Made Stronger Through Fasting, Pt. 5

Ronald Weinland

June 1, 2024

This is the final sermon Made Stronger Through Fasting, and this is Part 5.

We’re going to begin by being reminded of some verses in the book of Joel that really show a very good approach to fasting. This is so much of what it’s about, and then we have another section a little bit later here that expands on that even more so.

But in Joel 2, we’re going to begin there as a reminder. Joel 2:12—Now, therefore, the Eternal also says, Turn to Me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, in other words, in sorrow. It has more to do with seeing things that are not right in the world, seeing things that are not right in us as far as our human life is concerned, the need to change, the need for God to help us because we can’t do it on our own. …and lamenting. So, it’s a matter of repentance. This is what this is about as well. It’s very much about repentance, going before God in a humble spirit in repentance.

Rend your heart. God knows when we’re doing that on a spiritual plane, whether we’re really looking at ourselves, thinking about what it is we need to do, the changes we’re striving to make because we want to be right with God.

…and not your garments. So again, in times past in the Old Testament it was a matter of a type of repentance that they did, not on a spiritual plane, because you need God’s spirit to be able to do it properly. You can’t do it on your own as a human being. There are things you can change.

There are people who change things in their lives because of the fact they don’t want to be that way anymore. I think of different ones who have to join or need help sometimes in joining various kinds of groups where they discuss matters of what they’re struggling with. Like AA. Things that really get a hold on people, things do with drugs and the like, and the fact that people don’t want to go through that cycle of life anymore, they want to change.

So, there are those things that people can address on a physical plane, but to do it on a spiritual plane is a totally different matter. It’s of the heart. It’s of the mind. It’s of the spirit. For that kind of reflection, if you will, and looking at our own lives, introspection perhaps is a better word, looking into our own thinking, it requires God’s spirit because God knows the mind.

He knows how we think. He knows what we’re thinking all the time, so there is nothing hidden from God. Because there is that spirit essence in our mind and only God Almighty and Joshua are able to know exactly what’s taking place there on a spirit plane, which is an awesome thing to understand.

So, God has to draw us, work with us, reveal His truth to us, and then begin to show us things in ourselves because there are things we cannot see. The deeper things that have to do with how we think, the motives behind it, that’s something you work on all your life once you’re baptized, once you receive the impregnation of God’s spirit, and it takes God to reveal those things to us because we tend to deceive ourselves. That’s just our nature. There are things we just can’t see. There are things about pride we can’t see that are in us. God will help to reveal those things to us. Thankfully, a little bit at a time and not all at once.

That’s why I say when you do these things ask for mercy because we couldn’t take everything all at once. God shows us a little bit at a time, works with us, molds and fashions us, and gives us the opportunity to respond to that, which is a matter of our choice to repent. We want to change. We want to become different. We want to be more at one with God. God gives us that ability in that choice.

Rend your heart, and not your garments. So, it’s not a matter of just tearing the garments and going through something that, again, is symbolic of something that was far more important. That’s why they were given certain things to do in the Old Testament that are symbolic of things on a spiritual plane. But they can’t see that or know that until God brings them to that point. Awesome! So again, that example of taking their garments and whatever that part of the process was, of rending their garments, tearing their garments, God says it’s about this.

…and turn to the Eternal your God. So, we have that ability, that choice through the power of God’s spirit to turn to God when He reveals things to us about Himself, for He is gracious and merciful. We learn that over time just how merciful God is, how patient God is, how loving, how caring God is. …slow to anger, and of great kindness.

So, this thing of “anger,” I really don’t like it in the Old Testament, the way it’s used because it has more to do with judgment with God. It’s not a matter that God is angry like we get sometimes about various things in life (in human life) that can happen when something doesn’t go right. God isn’t like that. But there is that matter of correction and of judgment that after a period of time and God gives us all kinds of time, especially in the Church, gives us that opportunity, those opportunities to change, and we learn this, God is gracious, He’s merciful, He’s patient. The more we grow, the more we learn that. It’s an awesome process we go through, it truly is.

And so, it’s not a matter of being angry at us as sometimes happens in life between people. They get angry and they can’t control their feelings, their emotions, and words are stated. With God, it’s just a matter of fact. There is a certain point in time that we’re not going to change and He gives us the time we need and those opportunities are given, and He knows what’s inside of us in our mind, our thinking. Are we striving to change? Are we going to change?

Because God knows those things after a time, after giving us opportunities. And if we refuse and we become more set in our ways than a desire to live God’s way then there comes a time, especially within the Church, for judgment, and for all mankind which we’ll address more as we go along here. We continually address those things because of where we are in time.

Because we’re at one of the greatest moments in time of God’s judgment on the earth. It’s not a matter of Him being angry with mankind. He’s been displeased with what mankind has chosen to do but He knows what mankind will do anyway. That’s why things are written prophetically about what would happen with mankind in time. God knew that leaving mankind by himself, giving him all the technology that He had, it’s always been a matter of fighting and warring and chaos and confusion and drama. That’s the way we are as human beings.

To live God’s way requires God’s help. We can’t do it on our own. That’s why God’s Kingdom has to come and be established and God fill the earth with truth, but that hasn’t been His choice in the first six thousand years for a purpose. Anyway, don’t want to get off on all that.

Turn to the Eternal your God, so we have that ability, for He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, slow to judgment, the execution of judgment. He gives us so many opportunities and ability to change. …and of great kindness. I think of how many things so often are just given in sermons and Holy Days. It’s the same sort of thing with Holy Days or like Passover. We hear the same thing every Passover as a whole.

And there are certain things we hear that God adds to certain things at times as far as knowledge is concerned, but certain things are a basic outline. God’s Holy Days, they’re a basic outline of His plan and purpose. But on a Sabbath God gives us many things over a long period of time, and every once in a while, we revisit some of those things, like fasting. It’s been a while since we’ve really addressed it to this depth, so we’re addressing it again because God is patient, and He works with us. Because we don’t implement everything all at once on the first time we hear it. It takes time.

… and of great kindness; and He, it says, “repents.” It’s a stupid word sometimes because people haven’t understood, don’t understand God. It’s a word that has to do with relent. In other words, He doesn’t want to bring things, this upon us. God doesn’t want to see us have to come to this time. He doesn’t take joy, and He even talks about that, in the time of the execution of judgment that’s coming upon this world now at the end of six thousand years that’s getting ready to take place and what’s going to happen in the Great White throne at the end. His desire would be that everyone choose Him. But the reality is so many won’t. Maybe the vast majority.

Just like with the Church over the past two thousand years. Mind-boggling. That of all those who have been called the majority have left, the majority have turned against Christ, have turned against the very reason he died. He died so that we can be forgiven of sin so that—the greater purpose—he and his Father could live and dwell in us on a spiritual plane. And how many have embraced that with all their being, with all their might over the past two thousand years? Not very many compared to the number that were called.

He relents of the evil. In other words, of that which is going to be done, has to be done. Because there comes a time that everyone has to answer, and those who don’t choose God, it’s not a good thing as far as life is concerned because life is going to come to an end.

Let’s turn over to Ezekiel. We’re going to begin covering something given in Ezekiel that pertains so much to what we need to grasp at this time.

Ezekiel 20:33—As I live, says the Eternal, surely with a mighty hand, and with outstretched arm… All we have to do is think about the time we’re about to enter, the time we’re about to go through. This is what God is going to do in a powerful way. “With a mighty hand.” With tremendous power. For His Son and the 144,000 coming with them, there has never been that display for mankind in the last six thousand years. Nothing close to it. Nothing remotely close to it where those beings in the Family of Elohim are going to be on the earth ruling mankind, ruling the world, taking control of God’s government on the earth, enforcing it. One religion and one government.

God’s going to let people make various choices in various regions, but even there He says if they don’t come up to the Feast year by year like they’re supposed to, if that’s not in their heart and their mind to obey God, He talks about things that are going to happen to them. He says if they still don’t come, then He says He’s going to destroy them. In the Millennium! There are going to be people who are going to die in the Millennium because they won’t yield to God.

Awesome, to understand the human mind. After all the truth they’re going to be given, to show that every religion on earth is wrong, is backward, it’s upside down, it’s weird. So much of it is just simply demonic. God’s going to have just the truth prevail. Awesome!

