Righteousness: A Gift, Not a Work (So Stop Telling Me It's "His Way of Doing Things"!)

 This is one of the most frustrating stumbling blocks that I am hearing in the churches today.

They keep talking about righteousness as if it means "God's Way of Doing Things."

That is patently untrue. I am so tried of hearing that. I am so tired of people not paying attention to what God's Word says.

Consider this passage:

"In righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from oppression; for thou shalt not fear: and from terror; for it shall not come near thee." (Isaiah 54:14)

Could it not be any clearer? Righteousness is something that we are established in. It is not something that we do, but rather somenthing that is done to us.

Let's go back to the Father of Faith, our beloved Abraham:

"And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness." (Genesis 15:6)

What more do modern-day preachers need? How more clearly can God make it?

Going back to Isaiah 54, we find this verse:

"No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD." (Isaiah 54:17)

Our righteousness comes from Him! We do not create it, we do not manufacture it.

And why stop there?

"But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:" (1 Corinthians 1:30)

Christ IS our righteousness. What else do you need to understand that righteousness is not "His way of doing things"?

How about this?!

"For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him." (2 Corinthians 5:21)

That's all you need to know. 

When Jesus said to the Israelites of His day during His earthly ministry "See ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness," He was talking about the perfect standing before God, in which we are no longer condemned for our sins, but justified from all things (Acts 13:38)

Consider this passage, too:

"For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ." (Romans 5:17)

It's a gift! IT'S A GIFT! How much more plainly can Paul make it?!

I am done. I will not settle for any pastor or preacher who continues to push this canard that righteousness is something that we do. No! It is something that Jesus has done, that He has bestowed as a gift to all who will receive it, who will receive Him!

The Problem Is Not the Left: It's the Lack of Righteousness -- BY FAITH!

 Dennis Prager loves to say "The Left ruins everything it touches."

I disagree.

The Left can touch anything it wants. People can choose to "touch back", to push back, to fight back.

And right now, we have seen too many people not do that.

Why? Cowardice, lack of boldness. Remember what Edmund Burke said:

And yet, telling people that they are cowardly does not help people. Shaming people does not get them to break free of the bondage of fear. What does?

God's perfect love:

"There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love." (1 John 4:18)

This perfect loves gives a perfected standing of righteousness in Christ Jesus!

"Herein is our love made perfect [lit. love perfected among us], that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world." (1 John 4:17)

What do we believe about Jesus? That He is our RIGHTEOUSNESS:

"But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:" (1 Corinthians 1:30)

and

"For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him." (2 Corinthians 5:21)

This righteousness makes us BOLD:

"The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bold as a lion." (Proverbs 28:1)

and

"In righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from oppression; for thou shalt not fear: and from terror; for it shall not come near thee." (Isaiah 54:14)

Righteousness is not something that we do, but something that is done to us! Righteousness frees us fro oppression and fear, because we know that God is with us!

"No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD." (Isaiah 54:17)

When you know that no weapon that people use against you will be successful, then you know that you can speak out, step up, speak up, and not fear what man may do to you (Hebrews 13:6)

That's the boldness that is needed, and it comes when we receive--and keep receiving--the gift of righteousness (Romans 5:17)

And that is "the faith" that Paul writes about to the Corinthians:

"Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong." (1 Corinthians 16:13)

We need to get back to the Gospel:

"38Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: 39And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses." (Acts 13:38-39)

BAM!

When the revelation of righteousness by faith is restored in the Body of Christ, then the boldness to stand up to evil will be restored fully in the land. The Left is not the problem. The problem is the lack of righteousnesss, particularly the revelation of righteousness by faith in Christ!

YES!

The Answer to "They Will Say Mean Things About Me": Righteousness

I get that people are afraid of being put to shame. I understand that people do not want other people maligning them on social media or saying bad things about them so that they lose their jobs.

I get all that.

However, at some point we need to start trusting the grace of God, and we need to start taking God at His promises rather than running away from the premises of the truth.

