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“If I wasn't a devil myself, I'd give
Me up to the Devil this very minute.”
- Faust, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
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Isaiah 28: 14 Wherefore hear the word of the Lord, ye scornful men, that rule this people which is in Jerusalem.
15 Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves:
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Ephesians 6: 12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
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Isaiah 28: 16 Therefore thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.
17 Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place.
18 And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it.
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Ephesians 6: 13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
We, too, are a stiff-necked people. Our sins are great. And like the repeated correction of the wayward and idolatrous Hebrews of the Old Testament, and the painful and often bloody history of the growth of His church, our bitter chastisement is long overdue. God has lifted His hand.
ReplyDeleteChristianity, true Christianity, has always grown under persecution. He is purifying His church. And though it is a painful process to witness, we may take comfort in the knowledge. Soli Deo gloria.
I agree. Scripture is valuable for every generation and speaks to each generation. I think we are living through our turn.
DeleteI think this 'covenant with death' is not something which just happens because we come to life. Rather, as the Scriptures which Bionic referenced above refer to. it is a deliberate decision to live in ways which bring about death.
ReplyDeleteDeath is part of life. That is a fact. Even unborn infants die, which means that life does not begin the moment we are born, but rather from conception. If there is no life, there can be no death and it is a fact that unborn humans die.
1. Birth is not a horrible thing we experience. It is a release from confinement (not necessarily solitary) into a world in which there is infinite room to grow and develop.
2. Aging does not have to be horrible. Instead it can be said that wisdom comes with gray hairs and bodily deterioration. The most important part of aging is preparation for the next event which is, of course,
3. Death. Like birth, this does not have to be horrible. For Christian believers, this can be something which is a beautiful happening. I know that the older I become, the more I look forward to leaving this world and this body behind.
Disease? Well, there is disease, but that is also part of life. However, we MAY get to the point in human development where deaths from disease are rare. It is possible.
It has been said that there are only two things certain in life: death and taxes. The biologist would add a third: flies. However, in a free world governed by the Golden Rule and the NAP, taxes would probably not be mentioned.
Death and flies. That is sufficient.