There are a lot of vain imaginations these days
The people who think they are smarter than God
The people that act without having sought God
The leaders that come up with plans that do not glorify God

War is as ugly as could be

We have ungodly men and women in charge
The Beast System is being founded and fortified
When things come crashing down, the Beast System will rise out of the destruction
It will offer the answer
it will be the strength people are looking for

Pretend strength is not the same as real strength
There are no muscles in pretend strength
The strength of the enemy will fail
Strength from Christ will endure forever, there is no limit

Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might. Ephesians 6:10

Vain imaginations come from the heart of man.
Man, who tries to elevate himself above God.

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? Jeremiah 17:9

Who can know it? The same One who knows all things. He will reveal our wretched hearts to us.
I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, 
and according to the fruit of his doings. Jeremiah 17:10

What if Eve and Adam had said, God knows best, let’s ask Him to be sure?
Or a myriad of ways where they would not have desired to be so knowledgeable against God’s will.
We have some responsibility here. It’s humility.
We are to cast down vain imaginations that exalt themselves against the knowledge of God.

Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God,
and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; 2 Corinthians 10:5

Adam and Eve did not do that. They are our first example.
They lusted after what Satan promised them.
He deceived them and told them something that touched their human hearts.
They fell wanting to be like God.

The Great Temptation and Promise:
For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened,
and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. Genesis 3:5

The stories many persons in the Bible who had chosen to be rich in the world but poor in the spirit.
It can be hard to trust God when you are not sure or when you don’t understand.
Humility can help. It’s a blind trust. Trusting before you know. Believing before you have seen.

From Cain to Judas. Only understanding things through their own eyes, their clouded thoughts.
We can overcome the deception by continuing to cast down our lofty thoughts
and also by seeking the Lord for truth and wisdom in His word.

God’s word does not fit into the world we live in.
It has strong convictions.
People are fine with Jesus when His words are sweet.
Jesus also speaks words of Judgment and of the coming Wrath of God on those who reject Him.

Abortion is one such topic.
People do not honor God’s word when it comes to abortion.
They twist His word. Jesus and the whole bible values life.
Honoring His word means that when you think one way and His word says something else,
humbling yourself before His word above your own thoughts would mean honoring The Holy Bible.
There are other hot topics where if you speak against an action or state God’s word,
people consider that to be hate.
Someone might feel bad.
They will feel much worse if they did not know and were not able to make a decision about Hell.
Jesus wants us to be aware of Hell
and to warn others that that is the fate that awaits those who refuse to honor Him as God.
In some countries, even now as I write, there are laws being formed to shut down Christians
from speaking God’s word as it is offensive to some.

Some Christians do not honor God’s word. They might whip others with it.
That is not what Jesus would do if He were here.
Jesus is our example and He always spoke the truth in love.

Someone also might make a decision that will impact Eternity.
It is love to let them know they would do well to learn what Jesus said in His word of any given topic.

Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of Mine, and doeth them,
I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended,
and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not:
for it was founded upon a rock.
And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not,
shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:
And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew,
and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it. Matthew 7:24-27

What stone could it be talking about?

They are talking about Jesus, the Chief Cornerstone, the Messiah who is the foundation of our faith.

As with all scriptures, this one has both surface and in-depth meanings. On the surface, it is talking about humbling yourself before the Lord or He will humble you. It also has a deeper meaning of who Christ is and His kingdom as is apparent in Daniel and Acts and 1 Peter and Psalms and many other scriptures that refer to the Cornerstone.

For this post, we are going to keep it simpler, about humility before the Lord.

Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time. 1 Peter 5:6

There will be a time when those who have refused to humble themselves before the Lord will say to the rocks fall on us and hide us from the wrath of the Lord:
And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake;
and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; 
And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs,
when she is shaken of a mighty wind. 
And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. 
And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains,
and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man,
hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; 
And said to the mountains and rocks,
Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: 
For the great day of His wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand? Revelation 6:12-16

Those who refuse to acknowledge Christ as Lord will one day suffer the consequences of their refusal.
They have warnings and opportunities to humble themselves before Him. I do not know when those opportunities come to each person, none of us do. We only know what happens to us. Each person will give account for his or her life and choices regarding Jesus the Messiah.

it will not be a good day for those who have refused Him when He returns to the Earth.
They will then be greatly humbled.

That man does not need God.
He never will.

