Cultivating Children, Pt. 1

Ron Weinland

September 9, 2017

This past sermon series focused on the institution of marriage that God ordained from the

beginning and as we near the coming of the Millennial reign of Jesus Christ on this earth and the

establishment of God's government and Church throughout the world God is continuing to restore

and reveal more to His Church about truth, about doctrine, and the way things should be in

families because that's the building block of it all and that's where God is leading us in a very

powerful way to help us to understand what we're getting ready to enter into, and especially

within the Church because we're the ones to learn first as we get ready to go into a new age and

God begins to establish His Church everywhere. That's an awesome thing just to think about in

itself.

So, we have this arena as our place to learn how to apply those things and to be the kind of

example we need to, but those things are being established in the Church even more so, so that

we can be prepared as we enter into a new age. I find it interesting, too, that this is the time of

year as we're thinking about that because the Feast of Tabernacles is about that new age and we

very much look forward to that. This world, this earth is so messed up.

It was mentioned at the beginning of the last series that the subject that was covered about

marriage was given to me around the end of February, beginning of March, just before we started

going into all the series that we did about Jesus Christ. There is another one that was also given

at that particular time, a particular subject matter that had been made clear that needed to be

covered, and that's this sermon today. It's about children, and probably more than that, in one

respect, if we understand the focus of the sermon, the responsibility of parents who bring

children into the world.

So God has shown us an incredible responsibility here about the marriage relationship, about how

important it is to Him that we grasp that covenant relationship that we enter into because that's

what we do, we covenant before God and with the one whom we're going to marry, the spouse,

that we're going to be with them from then on and we make promises. We make promises. I think

about what God says about promises in scripture and how He hates lying and deceit and so forth.

So those are the kinds of things that God wants us to grasp the importance of, keeping our word

when we give our word about certain things, but especially in something as important as the

building block of society, of the world, if you will, things of society, things of community because

God wants us to grasp the importance of where we're headed, what we're working toward. We're

working toward being in a great family! So we have this arena of life in life starting with families,

individual families that are unique, are meant to be unique, and are meant to come together to

become one.

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Then as time goes along, if a family so chooses, a husband and a wife, they can bring children

into the world. There lies incredible responsibility in that which God has given to us, and just like

so often in this world today, because of the way marriage is, so has gone the way of children and

the care of parents and that parents should have toward children and rearing children. So this

sermon series here is entitled, Cultivating Children.

Remember the series and things we talked about in dressing and keeping what God has given to

us? So there is that which God has given to us to cultivate and to keep, to keep up, and it takes

work to cultivate something. I think of agriculture; it takes a lot of work to cultivate. How much

more when it comes to children? How much more when it comes to children?

So we're going to begin where so much of what God has been revealing to us recently has been

addressed. Actually, it's the beginning in so very much that's actually stated here and not grasped

nor understood. It's Genesis 3. This is an account of what God stated to Adam and Eve after they

had rejected His ways and chosen their own. God made it very clear that's what they did. They

had rejected Him. They had rejected His word. They had rejected His way and because of that

they were going to be cast out of His presence, in that respect, not being able to have access to

the tree of life that otherwise they could have grown and come to that point in time where they

would have had access to the flow and the power of God's spirit in their life, but before that

could ever take place they were cut off and they were removed from that opportunity. Man has

been for the past 6,000 years and only a few have had such opportunity to be drawn, to be called

by God to be able to have that kind of access to the Great God of the universe to actually

experience the power of His holy spirit in their life. That's an awesome thing. Sometimes it’s far

more awesome than we really grasp, and sometimes more awesome than what we appreciate to

the depth we should really strive to.

And so here is this account in Genesis 3:16, after they had sinned, after they had turned away

from Him, after they had rejected Him ruling over them, God ruling over them. And unto the

woman He said, God Almighty said, I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception.

Now, it’s a lousy translation, lousy translation. Most people think this is strictly about some kind

of thing that God gave to women then from that point on that they were going to have a very

hard time in delivery and all the pain and suffering. God gives that as an example of something

that is far greater. He uses certain things in life to teach us that which is far more meaningful and

far more important, but we are block headed as human beings, because we can't see beyond

physical human life and the way we think on a physical plane.

That's why I love some of the stories in the beginning of John all the way through the book of

John because every time something comes along people see it as physical. The woman at the

well, and Christ was talking about living water, and all she could think about was she didn't have

to go back down there every day to gather water. And that's how we are. We tend to think so

physically because that's what we are, we're physical. The only way that can change is with God's

help, with God's spirit, but even within the Church as we grow and as… I think of the growth we

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came through after Sardis through Philadelphia and Laodicea and things that took place, it's

amazing what we're like as human beings. But we tend to think very physically first. And we do in

the beginning of our calling. And that's a struggle that everyone goes through. It takes time, takes

time to grow on a spiritual plane and to become more spiritually minded.

Unto the woman He said, I will greatly multiply your sorrow. This comes from a Greek word

that means "to be grieved" or "to grieve," if you will. It does mean grief and pain in the mind. It’s

not about the body. It’s about the mind. It's in the mind, the sorrow, the pain, the suffering that

can take place in a human mind. Why? Because they rejected God! They rejected God's way. God's

way is the way that shows the way to peace, first and foremost, the way to happiness and fullness

and abundance in life and when mankind rejected that what happened? Grief. Sorrow. Suffering

on every level. Where does it so often begin in life? Right at home, then in community, in the

world, etcetera. People grow up; they do things. They become something different from what

God has desired for mankind to be able to have the opportunities and the blessings of becoming

and living and experiencing in life. That's why I so look forward to the millennial period and what

we're going to be able to see in this world as people begin to learn without the confusion of

religion today. Just one religion, just one truth, one way of life that's going to be taught. No

confusion anymore and the stupidity that goes along with that in all the different things that take

place in the world and all the prejudices and all the hatreds and all the bitterness that just stem

from differences in religions.

It blows my mind in Europe and now in the United States. What was this country based upon?

Though it wasn't correct as we understand it, nevertheless, the idea was, as it says on so much of

the money, "In God we trust," supposedly, but what is it talking about? It's talking about

traditional Christianity and the beliefs of traditional Christianity. And when you bring in another

great religion on this earth that has people all over the world who believe it, you begin to have

trouble. Now, there is a trouble enough in this nation in the beginning with some of the

Protestant world and the Catholic Church because they don't get along. They haven't gotten along

that well in history. There are interesting things that have happened in history. In Florida, as an

example, if you've gone down there and seen some of the things that have taken place when the

Spanish came in. It seemed like they beat another person who supposedly saw all those other

places. But anyway, I'm being facetious. Our history sometimes leaves a little bit wanting.

But it's incredible. It's incredible the things that have happened, what we choose to believe, what

has happened with the differences in religions and the troubles they're having in Europe now

because they've allowed millions and millions and millions of a different mindset because they

don't mix. The world has been filled with that through time, people getting into wars over

matters of religion. If you don't think that's true go back and read a little bit in history. Wars have

started over this. Sometimes they’ve started by religious leaders who have told others to go wipe

out somebody else, to go to war with them because they're a threat to them. All the stupidity in

the world being wiped away in such a powerful manner when God enforces one way to be taught,

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when there's just one government and not the confusion we have today because nations go to war

with each other because they don't agree with each other, but when there's just one government

try to go to war, especially in that time period, and see what happens because there are going to

be some who would try, but they're not going to get very far.

