Were the Founding Fathers Good or Evil?

I received some comments on my last post regarding the number 13 and the founding of the USA.  The commenter pointed out that some of the founding fathers were not Christians but were deists and masons.  He went on to say that Christians tend to assume that the founding fathers were comprised of God’s people.  As usual, things are always more complex than people like to think.  We tend to see things in black and white which results in oversimplified conclusions.  Was our country founded by righteous or evil men?  I believe it was founded by both.  The evidence is clear that there were elements of both good and evil in the original founding fathers.  However, that does not diminish the notion that God intended our founding for His purposes and that His name be glorified. 

I am reminded of the parable of the sower in the New Testament in Matthew 13 where Jesus noted that both good seed and evil seed had been sown in the same field.  Matthew 13:24-30 states - Jesus presented another parable to them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field.  But while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went away.  But when the wheat sprouted and bore grain, then the tares became evident also.  The slaves of the landowner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field?  How then does it have tares?’  And he said to them, ‘An enemy has done this!’ The slaves said to him, ‘Do you want us, then, to go and gather them up?’  But he said, ‘No; for while you are gathering up the tares, you may uproot the wheat with them.  Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather up the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them up; but gather the wheat into my barn.”’” (NASB)

In the founding of our country, there were righteous men that sowed good seed like George Duffield and John Adams, but there were evil men who sowed tares among the wheat as well.  Don’t make the mistake of seeing it either as black or white when both were present from the beginning just as the serpent was present in the Garden of Eden from the beginning.  God created the Garden for man and for good.  The serpent came into the Garden and introduced rebellion to corrupt it.

The Biblical number of Promise is Considered Evil by most Christians

As with anything, evil can be called good and good can be called evil.  We especially see this happening in today’s society.  One such example is a particular number.  It has been called unlucky and evil by Christians while it has been considered holy by Jews.  What is that number?  It is the infamous number 13.  In fact, it is considered so unlucky and evil that hotels often do not have a 13^th floor in their building.  One of the reasons it is considered evil is because it is used extensively by the occult, witchcraft, and the illuminati.  But that does not necessarily make it an evil number.

In the Bible, it is the number of blessing and promise.  We see in the story of Abraham and Sarah in Genesis chapters 16 and 17 the number 13 representing promise.  God promised the then childless Abraham and Sarah blessing through their seed.  Then at age 86 Abraham and Sarah made their own attempt at fulfilling the promise by Abraham taking Sarah’s handmade Hagar to fulfill God’s promise of a child and the result was the son Ishmael.  God again re-iterates his promise when Abraham was 99 years old and Sarah gave birth to her son Isaac which was the fulfillment of the promised seed through which the chosen people and messiah would arise.  The time period between the age of 86 and 99 is 13 years.

A little later in Genesis we again see the number 13 representing God’s promise to his people in the blessing of Jacob on Joseph’s two sons Ephraim and Manasseh (Genesis Chapter 48).  Joseph was the most beloved son of Jacob’s and Joseph’s two sons born in Egypt were considered to also be sons to Jacob and received a special blessing.  This resulted in a double blessing for joseph and his two sons so that the 12 tribes of Israel become 13.  Instead of a tribe of Joseph, there became two tribes.  One tribe that came from Ephraim and one tribe that came from Manasseh.  Again, the number 13 represents promise and blessing.

In Judaism, the number 13 is considered a holy number.  In Hebrew, the original language of the Bible, there are some key words with the numerical value of 13.  They are echad, ‘ab, chag, and ahava.  Echad means one in English and relates to the oneness of God.  ‘ab means father.  Chag translates to feast and ahava is the Hebrew word for love.  As you can see, none of these words would be considered evil.  In addition, it is at the age of 13 that Jewish children go through the bar mitzvah celebration that makes them a full member of the Jewish faith.  According to Maimonides there are 13 principles to Jewish faith and according to rabbinic commentary on the Torah (first 5 books of the bible) there are 13 attributes of God’s mercy.

The number of promise is even see in the Christian New Testament when Yahshua selected 12 disciples to follow him.  When you add Yahshua, the promised son and saviour to the 12 disciples, the result is again the number of promise, 13.
 

