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Seek Ye First the Kingdom of God and His Righteousness

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During more than 45 years as a disciple of Jesus I’ve often meditated on (and tested) Jesus’ simple statement in Matthew 6:33, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you.” What things was He referring to? In this post I’ll explain exactly what Jesus meant, and provide some true personal stories that demonstrate how and why God did and didn’t provide them in my life.

So, what did Jesus mean when He said, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you?” According to Jesus, if your single-minded focus is to advance God’s kingdom in heaven, then you should never worry about earthly things—your heavenly Father will be faithful to provide all the things you need to sustain your life on the earth.

This article will be an easy-to-understand exposition of Matthew 6:19-34, including real-life personal examples. When you finish reading it you’ll understand exactly what Jesus meant when He said, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you.”

Seek Ye First the Kingdom of God

Jesus begins by challenging His listeners to examine their affections and priorities in life. What do they value the most?

Do not lay up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.
But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in and steal; for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

Matthew 6:19-21

Do Not Lay-up Treasures on Earth

Every earthly treasure is vulnerable to decay, loss, theft and inflation.

Worse yet, what good are earthly treasures when you die? We all came into this world naked, and that’s how we’ll leave it. You and I will leave all our earthly riches behind when our spirits leave our bodies.

Do Lay-up Treasures in Heaven

Unlike earthly treasures, heavenly treasures are permanent and safe.

If your treasures are in heaven, your heart will be focused on heavenly things. You’ll ‘seek ye first the kingdom of God’ on the earth.

How to lay up treasures in heaven?

Remember what Jesus said to the rich young ruler:

Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide yourselves with purses that will not wear out, an inexhaustible treasure in heaven, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys.

Luke 12:33

Seek ye First the Kingdom of God — The Early Jerusalem Church’s Example

Just after Jesus was resurrected and the Holy Spirit filled thousands of disciples in the first Church in Jerusalem, they literally sold their properties and donated the money to the poor. As a result, everyone’s needs were met and the congregation enjoyed rich spiritual fellowship…

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. A sense of awe came over everyone, and the apostles performed many wonders and signs. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they shared with anyone who was in need. With one accord they continued to meet daily in the temple courts and to break bread from house to house, sharing their meals with gladness and sincerity of heart.

Acts 2:42-46

Up to today this was the high point in the church’s spiritual life, and it’s been going downhill since then. But, the good news is that God destines His end-time overcomers to surpass the early church’s level of spiritual life, fellowship and power.

My ‘Living by Faith’ Experiment

Examples of ‘Living by Faith’

In the summer of 1976 I was an unemployed, newlywed Bible college student in Lakeland, Florida. I’d read about how Hudson Taylor, George Mueller, and Watchman Nee relied totally on God for their income.

John Taylor baptizing Honduran disciples of Jesus

I’d also become friends with John Taylor, a missionary who still serves in Honduras today. John is a living example of someone who ‘lives by faith’. What do I mean by that? To me, ‘living by faith’ means they never ask for money or communicate their needs to any people. They rely totally on God through prayer for all their needs.

My Failed ‘Living by Faith’ Experiment

So, in 1976 I decided to put this ‘live by faith’ method to the test. I told my new wife what I believed and informed her that, instead of getting a job, I would devote myself to prayer, Bible study, and any ministry God led me to do. In return, I ‘believed’ that God would provide our rent, grocery money, and any other needs through prayer. She was skeptical, but supportive.

The experiment lasted two months. Then, after our (borrowed) car ran out of gas one night we decided we could find and redeem glass cola bottles to buy enough gasoline to get us back to our apartment.

Then, after procuring some gas to get the engine started, I removed the air filter and poured an ounce of gasoline down into the carburetor (this was before electronic fuel injection). The engine backfired and the carburetor caught on fire. Fearing it would explode, my wife screamed at me frantically to get away from it, but I ignored her and soon beat the fire out with a wool blanket. Then she started crying, and I knew she couldn’t take much more. I started looking for a job the next day.

Lessons Learned

From this experience I learned a couple good lessons:

  1. God can and will provide money and other resources to support a person’s needs, but only when His leading prompts them to depend on this method of supply. It was presumptuous of me to expect Him to supply my needs without Him leading me to do so.
  2. Honest work that enables me to support my family is a gift and a blessing. Since then I’ve worked as a laborer, dishwasher, cook, janitor, warehouse-man, landscaper, military officer, cyber-security consultant, and IT project manager. My experiment of ‘living by faith’ wasn’t a failure. It taught me to be thankful for all of these jobs, no matter how humble.

