Devotional, Devotion, Prophecy, Bible Study, Bible discussion, End of Days, End Times, Enter Ministry, Underground Church, Church, Fellowship, Tribulation, Salvation, Ordained, Love, Heaven, Miracles
Author: Michael Young, Sr.
I am a practicing Christian, a disciple of Jesus, a husband of over 50 years, a father and a grandfather, a business man, a veteran and a friend to all who will have me.
I have served or am serving, at various times, as an Evangelist, a Pulpit fill pastor, an Associate Pastor of Evangelism and as Senior Pastor of a church plant. My passion is for practicing and teaching the Bible, building small groups, reaching the lost with the message of the Gospel of Jesus, recovering the straying Sheep of God and the gathering together the Called of God, in neighborhoods, business settings and in churches by equipping other Christians.
I have authored a few small books and I have a background in professional business management, finance and investments.
I am glad to meet you, even if it is virtually. Write me at any time and let's become friends.
CHRISTIAN ETHOS IN ACTION – “Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed.” (John 8:31)
The phrase “if you”, as it applies to you (and me) as a disciple of Jesus, appears one hundred twenty-four times in the English Standard Version (ESV) of the New Testament.
First, we will be confronted with various situations and circumstances from the Bible and, we will discover how we are to respond in these examples. Secondly, I have personalized (rephrased) our study verses for you to memorize. By this, we can bring the Gospel to life as we go and defeat sin along our way.
Today we, as Christians, are confronted with questions about how we should deal with matters such as belief in God, being Jesus’ disciple, living daily according to and in His Word, knowing the Truth, freedom, enslavement.
“Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed.” (John 8:31)
IN CONTEXT
“So, Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My Word, then you are truly My disciples; and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been enslaved to anyone; how is it that You say, ‘You will become free’?
Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly I say to you, everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin. Now, the slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does remain forever. So, if the Son sets you free, you really will be free. ” (John 8:31-36)
REPHRASED and personalized to memorize:
Then Jesus is saying to me because, I believe Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciple indeed.” (John 8:31)
Abide (continue): “meno”, (μένω): to stay, abide, remain, stay in a given place, state, relation or expectancy.
Funny thing about most people – no matter what you tell them, nor how many times they hear it, they will hear what they want to hear and will make of it what they want.
This twisting of human logic makes these words of Truth as complicated as they are simple. Taken at their simple face value, they offer a grand escape from the complications, the devastating results and the life draining enslavement of sin. But, when twisted to work as a justification for your sinful mindset and behavior, you become a permanent salve to sin, dragging about in the chains of sickness, disease, addictions, loss, worries, doubt, poverty, shame and guilt – all on full public display.
Why? Why would one do this? Pride is usually the reason. Pride, ego, selfishness, foolishness, addiction – holding your tight grip on ignorance instead of being willing or able to let go and reach for The Life-Giving Truth.
The Truth is easy to hear and to see if you have the ears to hear and the eyes willing to see: I am the way, and the truth, and the life. I have come to bring you abundant life – Jesus.
Try. You can find life, peace and satisfaction.
Your Brother and Friend,
Mike Young
“I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have placed before you, life and death, the blessing and the curse. So, choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants”. (Deuteronomy 30:19)
The “Urban Dictionary” puts it this way: “An American idiom commonly used in military operations to mean the first soldiers to go into a war zone. In common usage, it means the first to venture into a new endeavor. A trailblazer.”
The Bible uses a similar term to describe relationships between Christians in general and between husbands and wives in particular. The word is “Hupotasso“.
You will never find that word spelled, as such, in your Bible, though. It is the Greek word ‘hupotasso’ used for “Submit to” or “be subject to”.
The King James uses the word “submit” but, it reads this way in the New American Standard version of the Bible:
Ephesians5:21, “and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ.”
Verse 22. Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord. Verse 23. For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body. Verse 24. But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything.
The intention of “submission or subjection” is found in the CONTEXT of the words in this chapter of Ephesians, which encourages us to be wise and moral, kind and pure, gentle and forgiving.
The context is also found in the meaning of the words in these verses.
Specifically, “Hupotasso” comes from a Greek military term meaning “to arrange [troop divisions] in a military fashion under the command of a leader”. These troop formations were called a Phalanx. The Phalanx was the formation, usually in triangular form, in which The hoplite phalanx of the Archaic and Classical periods in Greece (c. 800–350 BC) was the formation in which the hoplites would line up in ranks in close order.
Hoplites were citizen-soldiers of Ancient Greekcity-states who were primarily armed with spears and shields. Hoplite soldiers utilized the phalanx formation in order to be effective in war with fewer soldiers. The formation discouraged the soldiers from acting alone, for this would compromise the formation and minimize its strengths.
The hoplites would lock their shields together, and the first few ranks of soldiers would project their spears out over the first rank of shields.
Those at the front were, what we would call today, THE TIP OF THE SPEAR or the POINT MAN. They presented the first defense against the enemy and were the first to engage the enemy and the first to take casualties.
The phalanx therefore presented a shield wall and a mass of spear points to the enemy. Making frontal assaults against it very difficult.
It also allowed a higher proportion of the soldiers to be actively engaged in combat at a given time, rather than just those in the front rank.
This word, “Hupotasso”, in non-military use, is “a voluntary attitude of giving in, cooperating, assuming responsibility, and carrying a burden”.
The Bible gives this as an example for husbands and wives to cooperate and to successfully navigate life and in waging wars against ‘their common enemy’, Satan.
The wife is fully engaged in the marriage relationship, but, God says the husband is to be the Tip of the Spear in order to protect and preserve and, if necessary, the first to fall.
Interestingly, Ephesians 5:22, “be subject to your own” uses the word “idios”which means, uniquely one’s own, peculiar to the individual. It is “stronger than the simple possessive pronoun (‘own’). This emphatic adjective means ‘private, personal’ “.
God gives each husband a wife, designed by God, Himself, to fulfill a role specifically for that husband. God gives the wife gifts, talents, abilities and a calling uniquely designed to serve God and to compliment and to complete the husband.
This is why the Bible says “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless.
“So husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself”.
It is also why God says “Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord”.
Neither, the husband nor the wife, can be made complete as persons when finding refuge, protection and provision. But as a God given ability, you can mature and sustain one another, until you understand this Spiritual principal and follow it.
Marriage has mutual strength through commitment and cooperation with one another under God’s Steady Hand.
Please take this to heart, dear ones. This message is so important.
The world and the Devil are deceiving the family in to thinking ‘what works for you is OK”. It is NOT OK. God’s design, His plan and His Word is what gives life, and life more abundant. Stop following the world and REASON through God’s Word. Understand it and live!
CHRISTIAN ETHOS IN ACTION – “Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.” (John 8:24).
The phrase “if you”, as it applies to you (and me) as a disciple of Jesus, appears one hundred twenty-four times in the English Standard Version (ESV) of the New Testament.
First, we will be confronted with various situations and circumstances from the Bible and, we will discover how we are to respond in these examples. Secondly, I have personalized (rephrased) our study verses for you to memorize. By this, we can bring the Gospel to life as we go and defeat sin along our way.
Today we, as Christians, are confronted with questions about how we should deal with matters such as looking for God, dying in your sins, belief and unbelief.
“Therefore, I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.” (John 8:24).
IN CONTEXT
“Then He said again to them (the Pharisees and the people in the Temple), “I am going away, and you will look for Me, and will die in your sin; where I am going, you cannot come.” So the Jews were saying, “Surely He will not kill Himself, will He, since He says, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come’?” And He was saying to them, “You are from below, I am from above; you are of this world, I am not of this world. Therefore, I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am, you will die in your sins.” Then they were saying to Him, “Who are You?” Jesus said to them, “What have I even been saying to you from the beginning?” (John 8:21-25)
REPHRASED and personalized to memorize:
“Therefore, You said to me that I will die in my sins if I do not believe that You are Him; I would die in my sins.” (John 8:24).– (Lord – I believe.)
