The Hour is Late - Which Path Are You On?
“Yahveh God loves you and is trying to get your undivided attention, wholehearted devotion, and love filled obedience, lest you be ensnared in the world and suffer its coming judgments””
“The Enemy comes to deceive the inhabitants of the earth” (Revelation 13:14). Yahveh God loves you and is trying to get your undivided attention, wholehearted devotion, and love filled obedience, lest you be ensnared in the world and suffer its coming judgments. Hear His heartbeat, “Open your ears, wake up, O sleeper, “Do not be deceived Yahveh is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh shall from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit shall from the Spirit reap eternal life” (Galatians 6:7-8). “Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God. But encourage one another … as long as it is still called “Today,” so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin … and not enter His rest, (His eternal kingdom) because of disobedience” (see Hebrews 3:12-13, 4:5-6). “For I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that our fathers … all ate the same spiritual food; and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they were drinking from a spiritual rock … and the rock was Messiah. Nevertheless, with most of them Yahveh God was not well-pleased; for they were laid low in the wilderness. Now these things happened as examples for us, so that we would not crave evil things as they also craved. Do not be idolaters, as some of them were … “Nor let us act immorally … Nor let us try Yahveh [the Lord] … Nor grumble, as some of them did, and were destroyed by the destroyer. Now these things happened to them as an example, and they were written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come. Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall” (1Corinthians 10:1-12).
“The Holy Spirit longs to open the eyes of your understanding that you might behold the Almighty and His holiness, understanding that judgment is due and eminent to all who walk according to the flesh and live to satisfy their selfish desires””
“We urge you not to receive the grace of God in vain- … Behold … Now is the day of salvation.” Today if you hear His voice , do not harden your hearts, as when they provoked Me (in the wilderness journey)” (2Corinthians 6:1-2, Hebrews 3:15). May the power of His Ruach HaKodesh (the Holy Spirit) invigorate you today, even now, and raise you up high above the heads of your enemies (your flesh, the world system, and the Evil One). May He pour out His Spirit afresh upon you, fortifying you to run and complete this race and to “fight the good fight of faith” (1 Timothy 6:12). This cannot be accomplished by your “might or power but only by His Spirit” (Zechariah 4:6). “Humble yourselves in the presence of Yahveh” that He might lift you up and “exalt you” in due time (James 4:10). Our righteous King longs to bring you to a place of “godly sorrow that leads to true repentance” (2 Corinthians 7:10). He is faithful and just to cleanse and consecrate your repentant hearts with the precious blood of Yahshua (Jesus) our Lamb. The Holy Spirit longs to open the eyes of your understanding that you might behold the Almighty and His holiness, understanding that judgment is due and eminent to all who walk according to the flesh and live to satisfy their selfish desires. “For it is time for judgment to begin with the household of Yahveh [God]; and if it begins with us first, what will be the outcome of those who do not obey the gospel of Yahveh? And if it is with difficulty that the righteous is saved, what will become of the godless man and the sinner? Therefore, let those who suffer according to the will of God entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right” (1 Peter 4:17-19).
We must “Find out what pleases the Lord Yahveh and do it” (Ephesians 5:10). “Therefore be imitators of Yahveh, as beloved children… For this you know with certainty, no immoral, or impure person, or covetous man, who is an idolater, has an inheritance in the kingdom of Messiah and God.” Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of Yahveh comes upon the sons of disobedience … walk as children of Light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness and righteousness and truth)” (Ephesians 5:1,5,8).
The love and indulgence of self is an enemy to the love and service of Yahveh.
“Be hot not cold or lukewarm! May the fire of His presence bring conviction, compelling you to cast aside every sin that so easily besets you””
Yahshua (Jesus) said in Matthew Chapter 22, “The greatest commandment is, You shall love Yahveh your God with all of your heart, and with all of your soul and with all of your mind.” And the second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself’ (Matthew 22:37-39). Falling short of these commandments is a result of half – heartedness, double-mindedness, and spiritual compromise that leads to hypocritical lip service, which is a deceptive trap and looming sin for many professing believers. Yahshua (Jesus) said, “This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far away from Me” (Matthew 15:8). Be on guard against such sin leading to “lukewarmness.” “He is not a man that He should lie”, our Savior warned in Revelation 3:16 that He would “spew out” any lukewarm professing believer (Numbers 23:19). Be hot not cold or lukewarm! May the fire of His presence bring conviction, compelling you to “cast aside every sin that so easily besets you” (Hebrews 12:1). In order to be obedient and pleasing to our righteous King, we must stop wavering between the flesh and the spirit, “without holiness no one will ever see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14). He is preparing a remnant, His beloved bride, to be pure, spotless, and blameless – a sheer and holy delight to our soon coming Bridegroom (see John 3:29, Revelation 19:7).
