Isaiah 53

We’ve already explored why you were made in the Image and Likeness of God in three parts;  One,  Two, and Three. Those regard what we suppose our final estate to be. But the question before us now is, what is the image of Christ in men while God has seen fit to leave us here in anticipation of Christ’s return?

“For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.” – Isaiah 53:2

I’ve seen many “AI” renderings lately, the makers of which have supposed to be of our Lord Jesus Christ. The definition and use of AI is another topic, but the image of Christ is critical for believers to understand. Seeing these images got us thinking, what is the image of Christ?

There was nothing special about His appearance as a man. He was not particularly attractive or fascinating to gaze upon, and He was not especially stunning in outward physique or face. And He, being a working man, unquestionably wasn’t pretty and effeminate as so many Middle Ages paintings would depict. He looked like an average guy.

Isaiah 53 is the prophecy of the trial and crucifixion of Christ. The degree and intensity of humiliation are vividly displayed, for in being debased, smitten, and stricken of God for our sin, the Father hath highly exalted Him and given him a name which is above every name (Philippians 2:9). Isaiah 53 is the Scripture the Ethiopian Eunuch was reading when the Lord’s messenger of the Gospel, Phillip, showed Him the way of salvation (Acts 8:26-40).

Verse 2 shows us that there would be no outward appearance of His person that indicates He is the Lord. But it’s more than that. Why did God ordain, in His wisdom, that Christ should have no external beauty?

Humans are visual creatures. It’s the most prevalent of our five senses. We have 3d depth perception in one of the broadest color spectrums of any creature on earth. Humans become enamored with beauty for a season. Some men appreciate specific facial structures and adornments given by God, while other men may respect different ones.

We’ve seen folks enamored with the appearance of somebody to the point of refusing to acknowledge that soul’s inward condition and ugliness. And conversely, if Christ had been attractive, could any have heard His great word and the offer of the Kingdom? The Father, through Christ, was and is seeking a people to worship Him in spirit and in truth (John 4:24), not in outward impression.

Lovely, however, is the notion that He grew before God as a tender shoot, indeed, born of a virgin, God in a helpless child nurtured into manhood. So too that He grew from dry ground, an infertile hard pack where no life of the Spirit would grow; all Israel hadn’t heard from God in 400 years and was far astray from the Holy Creator of heaven and earth when John Baptist came preaching repentance toward God making way for the Holy One. Jesus arrived right on time, according to the prophet Daniel. But, praise God, not all were in darkness; some waited for the consolation of Israel and the Kingdom of God at His appearing. Simeon in the temple – Luke 2:25 and Joseph of Arimathea, who buried Christ’s body – Mark 15:43, are two examples.

“Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.” – Isaiah 53:10

Isaiah 53 reveals the lost condition of the human soul and God’s desire for reconciliation. Perhaps you’re not so sure about God’s desire. What more excellent an offer than that His own Son should die for you, standing in your stead as payment for your sin? It pleased the Almighty to bruise Christ and put Him to grief, making His soul an offering for sin. On the cross, Jesus Christ saw you, who would be a son of God. Jesus saw all His seed who would receive the new birth by the Spirit of God to be heirs with Christ in the Kingdom of God.

God made Christ’s soul an offering for the torture of hell that your eternal soul was supposed to suffer. Though every sinner deserves hell, God gave His soul to suffer in agony so that your immortal soul, helpless in its sin-stained condition, might see the Glory of God in eternity. Jesus poured out His soul, receiving an inheritance of the eldest Son, firstborn from the dead, resurrected to new life. He defeated hell and set the captives free.

Yes, God wants to reconcile with you so that you might know Him, even be friends with Him in service of His domain; it would please Him. Imagine that; God being well pleased with saving your soul by a simple faith in the power of Jesus Christ, who rose from the dead.

The challenging part for those who are His is to resemble Christ. You, dear Christian brethren, are supposed to look just like Him, who sacrificed everything so that men could be remade and joined again in fellowship and harmony with God almighty.

You were made in God’s image, but the likeness is broken by sin. Even for those born again, sin remains and is a constant battle. However, the resemblance to God has been recreated (a new man), and your mind and heart should be refreshed, having been given the image of God again in the Spirit who created you. “And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him” – Colossians 3:10. The new man, having been made a new creation indwelled by the Spirit, should look and act like Christ, God in flesh.

What did Jesus do, teach, and prepare His disciples to do? Those are the specific things the followers of Christ are supposed to do even today, “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 8:11.

Don’t limit or reject the quickening of the Spirit, but trust God in all things doing the will of Him that loves you. What does a leader in Christ do? He declares to the believers that we are to emulate Christ (1 Corinthians 11:1). What is the similitude of Christ if not His people following His commandments because they love Him (John 14:15). The mirror is pointed right back at me, for none are perfect and all fall short. Still, brethren, “…press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:14).

Jesus is the express image of the Father (Colossians 1:15, Hebrews 1:3). A disciple in any endeavor of human activity is supposed to be the likeness of his teacher; so much more the Christian, we are to be the picture of Christ who is the Master of all. But so many Christians today will need to be taught how to serve. John 14:9 is instructive, “Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?”

Has the word of God been so long time with you, yet you haven’t seen Christ and how you are to serve? Reading the Scripture, filled with awe and wonder at Him, what are you going to do about that? Hide it away in a napkin buried in the ground? What are you afraid of (Matthew 25:25). We’re all naked before God, why care what people think of you, serve Christ! “And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?” – Luke 6:46

There is no outward beauty that we should desire Him. The truths He taught and commanded in the Holy Bible are where the magnificence of Christ resides because in His word is where a man must always find the revealed will of the Father. Do the people you spend time with, do they see Christ? Do they know Him through you?