There’s not going to be people upon mountains spinning these wheels and that’s supposedly their prayer. What does that mean? I don’t know if you’ve seen those great, big, round wheels and they just get up there and they spin those wheels and those are their prayers. Or the ones who just keep repeating the same thing pulling these beads back until you get to the end. Just repeating the same thing over and over and over again. What does that mean to God? Is that pleasing to God, just having something that’s repeated over and over again, that to them is basically meaningless, except that somehow people have been duped into thinking that by doing that that somehow God will hear them? Insanity. Absolute insanity.

…and with stretched out arm, and fury poured out. I think of the time that’s going to take place as soon as Christ and the 144,000 come, what they’re going to do. Fury is going to be poured out because it says very clearly the first thing they’re going to do is to begin destroying those who are destroying the earth. All the people who want to keep fighting, all the people in war who want to keep fighting, all the individuals who want to keep the nuclear war going and whatever else is going on, and that attitude and that spirit of fighting and killing. It says, they’re just going to be destroyed by them.

And I will rule over you. So, whether people accept that on a spiritual plane is another matter. But as far as government, as far as human beings, people are going to be ruled over. God is taking charge. That’s why I love it the way it says in Revelation when the angelic beings cry out to God, “Finally, after all this time,” in essence, just paraphrasing it, “You have taken to yourself Your great power!” Because He’s let mankind live his own way for six thousand years and that’s coming to a screeching halt.

I will bring you out from the people and gather you out of the countries wherein you have been scattered, with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with fury poured out. I will bring you into the wilderness of the people, and I will plead with you face to face. So, this is something on a spiritual plane that’s taking place as God begins to draw mankind away from that which has kept him in bondage for six thousand years, begins to show the truth to them. This process, “I will deal with you face to face,” it’s a powerful thing that’s going to take place when there are 144,000 and Christ that begin to teach very powerfully so mankind.

Verse 36—Just as I plead with your fathers in the wilderness out of the land of Egypt. So, as soon as they were brought out, going to do it in the same fashion but more powerful this time, far more powerful. He had their attention at different times there obviously. Took it. But this is going to be far greater.

And I will plead with you, says the Eternal, I will cause you to pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant. In other words, that means you are God’s. It’s like what happens when there is a tenth, every tenth passing under the rod. It’s a matter of a count, it’s a matter of saying, “This is God’s.” And that’s what this is talking about, “I will cause you to do this on a spiritual plane. You’re going to be Mine.”

And I will purge out from among you the rebels. I just mentioned some of the things that are going to take place. Those who don’t want to obey, those who want to teach some other way, it’s not going to be allowed. …and those who transgress against Me. I will bring them forth out of the country where they sojourn.

What an incredible thing to understand there are not going to be drugs, there are not going to be murders. There’ll be some murders. It’s inevitable, especially toward the beginning, the very beginning because of the minds of people and what they were before, and those things just don’t change overnight, and they don’t just accept and want God’s way of life. But because it’s going to be enforced, it’s not going to be long trials and people be in prison for a long time or let out on bail. And if they’ve taken someone’s life it’s going to be dealt with swiftly. Just the way it’s going to be. People are going to have fear as human beings for doing stupid, hateful, evil, wretched things.

And they shall not enter into the land of Israel. … I will bring them forth out of the country where they sojourned, and they shall not enter into the land of Israel. And you will know that I am the Eternal. God’s going to set things right in a way that we can’t even begin to imagine. Mercifully, but powerfully too. There are some who don’t deserve mercy in some of those situations if they want to take life and continue taking life.

Isaiah 57. We’re going to pick up from where we left off a couple of weeks ago in Part 3. Going back to that. Isaiah 57:10—You have been wearied or made to be wearied, if you will, because He’s saying that because of the way you’re acting, because of what you’re doing. …in the multitude or the vastness of your way. That’s what happens with mankind. You want to live your way? You’re just going to suffer. You’re going to go through all kinds of things in life and you’re just going to suffer. If you don’t want God, if you don’t want to live His way of life, the result of that is you’re going to suffer.

Yet you did not say, There is no hope. In other words, pride is so great in the human heart that people will do something opposite or different from what God says to do, and He’s saying you continue to do this, and things just get worse and worse, but you don’t respond by saying there is no hope in what you’re doing, you just keep doing what you want to do.

You have found life at your own hand. If you want to call it life. But it’s a life because they’re alive, but “You are living the life that you want to live.” That’s the way of mankind for six thousand years as a whole. “You’re just living ever how you want to live. You found your own life. You don’t want My way of life, so you’ve invented, you’ve come up with something different.” Therefore, you were not, or in essence here, have not been grieved. You have not been grieving.

Of whom have you been afraid, or feared, that you would lie and not remember, not be mindful of Me? So, whenever, as in the Old Testament, it didn’t take too long people drifted away. They didn’t want that kind of control over their life. They didn’t want Samuel ruling over them, they wanted to be like the other nations around them and have a king and look what that got us.

Is it not because I have held My peace from old that you have not feared Me? So, that can be a short-range thing or a long-range thing. But it’s like, in other words, God pulls back, and He lets us live. In six thousand years, as a whole, He’s let mankind live ever how he’s wanted to. Even with Israel, He pulled back and let them live what they chose to do. In time, they just drifted away. King after king, back and forth, back and forth. That’s been the history of even Israel.

I will cry out… Then it says, let your companies, it’s different translations here. But in essence, here it’s saying, Let what you have gathered, in other words, assembled or gathered together deliver you. In other words, “What you have built up, let that deliver you. With nations, the same thing, “See if it delivers you,” always. “See how long this lasts.” And so, time goes by, kingdoms rise and they fall because everything they’ve built up after a while falls apart.

But the wind will carry them all away, a breath will take them. But whoever puts their trust in Me shall possess the land and shall inherit My holy mountain. So, it has to do with something beyond that God is showing here, that’s not able to be understood until we’re a part of God’s Church, until we receive God’s holy spirit. We understand what it means then to be a part of His holy mountain. We understand what it means to become a part of Elohim. That’s what our desire is. We fight for that. We work toward that.

Verse 14—And they shall say, Build up! Build up! In other words, it’s cast up or build up as in a road or a highway. It’s like the ditch, you have to get dirt, earth, or whatever, build up something a little higher so that the rain or the water, as a whole, will not hinder where someone is going.

So, in other words, it makes it an easier way to follow, an easier way to travel on. That’s why roads are done the way they are... to build up rocks on them or whatever people have done through time. It’s pavement now. So, that’s what this is referring to. It’s about a way, but it’s saying something on a physical plane to express something on a spiritual plane.

“Build up! Build up!” That’s what the Church has been told ever since it began. “You have to build up. You have to work at, you have to fight for, you have to seek to grow in this way of life. It’s up to you and your work and what you put into it and what you want out of it.” If you want God’s way of life, you have to cry out for it.

It’s not just automatic that because we’ve been baptized we’re going to receive His spirit until we die. No, you have to continue to fight for it. You have to fight against your own human nature. You have to fast! It doesn’t just happen. There are things you’ve got to cry out for to God. It’s a matter of our minds changing and being transformed.

And so, it says here, And prepare the way. It’s what we have been doing. We even bear part of that name, “Preparing for the Kingdom of God,” preparing for God’s way. We’re almost there. It’s almost to come.

I’m amazed at names or words that God gives. How it started out, Radio Church of God, because technology was so great and finally the ability to reach masses through radio, and so it was used. Awesome! Five thousand some hundred years into time and finally a way to communicate over large distances. And so, it was called, because of the growth that God was giving in a very powerful way and the ability to communicate in such a massive way, Radio Church of God, in the beginning.

Then God was working and building up congregations all over the world, different countries throughout the world, and so, it was changed too because television came along as well, and technology was changed so quickly. It was changed to something else that reflected more of what God was doing, The Worldwide Church of God. Now, it’d been established worldwide.

Now, Church of God – PKG, Preparing for the Kingdom of God, because we’re almost there and that’s what God is doing with the Church. He’s preparing us for what’s going to take place next. He’s preparing doctrine within the Church, truths within the Church, things about women that haven’t been understood for nearly, what, again, six thousand years of how they’ve been oppressed and kept down by men just because of the way creation exists, the strength between a man and a woman. That oppression that just automatically followed. It was just natural for the carnal human mind to treat women that way. For men to treat women that way.