Lay Up Treasures in Heaven Now?

I’m not advocating that you sell everything you own today and give all your money to the poor. As in the lesson I learned from my ‘living by faith’ experiment, such an action (without God’s leading) is presumptuous. Today’s Church is carnal and fragmented, and the early Jerusalem Church’s example doesn’t exist today.

However, within my lifetime I believe God will restore the early Jerusalem Church’s example. At the end of this age the Holy Spirit will guide sincere disciples of Jesus to return to this radical level of practical spirituality and fellowship as the living Body of Christ.

Then, it will be time for us to sell everything, give to the poor, and lay up treasures in heaven. The only question will be, “Will you serve God or will you serve mammon?”

The definition of Mammon is – material wealth or possessions especially as having a debasing influence.

Merriam-Webster Dictionary

Seek ye First the Kingdom of God | No One C Two Masters

The lamp of the body is the eye; if therefore your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness! No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will hold to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.

Matthew 6:22-24

Jesus challenges us to ask, “What are we focused on?” If your treasures are in heaven, your heart will be full of light, oriented toward the things of heaven. But if your priorities and affections are earthly, your heart will be full of darkness, and oriented toward carnal, earthly things.

To serve God we must be single-minded. No one can serve two masters. We will either serve God or mammon, but we cannot serve both.

God’s Cure for Anxiety | Seek ye First the Kingdom of God

Jesus said, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?”

Matthew 6:25

If you fix eyes on God’s heavenly kingdom, you won’t need to worry about your physical needs. If you’re concentrating on advancing His kingdom, God will make sure your physical needs are met.

Don’t Worry About Eating

Look at the birds of the air: They do not sow or reap or gather into barns—and yet your Heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?

Matthew 6:26

Think about it. As long as the billions of birds, fish, and animals function according to their place in creation, God provides food for them all. As humans, our rank is at the top of creation, even above angels. God literally made us in His own image.

Don’t Worry About Your Lifespan

Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?

Matthew 6:27

King David wrote, “My times are in Your hands.” (Psalm 31:15) We can establish a healthy lifestyle and avoid taking unnecessary risks, but after we’ve done these things we have absolutely no control over how long we’ll live in our body. It’s up to God.

Our physical, bodily lifespan is in God’s hands. But as long as we’re focusing on God’s kingdom as our first priority, God will make sure we physically live long enough to fulfill our God-given mission on earth.

Don’t Worry About Clothing

Mosaic Wall Mural in Jerusalem

And why do you worry about clothes? Consider how the lilies of the field grow: They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his glory was adorned like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

Matthew 6:28-30

Clothing was Both Apparel and Shelter

In Israel 2000 years ago a man’s clothing served more functions than it does today.

The Bible required all Jewish men to travel to Jerusalem three times each year for the feasts of Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles. It’s about 100 miles (160 km) from Galilee to Jerusalem, and men walked the entire distance in 5-10 days, sleeping on the ground at night, using their outer robe (or mantle) for their bedding and blanket.

So, in addition to covering the body for modesty and warmth, a man’s clothing was his raincoat, tent, and sleeping bag. Without sufficient clothing a person would die of exposure.

Rich men often wore an ornate outer robe (some were made of silk). This was a sign to others that they didn’t need to condescend to sleeping on the ground.

No Spiritual Value in Beautiful Adornment

In contrast, what Jesus said about John the Baptist, who wore a camel’s hair robe with a leather belt:

What did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? Look, those who wear fine clothing are found in kings’ palaces…
Truly I tell you, among those born of women there has risen no one greater than John the Baptist. Yet even the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

Matthew 11:8, 11

Jesus Himself “hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.”

Isaiah 53:2

Finally, my father once gave me this advice about the clothes I had to wear to church as a boy. “As long as your clothes are clean and the holes are patched, don’t be ashamed of what you’re wearing.”

Don’t Worry Like An Orphaned Pagan | You Have a Heavenly Father | He Will Provide

Do Not Worry!

Notice in the next verse that Jesus didn’t gently say “You don’t have to worry.”

Instead, as a direct result of the things He has said since verse 19 above, He emphatically commands us “DO NOT worry.”

Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For all these things the Gentiles eagerly seek; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek ye first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

Matthew 6:31-33

Jesus says, “therefore STOP WORRYING!” Stop acting like a pagan unbeliever who:

  • Rejects God’s sacrifice for sin
  • Lives in willful ignorance, sin, and rebellion against God
  • Has no desire for holiness, and no right to approach God
  • Cannot call God ‘my Father’

Instead of Worrying – Seek ye First the Kingdom of God

Your heavenly Father (and creator and sustainer) knows everything you need, even before and in more detail than you do.

Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

Luke 12:6-7

So, instead of worrying about food, drink, clothing, or the length of your life, “Seek ye first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all those things shall be added unto you!”

God’s promise is if you are seeking His spiritual kingdom and His righteousness, then your heavenly Father will provide everything you need to sustain you in this physical world.

My Alaskan Journey of Miracles

Juneau Alaska

A few years after my ‘Living by Faith’ experiment, we had migrated from Florida, to Ohio, to Juneau, Alaska–the most beautiful capital city in America (in my opinion).

Juneau Alaska

Then, after about a year in Juneau, I lost my good-paying job. I found work at minimum wage as a dishwasher, and later in a furniture warehouse. We moved into what people now call a ‘tiny house.’ In January 1978 our daughter was born and I didn’t have medical insurance to cover the expenses. As much as I loved Juneau, I knew something had to change in our financial situation and that meant I’d have to look elsewhere.

Pilot Training

Air Cavalry Scout Pilot

I piloted US Army helicopters pilot in the Vietnam war. When I returned to America I got an FAA commercial helicopter pilot’s license. After the war the helicopter pilot market was flooded with veterans with more experience than I had, so I couldn’t get a helicopter flying job.

As an alternative to helicopters, I wanted to become an Alaska bush pilot. However, I wasn’t an airplane pilot.

So, to become a bush pilot my first step was to attend a civilian flight school in Anchorage to get my commercial airplane pilot’s license.

Alaska Bush Plane

My veteran’s educational benefits would cover most of the cost for the training, but not my travel, room & board in Anchorage, or my wife and baby’s expenses in Juneau while I was gone. Fortunately, my mother-in-law was living in the tiny house with us and she found a job in the hospital cafeteria, so she volunteered to cover their expenses in Juneau.

Anchorage to Palmer, then Back to Anchorage in 1 Day–By Faith

I had just-enough money to get a plane ticket for the 575-mile airline flight from Juneau to Anchorage. I didn’t know anyone in Anchorage, but the Church I attended in Juneau had some congregations in various places; one of which was in Palmer Alaska, 43 miles North of Anchorage.

After buying my one-way plane ticket I had about $50 remaining. We prayed and asked for God’s help. Then I boarded the plane with only a small backpack and flew to Anchorage in the autumn of 1978. Strangely, I wasn’t apprehensive; I had the peace of God.

And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:7
Arrived in Anchorage Alaska by Noon. Started Walking to Palmer

I arrived before noon and started walking. With about 40 miles to cover, I ‘stuck out my thumb’ and hitch-hiked North out of the city of Anchorage toward Palmer. I didn’t have an exact address for my destination–a communal farm near Palmer–but I trusted that someone in that area would know where it was. (Remember, this was many years before the world had cellphones and the internet.)

I remember one driver who picked me up. He was in his late 20s, with the rough hands of someone who worked hard doing physical labor, maybe a homesteader. He seemed hostile when I talked about God, and he thought I was crazy for what I was doing. But he gave me some good general directions to my farm destination before he let me out of his pickup. God bless him.

In Palmer Alaska

I got to the farm in the mid-afternoon and introduced myself. We had many common friends, so that authenticated me as one of their brethren from Juneau. When they asked what my plans were, I told them I planned to attend flight training at Merrill Field in Anchorage, 40 miles away.

I was ecstatic to learn that they’d just started an outreach near Merrill Field, with 5 guys who rented a house within walking distance of the airport. The guys were working for another brother in Anchorage who owned a ServiceMaster janitorial business, cleaning office buildings at night. To make everything perfect, one of the brothers from Palmer was driving into Anchorage shortly afterward and would take me to the house where the 5 guys were staying.

Back to Anchorage

I arrived back in Anchorage in time for supper.

God Provided All My Needs

I was able to stay in that house near the airport, sharing the rent and expenses with 5 guys while working in the janitorial business at night and getting my FAA airplane commercial and instrument licenses during the day.

Looking back on it, I know God miraculously provided for me, from the time I left Juneau until I ‘got back on my feet’ financially again. As I achieved my goals I never missed a meal or lacked a warm place to sleep.

Shortly after finishing flight training my family joined me in Anchorage where we continued to slowly prosper. Our son was born there in 1979. By then I had a good-paying job with medical insurance coverage.