Everything in the world that people have suffered throughout time because of disobedience to

God and not receiving His guidance and direction in their life has caused nothing but sorrow,

suffering, and great grief. So it does in families. People don't live God's way of life, don't apply

God's way of life because they don't know it and they're ignorant of it in the first place, as a

whole, but the less they try to be involved in life, in rearing children and cultivating their

children, what happens? Well, a great deal of suffering that people go through.

So it says here, I will greatly multiply your sorrow, because of disobedience it's going to be an

automatic thing. That's all He's saying. He's saying your sorrow is going to be greatly magnified,

multiplied now because of what you have chosen to do. You have chosen to make up your own

mind how to do things, how to live life; you're going to suffer the results of that then. It's going to

begin in your home. First of all, it's going to be between husband and wife. He made that very

clear to both of them, some of the kinds of things just in that line, just a little bit of a snippet.

God has blessed us to build upon that, to understand what He said, but He also brought children

into it as well in saying here what would take place.

I will greatly multiply your sorrow, your grief, your pain, and it's not just the word "and." It's "in

your conception," because of what's going to follow. And in sorrow, same word, And in sorrow

you shall bring forth children. So if somebody is just totally physically minded all they can think

about is the pain and suffering when a child is delivered in the world. It is not talking about that.

That is not what God is focusing upon. The whole thing God is doing here as He's talking to them

is the result of what you have chosen to do: "You choose Me not to reign in your life. You choose

not to have My way of life in your life and you want to decide what's right and wrong? Then you're

going to suffer, because every other way brings suffering." Every other way that's different from

what God has given to human beings is going to bring sorrow and suffering. He's making it clear

here it starts in the home. That's why we had the previous series because if the relationship

between a husband and wife isn't right it definitely will not be right with the children. They don't

have a chance, in that respect, to have right things in their mind from that point in time. Now,

they can learn it later on and they can choose sometimes as people mature in life; they choose to

reject what they saw and to live something else that's a little bit better, but they're still living

their own way and they still have suffering too, but that's just the crazy cycle of human life.

But this is all about the rejection of God to rule in people's lives. This sorrow, pain, and grieving

in life would come about in families simply because of sin. And it does. It’s awesome to

understand that.

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So there is one more thing that we need to note in Genesis before we go any farther. That's

Genesis 2:15, the very first thing as great instruction that God began to give to human beings.

Genesis 2:15—And the Eternal God took the man and put him into the Garden of Eden, in

God's creation that He'd made for mankind to live life and to dwell, where everything was

provided for him. …put him in the Garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. Responsibility.

There was a responsibility to cultivate and to keep what God had given to them, to make it

better, to make it better. God gave the things that were there to make things better, to build

with, to construct, to plant, and ways of planting and things to do, or whatever it involved in life.

So they had work to do to keep care of, to nurture what God had given to them.

So the definition we have been using that more clearly reveals the true and deeper meaning of

the phrase, this phrase here, "to dress and to keep," needs to be repeated here. That is the word

"to cultivate" that we've been using because that's what it means in Hebrew. It has to do with "to

cultivate as to foster growth; to improve by labor." Work. Awesome! It's just like certain things

that grow. If they're not trimmed, if they're not taken care of they can take over. You know, there

are just certain things for keeping up just as far as even things that are planted in life when it

comes to agriculture.

We'll be coming back to this definition of what it means "to dress" or better "to cultivate" the lives

of children as we go along in this particular series here. But again here, I want to mention

something else here because this word "to cultivate," as we talked about in past sermons, that is

"to foster growth," an interesting phrase. I think about foster children. What does that mean? Why

did they pick a word like that? Now, it's too bad that man does such a bad job of that, mankind

and how things are administered and so forth, but that's the kind of world we live in because of

the selfishness of human beings and the way human beings are.

But I think it's good to read this particular definition here, take a look at that, what it means, "to

foster growth" as a part of what God commanded concerning "to cultivate and keep" what He gave

to us when you think about children. Because, again, what greater thing did God give to mankind

than to be able to have the blessing of life that would come from you and continue on? What

richer thing in so many ways as far as an experience if someone desires that in life and what

greater responsibility could one have than this? Its one thing when you think about agriculture, to

cultivate a field, to plant something, to grow something and whatever, but what is that compared

to a child? What is that when we think about this in regard to what God gave to mankind? Because

He gave that to mankind. He even commanded mankind, in that respect, basically for the purpose

of going out and populating the earth because God had a plan for Elohim and what would come

through time.

But this word "foster" means, "To encourage or promote the development of something." Today,

and maybe it's been that way for a long time, but I don't know, because I have a certain span of

time in my life and I know what's happened in my lifetime. I’ve seen things around me and what

takes place and what has taken place in society more and more and more. It's like the children

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take a backseat so often in life and it's like the world raises them. Even in the world today people

are not taught about marriage. They're not taught about having children. They're not taught

about how to work with children. Now, there are some organizations in some places where some

of these things are offered and there are books you can read, etcetera, but as a whole there's not

a lot of time spent on these things and people go out and have children and what takes place,

what happens? Incredible, the responsibility there.

"To encourage or promote the development…" I'll tell you what I see today. I have a hard time not

even getting into this. It's the electronic crap that's out there and letting children go because

that's their babysitter! That's what it is! The bottom line is it's their babysitter because it takes

away their responsibility that they don't have to work with them. Let them go and do as long as

they're happy and they're not making noise and so forth, let them get on a computer, let them get

on an iPad, let them do whatever they want to do any time they want to do it. That's the kind of

world we live in right now. I know that's going to change very soon. That's not the world that God

desires for mankind with the kind of technology that God has allowed us to have. The

responsibility for that is in the parents! It's not in any one else to take care of. It is solely the

parents to regulate and to control and to work with for this purpose, "to encourage or to promote

the development of something," and in this case here someone. "Typically," it says here,

"something regarded as good." Better believe it. "To encourage, promote, further, stimulate,

advance, nurture, strengthen, enrich," all those words having to do if you look up "foster" in a

dictionary. And so what do parents do?

So it begins with us and so there are things we need to do better, we need to learn how to do

better. Even in that area I've had to make announcements and have announcements made: “Not

in Sabbath services. Not even before and after Sabbath services, in that environment.” Do we

have to have these little things around here where all of a sudden we can't wait to start doing it,

and where children are not taught to hear the most important thing, to learn how to listen and

begin to drink in of something in their life? Regardless of how much they're able to receive at that

point, but to nurture, to prepare them, to help them in a process of growth. I've seen some

atrocious things through my time in God's Church, of people not standing up to that responsibility

that God gave to them to do that.

Anyway, I get a little heated when I think about this because I've seen the damage, I've seen the

hurt, I've seen the pain, I've seen the results of such lax in life. Now, that doesn't mean that when

you do something the best you could be able to possibly be able to do in this life in God's Church

with His holy spirit that a child is going to choose that because that's not true. Everyone has their

own mind, but can any one of us do better? Obviously, we can always do better and that's what

this is all about, striving to make change and do better because we're getting ready to go into an

age when that's going to begin changing very rapidly. It's good that you're in the forefront and

ahead of the game in God's Church, and it's for us to learn from this so we can realize what's

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coming and to be thankful for what's coming. Where we can contribute, where we can be a part

of this, what an awesome thing.