Say He came to earth to seek and save the lost and spiritually dead and to save them? Save them from what?
Die, get buried and come back to life after three days in the grave to prove His Divinity and power over death?
Pay ‘the penalty of sin’ (which is eternal punishment in the fires of hell), for anyone who confesses with their mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in their heart that God raised Him from the dead?
Say that we (His followers) would do the works He has done and even greater works because He has gone to the Father?
Say He did not come to bring peace, but to bring a sword?
Say He came to bring fire and division upon the earth?
Mark 3:21, “And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying, “He (Jesus) is out of his mind.”
Did Jesus really…
Call people hypocrites?
Say His Father will put your enemies under your feet?
Tell the ‘religious establishment people’ they do not understand the power of God?
Hit people with whips of cords?
Call Peter “Satan” and called others Stumbling Blocks!?
Refer to people as perverts?
Tell people NOT TO REFER TO their Priest as “Father”?
Tell Jews NOT TO REFER TO their teachers, “Rabbi”?
Tell people NOT TO REFER TO those who serve in the church, “Leaders”?
Say that women are to be silent in the church?
Say that women are not to have authority over men in church?
Say that those who practice sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
Say that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers nor those who practice homosexuality.
Mark 3:22, “And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, “He (Jesus) is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “by the prince of demons he casts out the demons.”
WHAT IS GOING ON?
I have met a number of pastors and have had many acquaintances from various conservativedenominations say that Jesus’ words are largely, if not completely, metaphorical, communicating an idea but not facts, especially when it comes to His miracles. These pastors say that when the Bible says Jesus raised the dead, it was a metaphor, actually meaning that people who are ‘dead’ are only emotionally or spiritually dead. So, by Jesus’ words of encouragement, they would come alive with new purpose in life, but no one actually came back from being dead.
I know several ‘reformed’ Baptist preachers who will adamantly say that Jesus’ healing of the blind and the lame was strictly metaphorical and idiomatic. I have heard these men preach that the blind and the lame did not actually recover their sight or were healed of their infirmity, even to go as far to say that perhaps they were never really physically blind or lame in the first place. This preacher was asserting that Jesus could perhaps powerfully motivate the infirm to a ‘visualize life in a new way’ and that they would find a new way of ‘walking through life’.
I have heard as many more evangelical and reformed preaches, Bible teachers and Christians blatantly make personal assumptions, without any Biblical reasoning or evidence, that miracles have ceased (or perhaps never took place), the rapture will not occur, saying that it is a metaphor that has already occurred, that there is no literal hell, and when Jesus speaks of the binding of Satan for a one thousand year period of time, that too is a metaphor, etc.
I have to ask: If everything Jesus said or did and if everything in the Bible is open to personal opinion and personal interpretation, why bother reading a supposedly fictional book?
Are you one of those who is creating a god in your own image? Are you daring enough to arrogantly stand in judgement of the Bible?
SO, WHY DID JESUS COME INTO THE WORLD?
“For this purpose, I have been born, and for this I have come into the world: to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to My voice.” This, too, is our calling!
TO TESTIFY TO THE TRUTH
John 18:37“Therefore Pilate said to Him, “So You are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say correctly that I am a king. For this purpose I have been born, and for this I have come into the world: to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to My voice.”This, too, is our calling!
TO BRING A SWORD
Matthew 10:34“Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. Verse 35. For I came to TURN A MAN AGAINST HIS FATHER, AND A DAUGHTER AGAINST HER MOTHER, AND A DAUGHTER-IN-LAW AGAINST HER MOTHER-IN-LAW; Verse 36, and A PERSON’S ENEMIES WILL BE THE MEMBERS OF HIS HOUSEHOLD.”This, too, is our calling!
TO FULFILL THE LAW
Matthew 6:17, “Do not presume that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill the Law and the Prophets.”This, too, is our calling!
TO CALL SINNERS
Mark 2:17“And hearing this, Jesus *said to them, “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick; I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”This, too, is our calling!
TO SAVE THE WORLD
John 12:47. “If anyone hears My teachings and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world.” In a very real sense, This, too, is our calling, by lifting the Name of Jesus, telling others and leading them to Him
TO CAST FIRE & BRING DIVISION UPON THE EARTH
Luke 12:49“I have come to cast fire upon the earth; and how I wish it were already kindled! Verse 50. But I have a baptism to undergo, and how distressed I am until it is accomplished! Verse 51. Do you think that I came to provide peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather to create division; This, too, is our calling!
WHAT HE REALLY MEANT, WAS…
John 14:12“Truly, truly I say to you, the one who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I am going to the Father. Verse 13. And whatever you ask in My name, this I will do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. Verse 14. If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.”
I have heard so many preachers and bible teachers try to justify or explain away these Words of Jesus because they just cannot fathom the gentle and sweet ‘dashboard Jesus’ saying such things as we find in the verses cited. These same confused preachers really get tied in a knot over John 14:12. They will begin their commentary or teaching it with, “what this really means is…”. Jesus warned that there would be those who would come in His Name and would mislead many.
NOTE: Jesus said what He meant and meant exactly what He said. We need to get over it and get on with it. IF WHAT YOU HEAR FROM ANY BIBLE TEACHER, PREACHER, PASTOR OR CHURCH LEADER is not specifically found in the Bible, DO NOT BELIEVE IT, stand up for the Truth and then abandon them.
IF JESUS OR THE BIBLE SAYS IT, THEN DO IT LIKEWISE. Do not compromise or make exceptions for anyone or for any reason, while all the time remain loving, full of the joy of the Lord, being a peacemaker, showing forbearance, demonstrating goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
The divide between light and darkness, righteousness and unrighteousness, is great. These particular so-called pastors, preachers, Bible teachers and ‘church leaders’ (and there are tens of thousands of them) who deny the inerrancy of scriptures, are in essence saying that Jesus is a liar, a fraud, a hypocrite, a lunatic, or a just another religious leader, a motivational speaker, and that the Bible is a book of stories, fables and is a scam. Then they wonder why their brand of “christianity” doesn’t ‘deliver as advertised’.
It is normal to have questions and doubts. Even the early disciples and the Apostles had questions and doubted from time-to-time (Peter, Thomas, John the Baptist), but Jesus answered their questions and sent them ANYWAY! It was the ‘doing’ that proved their faith. (see Romans 12:2 and 1 Peter 1:6-7).
CHRISTIAN ETHOS IN ACTION – “Then they said to Him, “Where is Your Father?” Jesus answered, “You know neither Me nor My Father.
If you
had known Me, you would have known My Father also.” (John 8:19).
The phrase “if you”, as it applies to you (and me) as a disciple of Jesus, appears one hundred twenty-four times in the English Standard Version (ESV) of the New Testament.
First, we will be confronted with various situations and circumstances from the Bible and, we will discover how we are to respond in these examples. Secondly, I have personalized (rephrased) our study verses for you to memorize. By this, we can bring the Gospel to life as we go and defeat sin along our way.
Today we, as Christians, are confronted with questions about how we should deal with matters such as walking in darkness versus walking in the light, judging others, knowing Jesus and knowing God.
“Then they said to Him, “Where is Your Father?” Jesus answered, “You know neither Me nor My Father. If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also.” (John 8:19).
