Heaven’s Nourishment! [podcast]

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]

Nourished Up and Enduring to the End [podcast]

Just How and When
is Heaven’s “Nourishment
Ministered” to Christ’s Body?

“If thou put the brethren in remembrance of these things, thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine, whereunto thou hast attained.” 1 Timothy 4:6

The GOAL and aim of most messages today heard coming from “Christian” leaders does not have Christ as it’s Grand Subject. This makes it more than obvious that God’s Word is not being preached and that the numerous prophetic warnings from Christ and His apostles are being fulfilled. Jesus Christ is the Grand Subject of all Scripture and even when men use Scripture to teach and yet refuse to uphold, elevate, and expound upon the divine Person of Jesus Christ, apostasy has invaded!

Paul said:

“But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” Galatians 6:14

The apostle Paul’s life and ministry were all about Jesus. Such is an almost impossible thing to find today among those who claim to be followers of Jesus.

“For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.” 1 Corinthians 2:2

As was foretold, there are untold wolves today who “mind earthly things” instead of minding the things of Jesus Christ (Philippians 3:18-21).

God sent His only begotten Son to save us and for this reason alone, He alone is worthy to be elevated, extolled, exalted, and glorified! When a true disciple becomes enamored with Christ, that person will cease being impressed by or with any mere man (Psalms 39:4-5).

“For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” 2 Corinthians 5:21

Christ Jesus was crucified for the sins of the world!

The Bible is the story of God’s redemption of His fallen race. He worked through and “was in Christ reconciling (uniting again) the world unto himself.” (2 Corinthians 5:19) The Father gave His sinless only begotten Son “to be sin for us, who knew no sin” so we could be brought back into relationship with Him, that is, made righteous, justified, and cleared of any sin debt by way of the One who bore all our sins on that tree (2 Corinthians 5:21).

“But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.” Isaiah 53:5

Jesus Christ bridged the gap between God who is “Holy, holy, holy” and His fallen race (mankind). (Isaiah 6:3; Revelation 4:8)

Jesus “bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.” (Isaiah 53:12)

“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 2:24

Beloved, we have been reconciled to God by the highest price that has ever or ever will be paid (1 Corinthians 6:9-20). We are not our own and we belong to no man (1 Corinthians 7:23). The LORD will share His glory with no man (Isaiah 42:8). Yet today, a whole priesthood of hirelings has intercepted the worship of the people that is due only to the One who won our salvation with His own blood (Colossians 2).

“For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. ⁸But God commendeth (exhibited) his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. ⁹Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. ¹⁰For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. ¹¹And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.” Romans 5:7-11

God so loved us that He gave His only begotten Son in order to save us and to clear the way for sinful human beings (His fallen race) to be reconnected with Him and to truly be blessed to worship Him (John 3:16-17; Ephesians, Colossians, etc.).

“Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: ¹³Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: ¹⁴In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins.” Colossians 1:12-14

In the very next chapter, Colossians 2, the apostle goes on to warn the body of Christ about those who would “beguile you” in order to cheat you out of that relationship Christ died to provide in bringing us back to the Father (Colossians 2:4). Paul says in this passage that He preached, warned, and taught in order to prepare the body of Christ to be ready to meet Jesus (Colossians 1:28). Remaining in Christ would mean that deceivers would have to be marked, avoided and overcome. Jesus must be kept as our “first love” which means the absence of any idol (Romans 16:17-18; Revelation 2:4-5). As we uphold Christ as the only “Head” of His body, we shall continue to receive His “nourishment.” (Colossians 2:18-19). So we must be on guard.

God sent us His Son to be the very bread from Heaven that nourishes our souls. Jesus is our Bread of life! (John 6) We must have Him to be saved, and we must abide in Him daily to remain nourished. (John 15:1-6). Heaven’s Nourishment!

Are you being nourished? Are you upholding Jesus Christ in your daily life? When you gather with other Christians, is Jesus truly being exalted through His written Word and in the power of the Holy Spirit?