So I love this, the expression "to foster growth" and what it means when it comes to cultivating

the lives of children because that takes work. I loathe what I see in the world and in society today

when people are not standing up to that responsibility they've been given and kids are sent off to

school; I think of teachers and what they have to deal with so often in the school systems because

of the neglect and lack of input on the part of the parents in their life. And for some, it's like they

just live their life by themselves. There are kids that grow up now days in this world, it's just like

they're on their own. Truly, that's how they're treated in many respects. How they're to become

adults and what they learn in that process, it's not what it's supposed to be and it's pathetic. If

you want to look at marriages and see what the divorce rate is in this country and to see that

even those that aren't and those that are not happy and to have those kinds of things out there,

you can then understand why there is such a big problem with children and children growing up in

this world today because they take a backseat. Then it becomes a war, a tug-o-war, even worse,

and children are used like pawns.

I'll tell you what, it's hard for me to keep my blood pressure down right now, and I have low blood

pressure, because these things infuriate me as I look at the world around me. I am so thankful

that God is getting ready to change it and to begin to humble mankind so that He can work with

mankind because mankind has to be humbled and these are big areas we're talking about, of

things that have to be changed. This has to be changed. It's inexcusable the way the world is and

they don't see it. They don't grasp what they're doing and then by the time it dawns on them it's

too late. You know when it dawns on them? When they finally recognize the suffering and the pain

that their own children are experiencing because of their lives and what they're going through

and what they see that they didn't do and could have done different in so many cases.

But again, everybody has their own choices in life, but God gives us a responsibility to do the best

we can with what we've been given, and especially in the Church even more so.

We’re going to go over to the Old Testament. 1 Kings 11. We’re going to spend quite a bit of time

back here. We're going to spend a lot of time, actually, going through a lot of Old Testament

scriptures because there are some stories back here that I've always been dumbfounded by in

many respects. Yet these are very physical, but they can teach something very spiritual and how

God looks upon us in life and what is really, really, really important in life to God.

Before we start that I'm going to read another verse here just in Proverbs. I just thought about

this this morning and thought this would be good to read this first because sometimes we don't

think about this. Do you know how the book of Proverbs came about? Proverbs 1:1—The proverbs

of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel: To know wisdom and instruction, to perceive the

words of understanding. God gave this to Solomon. He was noted for the wisdom he had. His

fame went throughout the nations round about. They came to Jerusalem. There is one in

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particular, a queen, that came there for that very purpose, to hear the wisdom of Solomon

because of all that she had heard. Incredible! God blessed him so much that there's a section in

this book of what God gave to him.

1 Kings 11:1—But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter…of

Moab, strange in the sense of referring to people who are not a part of Israel, people who had

different ideas, different beliefs, different god's. That's what was strange about it. That's what it's

referring to here. It's about where they came from. And the reason God told them what He did

was primarily always first and foremost because of this very thing, their gods. It was always about

their gods. Where some have made it a matter of race, and it wasn't a matter of race, it was a

matter of their gods and what they believed.

But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, also

women of Moab, Ammon, Edom, Zidon, and the Hittites; of which nations the Eternal said

unto the children of Israel, You shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto

you: for they will surely turn away your heart from following after their gods. What a warning.

God told them what was going to happen if they did this, if they didn't obey this. Yet Solomon

held fast to these in love. And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred

concubines. And his wives turned away his heart. Turned away his heart from what? From God

Almighty to other gods. That's almost unbelievable when you read what God gave to that man.

Incredible. Awesome what he chose.

So it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other

gods, away from God Almighty, away from the one who had so blessed him because of his own

father David. God Almighty blessed Solomon so powerfully so, gave him so much, and he made

bad choices, really, really bad choices here.

When I read something like this I can't help but think of all the people I've known, a song we're

going to sing this year at the Feast of Tabernacles, about walking to God's house side by side and

counsel blended sweet, and those who've gone by the wayside, who have chosen other things. It’s

incredible on a spiritual plane.

I think of the scripture that says, "Let no man take your crown," which we will discuss in a

particular subject at the Feast this year as well, because we have experienced that in an

incredible way, in a way that I think you'll be rather dumbfounded by as we talk about some of

those things this year. It’s incredible what can happen to us. And so every year I cry out, every

year when we get around the Feast of Tabernacles especially. Every year around that last sermon

– I'm sure it'll be on this one as well – asking everyone, "Will you be here next year?" Are you going

to keep fighting this fight until the end, to keep holding on to what God has given to you, to

cherish what God has given to you?

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Because see, here is a man that was given incredible things and he didn't hold on to it. I'm sure

there was a period of time, and probably a long period of time where he would have said, "I will

always cherish what God gave to me." I think of the prayer he gave when he dedicated the temple

after he was able to build what David was told he could not build, a physical temple. I think of

the words that he spoke and the things that he said. At that time it would have been in the last

thing in his mind that he would ever turn his back on the Great God of the universe. It would have

been the last thing, if he'd had a conversation with him. So I think how can anyone? And yet last

week we received another individual that things are just too hard out here and life has been

difficult here and life has been difficult there and seems like things aren't going well. Well, duh!

And especially around this time of year sometimes things don't go so well. We have to fight

battles and things get stirred up in the world around us. How many times have we ever been told

that? But it's up to you whether you fight those things and whether or not you keep the Great God

in the forefront of your mind and to cry out to God Almighty for the help and the strength of His

holy spirit to hold fast to what He's given to us because that's an individual choice.

So people just continue to go by the wayside even before we get to the Feast of Tabernacles. It’s

still happening. We've had a couple in the last month who've done the exact same thing. I think,

"Don't you know what you've done, disfellowshipping yourself? Do you know what you've done to

your life? You think things were bad before, don't you grasp what Paul says when you're cast over

you're out there for Satan to do whatever he desires? That's basically what God says. It blows my

mind. Yet people let down in some area of their lives, some area of disobedience, which I'm still

dumbfounded how some still don't give Holy Day offerings and still don't tithe faithfully. It's not

about the money. It's about the faithfulness to God Almighty. It's about the mind and the attitude

toward God Almighty and how we think and what's in our mind. God gives us things because He

wants to know what is in your mind. What are you going to do? Are you going to hold fast to what

I have given to you? Are you going to fight for this? How much do you value what I've given to you?

Do we really grasp? Do we really value it? To what degree do we value it?

It blows my mind. I’m sorry. I think of Solomon, and what he did: So it came to pass, when

Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods, and his heart was not

at peace, meaning it was not right, with the Eternal his God. His heart was not at peace with

the Eternal His God because it was not right with the Eternal his God, as was the heart of David

his father. For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom

the detestable god of the Ammonites. Thus Solomon did what was evil…he did what was evil

in the sight of the Eternal. Anyone who leaves God's Church does evil in the sight of God

Almighty! I don't get it! It blows my mind how even on a physical plane how people do those kinds

of things, but people make choices.

Thus Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the Eternal and did not go fully, or completely

as he should have, giving his heart, his desire, his life, after the Eternal, as David his father.

Then Solomon built a high place, a shrine, for Chemosh, the detestable god of Moab, in the

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hill that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech/Moloch, the detestable god of the children of

Ammon. And did likewise… Now, when you understand what it's saying here, this is really

putrefying sick what he did. It really is. Just on a physical plane of and by itself in every respect,

what he knew that they did and how they worshipped their god and what he gave into with those

wives. And he did likewise for all his strange wives, who burnt incense and sacrificed unto

their gods. When you know what they sacrificed then it really makes your stomach churn.

And the Eternal was angry with Solomon, and yet the book of Proverbs is there as a reminder.

God can give something, and He's given it to us to this day – those words – because it's His word

and whether Solomon remained faithful to that or not doesn't change God's word in any fashion or

form. So we have the book, the book of Proverbs. Awesome! Think he's going to be in the first

resurrection? Because I'll tell you what, there are people in the past in God's Church who think

that he's going to be in the first resurrection. And the Eternal was angry with Solomon because

his heart had turned away from the Eternal God of Israel, who had appeared unto him

twice, and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods.

