Because of the gravity of the situation we currently find ourselves in, it is imperative that the word of God be now made plain, as it pertains to our present condition, and it’s for this reason why several passages in the scriptures must now be made to speak for themselves, without any personal opinions or human input. Even though many may not know it, the real unseen tragedy of yesterday’s decision, is that millions of evil spirits were let loose across the globe, and the restraining power of God has been lifted to a large degree. Here are just a few samples of the more prominent tweets that were exchanged yesterday, and may God have mercy upon us. Let’s read:
President Obama ✔ @POTUS
Today is a big step in our march toward equality. Gay and lesbian couples now have the right to marry, just like anyone else. #LoveWins 10:10 AM - 26 Jun 2015
Martin O'Malley
Reminded of Will and his moms on the day we passed marriage equality in MD. There’s no greater human right than love. #LoveWins
10:10 AM - 26 Jun 2015
Joaquin Castro ✔
Today, love prevailed. A historic ruling from #SCOTUS in favor of justice and equality.
Here's to having, holding and marrying who you love.
It is now imperative that all true Christians be now clad with the whole armor of God, from the crown of our heads to the soles of our feet, that we may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all to stand. The following words of Holy writ are therefore sent to us directly from God that we may understand the import of what has recently taken place in this country. Let’s read:
1st John 1:8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Ecclesiastes 8:11 Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.
12 Though a sinner do evil an hundred times, and his days be prolonged, yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, which fear before him.
2nd Peter 3:3 Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts,
4 And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.
5 For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old”…
6 Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished:
7 But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.
9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
11 Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness.
14 Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.
Proverbs 1:24 Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded;
25 But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof:
26 I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh;
27 When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you.
28 Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me:
29 For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the Lord:
30 They would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof.
31 Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices.
33 But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil.
Zephaniah 1:12 And it shall come to pass at that time, that I will search”… “and punish the men that are settled on their lees: that say in their heart, The Lord will not do good, neither will he do evil.
13 Therefore their goods shall become a booty, and their houses a desolation: they shall also build houses, but not inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, but not drink the wine thereof.
Isaiah 13:3 I have commanded my sanctified ones, I have also called my mighty ones for mine anger, even them that rejoice in my highness.
4 The noise of a multitude in the mountains, like as of a great people; a tumultuous noise of the kingdoms of nations gathered together: the Lord of hosts mustereth the host of the battle.
5 They come from a far country, from the end of heaven, even the Lord, and the weapons of his indignation, to destroy the whole land.
6 Howl ye; for the day of the Lord is at hand; it shall come as a destruction from the Almighty.
7 Therefore shall all hands be faint, and every man's heart shall melt:
8 And they shall be afraid: pangs and sorrows shall take hold of them; they shall be in pain as a woman that travaileth: they shall be amazed one at another; their faces shall be as flames.
9 Behold, the day of the Lord cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it.
11 And I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible.
13 Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth shall remove out of her place, in the wrath of the Lord of
hosts, and in the day of his fierce anger.
Revelation 11:4 These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth.
5 And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed.
6 These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will.
10 And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them, and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because these two prophets tormented them that dwelt on the earth.
Revelation 6:14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.
15 And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves
in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;
16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:
17 For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?
Isaiah 2:10 Enter into the rock, and hide thee in the dust, for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of his majesty.
11 The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.
12 For the day of the Lord of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low:
19 And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth.
20 In that day a man shall cast his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which they made each one for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats;
21 To go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tops of the ragged rocks, for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth.
Luke 17:26 And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man.
27 They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all.
28 Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded;
29 But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all.
30 Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed.
1st Thessalonians 5:2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.
3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman
with child; and they shall not escape.
4 But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.
6 Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.
The standards, customs and practices of those who do not fear God should never be the criteria for Christians, for it is often the case that what is permitted by society, is diabolically opposed to the instructions of God. The true Christian is to be guided by the teachings of the scriptures alone, without any additions, amendments, or variations based on custom and culture. Furthermore, what is often legally permissible in a state or country, may not necessarily be in line with what the scriptures teach on the very same point, and thus it is important that we order our steps according to what is written.
The family unit, which is the God-ordained foundation of all society, has come under increasing attack by both human and satanic agencies, and the sacred marriage institution which God has given to safeguard the families of earth, is now being dragged in the dust. But whatever laws or manmade institutions to the contrary may be legislated, we must remember that God never blesses disobedience, even if it is thus presented by politicians, judges and religious leaders.
The wages of sin always carry negative consequences, and although Jesus Christ has died to redeem us from sin, yet in the real world, the suffering and the estrangement which result from all unscriptural relationships will be the experience of those who continue to live in violation of God’s order. In the beginning when God created Adam and Eve, He ordained that a man should leave his father and mother to cleave unto his one “Female” wife, and whenever this order is disturbed for any reason, the blessing of God cannot rest upon such unions. Let’s read:
Genesis 2:18 And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.
21 And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof;
22 And the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.
23 And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.
24 Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.
However, in our day there are many pastors and clergy who often presume to ask God’s blessing on same-sex marriage, in direct violation of His plainest commands in these matters, but try as we might, blessings will not come down, nor invoked upon that which God has already proscribed in His word. Similarly with those who choose to “Shack up” instead of entering into a lifelong commitment with the one who they claim to love, for according to the Bible, “leaving” should always lead to “cleaving”, and not the other way around.
In other words, if a man claims to love a woman, and is desirous of living with her, he should put his money
where his mouth is and get married to the woman of his dreams, so that the blessing of God can rest upon the relationship, and the children who may be born to them. But never are we to think that God will bless the relations of those who “Shack up”, for in so doing, we would place ourselves in a condition of continuing sin, in which God’s favor can never be invoked, even if we have the best of intentions.
