NO COMPROMISE

So shall they fear the name of the LORD from the west,

And His glory from the rising of the sun;

When the enemy comes in like a flood,

"The Spirit of the LORD will lift up a standard against him.

The Redeemer will come to Zion,

and to those who turn from transgression in Jacob,"

Says the LORD.

"As for Me," says the LORD, "this is My covenant with them: My Spirit who is upon you, and My words which I have put in your mouth, shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your descendants, nor from the mouth of your descendants' descendants," says the LORD, 'from this time and forevermore."

Arise, shine; 

For your light has come!

And the glory of the LORD is risen upon you,

For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth,

And deep darkness the people;

But the LORD will arise over you,

And His glory will be seen upon you.

The Gentiles shall come to your light,

And kings to the brightness of your rising.

Lift up your eyes all around, and see:

They all gather together, they come to you;

Your sons shall come from afar,

And your daughters shall be nursed at your side.

Then you shall see and become radiant,

And your heart shall swell with joy;

Because the abundance of the sea shall be turned to you,

The wealth of the Gentiles shall come to you. Isaiah 59:19-60:5

We are living in times when there is a "line being drawn in the sand" as it were for Christians and the Christian Church. The enemy is coming in like a flood across the earth, as satan knows his time is short - that Jesus is coming back for His bride, the Church, the Body of Christ, and those Messianic Jews who have embraced Jesus Christ in truth, as their longed for Messiah. We are told in Scripture prophetically that at a certain point in time, following a seven-year period of the outpouring of God's wrath on the earth in what is called the Great Tribulation, Jesus Christ will return to rule and reign from Jerusalem as King of kings and Lord of lords for a one thousand year period. More about these future events at another time!

As we approach these end-times, it is very clear that satan is working overtime to do exactly as Jesus said he would, in John 10:10 "The thief [satan] comes to steal, kill and destroy....." human lives by any means at his disposal. We are seeing increasingly a well-orchestrated attack on human life, from the womb to the grave. Abortion, the deliberate murder of babies during, and now up to full-term with a significant number of failed late term abortions (seeing healthy babies delivered) resulting in healthy newborns being left for hours to die is rampant, with probably hundreds of millions of babies being disposed of in the past fifty years - worldwide.

My wife, Tessa made an interesting observation the other day concerning the fact, that here in Australia, a significant number of failed late term aborted babies have been left in cold metal trays, sometimes for a number of hours - to die. Why, she posed, if they are going to kill them, don't they give them an injection to kill them quickly, instead of just leaving them to suffer food and warmth deprivation.

Euthanasia, which once was seen as barbaric and against the best ethos upholding the Hippocratic Oath of the medical profession here in Australia, has been legalised in every jurisdiction of the nation, with the Australian Capital Territory today enacting the most liberal of Euthanasia laws, even allowing teenagers to be afforded state-sanctioned suicide for conditions even such as severe depression in an otherwise healthy individual.

By way of interest, the Hippocratic Oath in Australia states the following:

I will maintain the utmost respect for human life; I will not use my medical knowledge to violate human rights and civil liberties, even under threat; I make these promises solemnly, freely and upon my honour.

Interesting that the name Hippocrates and the word "hypocrite." are so similar.

Then there is whole area of the Rainbow Brigade, with all the demonically 'inspired" inroads these warped distortions of gender and sexuality are pervading society, and sadly impacting negatively children and youth, creating confusion and loss of their God-designed identity.

WE NEED A REVIVAL - A TRUE HOLY GHOST AWAKENING

Most Christians, if they have been around for a while will know the injunction given in 2 Chronicles 7:14 in the Old Testament at the dedication of Solomon's temple:

"If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land."

The enemy is coming in like a flood. Persecution against Christians is increasing rapidly around the world. It is clear that persecution against Christians in Western nations is also on the rise, with legislation before parliaments to try to restrict Christian witness, and to seek to silence the Christian voice.

This is not a time for Christians, true disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ to compromise their testimony and the Word of the Living God, in order to seem relevant in a society that is descending into deeper darkness and depravity.

This is a time for Christians to be bold, to be strong in the Lord, fully clothed in the armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-18). The Bible tells us that the fear of the Lord is  the beginning of wisdom. It also says that the fear of the Lord is to hate evil.

As true Christians, we must love the sinner, but hate the sin. The Bible tells us that God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

Standing boldly for Biblical truth without compromise may not win you the first prize in a popularity contest. We have to be prepared even to be alienated from other family members and friends, and even some fellow Christians, if we live a life of no compromise. As Paul the apostle states in 2Timothy 3:12 All who desire to live Godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution/.

When a grown child tells you that they are severing communication with you because: They don't like the "bigoted" posts you have on Facebook,

                They think you hate gays (because you may have expressed that you do                 not agree with the homosexual lifestyle and Rainbow brigade agenda)

                That you love Israel (God has promised to bless those who bless Israel)

                and so on - you have to make a clear choice. Do you cave in to pressure                 to seek to please those who are offended by your no compromise stand                     for  Righteousness - or do you stand boldly for Godly Truth and                                 Righteousness, and COUNT THE COST and move on with the Lord to                     honor and glorify Him with every ounce of your being.

Matthew 10:24-39 has some sobering words from Jesus for Christians who would live uncompromisingly for Him:

"Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn

a man against his father,

a daughter against her mother, 

a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law -

a man's enemies will be the members of his own household.

Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of Me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. Whoever does not take up their cross and follow Me is not worthy of Me.

Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for My sake will find it.

In the context of these verses, Jesus is clearly stating that above all else, we need to have Him first place in our lives for our love and devotion. He is not saying we are to literally hate or dishonour our parents or children, but that if we have to make a choice about who we please in our life choices, He should ALWAYS take first place. Jesus is the Prince of Peace prophesied by Isaiah in the Old Testament, and He did not come to bring a literal sword, but the Word of God is metaphorically referred to as the sword of the Spirit, which will divide truth from error.

Children of God, it is time to AWAKE OUT OF SPIRITUAL SLUMBER, to take up the sword of the Spirit, to take a bold stand for Truth and Righteousness holding to the Word of God which will stand forever, and to ARISE AND SHINE bright for Jesus!