You see, Jesus Christ is Heaven’s “nourishment.” That is exactly what the apostle is conveying in Colossians 2!

JUST as none of us understand but know the blessing of food nourishing our physical bodies, so the Word of God nourishes our spirit man, our hearts. It’s a daily must. Feeding and being nourished by the words of God is an imperative (Job 12:23; Jeremiah 15:16; Hebrews 5:11-14; 1 Peter 2:2, etc.). His Word cannot get into us and nourish us until are get into it! Let the nourishment begin!

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly (abundantly)…” Colossians 3:16

Being aware of and guarding against wolves is not being anti-church or against any kind of organization. Those who think so have been duped by the very leaders of the system they are defending and are still under that cloud of darkness. They can’t imagine walking with Christ without that organization of men. They have no life with Christ in the Spirit or the what they have is shallow just yet. These church-goers only relate to a physical building, elders or a pastor, and a certain meeting place as their authority and headquarters. Their lives are compartmentalized for the purpose of serving their leaders instead of being one contiguous stream of pure worship of Christ. They are being groomed and steeped by mere men who are not teaching them to “worship the Father in spirit and in truth” daily and no matter where they are as Jesus taught (Luke 9:23-24; John 4:23-24).

At this point, some might wonder: “But brother, I guess that means you don’t believe in gathering with other Christians?”

The question is not whether or not to gather but rather just what pattern are we following and who is truly being elevated? Is it Christ?

People have been so brainwashed that they can’t imagine that across the globe and for 2,000 years now, Christians have been gathering in homes with little structure except the praise, worship, and glorify Jesus Christ by reading His Word together, having fellowship, breaking bread together, and praying together (Acts 2:42-47; Colossians 3:16). That’s exactly what the earliest disciples of Jesus did when the church was born and no deception or wolves yet had time to do their evil work (Acts 2:42-47). It wasn’t till later centuries that the separate “church building” concept came into play along with the institution of various other pagan ideas and concepts integrated in their structures and organizations. Is there any wonder that true disciples in this late hour have given up trying to “find a church” and are now just being God’s people, following the simple pattern given us in the latter verses of Acts 2?

The great apostle of Jesus warns us to beware of certain things and also to keep Jesus raised and elevated as the Most High Creator God and Savior, LORD, and “Head” that He is to His people:

“As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: 7 Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. 8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. 9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. 10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power.” Colossians 2:6-10

The modern day church-goers who meet in physical “church buildings” all across America, are following traditions in their structures that were never instituted or intended by Christ for His people. A whole lot of traditions of mere men that are not biblical are in place. In most cases the pastors don’t even know the origins of those things they are doing but are simply following the traditions of men they were taught. In most cases, they have never stopped to examine and put to the biblical acid test those things they are carrying along and perpetrating on yet another generation. On this note, a book of recent notes:

“All of these pathologies find their root in the history of the pastorate. It is ‘lonely at the top’ because God never intended for anyone to be at the top – except His Son! In effect, the present-day pastor tries to should the fifty-eight New Testament ‘one another’ exhortations all by himself. It is no wonder that many of them get crushed under the weight.” Frank Viola and George Barna, Pagan Christianity, p. 140

It’s biblical to gather to fellowship and so are elders among us and yet, we must test all things against the perfect standard of Holy Scripture (Acts 2:42-47; 14:23; 1 Thessalonians 5:21; Titus 1:5; Hebrews 10:24-25, etc.) Yes, the Bible sure does speak about elders among the believers and yet, the place of prominence they take in the modern church world is far more over reaching than was intended by the LORD. It has become a den of thieves where men are hired into a professional position as a “pastor” and they perform in order to earn a salary. This is not biblical and circumvents the every-member-functioning of Christ’s body that He intended for His people and as is seen in the book of Acts, 1 Corinthians 12, 14, and Ephesians 4. In fact, Ephesians 4:11-14 tells us that those elders who are truly serving Christ are divinely called-out to mature and equip His saints to do “the work of the ministry.” So, those elders today who are following Jesus are not doing everything for everyone as if that’s what they are getting paid to do. Eldership is a calling and not a professional position or vocation. Those truly called out by the LORD and prepared to serve Him by serving His people, don’t need a physical building to perform in. They live unto the LORD daily, praying for, feeding, nurturing, correcting, and ministering to Jesus’ beloved sheep (1 Peter 5:1-6).