I think of some of the things in history. You go back and read some of the things in history that have taken place, mind-boggling! It truly is! I think of one that can’t even show their face. You think, what is wrong with the mind that that’s how a man, a husband wants their wife to be seen…well, not seen, but seen in a weird way. You think, that’s demented. You talk about things of the mind that are demonic? That’s demonic. To not enjoy fullness of life, to not be honored, respected within families?

God’s changing all that because we’re about to enter into the time where that’s the way it’s going to be taught. Ministers within the Church, it’s beautiful, awesome to understand what God is doing. Finally, after all this time and now we understand it. We understand why it had to be a certain way within the Church for two thousand years nearly as well. Because there are some things you can’t do until it’s God’s time.

Take the stumbling block out of the way of My people. So, the closer we get to God’s Kingdom, the more that’s being done. All the stumbling blocks. All the things that cause people to trip. All the things that cause people to trip up. There won’t be any excuses during the Millennium and into the Great White Throne, though it’s going to be there, people are going to find them anyway. Because some don’t want the stumbling blocks out of the way. There are certain things they want to hold on to. The way they did it before, and they want to do it again.

For thus says the High and the Lofty One Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy, I dwell in the high and holy place, with those who have a contrite and humble spirit. What an awesome blessing we have in the Church to finally understand what this is on a spiritual plane, that it’s about God dwelling in us. “I dwell in the High and Holy Place,” in Elohim. That’s God’s desire, that we become Elohim, part of the God Family, and He will dwell there forever and forever.

But to get there? We have to change in our heart and mind. “Those who have a contrite and humble spirit.” So, it begins with, we understand that, in the human body before we get there. It can only dwell there with that kind of attitude, a humble spirit.

To revive the spirit of the humble. To make it alive. Because that’s required first before change can come; before repentance can truly be there in one’s life, there has to be humility, which is the opposite of pride, the opposite of wanting to hold on to something our way ourselves. ...and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.

Then continuing right on into the next chapter. Isaiah 58:1—Cry aloud, spare not; Lift up your voice like a trumpet, and show My people their transgressions, and the house of Jacob their sins. That’s God’s charge to His Church, to the ministry, to not mess around, to tell the truth, to expound on it.

It says, “Lift up your voice like a trumpet, show My people their sins.” So many of the sermons that come out and have come out through time, a lot of them have to do with things that haven’t been done well within the Church, haven’t been done right. Somebody is going off on a certain tangent, whatever it might be.

It could be conspiracy theories, so God brings it to light, needs to be addressed. And so, correction is given. All other kinds of things having to do with how we live. Some false doctrine. There was a lot of that right around the time of the Apostasy and afterward. For several years afterwards, there were incredible battles going on within the scattered Body, people attacking the very first thing that people needed to have a firm hold on – Passover! Wanting to change the times of observance and how it’s done and its meaning, and there you go. Think, sick, perverted stuff. So, we spent a long time, several years addressing some of those things in a very powerful way. Then Pentecost because it was being attacked!

“Show My people their transgressions.” God’s desire is that we be able to see the things we’re doing wrong.

People who rob God! That boggles my mind above all else! And yet it’s always happened in God’s Church. But it’s even happened, still happening – I know it’s still happening because it’s human nature, and that’s upsetting. That’s frustrating. But God says, “Show My people their transgressions,” so it’s talked about, so that others can be appalled and think, how would anyone dare to do such a thing? To take what is God’s and misuse it?

Yet they seek Me daily. So again here, the warning is here we can go through the motions of religion, we can go through the motions of what we live within the Church. We did it during Philadelphia. We really did a lot through Laodicea. Didn’t grasp it fully. But every era of the Church has gone through different things, and the majority, because the majority have left, the majority turned against the Church, the majority had something else they wanted to do once they were baptized and received God’s spirit. The majority! Again, mind-boggling. It really is! How could such a thing happen when someone is impregnated with God’s holy spirit and knows the truth? But the majority have.

So, it should be something that just in our thinking is shocking. Because if it’s not shocking, why isn’t it shocking to you? It should reveal something about the mind and your thinking.

Yet they seek Me daily and desire or as if to desire to know My ways. I think of how we can deceive ourselves, go through the motions. You think, how could someone deceive themselves to think that they could continue to come and sit before God’s people Sabbath by Sabbath by Sabbath when they know they’re lying, when they know they’re cheating, when they know when it comes right down to it, they’re robbing God? And so, if that’s able to be done, what else is being done? And it happens. Human beings will do things that are astounding sometimes and that’s the way it’s been in the Church.

I remember the first time within the ministry – I think it was toward one of the first times – when this old... well, they were probably around my age, but these older people were cheating. You’ve got to be kidding! You’re having an affair, two married people in God’s Church or whatever and you’re having this affair? It’s like, I can’t believe this is even happening that I have to even address this as a minister out in West Texas when I first went into the ministry. It was like, you’ve got to be kidding! “Don’t you see yourself? You’re really too old for this kind of stupidity.” But anyway, human beings really aren’t. Sometimes we’re just human beings, and if we’re not living God’s way of life, people will do the stupidest, dumbest, most evil things that human beings can do toward God, toward Christ, toward one another within the Church!

Does that shock you? It should! Almost everything that happens in the world has happened in God’s Church because we’re human beings and people bring that stuff in with them into the Church. I’ve had to deal with things I don’t even want to mention. I don’t even want to mention, I don’t even want to talk about it, in times past with God’s Church. And you think, how could people do such things and think they’re in God’s Church?

So, that’s why it says this, “They seek me daily,” go through the motions, in other words, “as if to desire,” is a better translation, “to know My ways.” To come into Sabbath services on the Sabbath and mix with God’s people as though they’re a part and yet they’re living this kind of filth and stupidity and evil when they’re out thinking nobody sees them. But God knows! God sees it! Nothing is ever hidden from God! What’s wrong with the human mind to be able to do such a thing? But that’s what we are as human beings; that’s what we’re able to do as human beings if we’re not careful.

People constantly, continually, being put out of God’s Church still on a regular basis here, more and more. It’s going to happen more and more because this is going to be cleaned up! Do we think we’re hiding anything? This is a time of judgment on God’s Church in a way that’s stronger than ever before because we are going to be a cleansed Body before Christ’s coming! How many have believed that? Well, those who have been gone by the wayside in fellowship haven’t fully believed it, obviously. That’s why I cry out like I do, “cry aloud and spare not,” warn, tell.

We are almost there! Do we grasp that? I’m going to read some news in a while because I can’t go on without doing it. Week by week, just in one week, and maybe three articles here that were maybe nine days ago. But as a whole, most of it has happened within the past seven days and it’s absolute insanity what’s taking place out there.

And you think we're not getting nudged closer and closer to what we have always known as a whole within Philadelphia and Laodicea, even within Laodicea, knowing what was going to happen at the end?

…as if to desire to know My ways, as a nation or a people that did righteousness. That’s mind-boggling. As though someone is living righteousness. We all come together on Sabbath. There used to be congregations… I mean, incredible sizes. I remember Houston, the one we were in, nearly six hundred people. They generally waited until about six hundred before they divided it into two churches, three hundred and three hundred. That eventually happened once we left. We were out in west Texas then. But that’s what used to happen.

And churches, I remember Wichita, the first larger church I ever attended, five hundred and some. I look back and think, and look at us now, what God is working with. Awesome! But to think the numbers of people out there and people would come in and do the things I’m talking about? People that lied, cheated, stole, had affairs, and came in among God’s people as though everybody is okay, we’re all the same, we’re all obeying God. Incredible such a thing could happen in the environment of God’s Church!

…as a nation that did righteousness and have not forsaken the ordinance of their God. They ask of Me the ordinances of justice. So, when things don’t go right in people’s lives in those environments and the things I’ve just been talking about, and then something goes wrong in their life, and they’ll pray to God for help.

I mean, that’s what the world does! The world lives ever how they want to live and then something gets bad and gets tough and if there is any thought about God, those who do, they’ll pray to God for help for relief. You think, why? Why would God help?

…they take delight in approaching God. They are pleased, in other words, go through the motions of that. That’s the way the world is, as a whole. There are people who just like to go through the motions of that and have an appearance to feel better about themselves.

Yet asking, Why have we fasted, and You do not see? And we afflict our soul, but You do not acknowledge it? In other words, individuals can go through this, and especially in the environment of God’s Church. We can understand this happening in the world more, obviously, but to happen in God’s Church? And so, individuals maybe on Atonement fast because they’re commanded to, and they go through it, but they don’t see anything changing in their life.

