Dear Friends,
When we left off last week, Jesus was in the temple responding to the Pharisees. He told them they did not keep the law, striking at the source of their pride. He then asked why they were trying to kill Him. They countered by feigning ignorance and accusing Him of having a devil. Jesus’ accusers remind me a lot of the Pharisees we have today. 1.) Like the Pharisees of old, they adhere to a ridiculous religious code that nobody cares about except them. 2.) They try to impose their code on everyone else and attempt to disenfranchise anyone who refuses to comply. 3.) Their wisdom comes from disobedience (John 5:40; cf Gen 3:5), as opposed to Jesus’ wisdom, which comes from obedience (John 7:17).
Give us understanding, Father, as we continue with this heated exchange, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
John 7:21-36
21 Jesus answered and said unto them, I have done one work, and ye all marvel.
22 Moses therefore gave unto you circumcision; (not because it is of Moses, but of the fathers;) and ye on the sabbath day circumcise a man.
23 If a man on the sabbath day receive circumcision, that the law of Moses should not be broken; are ye angry at me, because I have made a man every whit whole on the sabbath day?
Jesus’ first strategy is always to reason with people, patiently and [i]n meekness instructing those that oppose themselves. It has been said you cannot reason with an unreasonable person, but that is what we are supposed to do as Christians. There is a time to rebuke (2 Tim 4:2), but we should be patient with people and try to reason with them first. Later before Jesus goes to the cross, He will give the Pharisees a scathing rebuke as a last resort. (Matt 23)
I recently read a story about a Jewish doctor who was treating a patient that rolled up his sleeve to show the doctor his big swastika tattoo. He then repeated the doctor’s Jewish name three times. The doctor replied, “Does getting a tattoo hurt? I never learned much about that.” His racist patient chuckled. The doctor continued to see his patient, who eventually overcame his addiction, got a job, and got his life on track. Twelve years later, as the doctor was preparing to relocate, he had his last visit with his patient. He had a big rash on his arm and when the doctor told him they were going to have to treat it, the big tough guy with the swastika tattoo started crying. He said he knew he was going to see him and he was trying to rub it off. Patience and reason do work. Much like Jesus’ brothers who did not believe in Him at first (v 5), many of the Pharisees, like Paul for example, later repented and received Him as their personal Saviour. Acts 6:7 says a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith, which quite likely included Pharisees.
24 Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.
This is why Lady Justice is blindfolded. Just judgment does not look at the appearance of the defendant, only the facts of the case.
25 Then said some of them of Jerusalem, Is not this he, whom they seek to kill?
26 But, lo, he speaketh boldly, and they say nothing unto him. Do the rulers know indeed that this is the very Christ?
27 Howbeit we know this man whence he is: but when Christ cometh, no man knoweth whence he is.
28 Then cried Jesus in the temple as he taught, saying, Ye both know me, and ye know whence I am: and I am not come of myself, but he that sent me is true, whom ye know not.
29 But I know him: for I am from him, and he hath sent me.
30 Then they sought to take him: but no man laid hands on him, because his hour was not yet come.
These references to the prophetic timetable can be found throughout John’s Gospel. Jesus was always mindful of his main objective, his hour. He patiently proceeded to the cross according to schedule. (John 2:4; 7:6, 8, 30; 8:20: 12:23; 13:1; 17:1) We need to be mindful of our hour as well, which can happen at any time. (1 Cor 15:52)
31 And many of the people believed on him, and said, When Christ cometh, will he do more miracles than these which this man hath done?
32 ¶ The Pharisees heard that the people murmured such things concerning him; and the Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take him.
The chief priests would have been of the Sadducees. Although the Pharisees and the Sadducees usually opposed one another, they formed an ecumenical movement in order to eliminate Jesus. Some things never change. Religious leaders are doing the same thing in our day. Even secular leaders who oppose each other will form alliances based on nothing more than their rejection of Jesus. (Luke 23:12)
33 Then said Jesus unto them, Yet a little while am I with you, and then I go unto him that sent me.
34 Ye shall seek me, and shall not find me: and where I am, thither ye cannot come.
Jesus is speaking to those who came to arrest Him. He tells them that where He is going they cannot come, but to his followers He said, I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.