IN CONTEXT
“Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; the one who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.” So the Pharisees said to Him, “You are testifying about Yourself; Your testimony is not true.” Jesus answered and said to them, “Even if I am testifying about Myself, My testimony is true, because I know where I came from and where I am going; but you do not know where I come from or where I am going. You judge according to the flesh; I am not judging anyone. But even if I do judge, My judgment is true; for I am not alone in it, but I and the Father who sent Me. Even in your Law, it has been written that the testimony of two people is true. I am He who testifies about Myself, and the Father who sent Me testifies about Me.” So they were saying to Him, “Where is Your Father?” Jesus answered, “You know neither Me nor My Father; if youknew Me, you would know My Father also.” (John 8:12-19)
REPHRASED and personalized to memorize:
Jesus answered me, “You know Me, and because you know Me, you know My Father also.” (John 8:19).
This is worth repeating to yourself (and to Him), often: “I know the Father,because I know You, Jesus”.
It is also a worthy reminder of the unique relationship God has provided the believer and follower of Jesus, “The glory which You have given Me I also have given to them, so that they may be one, just as We are one; I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You (have continually) sent Me, and You loved them, just as You loved Me. Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.
“Righteous Father, although the world has not known You, yet I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me; and I have made Your name known to them, and will make it known, so that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.” (John 17:22-26)
It is encouraging and empowering to know that our relationship with God through His Son is not a casual one, but that we are fully connected as sons and as joint heirs in the Kingdom – with and through Christ Jesus!
Let’s take what is ours and assume our role as sons and daughters, children of God.
Click HERE, or continue reading this up-to-date Fox News op-ed, (designated below in green lettering), as adapted from authorCarol Roth’snew book “You Will Own Nothing“, Broadside Books, July 18, 2023).
“(Leftist) Elites want you to own nothing, they even want to take this away. Financial elites in America are busy putting up a white picket fence around the American dream of owning a home.”
Just over a decade ago, you may have taken out a mortgage from a big financial company, but you wouldn’t have to compete with them, or the companies that they have funded, to buy a single-family home.
But today, the ‘elites’ are trying to get you to rent the American Dream– from them.
Yes, some of the biggest names in finance, like BlackRock, the largest asset manager in the world and purveyor of ESG ideals, Blackstone, JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, and Capital One, among others, have poured hundreds of millions of dollars into backing companies that purchase single-family homes and rent them back to middle and working-class Americans.
Owning a house has been the defining symbol of that American Dream. There’s a good reason for that—it’s an important asset for creating wealth. If you wanted people to create more wealth, a key path to doing that would be making it easier for them to own a home.
But, the elite in the U.S. and globally don’t want that at all.
That’s why it is no surprise that a recent report from real estate brokerage firm Redfin showed housing affordability hitting a historic low in the United States, with less than a quarter of the homes listed in 2022 considered affordable for the typical US homebuyer.
There are corporations that have bought tens of thousands of single-family properties across the US for the express purpose of renting back the American Dream to you, so that you own nothing and give up your wealth creation opportunities to them.
It’s not just the US, either. In the UK, top British mortgage lender Halifax noted that property was unaffordable for the average buyer in about 80% of towns. In the Netherlands, it has been recently reported that first-time buyers are priced out of more than 96% of the market.
It has been predicted that “you will own nothing…and be happy.”
While the second part of that is no doubt as far as you can get from the truth, the wealthy and the well-connected are working hard on the first part. Hoarding assets and renting them back to you seems to be a big part of their plan.
In the United States, as well as around the globe, owning a home helps individuals and families build wealth. Per the Federal Reserve Board’s 2019 Survey of Consumer Finances, the home (aka primary residence) was the largest asset owned by dollar amount across all households and across all ethnic groups. More U.S. households have home equity than stocks and mutual funds or retirement accounts (including IRAs, Keogh plans, Thrift Savings Plans, and 401K(k) accounts)!
But the financial, business and political elite, many of whom own one or more mansions themselves, have overseen an epic transfer of wealth from Main Street to the already wealthy and well-connected, which has accelerated at key points over the last decade and a half.
During the Great Recession Financial Crisis, the cronies of the well-connected benefited while the average American was punished.
While both individuals and financial institutions took on too much risk vis-à-vis housing, their outcomes were starkly different. Individuals lost their homes while financial institutions received a bailout.
The wealthy and well-connected benefitted during the crisis in multiple ways. Some received direct bailouts. Many were given access to cheap capital. The financial institutions were able to foreclose on homes—taking away the wealth of the individual. These homes were flipped to capital-rich buyers who bought up these assets at bargain prices.
Meanwhile, as reported by The New York Times Magazine, “[f]rom 2007 to 2011, 4.7 million households lost homes to foreclosure, and a million more to short sale. Private-equity firms developed new ways to secure credit, enabling them to leverage their equity and acquire an astonishing number of homes.”
Following that, housing was under built, creating an undersupplied market. Then, investors flush with cheap capital from the Fed’s “easy money” policies created a new market: competing with you to own your home.
Single-family houses that individuals and families have bought for decades as a means of creating generational wealth were, for the first time, being bought at scale by big corporations.
This is an entirely new phenomenon. Meaningful institutional money in single-family rentals didn’t exist just over a decade ago!
Now, there are corporations that have bought tens of thousands of single-family properties across the U.S. for the express purpose of renting the American Dream back to you, so that you own nothing and give up your wealth creation opportunities to them.
They are backed by the financial elite, many of whom are the same people who cavort at Davos at the World Economic Forum’s yearly gathering.
These corporate homebuyers are not only driving up prices, but are formidable competitors in other ways. They have the financial ability to make all-cash offers, not relying on a mortgage approval like a typical homebuyer would. These corporations don’t even look at the properties in many cases—why would they; they don’t plan to live there.
In the fourth quarter of 2021 alone, corporations bought 80,000 homes, which was about 18 percent of all single-family homes sold during that quarter. While not all of those corporate buyers were large corporations (some were small landlords with corporate entities), it is a staggering number and more than 24,000 units higher than the same quarter in the prior year.
And, according to data from CoreLogic, investors purchased an estimated 22% of all US homes in 2022. That’s more than one in every five homes being purchased by an investor.
The investors own something, you own nothing, and they collect the rent on the difference.
This practice, enabled by Fed and government policy, is taking aim directly at the middle and working class. It is hurting younger Americans in their quest to own something. In fact, while millennials make more money on an inflation-adjusted basis than prior generations did at the same age bracket, they are generating less wealth and their hopes to buy their own home and a piece of the American Dream are shrinking.
The investors own something, you own nothing, and they collect the rent on the difference.
Redfin’s deputy chief economist Taylor Marr told The Hill, “Housing affordability is at the lowest level in history, which is widening the wealth gap—especially between generations.”
It’s the one-two punch of the policy-created asset bubble and transferring wealth creation opportunities to the already wealthy. Regular Americans are priced out of ownership, and they are not happy.
The elite want to come out on top, regardless of the fallout. So, they have now put up a white picket fence as a barrier to you achieving the American Dream.
Whether the “you will own nothing” prediction follows the expectations of the new financial world order or is a directive to help create one, it doesn’t matter much. Being a perpetual renter, rather than a homeowner, is a substantial affront to creating individual and generational wealth.
The elite aren’t stopping at homes. They are buying up land, water rights and more. You must work to own whatever you can, because if the elite own everything, and you own nothing, they will end up effectively owning you.
Carol Roth is a former investment banker, entrepreneur and author of the new book “You Will Own Nothing” Broadside Books (July 18, 2023). Her previous books are “The War on Small Business” and the New York Times bestseller “The Entrepreneur Equation.”
The Globalists-Socialists-Marxist-Communists-Left will tell you that their goal is that by the year 2030 “you will own nothing. No houses, no cars, no clothes, no appliances, etc., and you will be happy, (like it or not). Anything and everything you want or need, you will rent online, and it will be delivered to you by drone.” “I don’t own anything. I don’t own a car. I don’t own a house. I don’t own any appliances or any clothes,” writes Danish MP Ida Auken.