Do Not Be Anxious About Tomorrow, but Seek ye First the Kingdom of God

Therefore, do not be anxious about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Matthew 6:34

Finally, don’t worry about God’s provision for tomorrow either. If you’re walking in God’s will, and seeking His kingdom and righteousness first in your life, God’s provision will be there when you need it.

In Conclusion | Seek ye First the Kingdom of God

Through a detailed exposition of Matthew 6:19-34, illustrated with examples from personal experience, I’ve demonstrated that if you ‘seek ye first the kingdom of God’ and His righteousness as your first priority in life, then you should never worry about:

  • Whether you’ll have enough to eat
  • The length of your life
  • Whether you’ll have adequate clothing and shelter
  • Tomorrow’s provision.

If you ‘seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness’, then you can absolutely rely and depend on Him to take care of your physical needs on the earth.

What Do You Think?

Did this article answer all your questions on this topic? Please leave a comment below and tell me:

  • Are you satisfied by the information in this article?
  • Or, did it leave you wanting more?

Related Questions and Answers

Presumption versus Faith

Q: Why didn’t God miraculously provide during my ‘Living by Faith’ experiment in Florida, but He did miraculously provide during my Alaska Journey of Miracles? What was the difference?

A: In the ‘Living by Faith’ experiment I was presumptuous–I had the ability to work and God hadn’t told me to live by faith, so He wasn’t obliged to provide what I could earn myself. But, in my trip to Anchorage I wasn’t presumptuous. I was desperately trying to do what I sincerely thought was the best way to support my family, and God blessed my effort by directing my steps and providing the resources that enabled me to achieve and prosper.

Why is it important to seek God’s righteousness?

Q: Matthew 6:33 says ‘Seek ye first His kingdom and His righteousness…” What does it mean to seek God’s righteousness and why is that important?

A: This is a big topic, but I’ll try to answer it succinctly… Only the righteous can enter the kingdom of God, which is where God’s presence dwells.

God encourages to receive the righteousness of Jesus as a free gift (Ephesians 2:8) by repenting of your sins and believing in His sacrifice for your sins (John 3:16). Then, you’ll be ‘begotten-again’ as a spiritual child of God (1 Peter 1:23) and your soul will slowly grow in righteousness, day-by-day like Samson’s hair, by cooperating with God’s Holy Spirit within you (Romans 12:2). This process of transformation will continue until you receive your glorified, sin-proof body.

Until then, we all must continue to pursue this transformation into Jesus’ likeness, or we will slip back into carnality and compromise with the world.

Q: Is your wife still with you after all you put her through?
A: Yes, my wife is still with me, and yes, she’s a real trooper! God blessed me ‘big-time’ with her!

Fear of the Future | How to Overcome It

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With all the trouble brewing in the world, it’s normal to fear the future. Nobody can expect their future to be filled only with sunshine and peace. In fact, the truth is that everyone will have many trials and tribulations in their future, and then they’ll die. But don’t despair, you can overcome your fear of the future. There is hope—not in this decaying world system, but in God.

This short article will teach you how to overcome your fear of the future, bravely. We must replace our fears with godly knowledge and solid hope.

Reasons to Fear

Most would agree that 21st-century civilization seems to be unraveling.

  • Just within the last decade, powerful globalist forces intentionally destabilized many nations through warfare (i.e., Ukraine, Egypt, Libya, and Syria) and others are now being radically transformed through a Muslim immigration invasion (i.e., France, Germany, Sweden, and Great Britain.)
  • When I just typed “economic collapse mathematical certainty” into the YouTube search window, there were 1,630 videos on the topic. The USA is $20 trillion dollars in debt, with many ‘experts’ expecting a cataclysmic, worldwide economic depression to hit in 2017/2018.
  • We all enjoy the amazing food distribution system that brings us year-round fresh meat, seafood, vegetables, and fruit from countries around the world. But Western nations have now become totally dependent on this system. As a result, very few people have gardens or store emergency food, so millions are unprepared and they’ll die if any long-term disaster (i.e., economic downturn, world war, electric grid down, Yellowstone eruption, etc.) disrupts the restocking of our grocery store shelves every 3 days.

Twenty-first-century life is becoming more and more chaotic and dangerous, and there’s nothing visible on the horizon that provides an expectation that our future will be any better than today.

Overcoming Your Fear of the Future: what are you afraid of?

