It is darkness, and not light, as if a man (President Trump?) fled from a lion(nation with lion as their symbol),
and a bear (nation with bear as their symbol) met him,
or went into the house and leaned his hand against the wall, and a serpent (traitor) bit him.
Fear is like a virus that keeps us from living the life that God has called us to. It is a weapon that the enemy uses on us.
We must stand our ground and face our fears, so God has our permission (faith) to work on our behalf.
Fear comes at us like a storm. We must take our fear and shape it into a prayer. Fear prompts us to pray. End the prayer in faith by thanking God in advance.
We must reject Satan's lies. Then, we rest in our trust in God. Never be afraid to put your unknown future into the hands of a known God.
3 When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.
4 In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can flesh do to me?
2 Now we ask you, brothers and sisters, regarding the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him,
2 that you not be quickly shaken from your composure or be disturbed either by a spirit, or a ]message, or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come.
3 No one is to deceive you in any way! For it will not come unless the apostasy (many believers renouncing their faith) comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed (?), the son of destruction,
4 who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God.
5 Do you not remember that while I was still with you, I was telling you these things?
6 And you know what restrains him now (America?), so that he will be revealed in his time.
7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is removed (President Donald Trump?).
8 Then that lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will eliminate with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming;
9 that is, the one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and false signs and wonders,
10 and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not accept the love of the truth so as to be saved.
11 For this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false,
12 in order
that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took
pleasure in wickedness.
2 Thessalonians 2:1-12
New American Standard Bible
13 The dragon (Satan) saw that he had been thrown down to the
earth (from heaven). So he chased the woman (Israel) who had given birth to the
child (the Messiah, Jesus).
14 But the woman (Israel) was given the two wings of a great
eagle (America whose national symbol is an eagle).
Then she could fly to the place that was
prepared for her in the desert (Israel’s homeland in the Middle East which was
at the time of its 1948 founding a desert) …
15 Then the dragon (Satan working through China whose national
symbol is a dragon) poured water out of its mouth like a river (of lies aimed
at America to isolate Israel to destroy her ).
It poured the water toward the woman (Israel)
so that the flood (of lies) would carry her (Israel) away (to destruction).
16 But the earth (acts of God through nature) helped the woman
(when Israel becomes isolated from America).
The earth (acts of God through nature) opened
its mouth and swallowed the river that came from the mouth of the dragon
(Satan’s tidal waves of lies aimed at America through the nation of China to
isolate and destroy the nation, Israel).
17 Then the dragon (Satan working through China) was very
angry with the woman (Israel). It went away to make war against all her other
children (Christians in China and abroad).
Revelation 12
Easy-to-Read Version
25 There among the people was a woman who had been bleeding for the past
twelve years(quarantined for 12 years!)
26 She had suffered very much. Many doctors had tried to help her, and all
the money she had was spent, but she was not improving. In fact, her sickness
was getting worse (no one else could help her).
27 The woman heard about Jesus, so she followed him with the other people
and touched his coat.
28 She thought, “If I can just touch his clothes, that will be enough to
heal me (she was convinced Jesus could help her).”
29 As soon as she touched his coat, her bleeding stopped. She felt that
her body was healed from all the suffering.
30 Jesus immediately felt power go out from him, so he stopped and turned
around. “Who touched my clothes?” he asked.
31 The followers said to Jesus, “There are so many people pushing against
you. But you ask, ‘Who touched me?’”
32 But Jesus continued looking for the one who touched him.
33 The woman knew that she was healed, so she came and bowed at Jesus’
feet. She was shaking with fear. She told Jesus the whole story.
34 He said to her, “Dear woman, you are made well because you believed. Go
in peace. You will not suffer anymore.”
She was lonely, cast
out, and alone. She was quarantined, but she ventured out to find Jesus.
Jesus gave her a way out.
1. Jesus understands
your situation.
2. God's Word the Bible
is a lifeboat. Reading God's Word helps with loneliness.
3. Let's get in a group. Put on a mask and
regather. Church is a place where we experience family.
37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors
through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers,
nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be
able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
31-39 So,
what do you think? With God on our side like this, how can we lose? If God
didn’t hesitate to put everything on the line for us, embracing our condition
and exposing himself to the worst by sending his own Son, is there anything
else he wouldn’t gladly and freely do for us? And who would dare tangle with
God by messing with one of God’s chosen? Who would dare even to point a finger?
The One who died for us—who was raised to life for us!—is in the presence of
God at this very moment sticking up for us. Do you think anyone is going to be
able to drive a wedge between us and Christ’s love for us? There is no way! Not
trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not hunger, not homelessness, not bullying
threats, not backstabbing, not even the worst sins listed in Scripture:
They
kill us in cold blood because they hate you.
We’re sitting ducks; they pick us off one by one.
None of this fazes us because Jesus loves us. I’m
absolutely convinced that nothing—nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic,
today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable—absolutely nothing can
get between us and God’s love because of the way that Jesus our Master has
embraced us.
11 When Nathan (the prophet) heard about this, he went to Solomon’s mother Bathsheba and asked her,
“Have you heard what … Adonijah, is doing? He is making himself king. And…
King David, knows nothing about it.
12 You and your son Solomon are in danger, but I will tell you what to do to save yourself.
13 Go to King David and tell him…
17 Bathsheba (went to King David), “Sir, you used the name of the Lord your God and made a promise to me.
You said, ‘Your son Solomon will be the next king after me. He will sit on my throne.’
18 Now,
you don’t know this, but Adonijah is making himself king.
20 Now, my lord and king, all the Israelites are watching you. They are waiting for you to decide who will be the next king after you.
21 If
you don’t decide, then after you are buried, these men will say that Solomon
and I are criminals.”
29 Then the king made a promise...
30 Today I will do what I promised you in the past.
I made that promise by the power of the Lord, the God of Israel.
I promised that your son Solomon would be the next king after me.
I promised that he would take my place on my throne,
and I will keep my promise!”
7 “(I, Jesus) Write this to…Philadelphia:
“Here
is a message from the one who is holy and true, the one who holds the key of
David.
When
he opens something, it cannot be closed. And when he closes something, it
cannot be opened.
8 “I know what you do.
I have put before you an
open door that no one can close. I know you are weak, but you have followed my
teaching. You were not afraid to speak my name.
9 Listen! There is a group (in Philadelphia) that belongs to Satan….
I will make them come before you and bow at your feet.
They
will know that you are the people I have loved.
10 You followed my command to endure patiently. So
I will keep you from the time of trouble that will come to the world—a time
that will test everyone living on earth.
11 “I am coming soon.
Hold on to the faith you
have, so that no one can take away your crown.
Revelation 3:7-11
Easy-to-Read Version
2 Timothy 1:12
That
is why I am suffering here in jail, and I am certainly not ashamed of it, for I
know the one (Jesus) in whom I trust, and I am sure that he is able to safely
guard all that I have given him until the day of his return.
1. We must know
our Lord Jesus not simply know about Him.
Knowing Jesus builds our
trust, confidence, and hope in Him.
Hold tightly to the pattern of truth I taught you, especially
concerning the faith and love Christ Jesus offers you.
2. We must stay
on mission.
This year has caused
massive distractions.
Satan uses division,
confusion, and fear.
Unity communicates
the gospel to a watching world.
We have drifted from
common sense.
33 For
God is not a God of confusion but of peace.
7 for
God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and
self-control.
3. We can live in the
power of the Holy Spirit.
14 By
the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit
entrusted to you.
Just as the body is
made for breathing. The Spirit is made for believing.