Sometimes that Old Man does things he’s not supposed to.
He brushes himself off and moves along.
He dwells within us, he is our flesh.
He tries to rule and reign, even once we have chosen to follow Christ.
There is no one who can push him aside if we choose to honor the Old Man instead of Christ.
The Old Man is familiar.
He’s not that bad, in fact, he’s a pretty good guy.
His home is in the most prominent spot.
We are used to him. We are used to his ways.

Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds;
And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of Him that created him:
Colossians 3:9-10

The Old Man must go. The Old Man must also honor Christ.
While we are used to him, he cannot stay. He must leave.
Otherwise, we cannot be used by God to fulfill His purpose in our lives.

That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man,
which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;
And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. Ephesians 4:22-24

Honoring Christ above the Old Man will bring us to the place of obedience.
Cast down those old thoughts and bring every thought to the obedience of Christ.
Walk in the newness of life given to each of us.

For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:
(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)
Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God,
and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; 2 Corinthians 10:3-5

The lot is cast into the lap; but the whole disposing thereof is of the Lord. Proverbs 16:33

Gideon’s fleece
And Gideon said unto God, If thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as thou hast said, 
Behold, I will put a fleece of wool in the floor; and if the dew be on the fleece only,
and it be dry upon all the earth beside,
then shall I know that thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as thou hast said. 
And it was so: for he rose up early on the morrow, and thrust the fleece together,
and wringed the dew out of the fleece, a bowl full of water. 
And Gideon said unto God, Let not thine anger be hot against me, and I will speak but this once:
let me prove, I pray thee, but this once with the fleece;
let it now be dry only upon the fleece, and upon all the ground let there be dew. 
And God did so that night: for it was dry upon the fleece only, and there was dew on all the ground. Judges 6:36-40

Hezekiah’s fleece
In those days Hezekiah was sick to the death, and prayed unto the Lord:
and He spake unto him, and He gave him a sign. 2 Kings 20:1-7, Isaiah told Hezekiah he was going to die.
Hezekiah wept and pleaded with the Lord and the prophet Isaiah said
you will be given fifteen more years and God will heal you and deliver you from the King of Assyria.
Hezekiah wanted a sign and he was then given one from God above.
And Hezekiah said unto Isaiah, What shall be the sign that the Lord will heal me,
and that I shall go up into the house of the Lord the third day? 
And Isaiah said, This sign shalt thou have of the Lord, that the Lord will do the thing that He hath spoken:
shall the shadow go forward ten degrees, or go back ten degrees? 
And Hezekiah answered, It is a light thing for the shadow to go down ten degrees:
nay, but let the shadow return backward ten degrees. 
And Isaiah the prophet cried unto the Lord: and he brought the shadow ten degrees backward,
by which it had gone down in the dial of Ahaz. 2 Kings 20:8-11

Elijah even needed confirmation. Jezebel was trying to kill him.
God gave him specific instructions:
And He said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord.
And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains,
and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind:
and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake: 
And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.
1 Kings 19:11-12. 1 Kings 19 is full of confirmations God gave to Elijah.
It is very apparent that Elijah was close to the Lord, following Him in all obedience.

There is not one story in the Bible that is in there for naught.
All of them are valuable and as examples of what the Lord has done for others in times past
that we may learn and our faith may grow in the Lord Jesus and recognize His infinite power and wisdom.

David had to wait years to be crowned after he was anointed.
He was faithful to wait and received signs from God along the way and was reminded of God’s will.
He also refused to force the issue by sparing Saul’s life multiple times
and telling all of his men not to lay a hand on Saul as David said many times: He is anointed of God.

When Jonah was on the boat, the men, who served other gods cast lots.
They knew there was an ultimate higher power who ran things.
When the lots fell on Jonah, they heard about his God and were more afraid. in the end,
they worshiped the One, True God of Heaven and Earth.
Then the men feared the Lord exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice unto the Lord, and made vows.
Jonah 1:16

When we are unsure of God’s voice, the best thing we can do is keep seeking Him until God has made things clear.
He is gracious. If strong prophets of old needed confirmations of God’s voice, we also, at times, may need confirmations.
God will be faithful to make His way clear.

Michal hated David when he was being humble before the Lord.
When David brought the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem, he danced before the Lord with all his might.
Michal thought he was making a display.
David didn’t care what she thought neither did he care what all the people who saw him thought.
He danced with abandonment and honor to the Lord.