God says it’s these first things up here. Are you living right? Are you doing what’s right? Are you obeying God? Are you seeking to obey God? Because God is not going to give you an answer. I don’t care how long you fast. To where you keel over and die. We’re not owed an answer when we’re sinning in our lives, and we go through some ritual that we think whereby God should hear us. That’s what He’s saying here.

He says, Behold, in the day of your fast…. Because you’re trying to get something out of it. You know, a fast for us, yes, we want something out of it, but in a right, sound, spiritual manner, and that is the ability to repent. How many people ask for help to be able to see sin in their life so they can repent? Because we don’t see it all. How many fast in order to go before God and say, “I want to see myself more clearly so I can see the things in me that I need to change, that I need to pray to You about for help to change?” The world doesn’t do that, “Help me to see my sin. I’m going to fast so I can see.” See? Right.

Behold, in the day of your fast, you find pleasure, or seek to please yourself is what it’s saying, and oppress by all your griefs, upon others or how you’re living or how you think and you’re not really changing your life. And you want favor, you want intervention, but you’re not willing to change.

Behold, you fast or continue in as it talks, as the word has to do here. The word “for” it’s not “fasting for something” in this case, you fast in or continue in strife.

So, in other words, if we understand what fasting is about, it’s about change, it’s about repentance. We want to be right before God. We want to see things in us that we don’t see. The things we don’t see even more so, to ask God for the help to fight those things so we can be transformed in how we think and be more at one with God, living the way of life He tells us to live.

But He says here, But you fast in/continuing in strife and debate. So, in other words, nothing is changing, you’re still living in drama. It’s like saying “drama.” You’re living in drama and you’re not changing any of that drama. You’re not addressing any of it. Because if you have drama and you have drama and you’re living drama, and you think drama, something needs to change in you. It’s not all the other people because we tend to think everybody else is causing our drama.

What an amazing thing about the human mind. Others cause our drama. It’s their fault. Well, you’d be able to deal with it in a totally different manner if your mind is right. Like Christ did, “Father, forgive them, they don’t know what they’re doing.” Or “Father, forgive them, have mercy upon them because they’re going through a difficult thing at this time. They’re going through some things that they haven’t seen what they’re doing yet, they don’t grasp it and understand it yet. Have mercy upon them.” Totally different way of thinking.

And to strike (defeat; bring down) with the fist of wickedness. You are not to fast in that day to make your voice… That’s what people in the world do. It’s like keep doing something and it’s like you’re going to make God or somehow you keep doing it, and somehow, you’re going to break through and it’s going to force God to hear you. No.

…to make your voice to be heard on high. As though our way is okay with God. It’s not. We have to change.

Verse 5—Is this the fast that I have chosen, as the kind of day for a person to afflict their soul? Does God get some pleasure out of the fact that we don’t eat, and we don’t drink, and somehow because we don’t do that that somehow something is owed to us because we’re not drinking and eating? Does God enjoy seeing people suffer? Is that the purpose of the fast? No, we’re to learn from it.

One of the greatest things you can learn from it is a day without food and a day without water should reveal something to you on a physical plane that should be pretty simple to see. This last fast I was thirsty almost immediately. It didn’t take long at all. That’s all I could think about for a while, off and on, “I’m really thirsty!” I had too much salt in my food the night or the day before. Don’t want to do that when you go into a fast. So, here I am, I’m thirsty.

We should be able to see that, the analogy, what we’re supposed to see. The “type” that we’re supposed to see is if God isn’t in our life every day on a spiritual plane, you’re going to get weaker and weaker and weaker every day. It’s a physical thing with food and it’s a spiritual thing with God Almighty. We have to ask to receive it, God’s help, God’s spirit. It’s not owed to us. It’s not going to be there just because we’ve been baptized, or we went to Sabbath services the past week.

Is this the fast that I have chosen, as a day for a person to afflict their soul? To bow down their head as a bulrush, you know, to get weak. Is that what it’s about? Is it about going to the physical? Because that’s what people used to do in the Old Testament. It was a show that they put on and everybody knew they were fasting, a lot of times obviously, when they were fasting, they let everybody know. “I’m fasting. I’m so weak today!” No, what they’re saying is, “I’m so righteous because I’m fasting. That’s why I can’t do this today. I can’t go out with you to eat tonight because I’m fasting. I’m really…. I’m really… Whew.” Just to be recognized for it.

A day to hang down your head as a bulrush, and to spread out sackcloth and ashes? Put on a show. Ashes, sackcloth, everybody knew it. Just a physical routine.

Will you call this a fast, and an acceptable day of the Eternal? Is this what God wants? Is this what it’s about? Obviously, it’s not.

Is not this the fast that I have chosen… “Is it not.” In other words, isn’t its purpose to loose, which means “to open” or “to undo” the bands, the fetters, the shackles of wickedness. It’s about coming out of sin. It’s about asking for help to not be in bondage to sin. It’s about asking for help to be able to repent of sin that’s there in us.

Because we all have it. We all have selfish human nature. The more you grow and the longer you’re in God’s Church, the more we should understand that. Our selfish human nature stinks. Not only does it stink, but it’s the same mind (spirit) as Satan and the demonic world. It’s the exact same thing. Because they are selfish. That’s all they are. It’s about their way and what they want and what they want to achieve and do.

God made us that way for a purpose so we could learn what it does. The damage, the hurt, the pain, and suffering that we go through as human beings is because of that selfishness that we automatically have because of the fact that we’re created physical.

Then when the time comes to have His way revealed to us, then we have a true choice. We begin to see what’s right and what’s good from God and we can make a choice, “I don’t want selfishness because selfishness just creates drama.” It creates every evil. Jealousy. Envy. Lust. “Lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, the pride of life,” those things that are a part of us that every sin comes from, it’s evil.

What an incredible thing we begin to see this is what is dwelling in us. Paul talks about that in an amazing way. It says “The things I want to do, I’m not able to do,” in essence, “and what I don’t want to do, that I do” in the thinking, the mind. That’s where the battle is, is to see ourselves for what we are and then to say, “I don’t want that way! I don’t want to be like that. I want to change.” And so, we pray about it, we seek God’s help, and then there are times we have to fast about it as well, to humble ourselves more before God because we want to fight that fight, we want to be, we’ve chosen to be—if we haven’t, something is wrong—going to be in Elohim.

“Nothing is going to stop me!” Is that your conviction? Nothing! “There is not a question. If there is any sin in the way, anything there, I’m going to repent of it, want help to repent of it.” That’s the way we should think! What else…? Why else…? What else is there?

So, this is what fasting is about. It’s about that added power, if you will, that God has given to us as human beings to fight against sin, to change, to conquer, and to overcome self.

To undo or to remove the heavy burdens. So, is that our commitment, to undo the heavy burdens, whatever it is we might be doing that’s hurting others? Some of the stupid, flimsy words that come out of our mouth sometimes, some of the things where we don’t even think about what we’re saying, and dumb things come out and it hurts others? We should never want to hurt anybody else. We should always want to be on guard against words that come out of our mouth because we don’t want to hurt, we don’t want to cause offense, we don’t want someone to hurt. Words have power and they can be very hurtful.

…and undo the heavy burdens. And let the oppressed go free. So, we want to see that. We want to see that within the Church, we want to see that in the world. That’s why I talk sometimes about things within the ministry and those who are ordained.

There is a purpose and a reason why so many right now are women. God wants us to get the point! And if we can’t honor the office and respect and learn respect toward women because of that office as well, then we’ve got a sick, sick, sick mind before God. Some of that still exists out there, but it’s got to be cleaned up. And sadly – I’m just going to say it – some men don’t even know what they are. Some men don’t realize how they’ve lived their whole life, and how they come across to women sometimes in what they say. They’re just dumb and blind to it. Just call it what it is. Absolutely dumb in that area! Still don’t see it!

You think after all we’ve gone through and all that’s been given, why don’t we see that? Why can’t every man see that? To understand what mankind – men – have caused in the oppression of women? Just in their attitude alone! There is not one ounce of being better than anybody else, but somehow because of what people lived all their life sometimes they just don’t even realize that’s what they’re living. The junk that’s in the mind, the swill that’s up there that blocks the thinking.