“Shopping is a distant memory in the city of 2030, whose inhabitants have cracked clean energy and borrow what they need on demand. It sounds Utopian, until she mentions that her every move is tracked and outside the city live swathes of discontents, the ultimate depiction of a society split in two.”
There is a lot of truth in the statement that if the United Nation’s Globalists-Socialists-Marxists-Communists have it their way, you will own nothing!
FOURTH –You will do it our way, or you will have nothing AND YOU WILL BE NOTHING.
Here are the 17 sustainable development goals of the United Nations Leftist-Globalist-Marxist-Communists network. These goals are lofty sounding and seemingly beneficial for our world. If you read them with an ‘open mind’ you may agree and even be converted to their point of view.
But not only are the methodologies for their implementation rigid, cold, uncaring and murderous, and nonnegotiable, the architects brag that ‘resistance is futile’.
A mixture or portions of these seventeen goals, in one form or another, have been touted by various Socialist-style governments and peoples for centuries upon centuries. Each time, the results have been the enrichment of the ‘then elitists’ at the expense of the masses. And, each time, the results of pursuing these goals were regional financial calamity and disastrous in human tolls. History has taught us that the Elitists knew ahead of time these goals were UN-achievable, UN-sustainable and the results would be unconscionable. (The combined death tolls of Karl Marx, Vladimir Lenin, Joseph Stalin, Mao Zedong, Ho Chi Minh, Pol Pot, Kim Il Sung, Benito Mussolini, and others, is estimated to have cost as many as 180,000,000 human lives (see this Wikipedia page).
The confoundingly sad aspect of all of this is that the Communist Left has really believed these goals are achievable at some level, and that these goals of a Communist Utopia justified the cost in lives.
In the 21st Century, with better technology, the LEFT once again convinced that these goals are achievable and worth the cost, and they are by their actions are saying they are attainable by the year 2030 – IF EVERYONE IN THE WORLD WILL JUST SHUT UP AND COMPLY! And if they won’t comply? Then, THEY WILL BE MADE TO COMPLY – OR ELSE
(And we must add that the Globalist-Marxist-Communists are becoming insanely wealthy by raiding the world’s global treasuries in the process!)
Goal 2. End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture
Goal 3. Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages
Goal 4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all
Goal 5. Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
Goal 6. Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all
Goal 7. Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all
Goal 8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all
Goal 9. Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation
Goal 10. Reduce inequality within and among countries
Goal 11. Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable
Goal 12. Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns
Goal 13. Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts*
Goal 14. Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development
Goal 15. Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss
Goal 16. Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels
Goal 17. Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development
* Acknowledging that the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is the primary international, intergovernmental forum for negotiating the global response to climate change.
FIFTH: An interview by pastor Gary Hamrick, Cornerstone Chapel, Leesburg, Virginia with Jim Garlow, former pastor, founder and CEO of Well Versed, a ministry to Members of Congress, Ambassadors at the United Nations in New York City, and other elected officials, bringing Biblical principles of governance to government leaders.
This interview will help encapsulate the breadth, depth and scope of this spreading and seething Globalism, by way of this short 55-minute video.
It is not enough that the well-connected gather and fight back, it will take ALL OF US joining together, with a cohesive and comprehensive plan of action – THE REMNANT of God, arising in these Last Days!
Your Brother and Friend,
Mike Young
STILL AREN’T CONVINCED?
Read this up-to-date Fox News op-ed, as adapted from author Carol Roth’snew book “You Will Own Nothing“, Broadside Books, July 18, 2023).
First, let’s be clear: Globalism is not Globalization.
Secondly, when I say ‘if you are going to fit it’ there are two – and just two – options readied for our future world on planet earth. You will find you will need to fit into one option or the other, or suffer alone. One offers true hope, the other offers a false hope the has been present since the beginning of time, and it is based on greed, deception and lies:
(Choice #1)
Globalism – as defined and described by Julian Huxley, the first Director-General of UNESCO, (a Socialist-Marxist based organization) in 1946: “The task before UNESCO, is the emergence of a single world culture by transferring full sovereignty from separate nations to a world organization.”
(Choice #2)
The Gospel of Christianity – “Biblical Christianity relies on the Bible to understand THE TRUTH though true faith. Biblical Christianity bases its doctrine on the Bible alone. Biblical Christianity produces true believers who use God’s Word to understand salvation and what it means to be a Christian.
“Biblical Christianity adheres to the fundamentals of the Christian faith, as found in the Bible:
“(1) The Tri-unity of God: the one God exists eternally in three Persons.
“(2) Jesus Christ is fully man and fully God. His death was the substitutionary sacrifice for sinners, and He rose again bodily.
“3) Salvation is by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone.
“(4) The sixty-six books of the Bible are God’s Word, inspired, inerrant, and sufficient for living a godly life.
“(5) Jesus Christ is coming again to judge sin and rule the world.
“Any departure from these points represents a departure from biblical Christianity”. (the foregoing, found in quotes, is from Got Questions dot Org.)
There is no direction you can travel that God has not spoken. The Bible teaches the Christian World View from twelve areas and disciplines:
Truth
Philosophy
Anthropology
Theology
Science
History
Sociology
“Unio Mystica” – Am I alone?
Law
The American Experiment
Labor
Community
Christianity and the Christian-Judeo Ethos has been proven throughout history to be the only effective way to attain and sustain the ‘17 sustainable development goals’ described by the United Nations, UNESCO, the World Economic Program and Agenda-2030.
21st century techniques and technologies help to greatly advance the well-being of the human race, but in the wrong hands and with the wrong ideologies, even our advanced knowledge and space-age technologies will fail to serve all peoples in a meaningful and purposeful way – in this case, history has shown that only the Elite will thrive, and the rest will meagerly survive.
(Biblical Christianity is, by the way, counter to cultural Christianity, which does not truly adhere to the faith or the Bible. Cultural Christianity may be based on family background, personal experience, country of residence, or social environment—what the Bible says is secondary. Cultural Christianity produces nominal believers who label themselves as Christians, but who allow culture to define their convictions. (It is being used by Globalist as a counterfeit of Biblical Christianity to infiltrate and compromise Biblical Christian Churches in order to merge this last obstacle to a One World Government and a One World Religion promoting relgious humanism.)
This battle has been raging since the very beginning of time. And, Jesus said, “Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.” Those who say they are Christians, but do not do as Jesus said, are liars and do not follow Him.
DEFINING 21st century “Globalism” is one very complicated thing. But DESCRIBING 21ST century “Globalism” is quite another. And, either way, it is like trying to count the numbers of goldfish in a small bowl, as hundreds of them swim frantically around and around the bowl – despite your best efforts, it seems like the numbers just keep growing! (To be clear, they “Globalism” isn’t goldfish. It is more like a gigantic school of piranha, or like the tentacles of a monstrous killer octopus).
Globalism, as loosely DEFINED by the Merriam-Webster dictionary is “a national policy of treating the whole world as a proper sphere for political influence”.
“Globalization” (as distinct from “Globalism”) is a term used todescribe how trade and technology have made the world into a more connected and interdependent place. Globalization also captures in its scope the economic and social changes that have come about as a result. It may be pictured as the threads of an immense spider web formed over millennia, with the number and reach of these threads increasing over time. People, money, material goods, ideas, and even disease and devastation have traveled these silken strands, and have done so in greater numbers and with greater speed than ever in the present age.
