

By Eva McAllen

Copyright 2013 Eva McAllen

Published by Eva McAllen at Smashwords

This book is also available in print from the Author

Smashwords Edition License Notes

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Cover design by Renee Barratt, thecovercounts.com
Table of Contents

Chapter 1. A Parable of the Butterfly

Chapter 2. An Invitation to Joy

Chapter 3. God's Plan in Short

Chapter 4. Saving Souls is a Bloody Business

Chapter 6. No Shotgun Wedding for Jesus – He Must Have a Willing Bride

Chapter 7. The Final Battle

Chapter 8. Who Was This Jesus?

Chapter 9. Feeling Helpless and Hopeless?

Chapter 10. Are You Hungry & Thirsty-Come Be Fed

Chapter 11. What Kind of Love is This?

Chapter 12. Do You Know Who I Know?

Chapter 13. The Value of the Hands

Chapter 14. If Jesus Came

Chapter 15. Are You Looking for Jesus?

Chapter 16. The Reading of the 23rd Psalm

Chapter 17. Restoration Vision

Chapter 18. Prayer for an Exchanged Life

Chapter 19. I am Most Thankful For...The Gift of Life

About the Author

Chapter 1. A Parable of the Butterfly

The caterpillar and it's metamorphosis into a butterfly is a wondrous parable of our miraculous change as we become Christians.

The caterpillar is imprisoned in a way, as he is only able to crawl or climb trees & bushes; always in contact with the bush or tree limb. He only knows how to eat. His appetite is insatiable - he is never satisfied. Everything in his wake is destroyed. No matter how much he eats, he wants more. BUT, there comes a day when he must willingly surrender himself to the cocoon (he even has to make it himself) to imprison himself even unto death. If he refuses for any reason to do this, he will never become a butterfly and know the freedom of flying through the air. As a butterfly, he will no longer eat of the leaves of the trees or bushes, he will now drink the sweet nectar of the flowers. The old caterpillar is really dead, and he is now truly a new creature, the beautiful butterfly. The change is visible for all to see.

While in our pre-Christian life, we are chained and imprisoned by our sins. We are insatiable in our desires for more things & adventures, always searching, but not always knowing what it is we search for. We quite often leave destruction in our wake as we climb the ladder of success in our worldly life. For many of us, there comes a time in our life where we wish we were dead. We are so unhappy with the way our life is, but we don't know how to change it, or lack the strength of will to change it. Many of us have tried many times to change only to find we are again doing all the things we do not want to do and seem helpless to change our conditions. Fortunately, our Heavenly Father, who watches, sends someone our way to show us the way to freedom. Some of us choose to listen and some do not. We are given the choice. We are told of Jesus and how he came to buy us that freedom. We are told how he has already paid the price for our sins and we now only have to believe it and accept his gift of Grace and Freedom. We are told that in order to accept his gift of freedom, we must first realize we are living a life of sin and admit it and repent of it. Then we must submit our will to Him and ask Him for forgiveness. He will not only forgive us, He will walk with us through the death unto life process, and on to freedom. He does not leave us to do it alone.

By willingly submitting our will to Jesus, we are submitting to the cocoon of His Grace (his gift to us) which wraps us in his protective love that will get us through the death process. We should then willingly put on His armour daily as protection from the evil around us. He will then transform us through His love into a wonderful new creature as free as the butterfly. We soar to new heights never before thought possible. We are free and do not feel a loss of the things that are past. It seems strange, but as we give up what we consider "control" (we never really do have control, we just think we do), and give our control to Jesus, rather than feeling a loss of control and under control of another, we actually feel more free than ever. We are not to go back to our sin ways and be again imprisoned, as the butterfly never goes back to eating leaves. We are to feed on the wonderful love and words of our Savior Jesus and be nourished as the butterfly feeds only on the sweet nectar of the flowers. Our old self actually dies, and a new creation lives with Christ in our hearts. This change is as dramatic as the caterpillar/butterfly and is visible to all who know us. Some of them in turn, will ask you about this change and how they too can be free.

You may wish to read some scriptures found in the New Testament of the Bible explaining the new birth and the use of the Armour for protection.

See........

Ephesians 6:10-17

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armour of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore, put on the full armour of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.

Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

Ephesians 2:1-7

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.

II Corinthians 5:17

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!

Eva McAllen

ButterFly Lady
Chapter 2. An Invitation to Joy

Jesus plucked me up as a four-year old and called me His. I listened well and was strong under His leadership until my mid-teens when the pressures of the world became too great and I embraced a world of sin.

C. S. Lewis in "The Screwtape Letters" reminded us that God alone is the author of pleasure and although Satan exploits it for his own devious ends, he cannot create one pleasure. In fact, his only interest in pleasure is as bait. For once the capture takes place, his intention is to quickly remove the satisfaction of pleasure and replace it with unfulfilled desire.

Well, that is exactly how he lured and trapped me. I went for the gold ring, only to find it wasn't even brass. It was hellish. I now realize that my faith was not as strong as I thought it was. It was not rooted in fertile soil of God's Word. It was rooted in shallow soil (me) and so was easily wilted. I still believed in God, but had never really given Jesus control of my life. In fact, I did not realize just how far astray I had gone from knowing Jesus as a child, to questioning if He really was the Son of God or just a good man. I had studied mysticism, horoscopes, used Ouija boards, and read many books on foreign religions and witchcraft. I didn't realize how my beliefs had changed.

A lifetime of wrong choices, of looking to others for my happiness, of thinking if only I had this or that. I misused sex and pursued money by chasing the 'better lifestyle'. In my selfishness, I hurt many people, never accepting responsibility for my actions, always justifying my actions by saying they deserved it because they had not lived up to the expectations I had set for them. I was married and divorced repeatedly, looking for the perfect mate, discarding each for whatever reason. I went so far as to knowingly hurt someone I had been married to for seventeen years and loved deeply, yet felt helpless to stop myself. I was clearly out of control--all the time thinking I was in control.

In looking for my source of happiness in others and in things, I had usurped Jesus' position in my life and given it to idols. I had always felt superior to people I felt worshipped idols, not even realizing that I was doing the same thing. Anything, other than Jesus, that we look to for our happiness and joy in life is a false god--an idol. We should look to Jesus for our joy.

I pushed Jesus to the back of my mind for so long that I forgot what His voice sounded like. So long in fact, that as I tried to change my life and be a 'good Christian', thinking I was listening to the voice of Jesus, I now know that in reality, I was listening to the tempter's lying voice. He tells us to 'just try harder' knowing all the while we will fail and remain under his control. I know now that if what we are hearing is not something in keeping with Jesus' character; as taught in the Bible, we should test the spirit by asking God if this is of Him. He will always confirm what is of Him.

I tried very hard to change my life, but we just aren't able in our humanity to do that. Old habits and patterns of sin are hard to give up, even though we hate them. It is all we know. So, no matter how hard I tried on my own--I failed. Even though I felt that I was a 'Christian', I never really felt 'saved'. I always hoped I would go to be with Jesus, but never had the assurance that I would. Somehow, I never felt that my sins were forgiven and after awhile, I felt that I was so deep in sin that there was no hope for me. Satan loves to tell us we are so bad that God will never forgive us. (This is a lie.)

I tried reading the Bible during those times while I was struggling to change, but the words were just there on the page. They were not alive and open to me. They made a good story, but they were not speaking to me. So I soon gave up.

I reached a point of such deep despair, that I was at the point of suicide. I had sinned big time even by society's standards and now was going to have to pay life's consequences. I felt I could not do it and it would be the end of the world. The shame was too great. I would rather die than face the shame. I hated the person I had become.

Now, I am sure I was frustrating Jesus who was watching and waiting for me to take a step of faith. For He is different from Satan who just pushes his way into our lives every chance he gets. Jesus is a respecter of our wishes and waits to be invited before entering and taking control of our lives.

As long as I kept saying "I can't take much more of this", Jesus must have been thinking, "I guess she means she can still take some more", so He just waited patiently, letting me take more until I finally said, "God, I just can't take this anymore. Please tell me what it is you want me to do, and give me the strength to do it." He said that I could only come to Him after making a decision about the true identity of Jesus. He asked me if I believed Jesus was His Son and if so, would I accept Jesus as king in my life and abide by His teaching.

He said I had to take a step of faith by calling out to Jesus and asking him for His help. I was tired of trying and failing, so I said that I would take this step of faith, but that He would have to give me His strength, for I had no more of my own. When I finally reached that point of broken spirit and submission, He lifted me up and gave me the strength to do what I had to do and showed me the way out of my predicament by going through it. (1 Corinthians. 10:13) "God is faithful, and He will not let you be tempted beyond your strength, but with the temptation will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it." But, we must ask Him.

I found that it really was the end of the world as I had known it. For He gave me a new heart, a new life and a new world. My new world included the new understanding that my only hope was Jesus, and without Him, I was totally lost. But with His gift of Grace, and the strength He would provide, I could withstand anything.

But Satan doesn't give up so easily. There was a big war for my soul. Nine months of sporadic spiritual warfare finally came to a head and I was incapacitated for ten days for the final battle. Satan had many of his demons on hand. I had never even believed in demons, much less seen one. Each, in turn, accused me of each and every past sin that I had committed. That's why it took ten days. I acknowledged that I had indeed committed that sin and confessed to Jesus that I was ashamed and sorry and asked for His forgiveness. As He gave it, He said that I had to tell the demon to leave in order to be rid of him. I told each demon in turn that he no longer had any permission to be in my life, as I would now only bow to Jesus as my king. Each demon, in his turn, was banished, as they must when presented with the truth and choice of Jesus the risen Christ.

Then Jesus gave me a tingling all over my body and took me up to the cross with Him. With His body surrounding and glowing through me I hung on the cross with Him and heard all the sneers and accusations. He deserved none of them. I deserved them all. He said to me, "Eva, I did this for you." He told me He had already taken on all my sin and paid the price, so that I would not have to. I think He showed Himself alive to me and gave me that vivid vision to prove to me that what had taken place during the preceding week had really taken place and was not the product of my imagination, and should not be taken lightly nor be easily forgotten.

Then for the first time in my life I knew I was saved. He had forgiven my sins and said He would remember them no more and that I should forgive myself also. I had never been able to do this before, but now I found I could. All those years, I had been judging myself and condemning myself and never giving Him a chance to show that none of that was necessary, because He had already paid the price for those sins and forgiven me. It was only necessary for me to accept that forgiveness.

Here I was like both Judas and Peter. Like Peter, I had denied Him--only I did it for years. I was being like Judas all those years, being remorseful but not broken and repentant. If I had actually followed through with the suicide, then I would have been condemned with no way of forgiveness.