But he did not keep that which the Eternal commanded.

Verse 11—Therefore, the Eternal said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as you have done this, and

you have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely

rend, means "to tear away," the kingdom from you, and will give it to your servant. Now, Israel,

if you know the story, went after Jeroboam, a servant of Solomon. Now the kingdom split up –

Judah and Israel. And, literally, in this case here Jeroboam was a servant to Solomon.

Notwithstanding, and you remember what happened? You remember the story about Jeroboam?

Every place you read it, as a whole, and you read about different kings of Israel that "they went

the way of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat." They all did the same thing. They did not follow God

Almighty at all, but went after other gods. Incredible! But it always goes back to Jeroboam, and

really goes back to Solomon because of what Solomon did because this is the result of what

Solomon did, his sins. God divided the kingdom.

Notwithstanding, I will not do this in your days, for David your father's sake: but I will rend,

or tear it out of the hand of your son. Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will

give one tribe to your son for David my servant's sake, and for God's promise to David. That's

why because of what He promised and about a line of kings that would continue one, not that

they would be faithful, but there would be a line of kings. …and for Jerusalem's sake which I

have chosen. So, incredible story here. In this case his son Rehoboam reigned in his stead over

Judah.

Let's go over to Leviticus now and see what God told them during that forty years, within that

period of forty years, some of the things He had to say about what would happen when they

would come into the promised land. This is about, again, what God said concerning the

seriousness of the Israelites not listening to Him because it always comes back to whether people

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will choose to listen to God or not – especially about the consequences of disregarding His

instruction, and here, about the children of Israel or their children going after other gods.

But anyway, Leviticus 20:1—And the Eternal spoke unto Moses, saying, Again, you shall say to

the children of Israel, If any of the children of Israel, or of the strangers living in Israel, see,

different peoples, different nationalities that chose to be with them, which they did, they could

become a part, in that respect, with Israel, and he said, or the strangers living in Israel that

give any of their seed, their children unto Molech… Do you think Solomon knew what he built?

Do you think he knew what God had to say about this? Absolutely. They shall surely be put to

death. The people of the land are to stone them with stones. Incredible. And I will set My face

against that person, and I will cut them off from their people, because they have given of

their children/their seed unto Molech, to defile My sanctuary…

And I'll just tell you the spiritual part of this is if we in any fashion or form in God's Church do not

lead and guide and direct our children to God Almighty on our part, to do all that we can do, and

if we allow other things to enter in into life in their lives we defile God's sanctuary. We are in the

temple of God. We are not in the courtyard and we're not to be in the courtyard. And this,

candidly, can determine whether we sometimes are in this particular area of our lives. I've seen a

lot of this and too much in God's Church in times past. So this is on a very physical plane. I'm

going through this for that very purpose, so we can understand more and appreciate more fully

the seriousness of what God gives to us, especially when we're begotten of God's holy spirit, to

grasp and understand things on a spiritual plane. This is something that happened physically that

we should see and think, "How could anyone do something like this?" And I look and see certain

things and I think, well, how can anyone in God's Church do certain things? How can a husband

and wife curse at each other and tear each other apart and tell them, "I can't stand you! I don't

love you!" and expect somehow something good to come out of that? I don't get it because that

isn't God's way. And on and on it goes. What do children see when they see things like that take

place? If it happens once it happened too many times in God's Church. That doesn't belong in

God's Church.

More and more God is making it clear when He establishes His government on this earth that's not

going to be allowed in God's Church anymore and that there's going to be things about

responsibility that are going to be taught. It's with the parents. You can't expect children to be

adults or somehow by osmosis learn and then all of a sudden they're an adult and then they go

out. That's why things are passed down from generation to generation, curses, because they see

something wrong and they go out and repeat the same thing and sometimes it just gets worse and

worse. And that's oftentimes what happens in life. Sad.

And I will set My face against that person, and will cut them off from among their people,

because they have given of their children, their seed to Molech, to defile My sanctuary and to

profane My holy name, not to take God's name in vain. How much more should that mean to us,

each one of us, not to take God's name in vain. We are impregnated with God's holy spirit and we

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are in the Body of Christ, the Church of God. God dwells in us and we're to dwell in God, in the

temple, to worship God in the temple and we must do our part in every facet of life, especially in

this one here, because this is one the most important because when you talk about family, that's

why we had the previous sermon series. First of all it begins with husband and wife, and then any

children that are brought into that relationship and that life. It’s incredible responsibility that

people carry. So often people just don't grasp the responsibility and how God looks upon it and

what God expects.

Verse 4—And if the people of the land do in any way hide their eyes from that person, when

they give their seed to Molech, and do not kill him, then I will set My face against that person

and against that family and will cut them off, and all who go a whoring after them to commit

whoredom with Molech from among their people. That’s pretty strong language. Pretty strong

language, what God is saying. I hope you understand what this means on a spiritual plane.

And the soul that turns after such as have familiar spirits, and after wizards, to go a whoring

after them, I will even set My face against that soul and will cut them off from their people.

Incredible responsibility that God gives as to how we live our lives, as to whether or not God is

first. That's what it all comes down to. Is God first? Because if God is first there is a certain way

we're going to think in everything we do. It begins in family and how a husband thinks towards his

wife, how a wife thinks toward the husband, and how they think toward the children. That's

where it begins.

So in verse 7 it goes on to say, Therefore, sanctify yourselves and become holy. Who do you

think that's written to? You think that was written to Ancient Israel? Do you think that was for

them to live? They couldn't live that! They didn't have God's holy spirit. Now, they were to do

certain things on a physical plane, to set certain things apart in their service and worship to God,

but this is a spiritual matter fully, completely to God's people who have God's holy spirit. That's

whom this is written to. "Therefore, sanctify yourselves." They could only do certain things on a

physical plane, which is not what God intended. Even when it came to the offering of sacrifices,

that isn't what God wanted. That wasn't the fullness of it all but it was a matter of them being

able to have a community, a nation of people, and to give recognition to God Almighty as being

the one who worked with them and so forth, and to whether or not they'd be faithful to some of

that. They couldn't even be faithful to the Sabbath day as time went along. It’s incredible. Just

one tribe did.

Therefore, sanctify yourselves and become holy, for I am the Eternal your God. And you shall

keep My statutes and do them: I am the Eternal who sanctifies you. We understand what it

means to be sanctified, to be set apart in that respect, and how that's accomplished in our lives.

It's by God's holy spirit and only by God's holy spirit. It can't be done just by a physical routine of

life, of keeping the Sabbath or observing the Sabbath day or the Holy Days or tithing because

Israel did those kinds of things and that isn't what God wanted in the fullness of time. It was to

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lead us to a different time, about the Church and about the Kingdom that's coming, in the sense

of what God's going to govern on this earth.

Now, it’s very clear what God said in Leviticus, and Solomon heard those words. He read those old

things that were stated long before that they had. The kings were commanded to. They had a job

to read the law, a responsibility before they could lead the people and work with the people. You

can be rest assured Solomon did because of how David worked with him.

2 Kings 22. This is a long way up the line now, getting toward the end, talking about Judah. 2

Kings 22:1, all the time that had gone by. Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign,

and he reigned thirty one years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Jedidah, the

daughter of Adaiah of Boscath. And he did that which was right in the sight of the Eternal,

"did that which was right in the sight of the Eternal." He was very young, began to be worked

with, and different ones who worked with him, the priesthood and so forth. It’s incredible, the

mind that was there as he grew. And he walked in all the ways of David his father, and did not

turn aside to the right or to the left. He wanted God to be first. He admired David. He admired

what David had lived. He desired to live that way of life.

