The Winds Blew and Beat Upon that House

Mat 7:27 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.
 
The idea of judgment is the same idea as a test. The nuance buried within the word judgment as opposed to test is that of dividing between two kinds of things. Test has to do more with the quality of things. Nevertheless practically they are the same. We often speak of God sending judgment in a sense of a catastrophic event such as the recent disaster in New Orleans. But the judgment of God is any test of the faith, whether a crisis of one’s marriage or of nature’s fury. The issue of judgment is always “preparation.”
 
The fact of the matter is that a day of judgment is certain. The test of one’s work or lack there of is as certain as the sun will arise and set on the morrow. So judgment is never a question of “if” but a question of “when.” There is a storm with your name on it. It will test the “for better or for worse” of one’s marriage vows. It will test the integrity of one’s ethics. It will test the wisdom of one's decisions. It will test the profession of one’s faith.
 
As we have stated the issue of judgment is always “preparation.” As Jesus so eloquently put it, one man swiftly built his house on sand while the other dug and worked until he hit a rock and thereon he built his house. Then the storm came. The failure of the house simply reveals the work one did before hand. Therein is the idea of judgment. Judgment tries the quality of the work. Again Paul says, was it built with gold, silver, and precious stone or wood, hay, and stubble. He hails the importance of this because it will be tested in fire to reveal the character and quality or the lack thereof. It reveals the virtue or villainy of one’s effort and use of time.
 
So then judgment itself is neither good nor bad. The same judgment that damns some vindicates others. For instance, in the case of the ten virgins, five were found to be wise and five were found to be foolish in the same judgment day, pictured in the bridegroom’s return. Or in the case of the talents, judgment was a time of reward for the two faithful servants, while it was a time of condemnation for the unfaithful servant who spent his time hiding his talent.
Judgment by nature will and can never punish the righteous. Judgment must at the very least vindicate the righteous and ideally reward them.

Judgment comes at various degrees. Sometimes judgment reveals error and affords one another chance, while a other times judgment is severe and final. Though we refer to judgment that allows for another chance as "a warning", it is none the less judgment, in that it allows for discernment of one’s present condition for correction. It is in fact the chastening of God,
 
We often refer to God’s wrath with anthropomorphic language like “God got tired” or “God sent a storm.” While not always, more often than not God’s judgment is in the normal course of nature. The point is not whether or not the Hurricane Katrina hitting New Orleans was God’s doing, but that every storm is God’s doing regardless of its destination. It is His judgment, that is, His decision to allow it to occur. And that is no matter what “it” may be, from the death of the infant to an eruption of a volcano that claims a city and its inhabitants. It’s all God’s decision. To believe otherwise is to not be a Judeo-Christian, and believe something akin to Deism, believing that nature is independent of the dictates of a sovereign God.
 
At the end of the day, judgment will come, the only question to ponder is will you be ready.

The Spirit and the Bride Say Come

Rev 22:17  And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.

What an invitation? - to drink water. And I've found it somewhat difficult to drink water when one is not thirsty. I know we often flavor our water with sugar or perhaps lemon in order to make it palatable. However, this is only necessary because one is not thirsty. And when the scorching, searing, desert sun in the heated days of life have so sweated your brow as to leave you dehydrated of all of the waters of men you'll seek another fountain. And I been there, empty, depleted, to where all of the philosophies, the isms, the books, the back wood sayings of the country folk and the old timers provided no relief for my dry mouth, parched tongue, and chapped lips. I could say nothing to another because nothing had been said to me of any consequence.

I was in a conference when a fellow walked up to me and proceeded to tell me he was a prophet of God and continued to speak on and on about what the Lord was going to do - how he would curse this and bless that and all that there... and when he took a breath, I broke his monologue and asked, "What church do you belong to?" He answered, I used to belong to "Bishop so and so" and went back to his speech. I interrupted abruptly this time saying "I did not ask what church you use to belong to, I asked, what church do you belong to now?" He answered, "None! …but God is in my heart." I said, "If you don't belong to a church, God is not speaking through you." And there is a lot of fellows that are speaking today who have not heard the Spirit and the bride. They've heard the sayings of men; they've read all the books; and that is all they have some men and some books.

Well preacher how do you know they have not heard the Spirit and the bride? - Because they're message is not the same message as that of the Spirit and the bride. They have construed a message for itching ears rather than thirsty souls. They don't tell men what they need to hear; they tell men what they want to hear. 

Well why does their preaching draw so many people? They draw people who are not thirsty with sweeten water. They foster cravings for their manufactured drink mix.  They draw men who are not thirsty… They are not told that Christ is all, but that Christ is the means to all you want. They are told if you have not been able to obtain it, come to church and I'll tell you how to get it.

Thirsty people don’t need flavored water…. Thirsty people don’t need sugar…don’t need lemon… don’t need cool aid…. They don’t need a promise of earthly health and wealth… Thirsty people don’t need a lot of fanfare… they don’t need a great cathedral… they don’t need light and cameras… they don’t need professional singers… they don’t need a huge choir… but the running water is music to their ears, a melody to the heart, an ensemble to the soul. 

And I heard the voice of Jesus say come! And I came to Jesus just as I was… In my weariness... In my woundedness... In my thirst... and I came...  The spirit and the bride said come and I came... And He opened my dumb mouth... And I learn His dialect; I learned His language. And I spoke the same thing I heard... Come!!! Come ye who are thirsty... scorched... seared... parched... dried... dehydrated... The elders used to sing that song… Whosoever will let him come, let him come...   Whosoever will let him come and be saved…   Whosoever will let him come, let him come...   and drink from the life giving stream…

When We Remembered Zion

By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion. (Psalm 137:1)

Their disobedience had brought them to Babylon. The river is indicative here of Babylon’s best. They were in the most plenteous, pleasant, pristine, productive place Babylon had to offer. The Babylonian’s first methodical philosophy was not oppression but one of impression. They sought to woo their captives into service. But when you belong to God, you can never feel comfortable in the world. You may ride in the best Bentley… You may live in the palatial Fifth Avenue Penthouse… You may party with a president and a princess… But the world’s prosperity cannot compare to being blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places. All of the world’s blissful places cannot replace the peace of God that passes all understanding. All of the world’s recognitions and accolades cannot measure up to one “Well done thy good and faithful servant”.

While in Zion, they worshiped the gods of Babylon: Baal and Ashtoreth… They demoralized their own priesthood… They persecuted and kill the prophets… Jeremiah prophesied, “I see a boiling pot tilted to the north”… In other words, the Babylonians are coming for us… and God’s going to step back and let them have their way. God gave them all the Babylon they wanted. And they did not like it!

And here they were in Babylon sitting down. “Sitting down” shows inactivity and deep reflection. The flesh fest was over. The fruitless festivities had ended. The stench of sin had reached heaven. And now in exile “they remembered!” As they wept, “they remembered!” Not in Jerusalem, but in Babylon, “they remembered!” Not by the Jordan, but by the Euphrates, “they remembered!” While being offered Babylon’s best, they were contemplating the high cost of their low living.

Saints, if you keep on playing with the world, God will let you have all of the world you want. He will exile you from a place of pleasure to a place of pain. That’s why they are there – Because every now and then, God will turn things upside down; He will put the world on top of the church for a season. He’ll let the sinners dominate the saints for a season. How long is that season? Until He stamps out the mess in you that won’t let Him bless you. How long is that season? – Until you are ready to show forth the praises of Him who has brought you out of darkness into the marvelous light. How long is that season? – Until there is no more you but only Him living in you, living for you, and living through you.