GLOBALISM (as distinct from “Globalization”) is DEFINED by Globalist Advocates on Wikipedia (endemically a far-left-leaning website) says, “Globalism refers to various patterns of meaning beyond the merely international. It is used by political scientists, such as Joseph Nye, to describe “attempts to understand all the interconnections of the modern world—and to highlight patterns that underlie (and explain) them. While primarily associated with world-systems, it can be used to describe other global trends. The concept of globalism is also classically used to distinguish the ideologies of globalization (the subjective meanings) from the processes of globalization (the objective practices). In this sense, globalism is to globalization what nationalism is to nationality. The term is now frequently used as a pejorative by far-right movements and conspiracy theorists. False usage in this way has also been associated with antisemitism, as anti-Semites, frequently appropriate globalist to refer to Jews.”
GLOBALISM “DESCRIBED”
Socialists and communists say Globalism is the key to worldwide prosperity. But, the truth is that Globalists say it is a key to worldwide prosperity, but they know it is the key to controlling people under the dictatorial rule of godless communism.
“The task before UNESCO,” said its first Director-General Julian Huxley in 1946, is “the emergence of a single world culture” by transferring “full sovereignty from separate nations to a world organization.”
The “new world order” will be a socialist, authoritarian global government and court with “global rule of law” and a “one-world economy,” according to theCommissionforGlobalGovernance.
An article from the Jerusalem Post, titled, “UNESCO’s Globalist Agenda minus Israel” has reported that the “New World Order” will be a socialist, authoritarian global government and court with “global rule of law” and a “one-world economy,” according totheCommissionforGlobalGovernance.
“The Obama Administration provided an example of leftist globalists in action. Bankrolled by billionaire George Soros, and using the radical social-manipulation “rules” of Obama mentor Saul Alinsky, the Left exploits groups like Black Lives Matter as “agents of change” to help usher in their new world order. They fund and direct radical groups to sow chaos and division by politicizing leftist targets such as police by labeling them as “racist.”
“The black community is in a grave situation and they are being exploited and manipulated by the liberal left,” said African-American Vanderbilt University law professor Carol Swain.
“In the same way, U.N. globalists manipulate the Palestinians. They play the “racism” card to incite chaos, division and attacks against Israeli police and soldiers—just like in Ferguson, MO. Their strategy: foment societal disruption to undermine democratic foundations—then step in and take over.
“The Globalist agenda also includes the establishment of a one-world religion, which means the political globalists have a religious arm. The U.N. is riddled with New Agers, occultists and others who consider freedom of religion hostile to New Age global harmony.
“Former UN Assistant Secretary-General Robert Muller told the San Jose Mercury that religious fundamentalism‘s “inflexible belief systems … play an incendiary role in global conflicts.” There’ll be no peace without “taming fundamentalism through a United Religion that professes faithfulness only to global spirituality,” he said.”
The Commission on Global Governance has publicly stated that when their Agenda-2030 plan is fully implemented, “it will bring all the people of the world into a global neighborhood managed by a world-wide bureaucracy, under the direct authority of a minute handful of appointed individuals, and policed by thousands of individuals, paid by accredited NGOs, certified to support a belief system which contains ideas that are foreign to the American experience, and ignores other values and ideas that are precious to the American experience.”
The World Summit on Sustainable Development, held in New York City, NY, USA, September 15-17, 2015, set a date of 2030 for complete implementation of their Agenda 2030 and Global Dominance by this Marxist global movement.
Finally, Globalism as DESCRIBED by Hillary Clinton:
Many scholars say the idea of Globalization started with Columbus’s voyage to the New World in 1492. People traveled to nearby and faraway places well before Columbus’s voyage, however, exchanging their ideas, products, and customs along the way. The Silk Road, an ancient network of trade routes across China, Central Asia, and the Mediterranean used between 50 B.C.E. and 250 C.E. is perhaps the most well-known early secular historical example.
The Bible, however, records that the first recorded idea of GLOBALISMbegan around 4,200 years ago with the building of the Tower of Babel (seeGenesis 11:1-9). This was the beginnings of the idea of a One World Government and the Bible warns this system will be revived and is coming again – in these Last Days.
“They said, ‘Come, let us build for ourselves a city, and a tower whose top will reach into heaven, and let us make for ourselves a name, otherwise we will be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.’
“The LORD came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built.
“The LORD said, “Behold, they are one people, and they all have the same language. And this is what they began to do, and now nothing which they purpose to do will be impossible for them.” Genesis 11:4-6
DON’T BE DECEIVED
The agenda of this “migration” and Globalism or One World Government is not the stuff of just any book. It is stuff of THE BOOK, that is The Bible. Genesis chapter 11 gives us the prophecy, the foreshadowing of the coming One World Government.
The Tower of Babel, built around 2242 B.C., was a post-Flood rebellion against God by Noah’s descendants. As told about in Genesis 11:1-9, it is meant to explain why the world’s peoples speak different languages. According to the account, a united humanity in the generations following the Great Flood, speaking a single language and migrating eastward, comes to the land of Shinar. There, they agree to build a city and a tower tall enough to reach heaven.
(NOTE: “tall enough to reach to heaven” can be a metaphor for “man reaching to heaven, making himself god, to accomplish his own desires. This is the ‘Utopian dream’ of the Socialist and Communist manifestos; the State being our god – from cradle to grave)
This effort of uniting in a global community has been underway for about 4,200 years, about 100 years after ‘The Flood’, but before Abraham was born.
This is ‘forecast’ or what is Prophesied in the Bible. Is it underway? Should we PREPARE?
“Follow (Deute) me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
Matthew 4:19
Jesus’ words seem pretty straight forward, as He says, “Follow (Deute – dyoo’-the) me”. But what does Jesus mean when He says, “Follow Me”?
When you look deeper into the language and at what Jesus is saying, you find that He uses this form of the Greek word ‘Deute’. Pronounced, ‘dyoo’-the’, only ONE time, and it means come hither! And, it is an exclamatory word and a command which cannot be ignored.
There are thirty-five others times recorded in the New Testament that Jesus uses the Greek word, ‘akoloutheó, which simply means to follow, to accompany or to attend.
By using the word ‘Deute’, Jesus is not making a calm, polite request. He is using an interjection, and an imperative command, “Come here now, and follow Me!”
Jesus, in saying “’Deute’, Come. Follow Me“, is telling His disciples to follow Him closely as if to be upon His back, peering over His shoulder, watching, learning, being closely identified with Jesus.
The reason and purpose for following Jesus in this way is to be identified with and as a disciple of Jesus.
A disciple’s first priority is following Jesus. Everything else is secondary. If Jesus tells them to go, they go. If he tells them to stay, then they stay. They may be like Paul, traveling the world over sharing the good news of Jesus. Or, more likely, they may be like Aquila and Priscilla, tentmakers who served in a local church.
You might be male or female; rich or poor; a preacher, an engineer, or raising children; you might have a variety of skin tones or ethnic backgrounds. But the commitment to follow Jesus, even to the cross, is common to all disciples.
There may be times, when we, as did Peter when he followed Jesus ‘at a distance’ to watch the outcome of the events when Jesus was betrayed by Judas, arrested and led away by Caiaphas, the scribes and high priests. But like Peter, we must confront our fears and confess our failings, and ‘Deute’, follow Him, even to our own cross if necessary.
Discipleship is a term that we often give lip service to. But we often substitute being a fan of Jesus for being a disciple of Jesus. But, as Christians, we are not called to sit in our padded pews, cheering on the worship team and preacher and paying our entrance fee. We are called to be disciples. To give up the life we had and follow Jesus, learning from him and becoming like him.
It is not enough just to evangelize. Bringing a person into a saving relationship with Jesus is just the beginning. We need to teach them to obey what Jesus commanded and to follow him wherever he leads. To be a team player rather than a fan.
And, please, let’s remember: You have to BE ONE to MAKE ONE.
But Jesus *said to him, “Follow Me, (akoloutheó = ak-ol-oo-theh’-o), to follow, accompany, attend), and let the dead bury their own dead.” (Used in this context 35 times in the N.T.)
Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and followMe (akoloutheó = ak-ol-oo-theh’-o), to follow, accompany, attend).
Jesus said to him, “If you want to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, followMe (akoloutheó = ak-ol-oo-theh’-o), to follow, accompany, attend).”
The next day He decided to go to Galilee, and He found Philip. And Jesus said to him, “FollowMe (akoloutheó = ak-ol-oo-theh’-o), to follow, accompany, attend).”
If anyone serves Me, he must followMe (akoloutheó = ak-ol-oo-theh’-o), to follow, accompany, attend), and where I am, there My servant will be also; if anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.
Your Brother and Friend,
Mike Young
This is offered in humility and love. I fail and fall short more often than I admit. I pray for you and humbly ask that you pray for me as we work to serve God and reach this lost and dying world with His Gospel – Truly, Good News.
Speaking for myself, if I allow myself to listen to the words of the world through other people, or through the news media and television , I find that I begin to doubt and worry.
I am continually hearing of wars and rumors of wars. I try not to be frightened, for I know that these things must take place, and although the time is near, I know that it is not yet the end of the age.
Nations are rising against nations, and kingdoms against kingdoms, and there are increasing famines and earthquakes (and they are telling us the earth is heating up, on the verge of a climatological disaster) in many and various places.
The Bible tells me that these things are ‘the beginning of birth pangs’, that is the intolerable anguish and the time of unprecedented trouble which is yet to come, (judgements of God on a sinful world).
There are many have come and who are now coming in the name of Jesus, misusing His Name, and appropriating the strength of the name which belongs to Him, saying or implying, ‘I am the Christ, or I am speaking on behalf of the Jesus,’ and they are misleading many.
We have been warned that those who hate God, will subject us who are Christians over to ridicule and persecution and to endure tribulation, and they will even put some of us to death.
The Bible says that we will be hated by all nations because of the Name of Jesus. We are already at the time that many are being offended and repelled by our association with Jesus. And many who have falsely claimed to be Christians are falling away from Jesus’ teachings, the very One they should trust, and are betraying one another, and reporting believers to those who work against the ways of God and the Bible, the ones who persecute us and hate everyone who believes in Jesus Christ.
Many false prophets are already appearing and are misleading many within the Church. Lawlessness has increased and continues to get worse, and the love of many people toward others is growing cold. (Please see Matthew 24:5-12 regarding the above.)
HERE IS THE ‘SECRET’ (in red bold lettering)
Before His crucifixion, Jesus told His disciples,(John 16:16),“In a little while you are no longer are going to see Me; then, again a little later, you will see Me.”
Verse 17. So some of His disciples said to one another, “What is this that He is telling us, ‘In a little while, and you are not going to see Me; and again a little while later you will see Me’; and, ‘because I am going to the Father’?” Verse 18. So, they were saying, “What is this that He says, ‘A little while’? We do not know what He is talking about.” Verse 19. Jesus knew that they wanted to question Him, and He said to them, “Are you deliberating together<mg3326, 240=””> about this, that I said, ‘A little while, and you are not going to see Me, and again a little while, and you will see Me’? Verse 20. Truly, truly, I say to you that you will weep and mourn, but the world will rejoice; you will grieve, but your grief will be turned into joy! Verse 21. Whenever a woman is in labor she has pain, because her hour has come; but when she gives birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish because of the joy that a child has been born into the world. Verse 22. Therefore, you too have grief now; but I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice, and no one is going to take your joy away from you.
(Hint:This is a reference to Jesus’ crucifixion, burial and resurrection.)
Verse 23. And on that day,you will not question Me about anything. Truly, truly I say to you, if you ask the Father for anything in My name, He will give it to you. Verse 24. Until now, you have asked for nothing in My name; ask, and you will receive, so that your joy may be made full.
Verse 25. “These things I have spoken to you in figures of speech; an hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures of speech, but will tell you plainlyabout the Father. Verse 26. On that day you will ask in My name, and I am not saying to you that I will request of the Father on your behalf; verse 27, for the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me and have believed that I came forth from the Father. Verse 28. I came forth from the Father and have come into the world; again, I am leaving the world and going to the Father.”
Verse 29, His disciples said, “See, now You are speaking plainlyand are not using any figure of speech. Verse 30. Now we know that You know all things, and that You have no need for anyone to question You; this is why we believe that You came forth from God.” Verse 31. Jesus replied to them, “Do you now believe? Verse 32. Behold, an hour is coming, and has already come, for you to be scattered, each to his own home, and to leave Me alone; and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me.
What has happened? Suffice it to say, for now, that this is no longer metaphors or figures of speech. It is a mystery for we who believe that enables us, too, to live assured of victory in and over all circumstances. As outlandish and as outrageously bold as this statement sounds, it is exactly what Jesus is telling you.
THE SECRET REVEALED – THE MYSTERY SOLVED
Read what Paul says in Ephesians 1:18, “I pray thatthe eyes of your heart having been enlightened, that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, verse 19, and what is the boundless greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might verse 20, which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, verse 21, far above all rule and authority and power anddominion, and every name that is named, Not only in this age but also in the one to come.
Verse 22. And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and made Him head over all things to the church, verse23, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all (believers).
Ephesians 2:4, “But God, being [so very] rich in mercy, because of His great and wonderful love with which He loved us, verse 5, even when we were [spiritually] dead and separated from Him because of our sins, He made us [spiritually] alive together with Christ (for by His grace–His undeserved favor and mercy–you have been saved from God’s judgement).
Verse 6. And He has raised us up together with Him [when we believed],AND HE SEATED US WITH HIM IN THE HEAVENLY PLACES, in Christ Jesus,
We are Join-Heirs with Christ. If you don’t understand this, or if you don’t believe it, you are missing your full inheritance.
Your Brother and Friend,
Mike Young
PS: You can USE this one!
“I have spoken these things to you so that, in Me, you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)
CHRISTIAN ETHOS IN ACTION – “What then if you should see the Son of Man ascend where He was before?” (John 6:62)
The phrase “if you”, as it applies to you (and me) as a disciple of Jesus, appears one hundred twenty-four times in the English Standard Version (ESV) of the New Testament.
First, we will be confronted with various situations and circumstances from the Bible and, we will discover how we are to respond in these examples. Secondly, I have personalized (rephrased) our study verses for you to memorize. By this, we can bring the Gospel to life as we go and defeat sin along our way.
Today we, as Christians, are confronted with questions about how we should deal with matters such as doubt, disbelief during trials, when the Words of God don’t seem to make sense to you, when everyone else quits on you.
“What thenif you should see the Son of Man ascend where He was before?”. (John 6:62).
IN CONTEXT
“I am the living bread that came down out of heaven; if anyone eats from this bread, he will live forever; and the bread which I will give for the life of the world also is My flesh.
“Then the Jews began to argue with one another, saying, “How can this man give us His flesh to eat?” So, Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in yourselves. The one who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink. The one who eats My flesh and drinks My blood remains in Me, and I in him. Just as the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, the one who eats Me, he also will live because of Me. This is the bread that came down out of heaven, not as the fathers ate and died; the one who eats this bread will live forever.”
“These things He said in the synagogue as He taught in Capernaum.
“So, then many of His disciples, when they heard this, said, “This statement is very unpleasant; who can listen to it?” But Jesus, aware that His disciples were complaining about this, said to them, “Is this offensive to you?
“What then if you see the Son of Man ascending to where He was before?
It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh provides no benefit; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit, and are life. But there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who it was who would betray Him. And He was saying, “For this reason I have told you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father.”
“As a result of this, many of His disciples left, and would no longer walk with Him.
“So, Jesus said to the twelve, “You do not want to leave also, do you?” Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life. And we have already believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.” (John 6:51-69).