“Not Holding the Head”

In all our getting, we had better be getting more and more of Jesus or we have lost all!

The problem is not gathering in a “church building” so much as the problem is that Christ is not truly being upheld and glorified when those people gather. There is therefore no virtue or “nourishment” being “ministered” to those people from the LORD Jesus who is the only “Head” of His true body. This is the simple reason why so many church-goers are either not even saved, have back slid and are lost again, or are still babes. They don’t win anyone to Jesus. In fact, they can’t even muster up the courage to put a Gospel tract out there. They don’t have 5 Bible verses memorized, and are not learning the daily cross Jesus repeatedly commanded.

We must ask: Who’s really being elevated in our gatherings? When Jesus, the only “Head” of His body is lifted up, His divine virtue flows into each member gathered in worship of Him. Watch this: “Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, 19 And not holding the Head, from which all the body by joints and bands having nourishment ministered, and knit together, increaseth with the increase of God.” (Colossians 2:18-19)

May there be no “idol shepherds” among us! (Zechariah 11:17) May we be blessed to worship Him “in spirit and in truth” according to the pattern He gave us in His Word (John 4:23-24).

The Holy Spirit inspired prayer of the apostle Paul clearly reveals several things, including that it is God’s will that His beloved people “might be filled with all the fulness of God.”

“For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, ¹⁵Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, ¹⁶That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; ¹⁷That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, ¹⁸May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; ¹⁹And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. ²⁰Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, ²¹Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.” Ephesians 3:14-21

May our God bless each of us to seek His holy face as David, the man after the LORD’s own heart did! May unite our hearts to fear His holy name and to want more and more of Him and to denounce and to be delivered from every idol of the heart (Ezekiel 14:3).

“As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. ²My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God?” Psalms 42:1-2

“One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in his temple. … ⁸When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, Lord, will I seek.” Psalms 27:4, 8

"Seven Women shall take hold of One Man" [podcast]

Two Types of Believers – the mere professor and the possessor. God created us and sent His only begotten Son that we might know Him. “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.” John 17:3 THE POSSESSORS “In that day shall the branch of the LORD be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and comely for them that are escaped of Israel.” Isaiah 4:2 The LORD Jesus is “the branch … beautiful and glorious” shall He be and shall be His […]

Your Victory is in Jesus [podcast]

MAKING PEACE WITH GOD Are you ready to Pass from Death to Life? “And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” Revelation 20:15 God wants to pardon you – before it’s too late. Jesus beckons you to “Come unto me.” — before it’s too late. (Matthew 11:28-30) “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 30 […]

Following Jesus to the End of Your Life [podcast]

Fresh Start with God

You can Have a … Jesus is the Great Shepherd of His Sheep (Heb. 13:20; Lk. 15) A FRESH START WITH GOD (First, if you are not certain that you are genuinely born again, please go here first) Let’s get something straight…. the disciple, the mere man writing this message is more in need of JESUS than anyone who ever lived! No one needs Jesus more than I do and yet, we must do things HIS way, not our own (Ephesians 3:8). “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.” Proverbs […]

Apostasy

Eating the Fat, and Drinking the Sweet! [podcast]

Mourning Trumps Merriment in Christ’s Kingdom

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, I’d like to walk in Your bless-ed joy, filling my life to overflowing, no matter what’s transpiring. LORD, I ask You to do Your deeper work in my heart, in my life. Please set apart my life to truly glorify You, being full of the fruits of Your righteousness. In Jesus’ Name, amen.