By the Grace of God, like Peter, I was broken and realized that Jesus was my only hope and by being broken and asking for forgiveness, Jesus not only forgave me, He healed me and now says He can use me for His purposes. For in my weakness He has made me strong.

Now I know the meaning of the phrase in Philippians 4:7a- "the peace that passeth all understanding", for I also feel a peace that is far beyond understanding. I now know joy instead of despair.

I finally reached the point where I could tell Jesus that I had made a mess of my life and was tired of making all the wrong choices because I always had to be in control. I asked Him to take control of my life and give me the strength to live my life the way He wanted. Instead of feeling the loss of control, or feeling under someone else's thumb, or like a slave--I now have more freedom than ever. That is hard to explain. By being totally dependent, I am actually more free and full of unexplainable joy.

Now, I truly understand what Jesus meant when He said in(John 8:32) "and you shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free" Now I am truly free--set free from the bondage of sin by Jesus.

Now, when the pressures of the world bear down on me and I am feeling far from Him and a little lonely for His presence, I just say, "Holy Spirit I need to feel your presence. Please let me know you are here and give me your comfort." He then gives me a sense of peace and that special tingling all over as if to say-- "I'm still here waiting, you just had your mind on other things. Put your mind on me and you will feel my presence and comfort."

That's not to say, that all is rosy and life no longer presents it's temptations. That means that when those temptations come, instead of trying on my own to overcome them as I had in the past--with no success, I now talk to Jesus and tell Him my problem and tell Him I am helpless and ask for His strength to overcome this temptation and He is faithful to give me His strength and then the struggle is gone, for He takes it.

Habits that I had never been able to give up, and had felt that to give them up would leave a void in my life, have gone from my life without much difficulty. It is hard to understand myself; much less explain in any believable fashion. There is no sense of loss. There is no void. He fills those areas of my life now and is far more fulfilling than anything I have ever experienced before. I only know that I am a different person now and I like who I am now. My old self is truly dead and I am now reborn a new person with Jesus at the controls continually cleansing more areas of my life.

I was convinced that Jesus would never use a person with my sin background for any position in His army. On the contrary, He says that it is that very sin background and the subsequent change in my life that He will use to shine His light in the world and show others, who knew me during both that sin life and the new life He has given me.

He will let them see the change and recognize that they too can be rescued from their bondage and share in the joy that I now possess.

I want you to know the source of my joy—Jesus the Christ—and I want to share that joy with you.

The Miraculous Metamorphosis

Before Jesus reigned in my life, I was like a caterpillar with an insatiable desire for more of everything, never satisfied. I felt I was to be trampled underfoot and trapped in my world of sin.

Then through faith in Jesus, I was changed to the beautiful butterfly—free to fly and bring His joy to others.

God's Plan and Gift For You

God chose you to be His child.

God wants to give you a new heart and a new life for now and eternity.

His gift is yours -- -- you must just accept it.

"Level with God" .....about your past

Accept His forgiveness

Invite Jesus into your life

God's Word says: Isaiah 1:18a (Living Bible)

"Come, let's talk this over!" says the Lord; "no matter how deep the stain of your sins, I can take it out and make you as clean as freshly fallen snow."

Make this Your Prayer and Commitment

Dear Lord Jesus:

I confess that my life is a shambles due to the sins of my own choosing and that my only hope is in you dear Jesus...

I believe you are truly God's Son. I accept you as my savior and I ask you to reign in my life as my Lord and my King.

I want you to take control of my life for the glory of God the Father, and You the Son.

I ask this in your precious name Jesus.

Signed:...................................................................

Date:.....................................................................

Then Jesus said to his disciples, Matthew 16: 24-25

"If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me....

For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake shall find it. -

I had to ask God to open my eyes to understand the scriptures, so that I would have "eyes to see" and "ears to hear", and He has done so. Now the scriptures have come alive to me and I see and understand more in them everyday.

Now, I pass this invitation to you to do the same.

This invitation was written at the urging of the Holy Spirit.

I pray that through it, you will find enlightenment and JOY.

Eva McAllen

The ButterflyLady

A Butterfly for Jesus
Chapter 3. God's Plan in Short

At the time of the war in Heaven when God threw Lucifer to the Earth, the earth was a place of outer darkness, void of form, etc. This was actually before the creation of Adam, Eve and the animals. We don't know how long Lucifer and the other fallen angels that went with him were there before the actual creation of life as we know it.

Ezekiel 28: 12a-19

This is what the Sovereign Lord says: "You were the model of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone adorned you: ruby, topaz and emerald, chrysolite, onyx and jasper, sapphire, turquoise and beryl. Your settings and mountings were made of gold; on the day you were created they were prepared. You were anointed as a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you. You were on the holy mount of God; you walked among the fiery stones. You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created till wickedness was found in you. Through your widespread trade you were filled with violence and you sinned. So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God, and I expelled you, O guardian cherub, from among the fiery stones. Your heart became proud on account of your beauty, and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor. So I threw you to the earth; I made a spectacle of you before kings. By your many sins and dishonest trade you have desecrated your sanctuaries. So I made a fire come out from you, and it consumed you, and I reduced you to ashes on the ground in the sight of all who were watching. All the nations who knew you are appalled at you; you have come to a horrible end and will be no more.

(This shows Lucifer's beginning and what his ending will be)

And this is what Jesus said – Luke 10:18

I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.

You say, why did God just banish him from Heaven? Why didn't He just kill him on the spot for his sins and insurrection? It would make more sense to our way of thinking, to do away with the evil and be done with it. But our ways are not God's ways. God knew what we don't seem to know, that if He had done that, it would not have really gotten rid of the evil. It would look like He was a tyrant who could not tolerate anyone opposing His views. No, His ways are not our ways. He knew that He had to let the evil run its course, so that everyone could see the consequences of that evil. For every action, there is a consequence, whether for good or evil. For God is just and being just means that he must allow all Heaven's inhabitants to see what the end consequences would be for those who freely made choices, good or bad. He had to let the evil run its course to show that in the end Lucifer's own work would condemn him. God's laws are for the common good of all. He had to let all see that to break those laws ran counter to that and would harm all.

So, even though God had not created man yet, He knew that He would have to continue His plan for man even though evil had been found in His creation of the angels. He would not change His plan of giving free will to His creations, for He wanted His creations to love Him and obey Him, not because they had to, but because they chose to.

God lives outside of time. Only the earth, planets and stars live in time as we know it. Since God can see down through time to the end of time, as we cannot, He knew that Lucifer would deceive man and sin would contaminate His creations. So, God's plan had to include a way to redeem man. So, after the creation of man and the animals, God slew the lamb that would redeem them. This was done in Heaven and would later be re-enacted on earth through the man Jesus. Since Lucifer was not in Heaven at the time, he was not necessarily aware of God's plan and the fact that the lamb had already been slain. I think he was aware of part of the plan, but not all of it.

Revelation 13:8-9

All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written in the book of life belonging to the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world. He who has an ear, let him hear.

When God delivered the Israelites from Egypt, He gave His Law – the Commandments - to His people through Moses. (See Exodus 20 thru 22) If the people would obey these Commandments, they would be His people and He would be their God. They were not just harsh rules to be obeyed as we often think. They were for the benefit of all. Because when we break these laws, we suffer the consequences of our sin. Not that God is punishing us, but we suffer from the cause and effect of the natural laws of nature set at the time of creation.

God gave specific rituals to be performed for the covering of sins—always with the blood of a lamb free from defects as the offering until the final offering of God's sin-free Lamb—Jesus could complete the work

Mark 10:45

For even the son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.

From the beginning, when Lucifer rebelled, he used deception to gain his following. He does so today. God is just and must follow his own rules, but Lucifer/Satan does not follow them and is free to use any method he chooses. From the beginning, he has chosen to deceive man into believing that God's plan is not for their good, that they can attain godhood themselves. He has always tried to say that God meant something different than what He said, or that since Jesus came, Jesus changed God's Laws. Jesus says differently. Jesus says He came to fulfill the Law.

Jesus says in Luke 16:17 –

It is easier for heaven and earth to disappear than for the least stroke of a pen to drop out of the Law.

It serves Satan's purpose to have people be religious, so that they think they are obeying God's Laws, just as long as they are not REALLY obeying them. With that in mind, Satan has influenced man to change God's Laws in many ways. This is one of the ways he has stolen many who really think they are obeying. That is why it is very important for each of us to study the Scriptures for ourselves, and not rely on other books that are taught in place of the Scriptures. See what Jesus says –

Mark 12:24

-Jesus replied, "Are you not in error because you do not know the scriptures or the power of God?"

Luke 6:40

A student is not above his teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher.

Luke 6:49.

But, the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation.. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.

Luke 11:52

Woe to you experts in the law, because you have taken away the key to knowledge. You yourselves have not entered, and you have hindered those who were entering.

We need to study the Scriptures ourselves so we know them so well, that even a Minister, Pastor or Priest cannot deceive us. For that is where the deception will come from. Satan knows the scriptures and is good at quoting them. He changes them just a little, so they sound like the real thing, but in reality are in error.

Remember, he wants to BE GOD.

So he knows how to sound LIKE GOD. (you need to learn to hear the difference)

But he IS NOT my God, is he yours?

So, it all boils down to – who will you believe?

God or Lucifer (Satan)?

Your answer determines your eternal future. Jesus paid the ransom for your life. Don't let it be wasted.
Chapter 4. And There Was War in Heaven

I asked God how it was that Satan was in the Garden of Eden and he opened a little window of understanding telling me that when He was creating the earth, Satan wanted to be God and started a rebellion in Heaven. Satan was cast to the earth and given dominion there but the people would be given a choice as to whom they would worship. I asked God why he didn't just change Satan and make him want to worship God instead of wanting to be God. He explained that He wanted people who would worship him of their own free will, not just because it was mandated or forced on them.

I heard a tape by Myles Monroe a minister from Nassau in the Bahamas. He gives us good insight on living under the rule of a King or Queen. We in the United States are about the only people on earth that are not in some way under earthly rule of a king, so we don't understand the authority of the one on the throne. If you displease your King, you can lose your life, without so much as a trial. Even if you have a trial, the power of the throne on those in the judicial system will be stronger than you..

Also, you must understand that just because you choose to believe that the King does not exist or has no control over you, DOES NOT ALTER ANYTHING. He IS the King, whether you believe it or not. You are not allowed to protest or argue or decide if you want to serve your King. YOU WILL SERVE YOUR KING.

But also understand this, the King himself never actually does the killing or punishing. He has underlings to do the dirty work for him The King has only to wave his scepter and the judgment was complete, and the deed would be done. A King does not lower himself to fight one of his subjects.