It is clear in the bible that the number 13 is holy and not evil.  It is the number of blessing and promise.  When we look at the founding of our own country (USA), the founding fathers established a country based on God given rights and the freedom to worship God as He intended.  Both Christians and Jews agree that the founding of our country was by divine decree from Heaven.  It was founded on a promise to be a blessing and be used by God in a mighty way.  It is not a coincidence that it was comprised of 13 original colonies, the number of promise and blessing.  Unfortunately our country has followed the same pattern as the number 13.  We started out holy and righteous and then allowed ourselves to be gradually taken over by evil!

"While sun and moon endure, America shall remain a city of refuge for the whole earth, until she herself shall play the tyrant, forget her destiny, disgrace her freedom, and provoke her God"  - George Duffield, Chaplin to First Continental Congress, May 17, 1776.

Lost 10 Tribes of Israel Found!

Like the threads in Joseph’s Coat of Many Colors the lost 10 tribes were dyed and woven into the fabric of the world where they stayed hidden until these End Times.  They are in all races, nationalities, and countries throughout the world but are primarily to be found in the West as prophesized long ago.  They are coming out of their 2800 year slumber since their exile in 721 BC and waking up to their identity.  Like the parable of the Prodigal son in the Christian New Testament, they long to get out of their pig pen and come home to the land promised to their fathers in biblical days.

Some like me have left the Christian church in search of truth.  We are returning to our Hebraic roots and can learn much from our brother Judah.  Our fellow Christians being left behind make fun of us.  They tell us we are legalistic in wanting to follow the commandments and instructions that God gave to Moses at Mount Sinai.  They criticize us for not celebrating Christmas and Easter, both of which are pagan holidays.

Instead we keep the Sabbaths and celebrate the feasts of the Bible given to us by God.  We celebrate Passover, Shavuot, Rosh Hashanah, Sukkot, and Yom Kippur.  Some of us call ourselves Noahides while others refer to themselves as part of the Hebraic Restoration movement and attend Messianic congregations.  We all seek God and His truth.  We look forward to the appearance of the Messiah Son of David to bring us back to the Promised Land and unite us with our brother Judah who is there preparing the land for our return as foretold in Ezekiel chapter 37.

The world is on the very cusp of this great Second Exodus!  One that will make such an impact that the first Exodus will be overshadowed as millions of descendants of the Lost 10 Tribes return to settle Greater Israel!  As we settle, we will surround our brother Judah with unity, peace and love originating from our Creator, the God of Israel!  It is good for brothers to live together in peace.  Od Yoseph Chai!  Joseph Lives and is soon to come home!

Jeremiah 31:15-20 sums it up nicely.  Thus says the Lord, “A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping.  Rachel is weeping for her children; she refuses to be comforted for her children, because they are no more.”  Thus says the Lord, “Restrain your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears; for your work will be rewarded,” declares the Lord, “And they will return from the land of the enemy.  “There is hope for your future,” declares the Lord, “And your children will return to their own territory.”  “I have surely heard Ephraim grieving, ‘You have chastised me, and I was chastised, like an untrained calf; Bring me back that I may be restored, for You are the Lord my God.  ‘For after I turned back, I repented; and after I was instructed, I smote on my thigh; I was ashamed and also humiliated because I bore the reproach of my youth.’  “Is Ephraim My dear son?  Is he a delightful child?  Indeed, as often as I have spoken against him, I certainly still remember him; Therefore My heart yearns for him; I will surely have mercy on him,” declares the Lord.  (NASB)

 

 

Religion verses Relationship

God gave us His instruction in His word the Bible.  Instructions for how He wants us to live and act.  He wants to have an intimate relationship with His people as we learn from Him and He directs our lives.  He wants us to think about Him and love Him.  He wants us to treat others with love and respect.  He wants us to meditate on His words and see Him speaking to us in everything around us and in everything that happens.  God is everywhere and in everything.  Those with eyes to see will notice subtle messages in all things.  There are no coincidences in life.  Everything serves a purpose.