If you want to understand the relationship between God the Father, Christ, and the Holy Spirit better, always do the will of the Father, for that is as Christ did. It’s one reason why the Father sent the Holy Spirit in Christ’s name; to teach you all things and remind you what Christ has said. Without studying the Scripture, there is nothing about which to remind you! And without doing what the Holy Bible says a disciple of Christ must do: if you read it and don’t do it, it’s not real to you. You remain a theoretical Christian untrained by the Spirit and untested through the fire, having never walked by faith in the service of our Lord to see the blessings of the Dispensation of Grace. You’re missing the Kingdom into which you were reborn and are meant to be an active citizen.

What is an ambassador for King Jesus but one who represents Him in all things and beseeches the lost sinner to be reconciled to God (2 Corinthians 5:20). A consumer of Christianity who won’t be a bondservant of Christ in the New Covenant is a wicked and rebellious son.

What is the glory of Christ Jesus; the fullness of grace and truth (John 1:14). Be the fullness of grace and truth to bring glory to God.

“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.” – 2 Corinthians 4:10

“26 In the fear of the LORD is strong confidence: and his children shall have a place of refuge. 27 The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death.” – Proverbs 14:26-27

In the fear of the Lord, not with or because of the fear of the Lord. Salvation is likewise in Christ, not with Christ. It’s not our might or our grace; it’s His to those that are in Him.

Though your faithfulness to God is required, and though your service brings glory to the Father through His Son, none of your yields are sufficient to merit forgiveness for sin. So very frustrating to hear is the man that claims His duties in service of God as warrant for the grace presented as freely given only by belief in Jesus Christ. To suppose works could save your eternal soul is to remit payment due to Holy God: what a perilous chasm to hang yourself over; God owes no man.

And even if one paid all they had, shall you try to best the crucifixion of Jesus; can you sacrifice greater than He? No outcomes can get you life with God nor keep you heaven bound to stand with Christ forgiven. Cast off your reliance on self and gaze upon the cross with the faith of a child; the strength and confidence of the saved sinner rest solely in the Lord.

Jesus Christ is the propitiation: the favor and goodwill of the Almighty to sacrifice His own Son as payment rendered in blood to appease His perfect law for your sin-guiltiness. Assurance of eternal life comes with peace of mind knowing the safest assumption you’ll ever make is in the superiority of reliance on Jesus Christ.

When looking to your right hand and finding no man, no help or pity or care from this world, and none cared for your soul, cry out unto the Lord, call upon your portion and your redeemer, the bringer and giver of life, the God of salvation. Sing aloud of His power, sing aloud of His mercy in the morning, for He is a strong defense.

Jesus rose from the tomb on the third day, and by His power over the grave, you can depart from the snare of death and hell that pursues every man. Never to see outer darkness and the torment of hell; in Christ Jesus is life everlasting to those that are given by the Father to be His eternal prize. “I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.” – Psalm 91:2

Buried with Christ through trust in God and raised in a new and Holy Spirit of eternal life, placed in the family of God as His child, having shelter from damnation, nestled snug to His bosom in eternity, kept by the power of God through faith is the sanctuary in the Lord our King.

Though God owes men nothing, yet with one drop of that water, clear as crystal, a fountain of life from the throne of God and of the Lamb, a man may have the gift of salvation so thorough, so complete, that in the fear of the Lord, nothing can pluck you from the Master’s hand. But it’s not one drop; the river of the water of life flows freely to all who seek in confidence the Just One as their new and holy city of refuge.

“Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned” – Romans 5:12

Inherent sin is provable, both in nature and from Scripture.

There was a video recently in which the speaker claimed that there is no inherent sin in man because the young are unaware of their sinful acts. I won’t link the video; we’ll stay attached closely to the truth lest we wander. But in this video, his children were acting up very near the beginning. He told the camera that his two-year-old is always doing bad things, but their behavior is not sin because the child does not know right and wrong.

Brothers and sisters, he disproved his point at the outset. One does not have to teach a child to strike another and take his toy. What made the child like this? To claim they are not sinners is to say that God made them rebellious, which, when you realize all men are sinners, is a claim that the source image of man is also a sinner; this is blasphemous! With no prompting or instruction whatsoever, children are sinners. Nobody had to teach them this. Even upon reprimand, children will continue to bear false witness, disobey a mother, steal, assault without good cause, and worse. They do this because they were born this way!

We are sinners, born of the seed of Adam, wholly wicked and depraved, even without remorse. It takes 12, 14, or 18 years to train a child in the way of Jesus Christ. Even then, much to his own dismay, though he would not, an adult born altogether anew by the Spirit of God sent from Heaven by Christ continues to flout the law of God in his heart, in his mind, and in his actions.

In fact, before salvation, the lost sinner may have some vague and darkened sense of right and wrong, but it’s almost always applied comparatively to other men. Man is born a sinner; unless and until the Lord opens their eyes, they are blinded by the devil to God and Christ; yet, created by God, they are His, without excuse before the throne on high. To acknowledge your sin, you must have knowledge of it, which is the miracle of salvation in Christ; that He is opening your eyes, showing your need for forgiveness and fear of hellfire. But Heaven help you, refusal to acknowledge your sin, even in ignorance feigned or actual, shall not save you at the final trumpet when Christ returns.

As to our verse at the top, the Scripture does not lie. Sin entered into the world through disobedience to God by the first man Adam, causing death. For this was the devil’s claim in the lie to the woman; “Ye shall not surely die.” But dead in sin, naked and afraid before Holy God, became the first man and his wife, and indeed his body expired, returning to the dust from whence he was taken, which was the very curse of God pronounced upon him for his rebelliousness. Disobedience to God is now in every man from his birth, so death passed upon all men, every single one, from Adam down each generation until today. There is no more clear evidence of sin than that every man’s life is but a vapor, appointed by God once to die; depravity of sin and the inevitability of death torments us all, for all that are in the world and the very earth itself are cursed by God for this sin.

