them.
19 My meat also which I gave thee,
fine flour, and oil, and honey, wherewith I fed thee, thou hast even set it
before them for a sweet savour: and thus it was, saith the Lord God.
22 And in all thine abominations and thy whoredoms thou hast not remembered the days of thy youth, when thou wast naked and bare, and wast polluted in thy blood.
23 And it came to pass after all thy
wickedness, (woe, woe unto thee! saith the Lord
God;)
24 That thou hast also built unto
thee an eminent place, and hast made thee an high place in every street.
25 Thou hast built thy high place at
every head of the way, and hast made thy beauty to be abhorred, and hast opened
thy feet to every one that passed by, and multiplied thy whoredoms.
30 How weak is thine heart, saith
the Lord God, seeing thou
doest all these things, the work of an imperious whorish woman;
32 But as a wife that committeth adultery, which taketh strangers instead of her husband!
35 Wherefore, O harlot, hear the word of the Lord:
38 And I will judge thee, as women that break wedlock and shed blood are judged; and I will give thee blood in fury and jealousy.
43 Because thou hast not remembered
the days of thy youth, but hast fretted me in all these things; behold,
therefore I also will recompense thy way upon thine head, saith the Lord God: and thou shalt not commit this
lewdness above all thine abominations.
I recently came across two very short video clips that gave some pointers to help with discerning teachings and prophetic words. I found them to be sound and my suggestion is that you write them down in a place, maybe in front of your Bible, or somewhere that you can use when listening to teachings. Nobody is above deception. Please read the added scriptures for your own edification at your own leasure.
SOUND DOCTRINE VS FALSE DOCTRINE?
1. Origin - Does this doctrine originate from God? Sound doctrine originates with God, false doctrine orginates from outside of the mind of God. It originates from the mind of someone or something created by God. We end up serving the creation and not the Creator. This is human precepts and teachings. (Galatians 1: 11 - 12; John 7: 16; 1 Timothy 4: 1)
2. Authority - Sound doctrine grounds its authority within the Bible, false doctrine grounds its authority outside the Bible. The Word of God is the final authority. ANY DOCTRINE THAT COMES FROM THE MIND OF GOD IS DOCUMENTED IN THE WORD OF GOD. (Acts 17: 11b;) Does what is taught here come from the authority of what is written in the Word of God?
3. Consistency - Sound doctrine is consistent with the whole of scripture, false doctrine is at least inconsistent with some parts of scripture. They will seem doctrinally true, but the question is, "Is what I am listening to consistent with the whole of scripture?" Scripture interprets scripture. Is this doctrine established or refuted by the entirety of scripture?
4. Spiritual Growth - Sound doctrine leads to spiritual growth, false doctrine leads to spiritual weakness or stifles your growth. (1 Timothy 4: 6). Does this doctrine lead to spiritual maturity, knowledge or is it unhealthy and immature, not challenging our growth, but stroking our ego? Is this Christ focused, or me focused?
5. Godly living - Sound doctrine leads to godly living, false doctrine leads to ungodly living. TRUTH NEVER STANDS ON ITS OWN. Truth always have implications on our lives. Sound doctrine always leads us to be like Christ in all things. (2 Timothy 3: 16 - 17). It trains us in righteousness. We are not just to know doctrine as Christians, but we are to live our doctrine. Does this doctrine lead me to live in a way that pleases the Most High or is this just telling me how great I am?
MARKS OF A FALSE TEACHER (The leapord does not change its spots)
1. MAN PLEASERS - They are not looking to look good in the eyes of God, but rather looking to look good in the eyes of man. They want a fan-club. Ear ticklers that make it their business to know what people want to hear. Instead of challenging them, they flatter them. Instead of exposing sin, they affirm sin. (1 Thessalonians 2: 4). Instead of warning them, cuddles them.
2. PERSECUTERS AGAINST THOSE WHO SPEAK THE TRUTH - False teachers bring their harshes criticism against those who speak as the Most High's faithful servants. False teachers gets personal and they will also threaten as we can see with the case of Paul and Jesus. The religious authorities was the haters of pure truth.
3. OWN WISDOM RATHER THAN GOD'S WISDOM - The false teacher's teaching comes from their own mind and inventions, and simple desires. (Jeremiah 14: 4). Speaking lying visions and dreams. True then, just as true now.
4. FOCUS ON LESSER IMPORTANT THINGS - False teachers places emphasis on small commandments or ignore the important ones. (Matthew 23:23). A false teacher governs godliness by keeping the smallest rules, whilst breaking the big ones.
5. ELOQUENT SPEACH AND IMPRESSIVE LOGIC - False teachers cannot bring a consistent interpretation of the Bible. He hides blasphemy and dangerous doctrine behind what seems to be a powerful argument, using eloquent words, candy laced with poison. (1 Corinthians 2: 1)
6. CONCERNED WITH WINNING OTHERS TO THEIR OWN OPINION - False teachers do not care about helping people. They will make a show of how they do by testifying of how they reached out to all the poor and needy, but this is often just to serve as a means to veil their false doctrine and thereby win over their followers by being portrayed as a "good man". They want your loyalty and with that your money. (Matthew 23: 15)
7. EXPLOITS THEIR FOLLOWERS - False teachers take advantage of people's money, greed, lusts, immaturity and needs so that they can exploit them. All they need to know is what your need is. (2 Peter 2: 1 - 3a). They are concerned with your goods, not with your good. The root of all evil is the love of money.
(Information from Tim Challies' YouTube channel.)
Considering everything I have written, we have to understand that when we stand before the Living God, there will be no justification for why we were deceived. We have the Word of God and we have the responsibility to not allow our needs to be met by man, but by God alone. We have to ensure that we have dealt with our filters in our hearts, so that we are not deceived and that we know the Word of God. Most importantly, we will be judged on whether we have loved Him with all our heart, mind and strength and whether we loved our neighbor as ourselves. It is so important that we are not permissive, tolerant and compromising when it comes to the truth. Are you virginal in your doctrine and those you follow, or have you been defiled, guilty of spiritual adultery? Be ready...
He is coming for a pure and unadulterated Bride.
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