The Truth About Being ONE

What is true Oneness?  Will a one- world: government, monetary system or religion be the answer for today’s world?
Can being One with the universe lead you to heaven? God? Nirvana? Perfect Harmony?
Can there be a oneness with nature? A oneness with creation? What is the Truth about being One?

There is a polarity regarding being One with the universe vs being one with the God of the bible but does that expanse in thought truly need to exist? Many of you are probably familiar with the new movement called Coexist. In fact, you may have seen the term on car bumper stickers complete with images from several different world religions.

The Coexist movement differs from Oneness in the sense that people are encouraged to preserve their own religions while getting along with others of different faiths and Oneness suggests that all roads lead to the ‘universal whole’.
Jesus is clear in His description of being ONE with God, the Father. But we believe that ultimately, Oneness and Coexist have the same goal of enveloping a broad path to a ‘higher entity’ while circumventing the true Creator of all creation. But shouldn’t a “Onenesss” with all people be our goal?  Shouldn’t we LOVE one another as the scripture says?  Why does it matter if we reach GOD, the Father in heaven, as opposed to becoming our own gods in this world?  Isn’t UNITY a good thing?  From a biblical perspective, the Father of all Creation, wants all people to be saved and come to a knowledge of the Truth.  What does that really mean?  Can’t we just tolerate all other people’s religions or lack of religion and just get along…. ‘All we need is love’ was a popular song by the Beatles. The hippies LOVE movement has been regenerated into the Coexist and Oneness movement it seems. How many of you remember the episode from the original Star Trek series in which space hippies got onto the Enterprise with hopes of finding a “Heaven” planet? Of course only the logical Spock could understand their desire adding credibility to the Oneness Movement at the time. It’s the same idea of universal wholeness through love of EVERYTING that is being promoted again today.

Spock asking: "Are you One?"

So, why does it matter?  What is this knowledge of the truth about being saved?  About loving one another?

Matthew 22:37-39 Living Bible (TLB)
Jesus replied, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. The second most important is similar: ‘Love your neighbor as much as you love yourself.’

That is the ultimate love standard.  This is a part of the knowledge of the Truth the Lord our God wants us to know.  HE also wants us to be ‘saved’ which means to have eternal life.  Jesus said that He came to give us ‘life and life more abundantly.’  (John 10:10). This ‘more abundant’ life comes from a knowledge of the truth that we are ONE with the Father, with Jesus Christ His Son, and with the Holy Spirit.  Jesus told us that He was IN the Father, and He told us how we can become One with them.

John 14:10-11 (NIV)
10 Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. 11 Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves.
There is ONLY way to the Father, in heaven:
John 14:6 (NKJV)
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

The Ultimate Oneness that we can be assured of is found in John 14:20 where Jesus tells us that we can KNOW that He is IN the Father, and that we are IN Him, and He is IN us!!

John 14:20 (AMP)
On that day [when that time comes] you will know for yourselves that I am in My Father, and you are in Me, and I am in you.

Have you ever seen a set of Russian ‘nesting dolls’ that is really a set of wooden dolls which fit inside one another and the final doll is the biggest one?  If you didn’t know how to twist open the largest doll, you might not discover the other dolls sitting inside each other! That is a good example of how we are ONE with the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit!

A matryoshka doll (Russian: матрёшка; IPA: [mɐˈtrʲɵʂkə] ) also known as a Russian nesting doll, or Russian doll, refers to a set of wooden dolls of decreasing size placed one inside another. (Wikipedia).

Imagine yourself as one of the dolls shown in the photo above. We are spiritually protected INSIDE the FATHER! This is the ULTIMATE PROTECTION:  Jesus is IN the Father, the Father is IN Jesus, we are IN Jesus, Jesus is IN us, the Holy Spirit is IN us, and we are therefore IN the Father (the biggest and largest of all)! Here is another way of looking at this spiritual truth:
1) FATHER GOD
2) Jesus in Father
3) Father in Jesus
4) Jesus in us
5) We are in Jesus
6) Holy Spirit in us
7) We are in the Father

The Holy Spirit is our Helper and Comforter, the Spirit of Truth who also dwells in us (John 14:17). Jesus is clear about how the Father and He will make us their dwelling place:
John 14:23 (AMP)
Jesus answered, “If anyone [really] loves Me, he will keep My word (teaching); and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our dwelling place with him.

Can this be true?  Is it possible in today’s world to be a dwelling place for Jesus?  How can we be assured of this? John chapter 15 talks about ‘abiding in Jesus’ because He is the vine and we are the branches.  How can we ‘abide in Christ’ on a daily basis?  One way is to read and believe in our hearts the truth about the scriptures, and to keep our mind focused on the Lord.
Jesus asks the Father to ‘keep us’…

John 17:11 (AMP)
I am no longer in the world; yet they are still in the world, and I am coming to You. Holy Father, keep them in Your name, the name which You have given Me, so that they may be one just as We are.
John 17:20-23 (AMP)
20 I do not pray for these alone [it is not for their sake only that I make this request], but also for [all] those who [will ever] believe and trust in Me through their message, 21 that they all may be one; just as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be one in Us, so that the world may believe [without any doubt] that You sent Me. 23 I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected and completed into one, so that the world may know[without any doubt] that You sent Me, and [that You] have loved them, just as You have loved Me.