Cholesterol clogs up the arteries, but there are things that clog up the brain, and men have a big dose of it. Just calling a spade a spade. Now, hopefully, most of us are getting that out more and more and realizing that’s wrong. We should want to see that equality of life, that respect that’s the same in life. Anything less is sin.

Things are being made right within the Church at the end here because that’s what’s going to continue on as soon as Christ returns. That’s why they’re being established more and more within the Church, things that God wants us to understand, that He wants to dwell in us, and His Son desires to dwell in us through the power of the holy spirit all the time, to continue in us.

Worldwide, we didn’t know that. Laodicea, we didn’t know that. We didn’t grasp and understand the things as a matter of God’s purpose, that it’s a matter of continuing in us, God’s spirit, their lives continuing in us all the time. Awesome! How blessed are we to know and understand those things?

And that you break, that you break, that you tear down. So, where can you tear down some of these things? In your own mind, that’s where it begins. It’s in our own minds that we want to tear down, to break down the things that are wrong. We want to see them.

…that you break every yoke? Hebrew word for “oppression.” That you break every oppression. Awesome!

Verse 7—Isn’t it to deal (to divide; to share) your bread with the hungry, and that you bring the poor (the weak; the afflicted). Now, we’re talking about the Church! This isn’t a physical thing in the world. Christ said you’re always going to have the poor with you. It’s a part of the world, and it’s gotten worse and worse. Look under bridges in cities and on government land, wherever it might be, or places that can get whatever. And you think, look at where we are! It’s insanity! With all the wealth and misuse of it now?

…and that you bring the poor who are cast out or straying from? So, it’s about the Church. It’s a Hebrew word that means “straying from.” So, if you see someone who is straying from the truth, so often my experience has been ever since I’ve been in God’s Church, is that people won’t go and address something when they know it’s wrong. When somebody said something to them and it’s off the wall and they don’t have the guts, the power of God’s spirit within them to say, “That isn’t what we teach. I can’t not say something. What you just said is the opposite of what is taught in the Church.”

But people have been more concerned, as a whole, of hurting their feelings or maybe saying something and they won’t like me anymore. I mean, those are the things that go through human being’s minds. It’s like, really, are you concerned about them or yourself? Because if you really want to help them you will say something.

I think of all the conspiracy theories. They always pop up. Ever since I’ve been in the Church, all these crazy things that sometimes pop up in the environment of the church. And if you are the kind of person that’s standing for God’s way of life and protecting it and protecting the Church… Because if they’re going to tell you, they’re going to tell others.

You know, so often the individuals who will stand and say something, those people don’t come around and talk to them. You know why? Because they know you’re going to tell them something. They’re not going to get by with it. But if someone will listen and not say anything, and then they’ll just keep blah, blah, blah; all this junk comes out of their mouth.

Now, see, we go through these experiences in life because we’re to learn from it. That’s our environment for learning.

“Those who are straying from.” That’s what the Hebrew word means. It’s not a physical thing here, it’s a spiritual thing. So, if someone is straying, our desire should be to want to help. If we love them, we’re going to say something because we don’t want them to go on that course.

Someone is worried about these jet things going across the sky? I mean, how nuts can people get, human beings? People can stray so far away from what is true that they begin to think and will hear something on the radio or TV or whatever it might be – it wouldn’t be on TV but some blog or whatever it might be – and they think the government is trying to poison us. Around the world, every government, because they all allow these jets to go over. They allow air traffic and somehow what you’re seeing come out there is mixed with some kind of poisons or something and they’re trying to poison us all. So, there’ll be some days (I’ve told this), my wife and I are going out for a walk, and we see these crisscrossing in the sky and it’s like maybe we better go back inside. It’s all about a joke. You know, how could anyone believe that?

Or black helicopters. That happened in Cincinnati. A whole bunch of people in Cincinnati about forty years ago left the Church because they got caught up in some of these conspiracy theories about seeing these black helicopters and what it meant with the government and these secret things going on.

If you love them say, “You know, we don’t teach that and that’s really off the wall.” That the world is flat? You should be able to say, “No, I know it’s round. We don’t teach that. There is enough science out there, enough when you’re flying, that there are things you can see, you can look out the window and detect and learn from that, that it’s not flat.”

But that’s what it’s talking about here. Do we love someone or is it more about protecting ourselves and not taking a stance for what is true and what is right and what is best for everyone within the Church? Because something like that can spread. “A little leaven leavens the whole lump.” That’s what happened in Cincinnati in that area.

…who are cast out (straying) from your house. We should understand that. Hebrew really explains that better, the real words here, because it’s not “cast out.” It’s a matter of “straying from.” It’s what the Hebrew word means, and that makes sense, that we understand what that means, to stray from the Church, the House of God, God’s House.

So that when you see the naked, that you cover them. Because that’s what’s happening, someone who goes into these things is being cut off from God’s spirit; they can’t see through it, they can’t see their thinking, the wrong thinking that’s taking place. When you have an opportunity then to say something that is true and right, to correct something that is obviously way off the wall, well, we should do that because we love them, because we love the Church.

So that you will not hide yourself from your own flesh? So, that’s what happens when people don’t stand up for it, they’re hiding from the Body in the sense of what is real care, concern, and love for God’s Body, the Body of Christ, the Church of God, the spiritual Body.

Then your light shall break forth as the morning, if we do it in the right way, if we’re fasting for the right reasons, that we have the strength to stand, that we stand up for what is right, that we want to help others, that we do care about others, that we do care about the entirety of the Body. We have that kind of a mind like Phineas had.

You know, his desire was to protect Israel. His desire was to see no sin brought into Israel after what Moses had said. All the people who were mixing with other people, and it had to do with their religion and their beliefs, because they were doing those things, and someone had the gall after they’d already been told not to take, not to commit adultery, not to commit fornication, and one individual brought this woman right into the midst of the camp, right in front of the leaders of the camp. Phineas took a spear, a javelin, it says, and went in and ran them both through at that one time. So, they were in the act.

That’s what it’s about. He ran them both through, killed them on the spot for their sin, for what they did. He stood up for what was right. He was well-known for that after that. God made sure of it. His lineage as well. Awesome! Because of him standing up for God and God’s way of life.

How much more when it’s on a spiritual plane?

Then shall your light break forth as the morning, and your health, your healing… Your healing. The more we stand for God’s way of life, the more we live God’s way of life, the more we want to come out of sin, the more we want to do things in the right way, to fast for the right reasons because we want to change, the more we’re going to grow. Our healing is going to be stronger.

...and your health, your healing shall spring forth speedily, and your righteousness shall go before you. And the glory of the Eternal shall be your rear guard. Beautiful when we understand what that means on a spiritual plane.

Isaiah 59:9—Then you shall call, and the Eternal will answer. You know, when we humble ourselves before God, God says you do things the right way, He’s pleased with that. Then He helps us, He intervenes for us. Our prayers are answered in life for the things because we’re asking for the right things. Our mind is right.

You shall cry out, and He shall say, Here I am. When you take away the midst of you the yoke. See, “From the midst of you.” You have the power to do that. You can’t change others, but you have the power to change yourself with God’s spirit.

When you take away from you the midst of the yolk, the putting forth of the finger. You know, that’s easy to do, isn’t it? It’s always somebody else's fault, why someone else has drama. It’s always been that way. “You made me mad.” “You made me upset.” “You made me lose my cool.” Oh, really. Is there something a little wrong with that kind of thinking?

…the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity. That’s a big one. It’s about wanting to be lifted up. It's wanting to be seen. It’s wanting to speak certain things. We want others to hear what we think, how we see things. If that’s a motivation that’s something to repent of because that’s really one of the sickest ones there is because we want to share with others our great intellect and intelligence and spirituality in the Church. That’s just a bunch of vomit and it stinks worse than vomit, to me especially, also more so to God Almighty. And “speaking vanity,” it’s empty. It’s meaningless. It’s valueless. It has no value to it whatsoever.

So, if you draw out your soul to the hungry and satisfy the afflicted soul… It’s about thinking about others, not about ourselves. It’s not about how we want to live because God gives us responsibility within the Church of how we’re to live toward others. …then your light shall rise in, it says “obscurity,” but it’s a Hebrew word that means, “in that which has been darkened.” So, in other words, sin keeps wanting more in the dark. There’s darkness there where there is sin, and when we get rid of sin there is greater light. Beautiful!