Consider this glorious promise which God gives to His righteous saints:

"No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD." (Isaiah 54:17)

The question I have to pose to many people in the Body of Christ, and activists around the country, around the world: Do you believe this promise? Do you believe that the LORD will ensure that every evil word people raise against you will fall flat, will come to nothing? Do you believe that you will stand firm while the hateful whiles of the Enemy and his minions fall to nothing?

Sadly, I have encountered so many activists who remain quite scared of being maligned, of people saying meaning things about them om social media or in private places. It's really quite a shame.

Then again, it's not good enough for me to shame people for ... being ashamed and fearing the reproach of men. What is needed is more of the ministry of righteousness!

"9For if the ministration of condemnation be glory, much more doth the ministration of righteousness exceed in glory. 10For even that which was made glorious had no glory in this respect, by reason of the glory that excelleth." (2 Corinthians 3:9-10)

When we are established in righteousness, God's righteousness, the gift of righteousness (Romans 5:17), the new and glorious identity of righteousness in Christ Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:21). we reign in life and we overcome the wiles, hatred, and abject reproach of evil men. This is the way to overcome, this is the way to live life, and this is the way to fight back against evil in all sorts of places.

Consider the victorious disregard of the Apostles when they were first arrested for preaching the Good News:

"And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name." (Acts 5:41)

They actually celebrated that they could suffer for the name of Jesus!

Paul adds in his Second Letter to the Corinthians:

"Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong." (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)

The Body of Christ, men and women of faith need a growing revelation of God's love, grace, and protection in their lives. To receive this, they need to understand their perfect standing of righteousness in Christ before God the Father. When we know that we have the favor of our Heavenly Father, then we stop carring whether people will say mean things about us.

Why the Cowardice? No Revelation of Divine Righteousness

 In a previous post, I asked a profound, uncomfortable question:

"Why the cowardice?"

People are afraid to speak out about issues that they are concerned about. They are afraid of being labeled racist, even though government policies, from the schools to the city councils, are doing untold damage to others.

Tucker Carlson urged his viewers to stand up to the left-wing mob which is bullying everyone into silence. Yet, there are so few people, it seems, who are willing to speak up. This is especially troubling, as we see this cowardice prevalent among our elected leaders.

Our elected officials should be demonstrating some sort of courage in the face of the outrage, protest, cancel culture. And yet, all too many of them are simply cutting and running from challenges.

What's going on? Why the cowardice?

Well, what does God's Word have to say? Where do we get boldness? How do we get bold, strong, courageous?

"The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bold as a lion." (Proverbs 28:1)

What makes people bold? Righteousness!

Yet righteousness is talked about so little in our ... churches! It's a subject which is constantly missing.

Righteousness means that we are declared right, and the righteousness that we need comes from God!

"No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD." (Isaiah 54:17)

We need God's righteousness, not our own. 

"But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away." (Isaiah 64:6)

Wow! Our righteousnesses, not just one act but many acts, are dirty, smelly, awful. They actually creat a bigger mess. The more that we try to make ourselves righteous, in good standing before God, the more unrighteous we reveal ourselves to be!

Consider this passage, in which Paul laments the state of his Jewish brethren who do not believe on Jesus (yet), but I submit to you that there are many people in the Body of Christ who are still trying to maintain their righteousness, and through their own efforts:

"3For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. 4For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth." (Romans 10:3-4)

We need to submit to the righteousness of God. We need to be knowledgeable, not ignorant of His righteousness.

If we study God's Word, and we believe in Jesus, we discover that indeed we are not just righteous before God, but ...

"For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him." (2 Corinthians 5:21)

WOW!

In fact, this righteousness is something that Jesus gives us, and that we receive--and keep receiving!

"For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ." (Romans 5:17)

The Young's Literal Translation brings our opportunity:

"[F]or if by the offence of the one the death did reign through the one, much more those, who the abundance of the grace and of the free gift of the righteousness are receiving [emphasis mine], in life shall reign through the one -- Jesus Christ." (Romans 5:17, Youngs)

People in the United States, and particularly the churches, do not have courage in the face of the cultural malaise and tyrannical onslaughts on our streets because they do not have the revelation of God's rightoeusness.