We do not know what really happened in detail, but let's get our imagination in gear as we paint this picture. We're in Heaven where the Morning Star choir is singing under the leadership of Lucifer, the Guardian Cherub the greatest musician of all. The Archangel Michael is heading up the Holy Guard of Cherubim today, as always. Gabriel as chief messenger is on hand in case he is needed.

Jehovah and a few angels are standing on the edge of Heaven having a little creative session to pass a fine afternoon. "The choir is singing especially nice today isn't it? and that should put us in the mood for the work ahead of us."...."Well, what do you think, should we make another star or planet or hmmm, let me think."

After the choir has finished practicing, a group of angels headed up by Lucifer is meeting and Lucifer is complaining. "I get no respect around here lately. What say we form our own creation team and oust Jehovah and I can be God around here. I would sure change a lot of things. We would have Everyone bow down to us and worship us all day--what do you say?" - Angel #6 says - "I say we could all get in a lot of trouble if we don't watch out." Angel #10 says -"Maybe we should just cool it awhile and see if things get better." Outraged, Lucifer shouts -"What a bunch of nambee pambee's. I say we just bust up the creation game right now. We can push a few angels around, bust up a few things and get the attention of everyone off that special creation project, then ruin the project when no one is looking.."..... (A bunch of shouting and pushing is going on.)

(Jehovah looks over his shoulder) How can we work with all that noise?" Gabriel, what is that ruckus all about? Find Michael and tell him to see what is interfering with our peaceful afternoon. Gabriel says that Michael is on his way to stop the riot. Shortly Lucifer and about 1/3 or the heavenly hosts of angels is standing in the throne room under heavy guard from Michael and his Cherubim. After questioning by Jehovah and the revealing of a truly rebellious, unrepentant heart on the part of Lucifer. Jehovah banished him from his presence. Michael flung him and his followers to the newly created earth with the understanding that he would still have to report in to Jehovah on a regular basis, but he could not come and go as he pleased. He could no longer approach Jehovah at will.

\----------------------------------

\---References for the above creative story-

Genesis 1-3 [look that up and read it] –

Colossians 1:15-17

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.

For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.

He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.

\---------------------------

Psalms 33:6

By the word of the LORD were the heavens made, their starry host by the breath of his mouth.

\-------------------------

Revelations 12:7-13

And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back.

But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven.

The great dragon was hurled down-- that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the Earth, and his angels with him.

Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: "Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down.

They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.

Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short."

When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child.

Now Let's go to the newly created Earth - to the Garden where God had placed the humans he had created in his image.

Adam and Eve were created with a body and soul. God then created spirit within each of them. With this spirit, they were able to communicate with God. (God is spirit).

God gave Adam and Eve dominion over the whole of earth and only forbade them to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil for He wished them to know only good. This was the only thing they were not allowed to do. He told them that in the very day they ate of the tree they would die. Satan came to them in the form of a serpent and caused Eve to doubt God's word, then told her that God did not really mean that she would die, that she could become like God herself, knowing both good and evil, if she ate of the fruit. This was twisting God's words, changing the meaning altogether. Eve fell for the lie (believed it) and she and Adam willingly ate of the fruit of the tree, thereby giving over their authority (dominion) of the earth to Satan by choosing his will over God's will. This killed the spirit in them and implanted the sin seed of Satan. God expelled them from the Garden of Eden. Satan's sin seed was passed to all generations and now, legally, the body and soul of all, being dust of the earth, belong to Satan as the god of the age, or Prince of this earth. This is how he is able to hurt us physically. (This can be referred to as Natural Sin Seed or Sin Nature)

At the time of Pentecost, after Christ's resurrection, God once again poured out His spirit on man. The spirit seed is placed in each believer when he is born again --born again of the Holy Spirit -- he becomes a new man. Once again man was able to communicate with God. Satan can harm you physically, but he can never harm or own this spirit. (This is Spirit Seed or Holy Seed)

Study these scripture References:

Romans 6:15 - 23

What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means!

Don't you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness. I put this in human terms because you are weak in your natural selves. Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness. When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 7:14-25

We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do-- this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it. So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God-- through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.

Hebrews 10:26-31

If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much more severely do you think a man deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know him who said, "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," and again, "The Lord will judge. It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

Now The Choice Is Yours --

You will nurture one seed or the other, both cannot exist in the same human and grow to maturity. The one will flourish and mature and the other will shrivel and die.

Do you ask God for guidance in your daily choices or do you need to be in control of your life and make your own choices?

If you need to be in control, you have fallen for Satan's lie and have made yourself your god and are serving Satan. If you willingly give up control to Jehovah God, you will see that He is a much better manager and does everything for your enrichment and growth. Your spirit seed will grow and mature.

If you are a born again believer, your spirit belongs to God. Do you make choices that grieve His spirit or make him jealous? Do you cheat on him? You do if you let Satan lead you to make choices that allow the sin seed to grow instead of the spirit seed to grow.

Consider -

What do you do with your time? Do you read your Bible and pray? Do you listen to music that is uplifting and pleasing to God? Do you read books that help you understand how to study your Bible? Could you take God with you wherever you go? Do you discuss your redemption with others and show them how to have the love of God? These things help your spirit seed to grow.

Do you listen to music that is depressing or takes your focus off God and puts it on daily problems? Do you go places that you would be ashamed to take God? Do you do things you would be ashamed to have God see you do? Do you watch movies or read magazines with subject matter that is not pleasing to God? These things take your focus off God and in so doing help your sin seed to grow which pleases Satan mightily.

It is your garden and you have the choice of which seed to fertilize so it will grow to maturity and which seed will wither and die.

Now --

Who do you really serve ?

Are You Surprised?

If you serve the wrong one and want to change -

YOU MUST -

1. REPENT of your sins - be truly sorry to have committed them.

2. BELIEVE that Jesus was crucified for your sins, was raised from the dead and ascended to Heaven.

3. CONFESS with your mouth that Jesus is your redeemer.

4. ACCEPT the forgiveness that God freely gives to you and then forgive yourself.

5. ASK GOD to guide your life and help you to be the person He wants you to be. (You will find that you will like yourself better also.)

You have the same choice as Adam & Eve \--

Who will you believe?

Who will be your God?

Jehovah or Satan?

Joshua 24:15

But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day, whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD."
Chapter 5. Saving Souls is a Bloody Business

Our God is a God of Details

I want to talk to you now about the power of blood. In the Old Testament we learn how God demanded the blood of animals (sheep or goats, etc.) for the covering of sins. Note how very specific He is and gives attention to details. In the New Testament we learn of the Blood of Jesus to cleanse us from sin. I know this seems repetitious, but it shows how detailed God's instructions were in the use of the blood over & over to cover sins until Jesus came to use his blood to wash them away.

Let's begin in the Old Testament with the instructions for the first Passover....

Exodus 12:7

-They are to take some of the blood and put it on the sides and tops of the doorframes of the houses where they eat the lambs.

Exodus 12:12 –

On that same night I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn – both men and animals—and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am the Lord. The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt.

Exodus 12:22-23 –

Take a bunch of hyssop, dip it into the blood in the basin and put some of the blood on the top and on both sides of the doorframe. Not one of you shall go out the door of his house until morning. When the Lord goes through the land to strike down the Egyptians, he will see the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe and will pass over that doorway, and he will not permit the destroyer to enter your houses and strike you down.

***This was the first use of the blood as protection***

Exodus 24:6-8 –

Moses took half of the blood and put it in bowls, and the other half he sprinkled on the altar. Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it to the people. They responded. "We will do everything the Lord has said; we will obey." Moses then took the blood, sprinkled it on the people and said, "This is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you in accordance with all these words."

***Here the blood was used to seal a covenant. Now the people could come into God's presence in safety. Before that He had forbidden them to even approach the mountain because of their unbelief.***

***During the consecrating ceremony for priests...first a bull...***

Exodus 29:12

Take some of the bull's blood and put it on the horns of the altar with your finger, and pour out the rest of it at the base of the altar.

***then a ram...***

Exodus 29:16

Slaughter it and take the blood and sprinkle it against the altar on all sides.

***then a second ram...***

Exodus 29:20

-Slaughter it, take some of its blood and put it on the lobes of the right ears of Aaron and his sons, on the thumbs of their right hands, and on the big toes of their right feet. Then sprinkle blood against the altar on all sides.

Exodus 29:21 –

And take some of the blood on the altar and some of the anointing oil and sprinkle it on Aaron and his garments and on his sons and their garments. Then he and his sons and their garments will be consecrated.

***As Atonement for the altar..***

Exodus 30:10

-Once a year Aaron shall make atonement on its horns. This annual atonement must be made with the blood of the atoning sin offering for the generations to come. It is most holy to the Lord.

Exodus 34:25

-Do not offer the blood of a sacrifice to me along with anything containing yeast, and do not let any of the sacrifice from the Passover feast remain until morning.

***He is specifically telling them to eat all of it.***

Leviticus 1:5 –

He is to slaughter the young bull before the Lord, and then Aaron's sons the priests shall bring the blood and sprinkle it against the altar on all sides at the entrance to the tent of Meeting.

***any burnt offering...***

Leviticus 1:11

-He is to slaughter it at the north side of the altar before the Lord, and Aaron's sons the priests shall sprinkle its blood against the altar on all sides.

Leviticus 1:15

The priest shall bring it to the altar, wring off the head and burn it on the altar; it blood shall be drained out on the side of the altar.

***Fellowship offering – if from the herd..***

Leviticus 3:2

He is to lay his hand on the head of his offering and slaughter it at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. Then Aaron's sons the priests shall sprinkle the blood against the altar on all sides.

***Fellowship offering – if from the flock..***

Leviticus 3:8

He is to lay his hand on the head of his offering and slaughter it in front of the Tent of Meeting. Then Aaron's sons shall sprinkle its blood against the altar on all sides.

***Fellowship offering – if a goat...***

Leviticus 3:13

He is to lay his hand on its head and slaughter it in front of the Tent of Meeting. Then Aaron's sons shall sprinkle its blood against the altar on all sides.

***Sin offering...***

Leviticus 3:17

This is a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live; you must not eat any fat or any blood.

Leviticus 4:5

Then the anointed priest shall take some of the bull's blood and carry it into the Tent of Meeting.

Leviticus 4:6

He is to dip his finger into the blood and sprinkle some of it seven times before the Lord, in front of the curtain of the sanctuary

Leviticus 4:7

The priest shall then put some of the blood on the horns of the altar of fragrant incense that is before the Lord in the Tent of Meeting. The rest of the bull's blood he shall pour out at the base of the altar of burnt offering at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.

And in the new Testament Paul talks about Jesus...

