Soul Mates, a Novel

 

Soul Mates, a novel

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1iDqV9uwddd4DXdVm3SgVKDmU8Mifk_cq/view?usp=drive_web

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ICl90IYiIIpP4IWUAuutUBL4oFH_snel/view?usp=drive_link

The Thief on the Cross

 THE GOSPEL SIMPLIFIED

D.P. Weary

July 2025

There are those that make endless speculations about how to get “saved,” who gets saved, what happens after you die if you get saved, what keeps you from getting saved, and the list goes on. What is amazing is that getting “saved” is so simple and what happens if you die after getting “saved” is so plainly known. All one must do is look at the criminal that died with Jesus.

[Luk 23:32 ESV] Two others, who were criminals, were led away to be put to death with him.

A criminal, kakoûrgos, kak-oor'-gos; from G2556 and the base of G2041; a wrong-doer, i.e. criminal:—evil-doer, malefactor. In other words, all mankind, sinners.

[Rom 3:10 NKJV] As it is written: "There is none righteous, no, not one;

[Luk 23:33 ESV] And when they came to the place that is called The Skull, there they crucified him, and the criminals, one on his right and one on his left.

[Luk 23:34 ESV] And Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." And they cast lots to divide his garments.

            Even at this point, what is on Jesus’ heart is forgiveness.

[Luk 23:35 ESV] And the people stood by, watching, but the rulers scoffed at him, saying, "He saved others; let him save himself, if he is the Christ of God, his Chosen One!"

[Luk 23:36 ESV] The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and offering him sour wine

[Luk 23:37 ESV] and saying, "If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!"

[Luk 23:38 ESV] There was also an inscription over him, "This is the King of the Jews."

[Luk 23:39 ESV] One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him, saying, "Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!"

This criminal represents all those that mock and scoff at and reject Jesus and the Gospel.

[Luk 23:40 ESV] But the other rebuked him, saying, "Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation?

The other criminal however confessed that he was under a justified sentence of condemnation and that he had a belief in and reverent “fear” of God.

[Luk 23:41 ESV] And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong."

At this point the criminal (sinner) publicly confessed his sin and that the just reward was death and that Jesus was sinless and was unjustly being put to death.

[Luk 23:42 ESV] And he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."

Here the criminal (sinner) acknowledged that Jesus would overcome His apparent death on the cross, was a king of a kingdom. that kingdom was His kingdom, and He would take His place as king in His kingdom., Then the criminal asked for forgiveness and to be remembered by this King Jesus when He returned to His kingdom.

[Luk 23:43 ESV] And he said to him, "Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise."

Jesus simply responds that this criminal (sinner) would be with him that very day in a place called paradise.

Paradise: "Paradise (paradeisos), a Persian word meaning 'garden, park,' was used in the Septuagint for the Garden of Eden (Genesis 2:8). It then became a type of the future bliss for God's people in Isaiah 51:3…In the present passage it represents the state of bliss which Jesus promised to the criminal directly after death." (Pate)

How does anyone “get saved” from death and have an eternal, blissful life with Jesus after death? Ask the criminal that was crucified with Jesus.

First “fear God.” Know and believe that there is a righteous God that does judge sin and imposes a sentence of death on all (which is all mankind) convicted of sin.

Second, publicly confess that you are a sinful being and deserve the sentence of death. Believe that Jesus was sinless and that He would exist beyond his death on the cross (be resurrected). And believe that He is who and what He said He was; the King of the eternal Kingdom of God, the Son of God, God incarnate.

Then simply ask for forgiveness and to be “remembered” by Jesus.

Then Jesus says to you, “Today you will be with me in spirit and the monemt you die you will be with me face to face in an eternal state of bliss - Paradise.”   

[1Co 13:12 NKJV] For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.

Who does not “get saved?” Those who mock, scoff at, and reject Jesus’ love and His free gift of forgiveness. Don’t do that. Eternity is at stake.

            [Act 4:12 NKJV] "Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."

