Articles

The Myth There Was No J In Hebrew [video]

Paula White Exposed [video]

THAT’s My King! Pastor Lockridge [video]

Powerful Prayers from Children-This Will Shake You [video]

The Fear of the LORD is to Hate Evil: Pride, and Arrogancy #shorts [video]

Exploding the Lies – one by one. There are always the whiners who are looking to take issue with that which is of God, namely the written Word of God. Beware of the deceitful detractors – who, as their father the devil, whisper questions and doubts upon the LORD, His character, and His Word. Share to bless. The LORD kept His promise to preserve His Word to us (Psalms 12:6-7). Always remember saints, it is SATAN who is always behind the doubt casting upon God’s words, sowing confusion. Yet we have the “MORE sure word of prophecy” in the “exceeding great and precious promises” of the Holy Scriptures (2 Peter 1:3-4; 19-21, etc.). See Genesis 3:1; Mark 4:15, etc.. God kept His promise to preserve His Word to us in English in the King James Bible and in Spanish the Reina Valera, etc.

Beware of the uptick in the use of the cult of “yah” ….. that always puts up red flags for this disciple. HIS name is JESUS CHRIST. SAY IT WITH ME OUT LOUD – JESUS CHRIST!!!!! EVERY KNEE WILL BOW TO JESUS CHRIST!

“Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: 10 That at the name of JESUS every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; 11 And that every tongue should confess that JESUS CHRIST is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Philippians 2:9-11

There is “NONE other name” whereby one can be saved.

“… Jesus Christ of Nazareth … Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” Acts 4:10, 12

ANY QUESTIONS?

Gail Riplinger on the name false names Yahweh, Yahushua, and Yuhuah.

Riplinger on the name game.

The name of God is spelled with the Hebrew letters yod, heh, vav, and heh, read from right to left and then transliterated into English as JHVH (called the Tetragrammaton). In the KJV Old Testament it is translated ‘JEHOVAH’ seven times (and rendered ‘LORD’ the remaining times; see New Age Bible Versions, pp. 373-385). Each of the letters of the Hebrew alphabet paints a picture. The letters in the name of God illustrate the following:

J = jod It suggests a ‘giving, extending hand’ (Marc-Alain Oauknin, Mysteries of the Alphabet, New York: Abbeville Press, 1999, p. 207).

H = heh =
It represents an ‘enclosure,’ like heaven or a window (Mysteries, p.191).

V = vav = It symbolizes a nail (Mysteries, p. 168). A ‘v’ in English is a pictogram of the chiseled end of a nail.

H = heh =
The H is repeated at the end of the name because “Jesus was risen” and “received up into heaven” again (Mark 16:19).

God reached his hand out of the windows of heaven, and we put a nail in it; having taken our punishment for sin, he has returned to heaven. The “nail” “pierced” “hands” of Jesus were foretold in Ps. 22:16 and Isa. 22:23-25. (Dr. Floyd Jones has even suggested that the sign recorded in John 19:19 might have been written in Hebrew, “JESUS OF NAZARETH AND THE KING OF THE JEWS,” creating an acrostic of the name JHVH, as the vav for ‘and’ begins the word for King, melek (see Hebrew O.T. Gen. 14:8 for Hebrew form). This could explain why the Jews immediately asked Pilate to change it to “he said, I am King of the Jews” (v. 21).

Jesus is a transliteration of the Hebrew ‘Joshua,’ meaning ‘JEHOVAH is salvation.’ Jesus Christ is shown to be the J, the jod “the arm of the LORD” in Isaiah 53:1-12 and Isaiah 59:16, which says, “therefore his arm brought salvation.” Isaiah 63:2, 5 repeats this theme. The jod, is a picture of an arm and hand, drawn in a tiny and compact form. Professor Ouaknin traced the jod from pictograms of a praising upright arm and hand, to outstretched arms, as if on a cross, and finally, to an arm and hand reaching down, like the letter  reaching like Jesus  to rescue perishing mankind (Mysteries, pp. 200-207).