Furthermore, history and statistical records have shown that the longer a man lives with a “female” woman, the less likely he is to marry her, because the question always arises, why should we commit ourselves after all these years, when we knowingly entered into such and such an agreement in the first place. Thus it is in such a situation, the man is left free to take a hike whenever the going gets rough, or when another person of interest comes along. And the woman, not having the security of a lifelong commitment, may feel at liberty to walk away if she finds another who tells her sweet little lies.
If a man is not willing to tie the knot with the woman he claims to love, then he is lying, because true love always
leads to a commitment. It is not the will of God that the relationship between a man and woman be left in limbo, nor is it His will that they two be kept in sexual purgatory for any length of time, without the security of a marital commitment before God and man, for if God were to sanction such relationships, then the very foundation of society will crumble, and the children of such unions will lack the stability and security of knowing that mom and dad are in it for the long haul.
Furthermore the relationship between a man and woman are likened in the Bible to our relationship with Christ, and in our union with Him, a deliberate decision to be committed for life must be made upfront, or else we cannot partake of the special blessings He bestows on those whom He knows. Hence the reason why several strong statements pertaining to the Christian’s relation to God are made in the scripture, thereby showing the permanence and indivisibility God originally intended for a man and his female wife. Let’s read:
John 3:1 There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.
2 The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God”….
5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.
Acts 2:37 Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?
38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
Ephesians 5:24 Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing.
25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;
28 So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself.
29 For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church:
30 For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones.
31 For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh.
The current, prevalent practice of having intimate sexual relations with someone of the opposite sex, when there is no legally binding commitment in marriage before God and man is a sin, and must not be indulged by any true Christian for any reason. Before my wife and I were baptized into Christ, and before we were married, we lived for a brief period in a common law relationship without a commitment, but the immediate advice of our parents was to get married if we loved one another, because it is a sin and a snare to live with someone of the opposite sex in any type of intimate relationship, and thus we began to make plans towards that end.
This we did in obedience to the word of God, and ever since that time we have been extremely married, and are happily serving God with a clear conscience in this matter, knowing that His blessing rests upon all such unions. Our children who were born into such a union have always seen their mom and dad go through the ups and downs of life as one, and although it hasn’t always been easy, at the end of the day they see that God is well able to reconcile any problem and to bring that stability, consistency, and longevity to any marriage that is under His care, and which is performed in harmony with the counsels given in scripture.
And so it is with candor that we will address the issue of Cohabiting, without cleaving in marriage. There are now virtually millions of households across the land, in which this situation has obtained, some for financial reasons, and others for the opportunity to second guess one’s first choice as a mate. Women are not as shoes that are purchased from Payless, in which men can try them on for a while, and then return them for a full refund. And men are not as cars that can be test driven or taken for a ride, with the hope that the “Lemon law” will be an option, just in case things do not work out.
When two of the opposite sex are desirous of sharing intimate and friendly relationships with one another, they should refrain from all sexual interactions until such time that a formal, God-ordained commitment is made, for in this way the children that are produced from such unions can have stability, security, and longevity in the family. However, those Christians who have already gone the other route are now faced with a sobering choice, of whether to continue “shacking” or to start “packing”.
Decisions such as these are especially difficult in those situations where children are already born into the relationship, for then one has to decide whether to continue living in sin for the sake of the children, or whether to call the intimate part of the relationship quits, so that the blessing of God can rest upon them.
If any of us as Christians are presently in such a situation it is very important that we pay close attention to the following suggestions, for whatever may be the current situation, earnest efforts will have to be made to correct the evil, if we are to be brought into harmony with God’s revealed will for the family.
Step (1) Pray as never before, for wisdom, guidance and discretion, so that in trying to resolve the issue, it will be done in the spirit of loving kindness, so that cohesiveness may be fostered. But under no circumstances should any coercion be used, for to love is a free choice stemming from a deep appreciation of one’s character, and Jesus is able to touch hearts and minds, bringing them into harmony with His revealed will. Let’s read:
Proverbs 3:4 So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man.
5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
7 Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord, and depart from evil.
Step (2) Have a candid discussion of the matter with the other person in question, with a determination to seal the relationship through the God-ordained method of marriage. If it is observed that the other party becomes upset, or is avoiding the commitment under various pretexts, then that is a signal that true love probably never existed in the first place, and if the person persists in refusing to tie the knot, then go on to step three.
Step (3) If children are involved, then extreme care must be taken so that the family bonds that have already been established may not be broken. But in such situations where one person refuses to seal the relationship for life through marriage, all intimate, sexual relations should cease, until such time that the person is ready to commit, because as stated before in the example of Christ and the church, no commitment translates into no relationship with those who are undecided. Let’s read:
Romans 8: There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.
Step (4) In certain irresolvable situations, one may have to “Pack up” instead of shacking up, if the desire is to serve God with a clear conscience. There are times in life when very difficult decisions must be made, not only for one’s sanity, but also for one’s personal salvation. In such situations we should remember the words of Christ concerning our priorities, for Jesus must be front and center of all our experiences, and therefore, if one must pack up in order to serve God, then so let it be. Let’s read:
Matthew 10:37 He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.
38 And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.
39 He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.
As we live in an ever increasing evil world, there will be a strong temptation to judge ourselves based on the evils that others do, and thus we may inadvertently think of our lesser sins as being of no consequence when they are compared with others. This snare we must avoid at all costs, so that at every step of the way, we may be found living in harmony with the word. May God help us to resolve these issues wherever they may apply, for He has promised to give us grace to help in times of need. Let’s read:
Hebrews 4:15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.
16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.
May God bless the study and practice of His word.