Be on the alert for great deceptions

 

Be on the alert for great deceptions

For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. [Mat 24:24 ESV]

For many deceivers have gone out into the world who do not confess Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist. [2Jo 1:7 NKJV]

9 The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, 10 and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. 11 Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, 12 in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. 13 But we ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth. 14 To this he called you through our gospel, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. 15 So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by our spoken word or by our letter. 16 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, 17 comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word. [2Th 2:9-17 ESV]

The Mystery of Elam and the War in Iran

 

The Mystery of Elam and the War in Iran

D.P. Weary

March 1, 2026

Jerimiah wrote the prophecies concerning Ammon, Edom, Damascus, Kedar and Hazor, and Elam about 2600 years ago. History tells us that, at least in part, these prophecies have been fulfilled. For instance the prophet Ezekiel describes the status of Elam in the 12th year of the Hebrew Babylonian Captivity in 587 BC:

There is Elam and all her multitude, All around her grave, All of them slain, fallen by the sword, Who have gone down uncircumcised to the lower parts of the earth, Who caused their terror in the land of the living; Now they bear their shame with those who go down to the Pit. (Ezekiel 32:24)

However, for Elam the prophecies contain promises of restoration in the last days.

[Jer 49:39 AMP] 'But it will be in the last days (the end of days) That I will reverse the captivity and restore the fortunes of Elam,'" Says the LORD.

Since the early fulfillment of many of these prophecies was not complete what we see is both an early partial fulfillment and a future fulfillment to complete the prophecy. This early partial fulfillment, then a distant or future fulfillment of prophecy is common in Biblical prophecy.

What is being widely debated in prophecy circles today [March 1, 2026] is if the current war between the USA/Israel and Iran deals with the of the prophecy of Elam in Jerimiah 49:34-39.

This is what Elam in Jerimiah’s day would have looked like on a map. The burning question is: does the Elam of the prophecy represent Iran [Persia] today?

Elam 612 - 539 B.C.

If it does, then this raises the question of how this prophecy about Persia [Iran] in the last days fits with the prophecy concerning Persia [Iran] in Ezekiel 38.

[Eze 38:5 AMP] Persia (Iran), Cush (Ethiopia), and Put (Libya, N. Africa) with them, all of them with shield and helmet;

[Eze 38:8 AMP] "After many days you will be summoned [for service]; in the latter years you shall come into the land that is restored from [the ravages of] the sword, where people have been gathered out of many nations to the mountains of Israel, which had been a continual wasteland; but its people were brought out of the nations, and they are living securely, all of them.

[Eze 38:9 AMP] "You will go up [against them], you will come like a storm; you shall be like a cloud covering the land, you and all your troops, and many peoples with you."

 

Let’s look at the Jeremiah prophecy as if it might be a prophecy about Iran today.

 

[Jer 49:34 AMP] The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning Elam, in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying:

            This was written about 600 B.C.

[Jer 49:35 AMP] "Thus says the LORD of hosts, 'Behold (listen carefully), I am going to break the bow of Elam, The finest [weapon] of their strength.

Bows are instrument to launch arrows. Today the ‘arrows’ would be missiles. The only real military strength Iran has these days is their missiles and the systems that launch them. As I write this, Iran’s launch systems and missiles are being destroyed.

[Jer 49:36 AMP] 'And I will bring upon Elam the four winds From the four corners of heaven; And I will scatter them toward all those winds, And there will be no nation To which the outcasts of Elam will not go.

The only time the people of Iran were scattered to all part of the world was in February of 1979 when the Islamic religious fanatics disposed the Shaw of Iran and took over control of Iran.

[Jer 49:37 AMP] 'So I will cause Elam to be shattered (dismayed) before their enemies And before those who seek their lives; And I will bring disaster on them, Even My fierce anger,' says the LORD. 'And I will send the sword after them Until I have consumed them.

It appears today that Iran is being shattered by the Lord using Iran’s enemies’ ‘sword,’ the USA’s and Israel’s military might.

[Jer 49:38 AMP] 'Then I will set My throne [of judgment] in Elam And I will destroy from there the king and princes,' Says the LORD.