Everyone desires the joy of the LORD, right? Yes, yet only those who are willing to devour His Word – to get it into their hearts and keep it flowing into their hearts, will experience that great joy of the LORD which is our strength! In context, the joy of the LORD is the strength of those who read it, hear it, embrace it, adhere to it, and keep it flowing into their mind and heart daily! (Nehemiah 8:8, 10)

“So they read in the book in the law of God distinctly (directly), and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading. … 10 Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” Nehemiah 8:8, 10

After they had feasted on God’s Word, the elders of Israel said to them: You are now full of the Word. Now “Go your way”, that is, go home and be blessed to “send portions” of the bounty of the LORD you’ve been filled with today to overflowing. “Freely ye have received, freely give.” (Matthew 10:8) Let your cup run over and bless others! Let your light shine into others, may your cup run over onto others, to bless them with the bountiful blessings of the LORD you have received.

We have to eat the fat and drink the sweet of the Word of God to be filled with the joy of the LORD which is our strength!

“Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O LORD God of hosts.” Jeremiah 15:16

Nourishing the Body of Christ

DO people know they can find the rich treasures of God’s Word when they walk into your life, when they visit your social media page? (Colossians 3:16) Will they be “nourished” by the milk and meat of God’s bless-ed Word when they are graced to be in your company?

“There is treasure to be desired and oil in the dwelling of the wise.” Proverbs 21:20

Holy Father, we ask You in the name of Jesus to make us happy in Jesus as You’ve forgiven and freed us from our sin and so of all people on Your earth, only Your people can be truly happy in Thee dear LORD. Please bless each of Your beloved saints to be anointed for the death and burial of the self life and raised up in Your blessed resurrection grace and joy. In Jesus’ name let it be dear LORD.

“These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.” John 15:11

Joy in the LORD

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G.O.D. = Game Over Devil [podcast]

Ousting the Enemy! WHO’s READY FOR SOME VICTORY? Satan only has place when the individual isn’t submitted to God. James 4:7 – memorize. Your issue is with the God you have sinned against, and not me, a mere messenger of His. Blaming everyone except the sinner who caused your separation from your Maker will only dig yourself deeper in misery. The sin you are living in has given full control of your life to Satan who has come “to steal, to kill, and to destroy” (John 10:10). The following information will equip you to know what the LORD requires of […]

Abiding

The Death before the Death [podcast]

Gethsemane Preceded Calvary

“And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed, 42 Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done. 43 And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him. 44 And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.” Luke 22:42-44

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

“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

“And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. 24 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it. 25 For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast away?” Luke 9:23-25

Shall We Freshly Declare the Cross to be Front and Center in our Personal Lives?

“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

5 Aspects of the Mind of Christ [podcast]

5 Components of the Mind of Christ from Philippians 2 Jesus Christ made Himself of no reputation. He took upon Him the form of a servant. He was made in the likeness of men. He humbled Himself. He became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Philippians 2:2-10 “Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. 3 Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. 4 Look not every man on his own things, but […]

The Cross and the Throne of Grace [podcast]

“Hid with Christ in God” “If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. 2 Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. 3 For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.” Colossians 3:1-4 The safest place in the universe is in the cross of Christ: “your life is hid with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3). Our place of protection is […]

Raised Up in Christ [podcast]

3 Resurrections to Celebrate 1. Christ’s resurrection (Matthew 27:64; 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, etc.). 2. Your resurrection at the moment of regeneration and daily resurrection (Romans 1:4; 4:25; 6:3-14; 8:11; 2 Corinthians 4:10-12; Ephesians 2:6). 3. Final resurrection into glory or damnation (John 5:28; 29; 1 Corinthians 15). Christ’s resurrection guarantees ours and that we need not fear death. Dancing on hell’s grace. Read 1 Corinthians 15 serveral times. “But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; 25 Who was delivered for our offences, and […]

The Only Way Up is Down [podcast]

Chapter 8 from the book Raised Up (narration) “Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.” Proverbs 16:18 The Down and Up Principle of God’s Kingdom “And the remnant that is escaped of the house of Judah shall again take root DOWNWARD, and bear fruit UPWARD.” Isaiah 37:31 The Scriptures follow a pattern of death and resurrection, a downward death and upward life. See if you can observe such a truth in the following verses: “The LORD upholdeth all that fall, and raiseth UP all those that be bowed DOWN.” Psalms 145:14 Do you possess the blessed desire to be raised up by […]

Abiding

“Rend Your Heart, and Not Your Garments” [podcast]

Who Does God Look to? Who Does God Dwell in?

