Why would believers have to return?

October 2012 Recently I just finished reading ‘The Harbinger’ by Jonathan Cahn. I confess I must have come from the region of Sardonica, because, when something is on the New York Times Bestseller list, I cast an eye of skepticism about motives of the author. At the end of the 1st chapter I even wrote, ‘ Oh Brother not another Tim LaHaye shtick, on 4/15/12. When I finished the book I went back to re-read from the beginning again, and am happy to note, I made this note in reference to my Tim LaHaye comment, ‘no it’s not, I am glad to report.’ I’m not going to review the book, except to say that is worth the read. I do intend on contacting the author to interview him, (he’s a Jersey guy who happens to lead a worship center made up of Jew and Gentile (GASP!!) called Jerusalem Center/Beth Israel). The book’s center point is the prophecy of Isaiah 9 and how it correlates to ‘ancient Israel’ and modern America as it relates to calamities and crushing incidents in the life of a nation and how the people respond, verses how The Father would like them to respond. I do suggest you check into it by going to www.wnd.com to find out more. I understand they have made a movie to get the message out. What intrigues me in this day/hour/season of awakenings, is one morning I received a call from what I perceived an elderly, (full disclosure, I’m 57), so I mean older than me, who wanted me to recite 2nd Chronicles 7:14 over the air. I refer to that verse as the Quaalude verse of the bible to make folks dumb and stupid by being under the influence of a narcotic or controlled substance. Quaaludes had the number 714 written on them and ‘back in the day’ folks would ask for ‘714’s’ if they wanted to do ‘downers’. I was never a ‘downer’ kind of guy, I mean who had time or the want to get on a downer! That’s for another article and another time forgotten place, when your eyes looked from your mothers face…( sorry, slipped in a Grateful Dead lyric, do you know which one? E-mail me and I’ll know you’re in-tune): back to 2nd Chronicles 7:14. You know that verse, you’ve heard it preached before, you’ve seen it posted on Yards signs, Billboards, bumper stickers and an article I wrote in this newsletter in August of 2011, titles, ‘Is Prayer America’s Only Hope?’ I’m not even going to quote the verse, probably because you already know it by heart, yet, have not come to a fuller understanding of what it means? Thus, the topic of this month’s article! A great question was asked by protagonist of the book, Nouriel, (or is he the antagonist? I never understood the difference; the results were always the same!) Anyway on page 222, Nouriel asks a questions in response to 2nd Chronicles 7:14, ‘But why would believers have to return? I ask you, fellow Believer, why do you have to return? Know that I am not here to shame nor embarrass or hurt you in asking that question. But I would submit, you really don’t have a satisfactory answer to that question for yourself, let alone for your family or your friends. Why do you have to return IF you are a Believer? No one is suggesting that you don’t love ‘Jesus’ The Messiah, nor are we suggesting that you are NOT saved! I am suggesting that possibly, you could be a ‘seed’ on the side of the road, or perhaps the ‘seed’ sown in the rocky places or among the thorns, that’s not may call, I am not ‘The Lord of The Harvest’. Yet The Lord of The Harvest said that this was THE MOST IMPORTANT parables! And IF you don’t get THIS ONE, HOW WILL YOU GET ANYTHING ELSE I’M TRYING TO SAY!!!!!!! (Mark 4:13 Godley Amplified version). Which tells me: throw away/renounce your seminary/cemetery degrees and RETURN! Otherwise, the sheep of today would have a clue! Instead, TODAY, ‘we are ALL like sheep that have gone astray’ (Isaiah 53:6) Now, before you begin to think that Isaiah was talking to THEM and not to us, then why would Tom Dashle (of all people) on 9/12/2001 and John Edwards (of all people) 9/11/2004 utter Isaiah 9:10 in important speeches? (No! I AM not anti democrat and Pro Republican! Rick Godley is an American political Atheist! Coming out of her, Oh MY people). No I do NOT wish ill will on anyone, yet, look at these 2 men and their lives since their utterances. Just sayin, yes I Do realize the importance of my words and am very careful to what I say to whom I say it! (James 3:1) Here’s the point of my article… do TODAY’S ‘Christians’ realize that THEY are the ones to RETURN? Not the abortion doctors, the homosexuals/lesbians, Hollywood movie producers, Democrats! The problem is, if you are a Christian, do you even know where to RETURN and WHY? (No!!!!! I am not talking about going back to church! This time, it’s WAAAAY bigger than that! This time its HIM =The Creator RESTORING (Acts 1:6) We are not leaving this place and going to Heaven, we are going BACK for our Future!!!! Jeremiah says that The Creator/Our Father pleads with us to Stop, Look an Listen, when he writes, "Stand by the roads, and look, and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is; and walk in it, and find rest for your souls. But they said, (Just like WE are still saying), We will not walk in it!’ (Jer.6:16) How many times have you been told, that Old Way, that Old Testament, that Old stuff is done away, we don’t walk in it anymore? Brother/Sister Christian, the reason why you’ve cried so many tears in what you thought was repentance because it’s what you were taught. (And we were taught wrong, (Jeremiah 16:9). YOU DO TOO have to Walk in it!!!! ‘whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked. Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard. (1 John 2 6-7) Wonder why your prayers aren’t being answered? You’re turned the wrong way! Turn and Return! ‘If one turns away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer is an abomination. (Pro 28:9). It’s the exact same message that ‘Jesus’ preached, and ‘John’ preached. What’s holding you back, some bad teaching? Need help? That’s what we’re here for, e mail us Rick@godleyworks.com Time is short and getting shorter.