God's Promises, and its Purpose - Exodus

“I AM THE LORD. I WILL FREE you from your oppression and WILL RESCUE you from your slavery in Egypt. I WILL REDEEM you with a powerful arm and great acts of judgment. ⁷ I WILL CLAIM you as my own people, and I WILL BE YOUR GOD. Then you will know that I AM THE LORD YOUR GOD who has freed you from your oppression in Egypt.”

Exodus 6:6

Ten Declarations & Facts:

·        7:17 – “I will show you that I am the Lord.” Look! I will strike THE WATER of the Nile with this staff in my hand, and the river will turn TO BLOOD.”

²⁰ So Moses and Aaron did just as the Lord commanded them. As Pharaoh and all of his officials watched, Aaron raised his staff and struck the water of the Nile. Suddenly, the whole river turned to blood!

      ·       8:2 “If you refuse to let them go, I will send a plague of FROGS across your entire land. ³ The Nile River will swarm with frogs.”

⁶ So Aaron raised his hand over the waters of Egypt, and frogs came up and covered the whole land!

      ·        8:16 “So the Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Raise your staff and strike the ground. The dust will turn into swarms of GNATS throughout the land of Egypt.’”

¹⁷ So Moses and Aaron did just as the Lord had commanded them. When Aaron raised his hand and struck the ground with his staff, gnats infested the entire land, covering the Egyptians and their animals. All the dust in the land of Egypt turned into gnats.”

·        8:21 “If you refuse, then I will send swarms of FLIES on you, your officials, your people, and all the houses. The Egyptian homes will be filled with flies, and the ground will be covered with them.”

²⁴ And the Lord did just as he had said. A thick swarm of flies filled Pharaoh’s palace and the houses of his officials. The whole land of Egypt was thrown into chaos by the flies.

·        9:2 “If you continue to hold them and refuse to let them go, ³ the hand of the Lord will strike all your livestock—your horses, donkeys, camels, cattle, sheep, and goats—with a DEADLY PLAGUE.”

⁶ And the Lord did just as he had said. The next morning all the livestock of the Egyptians died, but the Israelites didn’t lose a single animal.

·        9:8 “Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of soot from a brick kiln, and have Moses toss it into the air while Pharaoh watches. ⁹ The ashes will spread like fine dust over the whole land of Egypt, causing festering BOILS to break out on people and animals throughout the land.”

¹⁰ So they took soot from a brick kiln and went and stood before Pharaoh. As Pharaoh watched, Moses threw the soot into the air, and boils broke out on people and animals alike. ¹¹ Even the magicians were unable to stand before Moses, because the boils had broken out on them and all the Egyptians.

·        9:18 “So tomorrow at this time I will send a HAILSTORM more devastating than any in all the history of Egypt.”

²³ So Moses lifted his staff toward the sky, and the Lord sent thunder and hail, and lightning flashed toward the earth. The Lord sent a tremendous hailstorm against all the land of Egypt. ²⁴ Never in all the history of Egypt had there been a storm like that, with such devastating hail and continuous lightning. ²⁵ It left all of Egypt in ruins.

·       10:12 “Then the Lord said to Moses, “Raise your hand over the land of Egypt to bring on the LOCUSTS. Let them cover the land and devour every plant that survived the hailstorm.”

¹³ So Moses raised his staff over Egypt, and the Lord caused an east wind to blow over the land all that day and through the night. When morning arrived, the east wind had brought the locusts.”

·        10:21 “Then the Lord said to Moses, “Lift your hand toward heaven, and the land of Egypt will be covered with a DARKNESS so thick you can feel it.” ²² So Moses lifted his hand to the sky, and a deep darkness covered the entire land of Egypt for three days.”

²³ During all that time the people could not see each other, and no one moved. BUT THERE WAS LIGHT AS USUAL WHERE THE PEOPLE OF ISRAEL LIVED.”

·        11:4 “This is what the Lord says: At midnight tonight I will pass through the heart of Egypt. ⁵ All the FIRSTBORN SONS WILL DIE in every family in Egypt, from the oldest son of Pharaoh, who sits on his throne, to the oldest son of his lowliest servant girl who grinds the flour. Even the firstborn of all the livestock will die."

12:29 “And that night at midnight, the Lord struck down all the firstborn sons in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn son of Pharaoh, who sat on his throne, to the firstborn son of the prisoner in the dungeon. Even the firstborn of their livestock were killed.”