Fear of Personal Death

Death. While we don’t like to think about it or discuss it, please take a moment to acknowledge the reality that your body is eventually going to die. Whether you’re unexpectedly killed in a car accident tomorrow, or peacefully and painlessly go to sleep for the last time when you’re 110 years old, the terminal result is the same. Our days are numbered and (unless a miracle happens) we’re all going to die.

Accepting your individual mortality usually doesn’t cause us concern, as long as you believe your death isn’t imminent.

Fear of Society’s Death

In contrast, however, the fears of global depression, famines, World War III, and the Antichrist stamping everyone with 666 can fill us with dread, even if these events never actually happen within our lifetime.

Here are some possible reasons why we fear society’s demise more than our own death:

  1. The nightly news makes it seem like catastrophic events could be imminent, making us feel like society’s time is running out.
  2. We have no control over world events, so we feel helpless.
  3. We’re afraid for the welfare of our loved ones.
  4. This is the world system of government, economy, and religion that we know. We can’t imagine how things will be different in the next world system that replaces it.

Fear of the ‘End of the World’

When we feel like world events could be fulfilling prophecies in the Book of Revelation, it’s natural to fear TEOTWAWKI–the end of the world as we know it. The imminent fear of society’s end often creates an emotional burden of anxiety, dread, and stress.

Today, even small children sense the trouble in our world. Recently, a young mother in Virginia wrote this:

“I feel like I am so behind on my spiritual journey. How is it that I have gotten to this point in my life and am just now starting to scratch the surface on all there is to know and understand. The part of Revelation that always makes me uneasy is not knowing and not understanding God’s timing. The world always looks like it is falling apart when you watch the news. But when I turn off the TV and look at the world directly in front of me it all seems so beautiful still.

My suggestion for a topic I’d like to know more about is, “what now?” What can I do for my family and for my soul to prepare us for eternity and for the time when Jesus returns. My 4-year-old daughter asked me just last week what it would be like when Jesus came back – I had to tell her that I wasn’t sure, but I envisioned it like seeing your best friend that you’ve missed for a very long time. She cried and said that it scared her still… I told her honestly that it made me feel the same way! But that we’ll have to be brave. (Bravery is something she and I already talk about a lot, so it felt like a comforting thought to us).”

Overcoming Your Fear of the Future: the remedy for fear

In 1974, while I was sitting alone in prayer on my bed, I had a supernatural visitation from the Holy Spirit in which God revealed His love to me. It was like trying to drink an ocean of pure love. The experience was so physically overpowering that I couldn’t stand it. As awesomely pleasant as it was, I had to ask God to lessen it or I believe I would have physically died.

Since then, whenever I’m tempted to doubt God’s existence, or whether He is concerned with a situation, I remind myself of that experience and the revelation of God’s love is a solid anchor to my faith.

God is love; whoever abides in love abides in God, and God in him. In this way, love has been perfected among us, so that we may have confidence on the day of judgment; for in this world we are just like Him.

There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear because fear involves punishment. The one who fears has not been perfected in love. We love because He first loved us. (1 John 4:16-19)

Ask God to give you a revelation of His love. It will drive out your fears.

How Can a Loving God…?

In response to the statement “God is love” people will sincerely ask, “But how can a loving God tolerate all the suffering in the world,” or something similar.

For a detailed answer, including the purpose and plan of God through the eons of creation, please read my free eBook The Overcomers’ Treasure Map.

Overcoming Your Fear of the Future: how to prepare for the end time

So, how can we prepare for the end time, and be brave as we face it?

Whether we’re actually in the apocalyptic end time or not, troubles are certainly coming in our future.  The important thing is that our fears are real, and justified. How can we prepare ourselves, physically and spiritually?

Physical Preparation

Possessing emergency plans, supplies, and skills help defeat fear. This kind of preparation can help you survive many natural or man-made disasters.

For example, everyone would be wise to store some dried rice and beans, plant a small vegetable garden, and have a water filter to purify drinking water.

Here are a few general resources to guide your physical preparations:

US Government resource

Survival blog 1

Survival blog 2

Bravery

General George Patton said this about bravery,

“If we take the generally accepted definition of bravery as a quality which knows no fear, I have never seen a brave man. All men are frightened. The more intelligent they are, the more they are frightened.”

John Wayne said,

“Courage is being scared to death, but saddling up anyway.”

Corey Ten Boom was a young Christian girl in Holland in World War II. Her family believed it was their Christian duty to hide Jews in their attic. Decades later, after the entire family had suffered for this act in a Nazi concentration camp, she shared this story about her fear.

One day, at the train station, I voiced my concern to my father about whether I would be brave enough to suffer for Jesus if the Germans arrested us.

