The entirety of Proverbs chapter #4 (see below) seems particularly apropros to the state of the world in such a time as this.
What Time Is This?
Believers conjecture that either we live in the time of the soon return of Jesus Christ after a period of tribulation such as has never been seen before, or we have yet a little more time to encourage and assist others to come on board with the family of believers* before God closes the door on this ark, closes this sea behind us, during one of the most exciting and challenging, delivering and damning episodes in all of prophetic and real history.
But as in every time period, the choice remains ours–mine, yours: which side of both temporal and eternal history will we be on? Should we stay (here) or should we go (with Him)?
But whatever the “day and the hour” is that “no man knoweth,” the time to choose is today.
Why?
Those who think they might play god with us and cancel our freedom to choose now believe they have the means to do so via nano technology that can both mine and mind us–on the inside–down to, they hope, where our God-given center of free will is presumed to reside.
And their machinations are closing in.
On the danger of losing one’s free will, which I think is Satan’s, et al, ultimate goal in order to keep us from choosing salvation through Jesus Christ, see more comments here.
One of the leading lights in this dark coup is Yuval Noah Harari, whose words in a talk below tell all (4.5 mins).
It helps to quell cognitive dissonance to remember that when it comes to psychopaths, which is how many describe this kind of God-rejecting totalitarian: “When people show you who they are, believe them the first time” (Maya Angelou).
Of course, powerful psychological manipulations, aka psyops, cleverly crafted to exploit human vulnerability, particularly fear of the unknown, keep many from facing the facts.
At least right away.
So, it also helps to keep in mind John 3:8:
The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.
In other words, try though the wannabe gods might, the Spirit of the real God will ever slip right through even their brilliant minds and manipulations to accomplish everything it sets out to. And it is God’s expressed will that “all people…be saved and…come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, (1 Timothy 2:3-5, ESV).
But even they can have a heads-up, if they so choose, and thus avoid a lot of trouble, while there may yet be time, by studying prophecy and reviewing the secular history of what always happens whenever evil attempts to annihilate good.
As the old tag line in a commercial for Chiffon margarine went: “It’s not nice to fool Mother Nature,” to which I would add, “or Father God.”
And the real Intelligent Designer (in contrast to the one Harari refers to) Who indwells believers when they choose to become born again, is not subject to even clever little technological Trojan Horses whose designers still have to rely on iron (that rusts) and clay (that has a shelf life).
Not to mention desperately having to hope for a grid impervious to hackers and “acts of God”.
Whereas by contrast, the real God needed but His Word to fill the void, His breath to animate life.
Indeed, it is the real God Who lavished us with all of the raw materials with which to design and create all manner of inventions and innovations since the genesis of Genesis–as well as giving us the most potent gift of all, after salvation: free will.
Of course, what we build our creations for–good or ill, life or destruction, freedom or slavery–is where our freedom to choose can reach sublime heights or crash and burn. Literally.
Harari and his tribe can only hope they are on the path to the ultimate evolved man, the “transhuman,” possessing all power and bandwidth to rule the world, sans push back, but, ironically, they close and lock their minds against the concept of that original, brilliant Creator noted above from whence not only all building blocks come but also all life-giving and life-prospering innovations that could benefit them, too.
They miss that following Him is not only their spiritual salvation, but also access to myriad more creations of their own to explore andenjoy. Without fear of The Book’s end. Their end.
And to their ultimate detriment (and failure), they miss the existential irony of the quest: the missing link is still, well, missing, for theories, ideologies, and wishful thinking do not reality make.
Harari and the others of his Godless tribe have yet to answer the question that quickly gels in the mind of even a small child: “But where did everything come from to begin with?” Nor do they seem to care, enchanted as they are by the shiny trinkets and idols (to themselves) they believe are embedded in new and improved iterations of Babel on their perennial quest to scale the heights to God to attempt to usurp His throne and make a universe of their own.