Confirmation of the Covenant

·        8:22 “But this time I will spare the region of Goshen, where my people live. No flies will be found there. Then you will KNOW THAT I AM THE LORD and that I am present even in the heart of your land. ²³ I WILL MAKE A CLEAR DISTINCTION BETWEEN MY PEOPLE AND YOUR PEOPLE. This miraculous sign will happen tomorrow.’”

·        9:4 “But the Lord will again make a distinction between the livestock of the Israelites and that of the Egyptians. NOT A SINGLE ONE OF ISRAEL’S ANIMALS WILL DIE!”

·        9:16 “we were created for God’s power to be manifested in us to HIS name bay be declared in all the earth.

·        9:26 “THE ONLY PLACE WITHOUT HAIL WAS THE REGION OF GOSHEN, WHERE THE PEOPLE OF ISRAEL LIVED.”

·        11:7 “But among the Israelites it will be so peaceful that not even a dog will bark. Then you will know that THE LORD MAKES A DISTINCTION BETWEEN THE EGYPTIANS AND THE ISRAELITES.”

Confirmation of mercy’s Purpose

·       To Pharaoh:

o   9:15 “By now I could have lifted my hand and struck you and your people with a plague to wipe you off the face of the earth. ¹⁶ But I have spared you for a purpose—TO SHOW YOU MY POWER AND TO SPREAD MY FAME THROUGHOUT THE EARTH.

o   10:1b “I have made him (Pharaoh) and his officials stubborn SO I CAN DISPLAY MY MIRACULOUS SIGNS among them.”

 ·       To God’s people:

o   10:2 “I’ve also done it SO YOU CAN TELL YOUR CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN about how I made a mockery of the Egyptians and about the signs I displayed among them—and SO YOU WILL KNOW THAT I AM THE LORD.”

Living as Children of Light - Ephesians 4:17-32

" ¹⁷ With the Lord’s authority I say this: LIVE NO LONGER AS THE GENTILES do, for they are:
·       Hopelessly confused.
·       ¹⁸ their minds are full of darkness;
·       They wander far from the life god gives because
·       They have closed their minds and
·       Hardened their hearts against him.
·       ¹⁹ they have no sense of shame.
·       They live for lustful pleasure and
·       Eagerly practice every kind of impurity.

²⁰ But THAT ISN’T WHAT YOU LEARNED ABOUT CHRIST.

²¹ Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the TRUTH that comes from HIM,

²² THROW OFF your OLD SINFUL NATURE and your former way of life, which is CORRUPTED by lust and deception.

²³ Instead, LET THE SPIRIT renew your thoughts and attitudes.

²⁴ PUT ON YOUR NEW NATURE, created to BE LIKE GOD—truly RIGHTEOUS and HOLY.

How?

1.               ²⁵ So stop telling lies.

2.               Let us tell our neighbors the truth, for we are all parts of the same body.

3.               ²⁶ And “don’t sin by letting anger control you.”

4.               Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry, ²⁷ for anger gives a foothold to the devil.

5.               ²⁸ If you are a thief, quit stealing.

6.               Instead, use your hands for good hard work, and

7.               Give generously to others in need.

8.               ²⁹ Don’t use foul or abusive language.

9.               Let everything you say be good and helpful,

10.            So, that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.

11.            ³⁰ And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live.

12.            Remember, he has identified you as his own,^[e] guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption.

13.            ³¹ Get rid of all bitterness,

14.            Rage,

15.            Anger,

16.            Harsh words, and

17.            Slander,

18.            As well as all types of evil behavior.

19.             ³² Instead, be kind to each other,

20.             Tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.

Dared TO BELIVE!

1)     ¹ And the Lord visited Sarah as He had said, and the Lord did for Sarah as He had spoken. ² For Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.”  Genesis 21

2)     ¹⁷ …Then the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said to her, “What ails you, Hagar? Fear not, for God has heard the voice of the lad where he is. ¹⁸ Arise, lift up the lad and hold him with your hand, for I will make him a great nation.” ¹⁹ Then God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water.” Genesis 21

3)     ¹¹ But the Angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” So he said, “Here I am.” ¹² And He said, “Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.” ¹³ Then Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by its horns.” Genesis 22

Do you have an “impossible” request in your life? These are three of the thousands of examples The Bible gives us about situation that normally we would call, impossible.