My father asked me, “When you go on a train journey, when do you get your ticket?” I answered, “Papa, you always hold onto my ticket until just before I go onto the train. Then you give it to me.” He said, “Yes, and God will give you the courage you need when you need it.”

So, bravery isn’t the absence of fear. Rather, it’s doing your duty in spite of your fear, and God will give you the strength when you need it.

Spiritual Preparation

What is your duty? Your main duty in this life, living under the dominion of the current, anti-God world system, is simply to follow God wholeheartedly and trust Him with the safe-keeping of your soul.

  1. We follow God by walking in the ‘Way of the Lord,’ following truth, goodness, and holiness.
  • Follow truth by aligning yourself with reality. Reality is revealed in nature, the Bible, and the Spirit of God.
  • Follow goodness by applying the golden rule toward everyone, even your enemies. Jesus told us to overcome evil with good. (Romans 12:21)
  • The Spirit of God in each born-again believer is holy, and each disciple’s spirit is being uniquely transformed into holiness, daily, by the renewing of his mind. (Romans 12:2)
  1. Like Jesus, we may suffer for doing God’s will in this world, but if we’re faithful to Him in this life we’ll share God’s glory in His eternal kingdom.
  2. Trust that God loves you infinitely, and nothing can separate us from God’s love. No one can snatch us out of His hand. (John 10:28)

A pregnant woman may wonder how she’ll bear the coming painful ordeal of birthing her child, but when the time comes and her contractions begin she naturally does what she has to do in spite of the pain. There is no ‘opting out’ of the experience. Then, as soon as her child is born, she forgets the pain because of the joy she feels. It will be the same for born-again Christians in the end time.

We can be brave and overcome our fears by (1) trusting in God’s love, and (2) having an eternal perspective.

Overcoming Your Fear of the Future: Decide now which group you will be judged with

Everyone will eventually die and face God’s judgment; but in the resurrections to come, the decisions you make in this life will determine which of the following three groups you’ll be judged with:

1.     Disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ

Definition: A disciple is an active follower of the living, resurrected Messiah. Disciples are 100% committed to eradicating sin from their lives and being transformed by the renewing of their minds (Romans 12:2). They’re students of God’s word, and growing daily through prayer and spiritual relationship to God.

Today, disciples have nothing to fear from death. Their bodies will be resurrected in the first resurrection. They’ll rule and reign with Christ for 1000 years before the general resurrection. They’ll inherit an eternal reward of life and glory in God’s presence.

During the coming ‘great tribulation’ living disciples of the Messiah will be ‘sealed’ by God and glorified as God’s manifested sons and daughters. To silence their godly testimony, Satan and the Antichrist may persecute and kill them.  As a result, they’ll earn the martyr’s crown, to be worn proudly for all eternity. They’ll also sing a new song on Mount Zion with the Lamb, a song that no one else will be able to sing. Finally, they’ll earn the 8 promises to the overcomers in the Book of Revelation.

2.     Believers in the Lord Jesus Christ

Definition: A believer has asked God to forgive his sins by faith in Jesus’ sacrifice, but he’s less than 100% committed to following God daily or eradicating sin from his life.

Believers who die (today, or in the great tribulation) will regret not following the Lord 100% as a disciple. Their bodies will be resurrected in the general resurrection (after the 1000-year millennium) along with unbelievers. Their faith will save them and they’ll receive rewards based on their godly works. For those without godly works, they’ll be saved ‘as through fire:’

If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, or straw, his workmanship will be evident, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will prove the quality of each man’s work. If what he has built survives, he will receive a reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss. He himself will be saved, but only as one being snatched from the fire. (1 Cor 3:12-15)

3.     Unbelievers

The Devil would like you to believe that living your earthly life now is more important than the state of your eternal spirit, and as long as you’re a ‘good person’ believing in Jesus isn’t required.

  1. The Devil is a liar. Everyone who follows him dies, and then their spirit will suffer burning torment in hell.
  2. The truth is that the state of your immortal spirit is infinitely more important than your temporary, physical body. Everyone’s body will die in a few years, but your spirit never dies. God’s desire (for everyone) is for our spirits to become holy, like Jesus. We become holy by choosing to walk in ‘the way of the Lord’ during our earthly life.

Judgment

If you reject Jesus as your Savior, He will not be able to receive you into heaven when your dead body is resurrected in the general resurrection. You will stand naked before God, without the free gift of forgiveness which is available now through faith in Jesus. Almighty God will judge you, pronouncing your sentence based on your unbelief and the sin you preferred above salvation.