But spoken in the word of God by the prophet Hosea, portending the day of Christ: “O grave, I will be thy destruction.” And later in the New Testament: “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?” For what need a man of Christ if he is not a sinner bound to death unto the weight of the curse? Jesus himself said He came to save sinners. That you needn’t have to, Jesus tasted death for every man, for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. That’s right; payment has already been made; accept it and call on Jesus.

Admit your depravity, abandon your pride, and seek forgiveness from God through faith in the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ. That’s why Jesus died on the cross, to pay your sin debt to Holy God. And now, Jesus having risen from the grave; by the very mercies of God Almighty, you need not die. Though your body will expire and be eaten by worms, those raised with Christ by the Spirit now will be raised again in the body, and with Job, we can proclaim to all the world: “For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth…yet in my flesh shall I see God.”

“1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. 2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. 3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. 4 The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away. 5 Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. 6 For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.” – Psalms 1

Sometimes simple is the best course to take. Not a season but a day of seeming silence from God and in frustration turning to the first Psalm, there is the Lord, waiting in His mercy; the word of God beckoning; draw nigh to the throne of heaven and be refreshed.

Keep it simple; Psalm the first certainly does that for any who seeks to hear from the Almighty, to know of His basic instruction for saved sinners, and has the desire to turn away from the counsel of the ungodly. Also contained in this Psalm is the warning to the man without Christ as his God. Deuteronomy 11:26 plainly says what runs throughout the entire holy writ; God has set before us blessings and curses, a truth of the economy of our Creator, plain from the text above.

There is a lot of negativity today. So much so that it will disturb the soul. The closer one walks with the King of saints, the brighter the promise of His coming and the new creation. And conversely, the further from His love, the darker the counsel of this world, so much so the saved man may find himself standing in the way of sinners having sat down in the seat of the scornful.

Life is a choice every day; the way of the Lord Jesus Christ or the practice of evil that is of the world with its conventions and impostor gods. Psalm One offers two paths, the straight gate, the narrow way leading unto life and life eternal, or the broad way which leads to destruction.

The word of God engages the law written on the inward parts, that is, upon the heart, delighting in the Lord, meditating upon His grace, for the soul of the man that the Lord plants shall not be uprooted. Here is the way of the godly: though we may briefly faint, returning to God’s written truth, getting set firmly on the beacon of hope, the true north by which any compass must be fixed, which is Christ.

Two things are not so: speaking of the scornful (verse 1) doesn’t mean the godly saint goes along to get along with the evil of this world by not rebuking the sinner. Nor is the prosperity mentioned (verse 2) somehow worldly goods and pleasure; for all the riches of heaven await. Come out from the false churches of the New Religion and be revived!

The seat of the scornful is that of the man with a beam (Matthew 7:5) in his own eye. And the man that would prosper is bearing fruit in due season, blessed of the Lord, telling of the loving-kindness in salvation wherewith Christ has made him free indeed. Though He grows us through testing, failing to prosper in service is evidence of not doing as the Lord commands according to the word of God. Do all things God’s way, and though this is the more challenging road, follow the Bible, and by providence, in dominion, His blessings will reign from heaven.

Verse three tells us of the day when there will be a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. No more night, no more curse, but bathed continually in the love and light of God Almighty. In Christ is eternal life to those planted by still waters, never to wither, having an inheritance that fades not, calmed in the gale by the Lord’s indwelling hope, having the signature of His grace, the name of God, in their foreheads.

Every living thing brings forth fruit of its own kind (Genesis 1:11), in which is the seed of renewal. So too, the fruit of the Christian is all things by the law that tend to reproduce godliness in those with whom we interact; the fruit of the believer is the seed, which is the word God spread abroad, planting and watering in the souls of sinners and saints alike.

What better season than the fall of Empire to speak of a finer hope in a better Kingdom with better law and a great high King who rules in the affairs of men? Tell somebody about what great things the Lord has done for you!

The day of great separation is coming, the wheat from the chaff. There is One, Christ Jesus, who is come threshing all things; a great cleaving is at His hand upon the earth. Those without Christ, having never tasted the glories of the liberty in pardon the death of Jesus has brought, will surely perish, fruitless in the end; they will be driven away into outer darkness to burn up in the great fire.

Through Christ is forgiveness. Seek him carefully now before it’s too late because the ungodly, having rejected the day of new life that began with the resurrection of Christ from the dead, will be unable to stand at the great judgment of the Lord. In His wrath, He will indemnify evil for evil upon the head of the scornful man that rejects and mocks the most High by walking in the counsel of the ungodly.

Perhaps they don’t hate God; however, some do for no good cause, but they couldn’t be bothered with seeking their Maker, having no fear of God before their eyes.

And what future have those who called upon the Lord but continue to walk as scorners and sinners do? Integrity comes from following Lord in faith and trusting until the end.

All that heaven holds: the wealth of glory is to them that are joint heirs with Christ. The unforgiven may not enter into the congregation of the godly; one must be thoroughly cleansed, washed through and through by the blood of Jesus Christ, made upright, and seen of God in Christ, who is the only hope.

The choice is indeed simple this day: Christ Jesus is the righteous one, and God sees and does know if you are His. Destruction and hell are the future of those without hope; they are the ungodly scornful sinners who reject Christ. The Lord knows the way of the righteous man, but the ungodly shall perish in His wrath.