The chapter of history we find ourselves in (no, Virginia, there is no longer any “normal” for which you pine), concerning which hundreds of prophecies in the Bible foretell, urges maintainig the clarity and strength of walking in wisdom while the wicked seem to be going full-bore, lately, in their plans to enslave us through invasive violence perpetrated against both mind and body and now, via the most biologically minute aspect of what it is to be human beings.
We must resist the bait to become as them: enslavers and destroyers.
When Jesus gave us His peace, it wasn’t just a nice sentiment. It keeps us out of the Devil’s playground, that place in the base of the brain where we are ever in fight, flight, or fear; evil’s lair; Satan’s home turf; where we are easily exploited, easily conquered.
The Proverbs chapter below is just one reference of many chapters, books, and letters (aka epistles) of biblical wisdom–and marching orders–for such a time as this, with countless reminders regarding who we really war against.
And reminders to pray for, and witness to, all those not yet on board as the clock ticks very close to the next event on the prophetic timeline.
Proverbs, Chapter 4 (King James Version)
Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding.
2For I give you good doctrine, forsake ye not my law.
3For I was my father’s son, tender and only beloved in the sight of my mother.
4He taught me also, and said unto me, Let thine heart retain my words: keep my commandments, and live.
5Get wisdom, get understanding: forget it not; neither decline from the words of my mouth.
6Forsake her not, and she shall preserve thee: love her, and she shall keep thee.
7Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.
8Exalt her, and she shall promote thee: she shall bring thee to honour, when thou dost embrace her.
9She shall give to thine head an ornament of grace: a crown of glory shall she deliver to thee.
10Hear, O my son, and receive my sayings; and the years of thy life shall be many.
11I have taught thee in the way of wisdom; I have led thee in right paths.
12When thou goest, thy steps shall not be straitened; and when thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble.
13Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life.
14Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men.
15Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away.
16For they sleep not, except they have done mischief; and their sleep is taken away, unless they cause some to fall.
17For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence.
18But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.
19The way of the wicked is as darkness: they know not at what they stumble.
20My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings.
21Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart.
22For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh.
23Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.
24Put away from thee a froward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee.
25Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee.
26Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established.
27Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil.
~~~~~
*For information on why and how to “come into the family of believers,” here is a good summary, ABCs of Salvation
I would encourage you to take advantage of this opportunity today, if you haven’t yet, then find a Bible-believing (as in not “woke”) group of Christians with whom to grow in wisdom and strength for the days to come–for the days already here.
pnissila 
Marching Orders from Proverbs, Chapter 4, for Such a Time as This (Plus a Guest Video: Yuval Noah Harari)
Phyllis Beveridge Nissila
The entirety of Proverbs chapter #4 (see below) seems particularly apropros to the state of the world in such a time as this.
What Time Is This?
Believers conjecture that either we live in the time of the soon return of Jesus Christ after a period of tribulation such as has never been seen before, or we have yet a little more time to encourage and assist others to come on board with the family of believers* before God closes the door on this ark, closes this sea behind us, during one of the most exciting and challenging, delivering and damning episodes in all of prophetic and real history.
But as in every time period, the choice remains ours–mine, yours: which side of both temporal and eternal history will we be on? Should we stay (here) or should we go (with Him)?
But whatever the “day and the hour” is that “no man knoweth,” the time to choose is today.
Why?
Those who think they might play god with us and cancel our freedom to choose now believe they have the means to do so via nano technology that can both mine and mind us–on the inside–down to, they hope, where our God-given center of free will is presumed to reside.
And their machinations are closing in.
On the danger of losing one’s free will, which I think is Satan’s, et al, ultimate goal in order to keep us from choosing salvation through Jesus Christ, see more comments here.
One of the leading lights in this dark coup is Yuval Noah Harari, whose words in a talk below tell all (4.5 mins).
It helps to quell cognitive dissonance to remember that when it comes to psychopaths, which is how many describe this kind of God-rejecting totalitarian: “When people show you who they are, believe them the first time” (Maya Angelou).