Having a child on an “aged” body who is past due on its time to conceive naturally not only is an almost impossible thing, but also risky.  Sarah barely believe it, I’m sure she had her doubts, but when her belly started to get big, and the baby to move, I’m sure in amazement, she regretted the previous disbelief thoughts. The LORD proved Himself then and for us today to understand that when GOD is the ONE who makes it happens, BE NOT AFRAID, it will be a blessing!

Are you crying for a son or a daughter who’s in a desperate need?  God saw a mother calling to heaven for her precious jewel, a son, that was about to die, and HE intervene!  And just like HE told her then, place yourself in that mother’s shoes, cry on to God for him/her like she did, and be in expectation for THE LORD to answer you. Because just like happened to her, GOD will answer you! He encouraged her by telling her about that son’s future, “I will make him a great nation”, and as HE encouraged her with words, suddenly and out of the blue, the very thing that she needed appeared before her eyes.

From the last example, today, I’m not sure how willing you would be to give up your kids for anyone?   This Father was willing to give up EVERYTHING he ever wanted the most, his beloved son. Have you ever asked how would you acted if you would have been in Abraham’s shoes? When God told him: “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”[1]  If you look at the story it doesn’t say that Abraham talked back on defense of the son, it simply says that he started to gather things around to go. Sometimes my friend, who read this, we have to simply move to gather the ingredients needed and move on to do what God says to. Not a single question was asked, and this is a lesson to put into practice, and I mean this in my life.  I’m good questioning, and God is telling you and me, “JUST TRUST ME!” It doesn’t matter that is not looking good before your eyes, is a bit risky, or if simply looks it’s going to be a lonely journey.  GOD will make a way for you, and in trusting HIM HE will show us how deceiving our eyes are sometimes, how when thru fear we allow the enemy to stop the blessings of God from happening in our lives. Be strong, my friend, “TRUST IN THE LORD, LEAN NOT ON YOUR OWN understanding, IN ALL your ways ACKNOWLEDGE HIM, and HE WILL DIRECT your path.”[2]  

Bring that “impossible” thing to GOD, and when THE LORD SAYS “leave it at the altar”, simple come and LEAVE IT AT THE ALTAR!  Maybe, just maybe, the needed answer waits for you, right there in the altar. The question is ARE YOU so desperate to get an answer that you’ll be willing to come to the altar?!

Remember these three examples where GOD VISITED these people who cried unto HIM, HE heard, and though in an “unconventional” way, THEY TRUSTED IN THE LORD, AND THE LORD HIMSELF PROVIDED!  When GOD calls, when HE visits, THINGS CHANGE! 

I dare you to ask God and to believe for HIM to meet that need though it might be hard for you to, YOU JUST TRUST IN GOD, remember not leaning on your own understanding, because GOD IS GREATER THAN THE BOX, and in our boxed minds, sometimes do not fit, HIS PLANS, because it’s way bigger that what we can think or comprehend.

Beware of “dream crushers” around you; these people, DO NOT BELIEVE that out of the box things can happen to those who pray and trust in THE LORD.   So be mindful of this when you’re sharing God’s plan for your situation. Because in their disbelief they talk, your ears hear what they talk, and believe it or not, that can and will affect your approach to life; and if you’re not careful, they will crush your dream, and hopes too. 

“The enemy came to rob, kill and destroy, but since GOD came to give us life and life in abundance”[3] we can’t give Satan a chance.  And unfortunately, sometimes he uses those closer to us to crush our dreams. A good thing I had to learn by practice, is to ask God, “do I need to share this with ____?”  Believe me there’s been times when HE said “NO”; I needed to bite my lips. But it gets better as we practice it.  

I pray you give yourself the task to dare and ask God for that miracle you need to happen; to TRUST IN THE LORD not leaning on your own understanding and knowing that GOD’S character HIS OMNIPRESENT, OMNIPOTENT AND OMNISCENT qualities, make HIM a GOD of the SUPERNATURAL. And when HE BELIEVE this, EVERYTHING IS POSSIBLE!!!

I’ll be in expectation of that testimony that you will be sharing with us, as HE works that miracle just before your eyes! For the glory of God this is my prayer in JESUS name, AMEN!