“For the LORD thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God.” – Deuteronomy 4:24

If enough Americans turn from our wicked ways, seek the face of the Holy One, pursue the Word of life in His purity, and forsake all sin, perhaps God will relent with the impending judgment forming all around. But you can’t fix them, you can start, and you must begin with yourself. At the last day, when you stand, judgment will be individual; Jesus is your one, best, and only hope to be made blameless before the consuming fire of the wrath of God.

Millions of hours are spent every year comparing ourselves; look at them and how bad they are. It’s an American industry, this sport of observing the wretchedness of others. Well, you can’t fix them. All you can do is get on a right standing with Holy God. If you seek the Lord with all your heart in a contrite spirit, you shall find Him merciful unto forgiveness from all sin.

God is a jealous God. He will allow no other gods before Him. Reject the false gods you’ve set over yourself, your family, and your nation. Everything done against His word is sin, and everything made higher in the mind and action than the truth of Jesus Christ is an idol.

Where you spend your time and money, there is your heart. Examine your schedule and your bank statement. Are those things contrary to the foundations of the teachings in the Holy Bible? When you work at counter purposes to God, you work against yourself and the blessings God would shower from heaven. Make God your god, pray without ceasing, seek His will in all things, and live according to the instruction in the New Testament.

“29 But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.” – Deuteronomy 4:29

In its narrowest context, this verse speaks nationally to those who received the law from Moses. The broader applications are reducible throughout Scripture to the Church, a church, family, and the individual.

God’s emphatic command aims for you to get right with Him, setting yourself according to His law-word. God is gracious, providing His divine criterion, His word in the Holy Bible. It’s a fixed beacon, the standard upon which every man can rely. The world spirals out of control, but God changes not. You needn’t wonder what course to take, what is good and right, for His love is codified for you; the instruction in righteousness given to all men fills every page. His Holy Bible is the measure, not measuring men against each other, but you must follow God by His canon.

Then, after days or weeks of preparation, as long as you need, lead your family out of the wilderness of sin and worldliness, rejecting the Godlessness and darkness of this sin-filled world that has coaxed you away from the life God has called you to fulfill. The way of the world leads to one dead end, your mortal soul in the consuming fire of the wrath of God.

Make a family devotion time together daily, drawing one immediate lesson showing God’s judgment of the wicked, the mercy of His lovingkindness to those that obey Him, and outlining a primary objective for instruction in righteousness to grow in Christ.

If you set about to do this, all manner of distraction and evil will come to bear against you. It’s a war, a real spiritual war of good against corruption. You must fight to bring your family into the love and light of Jesus Christ. But God is faithful and true; He will be with you.

“And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.” – Mark 1:15

Two thousand years ago, the time was fulfilled; the day of the Gospel arrived when Jesus Christ was manifest; therefore, to this day, the Kingdom of God rules in the hearts of men who repent of their unbelief. Jesus came preaching grace and truth, dying for your sins and rising again from the tomb. If you call upon His holy name, seek forgiveness from your sin, setting your face toward the new Jerusalem, that heavenly kingdom, the Christ of God will save you. Today is the day of salvation.

His compassion for new beginnings is available every day.

“It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.” – Lamentations 3:22

Psalm 19:7-14 (Read the whole Psalm to provide full context)

“7 The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.”

The Law of the Lord is divine, and final authority. The law of the Lord is so perfect that no man can keep the whole law. If any point is offended in the least, the entirety is broken. The brutal truth is that every man has violated the statutes in ordinance that God has given, your conscience bearing witness against you. It’s why most men won’t read the Holy Bible; it bothers them, and it should. But is that heartless, God pointing to His holiness and your need for Him, or is it merciful?

The law of God is often called a testimony, for its God’s testimony of His righteousness by evidence that we cannot attain unto the perfection that He demands by it. It’s His word to us, that we might finally be made free in Christ Jesus.

We are vile, but the fear of the Lord is clean and, indeed, cleansing. The law binds men over to the damnation of hell for sin. That’s how it saves; it does the necessary first work in our heart, convicting us of our need for a Saviour. For it’s well contended that no man who is not first in necessity will be saved; we’re too prideful and self-centered for that.

Jesus is the master instructor through the Holy Spirit, making the unlearned full of the knowledge of Him and giving wisdom through prayer and Bible study, perhaps with fasting. And He brings low the wise in their own conceit, destroying any who hold to life by other means than salvation through Jesus Christ.

The law makes the simple man wise, in it is the perfect knowledge of God to show us our iniquity, converting the soul of those who, calling upon Jesus Christ in their need, accept that the Lord is correct and that you’ve come short of the glory of God. In studying the law of God, men grow wise to the evil ways of the world, witnessing the power of God, for He is holy. “The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple.” – Psalm 119:130. The law raises men to be ever more desirous of a life with Him. The law teaches men, in all points, the very essence of our nature, full of sin and unrighteousness, with evil thoughts and deeds. Without Christ, there is no fear of God before their eyes. It’s not by the rules, but by your inability to keep the whole law that you learn the work that God does in bringing you to completion; the Spirit of God remakes a man into the image of Christ.

The sanctimonious Christians are a sorry lot. Don’t listen to them; they sin just like you. Only God is perfect. The law was written that it might teach us of our sins, but Jesus Christ came preaching grace and truth. Our defiled, fallen nature under the weight of sin that abounds in the world, in admitting that the statutes of the Lord are convicting to the soul, we come to the knowledge of God’s perfect being; holy, righteous, and just is He.

“8 The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes.”

Most read the law and get angry; it’s pure, convicting the conscience, disturbing the peace of the slumber in blindness to God that all those living in darkness suffer. Some claim they can keep its statutes to bring life. But those who hear the law, dying to self, rejoice that God has made a way to live in His grace and know that works and sacrifices He would not have; a broken and a contrite heart He will not despise.