This makes sense, considering this passage, too:

"Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness." (Isaiah 41:10)

What takes away our fear? We know that the LORD is holding us up with his right hand, and with HIS righteousness!

With the revelation of His righteousness, we have these promises:

"14In righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from oppression; for thou shalt not fear: and from terror; for it shall not come near thee." (Isaiah 54:14)

1. You will be established, unmoved, unshakable.

2. You will be far from oppression (political tyranny)

3. You will not fear.

4. Terror, menace will be far from you.

These are great promises which kick in once we recognize and receive the full revelation of our righteousness in Christ.

And there's more:

"No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD." (Isaiah 54:17)

5. Every weapon formed against you will fail.

6. You will condemn every person, every tongue that speaks out against you.

7. You receive an inheritance from the LORD.

It is a real shame that the twin gifts of grace and righteousness are not abundantly preached in Ameica's churches today. There is hardly any preaching about Christ Jesus Himself!

This is why cowardice has become all too commonplace in our times.

We need to get back to the Gospel, the rich fulness of the Good News as revealed to Paul, who shared in Pisidian Antioch:

"38Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: 39And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses." (Acts 13:38-39)

Through Jesus we receive the forgiveness of sins--of all our sins past, present, and future--arnd we are justified from all things, and this justification is imparted to us apart from the law of Moses, the Ten Commandments.

It's no longer about our keeping the rules. It is all about the Ruler keeping us!

When we preach and promote the righteousess of God in Christ, the cowardice of mankind in this world, in our countries, will fall away.

Convicted for Doing Nothing Wrong, Sentenced for No Reason, Yet Still Joyful with No Regrets

(The use of this cartoon will make sense very soon)

So, on October 25. 2018, I was found guilty in a court of law for ... sitting in a city council meeting.

The prosecutor lied to the jury.

The judge suppressed evidence.

Of the eleven witnesses I had lined up to testify, only two were permitted to testify. What gives?

The jury had no idea what was going on. They just went along with the basic principle that if a cop tells you to do something, you just have to do it. Really? What if he wanted to take my money. Am I then obliged to turn over the cash?

I was found guilty ... of sitting in a city council meeting. Officially, I was convicted of two counts of California Penal Code section 148a1, "resisting arrest" or "failure to follow the lawful order of a police officer."

I contend to this day that the order for me to be removed from the Huntington Park City Council chamber was an unlawful order. I was called out of order for no reason, and then someone in the audience blurted out, lied to the city council elected officials, and they in turn went along with the lie just to have me removed.

I refused to leave. They had no right.

What's done is done.

I left the court house that Thursday afternoon, puzzled that this had happened. "How could I be found guilty for sitting in a city council meeting?"

A number of my friends from We the People Rising joined me at the court hearing. They witnessed three bailiffs stand in the courtroom when the verdict was announced, and then I stood up to hear the verdict.

"On count One ... Guilty!"

"On count Two ... Guilty!"

I was just shocked, puzzled, but no tears, no screaming or yelling. The court officers were preparing for the worst, but the worst did not happen--at least in my emotions.

I left the court room, since sentencing was postponed until Tuesday, the next week. My attorney took the heat so that I could go to a work event in Texas over the weekend. I was not going to stop living my life just because someone declared me guilty on the most flimsy of premises.

That evening, I went out to eat with the friends who had come with me. I didn't really let anything hit me yet. Just like when you find out that someone close to you has died, the full pain of this loss does not hit you right away. You don't realize what the loss is going to look like until the memories start rolling in, and then the realization that the person with whom you shared those memories is now gone forever.

That night, I went home. I went home, and I was just overwhelmed with grief as soon as I entered my home.

I cried for an hour that night. I could not believed that this was happening to me.

How could this happen to me? How could this be allowed to happen? Lord Jesus, I had prayed for your favor, I asked for your grace to get me out of this, to ensure an acquittal, to stand up to the abuses of the corrupt city council, the police, the system.