Religion is man’s attempt to reach God.  It contains man’s thinking and man’s traditions.  No religion deviates from this pattern.  Religion tries to put God in a box and explain the unexplainable, things that are beyond our grasp and understanding.  Religion rationalizes everything they do and the traditions they follow.  God’s word says to rest and worship on the Sabbath, which is Saturday, following His pattern of creating for 6 days and then resting on the seventh day.  Religions change that and then make excuses as to why they deviate from the Sabbath to worship on Friday or Sunday.  Some religions even start calling Sunday the Sabbath thinking that by changing the name it somehow is being obedient to God and His instructions in the Bible.  They point to Paul in the New Testament who gave instructions for Christians to meet on the first day of the week (Sunday) as their reason for worshiping then.

The key question is who are we supposed to follow?  Man or God?  God’s instructions in the Bible are clear.  Any person that changes God’s instructions for man-made traditions is anti-God and antichrist.  Who are you following?  Are you following a religion, a man, or God?  Are you reading God’s Word and using the brain that God gave you to discover His truths or are you believing whatever other men tell you?  A relationship is the path to knowing God.  A religion is the path to destruction.  There is some truth in religions, but there is also much paganism and man-made traditions.  There is only truth with God.  Follow His words and His instructions.  Chose God and His truth!

Fear is the Mind Killer that Prevents Action

There are two major obstacles we must overcome in order to walk with God and serve Him.  These are pride and fear.  Pride keeps us so focused on ourselves and our own little world that we are unable to look to God for His leadership and direction.  Prideful people are so busy taking care of themselves that everything else is invisible to them including God.  That is why God hates pride. 

Fear is the other obstacle in our way of serving God.  We can be humble and strive to follow God’s direction, but if we are too fearful to do what He says, we fail miserably.  We see the consequences of fear and what God thinks of fear in the story of the 12 spies that Moses sent into the land of Canaan.

In Numbers 13: 25-33 we read “When they returned from spying out the land, at the end of forty days, they proceeded to come to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation of the sons of Israel in the wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh; and they brought back word to them and to all the congregation and showed them the fruit of the land.  Thus they told him, and said, “We went in to the land where you sent us; and it certainly does flow with milk and honey, and this is its fruit.  Nevertheless, the people who live in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large; and moreover, we saw the descendants of Anak there.  Amalek is living in the land of the Negev and the Hittites and the Jebusites and the Amorites are living in the hill country, and the Canaanites are living by the sea and by the side of the Jordan.”

Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, “We should by all means go up and take possession of it, for we will surely overcome it.”  But the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are too strong for us.”  So they gave out to the sons of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land through which we have gone, in spying it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants; and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great size.  There also we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak are part of the Nephilim); and we became like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.” (NASB)

Ten of the twelve spies were filled with fear and did not want to enter the Promised Land.  The bad report resulted in the Israelites becoming fearful and rebelling against God’s appointed leadership in Aaron and Moses.  God offered to wipe the Israelites out and start over with Moses and his descendants.  Why, all because of fear that was crippling the people from going in and taking possession of the land that God had promised to the Israelites.  Moses pleaded on behave of the Israelites and then God pardoned and rebuked them.

God’s rebuke is recorded in Numbers 13:20-25.  “So the Lord said, “I have pardoned them according to your word; but indeed, as I live, all the earth will be filled with the glory of the Lord.  Surely all the men who have seen My glory and My signs which I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness, yet have put Me to the test these ten times and have not listened to My voice, shall by no means see the land which I swore to their fathers, nor shall any of those who spurned Me see it.  But My servant Caleb, because he has had a different spirit and has followed Me fully, I will bring into the land which he entered, and his descendants shall take possession of it. 25 Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites live in the valleys; turn tomorrow and set out to the wilderness by the way of the Red Sea.” (NASB)  The Israelites then spent the next 40 years wondering in the wilderness while that fearful generation passed away one by one.

God cannot use fearful people because fear kills the mind and prevents action to follow God’s leading and direction.  God has promised over and over to be with us and to “Fear not”.  Those crippled with fear may be forgiven if they repent, but will fall by the wayside and not be used as God had intended.  Those filled with confidence in their God will be victorious and conquer their enemies and the land!  Fear indeed is the mind killer that keeps us from fulfilling the destiny that God desires for us!