---

[1] Genesis 22:2

[2] Proverbs 3:5-6

[3] John 10:10

Expanding your Personal Space - Genesis 13

“6 But the land could not support them while they stayed TOGETHER, for their possessions were so great that they were not able to stay together. 7 And QUARRELING AROSE between Abram’s herders and Lot’s…

8 So Abram said to Lot, “Let’s not have any quarreling between you and me, or between your herders and mine, for WE ARE CLOSE RELATIVES. 9 Is not the whole land before you? Let’s PART COMPANY. If you go to the left, I’ll go to the right; if you go to the right, I’ll go to the left.”

How many times, you’ve had a friend that seems to be getting on your nerves whenever you talk to them? You feel they’re not fun to be around anymore; they are complaining too much, or upset too much, or to themselves too much…  Perhaps you can feel that they are brushing you off to the side? They do not call you as often or anymore at all. Maybe you feel they’re the ones who are a bit impatient and up tight with you or with your kids as you go visit and you do not know why. 

When we were young and in school if a friend didn’t want to talk, it was fine, anyway we had hundreds of them, so we would just find someone else but now after we’re grown, we tend to stick to one or two friends, and when they don’t want to talk to us, it’s like the end of the world, we NEED to know what’s happening. Let me tell you, sometimes we do not know even as adults, how to deal with friendships because we’re not children anymore, and to get space from our friends feel like breaking the friendship.  But I believe The Lord is telling us that is not about breaking a friendship; it’s about leaving some personal space in between where both parties can breathe easier. Think about when you go to the movies with a friend, not your loved one, just a friend or a sibling, if you see an empty row of chairs, and there’s only two of you, you seat by each other? Or like me, leave a chair in between? Leaving a chair in between, helps to leave the “extra” load we could be carrying, jackets, hand bags or others alike; this room allows each of you not to breathe each other’s air, it’s like adding personal space.  And this sometimes is needed in our relationships, with either loved ones, coworkers or friends. Perhaps The Lord has to work with the two parties individually, and being so close, it’s not helping neither of you. Give it a try!

And next time, you feel a bit tight with your “next door” neighbor, or vice versa, ask The Lord, “do we need to expand our personal space?”  Expanding your personal space, IS NOT, a sin! It’s not a matter of becoming enemies, it’s a way of resolving the matter with the purpose of personal development, as individuals, and sometimes if it’s a life-long relationship like family, this will preserve it.  The gain will be greater than the pain; for you, for them, and for the younger generations that are witnessing the way we deal with life. And this friends, this is WISDOM!!!

When we are UNITED – Genesis 11

" 4 Then they said, “Come, let’s build a great city for ourselves with a tower that reaches into the sky. This will make us famous and keep us from being scattered all over the world. ⁵ But the Lord came down to look at the city and the tower the people were building.  ⁶ “Look!” he said. “The people are united, and they all speak the same language. After this, nothing they set out to do will be impossible for them!  ⁷ Come, let’s go down and confuse the people with different languages. Then they won’t be able to understand each other.” ⁸ In that way, the Lord scattered them all over the world, and they stopped building the city. ⁹ That is why the city was called Babel, because that is where the Lord confused the people with different languages. In this way he scattered them all over the world."

I was born and grew up in a place where Spanish was the primary spoken language; speaking Spanish was our common factor.  In fact, only the business associates in the metropolitan city of San Juan and the adjacent areas to the airport people heard other languages, primarily English.  But though I studied English language in school, I never practiced it, much less surrounding myself with English speaking people. 

Now when I started to travel as a military wife, my first big moved was to South Korea, that’s when things started to quickly changed.  Because though I looked for Spanish speakers wherever I went, it was hard to find them, at least at the beginning of the tour.  From the moment, I got out of the plane, Hangeul was the only language I could hear, until I got to the military post where English was common. After sometime, I did found Spanish speakers; and as you can expect, we got together like monkey bread. Why? Because we had a common denominator! We got together in the Recreational Center, and from there, we move to do things together; finding out that we had not one but several common denominators.  We were in a foreign land, we spoke Spanish, we understood and like some of the same music, and food, and getting together was about sharing those common denominators. As also expected, if any of us were in trouble, the others would pull in the rest of the group and together worked to help the “brother or sister” in need.

This is not common thing on bilingual people only, but also in the professional realm, and even with sport fans.  Lawyers mingle and united with other lawyers, because they speak the same language, the common denominator is the law, they talk about it, and work around it.  It’s the same with doctors and health professionals, they mingle with others who share the same passion, the body’s response to illnesses and injuries, their common denominator is what keeps fueling their spirits. These, like other professionals, react with fascination to their common denominators, and get united to share and build each other up, to know more about their common denominator, to get strengthen from each other. I’m not sports inclined at all, but I know that whenever there’s a game in our town, that common denominator pull people to tailgate with others and get pumped for the game.