And yet ... this?! WHY?

I had never cried so hard. It hurt my lungs, I was in such grief. With all of this cascading over me, I called the first I could think of ... my employer Brian Camenker. He had been through this whole trial with me. I have never had so great an employer as Brian, and a better career than working for MassResistance.

He was with me as I cried out in pain. It was such a devastating loss. He shared with me similar challenges, pains, losses that he had faced in his life. He also talked about the overcoming spirit that he and his own father had demonstrated many times over.

Brian shared with me part of an elegant quote from President Theodore Roosevelt:

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”

Yes, I had been in the arena. I had welcomed victories, and I was not bracing a defeat. 

The anxiety I felt was great, too. Had I been mistaken this whole time? Did I miss God? Did I get this all wrong or something?

I was panicking somewhat at this point, too. Was I all alone in this world? Since God did not rescue me from a guilty verdict, was He someone whom I could not trust for anything now? Those doubts were the most crushing, and were certainly the deepest reasons for my despair.

I ended up calling two other people, friends of mine who had joined me at the courthouse that afternoon, and ate dinner with me that evening. One of them said "It will be OK, buddy." Another one admitted to me his own run-in with the law, and how the event brought him to his knees to ask Jesus Christ to be His Savior.

Quite a powerful, yet quiet admission that this man had made to me. I realized that I had to come to God directly with this. I had to not run from Him, or act as if He was not there for me. I needed to rest and recognize "There is a reason for this."

I went to my event in Texas. It was so hard not to focus on "The Sentencing!"

But then I began to return to the gift of righteousness which we receive (and keep receiving!) because of Christ Jesus (Romans 5:17).

No matter what is happening, no matter whether I understand what God is doing, or not doing, I have been made the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:21). At no time could I doubt or wonder whether God was for me. Truth be told, however, I could not understand what was going on.

That recognition of my righteousness in Him--apart from works, from feelings, from circumstances--began to ease my heart and soul.

The sentencing was going to be interesting, that was for certain. More to come.

Established in His Righteousness—Therefore, Unashamed and Unafraid

Barbwire Chief Editor Dave Jolly issued a stunning indictment against the Body of Christ in the United States.

In America’s Christians – Ashamed and Afraid, Jolly writes:

The state of the Christian church in America today is nothing like it was when I was young and the change is not a good one.

When I was young, many Christians boldly stood up for Jesus Christ and their faith in Him. They weren’t embarrassed to pray over the meal when eating in a restaurant or in front of other people. They weren’t afraid to stand up against the social recognition of sins and perverse lifestyles.

Sadly, over the past 50 years, millions of American Christians began to compromise with the decaying secular world. Rather than continue to stand up for their faith, they didn’t want offended anyone and they wanted to be inclusive.

Christians are ashamed to call themselves Christians, or to declare that Christ Jesus is their Savior. They are afraid to be slammed, shamed, defamed, and defeated in the public square.

Granted, these are welcome criticisms to point out.

I am interested in finding out why this is happening. One can suggest that many of this class of Christian really are not Christians. They are professors, not possessors of faith. If that is the case, then they need to hear the Good News in its fullest.

But I submit to you that there are indeed many in this “Ashamed and Afraid” class that do believe in Jesus, in that they know that Jesus died on the Cross for all their sins and rose again in fulfillment of the Scriptures.

So, what’s the problem, then? How does this get remedied?

The Gift of Righteousness

I can attest that I believed on Christ Jesus when I was 13 years old – June 11, 1994. Yes, indeed, I can point to a day and a time when I said “I believe in Jesus,. I believed that He died for my sins.)

It wasn’t until at least 20 years later that I understood the fullness of what it means to “be saved.”

Salvation is about righteousness, it’s about being established in Jesus’ own righteousness. Indeed, there can be no eternal life until we understand that all our sins are eternally forgiven—sins past, present, and future.

The Apostle Peter preached to Cornelius and his household:

“Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: 35But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him … To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.” (Acts 10:34, 43)

Remission, the sending away of all sins—that is Gospel.