This is the ultimate goal of ONENESS with the Father, with Jesus, and with the Holy Spirit of Truth… that we may be ‘perfected and completed into ONE’ in the Godhead.  This ONENESS with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, is our inheritance when we believe in our hearts and confess with our mouths that Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior. (Romans 10:9)  In Jesus’ perfect sacrifice on the cross, we are already washed clean by His shed blood and made whole by His stripes, scourging and beatings. Jesus says we are ‘already clean’ by the word which He has spoken to us. (John 15:3)
The ‘TRUE’ goal of this ONENESS is so that the world may BELIEVE without any doubt that Father God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, and that the Father’s Love is for all who will believe this. So if you ask us: “Are we One”? Our answer would have to be, yes we are One with God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit because all other concepts of One are just dust in the wind.
~ Joanne and Sarah

A Heart of Love for You…

On Valentine’s Day communication services - email, Instagram, Facebook, texts, and yes, even old fashioned cards are sent in the mail delivering a multitude of heart felt wishes to loved ones.  Often gifts of teddy bears, chocolates, and red roses accompany these notes so that our heart of love for others is received with great affection. 

What greater love can there be than from a Heavenly Father who chose you in your mother’s womb (Psalm 139) to receive His great heart of love for you? He gave you the gift of His only begotten son, Jesus Christ, so that you could be His child and receive His love for you continually, not just once a year!  The following is a Love Letter to YOU….. Receive the Father’s love today and each day, for He truly loves you with an everlasting love.

Father's Love Letter

An Intimate Message From God To You.

By Barry Adams

My Child,

You may not know me, 

but I know everything about you. 

Psalm 139:1

I know when you sit down and when you rise up. 

Psalm 139:2

I am familiar with all your ways. 

Psalm 139:3

Even the very hairs on your head are numbered. 

Matthew 10:29-31

For you were made in my image. 

Genesis 1:27

In me you live and move and have your being.

Acts 17:28

For you are my offspring. 

Acts 17:28

I knew you even before you were conceived. 

Jeremiah 1:4-5

I chose you when I planned creation. 

Ephesians 1:11-12

You were not a mistake, 

for all your days are written in my book. 

Psalm 139:15-16

I determined the exact time of your birth 

and where you would live. 

Acts 17:26

You are fearfully and wonderfully made. 

Psalm 139:14

I knit you together in your mother's womb. 

Psalm 139:13

And brought you forth on the day you were born. 

Psalm 71:6

I have been misrepresented 

by those who don't know me.

John 8:41-44

I am not distant and angry, 

but am the complete expression of love. 

1 John 4:16

And it is my desire to lavish my love on you. 

1 John 3:1

Simply because you are my child 

and I am your Father. 

1 John 3:1

I offer you more than your earthly father ever could. 

Matthew 7:11

For I am the perfect father. 

Matthew 5:48

Every good gift that you receive comes from my hand. 

James 1:17

For I am your provider and I meet all your needs. 

Matthew 6:31-33

My plan for your future has always been filled with hope. 

Jeremiah 29:11

Because I love you with an everlasting love. 

Jeremiah 31:3

My thoughts toward you are countless 

as the sand on the seashore.

Psalms 139:17-18

And I rejoice over you with singing. 

Zephaniah 3:17

I will never stop doing good to you. 

Jeremiah 32:40

For you are my treasured possession. 

Exodus 19:5

I desire to establish you

with all my heart and all my soul. 

Jeremiah 32:41

And I want to show you great and marvelous things. 

Jeremiah 33:3

If you seek me with all your heart, 

you will find me. 

Deuteronomy 4:29

Delight in me and I will give you 

the desires of your heart. 

Psalm 37:4

For it is I who gave you those desires. 

Philippians 2:13

I am able to do more for you 

than you could possibly imagine. 

Ephesians 3:20

For I am your greatest encourager. 

2 Thessalonians 2:16-17

I am also the Father who comforts you 

in all your troubles. 

2 Corinthians 1:3-4

When you are brokenhearted, 

I am close to you. 

Psalm 34:18

As a shepherd carries a lamb, 

I have carried you close to my heart. 

Isaiah 40:11

One day I will wipe away 

every tear from your eyes. 

Revelation 21:3-4

And I'll take away all the pain 

you have suffered on this earth.

Revelation 21:3-4

I am your Father, and I love you 

even as I love my son, Jesus.

John 17:23

For in Jesus, my love for you is revealed. 

John 17:26

He is the exact representation of my being. 

Hebrews 1:3

He came to demonstrate that I am for you, 

not against you. 

Romans 8:31

And to tell you that I am not counting your sins.

