Maintain a Distance

Maintain a Distance

By Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe

We know, both from the Word of God and from personal experience, that we should maintain a distance from situations and people who may lead us into temptation and sin. However, that is not the only distance we should maintain. As they were entering the Promised Land, the Lord cautioned Joshua and the Israelites to maintain a distance from the Ark of the Covenant so that they could more clearly see the path they were to follow.

Joshua 3: 1-4 “Joshua rose early in the morning; and they set out from Acacia Grove and came to the Jordan, he and all the children of Israel, and lodged there before they crossed over. So it was, after three days, that the officers went through the camp; and they commanded the people, saying, When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, and the priests, the Levites, bearing it, then you shall set out from your place and go after it. Yet there shall be a space between you and it, about two thousand cubits by measure. Do not come near it, that you may know the way by which you must go, for you have not passed this way before.''

Our nation has not passed this way before.  As believers who walk in faith, we must stand back a bit and withhold our judgement of both good and evil until we have a better perspective.  This is not a time for impulsive reaction. 

Even while mainstream media and talk show participants react in fear and the resulting anger, we cannot respond out of our own fear and anger. We must maintain a distance from ungodly emotional response.  Jesus said that He would establish His church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it.  It is time for us to stand back, to pray for those who despitefully use us, for those who persecute us for His name’s sake (Matthew 5:44). It is time to maintain a distance in order to watch what the Lord is doing. 

It is also time for us to follow Joshua’s addition instruction: “And Joshua said to the people, "Sanctify yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you'' (Joshua 3:5).

To sanctify is to set apart for the purposes of God.  Micah 6:8: “He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?” 

To sanctify ourselves, we must, in spite of the situation and those around us, act justly even when others do not.  We must desire and pray for the mercy of God in our lives and in the lives of others. We must humble ourselves in the sight of the Lord and allow Him to lift us up (James 4:10).

It is time for us to sanctify ourselves, to maintain a holy distance, and to watch what the Lord has done, is doing and will continue to do.

These Are the Days of Elijah

These Are the Days of Elijah

By Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe

Remember the song “These Are the Days of Elijah” by Robin Mark? The Lord has again taken me on a journey through the lyrics of the song and through the life of Elijah. Elijah was a confronter. He confronted Ahab and Jezebel. He confronted the worshipers of Baal. His confrontations caused him anguish, depression and even despair. But, in spite of the pain, he demonstrated the power of El Shaddai, the Lord God Almighty, over the demonic spirit of Baal.

Elijah means “my God is Yahweh (Jehovah).” Inspired by the Holy Spirit, Robin Mark composed the lyric that has worshippers declaring 16 times consecutively “There’s no God like Jehovah”. Not Baal, not Buddha, not Vishnu, not Allah. There’s no God like Jehovah.

We are living today in a world that parallels that of Elijah. In about 935 B.C., the kingdom of Israel split. The northern kingdom of ten tribes became Israel; the southern kingdom, Judea, consisted mainly of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin.

A nation divided is a nation weakened. We live in a divided nation. The division is greater than legitimate differences of opinion that can and must be discussed and resolved. Fed by the vitriol of a disenchanted media, the differences of opinion have escalated into animosity and violence. American has not become an ethnic melting pot. We have not all repented of and/or forgiven the atrocities of our history. We are a divided and, therefore, a weakened, nation.

Jesus warned in Matthew 12:25: "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.”

The Old Testament prophets of God had continually warned the people to repent of their sins, particularly of their idolatry and to return to the Lord. During the time of Elijah, under the leadership of King Ahab and his wife Jezebel, many Israelites had embraced the worship of Baal and Asherah. The worship included ritual sexual acts, temple prostitution and even the sacrifice of children, particularly first-born children.

The anti-biblical culture of the world today has embraced and encouraged the same practices.

The Lord Jehovah cautioned the Israelites before they went into the Promised Land: Deuteronomy 12:29-32: "When the Lord your God cuts off from before you the nations which you go to dispossess, and you displace them and dwell in their land, take heed to yourself that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed from before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, `How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise.' "You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way; for every abomination to the Lord which He hates they have done to their gods; for they burn even their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods. Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to it nor take away from it.”

We must understand that the commandments of the Lord are meant to lead us into the abundant life. God has not placed them as obstacles to thwart our happiness.

In the behaviors of the worldly culture today, we see the idolatry of the ancients. I “googled” the search phrase, “idolatry in America.” I found several lists outlining what Americans worship. The following appeared on more than one list:

Self

Money

Sex

Beauty

Comfort

When we examine the list closely, we realize that only one false god exists—self. The others exist only to undergird #1.

It was the idolization of self that caused Lucifer to be driven from heaven. ““I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High” (Isaiah 14:13-14).

Idolatry seeks to win favor, control, happiness for oneself by appealing to the forces of nature, the unregenerated conscience of man, or the appetites of those in power.