And there’s more! Paul the Apostle clearly articulated the Gospel message thus.

“Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses.” (Acts 13:38-39)

Forgiveness of sins, justification from all things – there you have it. And how? Through Jesus!

“He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.” (Isaiah 53:11)

Now what does righteousness have to do with dismissing shame and fear?

After Isaiah 53, the prophecy of our suffering Messiah, we find the glorious Blessings outlined in Isaiah 54, in seventeen stirring, remarkable verses!

Here are a few:

“4Fear not; for thou shalt not be ashamed: neither be thou confounded; for thou shalt not be put to shame: for thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood any more.” (Isaiah 54:4)

Why “fear not”? The prophet declares:

“In righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from oppression; for thou shalt not fear: and from terror; for it shall not come near thee.” (Isaiah 54:14)

Whose righteousness, though? Our own? Not at all!

“No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD.” (Isaiah 54:17)

It’s HIS Righteousness, God’s own righteousness that secures every blessing.

Does this sound farfetched? Even heretical?

Rear your Bible:

“For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” (2 Corinthians 5:21)

Because of Jesus, we are not just righteous, we are made the Righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. We are invited, exhorted to receive—and keep receiving—this gift of righteousness and the abundance of grace, of unmerited favor from Him (Romans 5:17). God our Father looks at us, and He sees His own Son, because we are in Him!

“Herein is our love made perfect [lit. love perfected among us], that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.” (1 John 4:17)

When we are established in His righteousness, we have nothing to fear, since His covenant of protection watches over us (Hebrews 8:10-12). And let’s face it, people are fearful because they feel condemned, they are wary of any wrongdoing attached to them, whether rightly or not.

Consider Isaiah 54:4 once again:

“Fear not”

Why fear not?

1.       thou shalt not be ashamed:

2.       neither be thou confounded;

3.       thou shalt not be put to shame:

4.       thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth;

5.       [thou] shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood any more.”

All the shame, all the reproach is taken away from us forever, because of Jesus! We need to preach fully that all our sins are forgiven, that any and all shame is removed forever from us.

Even when we sin, fall, fail, screw up—His righteousness is never taken away from us. It’s an eternal gift which we receive and keep receiving.

Why are Christians ashamed? Why are they afraid? They don’t know their righteous standing before God in Christ. We have been made the righteousness of God in Him—but many Christians just don’t know it—yet. Let’s change that! Once we know the grand and glorious gifts, the standing, the grace we have in Christ, we can then say with Paul:

“For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” (Romans 8:18)

When we are established in His righteousness, Christians will no longer live in fear and shame, the way that our loving Father intended us to live!

I Need God's Favor Even Where I Am Familiar

This Monday, I returned from an extended weekend stay in Arizona.

It's a great place, not as desert-y as I had feared.

It's really nice!

There is a great deal of desert, sure, but I saw so many homes with their own set of greenery. Phoenix, Arizona is a huge city. It takes 30 minutes on a major freeway to get from one of the city to another city.

And that's if there is no traffic to contend with!

I noticed that I meditated on God's Word a great deal. It seemed like every moment of the day, I was chewing, muttering, marinating in one or many sets of Scriptures.

It was a very fulfilling time that I shared with friends and fellow patriots there in the Phoenix area.

Then I came home, and I realized something:

What is preventing me from meditating at length here in my own home town, my own city? What has been holding me back from thinking that I do not need to ask for God's favor here in the place where I live, where I have called home for the last three decades?

For a long time, when by myself or walking about boldly yet singly in public, I would think out loud, let my mind wander and wonder onto so many topics.

I never really got settled. It was so easy to get upset about past slights or future fears. After five days of staying at someone else's home in another state, after the habit of repeating and meditating on God's Word in different passages, I found that my mind was clearer, and opportunities began to appear in great number.

I can ask for God's favor and receive His grace for every day. Why was I not doing that when back at home in the South Bay?