And your darkness shall be as the noonday. It won’t be dark! It’s about a spiritual thing. The Eternal will guide you continually, and satisfy your soul in drought, and make fat your bones. Spiritually! You shall be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail. Because God’s always there because of His holy spirit, always going to be there because you’re doing the right things.

Verse 12—You shall build the old waste places, and you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you will be called the Repairer of the Breach. Everyone who has led the right way, God’s way of life, especially in the first that are going to be resurrected here in the 144,000, and all those who continue on, candidly, in what they’re to live (in carnal physical bodies because it’s still going to be a battle), but in the Church, this is a part of that.

The Repairer of the Breach, the Restorer of Paths, or the Ways as the word is here, to Dwell, to abide, to live In. Beautiful what God says, but it’s all connected with fasting. Beautiful, when we understand that, that process of what we’re to live and how we’re to live it.

So, as we’re nearing now the close of this series on fasting, we’re going to focus on Joshua and be reminded of what we covered last Sabbath concerning our need to be humble, to have a humble spirit ourselves before God always, and judge ourselves just as we are instructed to do concerning the Passover.

The Passover is a very powerful thing to understand, and those scriptures we read on that night, they’re really about what we’re to see in ourselves. It’s about examining ourselves as we come before God.

But here is something concerning John the Baptist that we’re going to start going through here in what Joshua said. This is in Matthew 3:1—In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, saying, Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!

Now, awesome here what happened after nearly four thousand years, and here is this point in time where John the Baptist is preaching and he’s talking about the Messiah, basically, “the Kingdom of God is at hand.” He talks about the Messiah who is coming. They didn’t understand all those things at that time. They saw it on a physical plane as being under the government of the Romans and so forth and they were oppressed by them and so that’s where their thinking was.

Anyway, he says … for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand! For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare the way of the Lord; Make his paths straight. It happened there. It happened during Herbert Armstrong’s service as God’s apostle. It’s happening now. These are spiritual things having to do with the Messiah.

Just as it says in Isaiah (I’m just going to quote this.) It’s where it’s taken from Isaiah 40:3 where it says, Make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Blessed to be a part of something like that? Preparing the way?

Matthew 3:4—Even John himself was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey. Tough job. Different ones had different jobs. His was tough. It’s not easy.

Then of Jerusalem, all Judea, those of Jerusalem and of Judea. It doesn’t mean all of Judea and all of Jerusalem came out there. It’s those of those areas is what it’s talking about. It’s not about everyone came out. …of Judea, and all the region around Jordan went out to meet him. So, in all these regions it’s saying there were those who came from all those areas, basically, is what it’s talking about. …and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.

This was a physical thing on a physical plane. It’s their acknowledgment of the fact they sin, and they want to be baptized because of it. It didn’t have to do with receiving of God’s holy spirit; it was just a matter of repentance before God.

But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, Brood of vipers! Pretty strong language. “You brood of vipers!” “You’re a bunch of snakes!” Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore, bear fruits worthy of repentance. It’s what’s required. You want to live, you want to hear the truth, if you’re real, if this is true, then this is where you start. Show the fruit worthy of repentance, in other words, that you are changing because you are repenting. Repenting is more than just saying words. It’s the fact that it’s starting to show in your life.

And do not think to say to yourselves, We have Abraham as our father. Because that was their problem, Abraham, “We’re the descendants of Abraham, and therefore, we’re better than all the others, better than all the gentiles and all the other nations and stuff.” So, he said, don’t think to say that because that’s not what it’s about in essence.

For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. Wow. “Think you’re so great. These rocks, they can be descendants of Abraham.” Now, they wouldn’t have understood what that meant anyway, but because, again, to understand what it means on a spiritual plane is something totally different.

Verse 10—So, even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore, every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. It’s powerful things he was preaching that weren’t understood, as a whole, those that were there. It really hadn’t been understood all that well sometimes within the Church. Sad. Because it’s about what we’re able to do when God’s spirit is given. It’s not given until we’re able to be a part of the Church. Then when we receive that we either bear good fruit or we don’t.

I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the holy spirit and fire. Now, some in the protestant world think this is a great thing: “We want to be baptized with the holy spirit and then with fire.” No, you don’t. They don’t grasp what it’s about. The holy spirit is one thing to help you to grow, to conquer and overcome. The fire is for those who don’t. That’s what awaits them.

That’s what it’s talking about here before that. That which doesn’t bear good fruit, it’s going to be cast down, cut down, and thrown into the fire. Sometimes people do the dumbest things but they don’t understand, they don’t know the truth. But it’s about judgment and it’s about growth. It’s about those who yield themselves. One is coming, the holy spirit, the Church, what’s going to happen after the Millennium is established. Those who respond to that are able to have a part in something as far as transformation, change, growth, and eventually in God’s Family. And those who don’t, it is fire. That’s the end.

His winnowing fan is in His hand. It’s when you have, as it were, when they gathered together grain and so forth and the chaff that would be there. If you’ve ever been around wheat or different grains like this and how they sometimes did that. They sometimes use these round things and it’d be a matter of trying to get the grain separated from all the chaff that’s around it. And so, it’s about this process of wind or whatever separating the two.

And so, it goes on to say, His winnowing fan is in His hand. In other words, He’s going to separate it. …and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor and gather His grain into the barn. That which produces fruit, that which is productive.

And He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire. So, it shows there are two things that are going to happen in human life. One has to do with those who are able to grow, produce fruit in their life, and those who won’t do it, and this is the outcome. It’s a matter of judgment, God’s judgment.

I want to pause here and look at a related area of scripture, Matthew 13, just to drive this point home. Matthew 13:24. So, we have a battle to fight against this nature constantly. We have a battle. We want to produce fruit in our life and fruit that it’s talking about here is only accomplished through the power of God’s spirit, because if God’s spirit is going out it will produce fruit always, and where it gets quenched or cut off no fruit is produced. That’s where we come in as to how we live our life.

Matthew 13:24—Then he put forth another parable, saying, The Kingdom of Heaven is likened unto a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while people slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way.  And when the blades sprung up, even to bring forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. Because tares don’t produce grain.

So the servants of the householder came and said to him, Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where did these tares come from? He said to them, An enemy has done this. So again, we can understand these things on a spiritual plane and to grasp what is out there in the world and what tries to separate us from God.

There is a being and a whole bunch of others with him that hate God’s way of life, that broadcast to the mind. That’s why things can come into your mind that aren’t of you, but they can come into your mind. Or things that are small in the sense of something that happens in your thinking and they can magnify it, make it greater to where it becomes more of a battle. Then you have battles on a spiritual plane to fight.

Only God Almighty can help you in those because “Greater is He…” That’s why we hold on to that scripture about God being in us. “Greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.” That’s our strength. You can’t do it on your own. You have to have God’s help to fight such battles.

“So, he said to them, An enemy has done this.” Everyone who ever was baptized and has turned against Christ, this is what has happened to them. They became so weak they don’t grasp, they didn’t grasp and understand (but everyone needs to) that there are other powers that exist, that of all the people on the earth you are the ones they want to move away from the truth. You are the ones because the rest are already deceived. They want you to be deceived again. They want you to go in that direction. We have the choices as to whether we do or whether we don’t. It’s in our hands. Incredible!

And the servants said to him, Will you have us go and gather them up? But he said, No, unless while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. Now, this has been ongoing for two thousand years. There are things that God has allowed within the environment of the Church, but something unique is that that is coming to a screeching halt.

Then in the time of harvest, I will say to the reapers, Gather you together the tares and bind them in bundles, in other words, “Gather them together to be burned.” …to burn them. But gather the wheat into my storehouse. So again here, you can only take a parable so far, but we understand what it means on a spiritual plane. It’s very simple.

There has always been that within the environment of the Church that God has allowed the tares, or even the chaff, to be with the grain, and there is that time when judgment is there, and God addresses those things. For those who have died in the past two thousand years who turned against Christ, who became antichrist, well, they have the Great White Throne as a whole. That will be addressed then.

But there is also that within this period of time that we’re in, the same sort of thing is taking place. I’ve made very clear—God has made it very clear—that this Body is going to be cleansed thoroughly, totally, one hundred percent before all this comes to an end.

Anyway, I’m going to stop there. We’ve gone through the things having to do with fasting that should suffice it. Isaiah, very powerful in what it has to say because it reveals that which is so carnal inside of us, that we have to do it right before God.