Robin Mark’s lyrics call out to believers, “Still we are the voice in the desert crying, “Prepare ye the way of the Lord.”

What is the way of the Lord?

Matthew 22:37-39: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

When we love Jehovah God with all our heart, we will come to love who we are in Him and then we can love others. In love, the division is healed.

The idolater looks into the mirror as says, “I am awesome because of who I am, what I have done, and what I plan to do.”

God speaks into the heart and says, “My child, you are awesome because I created you in My image, because I have declared you righteous in Jesus Christ, because I have given you a future and a hope.” In His love, the division in our heart is healed.

Let’s declare His word. There is no god like Jehovah!

What Does the Lord Require of You?

What Does the Lord Require of You?

By Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe

The prophet Micah, inspired by the Holy Spirit of God wrote of the birth, reign and deliverance of our Messiah Jesus Christ. His message is an awakening call to God’s people.  Micah emphasizes that a true relationship with the Lord will be seen in a practice of mercy, compassion and justice toward all.  

A key verse is Micah 6:8 (NKJV): 
^“He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your God?”

Justice must flow in mercy and humility.

We must realize that mercy does not enable the sinner to remain in sin.  Mercy does not deliver us from the consequences of our actions. God, in His mercy, has paid the wages of sin for us, but in His mercy, as well, we must face the consequences of our decisions and of our behaviors.  We grow when we accept the responsibility for what we have done. 

Remembering that the mercy of God has redeemed us, we must pray for the salvation of those facing justice both in the world and in heaven. That is mercy.  That is humility.  It is not God’s desire that any should perish. (2 Peter 3:9).

To walk in humility, we must walk in forgiveness.  As Christians, we often struggle with forgiving others and ourselves because we operate under a false perception of forgiveness. To forgive does not mean that we deny the hurt and anguish that other people or circumstances have brought into our lives.  To forgive does not mean that we do not want others to face justice.  To forgive does not necessarily mean that we put ourselves back into the line of fire.  

To forgive is “to stop feeling anger toward someone who has done something wrong; to stop blaming someone; to stop feeling anger about something.”[i]  Forgiveness, especially for the deeply wounded, is a process not a single event.  When we are wounded, whether physically, emotionally or spiritually, we cannot heal without experiencing a grieving process.  Progressive forgiveness, whether we are forgiving ourselves or others, will expedite that process.  An ever present prayer in my own life is, “I forgive.  Father God, please help my unforgiveness.”

Many would like to eradicate the Church today.    In spite of what is happening, we cannot fall into the snares of unrighteous anger and name-calling.  We must stop attacking individuals and start standing against ungodly ideologies.  We must stop giving into fear and start walking in faith.   

Most of all, we must remember that just as judgment starts at the house of God, so does transformation.  The more we walk in mercy, humility and forgiveness, the more we will see justice manifested in our land. 

Isaiah 60:1-3 (NKJV) “Arise, shine; For your light has come! And the glory of the LORD is risen upon you. For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, And deep darkness the people; But the LORD will arise over you, And His glory will be seen upon you.

The Gentiles (unbelievers) shall come to your light, And kings to the brightness of your rising.”

Psalm 106:3 (NKJV) “Blessed are those who keep justice, and he who does righteousness at all times!” 

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[i] http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/forgive

The Bride of the Lamb of God

The Bride of the Lamb of God
By Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe

   Many Christians have unanswered questions about our position as the Bride of the Lamb of God and our relationship with our Bridegroom, Jesus Christ.

   Some ask, "Do we become prepared in the 'twinkling of an eye' (1Corinthians 15:42) when we go to be with the King?" Some may insist that because we are born again by the grace of God, our acceptance of the sacrifice of Jesus is enough for Jesus to present us as His bride, without spot or wrinkle .

    However, scripture reveals the answers! 

    Who prepares the Bride?

   "Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready. And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints." (Revelation 19:7-8)

   The above passage reveals that the Bride must make herself ready. It is only through cooperation with the Holy Spirit that we are able make ourselves ready. Our righteousness is possible only through the grace of God, but we are to grow in grace and knowledge and determine to become more Christ-like in our walk.

   Romans 3:10 reminds us that left to our own devices, "There is none righteous, no, not one”.  If none are righteous, how can we possibly prepare ourselves for our Bridegroom?

   Matthew 19:26 declares: "With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible. ."The preparation of the Bride involves the Bride's living, moving and having our being in the Holy Spirit of God (Acts 17:28).

   The preparation of Queen Esther exemplifies this process. "Now the young woman pleased him (the king), and she obtained his favor; so he readily gave beauty preparations to her, besides her allowance. Then seven choice

maidservants were provided for her from the king's palace, and he moved her and her maidservants to the best place in the house of women." (Esther 2:9.)