Just because I know the South Bay, just because I have lived in Torrance for the greater part of my life, that does not mean that I do not need God's grace, His favor for facing different challenges and issues from day to day, or from hour to hour.

I need His grace, I desire His favor wherever I go, whatever I do.

The five day excursion in Arizona really opened my mind, my heart to seeing more of Jesus and receiving more of his abundant gifts of righteousness and grace (Romans 5:17).

I want my loving Daddy God to surprise me every day. For the last four days back home, I have found myself really appreciating everything that I have lived in, that I have enjoyed for this great length of time.

What can I say? I need God's favor even in places with which I have been so familiar all of these years. Yes, I may know that so many things close to me are relatively the same, but who knows what may happen upon me when I trust His favor?

I want to get into the habit now more than ever, just as Ruth did when she joined with Israel:

"And Ruth the Moabitess said unto Naomi, Let me now go to the field, and glean ears of corn after him in whose sight I shall find grace. And she said unto her, Go, my daughter." (Ruth 2:2)

Ruth landed in the perfect field:

"And she went, and came, and gleaned in the field after the reapers: and her hap was to light on a part of the field belonging unto Boaz, who was of the kindred of Elimelech." (Ruth 2:3)

She trusted in God's favor. She believed in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the same God who sent His Son to die on the Cross for us, to grant us His rightoeusness, His life, and His standing.

In the same way that Ruth trusted God's favor and found herself not just by chance, but by "her hap", in not just a good field, but the field belonging to her Kinsman-Redeemer.

Let's not hold back God from blessing us beyond what we ask or think (Ephesians 3:20). Let's ask God to continue to show us through His Son how much He loves us! (Ephesians 3: 17-19).

So Much to Be Thankful For (Why Do So Many Still Suffer, Though?)

Thanksgiving Day, 2017.

Not one, but two gatherings I was privileged to attend.

First, with a wonderful, conservative family out in the Moreno Valley area. Then I connected with another couple in the Culver City, West Los Angeles area.

Before this, I had reached out to my father, who now lives in Oregon. He is still holding back stage 4 cancer in his body, but he is not in any pain. Two weeks before Thanksgiving, I called my Dad to see if we could arrange for me to fly up there. He was not going to celebrate with a large family gathering at the house this year.

We decided it would be OK for me not to come up to Oregon for Thanksgiving.

I am glad, though, that in spite of that setback, I could celebrate Thanksgiving with other friends of mine, men and women who love this country, who love President Trump, who are glad to live in this free, wonderful country.

One thing that I have noticed, too, is that many people I know have struggled with untold health, financial, familial, and moral issues. It is astounding to me the number of depressing, humiliating stories I have heard from men and women in their upbringings.

Sometimes, I wonder how I have gotten through life without having so much harm and abused inflicted on me. It gives me more reasons to be thankful to live in this great country and to have the life that I have.

Now, I refuse to believe that my life has been easy because of some kind of limited privilege.

Our lives can be better or worse depending on our beliefs and our choices.

I decided to take God at His Word.

"28Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 30For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-30)

God our Daddy never intended for life to be one long, miserable dirge of troubles.

Behold what His Son declared to the Israelites of His day, and to us today:

"The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." (John 10:10)

and

"For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us." (Romans 8:18)

I refuse to accept the notion that I have had a smaller share of troubles compared to other people. No one is immune from the hardships of this fallen world.

But what has been the difference for me?

"Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all." (Psalm 34:19)

Indeed, I have been made the righteousness of God in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21)

I followed the command which Jesus has given to all of us--Believe on Him! (John 6:28-29)

This took a long time for me to rest in, however, since I had been taught to DO so much rather than BELIEVE on Him.

Such was the result of following a cult, AA.

For this reason, the hardships, the pain, and the intense hurt which many people have endured--I have not endured. 

Indeed, if people would just take God at His Word and trust him to care for them, they would find themselves enjoy the promises, pleasures, and provisions of the New Covenant!

"10For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:

"11And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.

"12For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more." (Hebrews 8:10-12)

There are many Christians to this day struggling to live, and seeking to thrive. They face nothing but troubles, it seems. Why is this?