I wanted to conclude this today by going through some news articles. Because this should be motivating to us, it should be sobering to us, it really should be, where we are in time and what’s taking place. Again, just within the last week, and two or three of these articles were maybe nine days ago. But here we go.

“Ukraine Formally Asks NATO To Send Troops For First Time, Pentagon Mulling.”[1] Incredible! If that happens, it’s WWIII. If that happens, it’s very clear.

“Islamist group slams democratic values, rallies thousands in Germany.”[2] Just things that are taking place in the world that are insane. Europe has their problem because they have allowed a different religion to come in amongst them in a very powerful way. They didn’t guard their borders. (We didn’t learn from that either.) And right now, it is a matter of different minds that cannot think in the same way at all. It’s really messed up what they’re dealing with over there.

It's gotten to the point within Germany, they can’t take that so long because there comes a time when something becomes threatening to their existence, which is what they’re mulling over right now, the fact that they could outnumber them in power before long if this continuous on. They know what that means. So, they did something horrific in WWII, and they can do something horrific again but to a different people.

“Ukraine struggles to hold eastern front as Russians advance on cities.”[3] Now, this is building up so fast, what’s taking place there, and it’s gotten Europe to the point where they believe they can’t be stopped by what’s happening now. Ukraine can’t stop it. This has them in a quandary, how they’re going to respond. This has to be that way for Europe to do what it’s going to do, but that’s where we are right now.

“White House Reacts To Ultra-Rare Putin-Xi Hug During Visit Highlighting Closer Military Ties.”[4] Now, we’ve known this. This was given to Herbert Armstrong, Russia and China are going to be combined as a military power at the end. And yet the world now is beginning to be a little alarmed by it because it’s getting closer and stronger. Incredible! Always known that about the Sixth Trumpet event. It’s what they’re going to do.

“The Biden administration has reacted to what might be called the hug heard around the world…” It’s taken something stupid like that to finally awaken a few to realize something crazy is going on here, incredible is actually going on.

“During the last day of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s two-day visit to China where he met with President Xi Jinping, the two shared an ultra-rare embrace in host city for the visit. During the two leaders' final goodbye interaction, it was Xi who appeared to initiate the hug. One regional expert, Arnaud Bertrand, has commented ‘It is indeed incredibly uncommon to hug in Chinese culture, especially for senior officials, which is why you can see Putin is taken aback at first.’” So, just by what was pictured there he’s taken aback by the fact that Xi is initiating this.

“The visit culminated in a joint statement pledging deepened cooperation in sectors that include energy, the military, and space.” They don’t even know what they talked about because it says some things about them, of what they will do at the end here in the Sixth Trumpet event that has already started some time back. But now the world is beginning to take notice of it.

Another article: “Putin to hold two-day talks with Lukashenko in Belarus, says Kremlin.”[5] “Russia and Belarus are close allies, with Minsk set to take part in exercises aimed at simulating preparations for the launch of tactical nuclear weapons this month.” So just moves closer and closer to the border with NATO, Poland, and so forth, in through there.

Another article: “Bipartisan Calls Grow For Ukraine To Hit Russian Territory With US Arms.”[6] “Officials in the US are growing more vocal in making the case for allowing Ukraine to use Washington-supplied weaponry to attack Russian territory.” I’m not going to read the rest of that because the reality is it just happened this week then where Biden, President Biden, did give his approval.

So, there have been restrictions on European weapons, whether they be from the NATO countries or those that are there, but anyway, to give them to Ukraine that there were restrictions. They couldn’t use them, especially the missiles, to go deep into or into Russia, period. Now Europe is starting to give their approval, and now this week, Biden has given his approval. This is not a small thing.

Another article: “Macron heads to Germany in first French presidential state visit in 24 years”[7] “The visit is ‘an attempt at the highest political level to demonstrate that the relationship is working,’ said Mujtaba Rahman, managing director for Europe at the Eurasia Group think tank. ‘But there are still fundamental gaps on major questions that are looming over the EU.’”

So, I think, again, this clay and iron mingled together. It doesn’t work. Strong in one way and incredibly weak in the other.

“One key such gap is on European defence, in particular if Trump wins the Nov. 5 U.S. presidential election.” So, they’re holding a meeting, and this is the primary thing that they’re focusing on right now, “What if he wins?”

Every one of us should understand that this would be their concern, Europe’s concern because they’re dealing differently than the current administration is dealing, and they’re fearful of this. It’s affecting their thinking and their policy, and what they’re going to do. So, do you think that doesn’t put a crunch on time here as to what we have or what’s before us, or what could be before us? Because it’s pushing them into a corner. They don’t know what to do, but they will make their decision, and we know what it is.

“Defence experts view him as a much less predictably reliable ally for Europe than his Democratic rival, President Joe Biden. Earlier this year the Republican former president not only said he would not protect NATO members from a future attack by Russia if those countries’ contributions to the defence alliance were lagging, but that he would encourage Russia,” this is what he said, “‘to do whatever the hell they want.’” Now, how do you think that would make you feel, if you’re a NATO nation, if you’re relying on the US to come to your rescue, especially if he is in office and he’s said something like this? It’s going to make you think differently. It’s the exact reason we know what’s going to happen in the Fifth Trumpet, and they are going to turn on the United States and with nuclear weapons.

Another one here: “European leader warns world heading for disaster.”[8] There are so many articles here. I’m not going to read all that.

Another article here: “EU in serious danger – Macron.”[9] “The EU is facing a record number of ‘external and internal enemies,’ who pose an existential threat to the bloc, French President Emmanuel Macron has said, doubling down on a warning he’d given earlier, that ‘our Europe’ could end up dying. Macron made the remarks while speaking alongside Germany’s head of state, President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, on the first of his three-day state visit.” Now, this may not mean much to us, but this is incredible stuff that’s being talked about here, about what they feel.

This is from a Russian article, if you will, in the sense of what’s on there in their country, the RT, filled with their politics. But you think, if this is how they think this is not a small thing. This is how they’re thinking. This is how they see the rest of the world. That’s why we read these articles sometimes. They’re not all printed here in the U.S. or given here in the U.S. or certain parts of Europe. They can be in Russia as well just to show how they think.

Another one: “The US Is Playing A Dangerous Game Of Nuclear Chicken With Russia.”[10] “Essentially, the US wants Russia to stand down from its signaled intent of possibly using tactical nuclear weapons if NATO’s reportedly 100,000-strong invasion force crosses the Dnieper, [talking about the Dnieper River] which could occur if Russia achieves a military breakthrough.”

“If this sequence of events unfolds – the front lines collapse, NATO conventionally intervenes in Ukraine, its reportedly 100,000-strong invasion force crosses the Dnieper, Russia drops tactical nukes on them…” So, they’re talking in this vein that this is what’s going to happen: “If you do this and this, this is going to happen.” “…and then the US hits all of its forces in the newly unified regions – then World War III would break out. There’s no way that Russia would sit back and let the US directly attack any target within its borders since it’ll either respond in a tit-for-tat fashion or jump to the chase by launching a nuclear first strike.”

“The only way to avoid this worst-case scenario is for NATO to eschew its invasion plans under any circumstances, including a potential Russian military breakthrough. If they still go through with them, however, then they should keep their forces on the western side of the Dnieper and ideally rely on a neutral mediator like India to convey to Russia that they don’t intend to cross even if they approach it.” You think, people are stupid! I read something like this, and I think, are you kidding me? They have no power. It’s not going to stop anything!

Another article: “Norway Closes Borders To Russia Fearing Acts Of Sabotage.”[11] It’s about intelligence they have that’s coming across saying that there are going to be areas attacked up there.

Anyway, another one here: “Macron, Scholz: Ukraine can strike some targets in Russia.”[12] So, now the French leader, the German leader, they came together in this meeting and now they’re saying, “Okay, you can strike deep within Russia now with whatever we give you.” Before, they were restricted from that.

Another article here: “Russia Claims NATO Is Planning Nuclear Strikes.”[13] The headlines alone. Sometimes I fear that maybe I’m boring people by going through some of these articles, and I know I’m going a little overtime from what I normally do, but if we don’t understand where we are in time, if we’re not sobered by what all these places are talking about, of where we are?