The LORD’s throne here appears to be His authority and His judgment. Certainly, the ‘king’ and his subordinate leaders [princes] have been destroyed [killed].

[Jer 49:39 AMP] 'But it will be in the last days (the end of days) That I will reverse the captivity and restore the fortunes of Elam,'" Says the LORD.

But, at the end of the last days, when the Lord returns to rule and reign, the LORD is going to restore Iran. This promise of restoration at the end of days is also hinted at in the book of Isaiah.

[Isa 19:23 AMP] In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrians will come into Egypt and the Egyptians into Assyria; and the Egyptians will worship and serve [the LORD] with the Assyrians.

[Isa 19:24 AMP] In that day Israel will be the third party with Egypt and with Assyria [in a Messianic league], a blessing in the midst of the earth,

 

The dilemma this causes is if Iran is destroyed now, how is it that it is a part of the forces in Ezekiel 38 that attack Israel and almost destroys her except that the LORD intervenes and saves Israel?

Perhaps, after the current attacks on Iran, there comes a season of leadership which will be uncertain and weak. This could lead to Russia, Turkey, and perhaps others to draw the remnant of Iran’s military and radical Islamic leadership forces into the attack on Israel just when Israel is celebrating what they believe to be a time of peace and safely.

[1Th 5:3 AMP] While they are saying, "Peace and safety [all is well and secure!]" then [in a moment unforeseen] destruction will come upon them suddenly like labor pains on a woman with child, and they will absolutely not escape [for there will be no way to escape the judgment of the Lord].

Perhaps the present attack on Iran is not completely successful. Perhaps Russia and or Turkey get involved, and Israel and even the USA suffer great losses. Perhaps the sleeper cells in the USA, Israel, and other parts of the world are activated, causing chaos, that encourages the Ezekiel attack.

Perhaps there may be a season of either instability or stability in Iran and the Middle East that will be a time of a great turning to Jesus as the Messiah. Even today there are reports of great numbers of people in Iran turning to the Lord. All of this could lead to a great turning of people across the globe to Jesus: a final gleaning of the fields before the Lord’s return.

 

What we do know is that the next few days - maybe weeks, or even months - will tell.

God’s Word is sure! The Word tells us what is going to happen. But often it does not tell us exactly how. This is the mystery. The days ahead are going to be full of danger and intrigue. These are days when we are watching prophecy being fulfilled - the ‘how’ is being revealed.

For believers in Jesus, these are the days that precede the Lord’s coming for His bride, His true church. These are the days when believers should not be fearful, but be praying and found working diligently at the Lord’s work.

For unbelievers these are the days to get right with God, to accept the gift of Salvation offered in finding Jesus as the Messiah. Time is running out. The day of the ‘fullness of the gentiles’ is quickly approaching. The trumpet of God is about to sound. Do not be left behind!

[Rom 11:25 ESV] Lest you be wise in your own sight, I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.

[1Th 4:15 ESV] For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.

[1Th 4:16 ESV] For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.

[1Th 4:17 ESV] Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.

The Mystery of Mankind

 

The Mystery of Mankind

D.P. Weary

February 2026

 

[Gen 1:26 NKJV] Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth."

 

The image and likeness of God

Man, or mankind was made in the image of God, according to their likeness. So, to understand the nature of man or mankind we need to understand what this image and likeness is.

God is three persons or beings in One.

The word God here is 'ĕlōhîm, the plural of 'ĕlôha, god. That means we need to understand that God is more than one being or person.

[Gen 1:26 NKJV] Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth."

[Gen 3:22 AMP] And the LORD God said, "Behold, the man has become like one of Us (Father, Son, Holy Spirit), knowing [how to distinguish between] good and evil; and now, he might stretch out his hand, and take from the tree of life as well, and eat [its fruit], and live [in this fallen, sinful condition] forever"--

[Mat 28:19 ESV] Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

 

God is the Holy Spirit

[Jhn 4:24 ESV] God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth."

[2Co 3:17 ESV] Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.