Hebrews 10:3-8

But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins, because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. Therefore, when Christ came into the world, he said: "Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me; with burnt offerings and sin offerings you were not pleased. Then I said, 'Here I am—it is written about me in the scroll—I have come to do your will, O God.'First he said, "Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them" (although God required them to be made). Then he said "Here I am, I have come to do your will."

He sets aside the first to establish the second.

And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus the Christ once for all.

Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God. Since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool, because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this. First he says: "This is the covenant I will make with them after that time, says the Lord. I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds."Then he adds: "Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more." And where these have been forgiven, there is no longer any sacrifice for sin.

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This moved us from, under the law – to the grace of God through the blood of Jesus to cleanse our sins, not just cover them. This was a one-time sacrifice by God of His Own Son. Once again, just as he provided the sacrifice for Abraham so that when Abraham showed his obedience to God by being willing to give up his son, God has now given His own son for us as the Passover Lamb.

Notice how in most cases listed above that the priest was to lay his hand on the sacrifice and slaughter it in the presence of God before the altar. God also had His hand on Jesus as He was crucified as the Passover Lamb in Jerusalem—which would be before the altar. Remember – man did not crucify Jesus against His will. He volunteered Himself as the Lamb for God to sacrifice as a one-time atonement for our sins. This sacrifice would never have to be repeated, as were the sacrifices of animals.

This does not mean that he did away with the laws. But only that the need for sacrifices having been fulfilled, they were no longer necessary. If we do not accept Jesus as our saviour and be judged under God's Grace, then, we will be judged by the Law.

You can see that He is a God of details – and He never forgets the details. He is the one who set the time for the Passover Lambs to be killed to be prepared in time for the Passover meal. His own Son was crucified at the very time the Passover Lambs were to be killed.

Remember...

John 13:27-29

As soon as Judas took the bread, Satan entered into him. "What you are about to do, do quickly, " Jesus told him, but no one at the meal understood why Jesus said this to him. Since Judas had charge of the money, some thought Jesus was telling him to buy what was needed for the Feast, or to give something to the poor.

John 18:28

Then the Jews led Jesus from Caiaphas to the palace of the roman governor. By now, it was early morning, and to avoid ceremonial uncleanness the Jews did not enter the palace; they wanted to be able to eat the Passover.

The Jews did not enter the palace because they wanted to remain ceremonially clean in order to be able to eat the Passover Feast. So you see, they had already had their Last Supper, not to be confused with the Passover feast, before Jesus was arrested.

John 19:31a

Now it was the day of Preparation, and the next day was to be a special Sabbath. Because the Jews did not want the bodies left on the crosses during the Sabbath...

Understand that the Jewish day began at sundown and that Jesus was crucified on Passover day after their last supper.. Since Passover occurred the day before the regular Sabbath, there were two Sabbaths that week. Jesus was crucified on Passover day (Wednesday), he was in the grave that evening the beginning of Thursday, Friday and Saturday, and during the day Saturday was raised from the dead and was not in the tomb Sunday morning when the women arrived at the tomb. Remember, He is Lord of the Sabbath.

Like at the beginning of His ministry when He read the scripture and told them the prophecy was being fulfilled, how exactly like Him to do the same at the end of His ministry.

Luke 4:16-21

He went to Nazareth where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the Synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read. The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it I written: "The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him, and he began by saying to them, "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."

When on the cross He cries out...

Matthew 27: 46

"Eloi, Eloi, loama sabachthani? " – which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"

**He is not ending His life believing He has been forsaken by His Father. Far from it -He is quoting Psalm 22, which begins with those same words**.

As He began his ministry by reading scripture and saying He was fulfilling it, He does the same at the end of His ministry.

This is to give hope to those with an eye to see and and ear to hear and yet closing out all meaning to those not inclined to love Him. He is saying for them to go back and read the scriptures – once again, it is being fulfilled. We will read this Psalm now so you can feel the full effect of it.

Psalm 22:

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from the words of my groaning? O my God, I cry out by day, but you do not answer, by night, and am not silent.

Yet you are enthroned as the Holy One; you are the praise of Israel. In you our fathers put their trust; they trusted and you delivered them. They cried to you and were saved; in you they trusted and were not disappointed.

But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by men and despised by the people. All who see me mock me; they hurl insults, shaking their heads: "He trusts in the Lord; let the Lord rescue him. Let him deliver him, since he delights in him."

Yet you brought me out of the womb; you made me trust in you even at my mother's breasts. From birth I was cast upon you; from my mother's womb you have been my God. Do not be far from me, for trouble is near and there is no one to help.

Many bulls surround me; strong bulls of Bashan encircle me. Roaring lions tearing their prey open their mouths wide against me. I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint. My heart has turned to wax; it has melted away within me. My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth; you lay me in the dust of death.

Dogs have surrounded me; a band of evil men has encircled me, they have pierced my hands and my feet. I can count all my bones; people stare and gloat over me. They divide my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing.

But you, O Lord, be not far off; O my Strength, come quickly to help me. Deliver my life from the sword, my precious life from the power of the dogs. Rescue me from the mouth of the lions; save me from the horns of the wild oxen.

I will declare your name to my brothers; in the congregation I will praise you. You, who fear the Lord, praise him! All you, descendants of Jacob, honor him! Revere him, all you descendants of Israel! **For he has not despised or disdained the suffering of the afflicted one; he has not hidden his face from him, but has listened to his cry for help.**

From you comes the theme of my praise in the great assembly; before those who fear you will I fulfill my vows. The poor will eat and be satisfied; they who seek the Lord will praise him-may your hearts live forever! All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the

Lord, and all the families of the nations will bow down before him, for dominion belongs to the Lord and he rules over the nations.

All the rich of the earth will feast and worship; all who go down to the dust will kneel before him—those who cannot keep themselves alive. Posterity will serve him; future generations will be told about the Lord **. They will proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn--"for he has done it."**

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God would NEVER forsake His own Son and neither will He forsake you. If you can believe God would forsake His own Son at the time of His greatest need, then how could you not believe that he would forsake you in your time of need. No, He will NEVER forsake you, He has told you so. God raised Him from the dead to everlasting life. **He was not abandoned. His is still alive.**

In effect He is reminding them of the plan of God and how God attends to details. You see He knows that He has not been abandoned and He is still trusting in God and instead of thinking of His own pain, is thinking of us and giving us hope. He is telling us the scripture is fulfilled and the work is finished.

You see, our God is a God of the details. They all tally up.

Now in remembrance:

1 Corinthians 11:23-29

For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, "This is my body," which is for you; do this in remembrance of me." In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me." For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and the blood of the Lord. A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself.

So let us pray when we take Communion –

"Lord we know that by eating of this bread – your body, and by drinking of the cup—your blood, we are taking into ourselves your life to replace ours. We want you to live in us and shine through for others to see."

And in the same way we eat bread daily to nourish our bodies, since Jesus is the Word and the bread of life, we should eat it daily to nourish our souls—not just some of it some of the time, but daily to sustain us.

Like the Israelites were told to eat all of the Passover Lamb, we should use all of the Word (Bible)—not just parts of it.

You hear a popular Christian song – "Would you take the nails from his hands?". It is a very nice song and I like it, but every time I hear it, my soul shouts – NO, NO, NO,

I would NOT take the nails from His hand. He was God's sacrifice to redeem our souls from Satan's grasp. He **willingly** took those nails for us. For us to want to remove them would be to void what He has done for us. No, I value his sacrifice too much to do that.

So you see, saving souls is a very bloody business. Without the blood of Jesus,. We would all be dead in our sins and doomed to spend eternity in Hell. With His blood we are guaranteed a home in eternity with Him and I for one want to be drenched in the blood of Jesus.
Chapter 6. No Shotgun Wedding for Jesus – He Must Have a Willing Bride

In Revelations 12: 7-13 We spoke of war in Heaven and how Lucifer started a riot and convinced 1/3 of the angels in Heaven to revolt with him to usurp God's power and authority. Lucifer was full of pride and was not satisfied with his station as choir director. He wanted all the power and glory to be his. He wanted to BE GOD. He was thrown out of Heaven to the newly created planet Earth. His name must have been changed at that time, for he is always referred to as Satan after this.

NOW TRY THIS IDEA ON FOR SIZE - It is almost as if God were saying, "OK here's your chance - you think you can be God - give it a try on Earth. To those who listen to you and worship you - you may have them--- BUT understand this - if at anytime any one of those who may have chosen you should for any reason change his mind and decide to listen to me and call to me and want to be mine---- THEN HE IS MINE. Then when all is said and done - On judgment day - you will take yours & go to the Lake of Fire that burns but does not consume and you will be confined in the bottomless pit to be tormented for all eternity, and I will take mine and reign in the glory of Heaven for all eternity." Man was not originally told of the plan so he would not be influenced one way or the other. This was to be TRUE FREEDOM OF CHOICE. You see - the war is really over. God has already won it. He just has not yet carried out the punishment. He is allowing his human creations to choose which side they want to be on.

Remember, we talked about your god being the one you listen to. How you will serve one or the other. For if you do not choose Jehovah God, then you are really choosing Satan. It matters not if you believe the King (God) exists. He exists without your belief, but you will be judged by His laws regardless. For after the final judgment - there will be no more false gods - there will only be one God as there is only one True God today. We will be deceived no longer.

How many of you have ever purchased something- or say you leased a new car. You drive on your merry way, putting lots of miles on the car, getting scratches or dents in it and putting on new tires as needed. now comes the day the time of the lease is up and you decide to turn the car back in and maybe get a new one. You are told that you are liable for the repairs to fix the scratches and dents, the tires you put on were not the original replacement brand of tires and that you will have to pay for new ones and that you will have to pay so much for each mile over the stated limit allowed.

"WOW" - you say - "I didn't know I would have to pay those things, therefore, since I did not know it, I'm not paying ." Oh yeah? Did you read the fine print. Are you bound by the fine print if you don't read it? Of course you are. It matters not, it you did not avail yourself of the details provided. Well, that's the way it is spiritually too. Ignorance of the law does not free you from the law.

We spoke of how God wants his subjects to love him, not because they are forced to, but because they choose to of their own free will, So all created beings, be they angels or humans, are given free will. By giving his creations free will - it allowed for the distinct possibility that they would make wrong choices. And wrong choices we have all made. God is also bound by His laws. He cannot change a law once He has put it into place. He can however, offer us help and pardon for our wrong choices. He can and does show us mercy, where none is deserved. He even devised a plan whereby He himself would pay the price of the ransom to buy us back from the slavery we had chosen. He would do this IF we change our mind and choose Him over Satan.

