It only went to show what he already knew, which was that there were more dangers in life than even the sharpest training could anticipate.”
              –Larry McMurtry  (Lonesome Dove)

    “Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen.”
              –Revelation 1:7 (NKJV)
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How to Live in a Pagan, Apostate, and Foolish World

Key Verse:  “We know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.”  –1 John 5:19 (NASB)

There are things that you must grasp!  Things that it is vital that you realize.  Two of them are in the key verse:  we are of God; the world is under the power of the evil one.  Never, ever forget that verse.  That is why I write it on every lesson.  Realize that there is a spiritual conflict and do not succumb to it.  (Be sure and read again in 1 John 2:18-28.)
In these evil and last days beware of false teachers.  Beware of those that bring a truth other than what is found in the Bible.  I was just reading of a “Christian guru” that said that Jesus was not God, but only the Son of God.  Don’t be mislead, especially in these last hours.  This was a person who had many “Christian” followers.
    Do not be seduced by false teachers who flap their lips with honey dripping from them.  There are those who say, “Because I have the Holy Spirit I am as inspired as if I were an apostle”–they claim to direct and have a new revelation.  Their word becomes primary and the Word of God becomes secondary.
    John uses strong words—he calls them LIARS!  The master lie is to deny that Jesus is the Christ.  Antichrists are those who deny the doctrine that Jesus is the Christ.  He is the only begotten Son of God who died on the cross.  They attempt to change or get rid of His life here on earth in one form or another.

         Jesus is the Truth – John 14:6
         Antichrist is the lie – 2 Thessalonians 2:11
         Devil is the father of lies – John 8:44

William Barclay said, “To deny Jesus is to be separated from God, for on our reaction to Jesus our relationship to God depends.”
    There is a consequence to accept false teaching.  Remember, anything that changes the doctrine of Jesus Christ is antichrist.  To deny the work of Christ is antichrist.  The work of Jesus Christ is the basis of Scripture.  Have you not noticed that most of the attacks are either against the written word of God or the living word of God?  Jesus is the Word (John 1:1-4).  What happens to hope if one rejects Christ?
    Barclay sums it up by saying, “What we need is not new truth, but that the truth which we already know becomes active and effective in our lives.”  One day, all will come face-to-face with the fact that Jesus is the Christ!

Man that plays with a skunk will smell like one.”
              –Ernest Haycox  (Sundown Jim)

    “But now I am writing you not to associate with anyone who claims to be a believer who is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or verbally abusive, a drunkard or a swindler. Do not even eat with such a person.”
              –1 Corinthians 5:11 (HCSB)
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More and more we must keep our eyes focused on Jesus.  In times like these we need a Savior, not only to save us, but to keep us from the evil that is around us.  But often we cry, “I can’t see you God, where are You?”  We tend to bemoan our situation, but it is at those times that we need to realize that He is indeed with us.  Charles H. Spurgeon put it this way, “When we cannot see the sunshine of God’s face, it is blessed to cower down beneath the shadow of His wings.”
    In Psalm 57:1-5, we see David continuing to flee from Saul.  He played the mad-man in Psalm 56, now he is hiding in a cave.  He felt all alone; no one cares for him.  You remember the ditty: “No one loves me, everybody hates me, think I’ll eat some worms.”

         1 – Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy!  I look to you for protection.  I will hide beneath the shadow of your wings until this violent storm is past.
         2 – I cry out to God Most High, to God who will fulfill His purpose for me.
         3 – He will send help from heaven to save me, rescuing me from those who are out to get me.      Interlude [Selalh]
               My God will send forth His unfailing love and faithfulness.
         4 – I am surrounded by fierce lions who greedily devour human prey—whose teeth pierce like spears and arrows, and whose tongues cut like swords.
         5 – Be exalted, O God, above the highest heavens!  May Your glory shine over all the earth.”  (NLT)

Even in the midst of the darkness of the cave, David turned immediately to God.  He knew that God was there, and that God cared for him.  He did find himself in a trap, but in God.  “David recognizes his well-being depends on invisible rather than visible realities.” (George O. Wood)
    I like a little story told by Dr. Wood.  The great Scottish preacher, Alexander Whyte, always found some to thank the Lord for during his Sunday pastoral prayer for the congregation.  One day there was a terrible storm, the winds howled, the rain was torrential.  Two deacons arrived to open the church and one commented, “I don’t think Dr. Whyte will have anything to praise God for on a day like this.”  They looked at each other in surprise when Dr. Whyte opened his prayer, “Lord, we thank You that it is not always like this.”
When storms come, whether natural or adversity from foes, we can know that God is with us, even if we are in a cave.  He will stay under the “wings” of God until the storm has past.  Be like the old country preacher, “It came to pass.  Thank God, it didn’t come to stay.” (Wood)
    Remember God is there, willing to help you, willing to comfort you.  Keep your eyes upon Him.  “When you focus on God’s strength rather than your circumstances, the future looks brighter rather than bleak.” (Wood)

         “My God!  In whom are all the springs
         Of boundless love and grace known,
         Hide me beneath thy spreading wings,
         Till the dark clouds be over-blown.”
                   –Isaac Watts