[2Co 3:18 ESV] And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.

 

God is the Father - Jehovah

In the Old Testament God is called Jehovah or Yahweh [יְהֹוָה Yᵉhôvâh, yeh-ho-vaw'; from H1961; (the) self-Existent or Eternal; Jeho-vah, Jewish national name of God:—Jehovah, the Lord. Compare H3050, H3069.]

[Exo 6:3 KJV] And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my name JEHOVAH was I not known to them.

[Psa 83:18 KJV] That men may know that thou, whose name alone is JEHOVAH, art the most high over all the earth.

 

God is the Son of God – The Angel of the LORD - Yeshua [Jesus]

But this Jehovah has a Son from both the OT and the NT. Now we can establish that God is a Spirit, a Father, and the Son of the Father.

[Psa 2:2 NKJV] The kings of the earth set themselves, And the rulers take counsel together, Against the LORD and against His Anointed, saying,

LORD = Jehovah

[Psa 2:4 NKJV] He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; The Lord shall hold them in derision.

[Psa 2:5 NKJV] Then He shall speak to them in His wrath, And distress them in His deep displeasure:

[Psa 2:6 NKJV] "Yet I have set My King On My holy hill of Zion."

[Psa 2:7 NKJV] "I will declare the decree: The LORD has said to Me, 'You are My Son, Today I have begotten You.

 

[Act 13:33 NKJV] "God has fulfilled this for us their children, in that He has raised up Jesus. As it is also written in the second Psalm: 'You are My Son, Today I have begotten You.'

[Gal 4:6 NKJV] And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, "Abba, Father!"

[Jhn 1:18 NKJV] No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.

[Jhn 3:18 NKJV] "He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

[Heb 4:14 NKJV] Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession.

[1Jo 4:9 NKJV] In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him.

 

In the OT, the Son was manifested as The Angel of the LORD.

[Gen 16:7 NKJV] Now the Angel of the LORD found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, by the spring on the way to Shur.

“Later in the text, it shows that Hagar understood that this physically-present Person was God Himself. When God Himself is physically present, we understand that it is a pre-incarnate appearance of Jesus Christ.” Guzik

“ We understand this because of God the Father it says: No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him (John 1:18), and no man has ever seen God in the Person of the Father (1 Timothy 6:16). Therefore, if God physically appeared and spoke as one Person to another in the Old Testament, we understand this as an appearance of the eternal Son, the Second Person of the Trinity, before His incarnation in Bethlehem.

The Angel of the LORD would later appear to Abraham (Genesis 22).

The Angel of the LORD would later appear to Moses (Exodus 3).

The Angel of the LORD would later appear to Balaam (Numbers 22).

The Angel of the LORD would later appear to Israel collectively (Judges 2).

The Angel of the LORD would later appear to Gideon (Judges 6).

The Angel of the LORD would later appear to Samson's parents (Judges 13).

The Angel of the LORD would later appear to David (2 Samuel 24).

The Angel of the LORD would later appear to Elijah (1 Kings 19).”

Guzik

In the NT the Son of Jehovah was manifested in the flesh of a human. His name was Yeshua [Jesus].

[Mat 3:16 NKJV] When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him.

[Mat 3:17 NKJV] And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."

In these verses we can see the triune nature of God. We see the Father, the Son, and the Spirit of God or Holy Spirit. Yet they are one God.

[Jhn 17:21 HNV] that they may all be one; even as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be one in us; that the world may believe that you sent me.

[Jhn 17:23 HNV] I in them, and you in me, that they may be perfected into one; that the world may know that you sent me, and loved them, even as you loved me.

Jesus prayed that their unity would follow the pattern of the unity of the Godhead, specifically in the relationship between God the Father and God the Son.

[Col 2:9 NKJV] For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily;

What was “in Him” that was the fullness of the Godhead? It was the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of the Father and the Son is the Holy Spirit. What makes the Father, the Son, and all true born-again believers “one” is that they all share the same Spirit, the Holy Spirit.