God set up many laws to govern the people - not just to show his power - but because the laws were GOOD FOR THE PEOPLE. If the people chose God and followed His laws, they would be Healthy, Wealthy & Wise. If however, they did not follow His laws, they were now choosing to follow Satan and were now under sin, being a slave to sin, have become the property of Satan. And believe me Satan has plans of his own. He loves to cause sickness, misery and pain. Satan does not reward his followers for long. He lures us with promises and a few nice samples to set the hook. Then when we listen to him and eat of His Food, we become his slave. He then removes all the pleasure and those same samples that seemed so good at first, now become burdensome addictions that you cannot shake off. Remember, Satan was in Heaven as Lucifer and was an angel of light, so he knows some good things. He is the master deceiver, so he is able to work wonders mimicking the God he wants to usurp. But he can't keep up the act forever, because his true nature is evil.

Back to the Garden –

Well, we all know that Satan did not take long to put his plan into action to deceive Eve and she in turn as Satan's slave helped to deceive Adam. Now both have turned away from the God who created them and gave them dominion over everything with only one thing forbidden to them. They were not to eat from the Tree of Good & Evil. God did not stop loving them, He did not move away from them, they moved away from Him. He did chastise them however, by banishing them from the Garden.

Had Adam and Eve listened to God - they would have lived forever in perfect health. But since they chose to listen to the serpent (Satan), God had Cherubim placed with flaming swords to guard the Tree of Life to keep them from eating it, and He banished them from the Garden. Now just because they had made a wrong choice, God did not stop loving them. No - He even made clothes for them before He sent them out of the Garden. But because of their choice for Satan, they were now bound to him. They now had to work for a living. The food would no longer be given to them just for the picking. Pain was introduced - the pain of childbirth was the first. It wasn't long until jealousy and murder were to follow. Once Satan has his hook into you, the sin in your life multiplies. (Remember the sin seed we talked about earlier?)

The mental pain induced by sin was so great it caused Cain to cry out to the Lord. "My punishment is more than I can bear. Today you are driving me from the land, and I will be hidden from your presence; I will be a restless wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me." But you see, the Lord had mercy on him even in his sin. The lord said to him, "Not so; if anyone kills Cain, he will suffer vengeance seven times over." Then the Lord put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him. The mark on Cain was an indication of God's grace and protection. Cain suffered less than he deserved for his murder of Abel. God had warned Cain earlier about his attitude. No human witnessed and punished Cain's crime. But God noted it as He does all crime. Eventually all criminals must face God's judgment no matter how well they escape human punishment.

Sin grew rapidly in the human race. Lamech killed a young man who had simply injured him. The poetic form of the text indicated the depravity of Lamech's character as he bragged about his sinful act. Similarly, we are often tempted to demand more justice than we are due. Both divine and civil law attempt to restrain our sinful impulses and dispense a balanced judgment. Sin is never a cause for bragging. It causes only God's wrath and judgment.

The promise to Cain led to geographic and cultural expansion of the human race. It also led to history carried out without concern for God's presence. History thus has two types of subjects--those who move away from God and those who call on God. The interaction of the two forms the basis for divine deliverance of His people.

God knew that a plan to save his people was needed. But we have a God who attends to details. He already had a plan. When He led the children of Israel out of Egypt , He made a covenant with them and sealed it with blood.

Exodus 24: 7-8

"Then [Moses] took the Book of the Covenant and read it to the people. They responded, 'We will do everything the Lord has said; we will obey.' Moses then took the blood, sprinkled it on the people and said, 'This is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you in accordance with all these words'".

He then took Moses up to the Mountain and wrote the Ten Commandments on two stone tablets. God also gave him a few more instructions for how to build a Tabernacle, how to ordain Aaron as the High Priest and about all the sacrifices required to atone for sins. These were rules for everyday living that would help them to break the sin bondage and sacrifices to atone for sins and keep them focused on God. But even before the tablets of law were delivered back to the people, the people were already deep in sin worshipping a golden calf. After the people repented of this sin, God, the ever-merciful God that He is, gave them another chance. He took Moses back up the Mountain and did the tablets all over again.

God knew that the people were not strong enough to keep the laws and that they would fail over and over again. But He never changes in his love of the people. He does not wish that any should perish in the Lake of Fire. He will do all He can to redeem and rescue His people. But He is bound by His own law of Free Will that He has put in place, so each person has to be allowed to make his or her own choices. He cannot force them to obey His laws and choose Him over Satan. He wants love freely given as He freely gives it. But know this - at the appointed time, He will also punish along with Satan, those who do not choose him. They WILL be banished to the lake of fire in the bottomless pit and be forever out of the sight of God. (The Hebrew word for Hell -Sheol is translated as 'unseen state') This does not mean that you will party with your friends in Hell – it means you will be totally alone in utter darkness (for away from God, there is no light) and unseen.

God hinted at the coming Messiah in the Garden of Eden - when He predicted the coming and mission of the Messiah:

Genesis 3:15

"And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed [the Serpent, Satan] and her Seed [the Messiah, Jesus Christ]; He shall bruise your head [Satan's destruction], And you shall bruise His heel [Messiah's death and Resurrection]"

Later He tells of the Messiah to Abraham:

Genesis 12: 1-3

Now the Lord had said to Abram: "Get out of your country, from your family and from your father's house, to a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed."

And now to Moses God gives a little more of His plan:

Deuteronomy 18:18-19

"I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from among their brethren, and will put My words in His mouth, and He shall speak tothem all that I command Him. And it shall be that whoever will not hear My words, which He speaks in My name, I will require it of him."

[At judgment time - all confess Jesus - it is required of them - even those going to Hell.]

We read in

Jeremiah 29:11-14

"For I know the plans I have for you" declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you," declares the LORD, "and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you," declares the LORD, "and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile."

This is explained further in

Acts 3:22-26-

For Moses truly said to the fathers, "The Lord your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your brethren. Him you shall hear in all things, whatever He says to you. And it shall be that every soul who will not hear that Prophet shall be utterly destroyed from among the people." Yes, and all the prophets, from Samuel and those who follow, as many as have spoken, have also foretold these days. You are sons of the prophets, and of the covenant, which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, "And in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed." To you first, God having raised up His Servant Jesus, sent Him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from your iniquities.

Romans 7: 24-25 –

What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God--through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.

Enter the long promised long awaited Messiah –

Luke 4:17-19, 21

"The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to [Jesus]. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written: "The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.'...And he began by saying to them, **"Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing".**

Paul tells us in

Colossians 1:21-23

Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation--if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.

And in Hebrews 10:15-18

The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this. First he says: "This is the covenant I will make with them after that time, says the Lord. I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds." Then he adds: "Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more." And where these have been forgiven, there is no longer any sacrifice for sin.

1 Peter 2:24

"He himself [Jesus] bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed."

Hebrews 9:11-28

When Christ came as high priest of the good things that are already here, he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not man-made, that is to say, not a part of this creation. He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption. The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!

For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance-- now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant. In the case of a will, it is necessary to prove the death of the one who made it, because a will is in force only when somebody has died; it never takes effect while the one who made it is living. This is why even the first covenant was not put into effect without blood.

When Moses had proclaimed every commandment of the law to all the people, he took the blood of calves, together with water, scarlet wool and branches of hyssop, and sprinkled the scroll and all the people. He said, "This is the blood of the covenant, which God has commanded you to keep."

In the same way, he sprinkled with the blood both the tabernacle and everything used in its ceremonies. In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. It was necessary, then, for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these sacrifices, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one; he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God's presence. Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. Then Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But now he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.

Hebrews 10: 26-31

If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much more severely do you think a man deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know him who said, "It is mine to avenge; I will repay, and again, "The Lord will judge his people." It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

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God attends to details - The only ransom to purchase our souls back from Satan is the Blood of Jesus. When Satan stands on judgment day to claim us as he will - Jesus will stand up and say that He himself has purchased us with His own blood and he will claim us as His. (Thank you Jesus).

I want to read for you what David Wilkerson says on this subject - He says -

Zechariah 3 describes a high priest named Joshua standing before the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to oppose him. Also present was an angel who had to be Christ (or Jehovah of the Old Testament), because angels do not judge.

Now, this Joshua was the high priest during the time of Ezra and Nehemiah. Ezra 2:2 records that this Joshua came out of captivity along with the prophet Zechariah. In Ezra 10:18 it appears that Joshua and his sons had married heathen women and therefore were "clothed in filthy rags." At that time, the worst way a Jew could defile himself was by marrying a Gentile. (Zech 3:3) Thus, Joshua defiled his priestly garments:

"Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and stood before the angel"

Consider the scene now, in type: Joshua stands before the throne in his filthy garments, and the devil is at his side, accusing him. In Revelation 12:10, Satan is called "...the accuser of our brethren.." Think about it: The devil stood before the Lord to question Job's righteousness. He stood before the heavenly throne to oppose this high priest Joshua...and he stands before God right now to oppose you and me--to accuse us of sin and unfaithfulness!

Satan argued against Joshua: "God, You know all things. You know your law--and this man has broken it! He has sinned against You, and now his heart is like filthy rags. He is unclean, evil, unworthy.!"

The devil's accusations were correct: Joshua had sinned. He was guilty, and his garments were spotted. And now Satan claimed Joshua for himself: "I claim this man as my own. He is filthy, living in darkness--and that is my kingdom!"

Beloved, this is exactly what happens with us! Many of the devil's accusations against us are accurate. When we fall into sin--when we fail in our Christian walk, and our garment is defiled -- Satan comes before the throne to accuse, oppose and defame us. He points at us and says, "Look at him! You know all things, God. Don't You see the compromise in this one's life? If You are just, You must give me his soul.!"

That is when our Advocate steps in. Jesus stands up and says, "It's true, Father--there is a blemish here. There has been failure, and his garment is defiled. But there is faith in his heart--faith in the power of My blood!

"You know I have made satisfaction for this man's sin. Indeed, I have paid for every sin he has committed or will ever commit. So, by every law of justice, holiness and mercy, I hereby call for this man's pardon and freedom. He is a brand I have plucked from the fire. I have sprinkled his heart with My blood -- and caused his iniquity to pass away!"

Jesus then turns to those standing by and says, "Take those filthy garments off of him, and put my robe of righteousness on his shoulders. Take that hat off his head and put on a crown!"

This is just what happens with Joshua in Zechariah 3. Jesus pleads his case, interceding for him: "...I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment"(verse 4) That is the passover--the sprinkled blood!

Jesus then says to Satan, "...The Lord rebuke thee, O Satan; even the Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee: is not this a brand plucked out of the fire?" (verse 2)

What a picture! The devil was forced to leave with a sound rebuke. And Joshua walked away with a pardon, a new garment and a crown of righteousness on his head! 1John 2:1 "...if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous..."

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Wow - Thank You - Jesus.