And it came to pass in the eighteenth year of king Josiah, that the king sent Shaphan…the

scribe, and some others here it talks about, to the house of the Eternal, saying, Go up to

Hilkiah the high priest, so that he may total up the silver which is brought into the house of

the Eternal, which the keepers at the door have gathered of the people. And let them deliver

it into the hand of those who do the work, who have the oversight of the house of the

Eternal. And let them give it to those who do the work which is in the house of the Eternal,

to repair the damage of the house, unto carpenters, and builders, and masons, and to buy

timber and hewn stone and to repair the house. So he had a great zeal and a great desire of

things he wanted to do in rebuilding things and striving to bring a nation back to a right

relationship with God. That's what he was striving to do. His whole life is about this. He had one

of the most awesome Passovers that was ever kept in all of Israel if you read the entire story of

Josiah and what he did in his life. It’s an incredible story.

Verse 7—However, there was no accounting made with them of the money that was delivered

into their hand, because they dealt faithfully. And Hilkiah the high priest said unto Shaphan

the scribe, I have found the book of the law in the house of the Eternal. And Hilkiah gave the

book to Shaphan, and he read it. And Shaphan the scribe came to the king, and brought the

king word again, and said, Your servants have gathered the money that was found in the

house, and have delivered it into the hand of those who do the work and have the oversight

of the house of the Eternal. So Shaphan the scribe showed the king, saying, Hilkiah the priest

has delivered to me a book. Incredible, they didn't even have it. There was no attention being

paid to it because of all the things they had already been doing through some of the previous

things that had taken place here before he came along. And it says, And Shaphan read it before

the king. And it came to pass, when the king had heard the words of the book of the law, that

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he rent his clothes. He knew enough by hearing what he did that he responded to humble

himself before God because he knew the seriousness of what he'd heard.

And the king commanded Hilkiah the priest, and other servants and it goes on to say, saying, Go

and enquire of the Eternal for me, and for the people, and for all Judah, concerning the

words of this book, in other words, he was so impacted by what he had heard, he was so moved

by it, he was so fearful, that he wanted to know what's going to happen to us. What is God going

to do because of what we've been doing and how we've been living and what this nation has done?

So he wanted them to go and find someone to inquire of God, someone who was known to be able

to do so. Go and enquire of the Eternal for me, and for the people, and for all Judah

concerning the words of this book that have been found. For great is the wrath of

the Eternal that has been kindled against us, because our fathers have not listened unto the

words of this book, to do according to all that which has been written concerning us. He was

shaken, powerfully so. It’s incredible, this kind of a story.

So Hilkiah the priest, and it goes on to say and several others with him, went to discuss this

with the prophetess named Huldah…and they spoke with her. And she said to them, Here… A

prophetess, a prophet of God, they knew who to go to. She had the reputation, very much like

Deborah in her time when you go back through and read about that when you come to the time of

the judges. And she said to them, Here is what the Eternal God of Israel has to say, Tell the

man that sent you to me… I like the way it's stated here. It's go back to the king, not tell Josiah,

but "just tell the man." It's what God said because He's God Almighty. Tell the man that sent you

to me, Here is what the Eternal had to say, Behold, I will bring evil upon this place, and upon

the inhabitants thereof, and all the words of the book which the king of Israel has read. So he

knew the punishment. He knew the severity of what would happen to a nation that had gone as

far as they did. He took it to heart and he wanted to find out then what's going to take place. He

humbled himself before God Almighty. He rent his clothes and humbled himself mightily before

God.

So it says here, again, I will bring evil upon this place, and upon the inhabitants

thereof, even all the words of the book which the king of Israel has read because they have

forsaken Me… They didn't want God to rule over them and went after other gods. That's what

their history is here. …and have burned incense unto other gods, that they might provoke Me

to anger with all the works of their hands; therefore, My wrath shall be kindled against them,

and shall not be quenched. In other words, what you have read is true because of what they

have done, and they have broken that law this is what must be done. This is righteous judgment.

This is what must take place to this people.

But to the king of Judah, in other words, to Josiah, who sent you to enquire of the Eternal,

this is what you shall say to him, This is what the Eternal God of Israel has to say to you

concerning the words which you have heard; because your heart was tender… I think of us

when we come to certain points in our life, when we understand sin, when we see things that

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perhaps we haven't seen or grasped the severity, whether it be in marriage or in rearing of

children, as an example, and what we're talking about here, and we come to a point where we

are moved in heart and spirit and we repent, there's an attitude there that God looks upon and a

response that we should have because we indeed can always do better. If we've slipped or we

haven't applied the things, or didn't know then we need to also understand the strength and

severity of what God has to say and seek to change it.

Because your heart was tender, and you have humbled yourself before the Eternal when you

read what I spoke against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, that they should

become a desolation and a curse, because he read that in the law. That's what's going to

happen. It's going to become a desolation and a curse. …and you have torn your clothes, and

have wept before me. He is deeply moved, sincere in what he was doing before God beause God

knows the heart. I also have heard you. I love these verses. It reflects the kind of God whom we

serve that when God brings us to the point where we can see certain things in our life that we

need to repent of we can make that choice to humble ourselves before the Great God and to

repent, to be genuine before God. The more we feel that, the more we see that, and the more

we grasp the severity of our error and our ways and we pour out our heart to God, God hears us

because it means we're listening to God.

That's why this world has to go through what it does. You think these two hurricanes are anything?

It’s nothing yet. It's horrible to have to go through things like that. Your heart’s moved when you

watch different ones and they get choked up when they talk about everything they have worked

for – it's gone. Some places where it's flooded, everything they worked for, it's gone. What do you

do? You never got flood insurance. You didn't think you'd ever need it where you were. You were

told you'd never have to have it. Then a thousand year flood comes along. It happens and a lot

more is going to happen. What does it take to humble human beings, to turn them from their

ways to the Great and the Almighty God, to where people will really start listening?

That's not hardness of heart. That's understanding the human heart and how hard it is and what it

takes so often to bring mankind to humility, to where they'll actually listen to the Great God and

begin to acknowledge some of the most simple things in life. Well maybe Jesus Christ didn't die

on a cross. Maybe I ought to listen to that. Maybe what I've heard, and why they came around and

broke the two thieves legs on both sides so they would die quickly before that Holy Day began. I

understand now why his hands were up here like this when his hands were nailed to a pole, and

why the other two when they had their legs broken couldn't breathe any longer. They couldn't

push themselves up any longer and they died. Maybe they'll start believing that. But you think

with a couple little hurricanes they're going to do that? No way on earth. No way on earth! It's

going to take things far, far, far greater than that to bring mankind to humility because it means a

total change in thinking and a total change in attitude of mind toward the Great God and a

willingness to accept and to listen to what He has to say.

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Josiah was such a man. He feared. He heard, and I'll add he was moved by God's spirit too (though

it doesn't say it), to grasp the severity of what Judah had done and to understand the truth in

what God said in His word about what He would do when they did that and what would be the

consequences of an entire nation of people for that. So here is the response.

And because of these things, I also have heard you, says the Eternal. Therefore, I will take you

unto your fathers, and you shall be taken to your grave in peace; and your eyes shall not see

all the evil which I will bring upon this place. And they brought the king word again.