Are you eagerly waiting for Yahshua’s (Jesus’s) return with your ears pinned to your Bridegroom’s voice? Is your heart filled with hope and joyful anticipation for His return? Are you getting to know your precious Messiah more intimately in the spirit, adoring Him with an ever- increasing passion, because He alone is your heart’s desire? Are the desires of His heart your interests? Apostle Paul said, “Many seek after their own interests, not those of Messiah Yahshua [Christ Jesus]” (Philippians 2:21). Are you struggling with a conflict of interest? What is competing for your attention and affection? Are there carnal cravings for other things that make you like an “adulterer” because He is not enough for you? Are the cares and anxieties of daily life hindering your faith, love, and service to Yahveh? Are you grieving the heart of the Father who gave His Son as the Passover Lamb and grieving the heart of the Son who gave His life to purchase you to be a holy bride waiting and preparing for your eternal life together in His righteous kingdom?
“Make every effort (strive with all your being) to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to””
“Yahveh God, who is the same yesterday, today, and forever” has drawn a line that has not changed. In sovereignty He described two pathways – the “broad path” that leads to eternal death and the “narrow path” that leads to eternal life (Matthew 7:13-14). He said, “Make every effort (strive with all your being) to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to” (Luke 13:24-28). True disciples must “count the cost” to forsake everything to follow Messiah on that narrow path that leads into His eternal righteous kingdom (Luke 14:28). He continually cautions His disciples, “Be on guard against the deceptive pull of this world, including its man – tainted religious systems that compromise and often nullify the very words of Yahveh His Father (see Matthew 15:5, 24:4).
Yahshua said, “If you love Me you will keep My commandments” (John 14:15). He made it clear that only a remnant a “few would enter that narrow gate that narrow path that leads to eternal life” (Matthew 7:13-14) Messiah elaborates, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Master, Master,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. “Many would say to Me on that day, ‘Master, Master, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ “And then I (Yahshua/Jesus) will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness (the breaking of Yahveh’s commandments)’ (Matthew 7:21-23). Our Savior described the tragic reality of so many religious people who thought their destiny was sealed in the eternal promised land, but instead they were assigned a place with the hypocrites where there would be everlasting “weeping and gnashing of teeth.” “Many are called but few are chosen.” (Luke 13:28, Matthew 22:14)
Yahshua (Jesus) is amplifying two pathways and two groups of people: the “broad path” verses the “narrow path” and the “many people” verses the “few people” The question posed at this late hour to each of us is simple, but deserves a very prayerful evaluation and honest answer. Are you willing to “count the cost” and be part of the ranks of the “few”, the redeemed righteous remnant, who ascend on the “narrow path”? The prophet Isaiah spoke of this narrow path: “And a highway will be there; and it will be called the Highway of Holiness. The unclean (the disobedient and compromised) will not travel on it, but it will be for those who walk in that way, (the full counsel of Yahveh’s Word) (Isaiah 35:8).
“Precious ones take your eyes off this dying world! Our Savior is crying out, “Look up, lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near””
Yahshua, our precious Passover Lamb, has poured out His atoning blood, to redeem you to be His very own, now and forever! He says, “Behold, I am coming soon and My rewards are with Me. I will give to everyone according to what they have done” whether by the Spirit, which brings eternal dividends or by man’s temporal vain efforts. “There is a way which seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death” (Revelation 22:12, Proverbs 14:12). Precious ones take your eyes off this dying world! Our Savior is crying out, “Look up, lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near” (Luke 21:28). You can depend on Yahveh your heavenly Father, Who has every provision you need to overcome any obstacle and adversity of the flesh, the world, and Satan. His extended love, mercy, and grace will ensure that you endure victoriously to the end. “For the eyes of Yahveh move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His” (2 Chronicles 16:9). Every provision you need to be “more than a conqueror,” faithful, ready, set apart, and wise is available upon wholehearted prayerful request (Romans 8:37). “Inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment, so Messiah also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many shall appear a second time for salvation without reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him” (Hebrews 9:27-28). Don’t delay, make ready, be waiting, rejoice He is coming soon!
Prayer
Heavenly Father, I humble myself in prayer before You. I thank You for bringing me to a place of godly sorrow, leading me to true repentance. I confess that I have been compromised and deceived in many areas of my spiritual walk. Forgive me for the times I live for myself, catering to my flesh and its disobedient desires. Please cleanse me with the blood of Yahshua (Jesus) the Passover Lamb. I beseech You, to rid me of any love and friendship I have with this dying world. I pray for a fresh infilling of Your Spirit to strengthen me to make every effort to ascend on that narrow path, “the Highway of Holiness.” I want to be part of the FEW, the redeemed righteous remnant, who seek and do Your will.
Yahshua (Jesus), forgive me for dissipating my energies on selfish and futile indulgences. Help me not to be anxious in the midst of these perilous times and to have a growing faith that will help me to endure to the end; a faith that will be pleasing in Your sight. Please, strengthen me with Your spirit to be pure, spotless, and blameless, waiting eagerly for Your return. May I walk in obedience to the Holy Scriptures and bring You praise, honor, and glory, in my words and in my deeds. Apart from You I can do nothing. I thank you with all my heart, for helping me to overcome by the blood of the Lamb, by the power and authority of Your name and Your word, and by the power of Your Spirit of truth. May Your will not mine be done, in Yahshua’s (Jesus’s) name I pray.