In Jesus' own words - John 6:28 -29

Then they asked him, "What must we do to do the works God requires?"

Jesus answered, "The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent."

John 6:37-40

All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all that he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.

_You see - There will be no shotgun wedding for my Christ. No for the Son of God must have a willing bride - one who longs for Him only, one who desires Him and loves Him with all her being._

Get this picture – your lover has gone off to war and you are awaiting his return. You miss him so much. You read all his love letters to you and long for him daily. You speak to others about him remembering all his promises to you. You think about him all the time and make plans for when he returns. You are in a passion with your longing to be with him. You are waiting with passion and anticipation.

This is what God requires for the Bride of His only Son. We, as the Church body, are all one body and that body is the bride of Christ. We must speak of Him to others. We must read his love letters to us and remember his promises to us, longing for him daily with passion and make plans for when he returns. We must be like the Wise Virgins.....

Matt 25:1-13

"At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise.The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. The wise, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep."At midnight the cry rang out: `Here's the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!' "Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.' "`No,' they replied, `there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.' "But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut. "Later the others also came. `Sir! Sir!' they said. `Open the door for us!' "But he replied, `I tell you the truth, I don't know you.' "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.

We not only must be a willing bride - we must be ready - dressed properly - and awaiting our groom eagerly. We must be prepared and we must know him, not just know of him, or he will say he does not know us.

Picture this my friends –

Revelations 20:10-15

And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night forever and ever.Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

Promises for our home in the future –

John 14:2-4

In my Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going."

Revelations 21

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."He who was seated on the throne said, "I am making everything new!" Then he said, "Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true." He said to me: "It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life. He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son. But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars-- their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death." One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, "Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb." And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like jasper, clear as crystal. It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south and three on the west.The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city, its gates and its walls. The city was laid out like a square, as long as it was wide. He measured the city with the rod and found it to be 12,000 stadia in length, and as wide and high as it is long. He measured its wall and it was 144 cubits thick, by man's measurement, which the angel was using. The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass. The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald, the fifth sardonyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of pure gold, like transparent glass. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it.On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it. Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life.

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Our God attends to details. He even gives us a picture of what our future will be like. It is only for us to choose this day whom we will serve.
Chapter 7. The Final Battle

Lucifer was not satisfied with his role as an angel made to worship God, he wants to BE God.

After winning a third of the angels in Heaven to his cause through deception, he now uses that same power of deception to win the people of the Earth to his cause. On Earth, he is known as Satan.

Now let's do a comparison of attributes to see how Satan makes counterfeits of the Holiness of God to deceive the people. He knows how to "look good" and make people think he's the "real thing".

God's Team

God – God Jehovah – Father – Creator

-God sends his Holy Spirit to overshadow Israel's virgin Mary to conceive His son

\- God gives His authority to His son Jesus

Jesus – Son – Christ – Savior- Lord – King – King of Kings

-Jesus and His Bride (his church) are heading for a marriage supper in the New Jerusalem

Holy Spirit – Holy Ghost – God's Spirit Dwelling in You

Satan's Team ( the counterfeit) and Attributes

Satan – Serpent – Red Dragon – Scarlet Beast

1st Beast – out of the seas – Leopard-Bear-Lion

\- Powerful Nations & Governments

\- We don't need God

\- Nimrod of the Babylonians was the emancipator that set people free from God

-Atlas

-Comes looking good

2nd Beast- out of the earth –looks like lamb-speaks like dragon

-False Religions

False Prophet

\- You can save yourself with good deeds

\- You are the center of your universe

Harlot Babylon (mother of prostitutes)

-Is not a government or religion but rides and fornicates with them both

-Rides and fornicates with the Beasts – government and religion

-Conceives world systems of immorality that blasphemes God

-Is a way of thinking that enough money would put your life on solid ground

-Promises – I can give you what you crave – you can have it now

-Not a city in itself, but rather is in all cities

-A dry barren place, but not without appeal

-Appeals to appetites

-Lust of the flesh (I will do it no matter who it hurts)

-Lust of the eyes (have to have it and have it now)

-Boastful pride – I can do it myself – I don't need a god – only weaklings need God

Satan gave his authority to the Beast

The Beast and his Harlot are heading for judgment and final destruction.

Satan had tried to kill the child Jesus and failed. He thought that he had succeeded in delivering the fatal wound when Jesus was crucified. But the fatal wound was given to Satan instead when God raised Jesus from the dead and brought him back out of the grave with the keys to the Kingdom..

But now it looks as though Satan has recovered from his fatal wound; as he seems alive and well doing his destruction everywhere and showing his power.

But like in World War II on "D" day the war was won, but the fighting continued until "V" day. Between "D" day and "V" day more people died than had previously during the war.

So even though Satan is defeated, he is still fighting. He knows his time is short, so he is doing all the damage he can before he has to go to court in the throne room of God and receive the final sentencing of judgment and receive the punishment of that sentencing.

We are each responsible to read the Word and pray for understanding, so that we are not led astray by the "wolves in sheep's clothing" that Jesus spoke of.

What is the "Mark of the Beast?"

If we really think about it, I think we would all realize that the mark of the beast is when we imitate the beast. What caused Lucifer (Satan) to fall and rebel against God? PRIDE. Wanting to Be God himself. Setting himself up as God.

The pride that causes one to think he does not need God, causes one to think he is God will always cause the blaspheming of God and the Holy Spirit.

The first commandment states –

Exodus 20:3

"You shall have no other gods before Me."

When questioned on the greatest commandment in the law – Jesus answered –

Matthew 22:37

"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind."

The unpardonable sin according to Jesus –

Mark 3: 28-29

"I tell you the truth, all the sins and blasphemies of men will be forgiven them. But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; he is guilty of an eternal sin."

Never Changing God –

God says –

Malachi 3:6a

"For I am the Lord, I do not change"

The unchangeable Law of God – Jesus says –

Matthew 5:17-18

"Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle (tiniest mark) will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.

God gave the Commandment and He never changes. To try to change the Commandments of God is to set oneself up as God. You will find that man has changed a few of the Commandments. The most blatant change being that of the keeping of the Sabbath. God commanded us to rest on the seventh day and to keep it holy. He set the seventh day aside for that purpose. God never changed that commandment and Jesus never changed that commandment.

But man has changed that so that we worship on the first day of the week and call it the Sabbath. Why?????

God gave us many festivals to celebrate, but do we celebrate them? No we celebrate pagan festivals that God NEVER gave us.

Christmas and Easter are both pagan celebrations.

Man has tried to change God's laws and festivals.

Man has set himself up as God.
Chapter 8. Who Was This Jesus?

This is a question that is still as unknown as it was in Jesus the Christ's days. Many still believe He was a great teacher; others think He was a prophet of God and believe He was only a man. The truth of the matter is that He was both God and man. His flesh or human nature, was the Son of God, BUT the spirit that dwelled within Him was the Almighty God.

John 1:18

"No man hath seen God at anytime; the only begotten Son which is in the bosom of the Father he hath declared him."

John 4:24

"God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth."

John 14:10

"Believest thou not that I am in the Father and the Father in me? The words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: But the Father that dwelleth in me, He doeth the works"

Thus there is no controversy in the statements

John 14:9b

"He that hath seen me hath seen the Father"

and

John 14:28b

"my Father is greater than I"

for divinity is greater than humanity. Since God is a spirit and is invisible, man could never SEE God. Therefore, God had to prepare Himself a body in order that He could be that perfect sacrifice for the sins of the world. The only body and the only flesh that man will ever see of God will be in the man Jesus the Christ. The very fact that Jesus was "begotten", which means to be the father of or to bring into being, proves that there were not two Gods in the beginning. Jesus was with God in Heaven as spirit as the Word. There was never a Son of God until Bethlehem when

Gal. 4:4

"God sent forth His Son, made of a woman made under the law"

The key to the Godhead is the fact that divinity and humanity are united in the person of Jesus the Christ, making Him both God and man.

Isaiah 7:14 states –

"Behold a virgin shall conceive and bear a Son (flesh) and thou shall call his name Immanuel (GOD WITH US).

Again in Isaiah 9:6 we read –

"Unto us a child (Humanity) is born unto us a son (Humanity) is given... and his name shall be called the mighty God (Divinity) the everlasting Father (Divinity)"

We know that Jesus is God for

John 1:1-3 (also in Col. 1:16,17.)

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made."

John 1:10.

"Jesus was in the world and the world was made by Him and the world knew Him not"

His dual nature was evidenced when He said –

John 2:19

"Destroy this temple (body) and in 3 days I will raise it up"

Acts 2:32 states –

"This Jesus hath God raised up"

I Peter 3:18 declares that –

"He was put to death in the body but made Alive by the Spirit.

God was manifested as the Father in creation, as the Son in redemption, and the Holy Ghost in regeneration, and these three are one.

He is one just as the element water can be in the form of water, frozen as ice or in the evaporated form of steam. A man can be a father a son, a brother, and also a husband, BUT he is still just one man. The same is true with God. He manifested Himself in different ways, in creation, redemption, and regeneration, BUT He is still just ONE God.

Col. 2:9

"For in Him (Jesus) dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily"

1 Tim 3:16

"Beyond all question, the mystery of godliness is great: He appeared in a body, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was preached among the nations, was believed on in the world, was taken up in glory,"

AS MAN –

Matthew 1:23-25

Luke 2:52

Matthew 4:2

Philippians 2:7

John 1:14

Luke 22:44

Hebrews 9:26

John 19-30

AS GOD

Isaiah 9:6

John 21:17

Matthew 14:19-21

Revelation 19:16

Colossians 1:16-17

John 14:13-14

Mark 2:5-7

Luke 24:1-6

John 10:30

"I and My Father are ONE."

John 14:7-11

"When you have seen Me, you have seen the Father."

He was the God of the Old Testament.

Isaiah 44:6

"This is what the Lord says – Israel's King and redeemer, the Lord Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God."

Isaiah 43:10-13 "

You are my witnesses, declares the Lord, 'and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me. I even I, am the Lord, and apart from me there is no savior. I have revealed and saved and proclaimed—I, and not some foreign god among you. You are my witnesses, declares the Lord, that I am God. Yes, and from ancient days I am he."

I John 5:7-9

"For there are three that testify: the spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement. We accept man's testimony, but God's testimony is greater because it is the testimony of God, which He has given about His Son."

He was made of a woman, made under the law –

Gal. 4:4-5

"But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons."

Revelation 22:12-13

"Behold, I am coming soon? My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End."

Revelation 22:16

"I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright morning Star."
Chapter 9. Feeling Helpless and Hopeless?

Have you gone too far? Is all hope gone?