In the 19th century, as unbelieving German critics of the Bible were hammering away at the word of God, they tried to refashion God’s name, JEHOVAH. They asserted that the God of Israel’s name should be pronounced Yahweh because, to them, he was nothing more than an offshoot of the pagan deity “Yaho.” Nothing could be further from the truth.

The Jews, who generally did not utter the name of God, had used, but ceased using the name JEHOVAH “centuries before the Christian era” notes the classic scholar’s edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica. It affirms that, “…reading what actually stood in the text, they would inevitably pronounce the name Jehovah” (Encyclop)dia Britannica, 11thedition (New York: Encyclop)dia Britannica, Inc., 1910-11), vol. 15, pp. 311-314, s.v. Jehovah). The New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia admits that in the “older system of transliteration, Jehovah” is the pronunciation. It states, “In the Masoretic text the usual form would give the pronunciation Yehowah [pronounced, Jehovah]” (The New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge (New York: Funk and Wagnalls, 1912), vol. VI, p. 117, s.v. Jehovah; vol. XII, p. 470, s.v. Yahweh).

Thousands of years ago, perhaps 3,600, the name JEHOVAH was given by God to Moses. It is seen first in Genesis 2:4 in the Hebrew Old Testament and translated in Exodus 6:3 in the KJV. In his scholarly book, A Dissertation Concerning the Antiquity of the Hebrew Language, Letters, Vowel Points and Accents, John Gill (1697-1771), eminent theologian and writer, documents the use of the very name JEHOVAH from before 200 B.C. and throughout the centuries of the early church and the following millennium. The Hebrew’s Mishna allowed the name as a salutation (Berachoth, ix, 5); according to Thamid, the priests in the temple could use the true name, but those in the country could only use Adonai (vii, 2); Maimonides said the name was used by the priests in the sanctuary and on the Day of Atonement (Moreh Nebukim, I, 61, and “Yad chasaka,” xiv, 10). Even commentators such as Nicholas of Lyra, Tostatus, Cajetan, and Bonfrere defended the pronunciation ‘JEHOVAH’ as received by Moses on Mt. Horeb. The name is found in the writings of Raymund Martin in the 1200s and Porchetus in the 1300s. Theodore Beza, Galatinus, and Cajetan, among many others, use it in the 1500s. Scholars such as Michaelis, Drach and Stier proved the name as the original. The 1602 Spanish Bible uses the name Iehova and gave a lengthy defense of the pronunciation Jehovah in its preface. In “the 17th century the pronunciation JEHOVAH was zealously defended by Fuller, Gataker, Leusden and others, against the criticisms…”(EB, pp. 311-314). (Martin: Pugio fidei, ed. Paris, 1651, pt. III, dist. ii, cap. iii, p. 448, and Note, p. 745; Galatinus: “Areana cathol. veritatis,” I, Bari, 1516, a, p.77; Porchetus: Drusius, “Tetragrammaton,” 8-10, in “Critici Sacri,” Amsterdam, 1698, I, p.ii, col.339-42; “De nomine divino,” ibid., 512-516; see also p. 351 et. al; Michaelis: “Supplementa ad lexica hebraica,” I, 1792, p. 54; Drach: “Harmonic entre l’Eglise et la Synagogue,” I, Paris, 1844, pp. 350-53, Note 30, pp. 512-16, 469-98; Stier: Lehrgebaude der hebr. Sprache, 327.)

