Don’t Be Duped by the Enemies Ruse


“The men of Israel sampled their provisions but did not inquire of the LORD” (Joshua 9:14).

The Israelites Leaving EgyptWhen Joshua and the Israelites entered the Promised Land, they fought many battles. In fact, they fought 39 battles in the Promised Land compared to only two in their exodus from Egypt. God instructed them to wipe out all their enemies completely.The very reason God was giving the land to the Israelites was because of the sin of these nations Israel was to now occupy. God said he was going to drive out all the inhabitants of this land because they had a long history of sin against God. God had instructed Joshua to not make any compromises with these people because God had rejected them and wanted them defeated not befriended.

The more battles the Israelites won under the direction of God and Joshua, the more their reputation preceded them as they entered new territories. The enemies knew they were toast if they came against the Israelites. The enemies knew God was marching with the Israelites and their demise was eminent. Success was on the side of the Israelites.

Such was the case when Joshua and the people came into the land where the Gibeonites lived. The Gibeonites knew they were as good as dead if they didn’t do something. So, they dressed up in old, worn clothes and posed as foreigners passing through. They asked Joshua and the people to make a peace treaty with them.  They pretended to be wanderers from a far off country and was seeking refuge among the Israelites. The feigned to be interested in working with their opposition to infiltrate the opposing camp and then work from within to weaken the Israelite’s resolve,

The scriptures tell us that Joshua and the people made a treaty with them because they did not inquire of God about these people. They assumed what they said was true. The leadership along with the people made a fatal mistake by not seeking out the true intentions of those who were seeking to make a treaty with them. They did not inquire of God to see what the TRUTH was behind the Gibeonites actions. They took them at their word, they trusted that they were being truthful, they trusted the Gibeonites had pure intentions.

They were wrong!

They had been deceived. They now had to pay the consequences. Those consequences resulted in having to work to avoid cross-tribal marriages while they had to make an entire people their slaves. This was something God never intended them to have to do. The relationship was a source of compromise for the Israelites that made them susceptible to future compromises. Trying to keep the infestation contained to only the Gibeonites was next to impossible since the enemy was now living within their own ranks. This day-to-day contact with the opposition weakened the Israelites position since now they had to constantly monitor their own ranks to watch for compromise among the ranks and file.

This initial compromise weakened the position of the entire nation because now their message was no longer pure and their mission was now distorted. How could they drive out and defeat the remaining enemies of the land after having made a COMPROMISE deal with one group? How could they justify continued annihilation of the remaining occupants of the land while they had in their own ranks survivors of that culture?

Thus is the problem with making deals with those who are opposed to your viewpoints or way of life. If the Gibeonites were honorable people they would have begged for mercy based on their TRUE IDENTITIES and admit their true intentions and offer to change their position and embrace the beliefs and pursue the same purpose as the Israelites. But they did not do that, they pretended to be someone they were not to play upon the mercy of the Israelites. They tricked them into believing they were not the enemy but were somehow mistreated by others and were seeking the sympathy of the Israelites.

We see this RUSE today in our own country as foreigners move in among us pretending to be victims of some injustice in other parts of the world. These modern-day Gibeonites play upon America’s compassion to help those who are less fortunate, but these folks have no intentions of conforming to the American way of life, nor adopt the American traditions and customs, instead they adhere to their own identities and infiltrate our institutions to corrupt them and get them to compromise and gradually accept the foreigner’s world view and agendas.  This weakens the county.

Israel today is being asked to COMPROMISE with an occupying force the Palestinians while the Palestinians have no intentions on compromising their position or intentions. They are intent on eliminating Israel and taking over the country for themselves. Therefore it would be a fool’s errand to make a treaty with these enemies of the state. And yet that is exactly what they are being asked to do. And that is exactly what the enemies of the American way of life want us to do as well.

Let us not make the same mistake Joshua made, instead let us inquire of God and seek out the TRUE identities and intentions of these strangers among us.

That is the way I see it! What say you?

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Where Have All the Elder’s Gone?


“But Rehoboam rejected the advice the elders gave him and consulted the young men who had grown up with him and were serving him (2 Chron 10:8).

Map showing the Kingdoms of Israel (blue) and ...
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Rehoboam was the son of Solomon. It appears that Solomon had become heavy-handed in his employment practices by placing an overbearing burden on the workers. This was causing a problem with the northern tribes. Solomon’s heavy-handed dealings had caused the people to seek the government for regress to their grievous. Rehoboam was selected by the people to rule after Solomon died.  The people were seeking relief from the burdensome “taxation on their labor” placed on them by Rehoboam’s father. They were threatening a revolt if their demands were not heard. This was the equal to a threat of a labor strike.

When Rehoboam was selected as the new king, he too was facing opposition to his practices. He had inherited not only Solomon’s throne but also all that Solomon had set in place. Solomon’s rules and edicts were still being enforced, the heavy taxation on Israeli labor was still being exacted. This is why the people came to Rehoboam hoping that he would reverse some, if not all, of his father’s policies to east the burden on the working class.