“For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel’s, the same shall save it.” – Mark 8:35. The law rejoices the heart because we see a pathway to God through forgiveness in Jesus Christ. The law enlightens the eyes, the best part of which is that each man is taught by God in a peculiar way most fitting for his redemption. A unique and interesting conversion story lives in the resurrected heart of each saved sinner, and every testimony leads to the Christ of God our Saviour.

The law is divine in its quality, authentic to the receiver, constant in nature, and consistent in operation, showing the virtue and permanence of the true religion offered by the one and holy Creator.

If you allow, the law will break you to take the gentle yoke of the Lord Jesus, for He is a gracious and kind Master to all who submit. The fear of the Lord will cleanse the soul of the wicked, turning the vilest evildoer into a man seeking the integrity of God. You can be converted by faith to shine forth, for we are all made in the image of God.

“9 The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether.”

The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous; you can’t hide from them, nor can you escape. God is the judge of good and evil; His trials must always find the truth, for He is truth, knows all truth, and nothing can be hidden from His eyes. The law of the LORD is perfect, the statutes of the LORD are straight, and the fear of the LORD is clean. It’s the fear of God that endures forever. When a man’s heart rejects his own corruption, and fears before the Almighty calling upon Christ, this can be the day of salvation so long sought, your soul entering into God’s love.

Believing that Jesus died for your sins, and He was buried, and rose again the third day according to the Scriptures: and you having a fear of the Almighty through faith in Jesus, your soul can be brought into an allegiance with the Almighty that endures forever, having forgiveness from sin today, and life in heaven forever.

“10 More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.”

The judgments of the Lord are true and amen, better than earthly treasure and sweet on the palette to them that love Him; “O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.” – Psalm 34:8.

To those who have trusted Christ, in the law are we warned to repent and seek Him always and in all things, for it is He that will never defect nor will He abandon us; treason is not His way; God has never broken a promise. Christ showed us this truth in His own perfect blood. “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” – Hebrews 13:5

Covet not the things of this world as silver, gold, and honey but be content with the love of Jesus Christ. What’s better than forgiveness from transgressions and the removal of the bondage of law through contentedness in Christ Jesus?

“11 Moreover by them is thy servant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward. 12 Who can understand his errors? cleanse thou me from secret faults.”

By the law, His servant is warned that keeping faith with Jesus Christ and following His commands produces fruit. It’s nice to know that God provides all, but the rewards are His, for all things, good and right and holy, including the soul of the converted, will be gathered together in Christ, and He will glorify the Father. Seeing your errors, seek God for the cleansing of your soul in the blood of Christ, who is faithful to forgive you once for all; go and sin no more.

“13 Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me: then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression.”

The error of our way is that of sin leading to eternal death, none more damaging than those done in secret. That hidden in darkness will be brought to light; God sees your sin, and nothing is disguised from His eyes. And the lawlessness made in presumption, as though you alone declare right from wrong, are the sins of self-righteousness. You are a sinner; God is righteous; His law, His word, and His command are perfect. No man can attain by his own doing; you need the love of God and forgiveness for your sin found only in Jesus Christ. Then will you have a life lived in service of the good for Him, upright, not guilty in the day of great judgment.

The depth of your offenses can’t withhold the enormity of compassion and pardon of God, who loves you. No sin is bigger than God’s grace! Jesus tasted death for every man that you might find mercy by the grace of His eternal gift, which is life everlasting with God Almighty.

The Lord is my strength and my Redeemer.

Confess to Christ that you’re a sinner, and seek, with a contrite spirit, His redemption by faith in the power of God that raised Jesus from the dead. Let the words of your mouth and the confession of your soul to God be your meditation unto salvation. God raised Christ from the dead; no deadness of heart and soul cannot be forgiven and raised by Him to new life. Call upon His holy name, come earnestly into the throneroom of His mercy seeking to be made a son of God.

Jesus is the Redeemer; finally, turn yourself to God, asking for salvation. The law of God has found you guilty but points to your redemption in the love of Jesus Christ, which will make you whole.

“14 Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.”

Behold, what glorious things God has done for us.

“And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” – Genesis 3:15

Genesis 3:15 is one of the most important Bible verses. It lays out, at the beginning, thousands of years of coming history for mankind that now sits fulfilled in Christ. It also explains the thousands of years-long spiritual war that’s been raging on earth from the start. But it points to the first eschatological event that would set the pattern at the end of the age and for the ages to come.

The seed of the woman would be Christ the King, who crushed the head of the serpent. Christ spoiled principalities and powers in three realms; the prince and power of this world, the devil, and the religions of men were set down when Jesus Christ rose from the dead, and the kings of this world have been made the footstool of God’s own Son.

Many miss the implications of the resurrection. If God raised Christ from the dead, then the domain of death and hell is forever imperiled; having been conquered, the devil is a defeated foe.

And the kings and powers of this world mock God daily, seeking control and lusting to subjugate all the world, but neither is it theirs. For when the seventh trumpet sounded, “…The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.” – Revelation 11:15. But we do not read Revelation 11:15 alone, chapter 10 and specifically verses 6 and 7 explain that there should be time no longer.

God permits evil in judgment, but today’s evil men take it upon their own cleverness, declaring themselves masters of the universe while most people marvel in awe at the beast’s system. But that God allows them, they would have no power over us at all. Christians need to stop wondering in their heart after the beastly system because in doing this, they lend authority to the dragon where none need be given. Stop surrendering your power, which comes from Christ, to the servants of the devil.

The glory of our present age is also the problem of these last days. In John 5:24-25 Jesus says that we believers are already residing in eternal life, having passed from death unto life, “…The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.”