“Genebrardus seems to have been the first to suggest the pronunciation Iahue [pronounced Yahweh], but it was not until the 19th century that it became generally accepted” (EB, pp. 311-314). Anti-Semitic German liberals, like Driver and Delitzsch, eagerly grasped the new pronunciation, Yahweh. They and other unsaved ‘higher critics,’ denied that the Old Testament was actually given by God. They grasped at any straw to shelter their unbelief, asserting that the Old Testament was the creation of men who adopted and adapted stories, words, and names from neighboring pagan religions and languages. The higher critics used the new pronunciation, Yahweh, as so-called proof that the God of Israel was nothing more than a tribal god, whose name had evolved from pagan gods like Yaho or Ya-ve, worshipped by the Babylonians and Canaanites, the Hebrews’ captors and neighbors. They said, Yahweh “meant Destroyer” (EB, p. 312). The German critics said, “Yahweh is not a Hebrew name;” such a pronunciation would prove the Hebrews borrowed it (EB, 310-314). Critic Rudolf Kittel asserts, “yahu…do[es] not lead back to a pronunciation represented by Yehovah (or Jehovah)” (The New Schaff, vol. XII, p. 470, s.v. Yahweh). The critics cited ancient documents, like the “magical texts,” Aramaic papyri, and Babylonian tablets that tell of pagan gods named Yaho, Yahu, or Ya-ve. this pagan deity and mocking the God of Israel?)

Driver tried to provide as evidence, an Ethiopic list of magical names for Jesus, which included Yawe. Other Bible critics, anxious to find a linguistic, rather than a supernatural source for the name of the God of Israel, grasped the ‘Canaanite connection’ and the new pronunciation. (These critics include: von Bohlen (Genesis, 1835, p. civ.), Von der Alm (Theol. Briefe, I, 1862, pp. 524-527), Colenso (The Pentateuch, V, 1865, pp. 269-84), and Goldziher (Der Mythusbei den Hebr#ern, 1867, p. 327). (See also: Driver, Studia Biblica, I. 20; I, 5; Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th edition, 1910-11, vol. 15, pp. 311-314, s.v. Jehovah; Delitzsch, “Wo lag das Paradies,” 1881, pp. 158-164; “LesestKcke,” 3rd ed., 1885, p. 42, Syllab. A, col. I, 13-16).

Even the Oxford English Dictionary warns that “this origin is now disputed” (OED, s.v. Jehovah). So let’s examine why the critics of ‘JEHOVAH’ are wrong. The first letter, jod, could be pronounced in Hebrew, as ‘ye’ in Yeshua, the Hebrew pronunciation of Jesus, but it could not be pronounced that way in English. The English pronunciation and spelling of words which begin with the same Hebrew letter (jod) and vowel pointing (silent sheva Je ) – words like Jerusalem, Jericho or Jew – break the critic’s Canaanite idol, Yaho, in pieces. It cannot be pronounced ‘Ya’ in English. The sound of the Hebrew letter jod came into English as the letter ‘I,’ used as a consonant and having the soft ‘g’ sound, like today’s ‘j.’ In the past the letter ‘I’ was used as both a vowel (i) sound and as the consonant ‘j’ sound. The OED says that the sound of ‘j,’ though originally printed as ‘I,’ was pronounced as a soft ‘g’ (Oxford English Dictionary, Unabridged, 2nd Edition, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1991, s.v. J). The ‘JE’ sound in JEHOVAH was spelled ‘IE’ and pronounced as ‘JE.’ To distinguish the consonant sound (soft ‘g’) of the letter ‘I’ from the vowel sound of ‘I,’ many scribes in the 1200s began putting a tail on the soft ‘g’ ‘I’,’ making it look like our modern ‘J.’ The Spanish, in the 1500s, were the first to more consistently try to distinguish the consonant I (soft ‘g’) sound as the shape of a ‘J.’ At that same time English printers used ‘J’ and ‘I’ fonts interchangeably (as documented elsewhere in this book). During the 1600s, most languages began consistently using the extended ‘I’ form, now called a ‘J,’ to represent the ‘j’ (soft ‘g’) sound. (World Book Encyclopedia, Chicago, Ill.: Field Enterprises, vol. 10, s.v. J.)