You could say the people assembled a “TEA party” to come before the new administration to ask for relief. Their request was straight forward and reasonable.

“Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but now lighten the harsh labor and the heavy yoke he put on us, and we will serve you.” Rehoboam answered, “Come back to me in three days.” So the people went away (2 Chron 10:4-5).

So, Rehoboam asked for advice from the older men who had been a part of Solomon’s reign and then he asked for advice from his younger contemporaries. The elders advised Rehoboam to not be too concerned. They told him to listen to the people, be kind and gentle towards them and they would be loyal workers the rest of their days. He chose not to take this advice. Instead to turned to his contemporaries, those who shared his same ideology and sought their advice. The younger advisors told him to tighten the reigns more, increase their burdens, and make their jobs even harder.  This turned out to be bad advice. As a result, the northern tribes rebelled, and the kingdom was permanently divided.

Does this sound familiar? It should. God spoke to Moses about this when He said:

“The Lord, the Lord, a compassionate and merciful God, patient, always faithful and ready to forgive. He continues to show his love to thousands of generations, forgiving wrongdoing, disobedience, and sin. He never lets the guilty go unpunished, punishing children and grandchildren for their parents’ sins to the third and fourth generation.”Exodus 34:6-7 (GW)

Rehoboam had inherited the failings of Solomon and was given an opportunity to do right and make amends but instead he chose to continue down the path set forth by his father. He continued in the sins of his father.

We, as a nation, have inherited the sins from our father’s, who inherited them from their fathers down to this generation.  The seeds of rebellion planted by our great-grandparents have produced a crop of rebellion against God and a harvest of unrest throughout the land. As a nation we voted in 2010 and in a loud voice declared we wanted an end to the burdensome taxes placed upon us by the government. Our voices, like those who petitioned Rehoboam, have been dismissed and those who brought their petition are treated with disdain and even threatened with worse treatment if they continue to voice their opposition. The TEA Party members are ridiculed and belittled by many in government and instead of heeding the advice of many of these elders in our society, the government seems to think they know best and doubled down on the burdens they are placing on the people.

The strong armed policies of Rehoboam led the Northern tribes separating from the South. We could say Rehoboam caused a CIVIL war to divide the country.

The king refused to listen to the people because the Lord was directing these events to carry out the promise he had made to Jeroboam (Nebat‘s son) through Ahijah from Shiloh. 16 When all Israel saw that the king refused to listen to them, the people answered the king, “What share do we have in David’s kingdom? We won’t receive an inheritance from Jesse’s son. Everyone to his own tent, Israel! Now look after your own house, David!” So all Israel went home to their own tents.

Basically they went Galt. They took their labor, their wealth, their means and their possessions and went to their own homes. They took care of their own business while Rehoboam was left to rule with an iron fist those who lived in the city. There were more who opposed Rehoboam then he had left to rule. Ten of the twelve tribes of Israel chose to rebel against Rehoboam’s leadership leaving him only two tribes to rule.

17 But Rehoboam ruled the Israelites who lived in the cities of Judah. 2 Chronicles 10:15-17

A great many parallels can be drawn from this clash with the tyrannical rule of Rehoboam and the Obama administration. Obama has surrounded himself with those who grew up under the same teachings and share the same ideology. Although they have been approached by those who oppose the direction they are leading this country, they refuse to listen. Obama even refuses to heed the advice of history. He refuses to learn the lessons of other failed societies like Greece and Italy, instead he continues to enforce his policies with a heavy hand. Any who oppose his rule are demonized and marginalized. They are threatened with even harsher treatment.

There is an election coming up in 2012 where once again the people will be able to speak their minds and voice their opinions. They will once again have an opportunity to choose which direction they want to see the country go. Will they choose to change leadership or continue down the path of destruction set in motion by our great-grandfathers? Will we continue to live under the burdensome policies of past administrations or will we seek to throw out these failed policies of the past? Will we once again return to the wisdom of God and seek righteous regulations and just laws? Will we repent of the sins of our great grandfathers and turn back toward biblical wisdom and guidance? Will we demand the heavy yokes of burdensome taxation be removed from our backs or are we going to be beaten into submission by a heavy-handed government?

The future is ours to choose. Chose you today whom you would rather serve? The slave masters currently ruling  and building monuments to themselves, or rather serve THE LORD who deals justly and rightly?

As for me and my house we will serve the Lord and seek others who are willing to do the same.

This is just a view from the nest. What say you?

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Talk About a Return to Previous Conditions


This has got to be the cartoon of the week. Got to love those guys at Conservative Bytes. Way to go two thumbs up. By why quit at pre 2008 elections how about we return to pre 67 budget? :)

A Time for Peace in the Middle East?


Christian wallpaper Matthew 5:9
As long as there are people living in the Middle East and elsewhere who are at war with Israel there can be no peace in the Middle East.

Furthermore, at that time the son who was conceived in a natural way (Ishmael) persecuted the son conceived in a spiritual way (Isaac). That’s exactly what’s happening now (Arab and Jews). But what does Scripture say? “Get rid of the slave woman and her son (Ishmaelites or Islamists), because the son of the slave woman must never share the inheritance with the son of the free woman (Jews or Israel).” Galatians 4:29-30 (GW)

This war will continue until the end of time when Jesus comes back to fight on behalf of His chosen nation.

