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When
I speak to people about the oppressiveness of
government, seldom do they have anything original
to say. Frequently they say something like, the
way I avoid oppressive government is I just try
to lay low and hope they don·t notice me.
To me this is the fulfillment of Zechariah 1:18-19;
21 (emphasis added):
Then
I lifted up my eyes and saw, and behold, four
horns [symbols of strength]. And I said to the
angel who talked with me, What are these? And
he answered me, These are the horns or powers
which have scattered Judah, Yisra·el,
and Jerusalem·And he said, These are
the horns or powers that scattered Judah so
that no man lifted up his head.
The
phrase ·no man lifted up his head·
means in part, to go up out of prison with confidence.
It also means, to declare independence. I don·t
think anyone who receives this would dispute that
Rome was a power that ·scattered Judah,
Yisra·el, and Jerusalem.· Today,
we deal with the revived Roman Empire. So, when
men today say, I just try to lay low and hope
they don·t notice me; what they are really
saying is that the revived Roman Empire has kept
them from going up out of prison (bondage) with
confidence; it has kept them from declaring their
independence.
We
know that Jahshuwah said in Luke 17:33, ·Whosoever
shall seek to save his life shall lose it; and
whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it.·
I am of the opinion that laying low and hoping
they don·t notice you is the equivalent
of seeking to save your own life. Since the Word
is true, no one may ever seek to save their own
life without losing it. We know from Deuteronomy
29:19 that when we hear the words of this curse
and oath, if we flatter ourselves and congratulate
ourselves in our mind and heart, saying, I shall
have peace and safety, though I walk in the stubbornness
of my mind and heart that we will bring down a
hurricane of destruction upon ourselves that sweeps
away the watered land with the dry. I have part
of the solution to losing our lives in order that
we may preserve it. There is a prayer built out
of Scripture that has a bearing on the issue of
being hidden from the revived Roman Empire from
Isaiah 49:2. It is one that I say constantly:
Father,
thank You that You have made my mouth like a
sharp sword; in the shadow of Your hand have
You hidden me and made me a polished arrow in
Your quiver and You have kept me close and concealed
me. And You have said to me, You are My
servant, Yisra'el; I strive with You and
with men and prevail, in Jahuwah I am favored.
There
is another prayer built out of Scripture that
has a bearing on this from Isaiah 26:3-4. It is
one that I also say constantly:
I
thank you Father that You guard me and
keep me in perfect and constant peace since
my mind is stayed on You, because I commit myself
to You, I lean on You, and hope confidently
in You. I trust You forever; for You are
an everlasting Rock.
There
is still another prayer built out of Scripture
that has a bearing on this from Psalms 119:114.
It is one that I also say constantly:
You
are my protection, covering, shelter and shield;
I hope in Your Word.
There
is still another prayer built out of Scripture
that has a bearing on this from Psalm 91:4. It
is another one that I also say constantly:
He
has hedged, fenced about and shut me in with
His wings (metaphorically), and under the corners
of His garments I flee for protection ; His
firmness, faithfulness, sureness, reliability,
stability, and truth are a shield and a
buckler [tank or armored car] to me.
I
was passing over reading aloud Psalm 91:4 and
the Spirit moved me to look up buckler. I discovered
that it meant an ·all encompassing shield.·
I have watched a program about military tanks
on the Military channel on tv. The latest tank
version is called Abrams M-1 I think. It has so
much technology and armor that the operators interviewed
for the program appeared highly confident that
there was nothing that any enemy had, anywhere
in the world, that could take them out. Hence
I envisioned an all encompassing shield to being
very similar to riding around in a tank. The Father
began to speak to me. He said, ·Do you
know why they were able to throw you in jail for
7 months? There were gaps in your truth. That
left gaps/chinks in your armor. If you fill out
the truth, you fill out the gaps/chinks in your
armor and they will not be able to get to you.·
In
the not to distant past Jahuwah gave me another
lesson along this line. I was reading in John
chapter 7 for the umpteenth time. I read past
John 7:32 where it is said, ·The Pharisees
learned how the people were saying these things
about Him under their breath; and the chief priests
and Pharisees sent attendants (guards) to arrest
Him.· And I read on down to verse 45 where
it says, ·Meanwhile the attendants (guards)
had gone back to the chief priests and Pharisees,
who asked them, Why have you not brought Him here
with you?· Then I read on to verse 46 where
it says, ·The attendants replied, Never
has a man talked as this Man talks! [No mere man
has ever spoken as He speaks!]· The Father
stopped me at this point and said simply, ·They
couldn·t get through the Words!·
Then, the Father took me to John chapter 18 where
it says in verse 4, ·Then Jahshuwah, knowing
all that was about to befall Him, went out to
them and said, Whom are you seeking? [Whom do
you want?]· Verse 6 says, ·When
Jahshuwah said to them, I am He, they went backwards
(drew back, lurched backward) and fell to the
ground.· The Father spoke to me, ·Once
again, they couldn·t get through the Words.·
The Father said to me, ·This will work
exactly the same way for you. If you will speak
my Words, they will not be able to get through
them to you in the same way.·
I
have had people wonder how I can have a web page
devoted to the IRS and not get a lawsuit against
me for an injunction like so many have. I made
one person who suggested I might be next on the
list for an injunction lawsuit say Isaiah 49:2
with me out loud. Another that suggested the same
thing I quoted Isaiah 49:2 to him and then said,
·They are going to have to find me first.·
I pointed out that in 1 Kings 17:1 that after
Elijah prophesied to King Ahab that, ··there
shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according
to my word.· that Elijah was instructed
in verse 3-4 to, ·Get thee hence, and turn
thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith,
that is before Jordan. And it shall be, that thou
shall drink of the brook; and I have commanded
the ravens to feed thee there.· Then, after
the brook dried up, Jahuwah instructed Elijah
in verse 9 to, ·Arise, get thee to Zarephath,
which belongs to Zidon, and dwell there: behold,
I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain
thee.· In 1 Kings 18:10 we find out from
Obadiah that, ··there is no nation
or kingdom, whither my lord hath not sent to seek
thee: and when they said, He is not there; he
took an oath of the kingdom and nation that they
found thee not.· I don·t think you
would have to be much of a detective to determine
that during a drought that the places to look
for Elijah would be near the few sources of water
in the land; like the brook Cherith.