   The seven maidservants represent the Holy Spirit, the seven ministries or spirits of God as detailed in Isaiah 11:2: His presence, wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge and reverence for holiness.

   As symbols of God's Holy Spirit, the maidservants become the provision needed by Esther in her preparation to become the bride of the king.

   Just as cooperation with the seven maidservants was necessary for the preparation of Esther, the preparation of the Bride of the Lamb of God is a cooperative relationship between the Holy Spirit and the Bride.  As we cooperate more fully with the Holy Spirit who indwells us, as
we learn more and more to live and move and have our being in Him, we become more and more the glorious church, without spot or wrinkle, holy and without blemish. (Ephesians 5:27.)

   May we desire to be dressed in the fine linen which symbolizes the righteous acts of the saints.

   Let us pray with the lyricist Thomas Chisholm:

   "Oh! to be like Thee, full of compassion,
   Loving, forgiving, tender and kind,
   Helping the helpless, cheering the fainting,
   Seeking the wandering sinner to find."

Celebrating Jesus in the Spring Feasts of the Lord

Who Am I?

Who Am I?

By Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe

I marvel at entrepreneurship.  Yet, I am a cautious consumer.  One of the current and, apparently, successful marketing trends is DNA testing to discover one’s heritage, cultural identity, and ethnicity.

Several companies are seeking to entice us with discounted testing.  We all like a discount.

Remember, I am a cautious consumer.  I do not fault the marketeers.  In fact, as a capitalist myself, I applaud them.  However, it seems to me that we might be buying the emperor’s new clothes. 

I enjoy family history.  I have several accounts written by my ancestors.  Their lives intrigue me, but do not define me.  Neither can DNA testing define me.

Who am I?

Just like everyone else who has ever lived or will ever live, I am from the seed of Adam.  I got off the ark with Noah.  Everyone who has ever walked upon this planet or who ever will walk upon this planet is, at least, my distant cousin. 

I am an American, not just because my family has lived in this land for 400 years, but because I choose to live here.  I am not blind to the blunders and frailties of our history.  However, the foundation of our nation, the vision, of our forefathers fosters an idealism that we must continually strive to attain.

I am also a Christian.  I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, that He died on the cross to pay the death price for my sin, that He rose again and will return to receive His own.  Therefore, I am joined in covenant with everyone who believes the same.  We may not worship the same, baptize the same, or structure our churches the same, but we are brothers and sisters in the Lord.

So, have your DNA tested.  No matter what you learn, just remember that you are part of my family on some level or levels.  I offer to you the right hand of fellowship.

Psalm 133

1.  Behold, how good and how pleasant it is For brethren to dwell together in unity!

 2.  It is like the precious oil upon the head, Running down on the beard, The beard of Aaron, Running down on the edge of his garments.

 3.  It is like the dew of Hermon, Descending upon the mountains of Zion; For there the Lord commanded the blessing Life forevermore.

Battling the Sycophant Spirit

Battling the Sycophant Spirit

By Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe

Ephesians 6:10-13 (NKJV) 
^“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.
 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”

John the Baptist preached, “And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”  (Matthew 3:10 NKJV)  It is time to lay the ax to the root.

Our battle is not against flesh and blood but against evil spiritual forces.  We must lay the ax to those spiritual forces driving the negativity, whining, name calling and blame shifting.

One of the most prominent spiritual forces influencing our nation is a sycophant spirit.  A sycophant is a servile self-seeking flatterer or one who praises influential people in order to gain their favor; a slanderer, a deceiver, or a parasite. A sycophant will say just what people want to hear in order to get something from them—usually money or political support.  Sycophants want others to be dependent on them in order to exercise control.

Satan is the greatest of all sycophants.  Notice what he said to our Lord on the mountain of temptation: “Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said to Him, "All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours."  (Luke 4:5-7 NKJV)

            Jesus put the devil in his place, “And Jesus answered and said to him, "Get behind Me, Satan! For it is written, 'You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.' "  (Luke 4:8 NKJV) 

            Later the Lord spoke to a group who believed Him but who did not recognize the bondage they were in because of the self-righteousness in their lives, “You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.” (John 8:44 NKJV)        

            Every lie is from the pit of hell.

                       

            Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible states, “Flatterers, sycophants, tricking and fraudulent persons, who seek to supplant others, and get into their places; these should lose the favour they had, when detected.”

            How do we war against the sycophant spirit?  The first battle in the war is to make sure that we are not operating under that spirit either as an instigator or as a victim.  Then we can pray in power and authority to rebuke that lying, self-seeking spirit and call forth a spirit of truth and honesty over ourselves, over our media and over our nation.  

                ^“Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, ‘If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.’" (John 8:31-32 NKJ)

           

            Let us speak truth and search for truth from media and our leaders. Let us refuse to be bribed, flattered and wrongly persuaded by those who are seeking our support and our permission in order to erode our freedoms.