Escaping the Matrix

We are really not of this world, but are spiritual beings.  Our physical body is the vehicle by which we function in this 4 dimensional world.  Who we are is our soul and spirit and only a portion of our higher self actually resides in our physical bodies.  This concept was recently popularized in the movie “The Matrix” where there was a holographic construct that people were plugged into and thought was real.  In the movie, Neo’s first step in escaping the Matrix was the realization of what it was and that there “is no spoon!”  It looks like the spoon is there but it is an illusion.  Once he detached from what he thought was real, he could see beyond the artificial construct to see the reality behind the holographic world.

I find it interesting that the Bible instructs us to the do same thing.  We are to recognize that this world is an illusion and is temporary.  It will dissolve in the coming judgment with fire.  Those who cling to the physical world will dissolve along with it.  The real world is the spiritual world outside of our physical dimensions.  It is only through your spiritual connection to God that you will come through the fire of judgment into God’s Kingdom.

Some Christian denominations refer to this as the rapture or catching away of God’s people.  It is meeting the messiah in the air to come into the restored Kingdom of God.  There is a notion that heaven is above everything so we meet the messiah in the air on our way there.  However, the heavenly realm may actually be dimensions hidden to us behind and alongside our own.  In Hebrew, the word for wind is ruach which is the same word used for spirit.  This may be implying that we transition into the heavenly dimensions by our spiritual connections to God which is accomplished by repentance and faith in Him.  It requires being filled by God’s Holy Spirit (ruach) which resides in us and in all the dimensions since God is everywhere.  This spiritual connection is what allows us to transition into the heavenly dimensions while our current dimensions dissolve in God’s judgment.

Christians often argue and debate the timing of this transition.  As with most things in prophecy, we don’t see the fulfillment clearly until it is either happening or has already been fulfilled.  I have heard convincing arguments for all of the various rapture timing theories.  After much thought, I concluded that I am just going to watch bible prophecy unfold and see how God actually does it.  In the meantime, what is important is the spiritual preparation.  We must know God which implies a personal relationship with Him and His words in the Bible.  We must connect with God’s spirit through repentance and obedience to Him and then love God with all our hearts and soul. 

During the soon coming transition, we have to realize that this world is an illusion and will dissolve with only spiritual things remaining.  We have to detach from the material and attach to the spiritual.  It is only our relationship with God that allows us to escape the Matrix instead of dissolving along with it.  Remember, “There is no spoon”!  There is only God!

Zephaniah 1:18 “Neither their silver nor their gold will be able to deliver them on the day of the Lord’s wrath; and all the earth will be devoured in the fire of His jealousy, for He will make a complete end, indeed a terrifying one, of all the inhabitants of the earth.” (NASB)

Zephaniah 3:8 ““Therefore wait for Me,” declares the Lord, “For the day when I rise up as a witness.  Indeed, My decision is to gather nations, to assemble kingdoms, to pour out on them My indignation, all My burning anger; for all the earth will be devoured by the fire of My zeal.” (NASB)

When is the End?

People that have eyes to see and ears to hear inherently know that this world is an illusion and that our current reality will end at some point in time.  There is much speculation and date setting as to when the end will come.  There is a growing sense the end is close as we watch world events unfold to fulfill Bible prophecy before our eyes.  However, nobody really knows the final date except the Creator Himself.  The Bible states that even God’s angels do not know the date of the end.  It is a closely guarded secret by the One who is above everything.  However, there are and will be many dates that come and go which are significant in the end time’s process.  March 22, 2013 may be one of those dates and I am sure that there will be other dates in the future as there is still much that is prophesied to yet occur.  As with most things in prophecy, we don’t see the fulfillment clearly until it is either happening or has already been fulfilled.  People speculate, argue, and debate the dates while looking through a glass darkly trying to peer into the future.

In the Bible we are told to watch and to prepare.  Part of watching involves understanding what the Bible says and then speculating on possible watch dates.  It helps us to keep things in perspective and gives a sense of urgency in the necessary preparation.  Physical preparations are important, but spiritual preparations are the most critical in order to be ready for the end date when it finally comes. 

We are all at different stages of readiness.  Some are awake while most are asleep.  Those that are awake are like Neo in the movie the Matrix, desperately trying to figure things out and escape the illusionary world we are captive to.  In order to escape, we need a survival guide to the universe.  The universe survival guide for both living in this world as well as escaping it are all contained in God’s words given to us in the Bible.  Read it carefully and meditate on it continually!  It contains the required instructions for life both in this world and the world to come.