35 Then said the Jews among themselves, Whither will he go, that we shall not find him? will he go unto the dispersed among the Gentiles, and teach the Gentiles?
36 What manner of saying is this that he said, Ye shall seek me, and shall not find me: and where I am, thither ye cannot come?
John 7:21-36
John 7 contrasts the curse of the law (Gal 3:12) with the cure that Jesus offers, living water. (2 Cor 3:6) In that day, there were many different state-sponsored religions to the East and to the West, each in defiance of the law of Moses. (Ex 20:3) In Israel, even the Jewish religion had been corrupted, making the Mosaic code far more strict than it was originally intended to be. Those who practiced pagan religions scoffed at Israel and her Mosaic law. Little did they know they were condemned by a law which they fashioned unto themselves. (Rom 2:14) What both Jews and Gentiles had in common was adherence to religious systems that could not save them. Fast forward 2000 years: The architects of the new world order understand the power of religion. Since traditional religions have lost much of their power to control people, they have created a new religion of pseudo liberalism. Let’s look at a thumbnail sketch of history and consider how history has been used to bolster this new religion.
The history of the world is a long story of suffering and oppression for people of virtually every kindred, tribe, and tongue. There were winners and losers, but oftentimes those who appear to be the most unfortunate are in reality the most blessed. Even today, the gospel is received among the poor far more so than it is among the rich. Slaves who lived in the South overwhelmingly believed on the Lord Jesus Christ. Now they are free for all eternity. Their tormentors, on the other hand, are now tormented — Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. Something that is often forgotten these days when the issue of slavery is brought up to bludgeon people with guilt, is all the blood that was spilled fighting to end it. Abraham Lincoln said the Civil War was God’s just recompense for America’s sin of slavery. Many of my ancestors fought on the side of the Union in the Civil War, but that does not matter. The Bible says The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him. (Ez 18:20) In other words, to lay claim to the sacrifices of my ancestors would be tantamount to stolen valor, just as punishing a descendent of a Confederate soldier would be blaming the wrong person. I think the important thing to remember is that it was Christianity that ended slavery. All of the abolitionists were Christians and beyond any shadow of a doubt, God was on the side of the Union in the Civil War. Sometime you might want to review the lyrics to the Battle Hymn of the Republic and compare them to the lyrics of Dixie, the anthem of the South. You can feel the Spirit (living water) in the former. The latter sounds like an advertising jingle. My great great great uncle, Zachariah Chandler, was one of the ‘radical’ senators who fought for the 13th Amendment. Fistfights among congressmen and senators were not unheard of at that time. On one occasion, Uncle Zach was attacked from behind and hit over the head with a pitcher, nearly knocking him out. My point is that it was the living water and those who were willing to fight on his side that changed things. Enlistment in his army is open to everyone, regardless of skin color or gender. Harriet Tubman was a black woman. Zachariah Chandler was a white male. The living water guides anyone who is willing. Conversely, Satan uses religion to trap anyone he can. Much like the ridiculous KKK ‘goblin’, ‘exalted cyclops’, or ‘imperial wizard’ of yesterday, the foolish pseudo liberal of today is snared in a religion of hate, like a fly caught in a spider’s web. (Even peaceful religions keep their followers blinded to their need to receive Christ. Religion is Satan’s masterpiece — mind control par excellence.) While Jesus teaches us to forgive, pseudo liberalism cherishes victimhood like a sacred cow. Forgiveness is forbidden. It has been said that to forgive is to set a prisoner free, and then find out that prisoner was you. An unforgiving spirit, therefore, brings people into slavery. Contrariwise, genuine Christianity has brought about gains for human freedom throughout history through things like the Magna Carta, public education, the Abolition Movement, the Civil Rights Movement, and much, much more.
However, that was then and this is now. The world’s rejection of the gospel of Jesus Christ has reversed the course of human history back toward where we started, toward what Jonathan Cahn called a ‘dark jubilee’. On the jubilee year in Israel, lands were returned to the original owners, and debts were canceled. it was a reset. (Lev 25) A dark jubilee is a different kind of reset.