REPHRASED and personalized to memorize:
“What then will I think if Ishould see the Son of Man ascend to heaven again? “So, Jesus said to me, “You do not want to leave also, do you?” I answer Him, “Lord, to whom shall I go? You have words of eternal life. I have already believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.” ” (John 6:62, 67-69)
COMMENT
The Bible tells us that Jesus ascended into heaven only once, and He will return in the same way as He ascended (see Acts 1:11). Then, at that time, the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory. And He will send forth His angels with a great trumpet blast, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.” (see Matthew 24:30-31)
If you cannot believe that Jesus is who He says He is and has done what He says He has done – and that His flesh is the bread of life and His blood is true drink that gives forgiveness of sins and eternal life, how is seeing Him ascend or descend into heaven going to make any difference? How is seeing miracle after miracle going to make any difference?
Believe. Believe in the face of doubt. Believe when the world is saying it is not possible. Believe because God says it is true. Believe and you will see. Say aloud, “I have already believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God”.
“And when they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some were doubtful. And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me, Go therefore…” (Matthew 28:17-19).
CHRISTIAN ETHOS IN ACTION – “Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, “Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.” (John 4:10)
The phrase “if you”, as it applies to you (and me) as a disciple of Jesus, appears one hundred twenty-four times in the English Standard Version (ESV) of the New Testament.
First, we will be confronted with various situations and circumstances from the Bible and, we will discover how we are to respond in these examples. Secondly, I have personalized (rephrased) our study verses for you to memorize. By this, we can bring the Gospel to life as we go and defeat sin along our way.
Today we, as Christians, are confronted with questions about how we should deal with matters such as sexism, racism, biases, misconceptions, salvation, and the gift of God.
Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, “Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.” (John 4:10)
IN CONTEXT
“A woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” (For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.) The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?” (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” (John 4:7-10)
REPHRASED and personalized to memorize:
Jesus answered and said to me, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, “Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Me, and I would have given you living water.” (John 4:10)
Sometimes, because of gender, race or social biases, our attitude can be so severely tainted with preconceptions and misconceptions that we are unable or unwilling to accurately judge or value the circumstances that are presented. As a result, we are apt to forfeit opportunities that could have a profound, positive and eternal impact on our lives – all because we are unwilling or unable to see the Truth. (Click here to read the entire account of Jesus and the Woman of Samaria)
Do not make your judgments based solely on what you think you are seeing or hearing – base your judgments by the Word of God and by the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
“Oh, the depth of the riches, both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways!Romans 11:33
CHRISTIAN ETHOS IN ACTION – “If you had known, namely you, in this your day, the things that make for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes.” (Luke 19:42)
The phrase “if you”, as it applies to you (and me) as a disciple of Jesus, appears one hundred twenty-four times in the English Standard Version (ESV) of the New Testament.
First, we will be confronted with various situations and circumstances from the Bible and, we will discover how we are to respond in these examples. Secondly, I have personalized (rephrased) our study verses for you to memorize. By this, we can bring the Gospel to life as we go and defeat sin along our way.
Today we, as Christians, are confronted with questions about how we should deal with matters such as praising God versusreligious customs, shortsightedness, the consequences of living blindly and in ignorance of God and the Bible,and knowing and experiencing God.
IN CONTEXT
”As Jesus was drawing near—already on the way down the Mount of Olives—the whole multitude of his disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen, saying, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” And some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.”
“And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, saying, “If you,(namely) you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.” (Luke 19:37-42)
REPHRASED and personalized to memorize:
“If I, yes, especially me, will know the things that make for peace! But if I am not paying attention, those things will be hidden from my eyes, and then the days will come upon me when my enemies could set up a barricade around me and surround me and hem me in on every side and tear me down to the ground, me and my children with me. They would not leave one stone upon another in my life if I do not know the time of my visitation – that is, the time of God coming to me.” (Luke 19:37-42)
God is telling us that knowing, following, obeying and experiencing Jesus, is what makes peace.
Jesus tells us, “(It is)Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” (John 14:27)
It is in trusting that your religious traditions and rituals will bring you peace and safety, that you will find your dilemma. It is at that time you will come out from under the safety, provision and protection of God – and that is the day when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side and tear you down to the ground – you and your children with you. They will not leave one stone upon another in your life
Instead, rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all His mighty works – including those that you have seen. Rejoice and praise, saying, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” (For if you are silent, the very stones will cry out).
Where have the ideas of mystery, power and fear of an awesome God gone? Most do not remember going into a Church SANCTUARY (deliberately and aptly named meeting place) to worship and to pray to the One and Only Living God.
Most do not remember the tears being shed over personal sin, people running to altars to confess their sin, repent and to get right with God and others, and the joy of fellowship afterward.
Most do not remember the spreading joy over a repentant person who surrenders their life to Jesus and entered the family of God!
Most do not remember the prayer meetings that would sometimes last for hours until a breakthrough was sensed.
While attending First Baptist Church, San Antonio, Texas, just before services had begun, some kids were playing in the balcony, running around, squealing and shouting. The senior pastor came to the microphone and spoke these words: “Hey, kids. It’s time to settle down. I need you to settle down, now. I am getting ready to perform SPIRITUAL SURGERY here, and I need some quiet.” These youngsters quickly settled and readied for services to begin, and the pastor quietly spoke, “thank you, young people. Thank you.”
With that, a hush fell over the entire church as people, young, old and all others, began to prepare their hearts and minds to meet God in prayer, worship and reverence. Something we rarely see now-a-days as we sip our coffee in the auditorium, listening to modern ‘Christian music’ being played over the church’s audio system and glancing at the announcements via on-screen video and sit casually chatting with those around us, as we wait for the show to start.
Services, as I remember would ‘serve’ in a fashion that at their conclusion many would leave feeling a sense of spiritual renewal or spiritual relief – instead of being ‘pumped up’ to become a ‘better you or to hear ‘another fascinating bible story’; being inspired by the Word of God to live a holy life was a primary thing, and going to lunch with friends after church was just a secondary pleasure.
The ‘remaking of Church’, the work of redefining everything Christian, the hijacking of certain look-a-like ‘Christian practices and phraseology’ has lulled us into a relaxed slumber and has caused us to forget that we don’t just “GO TO CHURCH”, but that the “WE ARE THE CHURCH”. The Church goes wherever we go. We “ASSEMBLE AS THE CHURCH”, and this is why scriptures tell us “Do not forsake the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.” (Hebrew 10:25). It is not a matter of “GOING TO CHURCH”, it is a matter of “BEING THE CHURCH ON THE GO”!
The day is coming though and is now at hand when every eye will see Him. For now, God is raising up a holy remnant in these last days: “Even so then, at this present time there is a remnant according to the election of grace.” Romans 11:1-6
Please, let’s pray together:
Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence, And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, And uphold me by Your generous Spirit. Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, And sinners shall be converted to You.
Your Brother and Friend,
Mike Young
PS: Ever so slowly, over decades, the Bible has been re-written (yes, re-written).
Using a slight-of-hand writing technique, over sixty people and organizations, putting themselves forward as ‘Bible translators’, have re-written the Bible. These are NOT new translations of the Bible. They are ‘new VERSIONS’; their own versions, of the Bible. But, like the writers of the English Standard Version are saying,
Here is a list and comparison of how THE KINGDOM, THE POWER and THE GLORY and other important verses have been deliberately altered or omitted from scriptures for reasons other than clarity and simplicity – no matter what they are saying to the contrary:
King James Version – “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.”