2 Corinthians 5:18-19

Jesus died so that you and I could be reconciled. 

2 Corinthians 5:18-19

His death was the ultimate expression 

of my love for you. 

1 John 4:10

I gave up everything I loved

that I might gain your love. 

Romans 8:31-32

If you receive the gift of my son Jesus, 

you receive me. 

1 John 2:23

And nothing will ever separate you 

from my love again.

Romans 8:38-39

Come home and I'll throw the biggest party 

heaven has ever seen.

Luke 15:7

I have always been Father, 

and will always be Father.

Ephesians 3:14-15

My question is…

Will you be my child? 

John 1:12-13

I am waiting for you. 

Luke 15:11-32

Love, Your Dad

Almighty God

~ May God bless you. Joanne and Sarah

Year of the Fire Monkey: What Does it Mean?

Chinese New Year : The year of the fire red Monkey

Billions will be celebrating the Chinese New Year today. It is the year of the Red Monkey. Many of us in the West may either ignore this observance (what does it have to do with me?) or may embrace the event in support of diversity. Unfortunately, both attitudes lack knowledge of how we as believers should perceive different cultures through a biblical lens. I was going to attempt to write an article to address this celebration but found that my friend, author and biblical scholar Helena Lehman of The Pillar of Enoch Ministry had already written an in-depth article of her own. After reading it, I knew she answered all of the questions I was going to address and additionally provided so much more information than I ever would have been able to give. She has graciously allowed her article to be linked here. Please be blessed and see the Hope we have in Jesus as you read the following:

~ Sarah

2016 Chinese Year of the Fire Monkey  

Mystery of Lawlessness

Have you ever read a suspenseful mystery novel or watched a cunning spy movie and sat on the edge of your seat wondering who the real villain was?  And to your surprise, events changed so quickly that you had to re-read the last few pages or back up the movie on Netflix to see that scene again?  There are many mysteries in the bible, and we can discuss them in future posts, however, the greatest mystery to yet be revealed concerns the villain of the End times… and he is known by many names.

He is a true enigma, whose meaning is hidden and difficult to explain.  Jeff Kinley, in his book, WAKE THE BRIDE, Facing These Last Days with Your Eyes Wide Open, calls him “History’s Mystery Man.”  In the bible, he is known as “the prince who is to come" (Daniel 9:26); “the man of lawlessness and the son of destruction or perdition.” (2 Thessalonians 2:3).   Yes, humanity has known many, many evil men but this mystery man will be like no others before him. He has also been called:  

“the little horn (Daniel 7:8) and the rider on a white horse” (Revelation 6:2).  The name we perhaps are most familiar with is found in

1 John 2:18

¹⁸ Children, it is the last hour [the end of this age]; and just as you heard that the antichrist is coming [the one who will oppose Christ and attempt to replace Him], even now many antichrists (false teachers) have appeared, which confirms our belief that it is the last hour. (AMP version)

If this is the ‘last hour’ and the antichrist will be revealed, what does that mean for us?  Can we know from scripture the order of events in these last days?  

There is a “mystery of iniquity” that is spoken of in the bible. Iniquity means lawlessness.

2 Thessalonians 2:7 (AMPC)

⁷ For the mystery of lawlessness (that hidden principle of rebellion against constituted authority) is already at work in the world, [but it is] restrained only until He who restrains is taken out of the way.

Note*         2 Thessalonians 2:7 Many believe this One Who restrains the antichrist to be the Holy Spirit, Who lives in all believers and will be removed with them at Christ’s coming for them in the ‘catching away’ of the Church or Bride; the rapture  (harpazo).

Verse 8 follows with a small word, “then”….

So, AFTER the Restrainer is taken out of the way (the Holy Spirit and all those who have confessed Jesus Christ as their Lord, and have been sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise) and removed from the earth in the ‘great departure’, THEN

⁸ … the lawless one [the Antichrist] will be revealed and the Lord Jesus will slay him with the breath of His mouth and bring him to an end by the appearance of His coming. ⁹ The coming of the [Antichrist, the lawless] one is through the activity of Satan, [attended] with great power [all kinds of counterfeit miracles] and [deceptive] signs and false wonders [all of them lies],¹⁰ and by unlimited seduction to evil and with all the deception of wickedness for those who are perishing, because they did not welcome the love of the truth [of the gospel] so as to be saved [they were spiritually blind, and rejected the truth that would have saved them]. 2 Thessalonians 2:8-10 (AMP)

The deception is on-going and many will continue to be deceived.  The only antidote for this deception is to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and call upon Him. (Romans 10:13) Please do not take this lightly. God’s word clearly tells us that this deception (which has already begun) is powerful. Thankfully, Jesus is so good and so gracious to those who believe in Him. When we choose to literally call on Him, He will show us things great and mighty which otherwise we simply could not figure out on our own. (Jeremiah 33:3)

The love of the TRUTH about Jesus Christ, the Son of God, Who gave Himself for us so that we could have everlasting life (John 3:16), is the ONLY HOPE for people who are alive today.