2 Kings 23:1—And the king sent, and had gathered unto him all the elders of Judah and

Jerusalem. And the king went up into the house of the Eternal, and all the men of Judah and

all the inhabitants of Jerusalem with him, and the priests, and the prophets, and all the

people, both small and great were attentive to all the words he read from the book of the

covenant which he had found in the house of the Eternal, the book of the covenant. He began

to understand this is a book of a covenant, of our word to serve the Almighty God, to be faithful

and true to God Almighty. Our word! Just like I'm stressing the importance again of our word when

we become married, of what we're saying to one another and to God Almighty of something we

promise that we're going to do. Then what follows that in life in children is awesome. I can't

stress how important that is as to whether or not we follow through and live and strive to live in

the way God has given us to do so.

And the king stood by a pillar, and made a covenant before the Eternal, to walk after the

Eternal, and to keep His commandments and His testimonies and His statutes with all their

heart and with all their soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this

book. And all the people stood to the covenant.

So it goes on in the story here. Awesome. After repenting and promising to obey God they took

action and that's what we have to do in our lives when we come to see things that we're not doing

in the manner we need to; we come to a point where we repent before God, we humble ourselves

before God, we ask God for forgiveness through our Passover Jesus Christ who spilled his blood to

the earth for us, who suffered and was beaten for us, each one of us, so that we can have that

opportunity to say, "Father, forgive me and wipe the sin from me." But then, that isn't enough.

Then we have to take action. We have to respond to that. That's what repentance is about. The

word, I love the word in the Greek language where it means, "to think differently." Then we strive

to think differently and sometimes you just have battles in those things, to strive to keep on a

right course, to fight.

That's why I've made comment in times past we better know what's some of our 1, 2, and 3 major

battles are in our lives and what we're like and who we are and how we think so that we can

constantly be praying about that and fighting it because the day you quit praying about it and

fighting it you're going to slip again; you're going to go right back to doing those things in your

life. It’s guaranteed, absolute, because you're not strong enough. I'm not strong enough; we are

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not strong enough to hold to God's way of life. It takes God's spirit in us. That's why we cry out for

God's holy spirit. That's the only way. That's your strength. That's your life, to hold on to the truth

and the ways He's given to you.

Verse 4—And the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, and the priests of the second order,

and the keepers of the door, to bring forth out of the temple of the Eternal all the vessels

that were made for Baal, in the temple! Judah had gone this far! So when Josiah read these

things he was shocked. He was dumbfounded as young as he was and being taught as he was and

then to hear these things, a book that they didn't have and now all of a sudden they have and he's

able to read it and read what was told unto their people. He was moved by that. Then to see this

sickness, this perversion in the temple itself, brought into the temple. That's why we cannot bring

perversion, and disorder, and lying, and hypocrisy into God's temple. It doesn't work. God doesn't

allow that and we can't deceive ourselves into thinking we can ever do that. The reality is we're

out in the courtyard, if we're even there! Some must be on a far trip sometimes because they're

not even in the courtyard.

So again here, bringing out all these vessels that were made for Baal, and for the grove, and for

all the host of heaven, and he burned them outside of Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, and

carried the ashes of them unto Beth-el. And he put down the idolatrous priests. Do you know

what that means? He put them down, had them put to death. …the idolatrous priests whom the

kings of Judah ordained to burn incense in the high places in the cities of Judah, and in the

places round about Jerusalem; them also that burned incense, those, in other words, that

burned incense unto Baal, to the sun, to the moon, and to the planets, and to all the host of

heaven. You think, how could human beings do this? But they did that. This is what they did.

Amazing! Incredible, what human beings can do when they were given so much in a history here

that should have been rich for them, but it doesn't take long to turn the back and turn away from

God and go after one's own way and live ever how you want. It's not that hard to do. A matter of

fact, it's just pretty easy to go the way of the world, to be with the world, to rub shoulders with

the world because when you rub shoulders with the world you're a part of it, but when you strive

to live God's way of life you're fighting battles. You'd be fighting battles on a continuous basis if

you're seeking to put God first in your life on a consistent basis.

And he brought out the grove… It's a word, really, that's Hebrew here, Asherah. It's the image of

the Phoenician goddess. So they brought this out, the Asherah, from the house of the Eternal.

Again, they had all these different idols, all these things in the temple. I think of what the

Protestant world has done, because it's the same thing on a spiritual plane, bringing all these

things in and supposedly still using the name of God. They were using the name of God. They

were using the temple, but they were mixing in all these other gods and beliefs and so forth.

Incredible, what human beings can do, how far off base they can go in order to do things our way.

So, verse 6, brought out the Asherah from the house of the Eternal, outside Jerusalem, unto

the brook Kidron, and burned it at the brook Kidron, and stamped it small to powder, and

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cast the powder thereof unto the graves of the children of the people. Awesome! "Look what

you have done. It's come right back to you." They put it in powder, put it on the graves, stamped

it in the graves. It's a reflection of something here, "This is what you've done. This is what you

get."

It goes on to tell of many of the things here that took place, but let's notice verse 10—And he

defiled, or declared to be unclean, is what he did. That's what the word means here in this case,

Topheth. Now, he had to make a proclamation, in essence, is what he did, to say, "This isn't right.

This shouldn't be done. This place is unclean. You're not to be there, not to do this." …which is in

the valley of the children of Hinnom… Does that ring a bell? "In the valley of the children of

Hinnom," Gehenna, the sons of Hinnom, that's what it's about. It's that place, that place that has

a unique history through time to the children of Israel if they bothered to read the book, if they

bothered to listen.

And he declared Topheth to be unclean, which is in the valley of the children of Hinnom,

because there's more to the story. It's really sick. …so that no man might make his son or his

daughter to pass through the fire to Molech. Solomon built such a place. Solomon knew what

they did. I don't know if it was any of his children, but it was his wives, so was it even some of his

children offered up to Molech? I don't know. It doesn't say, because that's what they did, they

sacrificed their own children, their own flesh and blood, to somehow have some kind of

appeasement or some kind of thing that they felt their god required in order for their lives to be

better, in order for their lives to be more blessed, or whatever it might be, to offer up your own

child to Molech because of the stupidity and the ignorance and the ugliness of what they believed

and what they lived. Awesome.

I have often seen when I've seen situations go bad within the Church, of certain things that aren't

being done right in a family when it comes to properly cultivating children, I think of this,

offering up their children to Molech. Let the world have them. If I don't do my job that's what I'm

saying, "Let the world have them!" Because on a spiritual plane that's what's done. You don't have

to do it physically in offering up a child to Molech before God. It can be done within the

environment of something that God has given us as His people. If we say, "Let the world have

them. Let the world raise them. Let the little iPad, let the little thing here, the computer

without supervision, without guidance and direction, let that raise them, because it makes my

life a whole lot easier. I can kind of go do what I want to and relax and take it easy in the

evening," etcetera. This is repeated over and over again in people's lives out here in the world.

"Let the world raise them. Let come into their minds anything that you can think about out there

in the world."

Because you know what? In a computer anything in the world can come to them and they learn

and they see things and things are implanted in the mind, see, at a very young age, that they

can't deal with, that they can't handle, that destroy their thinking, that ruin their thinking, that

will pervert and destroy their thinking in regards to sex and people of a different sex, whether it

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be man, woman, or girl. It doesn't matter. It ruins the mind and how people think. It defiles the

thinking of a child to where they grow up and mature and go through certain phases of life and

they cannot be right in their thinking. They cannot be right in their thinking! Do we understand

the seriousness of such a thing? They cannot be right in their thinking. It scars, distorts, perverts

the mind; feeds something to the mind that the mind should never have. As they grow up and

mature in life it will become their battle throughout the rest of their life. You think that's not

true? I tell you by Almighty God it's true. It's true. That will become their battle, major battle

through the rest of their life, to fight against the distortion of the mind. That even means in the

millennial period with God's help, with God's spirit available to them, they will have a battle and

battles that they should never have fought.

