We often stop and examine the actions of our individual lives to be
certain we understand the path upon which we are traveling; the way we
are living our lives. This is the season when we are told,
specifically, to be examining ourselves. Is our present path in line
with the calling which we have received?

Once God allows us to
begin receiving the precious knowledge of His Way and allows us to
receive the gift of His Spirit, He does expect to see us moving more in
the direction of His Way. And God’s Way is totally contrary to the ways
of this world.

With this being Satan’s world (See Ephesians
2:1-3; Matthew 4:8-9; John 12:30-32; 2 Corinthians 4:3-4), we find the
world moving more in the way of war, in the way of hate, in a way
totally opposite from God’s approach to life to which we have been
called. God’s Way is the way of peace!

How are we doing, collectively and individually?

James makes a profound statement in James 3:13-18, which says:

“Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom.

“But
if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast
and lie against the truth. This wisdom does not come from above, but is
earthly, sensual, demonic. For where envy and self-seeking exist,
confusion and every evil thing will be there.

“But the wisdom
that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to
yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without
hypocrisy. Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who
make peace.”

Thus we have been called to be a people of peace–not a people of war!

Through
the power of God’s Spirit within us, and with the true knowledge of
God’s Way, which He is revealing to us, we have the ability to receive
true wisdom and understanding within our lives. It is this wisdom, this
understanding that should be motivating us to be able to live peaceably
within our homes, within the Church and in the community as a whole.

How are we doing?

In
the new world, which God the Father and Jesus Christ will be
establishing soon on the earth, this approach will be the order of the
day. But in the meantime, the world we live in is at war–nation
against nation, kingdom against kingdom–and people cannot seem to get
along peaceably within the boundaries of their own households.

We
have been called to move in a different direction from the way the
world is living. We have been called to live a new and a better
way–the way of love, the way of peace, the way that will bear the
fruit of righteousness!

How are we doing?

This past Monday the United States of America observed a day in
honor of Dr. Martin Luther King. The event brought to mind the whole
concept of freedom in this country and in the world as a whole. People
desire freedom wherever they are situated and are willing, as history
clearly reveals, to sacrifice all, including their lives, to obtain it!

There
are many freedoms that are available to citizens of the United States,
Great Britain, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Western Europe,
which many take for granted; yet, such freedoms — as freedom of
religion, freedom of speech and of the press, and freedom to own land
and other properties — are not readily available in many countries
around the world. We often refer especially to the United States as the
land of the free.

But
is mankind truly free today, anywhere in
the world, including in the USA? As we approach God’s annual Spring
festivals, the first of God’s seven annual festivals of the year —
Passover and the Days of Unleavened Bread — we remain thankful to our
God for having revealed to us the knowledge and truth of these days and
for having made it possible for us to observe these days in this
country, as well as in other countries, relatively without duress.

But
when you think of the holidays observed by most —
Christmas, Easter, Halloween, etc. – we ask the question; “…is
mankind truly free?” Are people who have become hooked on drugs truly
free? When people live their lives daily according to the dictates of
this world, are they truly free?

The Scriptures reveal in John
8:34 that “…whoever commits sin is a slave of sin.” Are not all men
slaves to sin? And, are slaves free men? But, how does one become free
from such a captivity, with this world being under the control and
dictates of Satan, and with the carnal pulls of the flesh, which we all
experience continually, affecting many of the decisions we make?

Jesus
Christ tells us in John 8:31-32 that one must abide in His Word if he
would be a free man. Note, particularly, verse 32: “And you shall know
the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” Yes, without truth, it
is impossible for one to become totally free — free from Satan’s
influence and free from the world which he controls today. But one who
is faithful to God and His Truth can become truly free!

Later, in
John 17:17, we see that Christ gives us instruction through a very
meaningful prayer to the Father, in which He says: “Sanctify them by
Your truth. Your Word is truth.” It is the Word of God which truly
separates us from this world, and it is God’s Word wherein Truth is
found!

The world, however, does not yet understand this
revelation from God, not having been called of Him and therefore not
having received the love of the Truth, such that they have the freedom
to walk in it. Most have been deceived by the god of this world, Satan
the devil, and by their pleasure in the unrighteousness found in the
world (2 Thessalonians 2:9-12).

But, those who have been called
of God and who have remained faithful to that calling do have the
opportunity to obtain true freedom. Such opportunity has been made
possible by the life of Jesus Christ and the sacrifice He made for the
good of all mankind! In Romans 8:32, Paul asks the question “…how
shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” “All things”
would surely include freedom in this world!