When Jesus came the first time, Rome was the capital of the world. Her pagan religions kept people in darkness. Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen. For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient; Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them. These words were written in the first century by the apostle Paul to describe Rome. In our day, the world is moving back toward where it was at the time of Christ. A corrupted form of Christianity known as liberation theology, based in Rome, has displaced the gospel. The new religion of pseudo liberalism is ushering in the new world order of the Antichrist. His false prophet will be a Roman. (Dan 9:26) Once again, the Pontifex Maximus will be the most powerful religious figure in the world. This will be a return to where we started, a great reset — a dark jubilee.
If you are gay, you may be thinking that after I began by talking about the living water I slammed you over the head with the law, something a Pharisee would do. Well, actually the passage above from Romans 1 is in the New Testament. God just wants what is best for you. God has far better things for you, beyond your wildest imagination, if you will only surrender and allow Him to take over. Jesus offers living water to those who are in bondage to sin like the woman at the well was, or in bondage to religion like the people in our chapter were. All He asks for in return is repentance, which means a change of mind. In closing, if you truly have been a victim, the solution to your problem is to receive Christ as your personal Saviour. In his kingdom, the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.
Above all else, the important thing now is to be ready, to let the living water lead us and prepare us to meet our King. Let us love our enemies, bless those who curse us, do good to those who hate us, and pray for those who despitefully use us and persecute us — and pray always, that [w]e may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man. The time for the great escape is at hand. All are invited. Everyone is welcome. Are you ready?
Father, forgive me. I receive your Son as my personal Saviour; Lord Jesus, please come into my heart. Take control of my life. Thank you for the precious blood you shed for me on Calvary. I pray this in your holy and precious name. Amen.
COVID Update: Above I provide a link for an anecdote about a Jewish doctor. The story is part of an article about the purge currently taking place in the medical field: What Happens When Doctors Can’t Tell the Truth? by Katie Herzog. I recommend reading it. In The New Civil War Part III, I wrote about how the medical community in Nazi Germany, which began as an ethical network of caregivers, was twisted into a bureaucratic tool that the Nazis used to advance their agenda. The article validates my claims that the same thing is happening here in America, if not the world over. One of the themes I incorporated into Dragon Slayer Jesus Christ was the thesis that WWII never really stopped. The Nazis simply went underground and quietly continued their work. The same spirit we fought against in WWII continued its work to bring about ‘the new world order’, the same term the Nazis used for the Third Reich. Incidentally, the new world order is planning to build 25-30 new maximum-security Level 4 virology labs over the next five years. These labs will be sponsored by China and placed in locations around the globe, including the US. The really bad news is that everything I warned about over a year ago in Coronavirus Part 6 is currently being rolled out in Australia and Germany, with the introduction of government wallets linked to vaccination passports, all leading to a worldwide biometric medial ID, aka the mark of the beast. In Pakistan, they are already denying the privilege of a cell phone to the unvaccinated. The good news is there are still some doctors who tell the truth. Also, more than 45% of the American populace now believe the truth about the origin of the disease. The new world order is inevitable but I am praying for respite. Who knows but what it may please God to turn things around and give us one last revival.
Prophecy Update: The latest cyberattack (part of a wave of cyberattacks which readers of these notes will recall I predicted) has hit the US Congress. Perhaps this latest one will also prove to be a thinly veiled false flag event.
The Senate recently passed sweeping measures to counter China. Other signs of escalation make war look increasingly likely. For the first time ever, last March drones autonomously hunted humans in Libya. This is prophetically significant because, for decades, prophecy teachers have believed that AI will be somehow connected to the beast of Revelation 13. AI-operated hunter-killer drones sound like a possible explanation for the demonic army that John saw in Revelation 9.
When we were going through The Book of Daniel, I cited an article describing a Belgian government website for children ages seven and up with explicit instructions on how to perform oral sex. The article told how parents who complained were accused by the government of “prudishness.” Now in the US, the elite Dalton school where Jeffery Epstein taught has been showing first graders cartoons that encourage them to masturbate and instruct them on how to do so. The school defended their curriculum and said parents who complained “misinterpreted” the content. Grooming children for sexual exploitation is prophetically significant because it is the same sort of thing that brought judgment on Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen 18:20), which Jesus cited as a marker indicating the time of judgment was near. (Luke 17:28-30)
It is always darkest just before dawn. Our blessed hope draws nigh. Meanwhile, we need to keep fighting the good fight. (Mark 13:32)