Because things that all of us should be able to see as adults is that anything we went through in

our life, even when we were younger all the way up to our adult life, those are the things that

made our mind what it is. Our mind becomes set in certain ways of thinking and being. Certain

things that come into the mind, they're there and they're not flushed away easily. They just

become a part of the mind. What gives people soundness of mind then and balance comes from

God's spirit and God's way of life. The more people put God first the sounder the mind is, but that

doesn't mean that there isn't that which still is back there somewhere and that can become a

battle for them in their lives because it does. The more that's distorted and hurt in a child the

harder it is when they're adult, the battles they will have as a result of that.

People can have great and rich, awesome lives when we come into God's Church and have God's

holy spirit, but I'm just telling you where it starts so that we can understand the seriousness of

why God wants things to be a certain way, that we take on the responsibility of cultivating in a

very powerful way, children, to do our part. You know where it begins for us in many ways? Right

here in Sabbath services. Right wherever you're listening today. It begins right here. First and

foremost it begins right here. If we don't do it here we're not doing it. I tell you that by the

authority of God Almighty as well. I know God has given it to me to pass along to the body, to the

Church. If we don't do it here on the Sabbath day, if we don't do it in things about teaching about

tithing, we don't do it like we should, period, we're falling short. Those things need to be

repented of mightily. Now, hopefully there's not that much, but wherever it is, it needs to be

changed.

That's the point of all this. We need to take seriously what God has given to us. I hope we

recognize the power and the authority God has given to His Church to get to a point where we're

so close now to a new age being established. It begins in the marriage, in two who are to become

one in mind, in purpose and focus and direction and sharing of life together that God has

designed to be rich and full and beautiful then children that add to that and make that rich and

full and beautiful, and not with sorrow and anguish and suffering like Adam and Eve were told

would happen in life, because it happens. It happens. People who deny that, it’s sad.

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Jeremiah 32. It's a matter of taking seriously what God says. That's why I love the story about

Josiah. He took it to heart. He was so moved and he desired that he himself and his country

would change and honor God and serve God. He worked hard to get the country directed towards

God Almighty again. That's why I love the story. You go on and read the story about the Passover

they observed, the greatest ever. Powerful. Beautiful, the things that are revealed here about

what he did and how he sought to honor God and to put God first. I'll tell you what, every child

who grows up in a family needs to know that their parent, or parents, whoever's in the Church,

puts God first, not them. God. Sometimes parents put children first. Big mistake. Big mistake!

God is first. God is first in everything you choose to do and say in life. They need to know that.

They need to know when something is not right, no matter who you are. No matter who you are it

doesn't matter; you're answerable to the Great God of the universe. In so many cases then you

have the responsibility to do your part to make sure that they're guided, corrected, led, and so

forth to do what is right.

I mentioned the thing of tithing. I'm just going to throw things out at different times and I wish I

had the ability to remember so many different examples and things that I've seen through time,

but what an awesome thing, brethren, to recognize what God has given to us, what we're able to

see. I wish I had greater ability, as I was saying, to be able to convey some of these things. But

I’m hitting high spots of these things, just like we did in the marriage series here. That’s what we

need to grasp, of how God looks upon things and how He wants us to see things. It's a matter of

striving to be at-one with God, having the mind of God, wanting to have the mind of God in how

we think and how we do things, and to realize we have things that need to be changed. We need

to become a stronger body in the Church, and so God's continually refining and cleansing our lives

and blessing us. We're blessed to be a part of it for what He's preparing for what's coming.

Jeremiah 32:30. I was going to give an example of something, that if I get through this I might

mention it as we go along. But anyway, verse 30—For the children of Israel and the children of

Judah have only done evil before me from their youth, from the very beginning. Incredible. So

when God worked with a people and He brought them into the promised land this was their

youth, their beginning, and He talks about how they were. The times of the judges, then finally

you get down to the time of Saul and them and their desire for a king, and then king David, and

then followed him, Solomon, and then what Solomon did and the division of a kingdom, and they

couldn't stay together as a kingdom. It was short lived. That wasn't very long. Then there was

what each of those nations did; Israel never obeying God from that point because they all went

the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat. Judah was back and forth depending on the various kings,

of what they did.

For the children of Israel and the children of Judah have only done evil before Me from their

youth. For the children of Israel have only provoked Me to anger with the work of their

hands, says the Eternal. For this city, this city, has only provoked Me to anger. Far from the

name of the city and what it meant. For this city has only provoked Me to anger and fury from

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the day that they built it even unto this day; so that I should remove it from before My face.

So Solomon was able to build a temple, a physical temple that his father David wanted to build.

What did God see through time? Something dedicated to God that He allowed them to build, that

it didn't take long and they started bringing in the gods of other nations and their idols into the

temple to worship them. Incredible. Incredible! For this city has only provoked me to anger and

fury from the day that they built it even unto this day; so that I should remove it from before

My face, because of all the evil of the children of Israel and of the children of Judah, which

they have done to provoke Me to anger, they, their kings, their princes, their priests, and

their prophets, and the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And they have

turned their back from Me. Again, I can't help but think of people every year who choose in God's

Church to turn their back on God. Now, they don't believe they're doing that, but that's what they

do as soon as they sever themselves from God's Church.

And they have turned their back to Me, and not their face; in other words, they haven't turned

their face to Me. They turn their back to me. …though l taught them; over and over again God

taught them, worked with them, tried to bring them to repentance. Though l taught them, rising

up early and teaching them. When l read that l think, ah, a loving parent. The way it should be.

Now it doesn't mean that the child is always going to chose, because so many and so often it's not

going to happen because of the kind of world we live in. But nevertheless, you strive to do what is

best and what is right. You strive to put your energy into it and to cultivate in the way that God

says to cultivate.

Rising up early and teaching them. It starts at the beginning of the day. Yet they have not

listened to receive instruction. Instead they set their abominations in the house which is called

by My name. God isn't allowing that in His Church. He doesn't allow that in His house. More and

more God is making sure that this house is a clean house, is cleansed. l do not hesitate one iota in

striving to see to it that l do my part. Because, you see, it's like what they said about Molech, if

you close your eyes, if you wink your eyes you are just as guilty, if you don't do something about

it. That's why every one of us have responsibilities in life, of what we are to do when something

isn't in unity and oneness with God Almighty. That's just the way it is, out of love to God, out of

love to Jesus Christ, out of love to the Church of God, that God has given to us, of a desire of

seeing Jesus Christ return to a clean Church, a cleansed Church. It doesn't matter the number, as

long as it's cleansed. 500, 400, 300, 200, 100, 50, whatever, so be it. So be it. But to be cleansed?

Absolutely. l don't relish those kinds of things when l have to become involved in things. That's the

only time l ever have to use and exercise government, but l have to exercise it sometimes. But

again, I will not hesitate to do so when it's needed. It might take me a little longer in some cases,

but it'll get there.

That's why some who aren't tithing right now, l wish you would just leave. Some of you who are

lying and cheating, which l know you are, in your tithing. I wish you'd just leave. I am not

concerned about numbers, nor am l concerned about the amount of money. That doesn't matter.