Someone will ask, “What about those unbelievers who never heard the gospel?” God is love, and He is also good and just. His judgment will be fair and applicable to each person. Nobody, not even Satan, will challenge the fairness of God’s decisions at the great white throne judgment. (Revelation 20:11-15)

Hell

You’ll then be cast into a place of burning torment to serve 100% of your long sentence. I believe the purpose of hell is redemptive, to burn away the sinfulness from each unbeliever’s evil spirit until you’re ready to repent and ask God for forgiveness. For some, this will take thousands of years; for others, less, depending on the hardness of your heart.

Based on Colossians 1:20 (and other verses) everyone will eventually receive God’s forgiveness and be released from this place of burning torment.

“and through Jesus to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.” (Colossians 1:20)

Eventually, in the ages to come, God’s plan is for everyone who ever lived to dwell in His presence in heaven, after sincerely bowing their knee to Jesus Christ and confessing that He is the only Savior and Lord.

Therefore, if you’re an unbeliever you’d be wise to repent of your sins and dedicate your life to following Jesus today. Don’t wait another day—you never know what tomorrow will bring.

Overcoming Your Fear of the Future: Conclusion

We can’t avoid the birthing process of the coming new age, but you can be eternally blessed by deciding to follow God wholeheartedly and trusting Him with the safe-keeping of your soul.

God’s love drives out fear. You can be brave and overcome your fear of the future by (1) trusting in God’s love, and (2) having an eternal perspective.

In this short life, your most important decision is whether you’ll choose to be a disciple, a believer, or an unbeliever. Disciples are the only ones who have nothing to fear in their future.

Watch and Pray

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APOCALYPSE FATIGUE

Watch and Pray… if you’re like me, you sometimes suffer from ‘apocalypse fatigue.’  I’ve sincerely expected the end of the age to start (resulting in the great tribulation, the Antichrist’s defeat, and the return of Jesus) many times since 1981, but obviously it hasn’t happened yet. Ugh! How much longer?

Signs of the Apocalypse

Here’s a short list of apocalyptic signs I have followed (or am still tracking) with interest:

  • 1981 – the planets of the solar system were supposed to align, triggering great earthquakes, etc. (Signs in the heavens and on earth)
  • 1988 – 40 years after Israel became a nation (The olive tree parable…this generation will not pass away until the end comes)
  • The Bush presidents, 9/11, and their promotion of the ‘new world order’
  • 2008-2016 – Is Obama the Antichrist?
  • 2013 – The last pope takes office according to the prophecy of St Malachy. Is Pope Francis the false prophet of Revelation 13?
  • 2015 – four consecutive ‘blood moons’ coinciding with Jewish Passover and Tabernacles festivals. Did the 7-year tribulation covenant period start on Yom Kippur, 9/22/15?
  • 2017 – Is Trump, Jared Kushner, Obama, or Prince Charles the Antichrist?
  • Possible Second Coming dates: Yom Kippur of 2022, 2024, or 2036?

I’ve made life-changing decisions based on some of these. Some of them resulted in life-long consequences and lost career opportunities.

Watch and Pray

After so many false leads over decades, it’s tempting to simply stop looking for end-time clues and just join the rest of the world—asleep in their blissful ignorance.

But, as I was meditating on my apocalypse fatigue, the scripture to “watch and pray” came to me. Regarding the end of this age, Jesus warned:

Watch yourselves, or your hearts will be weighed down by dissipation, drunkenness, and the worries of life—and that day will spring upon you suddenly like a snare. For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the whole earth. So, keep watch always, and pray that you may have the strength to escape all that is about to happen and to stand before the Son of Man.” (Luke 21:34-36)

WATCH and pray

What does it mean to keep watch? According to BibleHub.com, the original Greek word literally means “to be sleepless, intent upon a thing, Ephesians 6:18; or, to exercise constant vigilance over something (an image drawn from shepherds).”

art by Gods411.org

Examples of watching:

  1. Defensive:
    1. Shepherds keep watch over their sheep, making sure they’re safe from predators and other dangers.
    2. Soldiers are routinely assigned to guard duty. They keep watch over (guard) a specific place or thing during a specified period of time.
  2. Offensive: Hunters watch intently for their prey. They constantly search for clues and signs that will lead them to succeed in their hunt. They focus all their senses on the hunt; looking for animal tracks, listening for twigs snapping, and smelling their upwind quarry.

What should we ‘keep watch’ for?

Watch so that no one deceives you.