I’m not going to be shocked at all if by Pentecost, candidly, something doesn’t happen. That’s where we are! We should believe that with all of our being. That should stir us up inside to understand these things are in front of us now.

So, I’m going to read it. “Russia Claims NATO Is Planning Nuclear Strikes.” This is from Newsweek. If they believe this it shows what they believe. What’s important is what do they believe. What does Putin believe? What do their leaders believe? I’m not even reading a ton of stuff that comes out of Russia in things that are being said by different ones that are kind of puppets, but they all agree together, but what they’re just saying about nuclear war. They’re pushing it. The different ones around Putin, they’re pushing it.

We live in some incredibly sobering times, and when some of these things strike it’s going to pull at every emotion you have inside of you. You’ll never have felt anything like that in your entire life. You’re going to be sobered to the core of your being and you’re going to be scared to death, truly. That’s the serious times we live in. You can’t just put it out of your mind and somehow it’s going to go away. We’re there.

“An FSB intelligence chief has accused NATO countries of preparing to conduct nuclear strikes on Russian territory as tensions between the Kremlin and the alliance continue to grow.” So, the more they think this way the more likely they are to do a first strike. That’s what it amounts to. But they’re not going to because we know that. We know that Europe and ten nations in Europe, when it’s all said and done, are going to agree to strike. But even before that, we know something has to happen within this country in the first four Trumpets. Something that nobody is talking about, that nobody knows about. When it happens, that’s when the shock begins.

“General Vladimir Kulishov, who heads the border service of Russia's main intelligence agency, told state news agency RIA Novosti that Moscow was concerned about an increase in NATO activities near the Russian border. ‘NATO intelligence activities are increasing near the Russian border,’ he told the agency, as well as ‘the intensity of operational and combat training of the alliance's troops … Scenarios for conducting hostilities against the Russian Federation are being worked out, including nuclear strikes on our territory,’ he said.”

“Kulishov's comments come amid a spike in nuclear posturing by Russia, with President Vladimir Putin this month ordering his military to practice the deployment of tactical nuclear weapons after what Moscow said were threats from the West.”

Another article: “Is China Stockpiling Resources to Prepare for War?”[14] Duh. We’ve known this for a long time but now starting to come out more and more in the news. Incredible.

“Among the resources being stockpiled is gold. Gold prices hit record highs in recent months as China's central bank diversified its holdings and consumers turned to the safe haven amid a flagging stock market and the country's strict capital controls. The People's Bank of China increased its gold reserves for the 18th consecutive month in April, boosting them by 5 percent in dollar terms following an 8 percent rise in March. The theories that stockpiling could be a sign of preparations for war were not new, said Vincent Deluard, director of Global Macro Strategy at financial services company StoneX Group Inc.”

So anyway, they’re saying this is what this is, it’s a preparation for war.

Another one: “Putin Threatens West's 'Dense Populations' In 'Small Land Masses' In Response To NATO Escalation.”[15]

Just headlines: “How US is Flirting With Idea of 'Limited' Nuclear Conflict With Russia and China.”[16]

Another article: “NATO Dragging EU Into WW III, It Is No Longer Defensive Alliance - French Politician.”[17]

Another one: “US may have secretly approved attack on Russian nuclear radar – Austrian military.”[18] So, it’s a leak from the Austrian military supposedly. So again, if you’re in Russia, what are you thinking?

Another one: “Sweden OKs Ukraine Use of Swedish Weapons to Strike Deep Into Russia.”[19] Well, several countries have done that already.

“Think tank close to Kremlin says Russia should consider a 'demonstrative' nuclear explosion.”[20] This is from Reuters. “A senior member of a Russian think tank whose ideas sometimes become government policy has suggested Moscow consider a ‘demonstrative’ nuclear explosion to cow the West into refusing to allow Ukraine to use its arms against targets inside Russia.”

I wouldn’t be surprised by any measure whatsoever that they don’t do this on Russia. It’s going to take something like that for ten nations to come together and say, “Well, what are we going to do now?! Because if they’re willing to use it on Ukraine, we’re next. Is it going to be a war here or is there something else we can do?” They don’t want their land, their country to be filled with radioactivity. So, what do you do? Well…?

Not going to read the rest of that one.

Another one here: “Putin Alarmingly Urges Russian Officials To 'Mobilise' But Does Not Really Explain Why.”[21]

Another one: “Denmark Says Ukraine Can Strike Targets In Russia With Danish-Supplied F-16s.”[22] He’s already said what he’s going to do with F-16 because he said they’re capable of carrying nuclear weapons, and if they’re coming at you, you don’t know if they have them on there or not. So, what are you going to do as a country?

If we saw that kind of a device coming into this country, you think they’re going to take it down? So, what should they do over there? That’s where we are. Any week now some crazy things are going to happen at some point here that’s just going to push people over the edge in their thinking and in their fears and why they react and say the things they do.

Another one here: “Trump suggested he would have bombed Moscow for invading Ukraine.”[23] It’s reported in the news and if some believe that and they’re afraid he’s going to get into office? The way things are going he’s definitely going to be in office, so, what’s the question?

“Donald Trump guilty on all 34 felony charges.”[24]

Crazy, crazy world we live in. And what do you think the world thinks about us? It isn’t worth saving. That’s what Europe is going to come down to. “Let’s let it be over there. Let’s let the radioactivity be over there; keep it off of us.” Sad world.

[1] https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/ukraine-formally-asks-nato-send-troops-1st-time-pentagon-mulling

[2] https://www.jpost.com/international/article-798989

[3] https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ukraine-struggles-hold-eastern-front-russians-advance-cities-2024-05-18/

[4] https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/white-house-reacts-ultra-rare-putin-xi-hug-during-visit-highlighting-deepened-military

[5] https://www.msn.com/en-ph/news/world/putin-to-hold-two-day-talks-with-lukashenko-in-belarus-says-kremlin/ar-BB1mUtkp?ocid=BingNewsSerp

[6] https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/bipartisan-calls-grow-ukraine-hit-russian-territory-us-arms

[7] https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/macron-heads-germany-first-french-presidential-state-visit-24-years-2024-05-26/

[8] https://www.rt.com/news/598260-ukraine-conflcit-global-disaster/

[9] https://www.rt.com/news/598263-macron-eu-democracy-crisis/

[10] https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/us-playing-dangerous-game-nuclear-chicken-russia

[11] https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/norway-closes-borders-russia-fearing-acts-sabotage

[12] https://www.msn.com/en-xl/news/other/macron-scholz-ukraine-can-strike-some-targets-in-russia/ar-BB1ncogy?ocid=BingNewsSerp

[13] https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/russia-claims-nato-is-planning-nuclear-strikes/ar-BB1nbgNi?ocid=BingNewsSerp

[14] https://www.newsweek.com/china-stockpiling-resources-preparation-war-taiwan-economy-gold-oil-ukraine-russia-1905113

[15] https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/putin-threatens-wests-dense-populations-small-land-masses-response-nato-escalation

[16] https://sputnikglobe.com/20240529/how-us-is-flirting-with-idea-of-limited-nuclear-conflict-with-russia-and-china-1118682784.html

[17] https://sputnikglobe.com/20240529/nato-dragging-eu-into-ww-iii-it-is-no-longer-defensive-alliance---french-politician-1118674614.html

[18] https://www.rt.com/russia/598388-austria-russian-nuclear-deterrence/

[19] https://www.thedefensepost.com/2024/05/27/sweden-ukraine-weapons-russia/

[20] https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/think-tank-close-kremlin-says-russia-should-consider-demonstrative-nuclear-2024-05-29/

[21] https://uk.news.yahoo.com/putin-alarmingly-urges-russian-officials-120303441.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuYmluZy5jb20v&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAHNmaAGJYwGOC6-xLCZHgfagiemsU0l6d1cR-Ufkr9p_657PkY_DzciAc8H1wRlm0jGOYY-HLLMyKRjqQWijnz2GfIvfEjWNKJKpVBPq8JXpcb4Ew9mUm0bn1DdgygeN1rX_6Uoq6tI4ZybmJ_Zhy0wdGsT1h8PbFgX5QSjGy-eL

[22] https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/denmark-says-ukraine-can-strike-targets-inside-russia-danish-supplied-f-16s

[23] https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-suggested-bombed-moscow-invading-135855034.html

[24] https://edition.cnn.com/politics/live-news/trump-hush-money-trial-05-30-24/index.html

1. Chapter 1