HOW DO YOU THINK the suppliers in this world of liquor and cigarettes would feel if there came a man who has worldwide influence to dissuade the bold, the beautiful people in partaking from these substances?

Selah.

The bold and the beautiful…  Who are they?

The bold: these should be all of mankind. But they are not. Truly, as I speak of the bold I am thinking only of the children of God: both spiritual Israel and the Church.

Selah.

Israel brought us God’s written Word and the only Savior and Lord:

 

Hebrews 11:8-16
By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.  By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise.  For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.  And by faith even Sarah, who was past childbearing age, was enabled to bear children because she considered him faithful who had made the promise.  And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.

All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth.  People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.

 

Each member of the Church, the Christian, must be willing to never forsake our Lord, regardless of ‘the cost.’

 

Revelation 12:11
They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.

 

When one studies the truth of who God created mankind to be, His most prized creation, we are called to believe and achieve an extreme boldness with a productive cause in life: pleasing Him.

Selah.

The beautiful: let’s claim this for the entire human race. Why? Initially each person was created in the image and likeness of God. What their image is becomes their own responsibility when they are more than able to choose light from darkness. You see, beloved, God has certainly made Himself known. Only those who won’t humble themselves don’t believe Him. It is true.

Selah.

God created mankind in His image and likeness to reflect His glory:

 

Genesis 1:26-28
Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” So God created mankind in his own image,in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.

God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”

 

Be warned, in not loving and following God, there is great distress:

Jude verses 27-29
 But, dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold.  They said to you, “In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires.”  These are the people who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit.

But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit,  keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life. Be merciful to those who doubt;  save others by snatching them from the fire; to others show mercy, mixed with fear—hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.

To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy—to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.

 

So what about that man?

Is there someone in our present time (August, 2024) who is a leader and continues to be, no matter his profession; one who is willing to go against big industries (which sell products that only harm the body) and tell us we would be wise not to partake? Yes! And are there others like him? Yes!

Beloved, just as we are to have one God and one God alone; we are to respect, love, and admire a man, a woman, even a teenager, (Joseph was. See Genesis.) who speaks the truth about products people put into their God-given, God-created, bodies that the dominant point for these items is to make money? Products that trigger addictions…

Be warned to whom you listen and take counsel from. Seek those out who rightfully care about you, your family, people.

Selah.

See if they are willing to take a bullet; be it physically, spiritually, or emotionally. After all, we are called to fight the good fight. We children of God have a common enemy: Satan. And he does have children.

 

John 8:42-47
Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I have come here from God. I have not come on my own; God sent me.  Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say. You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. Yet because I tell the truth, you do not believe me!  Can any of you prove me guilty of sin? If I am telling the truth, why don’t you believe me? Whoever belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God.”

 

Do not belong to the devil. Do not be his child!

Be bold, be aggressive; make him flee! And do not support industries that only emulate his plan!

 

John 10:10
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

 

Choose life! And choose it to the full! Trust in God and trust people only who work out their salvation wit