Courage meant overcoming fear and doing one’s duty in the presence of danger, not being unafraid.”
              –E.B. Sledge  (With the Old Breed)

    “Be of good courage, and let us be strong for our people and for the cities of our God. And may the Lord do what is good in His sight.”
              –2 Samuel 10:12 (NKJV)
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With our nation in turmoil and confusion is all the more reason for us to take time and reflect and consider those who gave the supreme sacrifice.  Memorial Day is not just a day for family to get together, yet because of the sacrifice of those who have gone before, families can do that.
    “Duty—Honor–Country–those three hallowed words reverently dictate what you ought to be…” came the words from General Douglas MacArthur.  My fear is that few of the youth of today, speaking of 30 and younger, have a real concept of what those words mean.  They have little regard for history as it is, but prefer to live in a fantasy world where they can play to their heart’s content.  A person can dream of a “brave new world” but they cannot undo the past, right or wrong, by pulling down statues, changing history books, or even making up new history.
    Many of the woke crowd and the cancel culture crowd are scoffers and scorners.  It was bad during Vietnam, but those in America against the war were not as subtle or hideous as the new “enemy” in America.  The Vietnam Vet was scorned, but it was because of a controversial war.  Now the scorners want to destroy all that America built and has stood for.  “Everything is racist” it seems.  Tell that to the family whose 18-year-old son died on the beaches of Normandy.

       “The unbelievers will say they are but words [Duty–Honor–Country], but a slogan, but a flamboyant phrase.  Every pedant, every demagogue, every cynic, every hypocrite, every trouble-maker, and, I am sorry to say, some others of an entirely different character, will try to down-grade them even to the extent of mockery and ridicule.”  

MacArthur continued in his speech.  To me, this day is a day of retrospect.  One of contemplating those who gave up their dreams, hopes, youth, and lives for this country.  Now, the deconstructionists of the postmodern view wish to destroy everything those honorable men and women sacrificed.   Duty to one’s country has become a joke to many.  Shame!  Shame on them!
    When I see their faces and their actions I have a vile reaction in the pit of my stomach.  How dare they laugh at those who fell at Belleau Wood or the Argonne.  Or take it back further, those of Gettysburg or Antietam—Americans all.  Those who sacrificed should not be forgotten!  “His name and fame are the birthright of every American citizen.  In his youth and strength, his love and loyalty, he gave all that mortality can give.” (Douglas MacArthur)
    They did their duty by giving all.  They didn’t have a tomorrow; they didn’t have a tomorrow, but you do because of those who went before.  Death was not what they wanted, but they died so that we may live in the freedoms that are so dear.  The First Amendment is “Bonkers”?  Hardly!  Life is precious, just look at the crosses on this Memorial Day.  Blood is not cheap.

         “When you go home,
         Tell them of us, and say–
         For your tomorrows,
         We gave our today.”
                   –J. Maxwell Edmonds

If he be a man indeed, he must always go on, he must always endure.”
              –Louis L’Amour  (Galloway)

    “And we labor, working with our own hands. Being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we endure.”
              –1 Corinthians 4:12 (NKJV)
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My patience is being tested this morning.  I had a nice Echo on endurance ready to send and when I opened the file it had disappeared.  Computers–ugh!   Then when I look at my writing, it seems to be in bold print.  Computers–yuck.  I complain about them, but they are the only way I can communicate with you on a daily basis, so hooraw for computers.  (???)  So, I’ll send just a few borrowed thoughts this morning.

         “The Christian believes that in Christ he has died, yet he is more alive than before, and he fully expects to live forever.  He walks on earth while seated in heaven, and though born on earth he finds that after his conversion, he is not at home here.  Like the nighthawk, which in the air is the essence of grace and beauty but on the ground is awkward and ugly, so the Christian appears at his best in the heavenly places but does not fit well into the ways of the very society into which he was born.  The Christian soon learns that if he were to be victorious as a son of heaven among men on earth, he must not follow the common pattern of mankind, but rather the contrary.  That he may be safe he puts himself in jeopardy; he loses his life to save it and is in danger of losing it if he attempts to preserve it.”
                   –A.W. Tozer

Through all the trials, storms, fears, terrors, pandemics the believer can walk knowing that God is there with him.  To die is to live but through all the trials on earth, he must endure.
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Look at those around you.  Besides being confused and dazed some of them are fools.  Fools despise God and His wisdom.  The scorn its obligation.  God gives them their rightful name–FOOL!   People have no or little fear of the Lord.  I like how Charles Bridges paraphrases Ecclesiastes 12:13 (actually he puts more light on the verse and its meaning).

         “The fear of God in its practical exercise is the whole of man in all his duty, all his happiness, his first lesson and his last.”

Fools despise the knowledge of the Lord.  They believe they are autonomous with no one to answer to.  The woke crowd believes that they are the answer, not that they have the answer.  More and more we see the words of Proverbs 1:7, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning [principal part] of knowledge:  but fools despise wisdom and instruction.”

Watch out for fools.  They are dangerous; their way is dangerous; their thoughts are not guided by reason or by the knowledge of God.