The Hebrews used Psalm 119 to teach the Hebrew alphabet. Psalm 119:73 was used to teach, the letter Jod (not yod), the hand pictogram. Interestingly, the first words of verse 73 are “Thy hands” ! These Hebrew letters are shown in King James Bibles printed by Cambridge University Press. The transliteration of the Hebrew letters  as the Roman letters Yahweh requires a German accent (‘Je’ is ‘Ya’ in German), invented vowels, and a translator who does not know that the Germans, who transliterated it that way, pronounce the letter ‘w’ as ‘v’! Only the Latins (Roman Catholicism) and Germans (Higher Criticism), using the Roman alphabet, team up to pronounce ‘J’ as ‘Y.’ (There are no native German words that begin with ‘y.’) Even the untrustworthy Hebrew Aramaic Interlinear Old Testament, by Jay Green, admits, “…the letter J in German is pronounced like an English Y. The bulk of theological studies having come from German sources, there has been an intermixed usage in English of the J and the Y. Our English translations of the Bible reflect this, so we have chosen to use J, thus Jehovah, rather than Yahweh, because this is established English usage for Biblical names beginning with this Hebrew letter. No one suggests we ought to change Jacob, Joseph, Jehoshaphat, Joshua, etc. to begin with a Y, and neither should we at this late date change Jehovah to Yahweh” (The Interlinear Hebrew Aramaic Old Testament, 2nd ed., Peabody, Mass: Hendrickson Publishers, 1993, vol. 1, p. xii).

In summary, ‘JEHOVAH’ and ‘JESUS’ have always sounded and been pronounced exactly as they are today, as ‘JEHOVAH’ and ‘JESUS,’ although the type fonts used to represent these sounds sometimes looked like ‘Iehovah’ and ‘Iesvs.’ The letter ‘V’ is the other disputed consonant in JEHOVAH. “The vav is pronounced like a V in vehicle,” writes Professor Marc-Alain Ouaknin of the Department of Comparative Literature at the Hebrew Bar-Illan University and the Jewish Research and Study Center in Paris. Therefore the ending in JEHOVAH would be pronounced in Hebrew and in English as, ‘VAH’ not ‘weh.’ Professor Ouaknin also said that the letter vav went into the Greek alphabet, “bearing the name digamma and being pronounced “v” as in vehicle.” (Mysteries, pp.168, 170). The Ww in Gesenius’ [German] Hebrew Grammar and other Hebrew textbooks is pronounced Vav, in English and Hebrew. Readers misunderstand charts which say “Pronunciation…w,” not knowing that the letter ‘w’ is pronounced as a ‘v’ in German The sounds of Vav and the vowel which follows it, Kamatz (a), can be heard on the instructional Hebrew web site http://www.ejemm.com, pronounced exactly as it would be in JEHOVAH. (E. Kautzsch and A.E. Cowley, Gesenius Hebrew Grammar, 2nd English Edition, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1910, pp. 2628 et. al; See also Menahem Mansoor, Biblical Hebrew, Grand Rapids,Mich: Baker Book House, 1980, pp. 18, 19, 21.)

Even Americans have heard Hogan’s Heroes, Sergeant Schultz say to Colonel Klink, ‘Ya vool Kammandant,’ (spelled “Ja wohl Kammandant,” meaning ‘Yes, indeed Commander’). In German restaurants Schultz said, ‘viener schnitzel’ (spelled wiener), vile he listened to the tunes of V gnr (spelled, Wagner) and Lood-vikh fan Beethofen, (spelled, Ludwig van Beethoven). In German, the letter ‘v’ is pronounced like an ‘f.’ Consequently, in Hebrew textbooks it was necessary to put the letter ‘w’ after the Hebrew vav (‘v’) so that German readers would know that the Hebrew letter ‘v,’ was not the German ‘f’ sound, but the sound of the letter ‘v’ represented by their letter ‘w.’ English speaking textbook authors and seminary professors have misunderstood this and misconveyed to their students that the Hebrew letter should be pronounced like the English ‘w,’ not the German ‘w.’

Where did the phony ‘weh’ sound in Yahweh come from? As Green said,  “German sources.” In German “the “v” sound is rendered by the “double u” (“w”). Although the German critics spelled the name Yahweh, they pronounced it, Yahveh. “In German…W takes the value that V has in English…In German the same symbol w is called Vey, because in that language it has the value of the English v…” (EB, s.v. V; s.v. W; see also The Mysteries of the Alphabet, pp. 168, 170, 171). Because Germans use the letter ‘w’ for the ‘v’ sound, those reading or translating German theological works have brought in the German letter ‘w’ for ‘v.’ It is not to be pronounced like an English ‘w,’ but like a ‘v.’