They are not receiving the gift of righteousness and abundance of grace. I choose to. It also amazes me that there are so many people who have witnessed so much hurt and hate in their lives. They talk about the massive privations which they have endured, and seem excessively content to talk about all the problems in their lives.

Some people don't want to be happy, I suppose. I think that lots of people would prefer to suffer, like a form of self-righteous penance. None of us have to suffer through this life. We can reign in His Life!

"For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ." (Romans 5:17)

Let's be thankful for all the things which Christ Jesus has done for us, and let us continue in gratitude even in times of hardship, when the storms of life threaten our ship of state.

Before Breitbart, Christian News was "The New Media"

The New Media of Breitbart, Truth Revolt, Levin TV, Daily Caller, have made mince meat of Madam Hillary Clinton's chances at re-election.

They do not deserve the final praise for accomplishing this upending of the liberal Big Three media monopoly.

Before conservatives were scaling the walls of the liberal press, Christian programming like the Christian Broadcasting Network and Hal Lindsey's Report talked about the disturbing undercurrents of globalist corporate interests, plus the searing yet subtle attacks on religious liberty.

Before Breitbart was denouncing the Big Gay Hate Machine attacking individual liberties, Pastors Josh McDowell and Rod Parsley was preaching against the destructive homosexual agenda--and warning of its pernicious silencing effects.

The problem? No one was listening at the time.

Pat Robertson's Christian Broadcasting Network was educating the Christian public about the destructive, Satan spirit of lawlessness pervasive in the world. Preachers like him were also denouncing the intolerant political correctness of the left.

What has changed?

News which does not try to preach has found a more ready audience?

I submit that American citizens have finally woken up to the demonic nature of the Obama Administration. What the pastors and church leaders were warning about, has finally fallen on the public.

It's too bad that did not submit their understanding and take an active charge in fighting these scourges while they had begun to flay out at our rights, our foundations, the fundamentals of our Judeo-Christian culture.

Before the conservative "New Media" take all the credit for exposing the lies, hypocrisy, and distorted left-wing agenda of the New York-Los Angeles Media Phalanx, they should tip their has to the men and women of God who reported on the anti-Christian undercurrents of our secularized culture, and who exhorted their audience to do anything they could to alert and awaken their fellow man.

Now, why did Christian networks possess the wisdom and courage to report the stories which most networks avoiding, and to confront the issues which turned off major media networks?

Christians have received the gift of righteousness, and keep receiving it (Romans 5:17)

They have submitted themselves to the greatest King, the one political force who answers all charges and protects his subjects, men and women who He has made fellow-citizens and heirs with His Son.

The righteous are as bold as a lion (Proverbs 28:1). Because of this righteousness, they both know and believe that no weapon formed against them will ever prosper (Isaiah 54:14-17).

Because we the Body of Christ have yielded to the Highest (and Most Gracious) authority, we have no fear of man. We have the mindset to challenge the world's views and values. There is one Narrative which stands above all others: "In the Beginning, God Created", and then "In the Beginning Was the Word ..."

The apostles told the local authorities took joy in knowing that they suffered for Jesus's sake, and refused to stop preaching the Gospe.

The preacher Martin Luther reminded man that Grace comes from God through Jesus Christ.

The pastors of Great Britain taught the Englishman that Christ not man is King.

And the doctors of the church, throughout the Thirteen Colonies, affirmed for the American people of their godly heritage and the divine origin of their rights.

Fast forward to modern times.

In the Stanley Milgran social science experiments, Christians, men and women of faith, could look at their trainer and tell them "I will not continue to shock this subject."

Preachers, pastors, teachers of the Word, every member of the Body of Christ are not afraid of man or his government.

We are free to challenge what we have learned, and to grow in grace. Jesus Himself told those who doubted him: "Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works' sake." (John 14:11)

Before there was "The New Media", there was Christ Jesus, His disciples, the Body of Christ, and the great media who harnessed modern means to promote news with a Christian vision!