Verse six gives us the confirmation that the impact of the masses is not to be taken lightly, in fact, it says that the only thing that could get to split, to set them apart is to take that common denominator off.

Can you see where I’m coming to? There are two ways I want you to see this.

     1.      GOD as our personal and only Savior

     2.      GOD as our common denominator with others 

First, when we UNITE to GOD, great things can and will happened! When under HIS command, we sail to do whatever HE says to, the way HE says to, we will succeed.  That’s something HE wants; check out what JESUS promises us in John 15:4-8:

“⁴ REMAIN IN ME, and I will remain in you. For a branch CANNOT produce fruit if it is SEVERED FROM THE VINE, and you cannot be fruitful UNLESS YOU REMAIN IN ME. ⁵ “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those WHO REMAIN IN ME, and I in them, WILL PRODUCE MUCH fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing… ⁷ But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and IT WILL BE GRANTED! ⁸ When you produce much fruit, YOU ARE MY TRUE DISCIPLES. THIS BRINGS GREAT GLORY to MY FATHER.” 

No relationship SHOULD be placed in the same level as your relationship with GOD.  If you dare to place anything or anyone higher than GOD, you’re setting yourself for trouble!  So, DON’T!!!

And second, is for your benefit as well, your life will be much easier and your walk closer to THE LORD, if you do life close to God’s people. Why? Because you become what you’re surrounded by; for BAD company corrupts good character! (1 Corinthians 15:33) 

The body of Christ (us as a church), we are a group of imperfect people, loving a PERFECT GOD, and trying to be like HE says we ought to.  Outsiders that do not care to serve THE GOD who gives them life on a daily basis, do you think will care for you? Please, do not fool yourself; for your own benefit, follow GOD! 

Call upon the name of the Lord, ask HIM to forgive you of your sins, because truly NO ONE can forgive sins but HIM. Recognize that HE sent JESUS to die for your sins, and accept the gift of Salvation by allowing HIM to become the Master of your life.  THEN, you’ll be UNITED in HIM! 

When you ARE NOT united to God it means you DO NOT have a relationship with HIM, and you MUST KNOW, that if you die, your soul which is meant to live forever, will eternally be living in hell. The place called hell is referred in Isaiah 50:11 as a place of pain and torment. Jesus Himself says in Matthew 25:41, that the place call hell WASN’T prepared FOR US, but for those on the left hand, those who do not belong to HIM.  And to those HE will say to them, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels”.

So, see its ESSENTIAL that you get UNITED to God; that you know and accept HIM as your Savior. For this again, call upon His name, ask HIM to forgive you of your sins. Recognize that HE sent JESUS to die for your sins, and accept the gift of Salvation by allowing HIM to become the Master of your life.  Then UNITE yourself with those that are actively trying to follow Him the way HE says, JOIN A CHURCH; and learn to pray and study HIS Word, daily. 

Finally, UNITE to those that are working for THE LORD outside of the church, reaching out to the lost in the world.  I guarantee you, IF you do, your life WILL NEVER BE THE SAME!

BECAUSE when you UNITE your life to GOD, YOU ARE AN OVERCOMER!!!

LEAVE THE BOAT - Genesis 8 & 9

“¹⁵ Then God said to Noah, ¹⁶ “LEAVE THE BOAT, all of you—you and your wife, and your sons and their wives. ¹⁷ RELEASE all THE ANIMALS—the birds, the livestock, and the small animals that scurry along the ground—SO THEY CAN BE FRUITFUL AND MULTIPLY throughout the earth.” ¹⁸ So Noah, his wife, and his sons and their wives left the boat. ¹⁹ And all of the large and small animals and birds CAME OUT OF THE BOAT, PAIR BY PAIR. ²⁰ Then Noah built an altar to the Lord, and there he sacrificed as burnt offerings the animals and birds that had been approved for that purpose. ²¹ AND THE LORD WAS PLEASED with the aroma of the sacrifice…

9:1 Then God blessed Noah and his sons and told them, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth.”