The
word Cherith springs from the root word Strong·s
Hebrew #3772 that means to cut a covenant. Zarephath
is Strong·s Hebrew #6886 meaning "refinery"
springing from a Hebrew root word meaning to refine
by fire. Zidon springs from a Hebrew root word
that means to furnish oneself with victuals. So
the meaning of just the names of the places where
Elijah was sent to hide himself amounts to this;
if we cut a covenant with Jahuwah we will be hidden
from the wicked king, refined by fire, and furnished
with victuals.
Another
Example: In 1st Samuel 24:1-3, 7 it is recounted:
And
it came to pass, when Saul was returned from
following the Philistines, that it was told
him, saying, Behold, David is in the wilderness
of Engedi. Then Saul took three thousand chosen
men out of all Israel, and went to seek David
and his men upon the rocks of the wild goats.
And he came to the sheepcotes by the way, where
was a cave; and Saul went in to cover his feet:
and David and his men remained in the sides
of the cave· Then David arose, and cut
off the skirt of Saul's robe privily·So
David stayed his servants with these words,
and suffered them not to rise against Saul.
But Saul rose up out of the cave, and went on
his way.·
So,
Saul is desperately seeking David. Saul is in
the same cave as David. David is so close to Saul
that he is able to cut off the skirt of Saul·s
robe and yet Saul cannot find David! If Saul·s
son Jonathon, David·s good friend, ever
wants to find David; not a problem!
Which
brings me to what triggered this article in the
first place. From The Legends Of The Jews Volume
III Chapter VI, By Louis Ginzberg available
online here: http://www.sacred-texts.com/jud/loj/loj308.htm
I found this (emphasis added):
While
all this was going on, Balaam still did not
perceive that Jahuwah's angel stood before him.
Jahuwah meant to show him that in His hand is
not only the tongue of man, but his eye as well,
so that as long as He chooses, man will fail
to see what is directly before his nose.
I
was recently told that my friend·s son
had law enforcement point a gun at the back of
his head and threaten to kill him. When I heard
about that incident this Scriptural based prayer
came to my mind from Proverbs 19:23:
My
recognition that Jahuwah is all powerful tends
to prosperous living and the vigorous, fresh,
healthy, running water of life; the reason I
abide satisfied; I am not punished by Jahuwah
with adversity.
Not
only does Jahuwah control the tongue and the eye,
but, he also controls the finger on the trigger
of a law enforcement officer·s gun.
Somebody
called me. He was being levied by the CA Franchise
Tax Board. As he is telling me the story Proverbs
19:23 is coming to my mind and I realized the
reason this man is being levied is that Jahuwah,
the all powerful one, is allowing it as punishment.
I learned from the man part of the reason he was
being punished is because he is taking thought
for the morrow about what he was going to eat,
drink and wear contrary to Jahshuwah·s
Commandment in Matthew 6:31. I began to say to
this man over and over, if you take thought for
the morrow you·ll be punished by a levy
from the Franchise Tax Board·if you take
thought for the morrow you·ll be punished
by a levy from the Franchise Tax Board·
He began to laugh because it sounded absurd but
at the same time profound. When we recognize that
Jahuwah is all powerful and controls the tongue,
the eye, and the finger on the trigger of a law
enforcement officer·s gun; then, it becomes
easy to also understand that it is He that allows
trials and calamities to come into our lives such
as levies by the Franchise Tax Board as punishment
for our lack of obedience.
If
we want to enjoy the benefits of a covenant with
Jahuwah and come into that life that only Jahuwah
provides and maintains; a life that is free from
calamity that is the result of our disobedience
on the narrow road that leads to out to Jahuwah·s
kind of life we must do another thing that comes
from the Scriptural based prayers that I say three
times a day; we must ·listen to, understand,
yield to and obey· Jahuwah·s Word
and the best way to do that is to speak it out
loud as Jahuwah commands us. Bear
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