“The English Standard Version (ESV) stands in the classic mainstream of English Bible translations over the past half-millennium. The fountainhead of that stream was William Tyndale’s New Testament of 1526; marking its course were the King James Version of 1611 (KJV), the English Revised Version of 1885 (RV), the American Standard Version of 1901 (ASV), and the Revised Standard Version of 1952 and 1971 (RSV). In that stream, faithfulness to the text and vigorous pursuit of accuracy were combined with simplicity, beauty, and dignity of expression. Our goal has been to carry forward this legacy for a new century.”
These people have deliberately removed wording that may be deemed confusing or offensive to a post-modern post-Christian culture. They have redefined certain words to suit their own cultural and religious worldviews. They, in essence, are playing God with the Bible and the results are now obvious: Church evangelism and Church growth is in decline, a serious decline that some are calling a freefall.
Yours is the kingdomand the power and the glory forever. Amen.
American Standard Version – And bring us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. (missing: Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.)
(The American Standard Version was the basis of four revisions. They were the Revised Standard Version, 1971, the Amplified Bible, 1965, the New American Standard Bible, 1995, and the Recovery Version, 1999. A fifth revision, known as the World English Bible, was published in 2000 and was placed in the public domain. The ASV was also the basis for Kenneth N. Taylor’s Bible paraphrase, The Living Bible, 1971.)
English Standard Version – And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. (missing: Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.)
(The English Standard Version (ESV) stands in the classic mainstream of English Bible translations over the past half-millennium. The fountainhead of that stream was William Tyndale’s New Testament of 1526; marking its course were the King James Version of 1611 (KJV), the English Revised Version of 1885 (RV), the American Standard Version of 1901 (ASV), and the Revised Standard Version of 1952 and 1971 (RSV). In that stream, faithfulness to the text and vigorous pursuit of accuracy were combined with simplicity, beauty, and dignity of expression. Our goal has been to carry forward this legacy for a new century.)
New American Standard Bible – And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil.’ (missing: Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.)
The NASB does not attempt to interpret Scripture through translation. Instead, the NASB adheres to the principles of a formal equivalence translation. This is the most exacting and demanding method of translation, striving for the most readable word-for-word translation that is both accurate and clear. This method more closely follows the word and sentence patterns of the biblical authors in order to enable the reader to study Scripture in its most literal format and to experience the individual personalities of those who penned the original manuscripts.
NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE 2020 UPDATE
(After completion in 1971, the NASB was updated in 1977, 1995, and most recently in 2020. This brand new update of the widely respected NASB 1995 builds upon its strengths by further improving accuracy, modernizing language, and improving readability. The NASB 2020 is an important update because it utilizes advances in biblical scholarship over the past 25 years and it incorporates changes necessary to keep pace with the ever evolving English language. This refreshed text is designed to speak accurately and clearly to current and future generations.
The long-established translation standard for the NASB remains the same as it always has been, that is to accurately translate the inspired Word of God from the Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts into modern English that is clearly understandable today.)
But, why remove and completely omit all of these entire verses?
Matthew 12:47 — removed in the footnotes
Matthew 17:21 — COMPLETELY removed . What are you NIV readers missing? KJV: “Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.”
Matthew 18:11 — COMPLETELY removed . What are you NIV readers missing? KJV: “For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost.”
Matthew 21:44 — removed in the footnotes
Matthew 23:14 — COMPLETELY removed . What are you NIV readers missing? KJV: “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.”
Mark 7:16 — COMPLETELY removed . What are you NIV readers missing? KJV: “If any man have ears to hear, let him hear.”
Mark 9:44 — COMPLETELY removed . What are you NIV readers missing?
“Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.”
Mark 9:46 — COMPLETELY removed . What are you NIV readers missing? KJV: “Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.”
Mark 11:26 — COMPLETELY removed . What are you NIV readers missing? KJV: “But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.”
Mark 15:28 — COMPLETELY removed . What are you NIV readers missing? KJV: “And the scripture was fulfilled, which saith, And he was numbered with the transgressors.”
Mark 16:9-20 (all 12 verses) — There is a line separating the last 12 verses of Mark from the main text. Right under the line it says: [The two most reliable early manuscripts do not have Mark 16:9-20] (NIV, 1978 ed.) The Jehovah’s Witness “Bible” also places the last 12 verses of Mark as an appendix of sorts.
Luke 17:36 — COMPLETELY removed . What are you NIV readers missing? KJV: “Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.”
Luke 22:44 — removed in the footnotes
Luke 22:43 — removed in the footnotes
Luke 23:17 — COMPLETELY removed . What are you NIV readers missing? KJV: “(For of necessity he must release one unto them at the feast.)”
John 5:4 — COMPLETELY removed . What are you NIV readers missing? KJV: “For an angel went down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had.”
John 7:53-8:11 — removed in the footnotes
Acts 8:37 — COMPLETELY removed . It’s deletion makes one think that people can be baptized and saved without believing on the Lord Jesus Christ. Sounds Catholic. What are you NIV readers missing? KJV: “And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”
Acts 15:34 — COMPLETELY removed . What are you NIV readers missing? KJV says: “Notwithstanding it pleased Silas to abide there still.”
Acts 24:7 — COMPLETELY removed . What are you NIV readers missing? KJV: “But the chief captain Lysias came upon us, and with great violence took him away out of our hands,”
Acts 28:29 — COMPLETELY removed . What are you NIV readers missing? KJV: “And when he had said these words, the Jews departed, and had great reasoning among themselves.”
Romans 16:24 — COMPLETELY removed . What are you NIV readers missing?
KJV: “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.”
I John 5:7 — Vitally important phrase COMPLETELY removed . In the NIV it says,
“For there are three that testify:”
Compare the NIV reading with the following Jehovah’s Witness reading–
“For there are three witness bearers,”
What are you NIV readers missing? What does the real Bible say?
KJV: “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.”
CHRISTIAN ETHOS IN ACTION – “So the Lord said, “If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, “Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.” (Luke 17:6)
The phrase “if you”, as it applies to you (and me) as a disciple of Jesus, appears one hundred twenty-four times in the English Standard Version (ESV) of the New Testament.
First, we will be confronted with various situations and circumstances from the Bible and, we will discover how we are to respond in these examples. Secondly, I have personalized (rephrased) our study verses for you to memorize. By this, we can bring the Gospel to life as we go and defeat sin along our way.
Today we, as Christians, are confronted with questions about how we should deal with matters such as doubts and increasing faith.
IN CONTEXT
“The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” And the Lord said, “If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.” (Luke 17:5-6)
REPHRASED and personalized to memorize:
“I cry to the Lord, “Increase my faith!” And the Lord says, “If youhad faith like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.” (Luke 17:5-6)
If you or I had faith, the size of the tiny mustard seed, we could move mountains or tell the mulberry tree to be uprooted and cast into the sea? Where would we find that kind of faith? Where would you, or I begin to look or to search for that kind of faith?
LISTEN AND THINK
“Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, (Matthew 28:16-19)
How did the eleven defeat their doubt and increase their faith? By GOING and DOING!
You cannot ‘muster up’ more faith.
You will not find more faith by looking for it.
Peter tells us, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
Your faith and my faith are a gift of The Holy Spirit, increasedthroughuse in the face of trials, tests and temptations, resulting in praise, glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ!
These troop formations were called a Phalanx. The Phalanx was the formation, usually in triangular form, in which The 
This is why the Bible says “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless.
Marriage has mutual strength through commitment and cooperation with one another under God’s Steady Hand.
There is no direction you can travel that God has not spoken. The Bible teaches the Christian World View from twelve areas and disciplines:
“The task before UNESCO,” said its first Director-General Julian Huxley in 1946, is “the emergence of a single world culture” by transferring “full sovereignty from separate nations to a world organization.”
“The 
The World Summit on Sustainable Development, held in New York City, NY, USA, September 15-17, 2015, set a date of 2030 for complete implementation of their Agenda 2030 and Global Dominance by this Marxist global movement.