Having the Spirit of Christ, we remain stuck between two ages. We’re in the last days, but in the ages to come, we will be resurrected and be like Christ in the new heaven and earth, our home. We are stuck in this vile body yet seated in heavenly places with Christ Jesus. Jesus says in John 6:54 that we are spiritually resurrected, awaiting the last day and resurrection to be like Christ.

Christ is the firstfruits of the resurrection, but not the last, for all those in Christ shall rise on the final day; death and hell will be fully and finally defeated forever. Two verses are essential to explain this reality.

“And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus” – Ephesians 2:6

“Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.” – Philippians 3:21

While we’re here, in the Kingdom of God that now is, we serve God in anticipation of the return of Jesus Christ, the resurrection of the saints, and the final judgment.

This present age is not the end, and you that have questions, you that have served the evil of our day, you that are resigned to the sin of these end days, take heart, you believe in God; believe in Jesus 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: 11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: 12 Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead. 13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses; 14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; 15 And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.” – Colossians 2:9-15

Verse 13 says: “And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses”

And you, adulterers and whoremongers, thieves and cheats, living in vanity, puffed up, full of self-will and pride, murderers and drunks, drug dealers, cheats, crooks, those that have prostituted themselves, and all liars, for who among us hasn’t told a lie, sinners one and all: you who are dead in your trespasses and sins; Christ died for you and rose again on the third day, forgiving your sins and all your trespasses!

“11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: 12 Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.”

The token of the flesh could never save and was only a symbol of obedience to the submission of the heart in faith to Christ, that would come unto you in the fullness of time; that time is now. Putting off the sins of transgression by the faith of Christ Jesus, having believed in the power of God to renew your dead soul to life; we’re buried with Jesus in baptism, raised again in a new Spirit by the operation of God in salvation who is the only power to create life, and life anew in the resurrection by His Spirit that now is, and the coming regeneration on the last day.

Every regulation and every commandment of God has been broken, and none have kept the whole law save Christ. But every one of those was blotted out in the blood of Christ. Jesus’ blood stained the handwriting of ordinances that was against us. Every decree of transgression was blotted out by His blood, as though the law had never existed and therefore could not have been broken; no more condemnation, no guilt, no more shame. The parchment of law is now drenched in Christ’s blood and soaked through to illegible; who can read it to make an accusation against you? Christ didn’t just pay your debt; He obliterated the law as though there had been no sin to commit and no law to break! And took your sin and nailed it to His cross!

“14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross”

Jesus stated plainly on the cross (John 19:30) that “it is finished.” the law has been fully satisfied. He took the law out of the way that was contrary to us and nailed it to His cross. What statute, where, show us the law? There is only the blotted-out ledger nailed with Christ to the cross, forgotten; God sees your sins no more but only by faith in the final sacrifice, the blood of His own Son shed for you. No more fear, no more accusation, no more dread of death and hell; the accuser’s head has been crushed; the law completed in Christ; we cry Abba Father in a brand new, wholly unique, New Covenant that stands forever and ever. Amen.

Why do you seek the law? In what profit is the pursuit of this world’s kingdoms? For what purpose is the all pomp and ceremony of the many religions? What are these weak and fruitless endeavors of men when God wants to recreate you in the image of His own Son?

“And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.”

Jesus Christ has made an open show of the foolishness of this world, and not as though God did this in pride. But in love, by His abundant grace, did He offer the pure and sinless blood of His Son to crush the devil and complete the law, making an open show against the religions and kingdoms of this world: God declaring that He is life, and life eternal, Creator and proprietor of all that is. He brings glory to Himself by your acknowledgment in surrender to Him entering into the Kingdom of God. Don’t wait; accept the operation of God by faith in Jesus Christ to bring you life everlasting in the promised hope of standing with Him, an heir to the Kingdom of Heaven. “For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.” – Colossians 2:9. Jesus, in His triumph, is the head of all things, and you must be completed in Him.

“But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.” – Revelation 10:7

If Genesis 3:15 is the start, Revelation 10 and, specifically, verse 7 are equally important, signaling the finish and a noteworthy pivot in the Revelation of Jesus Christ. As all the profits had declared the coming Christ, and the law was only a shadow of the future King and a picture of true worship in heaven before the throne of God; the mystery of God that He would gather all things that are in heaven and in earth together in Christ is accomplished. Jesus Christ has risen from the grave, the mystery now fully revealed and completed; at the seventh trump, Jesus Christ, having blotted out the ordinances, triumphant over sin and death, ended the Old Covenant by its obliteration in the destruction of the temple.

By accepting Christ, you acknowledge by covenant that there is no other power over you. This is a prominent sticking point for many; they know in their heart that God is true, but we are rebellious by nature. Please don’t exchange the temporary for God’s eternity; it’s a bad trade. In Revelation 10:6, the angel states that there should be time no longer, and for you, the time of other kings and kingdoms must be no longer; there is a better law, a better empire, and a perfect King. You can live in the power of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

“After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands; And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb. And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God, Saying, Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen.” – Revelation 7:9-12

The point of Thanksgiving is to give thanks unto the Lord our God. The angels do it, and so do all creatures that know Him.

There’s plenty for which to be thankful. Be grateful foremost that your eternal station is set, your name written in the Lamb’s book of life, Christ having died for your sins and risen again indeed; being kept by the power of God through faith, no man is able to pluck you out of the Father’s hand. Faithful and True is His name. Doubtless, there is no more precious act of forgiveness than the mercy our Lord has granted; give all blessing and glory in praise of thanksgiving to our God.