And David danced before the Lord with all his might; and David was girded with a linen ephod.
So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord with shouting,
and with the sound of the trumpet.
And as the ark of the Lord came into the city of David, Michal Saul’s daughter looked through a window, and saw king David leaping and dancing before the Lord; and she despised him in her heart
.2 Samuel 6:14-16

Just like always, God sees our hearts, He knows our intentions and the purposes we hold.
While we cannot see what God sees, we ought to be careful about judging others’ intentions as we do not know what God knows about their hearts. The only One who can see the heart of humans is God.

This writing is mainly about the difference of being humble before men and being humble before God.

There is quite a difference because humans only see the outward appearance and what they hear, what is spoken by any particular person. We still cannot see inside their hearts. It is the same with us, if we are misjudged by others who think we are out of line like Michal did with David, we are taking a role that does not belong to us.

When Jesus was on the cross, some said, If He is truly the Son of God, let Him come down from that cross. Christ was being humble before God, not men.

And saying, If Thou be the king of the Jews, save Thyself. Luke 23:37

When Peter and the other Apostles went before the council and the high priest,
they knew the difference. They were being humble before God. They did not budge.
Their motives were to obey the Lord and not to obey men.
While this may have seemed rebellious, it was true humility before God.

And when they had brought them, they set them before the council: and the high priest asked them, 
Saying, Did not we straitly command you that ye should not teach in this name?
and, behold, ye have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine,
and intend to bring this man’s blood upon us. 
Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said,
We ought to obey God rather than men. Acts 5:27-29

Yes, being humble before the Lord means obeying God and not men.

That scripture tells us we must be humble.

So, where do you get faith in the first place?
For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you,
not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly,
according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. Romans 12:3
God has given to every man faith.
We decide what to do with that faith we have been given.
Some squelch it or refuse it or think of it as rubbish.
Some follow after it and do whatever it takes to get more.
Just like the seeds that are spread on the different ground, we allow it to grow in our hearts, or not.

Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. 
Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil,
and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved. 
They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away. 
And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth,
and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection. 
But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience. Luke 8:11-15

So, the seed is the word of God.
And this scripture fits in nicely right here:
So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Romans 10:17

Quite simple. Our part is to be humble before the word of God.
To hear the word of God which means if we want our faith to grow,
we must be actively participating by reading it, applying it in our lives and accepting it.

And an highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be called The way of holiness;
the unclean shall not pass over it; but it shall be for those: the wayfaring men,
though fools, shall not err therein. Isaiah 35:8

We know Jesus is the Way.
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me.
John 14:6

Jesus is the only way to the Father. He is also the only way to be saved. And, it has to be His way,
which makes the whole process undesirable for some. There are some that catch a glimpse of Jesus
and they will never look back, while others will continue to struggle with Him to do their own thing.
It is not until the full decision is made by a person
that there can be a willingness to walk on that narrow road and to truly understand the significance.
If you’re not sure how to get to that point, ask Jesus. He will respond and make it clear to you.

I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:14

So, Jeremiah sunk in the mire.

I think of that scripture often when enduring things.
Jeremiah was obeying God.
Still, he ended up in a dungeon and for a portion of that time, he was in mire.

They have cut off my life in the dungeon, and cast a stone upon me. Lamentations 3:53

With all the trials and persecutions Jeremiah endured, he came forth knowing God well.
If we could talk to Jeremiah today, I doubt he would declare anything that God allowed was a mistake.
God does not make mistakes. The mistake is in our perception of God and His will.
Humility is impressed on us when we endure God’s will in uncomfortable situations,
only to see His glory shine forth as He works to perform His will to mold and shape us.

Jeremiah suffered much, but as he processed his condition, he found hope in the Lord.
And I said, My strength and my hope is perished from the Lord:
Remembering mine affliction and my misery, the wormwood and the gall.
My soul hath them still in remembrance, and is humbled in me.
This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope.
It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not.
They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.
The Lord is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him.
The Lord is good unto them that wait for Him, to the soul that seeketh Him.
It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord.
It is good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth.
He sitteth alone and keepeth silence, because He hath borne it upon him.
He putteth his mouth in the dust; if so be there may be hope.
He giveth his cheek to him that smiteth him: he is filled full with reproach.
For the Lord will not cast off for ever:
But though He cause grief, yet will he have compassion according to the multitude of his mercies.
For He doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men.
To crush under His feet all the prisoners of the earth.
To turn aside the right of a man before the face of the most High,
To subvert a man in his cause, the Lord approveth not.
Jeremiah 3:18-36