To further compound the confusion, unbelieving Catholic Bible critics have brought their Latin ‘w’ pronunciation to the letter ‘v.’ “The Latin V, however, was…like the English w…Early borrowings, like wine(Latin vinum [pronounced winum]) [and] wall (Latin vallum [pronounced wallum]), retain the w sound and are therefore spelt with w” (EB, s.v. V; s.v. W). So we have Latin speaking Roman Catholic scholars and liberal German higher critics joining together to fight WW II against the God of Israel and the word of God. Even the NIV translators and editors of the corrupt Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament admit that confusion arises in part “because of past German influence on Hebrew studies.” Imagine 19th century anti-Semitic German scholars recasting the name of the God of Israel in the mold of Yaho, a pagan idol, who speaks with an untrained German accent! To further compound the confusion, there are two conflicting Hebrew systems of pronunciations: 1.) the Ashkenazi, a German method from Jews who immigrated to Germany and central Europe and then some to America and 2.) the classic Sephardi. (R. Laird Harris, Gleason L. Archer, Bruce Waltke, Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, Chicago: Moody Press, 1980, vol. 2, p. x; The American Dictionary of the English Language, s.v. W; Mansoor, p. 33.)

Where did the VOWELS in JEHOVAH come from? Most believe the Bible record which states that the vowels in JEHOVAH were heard as, “the LORD said unto Moses…my name JEHOVAH” (Exod. 6:3). The statement, “the LORD said unto Moses,” is repeated over and over in the book of Exodus. Moses heard the pronunciation of words.“ And the LORD said unto Moses, Write…in a book…And Moses wrote all the words of the LORD” (Ex. 17:14, 24:4, 34:27, Num. 33:2, Deut. 31:9, 24.) The book titles in the KJV state that the first five books of “Moses” are the “beginning” of the “old testament” (Luke 24:27, 2 Cor. 3:14, 15).

-Gail Riplinger

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Articles

The Laid Down Life [podcast]

Chapter 5 from the book Raised Up (narration)

“This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. 2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, 4 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; 5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.” 2 Timothy 3:1-5

You know the counterfeits far outnumber the authentic followers of Jesus when you put out a message on youtube or social media titled something like “How to know your gifts” and the response is overwhelming due to the many self-centered, self-absorbed cross-less professors (2 Timothy 3:1-7). In contrast, when you put out a message titled something like “Learning to live the crucified life Jesus calls all His followers to” and but a “few” listen – you are reminded of how Jesus says His remnant, is a “little flock” and how Jesus says “FEW there be which enter therein.” (Luke 12:32; Matthew 7:13-14).

Living in the Spirit

Those who descend into death and burial will be blessed to be raised up by the LORD.

“For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection.” Romans 6:5

“And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” Galatians 5:24-25

“For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. 14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” Romans 8:13-14

“Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. 11 For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus’ sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh. 12 So then death worketh in us, but life in you.” 2 Corinthians 4:10-12

IT BOILS DOWN TO LOVE!

“Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:2

WHEN Jesus died for our sins, He submitted to the cross without reserve to the Father in order to redeem us! When you obey Jesus by laying down your life, you are saying: “Whew I love You LORD Jesus! You alone are my supreme LORD, love, and the Head of my life. I love You more than sinful self, and I have made a complete mess of my life, spinning my wheels for far too long. Please forgive my rebellion against You! I want You to reign supreme in my life Jesus, from this moment forward. Have Your way in me my LORD, I love You Jesus. I’m all Yours Jesus!”

Living in the Spirit and not in the flesh is a settled issue with the remnant. They “have crucified the flesh” and the evil the sinful nature would do. It’s a done deal – They “HAVE crucified the flesh” that Christ the LORD might reign in their mortal body.

“Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.” Romans 6:18

We cannot be a servant of righteousness unless we are crucified with Christ and sin is out of our way.

“Likewise reckon (count) ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. For sin shall not have dominion over you (because you have accounted yourself dead): for ye are not under the law, but under grace. What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid. Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.” Romans 6:11-18

The “form of doctrine” delivered by Christ and His holy apostles in the original Gospel, included the accounting of one’s life now dead and then being raised up by Christ, with His life-giving grace operating within to please Him fully (see also Rom. 12:1-3; 1 Cor. 15:10; 2 Cor. 12:9).

“What does this mean for us? Remember that there are two aspects of Christ’s death. He died for our sins. He died for us – substitution. But then Paul tells us that we are also to die with Him. “I have been crucified WITH CHRIST” (Gal. 2:20): “Reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin” (Rom. 6:11). The Israelites in bondage were delivered by the blood shed and sprinkled. But they are pursued by certain of their foes. These foes are slain at the Red Sea, but they themselves escape and are free. Egypt stands for the world of sin. Christ found us in “Egypt,” and by His death in our stead delivered us from the penalty of sin. But even after our conversion some of these sins followed us and harassed us – temper, pride, jealousy, lust, worry, avarice – causing discomfiture and misery, and occasionally temporary defeat. Where is there any escape, any real victory? Only through the Red Sea – baptism, or what baptism implies; i.e., a death to sin and a rising again to righteousness. That is a crucifixion with Christ, so as to be able to “reckon ourselves dead indeed unto sin.” How to Live the Victorious Life, by an Unknown Christian

God’s desire, plan, and command is that His people reign victorious in this life over sin and the enemy and become abundantly fruitful as we await the soon return of our LORD Jesus Christ (John 15; 1 Thessalonians 1:10).

“For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.” Romans 5:17

The Cross of Christ and the One He Commands us to take up are Essential

Let’s peer again into the words of our LORD found in John 12:

“And Jesus answered them, saying, The hour is come, that the Son of man should be glorified. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal. If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour.” John 12:23-26

Laying down our lives is paramount to walking with Jesus. It is His command (Lk. 9:23-24; 14:33, etc.). He raises up in new life those that are bowed down before Him (Ps. 146:8). The seed (“corn”) is planted or buried alive, and is resurrected by God to a life of glory and blessing. Without a death, there can be no resurrection. This death to the self-life is volitional and ongoing in this life – “I die daily.” (1 Cor. 15:31)

“He must increase, but I must decrease.” John 3:30

As we are blessed to be “planted together in the likeness of his death”, so “we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection.”

“Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection.” Romans 6:3-5

This is rightfully the most popular Bible passage on water baptism and what the meaning and purpose of water baptism is. At water baptism, we are buried in water, figuratively dying to the old man, the man of sin, and being resurrected by the risen Savior and LORD to a new life where He reigns supreme.

“And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.” Romans 8:10-11

There are symptoms in the life of one who is not buried. The disciple who is buried with Christ is “dead to sin.” (Rom. 6:2) When we argue to justify the things we do in this life and call those who point them out “legalistic”, it is symptomatic of a life that is not laid down. When we argue against the truth (the Bible says “Lie not against the truth” (James 3:14) when we are shown it, we manifest the rebellion in our hearts because our lives are not authentically laid out before the LORD. The “corn of wheat” (dead seed) must be planted and remain planted in order to bud and bring forth new life. The laid down life does not make excuse when he realizes that he has sin. No, instead he rejoices to be yet more delivered and in the place of blessing and holiness with the One He delights to please and serve.

Aren’t we the temple of the Holy Ghost and commanded to “cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God”? (2 Cor. 7:1)

If we still have habitual sin in our lives, we should know that we are not buried with Christ. If we were, His life would be teeming in us and causing us to put away sinfulness.