Our obligation, then,
is to remain faithful to the calling we have received from the Father.
Paul tells us in Galatians 5:1: “Stand fast therefore in the liberty by
which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a
yoke of bondage.”

Many brethren have failed to follow this
instruction of Paul, an apostle of Christ, found in the book of
Galatians. Let us all take extreme care to never take lightly the
benefits afforded to us in the calling we have received. And let us
remain faithful to what we have proven over and over to be the
unchangeable Law and Truth of God; for through such conduct, we remain
being “truly free” in this world of sin!

In passing down to Ephraim and Manasseh, the sons of Joseph, the
birthright blessings; Jacob said, “Let my name (Israel) be named upon
them” (Genesis 46:16). Then of Ephraim He said, “…his descendants
shall become a multitude of nations” (Genesis 46:19). And of Manasseh
He said, “He also shall become a people, and he also shall be great”
(same verse). Ephraim became the British Commonwealth of Nations, upon
which–once–the sun never set! And Manasseh became the greatest single
nation ever to exist on the earth– “the United States of America.” Its
sunset seems to be looming on the horizon as well! (See our booklet,
“The Fall and Rise of Britain and America.”)

Little did the
small band of men consider, as they left the British shores during the
18th century heading for a new land, that they were embarking upon a
journey which would result in the establishment of a nation which would
fulfill the second part of the prophecy noted above in the passing down
of God’s blessings, which came through Abraham to Jacob and on to the
sons of Joseph.

When George Mason wrote the “Virginia Declaration
of Rights,” which was adopted by the Virginia Constitutional Convention
on June 12, 1776, I am certain he had no thought that that document
would be used by Thomas Jefferson in writing the opening paragraphs of
the Declaration of Independence; nor, that it would be copied by other
colonies in establishing their states’ rights; nor, that it would
become the basis of the Bill of Rights of the United States. In the
Virginia Declaration of Rights, Section 16, Mason wrote: “That
religion, or the duty which we owe to our creator, and the manner of
discharging it, can be directed only by reason and conviction, not by
force or violence; and therefore all men are equally entitled to the
free exercise of religion, according to the dictates of conscience; and
that it is the mutual duty of all to practice Christian forbearance,
love, and charity toward each other.” The Declaration of Independence,
which was adopted July 4, 1776, makes reference to the Creator God in
the first and second paragraphs of that document. The Pledge of
Allegiance to flag and country was originally written by Francis
Bellamy in August, 1892. A minor change in a couple of words was made
in 1924, and in 1954 the words “under God” were added to the pledge. It
was said at the time that the pledge now was a patriotic oath and a
public prayer.

The motto, “In God We Trust” was placed on U.S.
coins largely because of increased religious sentiment existing during
the Civil War. After many appeals in favor of such a move, Secretary of
the Treasury, Salmon P. Chase, instructed James Pollock, Director of
the Mint at Philadelphia, by letter dated November 20, 1861, as
follows: “Dear Sir: No nation can be strong except in the strength of
God, or safe except in His defense. The trust of our people in God
should be declared on our national coins. You will cause a device to be
prepared without unnecessary delay with a motto expressing in the
fewest and tersest words possible this national recognition.” Samples
were presented and the present wording which is used on U.S. coins
today was adopted and passed by the U.S. Congress on April 22, 1864.
This motto, “In God We Trust,” was added to $1 silver certificates with
printings beginning in 1957. In 1964, the motto was added to Federal
Reserve Notes in the amounts of $1, $5, $10, as well as with the $5
United States Note, and in 1966 the motto was added to the $50, and
$100 Federal Reserve Notes.

But a program of stamping out
religion on national currency began in 1978 and continues today. Some
are crossing out the national motto on paper money (An illegal act
under U.S. law). But there is a movement afoot across the country to
have the motto removed from all forms of U.S. currency. Programs are
ongoing to declare the Pledge of Allegiance as “unconstitutional” and
to not allow it to be recited in public schools because it contains the
words “under God.” The 9th Circuit Federal Court of Appeals ruled the
Pledge of Allegiance “unconstitutional” on June 25, 2002, with the
stipulation that it no longer be recited in public schools. And on
September 14, 2005, a U.S. District Judge ruled that the reference to
one nation “under God” violates schoolchildren’s rights to be “free
from a coercive requirement to affirm God.” The Supreme Court dismissed
the case at a later date.

God established this great nation as He
promised to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and to the sons of Joseph. Yet,
just as He raised it up, He will put it down if it continues to move in
the direction upon which it has now established as its course. We, as a
people of God, must not cover our faces to what is looming upon the
horizon, as prophesied in the Word of God.