Of course, powerful psychological manipulations, aka psyops, cleverly crafted to exploit human vulnerability, particularly fear of the unknown, keep many from facing the facts.
At least right away.
So, it also helps to keep in mind John 3:8:
In other words, try though the wannabe gods might, the Spirit of the real God will ever slip right through even their brilliant minds and manipulations to accomplish everything it sets out to. And it is God’s expressed will that “all people…be saved and…come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, (1 Timothy 2:3-5, ESV).
But even they can have a heads-up, if they so choose, and thus avoid a lot of trouble, while there may yet be time, by studying prophecy and reviewing the secular history of what always happens whenever evil attempts to annihilate good.
As the old tag line in a commercial for Chiffon margarine went: “It’s not nice to fool Mother Nature,” to which I would add, “or Father God.”
And the real Intelligent Designer (in contrast to the one Harari refers to) Who indwells believers when they choose to become born again, is not subject to even clever little technological Trojan Horses whose designers still have to rely on iron (that rusts) and clay (that has a shelf life).
Not to mention desperately having to hope for a grid impervious to hackers and “acts of God”.
Whereas by contrast, the real God needed but His Word to fill the void, His breath to animate life.
Indeed, it is the real God Who lavished us with all of the raw materials with which to design and create all manner of inventions and innovations since the genesis of Genesis–as well as giving us the most potent gift of all, after salvation: free will.
Of course, what we build our creations for–good or ill, life or destruction, freedom or slavery–is where our freedom to choose can reach sublime heights or crash and burn. Literally.
Harari and his tribe can only hope they are on the path to the ultimate evolved man, the “transhuman,” possessing all power and bandwidth to rule the world, sans push back, but, ironically, they close and lock their minds against the concept of that original, brilliant Creator noted above from whence not only all building blocks come but also all life-giving and life-prospering innovations that could benefit them, too.
They miss that following Him is not only their spiritual salvation, but also access to myriad more creations of their own to explore and enjoy. Without fear of The Book’s end. Their end.
And to their ultimate detriment (and failure), they miss the existential irony of the quest: the missing link is still, well, missing, for theories, ideologies, and wishful thinking do not reality make.
Harari and the others of his Godless tribe have yet to answer the question that quickly gels in the mind of even a small child: “But where did everything come from to begin with?” Nor do they seem to care, enchanted as they are by the shiny trinkets and idols (to themselves) they believe are embedded in new and improved iterations of Babel on their perennial quest to scale the heights to God to attempt to usurp His throne and make a universe of their own.
They forget the lesson of Ozymandias if they ever learned it in their mad rush to madness.
What Day is This?
The chapter of history we find ourselves in (no, Virginia, there is no longer any “normal” for which you pine), concerning which hundreds of prophecies in the Bible foretell, urges maintainig the clarity and strength of walking in wisdom while the wicked seem to be going full-bore, lately, in their plans to enslave us through invasive violence perpetrated against both mind and body and now, via the most biologically minute aspect of what it is to be human beings.
We must resist the bait to become as them: enslavers and destroyers.
When Jesus gave us His peace, it wasn’t just a nice sentiment. It keeps us out of the Devil’s playground, that place in the base of the brain where we are ever in fight, flight, or fear; evil’s lair; Satan’s home turf; where we are easily exploited, easily conquered.
Jesus wasn’t ever conquered.
As His followers, we are more than conquerors.
The Proverbs chapter below is just one reference of many chapters, books, and letters (aka epistles) of biblical wisdom–and marching orders–for such a time as this, with countless reminders regarding who we really war against.
And reminders to pray for, and witness to, all those not yet on board as the clock ticks very close to the next event on the prophetic timeline.
Proverbs, Chapter 4 (King James Version)
~~~~~
*For information on why and how to “come into the family of believers,” here is a good summary, ABCs of Salvation
I would encourage you to take advantage of this opportunity today, if you haven’t yet, then find a Bible-believing (as in not “woke”) group of Christians with whom to grow in wisdom and strength for the days to come–for the days already here.
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