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It all belongs to God. Some who don't give holy day offerings, which l don't comprehend as much

as l have said about that. I have even made comment l don't care whether it's a pound, a euro, a

dollar, whatever it is. l know we can sacrifice and do something like that, no matter what our

state of life is like, to give to God Almighty, to dedicate to God Almighty, yet there are people

who still do not do that in the environs of God's Church. That's being cleaned up. If you are one of

them, make my job a little easier. Sayonara. Dos vedanya. Auf wiedersehen.

God is cleaning up this Body and we should be excited about that. They should have been excited.

Every one of those of Judah should have been so excited to see Josiah doing what he was doing,

to be raised up like he was, to be responding to God, and to be telling them and bringing in all

the elders, and the leaders, and the priests and so forth, and telling them of the things he did,

and reading out of the book of the law, and saying this is what we are going to do as a people,

and we're going to have a Passover of the likes which Judah has never known before, because we

want to serve and honor the Great God of the universe, and to turn His wrath away from us, and

to obey Him and to love Him, and to grasp and recognize what He gave to us. He gave this nation.

He gave this place. He brought us out of captivity to give us what He has. How blessed are we?

Awesome!

They turned their back on Me and not their face, though l taught them, rising up early and

teaching them, yet they have not listened to receive instruction. Instead they have set their

abominations in the house which is called by My name to defile it. And they built the high

places of Baal, which are in the valley of the son of Hinnom. It’s amazing about this little valley

of the son of Hinnom, Gehenna, over and over again. To cause their sons and their daughters to

pass through the fire unto Molech which l did not command them; in other words, God is just

saying, "This is the farthest thing from My mind, that human beings, that My people would ever do

such a thing!" Neither did it come into my mind that they should do this abomination. It’s such

sickness to do this, to cause Judah to sin. Yet the kings allowed it. The kings even helped build it.

Solomon even helped to finance it and build it. Incredible! A man who when you read it you see

that he was moved by God's spirit though he didn't have the impregnation of God's spirit, to pray

the prayer that he did, to say the things he did at the dedication of the temple because it was so

important that the things that were said there had meaning for things that were going to take

place physically and spiritually in the future. So God inspired that time for David, His servant's

sake, and for His name's sake as well.

Verse 36—And now, therefore, thus says the Eternal, the God of Israel…

Before l get through this portion here l want to mention something else. I mentioned things about

tithing and about giving offerings and l think of parents who never teach their children how to

tithe to God Almighty. And l think, "Do you not grasp your responsibility?" Instead, l have known

parents who basically have said and stated, "Well, you can start doing that once you're baptized."

Shame, shame, shame, shame, shame on anyone like that. That's not when you start tithing. The

responsibility of the parent is to teach their child when they're young. Maybe when they get an

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allowance or whatever it might be, or some amount for doing something, and you sit down with

them and teach them, "Now, what do you do with this? What's important about this, that you just

received this? What do you want from this?" "Oh, l want this. l want to buy this. l want to save up

for that." "Well, but what's more important than that? What's the first thing you should think of?"

How do you teach a child?

I’m laughing a little bit, because l think of one about saving aside the second amount as well!

"Oh! Yeah! Now you have some more there?" And a response from one one time was, "Well, l don't

want to save that amount. I want to give to God this part here, but l don't want save this for

myself for the Feast." Then they were basically told, "Well, then you are not going to get anything

for the Feast. You are not going to get any help for the Feast." They changed, just like that. "Oh,

you mean there are other benefits to this?" Ah, the blessings of tithing. Ah, the little minds start

working and things start turning because they think physically. It starts in the home.

To give a Holy Day offering, l don't care what it is. l don't care if it's a penny, but a child should

learn to put it in an envelope and to understand they are giving it to God on a high day. That's

how you teach a child to put God first, to put God first. How do you think they're going to learn

it? “Well, they're going to watch us do it and when they get older and they're in the Church, and

they have God's holy spirit then they'll come to that point and they'll start. They'll start giving

their holy day offerings." I've known far too many in God's Church who never learned that lesson

at all, even when they were worked with by parents. Sad. It's not learned that way, but you have

to do your part as a parent and you do your part and make sure they understand that God is first,

God's Church is first…

l think of a person who was very far along in God's Church in this present age who didn't grasp

some of that. Incredible! The importance of giving to God and putting God first, and to

understand that when you think about God being first, in many cases that means you're putting

the Church first. People in the Church haven't tended to think that way in a lot of cases. "Well,

what do you mean putting the Church first?" Literally, that individual told them that, would make

comment, his family's first. You've got things screwed up. I didn't have the guts to tell him that at

that time. Many, many, many years ago when that first happened l wish l had. But l didn't see

things to the degree l see the importance of them today either because we hadn't learned those

things in the Church, in that respect, to the same degree that God is showing us now. By putting

His Church first, you're putting God first. We are those who are impregnated with God's holy

spirit. This is where our fellowship is. We should cherish that that we have with one another. We

should cherish one another. And in so doing, if we comprehend it, we love and cherish God

because that's what it boils down to. So many times then other things become more important

than God's Church and being with God's people. That's not the case. God is first. How do you

teach it? I've seen this over and over for years and years and years in God's Church.

Jeremiah 32:36. We'll finish this. And now, therefore, thus says the Eternal, the God of Israel,

concerning this city, whereof you say, it shall be delivered into the hand of the king of

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Babylon by the sword, and by famine, and by the pestilence. It wasn't long after Josiah, and he

didn't have to see what happened to Judah, but it wasn't long after this then, that Judah was

taken into captivity. This is some of the things being discussed here by Jeremiah, but it's what

Jeremiah has to say that happens in the future that becomes even more important. It's beautiful,

in that respect.

Behold, I will gather them out of all the countries where I have driven them in My anger, and

in My fury, and in great wrath; and I will bring them again unto this place, and I will cause

them to dwell safely, to Jerusalem. It's not about the physical location. It's about the meaning of

the word. It's about where God is leading and guiding and directing His people. All that's

happened through time, and there comes a time then when God begins to gather all together

again for a great purpose. When He brings His government to this earth and the things He's going

to do with the Church, and so forth, that continues on and leads us on into the Great White

Throne and God's purpose for being in His family. That's what these verses are all about.

So, what a beautiful thing here when it talks about some of these things. God uses physical

examples of things that have happened in times past, and even with Jerusalem, to teach us that

which is far more important, and that which goes beyond this because we learn this is our focus,

this is our vision and not a physical city and not a physical temple, but a spiritual one. I think how

this ties in with the Feast of Tabernacles, where we're going in the Last Great Day and what God

desires for His people.

And l will bring them again unto this place, and l will cause them to dwell safely. And they

shall be My people and l will be their God. What an awesome thing that we have part in the

beginning of all this. We don't grasp sometimes what God has given to us. We really don't. We go

to church Sabbath by Sabbath, holy day to holy day, and it's hard for us to comprehend the

magnitude of our calling. It's hard for us to grasp and understand the magnitude of where we are

rapidly approaching and what's getting ready to happen on this earth, and how blessed we will be

to be a part of it, not just a part of it, but like the pioneers of it, the beginning of it. Awesome!

And I will give them one heart and one way, and just candidly that's a parents' responsibility

towards their children, to teach them this, and one way, that they might fear Me forever, for

their good, and for their children after them.

It’s far more important to us than what we can grasp and comprehend because God always has in

focus the picture for all of us – to become a part of Elohim and where we're going. We have to

have that same kind of focus, and it not be a selfish one, but what God gives us in marriage, what

God gives us in family, what God gives us with children and all the responsibilities we have with

that, and then what God gives us in fellowship, as His Church, as His people.

We'll continue with Part 2 next week.

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