Beware of any man pretending to represent Christ who isn’t praying and preaching for you to be possessed by a humble and contrite heart.

“Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:3

“‘Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven’ (Matthew 5:3). A low condition. ‘Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted’ (Matthew 5:4). To mourn over our sin and our utter wickedness before a holy and righteous God. Those are the ones who will receive the comfort and ‘joy in the Holy Ghost’ (Romans 14:17).” Karen Cochran

Abandoning Our Own Sin, Our Own Way, for God and His Better Way!

To “rend your heart” is a biblical phrase meaning to tear open your heart in radical sincerity, true humility, and genuine repentance.

The phrase comes from Joel 2:13 in the Bible: “Rend your heart and not your garments and return to the Lord your God.”

One source notes the following:

“Context and Deeper Meaning:

Cultural Background: In ancient times, the Jewish people would tear (rend) their clothes as a public, highly visible display of grief or repentance.
The Spiritual Message: God is warning that outward rituals (like ripping clothing) are meaningless if the heart remains unchanged. Rending your heart implies breaking through your pride, letting go of excuses, and being completely vulnerable and authentic before God.
The Reward: The verse goes on to say that God is “gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love.” Tearing open your heart allows you to experience His forgiveness and restore your relationship with Him.”

To see an example of rending one’s physical garment in representation of rending their heart, see Acts 14:11-18.

Where is the LORD Looking?

“But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7

“Therefore also now, saith the Lord, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning: 13 and rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the Lord your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil. 14Who knoweth if he will return and repent, and leave a blessing behind him; even a meat offering and a drink offering unto the Lord your God” Joel 2:12-14

“What a gracious invitation is contained in these words. How tenderly the Lord reasons with his people. And what an encouraging assurance it folds up with. Reader! do not fail to observe that this call of the Lord, the accompanying grace to incline the heart to the observance of it is implied. It is most blessed ever to remember that when the Lord thus comes forth in his endearing invitations, he is secretly inclining the heart to accept them. Grace must first enter the heart, or there will be no inclination to obey.” Robert Hawker

“Jeremiah’s message was never meant to leave the heart in despair. Every warning from God carried an invitation to return. The Lord does not expose empty religion to shame His people, but to heal them. Repentance is not the loss of hope, it is the beginning of hope. Christ still receives every soul that comes with humility, and He gives living faith where there was only habit, peace where there was only fear, and joy where there was only emptiness. The call remains the same today, to draw near to Him with a sincere heart, trusting that His mercy is always greater than our weakness.” Dan Blincoe

A Fresh Start with God Always Begins with Humility and True Repentance

“Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.” Acts 3:19

Concerning rending our hearts before the LORD, one source notes:

The classic Bible passage on this concept is Joel 2:13, where God commands: “Rend your heart and not your garments”. In ancient biblical culture, tearing (or “rending”) one’s physical clothing was a customary, visible display of extreme grief, despair, or repentance. Through the prophet Joel, God is essentially telling His people: Stop doing the empty, outward religious ritual of tearing your clothes to show everyone how sorry you are. Instead, let me see true, inward brokenness over your sins.

Examples of Rending Physical Garments

In the Bible, the physical act of tearing clothes was used as a dramatic expression of deep emotion in several well-known narratives:

Joseph’s Brothers (Genesis 37:29, 34): When Reuben realized Joseph was not in the pit, and later when the brothers brought Joseph’s blood-stained coat to Jacob, they tore their clothes in grief and despair.
Job (Job 1:20): After hearing that he had lost all his wealth and his children, Job stood up and tore his robe as an outward sign of his overwhelming sorrow.
King David (2 Samuel 1:11-12): When David received news of the deaths of King Saul and Jonathan, he and his men tore their clothes to mourn.
The High Priest (Matthew 26:65): In a dramatic display of hypocritical outrage, the high priest tore his own garments when Jesus declared He was the Son of God, falsely accusing Him of blasphemy.