In all three synoptic gospels, this is the first warning Jesus gave His disciples regarding the end time.

  1. Matthew 24:4 See to it that no one deceives you.
  2. Mark 13:5 See to it that no one deceives you.
  3. Luke 21:8-9 See to it that you are not deceived. For many will come in My name, claiming, ‘I am He,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them. When you hear of wars and rebellions, do not be alarmed. These things must happen first, but the end is not imminent.”

Watch to be able to withstand persecution.

  1. Mark 13:9-13 So be on your guard. You will be handed over to the councils and beaten in the synagogues. On My account, you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them… Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child. Children will rise against their parents and have them put to death. You will be hated by everyone on account of My name, but the one who perseveres to the end will be saved.
  2. Matthew 24:9-12 Then they will hand you over to be persecuted and killed, and you will be hated by all nations on account of My name. At that time many will fall away and will betray and hate one another, and many false prophets will arise and mislead many. Because of the multiplication of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold. But the one who perseveres to the end will be saved.
  3. Luke 21:12-19 But before all this, they will seize you and persecute you. On account of My name, they will deliver you to the synagogues and prisons, and they will bring you before kings and governors. This will be your opportunity to serve as witnesses. So make up your mind not to worry beforehand how to defend yourselves. For I will give you speech and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict. You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends, and some of you will be put to death. And you will be hated by everyone because of My name. Yet not even a hair of your head will perish. By your patient endurance, you will gain your souls.
Learn from Peter’s failure to watch

The night before Jesus’ crucifixion, Peter said: “I will die with you.” But Jesus warned Peter that he would deny Jesus three times before sunrise. Jesus encouraged Peter to watch and pray. Later, in the Garden of Gethsemane, Peter was sleepy and didn’t ‘watch’ with the Lord. As a result, when the trial came for Peter early the next morning, he wasn’t spiritually prepared, and so he denied the Lord to preserve himself from pain.

Like Peter, we will all have trials, during which our faith and commitment will be tested. If you haven’t strengthened yourself through watching and prayer, you’ll naturally choose the path of self-protection and, like Peter, you’ll deny the truth.

Watch to anticipate the Messiah’s return.

  1. Matthew 24:32-51, especially verse 42, Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day on which your Lord will come.
  2. Mark 13:32-33 But as for that day or hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on your guard and stay alert! For you do not know when the appointed time will come.
  3. Luke 21:34-36 But watch yourselves, or your hearts will be weighed down by dissipation, drunkenness, and the worries of life—and that day will spring upon you suddenly like a snare. For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the whole earth. So keep watch at all times, and pray that you may have the strength to escape all that is about to happen and to stand before the Son of Man.”

Why is it important for us to watch for the Lord’s return?

  1. Those who don’t watch will be ensnared when that day comes upon the world.
  2. Watching and prayer are required to build the strength required to overcome what will happen and to stand before the Son of Man.
  3. Rev 12:11, “They conquered him (the dragon) by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives so as to shy away from death.”

watch and PRAY

Like Watching, prayer has both defensive and offensive components.

Defensive:

  1. Pray that you’ll have the strength to prevail against all that is about to happen on the earth, and to stand righteous and victorious before the Son of Man. “Lead us not into trials, but deliver us from evil.”
  2. Pray that when you stand before Him that He will be able to say to you, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant.”

Offensive:

  1. In general, pray “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as in heaven.”
  2. Specifically, pray for the kingdom of God to be manifested in your family, community, and nation.
  3. The prayers of the saints fill the golden altar before God’s throne in heaven. (Rev 8:3, 8:5, 9:13, 16:7)
  4. Jesus said, “My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations…” (Mark 11:17, Luke 19:46). Many believe that since God delegated authority to Adam to rule the earth, God can do nothing on the earth unless it’s in response to human prayer.

Watch and Pray

So, what does it mean to ‘watch and pray?’

  1. Before the Lord Jesus returns, scripture teaches there’ll be a great delusion upon everyone who doesn’t love and follow the truth. Watch and pray to follow God’s truth and not to be deceived and deluded with the masses.
  2. Persecution against Christians is already exploding around the world. Watch and pray that you’ll remain faithful, even at personal cost.
  3. Watch and pray that you’ll be strengthened to overcome the evil that’s coming to this world.

Bottom Line—like Peter, it’s understandable if we get tired. But let’s learn from his example and overcome apocalypse fatigue.  We have two choices; (1) watch and pray to become an overcomer, or (2) follow the world system into delusion and judgment.