Now then there is a religion of peace on Earth and good will toward all men, the religion of Christ, Christianity.

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Decepticons


For many deceivers are gone forth into the world, even they that confess not that Jesus Christ cometh in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist. 2 John 1:7 (ASV)
Decepticon Logo

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The Decepticons are usually depicted as the antagonists in the fictional universes of the Transformers toy line and related comics and cartoons, and the enemies of the Autobots.[2][3][4] The villains take many forms, and have many different origins and stories across the different Transformers media, but in almost all incarnations, they are led by Megatron. They are typically represented by the purple facial insignia they all wear. Primarily, Decepticons have red eyes, while Autobots have blue eyes. They are usually known for their air power, especially since many of them turn into aircraft. They often turn into military vehicles, construction vehicles and even smaller-than-human-sized objects.

Most Decepticons think very little of humans and consider them no better than pests or “insects”. This is strongly emphasized in the 2007 film Transformers, when Megatron is seen flicking a human like a bug and saying “disgusting”. Another example is when the Decepticon Frenzy complained about how the “stupid insects” tried to shoot him. In the animated series, Starscream works with the human, Doctor Arkeville and comments about how little he cares about destroying the entire planet Earth to meet his goal.

Some deception can be useful as in the case of World War II. Jasper Maskelyne was a British stage magician when World War II erupted in Europe. He joined the Royal Engineers and showed an extreme gift of camouflage and deception.

He convinced skeptical officers by creating the illusion of a German warship on the Thames River by using mirrors and a model.

He was deployed to the African theatre in the Western Desert along with 14 assistants: an architect, art restorer, carpenter, chemist, electrical engineer, electrician, painter, and stage-set builder. The group was nicknamed the Magic Gang.

WW II–Era Scale Infrared Combat Tank Models

Image by Ric e Ette via Flickr

The Magic Gang built a number of illusions. They used painted canvas and plywood to make jeeps look like tanks — with fake tank tracks — and tanks look like trucks. They created illusions of armies that fooled the Germans.

One of Maskelyn’s greatest illusions was making the Suez Canal disappear to German pilots. To mask the Suez Canal he built a revolving cone of mirrors that created a wheel of spinning light nine miles wide. The effect dazzled and disoriented the enemy pilots so they could not see the Suez Canal.

Others deceive only to serve their own purposes. Take as an example Dr. Bob Harris. In 1969, Harris phoned WCBS-TV, introducing himself as a Ph.D. in geophysics from Columbia University. “Nobody ever asked for credentials,” he explained.

For the next decade he did well in is career and was also hired by the New York Times as a consulting meteorologist.

On January 18, 1979 “Dr. Bob” Harris was fired by both the New York Times and WCBS radio as a meteorologist. His crime, he wasn’t a doctor. He wasn’t even a meteorologist. After 10 years of pretending to be a professional weatherman, Harris had been caught in a serious lie.

“I was so ashamed,” said Harris, 39. “I was publicly disgraced. I went from $75,000 a year to zip. I had lost everything.”

However most deceivers have ulterior motives that are destructive and sinister. Just like the Decepticons in the transformers franchise there are Decepticons active in our society today. They take on many forms and disguises but one thing you can be sure of, their main purpose is to deceive as many as possible into believing they are honest and true. These Decepticons want others to believe that what they present is reality and everything else is a lie. These sinister bots would like it if everyone fell for their lies and manipulations of truth.

For false christs and false prophets will rise and show signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. Mark 13:22 (NKJV)

The Magic Gang was able to fool the Germans in World War II and Bob Harris was able to fool the New York Times and WCBS, and I am sure many of these false christs and false prophets will deceive many as well. But thanks be to God that even with all the lying and deceiving going on, those who are chosen by God, who know Him and are called by His name, will be able to expose the lies for what they are and will not be deceived by them. However; one has to wonder if anyone will actually care to hear the truth? Will the earth be overtaken by the Decepticons? Will there be anyone to rescue the earth from the lies of the deceivers?

If magicians were able to fool the Germans, and one man was able to avoid detection for almost a decade, it is reasonable to assume then that many will be taken in by the lies and deceptions of the last days. You have been warned, not all is as it appears. There are Decepticons among us. Lies are being masqueraded about as truth. There is a subtle plan hatched by Satan himself to destroy all human flesh on the earth because he thinks so little of it. To him they are pests, and since he can not get at his true arch nemesis- God, he must be content then to make war on all those who have been created in God’s image, especially those of the house of Israel. There is no reasoning with the ultimate Decepticon. He must be resisted. And ultimately defeated.

Then Jesus said to those who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” John 8:31-32 (NKJV)

This is the key to avoid being deceived. Abide in God’s word so that you too can know the truth, for it is the truth that will set you free from the Decepticons.

And that is this week’s tail feather. Think about it.

but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31 (RSV)

Along for the journey