You have been forgiven of your sin and saved from hell, have you not? There’s no better day than today, Thanksgiving 2022, to seek Jesus Christ, asking forgiveness and the mercy of His grace: “Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.” – Matthew 7:14

Though judgment lies at the door and hard times may yet prevail, for all we know, His hand of mercy is stretched out still. In all that’s coming, a great upheaval, do not charge God foolishly. He is trustworthy. His judgments are true and amen; He does not err. The Lord gives, and the Lord takes; blessed be the name of the Lord.

Be thankful you’re not a communist, for miserable is he. Government is his king, and a mean little lout is his duty, eternal flames his final station. Communists hate Christians; indeed, the primary reason for this hatred is the war of the spirits that rages in the unseen, for theirs knows we win in the end. But the communist is most pathetic and hateful full of jealousy and envy, desiring to drive all into misery; that is the true equality they seek, their meager and tormented spirit pulling you, clawing at you, drawing you down to a pitiful state with them. Communism is the idea writ large that misery loves company.

The Christian has quite the opposite outlook of the communist; for this, too, be most thankful to God Almighty by Christ Jesus. The fruit of the Spirit of God is in us, love and joy, gentleness and goodness, peace and longsuffering with a sound mind in faith, knowing heaven awaits for the resurrected to new life in Christ Jesus. All these things the devil and his agents seek to remove, but they can’t: and for this, be thankful to our God through Jesus Christ all the more.

“The LORD is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father’s God, and I will exalt him. The LORD is a man of war: the LORD is his name.” – Exodus 15:2-3

Trust in the arm of the Lord, for He is a man of war. Prepare your hearts a fit habitation for His Spirit in praise and worship. Pray for victory; the battles of men are won first in the counsels of heaven; His power in honor upon the throne declares it.

And at the last, what better day ahead than before the seat of the Almighty singing praises of thanksgiving, for ours is the only wise God. It is Christ, our King and Saviour, who is able to keep you from falling to present you with a gracious heart to God; in Christ exists all acclaim, power and wisdom and majesty are His. Amen.

“And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.” – Revelation 5:13

“In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began”

Source:

It’s up to you:

You can categorize this post in the context that is perhaps in answer to Covid Amnesty, a Warning from the Wall, a note to future rebuilders of a just civilization, Christian Nationalism, or a message on the good news of the Gospel of salvation by Christ Jesus. The Law of God is far-ranging. None has kept the entire Law, other than Jesus, that is.

First, the good news.

“18 If a man have a stubborn and rebellious son, which will not obey the voice of his father, or the voice of his mother, and that, when they have chastened him, will not hearken unto them: 19 Then shall his father and his mother lay hold on him, and bring him out unto the elders of his city, and unto the gate of his place; 20 And they shall say unto the elders of his city, This our son is stubborn and rebellious, he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton, and a drunkard. 21 And all the men of his city shall stone him with stones, that he die: so shalt thou put evil away from among you; and all Israel shall hear, and fear. 22 And if a man have committed a sin worthy of death, and he be to be put to death, and thou hang him on a tree: 23 His body shall not remain all night upon the tree, but thou shalt in any wise bury him that day; (for he that is hanged is accursed of God;) that thy land be not defiled, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance.” – Deuteronomy 21:18-23

You are the stubborn son! You have rebelled against the Father, your creator, and cannot be redeemed in the Law from sinning against Him. You couldn’t stop sinning against God if you wanted to; there’s no escape but the full restitution in the Law, which is death under the penalty of the code for your rebellion; you are a sinner. In rebellion, openly at times and stubborn, yet unknowing at others, you should be hanged on a tree, accursed of God, that all may see and know what becomes of a rebellious and stubborn son.

But God made a way impossible for you under your own strength: He gave His only begotten Son, a sinless perfect testament to God’s holy righteousness; He never broke the Law. Though He was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin, He fulfilled the law of restitution in perfect obedience to the Law. You owe Holy Father God but could never repay, even with your life, but Christ gave Himself that you might go free.

Jesus was taken outside the city as an unclean thing, treated as the lowest of sinners, and hanged like the accursed upon a tree, yet was He holy and perfect. Jesus was hanged on that cross of wood you deserve; he died for you there and rose again the third day. The whole world is hearing of this; the Law is fulfilled, once for all; the curse of sin is lifted in Christ Jesus.

That is the fulfillment of the Law and Prophets. Though sacrifices by many millions were made over thousands of years to attempt a temporary stay of judgment, Jesus Christ closed all accounts with holy Father God for those that accept His gracious atoning gift of sacrifice for the forgiveness of sin and salvation from eternal hell by the wrath of God. The restitution you could never hope to escape was paid in full.

And next, the Law; the Ten Commandments are an outline or table of contents for the entire Law. The Law is not a list of proverbs.

The God of the Holy Bible is the God of restitution; He is the God of the Just Balance (Proverbs 16:11). God’s Law sets forth just compensation, up to or above 100 percent. In God’s economy, crime must never be allowed to pay; it must cost at least double what it destroys. If crime were allowed to pay, you’d be ruled by criminals extracting the nation’s wealth and leaving it all in shambles of inflationary ruin.

It can be noted that the time and work required to re-establish that which was lost to crime are also a cost that full restitution requires. We’ve often heard that somebody got abused by criminals and then abused again by the criminal justice system. It’s not supposed to be this way; the victim is not supposed to pay. Capital punishment is the ultimate just recourse.