Overcoming sin happens when we bury the old man of sin by nailing it to the cross. God is with us to do such (Rom. 8:13; Phil. 2:12-13)

“For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.” 1 Peter 2:21-24

The LORD looks upon the hearts of men (1 Sam. 16:7). Getting our hearts right with God begins with laying down the right to ourselves and releasing ourselves into the unfailing hands of the One who made us and gives us the breath of life (Lk. 23:46). This is in following the ultimate example of our LORD Jesus who came and laid down His sinless life for us (1 Pet. 2:21; 4:1).

Let’s check our deadness. Let’s see how dead we are to this world system and all of it’s arrogant rebellion against the God of the universe and all that is: Do we defend our “right” to fill our minds and hearts with the evil things that are blatantly and subtly portrayed on some TV and radio programming (and other forms of modern media)? If so, the fleshly nature is not dead but is still alive and we are therefore not raised to new life.

Oswald Chambers wrote:

“The passion of Christianity is that I deliberately sign away my own rights and become a bondslave to Jesus Christ. Any fool can insist on personal rights, and any devil will see that he or she gets them, but the Sermon on the Mount means that the only right the saint will insist on is the right to give up personal rights.” Oswald Chambers, God’s Workmanship, p. 329

Perhaps it is true (as has been stated by some) that a person can be known by what he laughs at or finds humorous. What do we laugh at? What do we find entertaining? – “Charity…Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth.” (1 Cor. 13:4, 6)

Apparently, according to the Word of God, returning laughter when we witness foolishness (folly) confirms the person we are laughing at in his folly and causes us to partake of his foolishness and deeds.

“Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest thou also be like unto him.” Proverbs 26:4

Laying down our lives requires a deliberate, willful decision to fear and obey the LORD and not men. Believers are called to be circumspect (fully set apart in holiness) and not glorify anything the LORD calls profane (Prov. 17:15; 24:24; Isa. 5:20-24; Ezek. 44:23; Eph. 5:15-17).

Yet we should ask: Why crucify the flesh when there is no reason to do such as the false church would have us believe? When a new believer is told that he is “eternally secure” or OSAS, why then should he get sanctified, live a repented life, be wholly set apart to the LORD, be matured and equipped to do ministry, and prepare for the soon return of Jesus Christ?

The following brief and yet convicting commentary is taken from the Life in the Spirit Study Bible concerning Romans 1:32. First let’s view the Biblical text, then the commentary.

“Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.” Romans 1:32

“‘HAVE PLEASURE IN THEM THAT DO THEM’. Paul’s last word on general human sinfulness is God’s condemnation of a condition even more damning than the practice, i.e., supporting, approving, and encouraging evil by taking pleasure in the immoral actions of others. This disposition is the ultimate in depravity – vicarious enjoyment of lust and evil. Sin becomes entertainment. (1) The word ‘have pleasure’ (Gk. suneudokeo) means ‘are pleased with,’ ‘delight in,’ or ‘give approval to,’ and points to the casual enjoyment of the sins of others that prevails in human society. (2) Today we know that great harm is produced by the portrayal of immorality that dominates the entertainment media; yet many consent to it and derive pleasure from it. Being entertained by watching other people sin and engage in ungodly actions, even while you yourself abstain, brings you under the same condemnation of God as those engaging in such evil practices. Iniquity is intensified in any society where sin meets with no inhibition from the disapproval of others and where people enjoy watching it. (3) Hence, those (and especially those who profess faith in Christ) who use the immoral actions of others for entertainment and enjoyment are directly contributing to public opinion favorable to immorality and, therefore, to the corruption and eternal damnation of an indefinite number of other people. This sin is worthy of death and will be exposed and judged at the final day of judgment (2 Thess. 2:12).” p. 1729

Concerning the many things in this sinful world that would draw our affections away from Jesus Christ and blur that pure-focused disposition, the Psalmist wrote:

“I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me.” Psalms 101:3

Do we seek to protect our “right” to continue over-relishing or over-indulging in the things of this world which are despised of God? See 1 John 2:14-17. The Bible tells us that those who love this world system and the things in it, hate God and are His enemies – regardless of what they profess (Tit. 1:16; James 4:4).