The Spiritual Meaning of “Rending the Heart”

The concept of “rending the heart” contrasts an outward show with inward reality.

Genuine Repentance: Tearing your heart means being vulnerable, acknowledging your brokenness, and deeply repenting of sin before God.
Prioritizing Relationships over Rituals: God desires a sincere heart—true sorrow and a desire to change—more than he desires traditional religious pageantry or dramatic, public displays of grief.
The Promise of Forgiveness: In Joel 2:13, the command to rend the heart is immediately followed by the promise of grace: “Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love”.

God sees beyond our external habits and religious actions, requiring instead a humble, contrite heart to fully experience His mercy.”

God’s Mercy

“Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning: 13 And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil. 14 Who knoweth if he will return and repent, and leave a blessing behind him; even a meat offering and a drink offering unto the LORD your God?” Joel 2:12-14

In God’s Word, where we see men who tear open their garments…. This holds the illustration of rending our hearts before the LORD.

Don’t render outward tearing, no, rather, tear open your inner man, your heart—be honest, sincere, exposed, and vulnerable to the LORD whom you trust.

Let’s attempt to get at, to ascertain what God is commanding of His beloved people to do in this “rend your heart” passage.

“Joel 2:13: Rend your heart—Let it not be merely a rending of your garments, but let your hearts be truly contrite. Merely external worship and hypocritical pretensions will only increase the evil, and cause God to meet you with heavier judgments.

For he is gracious—Good and benevolent in his own nature.

Merciful—Pitying and forgiving, as the effect of goodness and benevolence.

Slow to anger —He is not easily provoked to punish, because he is gracious and merciful.

Of great kindness—Exuberant goodness to all them that return to him.

And repenteth him of the evil—Is ever ready to change his purpose to destroy, when he finds the culprit willing to be saved. See the notes on Exo_34:6, Exo_34:7.” Adam Clarke

“Joel 2:12-14: III. DIVINE APPEAL TO JUDAH TO REPENT (2:12-14)
Even now, the LORD calls the people to repentance. It is not too late to return to Him. But it must be more than outward ritual. Their turning was to be with all their heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.” Believer’s Bible Commentary

To rend our hearts is the consistent message, mandate of God to His people of all ages and eras.

“The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.” Psalms 34:18

“The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.” Psalms 51:17

In Joel 2 the LORD reminds those who are backslidden that He “is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil. 14 Who knoweth if he will return and repent, and leave a blessing behind him; even a meat offering and a drink offering unto the LORD your God? …”

They must meet His stated conditions to receive His blessings ….

He promises that He will forgive them as they…..

“Joel 2:12-27: THE AVERTING OF JUDGMENT
To rend the garment is easy, but a broken and contrite heart can be imparted only by the grace of the Holy Spirit. The love of God should bring us to repentance. He takes no pleasure in our miseries and if men repent and turn from their sin they find an immediate and loving welcome to the Father’s heart and home. Joel had called for the trumpet to announce war; he now directs the trumpet blast to summon the people, from the highest to the lowest, to plead for help. Prayer and true repentance and faith bring an immediate answer. As the husband yearns over his erring but repentant wife, and is indignant with those who have maltreated her, so will Jehovah remove from us, when we turn to Him, those who have cruelly oppressed us.
The great things Jehovah did against Egypt and Babylon are an earnest of what He will do again. The earth (and all the creation of God) … have good reason to rejoice in what awaits them. God promises not only to forgive sin, but to make us happy and well provided as if the locust and cankerworm had never settled upon our lives.” FB Meyer

Religious hypocrites, counterfeits, emphasize the outward to cover their inner darkness, rebellion.

“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. 24 Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel. 25 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. Matthew 23:23-25

“He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.” Mark 7:6

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