Bible In One Year-Day 140 (Tuesday, May 20, 2014)

Commentary: Jer7-9. The atrocities prevalent in Judah are summarized in Jer7:4-6, yet they go to the house of God to worship in the name of the Lord. God was not comfortable with that because there is no room for any unrighteousness in Him;

Jeremiah 7:8-11 “Behold, ye trust in lying words, that cannot profit.Will ye steal, murder, and commit adultery, and swear falsely, and burn incense unto Baal, and walk after other gods whom ye know not;And come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, We are delivered to do all these abominations?Is this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, even I have seen it, saith the LORD.”

These abominations were what prompted Jeremiah to weep, cry and intercede for them. Judah did not change; rather, they persisted in idolatry. God told Jeremiah not to pray or weep for them any longer and if he insisted on praying for them, He would not listen to him;

Jeremiah 7:16 “Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make intercession to me: for I will not hear thee.”

Jeremiah’s intercession was because he did not know deeper than what he perceived. He only heard the word of God, and knowing the mightiness of God, he was not comfortable with what Judah was doing. He wept for the fear of God’s wrath. God revealed some of the annoying things done in the secret to Jeremiah;

Jeremiah 7:17-18 “Seest thou not what they do in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem?The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead their dough, to make cakes to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto other gods, that they may provoke me to anger.”

The Judeans were so involved in this pagan worship that all members of each family had one thing or the other they had to do; children carry wood, fathers set the fire and mothers knead dough (this is satanic assignment).

All over the eastern region, Queen of Heaven was being (and is still being) worshipped under different names. Queen of Heaven was an idol set up by King Manasseh inside the house of God under the name ‘Asherah’;

KJV-R (Webster) 2 Kings 21:6-7 “And he made his son pass through the fire, and observed times, and used enchantments, and dealt with familiar spirits and wizards: he wrought much wickedness in the sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger. And he set a graven image of the grove that he had made in the house, of which the LORD said to David, and to Solomon his son, In this house, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all tribes of Israel, will I put my name for ever:”

In Babylon and Assyria, this idol was called ‘Ishtar’ from where ‘Easter’ was derived. The celebration of Easter had been even before the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ. The thing is that His death and resurrection happened at that time of annual pagan celebration. The Canaanites called her ‘Astarte’.

These same atrocities are prevalent in the churches today. Recently, a president called some Pastors and preached about gay marriage and he had their support. What was really a concern to me was that in one of the commentaries, a man said “does it really matter what they (i.e. the pastors) have to say?” It is quite unfortunate that what pastors say now in public has no credit any longer just as God declared to the Judeans then; Jeremiah 7:28 But thou shalt say unto them, This is a nation that obeyeth not the voice of the LORD their God, nor receiveth correction: truth is perished, and is cut off from their mouth.

Gay marriage victims have their right, no doubt about that; the ‘right to be right in their own eyes and the right to be WRONG before God’. They cannot be condemned or judged by any man. However, obviously, they need help; the need for DELIVERANCE as the spirit within them is what is behind that yoke in their lives. For as long as that spirit is there, they cannot see anything wrong with that in the light of God’s word. It’s like a dead rat in the ceiling of a house; the stink could only be subdued for a while using strong air-freshener. Not until the dead rat is removed, the smell will remain. It is an evil spirit that has intruded their lives at a point in time; at conception, birth or anytime in life. They are subject to that spirit because they are bound to it. the spirit is one of the elements of the world (i.e. evil spiritual principles of this world);

Galatians 4:3 “Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world:”

Galatians 4:9 “But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage?”

Not until they receive total deliverance from this dilemma that has overcome them, they remain servants to that ungodly spirit, trying to spray the stink with air-freshener (misinterpretation or misappropriation of the scripture).

2 Peter 2:19 “While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage.”

This evil spirit is the “RAT IN THE FLESH” that must be cast out in the name of Jesus Christ. The man of Gadarenes had a group of rats in his flesh but his people never realized it until Jesus took over and dealt with them appropriately. To His glory, the man’s people found him “in his right mind” after the deliverance.

Luke 8:30 “And Jesus asked him, saying, What is thy name? And he said, Legion: because many demons (rats) were entered into him.”

Mark 5:15 “And they come to Jesus, and see him that was possessed with the demon, and had the legion, sitting, and clothed, and in his right mind: and they were afraid.”

Any spirit that rules contrary to God’s word is a rat in the flesh and deliverance is the solution. When the rats are cast out, then the victim will come into the full knowledge of God and thirst for righteousness.

The pulpit is carrying a bad stigma nowadays and the so called house of God is turned to a place of social gathering where religious Hollywood actors gather in the name of ‘looking good’ and bottles of different wines are being beheaded with loud applause from collared ministers and priests. Competing Cathedrals are being built for these celebrations instead of building God’s kingdom (soul winning). Satan has not changed his tricks; presenting sin in attractive colors and catchy patterns or designs. The Queen of Heaven is being celebrated by worshipers who do not even know her; Jeremiah 7:9 “… and burn incense unto Baal, and walk after other gods whom ye know not;”

The church is the Lord’s and the government therein ‘should’ be on His shoulder as the scripture says (Isaiah9:6-7), but unfortunately, the government therein is the government of the Queen of Heaven. Let us ask for the old path where we could find rest. Let us listen to the trumpet’s sound, wherewith we could escape the calamity to come. May His love redeem the church in the name of Jesus Christ. Reading for today is Jer10-12. Keep the fire burning and alive

To know more about the Queen of Heaven, I humbly recommend the book “SMITE THE ENEMY AND HE SHALL FLEE” by Dr. D. K. Olukoya