Have you committed the same sins over and over again? Are you beyond being forgiven? Are your sins so big or so many that you feel worthless, that even God could never forgive you? Have you asked His forgiveness so many times that you think that now that you have done it again, He will just turn His back on you? Are you beyond saving? If your answer is "yes". This is sheer arrogance. Since you are still alive ...there is still hope.

Let's see...what is your big sin? Murder? Adultery? Theft? Drug abuse? Child abuse? Parent abuse? Spouse abuse? Self abuse?........or maybe

GOD abuse? What is the biggest sin you could commit?

Let's go to the source for the answer. God's word says in Matthew 22:37-40 that when Jesus was asked what the greatest commandment was

Jesus replied: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the Second is like it; 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."

And in Mark 3:28-29 Jesus says:

I tell you the truth, all the sins and blasphemies of men will be forgiven them. But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; he is guilty of an eternal sin."

Now if God's word tells us that the greatest commandment is to love the Lord our God and the second is to love our neighbor as our self, we have to understand that He wants us to love Him and He also wants us to love ourselves, and then to love our neighbor also. If these are the most important commandments, then the biggest sins must be the breaking of either of these two commandments. That means that not loving God or loving something or someone more than God is the absolute worst sin we can commit. In that case, all those things listed above pale when compared to this. We certainly cannot love God if we blaspheme the Holy Spirit. All other sins can be forgiven. This one cannot. The price for this sin is eternal damnation.

Hosea 4:6 tells us.....

"My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge....."

How can we expect to even attempt to live a right life if we don't understand the most important rules? We must understand whose rules count. If we believe that we can live in this world and live by our own rules and come out winners, we are sadly mistaken. Our rules get us into more and more trouble. We need to get our priorities straight.

One of the most important fundamentals we need to understand is that God's word has given us not only rules, but reasons for the rules and tells of the consequences for breaking the rules. Another important fact is that God's rules are for our good and will not hurt us. But breaking His rules hurt us and breaking this first commandment can destroy us for all eternity. We will then spend eternity alone in darkness away from God with no hope of redemption.

If you believe that you have gone too far in your sin life and cannot be forgiven, then you not only underestimate the power of God, but also His willingness to forgive. It shows your arrogance in feeling that your sins are so big that He either cannot or will not forgive you. Jesus is your judge. Stop trying to do His job. You think He may forgive someone else's sins, but yours are too great. It grieves Him to see you in this state.

The only sin He will not forgive is the sin of refusing to love Him. He wants all to be saved and none to be damned to Hell. But make no mistake about it. He will judge and those who do not choose Him will go to Hell.

If you have broken this first commandment--

What you need is true repentance - while you still have time, for soon it will be too late. What this means is more than just being sorry or ashamed of your sins. What this means is that you need to have a change of heart about what matters and who matters.

Change your mind about who God is, change your mind about who Jesus is. Change your mind about what they did for you and what they can do for you. Change your mind about what your sins did to you and will do to you. Change your mind about who God can heal, restore and use again. He wants only to have your love and obedience. Is that so much to ask? In return He gives love, guidance, protection from the enemy, peace of mind and oh so much more.

If you refuse to love God, there is no way you can really love yourself either. Because to love yourself, you must do things that are in your own best interest, and the foremost thing you can do in your own best interest is to love God.

Steps to overcome the helpless, hopeless feeling...

1. Repent

-change your mind about what sin does to you.

-change your mind about what matters in life.

-change you mind about who Jesus is and what He did for you.

-change your mind about what God and Jesus CAN DO for you.

-change your mind about who God can heal, restore and use again.

2. Believe

-that Jesus gave His life to pay for your sins.

3. Confess

-with your mouth that Jesus is your redeemer.

-your desire for Him to reign as king in your life.

4. Accept

-the forgiveness that God freely gives to you and then forgive yourself.

5. Ask God

-to guide your life through His Holy Spirit, and help you to love Him more and to love yourself as He would have you do.

See what a difference love in all the right places can make.
Chapter 10. Are You Hungry and Thirsty – Come Be Fed

What do you do for your body when you are hungry and thirsty? You give it food and drink to satisfy the craving. You can't just eat one meal and never have to eat again. No, your body demands that you feed it regularly. It nags at you until you give it something to stop the craving. You also learn to love the food you feed your body, so now you eat for two reasons. You eat because you need to and you eat because you like to eat.

Our spiritual bodies have these same needs. We walk around with a nagging hunger, but we don't always recognize what the hunger is for. So generally, we try to fill this hunger by purchasing material things we think will satisfy this hunger. Eventually, we realize this is not working, but quite often do not realize that the craving is really on a spiritual level. We hunger and thirst for something to fulfill us and make us feel content.

Let me tell you what I have learned.... Some of us know who Jesus is, but we do not KNOW JESUS. There is a big difference. We might know the identity of the President or a performer or sports star , but we don't know that person personally. There is a big difference. Knowing a person's reputation and knowing the person are completely different. In the case of Jesus, it makes all the difference in the world and in eternity. For if we don't know Him personally, we may as well not even know of Him. Only by knowing Him and having a personal relationship with Him can we accept the gift of life that He offers us.

Let's start with Who Jesus Is.... (We learn from the Bible as follows:)

John 1:1-4

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. **He was with God in the beginning**. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men.

John 1:34

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

John 1:14

I have seen and I testify that this is the Son of God."

Now, we have learned that He is the "Son of God" and that He is the "Word", and also that in Him is "Life". Now, let us hear Jesus' own words of who He is.....

John 6:35-36

Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.

John 6:48

I am the bread of life.

John 7:37

On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink.

And hear His promise to those who come to Him...

Matthew 5:6

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

Matthew 4:4

Jesus answered, "It is written: `Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'"

Matthew 26:26-28

While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, "Take and eat; this is my body." Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

Now, if you were paying attention, you will have learned that Jesus is the Word of God and that He gave it to us to eat and drink to satisfy our hunger and thirst. We also know that the Bible is the inspired Word of God. Does it not follow that we are to use the Bible to get the Word of God to fill our spiritual body. Even the Manna given to the Israelites in the wilderness only lasted one day. It was necessary to gather more each day in order to feed their bodies. In this same way, we need to feed on the Word of God daily to be refreshed and to help us grow. It is not a one-time fix. We are not just to take verses here and there or go to Church to hear the Word once a week. That will not be enough to sustain us. No, we must eat ALL of it and on a regular basis. How can we KNOW Him if we only know portions of His Word. We must read all of it to really know His Heart.

David tells of God's provision for his body and soul in

Psalm 23: 3, 5

He restores my soul.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

God's Word tells us over and over of His love for us. He tells His plans and how He will sustain us in times of trouble. Times of trouble are all around us now and are going to get much worse soon. We must know God's voice and His plans if we are not to be mislead by the enemy. The way banks get to know a good dollar bill from a counterfeit bill is to study what the good bill looks like. That way when a counterfeit comes along, they will recognize that it is NOT a good bill because they know what a good bill looks like. This is the way we are to be with God's Word. We need to study it and know it well, so that when someone tries to pass off counterfeit words as words of God, we will know better. Jesus gives us this warning of those counterfeits who would lead us astray......

Matthew 24:24-26

For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect-- if that were possible. See, I have told you ahead of time. "So if anyone tells you, `There he is, out in the desert,' do not go out; or, `Here he is, in the inner rooms,' do not believe it"..

God has a plan for you, but you need to know Him and be able to distinguish between Him and the counterfeit in order to fully benefit from His plans.....

Jeremiah 29:11-13

For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

Matt 11:28-29

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
Chapter 11. What Kind of Love is This?

Think of a prince, the son of a king.

As a child of the king, he has certain rights and responsibilities. He may not always live up to those responsibilities, but that does not take away his rights as a child of the king. He may disgrace himself and his king, but he is still a child of the king. If he is secure in this identity, when trouble comes, he knows the king will be there to rescue him, because he is a child of the king. The king may chastise him but he will also remind him of his future as a child of the king.

The king loves him, not for what he does, but for who he is. He is his child. When he does wrong, the king is grieved and when he does good, the king is pleased. But the reason the king loves him is because the prince belongs to the king and is his heir. He never stops loving him no matter how displeased he may be. But is ever so joyful when his son pleases him. But he loves him because he belongs to him.

Now realize that God is that king and you are that child.

God's love is not dependent on our loving him. Nothing we can do can make him love us more or love us less. God loves us even when we don't love him. That is his nature – LOVE.

~

We can please him or we can displease him But he will still love us either way.

God loves us even when we displease him. That is his nature – LOVE.

~

His rules for us are not for him to feel better. They are so we feel better.

When we follow his rules – our lives are blessed.

~

He does not Need us. We Need Him. He wants us to love him – knowing that we can never love him the way he loves us. For his love is a perfect love, while ours is only a reciprocating love.

~

When we share His Word – it blesses the one hearing the Word And it blesses the one sharing the Word. He does not need us to share the Word, but it blesses us for the sharing.

~

When we praise God – it pleases him, but it blesses us more. For he has said in his word, that if we don't do it, the rocks will. Either we can be blessed or the rocks will.

~

I am not willing to let a rock get my blessing.

Praise the Lord God.

Praise the Lamb of God.

~

Thank you Jesus for volunteering to be the Lamb.

Thank you God for giving the Lamb.

Thank you both for being willing to shed the blood of the Lamb.

~

Jesus suffered for being the Lamb.

God suffered while giving the Lamb.

We are blessed and saved by the blood of the Lamb.

~

Praise God, Praise the Lamb.

Praise Jesus the Lamb of God.

Thank you Jesus for being my Saviour.
Chapter 12. Do You Know Who I Know?

One night, I was at a wonderful dinner, where each person was asked to introduce the person they brought, and to say something nice about that person.

Then the guest was to say something nice about the person who brought them.

As I listened to each of the couples, I saw love shining in each, one for the other. I know that they thought that I was there alone and felt sorry for me, but let me tell you—my "significant other" was there also, even though they could not see him.

You see, many years ago, I signed a certificate of commitment to him. He has the gift of encouragement and love. His love for me is so great that he left his home and came here as a helpless baby.

And when he left this world, He took all my sins and shame and left them on the cross so that I wouldn't have to. Then he told me he would never leave me alone, that he would be with me always, even until the end of the earth.

He told me to wait with anticipation, for he is coming back for me. His is the gift of hope for a better tomorrow.

So you see, although you think I am alone, I am daily encouraged and embraced by the lover of my soul, who will one day return and take me with him to live in eternity together.

Earlier in the evening a song was sung more beautifully than I had ever heard it sung before, and the words expressed so that I almost cried.. I am sure you know the song, the words said in part –

"Do you see what I see?"...

"Do you hear what I hear?"...

"Do you know what I know?"...