There’s a time for everything in life! First a time of leaving the things of this world, and enter in communion with THE LORD, mean business with HIM, and we get saved! Praise GOD! After this, we start coming to church to be trained in how to live this life as Christ Ambassadors; depending on our hunger for God and our dedication to HIM, we’ll all go to train, the intensity of this training might last more or less time. As we go into that training, our lives will be transformed.

For Noah, the time to enter the boat past, then it was a time of seclusion, a time of instruction, and this is the period Noah was coming out of; though it must have been a difficult time! But it past too! And After 150 days, exactly five months from the time the flood began, I’m sure he was ready to release some of that pressure, ready to let “fresh air” come in. But it wasn’t the time yet, and After another two and a half months, the waters continued to go down. Probably he thought, “it’s been long time, LORD, are we there yet?” I can imagine his face, when the time kept passing by, day after day, in fact, After another forty days past, and then Noah released a raven first, and a dove second, to see if they would found a place to rest. Can you imagine Noah’s face every time they kept returning to the boat? It must have been disheartening! Then After waiting another seven days, Noah released the dove again… but the earth wasn’t quite ready yet. Then he waited another seven days and then released the dove again. This time it did not come back. Genesis 8:13b-14 says “ten and a half months after the flood began, the floodwaters had almost dried up from the earth… Two more months went by, and at last the earth was dry!”

Can you believe it? More than twelve months, this man, Noah, was in training! I’m sure the training was for the entire family as well, because as we live together, we all get affected by the other ones are going thru.

Sometimes we THINK we are ready to go and conquer the world, in our jobs, school, place of employment and even in ministry. How many times, you’ve heard your teenager say after a time of discipline that they want to grow up, to be out of the house?  And you end up telling them, “enjoy the ride now, because when you grow up, you’ll be on your own and then things will be REALLY difficult!”

Can I tell you, that just like with Noah, GOD makes no mistakes! HE KNOWS when we are not ready, and HE WILL NOT release us until the perfect and appointed time to do so is completed. But then, as time had passed, the time to LEAVE the boat, finally arrived! GRADUATION time!!!

The CHARGE GIVEN at the “graduation ceremony”, was simple:

·        LEAVE the BOAT

·        RELEASE all the ANIMALS

·        BE FRUITFUL and MULTIPLY

There’s a time for everything in life! Patiently endure the time you’re in now, for the time will come for our release, it will be a celebration time, graduation time, and it will come with a charge. Buckle up, learn what you can when you can, at the same time you enjoy the ride. Because there’s work to do in the Kingdom of God, and that’s what we are being trained for. Did you notice? We are told twice here (Gen 8:17, 9:1) that we ought to go, the second one is a confirmation of the first one; it’s about sharing what we’ve learned, so we can multiply. That’s not too hard to understand, that’s what we teach our kids so, they grow up, and when they get old, they can teach their own kids.  And after we instructed them, thru elementary, middle and high school, graduation comes and that’s the time you often hear people say, “Go make Papa proud!” It’s like “it’s over. Now you’re on your own!” Why? Because the time of your released to do what you’ve been trained had come. So, go!!!

Well, with us and our Heavenly Father, will be the same, I can hear HIM as He says to me “go make Papa proud!”  And when we make our Heavenly Father proud, THE LORD will bless us, just like HE blessed Noah; IF like Noah, we value and endure the instruction, seclusion, and training time; even if like him, we ask several times “are we there yet?”

I MUST make clear that Graduation time DOES NOT MEAN that you’ll LEAVE the Father’s way; ABSOLUTELY NOT!!! We must NEVER leave God!!!

It means that now that you’ve become a DISCIPLE of God, a learner of GOD’s word, you’ve graduated it, to start training other disciples. THIS IS CARREER!!! A life-long process, that we will all go thru until we graduate to heaven (die).

I’m praying for us, looking forward to our High School/College GRADUATION day, when we’ll be released to do what GOD has called us to do.  Because HIS timing as well as everything HE does IS perfect!

ENTER THE BOAT - Genesis 6 & 7

“¹⁷ Look! I am about to cover the earth with a flood that will destroy every living thing that breathes. Everything on earth will die. ¹⁸ BUT I WILL CONFIRM MY COVENANT WITH YOU. So ENTER THE BOAT—YOU and your WIFE and your SONS and their wives. ¹⁹ Bring a pair of every kind of animal—A MALE AND A FEMALE—into the boat with you to keep them alive during the flood. ²⁰ Pairs of every kind of bird, and every kind of animal, and every kind of small animal that scurries along the ground, will come to you to be kept alive. ²¹ And be sure to take on board enough food for your family and for all the animals.” ²² So Noah did everything exactly as God had commanded him.