“And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. 35 For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. 36 Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.” Luke 21:24-26

When we live out the Word, He promised persecution and instructed us to rejoice (Matt. 5:10-12; Mk. 4:17; 1 Pet. 4:12). Have you ever been persecuted by other “believers” and called legalistic because you chose not to watch a movie that mocks at what God calls sin? I guess I have seen people do this to truth-speakers for so long, that it has little affect anymore, other than inducing a concern for where they really are in their hearts. Seeking to be upright in one’s ways in not legalistic – it is biblical. The Word instructs us to “walk circumspectly” which means fully obedient – exactly, diligently, perfectly.

“See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;” Ephesians 5:15-20

“And in all things that I have said unto you be circumspect: and make no mention of the name of other gods, neither let it be heard out of thy mouth.” Exodus 23:13

What the LORD tells us in Proverbs 26:4-5, is that when we join a fool in his folly (foolishness), we become as guilty as he is and perpetuate this sinfulness in his life and more importantly – we offend the holiness of the LORD we claim to be serving.

What we partake of and/or laugh at reveals who we really are. If all these sinful things and justification of them are still alive in us, we do not have a laid down life.

“Fools make a mock at sin: but among the righteous there is favour.” Proverbs 14:9

“Folly (foolishness)is joy to him that is destitute of wisdom: but a man of understanding walketh uprightly.” Proverbs 15:21

Yes, laughter is a blessing and there is a “time to laugh” and to rejoice, yet we are not made free from sin by the blood of Christ to laugh at evil things (Eccl. 3:4). LORD please bless us to be purified in our hearts and to rejoice and laugh more – for the right reasons! Please grant us Your joy Jesus! Amen.

“A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.” Proverbs 17:22

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom and knowledge and those who have it walk uprightly – they walk biblically in the Holy Spirit of grace and not legalistically. They have joy from Jesus and are the most blessed people in the world.

“The LORD upholdeth all that fall, and raiseth up all those that be bowed down.” Psalms 145:14

Beloved, our LORD is calling us to lay down our lives like Christ did – that He might fully possess us. Bow down before His holiness that He may raise you up His way. Let it all go. Die to justifying your sins. Before this day expires, get alone with the Savior and release the life He gave to you back to Him. Completely relinquish control as you cry out like Jesus did on the cross when dying for us – “Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit.” (Lk. 23:46) Give up the ghost. Cease living life on your terms. Lay your whole life at His feet and let Him raise you up in newness of life in the Holy Spirit and reign supreme in your body.

The Path of Our LORD Jesus

Jesus was to be glorified by the Father in laying down His life for all men (Jn. 15:13).

“…nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done…” Luke 22:42

He laid down His own will because of the immeasurable love He has for each of us.

“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” John 15:13

Do we love Jesus Christ in return? How much do I love Him? Will I lay down my whole existence before Him, knowing He will raise me up to new life and fruitfulness as He lives His life through me? Is this not the essence of Galatians 2:20?

“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” Galatians 2:20

He must increase and we must decrease, that He might be glorified in us, and we might be the living epistles He has called us to be. When Jesus is reigning in a person’s life, it is obvious. His holy and impelling presence is the life that exudes from that person instead of the stench of the self-centered and selfish nature (Jn. 3:30). At this place of resurrection life, the LORD who made and redeemed us is greatly glorified and pleased and His fruit is being yielded.

“Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.” Ephesians 5:1-2

Finding that place with God in prayer is where the laid down life begins. May I suggest that you begin with prayerfully, and from deep within, citing Galatians 2:20 aloud.

“Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of thy waterspouts: all thy waves and thy billows are gone over me.” Psalms 42:7

PRAYER: Please draw me deeper in You LORD Jesus. Father in Heaven, You sent Your only begotten Son to die for me in order that I might be raised up in new life in this brief life and eternally. I love You Jesus and ask You to lead me to that crucified life that you lived when here on earth. Quicken me by Your Holy Spirit and fill me afresh O LORD, that this life You gave might be fully fruitful and pleasing to Thee. Lord, I am watching and praying in light of Your soon return. In the name of Jesus, Amen.