"People do what I say"...

I have a different set of responses than the song and I will share them with you –

Do you see what I see?

How much He loves you and me

With a love that can mend your broken heart

Do you hear what I hear?

Do you hear him calling out your name?

He will fill the longings of your heart.

Do you know what I know?

He is father, son, king, servant, comforter, healer and redeemer

And wants to be your saviour for all eternity.

People do what I say

Get to know the lover of your soul

Communicate with Him intimately, daily

People give Him your heart

He will lead you out of the dark

And He will even give you a new heart.

Eye witness accounts of the of life of Jesus say the following:

Matthew presents Jesus as a King

Mark presents Jesus as a Servant

Luke presents Jesus as a Human

John presents Jesus as God

Each one is correct. Each just showed us a different aspect of the same person. How blessed we are to have all four accounts. If any one were missing, we would not know that aspect of Jesus and would not have a complete picture.

\-----------

So again I say unto you –

Do you know who I know?

It's not What you know about someone, but Who you know that counts. For to Know Him and be loved by Him is the greatest treasure of all. Just knowing about Him is not enough.

If you do not KNOW Him, ask me, and I will introduce you, so that you can know the love that I know and never have to be alone

Eva McAllen
Chapter 13. The Value of the Hands

This was part of a sermon by Kenneth Ulmer at Promise Keepers in Dallas. During the intro to the speech he discusses putting your marriage or whatever is troubling you in God's hands, and he closes with the following:

A basketball in my hands is worth about $19

A basketball in Michael Jordan's hands is worth about $33 million

It depends whose hands it's in

A baseball in my hands is worth about $6

A baseball in Mark McGuire's hands is worth $19 million

It depends whose hands it's in

A tennis racket is useless in my hands

A tennis racket in Pete Sampras' hands is a Wimbledon Championship

It depends whose hands it's in

A rod in my hands will keep away a wild animal

A rod in Moses' hands will part the mighty sea

It depends whose hands it's in

A sling shot in my hands is a kid's toy

A sling shot in David's hand is a mighty weapon.

It depends whose hands it's in

Two fish and 5 loaves of bread in my hands is a couple of fish sandwiches.

Two fish and 5 loaves of bread in God's hands will feed thousands

It depends whose hands it's in

Nails in my hands might produce a birdhouse,

Nails in Jesus Christ's hands will produce salvation

It depends whose hands it's in

As you see now it depends whose hands it's in.So put your concerns, your worries, your fears,

your hopes, your dreams, your families and your relationships in God's hands because

It depends whose hands it's in.
Chapter 14. If Jesus Came

Would you have to change your clothes before you let Him in? Or hide some magazines, and put the Bible where they'd been? Would You hide your worldly music and put some hymn books out? Could you let Jesus walk right in or would you rush about And I wonder if the Saviour spent a day or two with you,Would you go right on doing the things you always do? Would you go right on saying the things you always say? Or would life for you continue as it does from day to day? Would you take Jesus with you everywhere you go? Or would you maybe change your plans for just a day or so? Would you be glad to have Him meet your closest friends? Or would you hope they stay away until His visit ends? Would you be glad to have Him stay forever on and on? Or would you sigh with great relief when He at last was gone?

It might be interesting to know, the things that you would do, If Jesus came in person, to spend some time with you.
Chapter 15. Are You Looking For Jesus?

In Bethlehem they say "Yes", He came this way "They laid him in the hay" But you see, He did not stay...

Then He went to Calvary where they hung him on a treeYes, they hung Him on a tree For all the world to see....

But on the cross He did not stay, For then 3 days in a tomb He lay

But when they looked for Him after the Sabbath they found He had gone away...

Yes, the manger is empty, for He is not there.

The cross is bare, for He is not there.

The tomb is empty, for He is not there

But the hearts of his followers are full for He can be found there

Yes, He lay in a manger one day

And on the cross He hung for a day

But in the tomb He could not stay

He said –

In the hearts of His people He will live ALWAYS.

Make Him King in Your Life
Chapter 16. The Reading of The 23rd Psalm

The story is told about a group of people who gathered one day after church services to have coffee and donuts and enjoy each other's company. Somehow the conversation came around to memory, and a young man in the group said he had memorized the Twenty-third Psalm as a child and had never forgotten it. So the others encouraged him to recite the psalm. He did so flawlessly.

An older gentleman listened to the young man recite the psalm. When the applause for the younger man's talent died down, this old man began to recite the same psalm. As those gathered listened to the old man say the words; they began to weep softly. When the old man finished, there was not applause, but absolute silence. A person tapped the young man on the shoulder and whispered, "What just happened?" The young man replied, "Isn't it obvious? I know the psalm but this man knows the Shepherd."

The difference between saying prayers and praying; the difference between making a living and living with passion; the difference between knowing about God and experiencing life in God. What a difference!
Chapter 17. Restoration Vision

I found myself at the entrance to a very large home in the southern antebellum style with large columns in front. Some men were scraping all the old layers of paint from them trying to restore them to their original beauty

Entering the building I found myself in a nice sitting area and sat for a while just enjoying the beautiful surroundings. Eventually, I noticed a curved stairway leading to the upper floor. I left my purse on the floor by the chair and went up the stairs to see what was there.

It was a beautiful place and I was enjoying it. Then I noticed there was another level above this one that had wonderful baths – whirlpools of all types and sizes. I have always loved whirlpools and wanted to see them, so I searched for a stairway that would lead to them. As I was searching, I came to a door to another room and entered it to see if the stairs were in that area. All of a sudden, I was drenched with water from showerheads all around the circular room. The water was so strong that it literally dissolved my clothing from me and I stood naked. I was shocked. I then noticed other people in the room, a lot of young people, but none of them even noticed my naked condition.

I managed to leave the room by another door and found myself on the upper level where the whirlpools were located. As long as I had no clothes, I decided to enjoy the whirlpools, which I did for quite some time.

Then I awoke.......The dream would not leave me and had been in particularly vivid color. I have had these types of dreams before and always found that there was a message in them and I just had to pray for understanding. When I did so, I was given the following insight.

I was told that the house was me and that I had many year's worth of built up sins that had just been covered over and hidden, the purse was my security and the shower would expose my sins and the whirlpool soothe me. Here are the details I was given.

Now that I had given Jesus control of my life, instead of just covering and hiding my sins, He would strip them off, one layer at a time until all the layers were gone and I was restored to the natural beauty that had been given me at birth. Since I had always held onto my purse tightly, afraid of losing financial control or stability, the fact that I had left my purse on the floor when I went upstairs, proved that I finally trusted Him with my finances and that He would always provide and I need not worry. The showers stripping my clothes and no one was noticing \- that was to show how the blood of Jesus has stripped away my sins for all the world to see and that while He would expose my sins to the world, that I would not be shamed. As for the missing stairs – He says that even though I know where I want to be, but can't see the steps or path to take, I have to trust they are there and that He will show me when the time is right. And those soothing whirlpools represent the peace that will come from being bathed in the blood of Jesus.

I thought that God would not be able to use someone like me who has had many sins in my past, but He stays – not true – just the opposite. Because of the sins, I can identify with others going through the same trials and can lead them to Him. He reminded me that God has always chosen the common everyday person to use for His purposes and even the disciples were all just common people, even ones despised by the Church.

He told me He would use me to help and encourage many along the way and the process has begun.

I am now a Butterfly for Jesus. I have changed, as much on the outside for others to see, as on the inside and I feel free.

Eva McAllen

The ButterflyLady

A Butterfly for Jesus
Chapter 18. A Prayer for an Exchanged Life

Lord, I can't control my tongue, I can't face my trials with joy. I can't persevere in my circumstance, I can't keep from doubting. I can't use my selfish wisdom, I can't be a good listener. I can't stop judging and criticizing, I can't see people as you see them. I do discriminate, I don't love my neighbor as myself. I can't keep the Royal Law of LoveE, I can't put deeds in my love. I can't stop walking in my own way, I do cause others to stumble. I don't seek your wisdom as often as I should, I do pray selfishly, and I am not always true to my promises. So, LORD, I NEED YOUR wisdom, your self control, your humble Spirit, your understanding, your unconditional love, your eyes to see, your ears to hear, and your loving, compassionate, caring heart. I give you my weakness in exchange for your strength.

Corinthians 12:10

"For when I am weak, Then I am strong."
Chapter 19. I am Most Thankful for...the Gift of Life

I was seduced and thought, "this is nice". But, then I was imprisoned and the torture started day and night until I wanted the release of death. A friend of mine introduced me to a man who told me he would free me if I would just believe he could do it and trust him to do so. He asked me if I was willing to be free. I said "yes". He went to the one holding me prisoner and said that he would take my place as the price of my release.

They laughed at him and thought he was crazy. First they beat him with whips drawing blood from his back. They placed a crown of thorns on his head, put him on a cross and put nails in his hands and feet, put a spear through his side, and then tormented him verbally. It was all a very bloody affair. And do you know what he said to them? He prayed "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."

He then told me that he did this for me, so that I could live with him in freedom in eternity where there are no more tears and remorse. He told me that I should tell others of what he had done for me and that he would do the same for them, if they wanted him to. So, I'm telling you. My redeemer's name is Jesus. He saved me from my prison of sin. For his sacrifice, I am most thankful.

Eva McAllen

Matthew 16: 24-25

Then Jesus said to his disciples, "if any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me...

For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake shall find it.

Won't you change and be a Butterfly for Jesus?

About the Author

I am retired and live in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota. Very cold here.

I have been a Christian since I was 4 years old. Over the years, like a lot of others, I wandered away from God and sought truth elsewhere. I made a lot of wrong choices along the way and did not like the person I had become. God put people in my path to bring me back to him. At that time he gave me many visions which I had to ask him to interpret for me which he did. A couple of these visions are included in this book. I signed a confession and contract with God at that time and my life really changed so that people could actually see the change. I became a new being. I have great joy now and the Lord asked me to share that joy through this book he urged me to write. This book was written at the urging of the Holy Spirit. I pray that through it you will find enlightenment and JOY. All scripture is from the NIV Bible.

My story is in chapters 1, 2, 12, 17, and 19, which is why I signed those chapters. That is when my life changed both on the inside and outside for others to see.

At that time the Lord told me to study the Bible so well that I would know the truth and it could never be taken from me. That by the studying, I would know false teaching when I heard it.

Jesus chastised the Pharisees who were the teachers in the Temple, saying they were a brood of vipers. Most false teaching comes from within the church. This is what is meant by wolves in sheep's clothing. They look like the Shepherd, but are leading the sheep astray.

Please study the Bible for yourself and

"Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." John 8:32 (NIV)

Eva McAllen

evamcallen@gmail.com

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