7:¹ When everything was ready, the Lord said to Noah, “GO INTO THE BOAT WITH ALL YOUR FAMILY, for among all the people of the earth, I can see that you alone are RIGHTEOUS. ² Take with you seven pairs—male and female—of each animal I have approved for eating and for sacrifice, and take one pair of each of the others. ³ Also take seven pairs of every kind of bird. There must be A MALE AND A FEMALE in each pair TO ENSURE that ALL LIFE WILL SURVIVE on the earth after the flood."

Whoever tells you that back in Bible times thing were peaches and cream, watch out!

There are several principles we’ll be studying this morning.

The first principal is about coverage and protection. Though we can read in between the lines here that The Lord is saying that things had gotten pretty ugly as He points referring to Noah as the only righteous one here on earth. But a few verses before on the same chapter six, eleven to thirteen, clearly, you’ll see HE says “the earth had become corrupt and was filled with violence”, in other words, ugly! And for this, THE LORD, wipe out the earth back then with the flood.  Then to that righteous man, HE said that HE would confirm the protection promise but in order for that to happen that righteous man, in this case, Noah, he HAD to ENTER THE BOAT! We know be obedient brought him a great reward.

Today, many, many years after the flood, IF we look around us, things have gotten ugly, really ugly, AGAIN! And if we want to be protected, like it happened to Noah, like him, we MUST obey God, and ENTER THE BOAT!

What kind of boat are you talking about? Think about the boat, as the protected enclosed place, were you are in communion with God and HE is covering, sheltering you from all harm. That’s why this is a MUST! When you are inside the boat, in that “secret” place, where your senses are exposed to nothing but God’s presence, you’ll be able to hear God speak to you. And when HE says, “Go!” you will easier hear and confidently you ought to go.  In this place because it’s a place of separation, a place where you are not expose to something or someone else, because it’s just you and GOD, your attention isn’t divided, but center in GOD.  In this “boat”, you can get the assurance HE is the One speaking to you since the only One there with you.  You’ll also be able to determine if Satan had tried to creep in, since he is a liar, whatever he says does not aligns with God’s Word, and THE LORD HIMSELF will reveal that to you, but you MUST HAVE ENTERED THE BOAT!

The second principle is about marriage! Adam & Eve, NOT Adam & Steve!

Male and Female, HE created them; it doesn't say they were created to satisfy each other's needs; it doesn't say was about pleasure, it READS it WAS TO ENSURE that LIFE will survive!

Why? Cause GOD says so! That’s why! Debating over it is NONSENCE!

Even scientifically God’s Word has been proven to be true about reproduction; LIFE begins when a male sex cell fertilizes a female egg within the female reproductive system. In other words, Adam & Steve (two males) OR Ana & Eve (two females), together DO NOT fulfill the requirements of the elements needed to bring forth life.  

And because debating over it is NONSENCE! Choose not to.

If THE LORD moves you to explain, do as HE says, otherwise, ask GOD to open the eyes that Satan had blinded, so they get saved by the mercies of God, and keep going.  I’m sure if The Lord allowed you to see that is for you TO PRAY for those involved, so they could be saved, so please do.

Today I encourage you TO ENTER THE BOAT… this is a magnificent time where our mind will be transform and modify to fit its CREATOR’S specifications.  As we start nursing our kids, and from there they “graduate” to bottle, and then to cup; and from diapers to pull ups or to underwear, THIS IS a NECESSARY process for maturity.  And as we ENTER THE BOAT, I can’t tell you it will be all pleasant because that will be a lie, but I can tell you that your transformation will be beneficial to you and for the Kingdom of God. So I challenge you to ENTER THE BOAT, today!!!

Here’s how…

Call upon the name of the Lord, ask HIM to forgive you of your sins, because truly NO ONE can forgive sins but HIM. Recognize that HE sent JESUS to die for your sins, and accept the gift of Salvation by allowing HIM to become the Master of your life.  

THEN, you’ll get in the boat, as you start every day not only in prayer but READING HIS WORD! Your train will begin then, and I’ll be right here, praying for you, and eager expecting you to get back to testify about the GREAT things you’ve learned in the process.

God bless you, my friend! Hope to hear from you, SOON!!!