“If a man shall steal an ox, or a sheep, and kill it, or sell it; he shall restore five oxen for an ox, and four sheep for a sheep.” – Exodus 22:1

The animals in the Law of God are both literal and examples. It was not the Law’s purpose to provide for every circumstance then or now that requires understanding the value placed on the means by which a man makes a living and cares for his family. An ox was a big deal in the ancient agricultural economies. It plowed your field, threshed your wheat, ground your corn. A family of any size couldn’t grow and prosper without such a tool. Think of whatever you require most today to do your job in order to care for your family; that’s your ox. As many seek a simpler life abandoning the cities and suburbs, there isn’t a rural small farmer or property owner today that doesn’t depend upon his pickup truck or a tractor. Without these tools, all his livelihood is gone. According to the Law of God, you must pay fivefold if you separate a man from his ability to provide for his family. No, God is not a communist!

“2 If a thief be found breaking up, and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him.” – Exodus 22:2

Note that the source of the so-called Castle Doctrine stems from this verse. Breaking and entering is grounds for lethal force without recourse against the property holder or a tenant. Property and your family have value to God. God is the God of private property; being secure in your persons and effects is a blessing by the Law of God.

Instead of causing a deep sleep or actual coma to come over the reader, we won’t exposit this entire section, but read the following verses with a mind toward allegorical examples of life today, crime, and just recompense.

“3 If the sun be risen upon him, there shall be blood shed for him; for he should make full restitution; if he have nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft. 4 If the theft be certainly found in his hand alive, whether it be ox, or ass, or sheep; he shall restore double. 5 If a man shall cause a field or vineyard to be eaten, and shall put in his beast, and shall feed in another man’s field; of the best of his own field, and of the best of his own vineyard, shall he make restitution. 6 If fire break out, and catch in thorns, so that the stacks of corn, or the standing corn, or the field, be consumed therewith; he that kindled the fire shall surely make restitution. 7 If a man shall deliver unto his neighbour money or stuff to keep, and it be stolen out of the man’s house; if the thief be found, let him pay double. 8 If the thief be not found, then the master of the house shall be brought unto the judges, to see whether he have put his hand unto his neighbour’s goods. 9 For all manner of trespass, whether it be for ox, for ass, for sheep, for raiment, or for any manner of lost thing, which another challengeth to be his, the cause of both parties shall come before the judges; and whom the judges shall condemn, he shall pay double unto his neighbour.” Exodus 22:3-9

The principle behind these laws is that obedience to God will bring you and your family a humble and quiet life. Want to be left alone? Build a civilization that thrives on the Law of God. There is no salvation from hell in the law.

As constricting as the Law-word of God can seem, to those redeemed by Christ, the word of God is liberty from further sin. Nothing is more freeing than salvation in Christ, to go and sin no more by keeping His commandments. If you know God’s word, you know where you stand with God at all times; this is freedom. Keep short accounts with God so that it may be well with you all your days.

The notion that what a man can imagine or exact upon the guilty would be even the spark of an ember of the wrath God has awaiting the sinner in hell is prideful and thorough foolishness. A man cannot begin to imagine the hell of hell, and all the fury he can dispense on earth is silliness compared to the vengeance of the Almighty. The Laws purpose is to set examples among men, not as final judgment. Dominion has limits; final authority is not ours.

Restitution is the principal payment for one man’s crime against another, providing excellent deterrence. The Law of restitution is the essence of justice and righteousness in God’s created order. That’s why whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap (Galatians 6:7), and those that sew the wind shall reap the whirlwind, strangers shall eat of his substance (Hosea 8:7).

Western civilization used to operate under restitution. The criminal is supposed to pay, not the taxpayers; the criminal is to yield in full and then deliver a number of times again, depending upon the type of crime. The habitual criminal is condemned to death (Deuteronomy 21:18).

“Biblical law has no prison system. A criminal was held in prison only pending a trial, and then either made restitution, or was a bondservant until he worked out his restitution, or was executed.” – Rev. R.J. Rushdoony

Restitution can be no more abolished than God can be eradicated. All things are brought before the throne of the Almighty; a just recompense is His very nature; holy and just is He. America and the west can try to wiggle out of the principles under which God has ordained His created order. In the mercy of His longsuffering, He may, with patience, take a season and leave us to our ways desiring all the while for us to come to our senses again, but if men do not implement justice, He will. It would go so much better if America had a true revival of heart toward the Holy One, and we set about to correct all things in accordance with His word. But short of that, He will set things straight, and when He’s left with little choice, red, black, and pale horses are usually involved.

Rushdoony again:

Without restitution, man’s idea of law loses its center and becomes erratic and unstable. Among the more common eccentricities of law have been emphases on class, caste, race, or status, whereby the law becomes an instrument for inequality. A related eccentricity is the emphasis on equality, so that law and justice are separate from justice as restitution and made the instruments of a drastic levelling of men, circumstances, and institutions. Eccentric law loses its orientation towards righteousness or justice and becomes governed by social standards, mores, and pressures. Law then becomes the product of pressure politics, not of a principle of justice.

Restitution makes the Law focus on the object of the offense, whether it needs to be restored two or four-fold, instead of focusing on the criminal. Today, by way of courtroom illusions, the criminal becomes the aggrieved party in need of restoration that God empowers no State to provide. Only the Church, through the Gospel, can restore a man. The law is the schoolmaster; Christ is the redeemer (Galatians 3:24-25).

And worse it gets, the victim receives no compensation which is due; the taxpayers, who are no party at all to the dispute, pay $60,000 a year to keep the criminal entertained, while the State pretends that it has power over the soul of the criminal to make him whole. This is not God’s ordained way of justice. Its trickery and sleight of hand played against the ignorant.

The cross, where this post started, requires us to see the urgent need for restitution. For it is God’s own way of Law; it’s why Christ had to die on that cross to save your soul; somebody worthy, by the Law of God Almighty, had to pay.

Civilization can only fail where there is no justice. And justice short of restitution is no justice at all. Somebody has to pay; by God’s divine hand, they always will, even if He has to destroy your civilization to get it through your head.