The Doctrine of the Trinity is one God in three co-equal, co-eternal persons (Father, Son/Jesus Christ, Holy Spirit). God is personal, loving, relational—seeking communion with humanity—and revealed supremely in Jesus as both fully divine and fully human.

 

 

The Image and Nature of God as reflected in man or mankind

The First Man – Adam and Eve

[Gen 1:27 ESV] So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.

[Gen 5:2 AMP] He created them male and female, and blessed them and named them Mankind at the time they were created.

            Mankind was created in genders, male and a derivative of male, fe-male.

[Gen 1:28 ESV] And God blessed them. And God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth."

God made them male and female so that they could multiply and fill the earth with more mankind or humans.

[Gen 1:31 ESV] And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

 

[Gen 2:7 ESV] then the LORD God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.

Mankind was made of elements of the earth. Mankind was made alive or living by the breath of the LORD God. Mankind’s body is made from the material elements of the ground, [earth]. This “lump of clay” is made alive, a living being by God when He gives it a soul and a spirit.

Creature, being - nep̄eš - soul, self, life, creature, person, appetite, mind, living being, desire, emotion, passion, that which breathes, the breathing substance or being, soul, the inner being of man, living being

[Gen 2:8 ESV] And the LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed.

[Gen 2:15 ESV] The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.

On the earth that God had made He created a special garden where He placed Adam. This garden was a special place on the earth where Heaven and earth coexisted. It is the place where Adam and Eve communed with God. In Revelation 2:7 we learn that the tree of life is in the Paradise of God.

[Gen 3:8 NLT] When the cool evening breezes were blowing, the man and his wife heard the LORD God walking about in the garden. So they hid from the LORD God among the trees.

[Gen 3:22 NLT] Then the LORD God said, "Look, the human beings have become like us, knowing both good and evil. What if they reach out, take fruit from the tree of life, and eat it? Then they will live forever!"

[Gen 3:23 NLT] So the LORD God banished them from the Garden of Eden, and he sent Adam out to cultivate the ground from which he had been made.

[Gen 3:24 NLT] After sending them out, the LORD God stationed mighty cherubim to the east of the Garden of Eden. And he placed a flaming sword that flashed back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.

[Rev 2:7 NKJV] "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God." '

[Gen 2:4 NKJV] This is the history of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens,

[Gen 2:8 NKJV] The LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there He put the man whom He had formed.

[Gen 2:9 NKJV] And out of the ground the LORD God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

[Gen 2:10 NKJV] Now a river went out of Eden to water the garden, and from there it parted and became four riverheads.

[Gen 2:11 NKJV] The name of the first is Pishon; it is the one which skirts the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold.

[Gen 2:12 NKJV] And the gold of that land is good. Bdellium and the onyx stone are there.

[Gen 2:13 NKJV] The name of the second river is Gihon; it is the one which goes around the whole land of Cush.

[Gen 2:14 NKJV] The name of the third river is Hiddekel; it is the one which goes toward the east of Assyria. The fourth river is the Euphrates.

[Gen 2:15 NKJV] Then the LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it.

It seems that this Paradise or Garden of Eden still exists today guarded by cherubim on the east side of the Garden, apparently a gate or entrance.

[Gen 2:16 ESV] And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, "You may surely eat of every tree of the garden,

[Gen 2:17 ESV] but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die."

Adam was allowed to eat of the tree of life (never to die, he was an eternal being). But he was not to have knowledge of good and evil.

[Gen 2:18 ESV] Then the LORD God said, "It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him."

Adam needed a mate, a mate from God, a soul mate to be his partner and to create more humans (fill the earth).

[Gen 2:19 ESV] Now out of the ground the LORD God had formed every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. And whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name.

[Gen 2:20 ESV] The man gave names to all livestock and to the birds of the heavens and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper fit for him.

[Gen 2:21 ESV] So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh.

[Gen 2:22 ESV] And the rib that the LORD God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man.

[Gen 2:23 ESV] Then the man said, "This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man."

The fe-male or wo-man was made out of the man, Adam. The “she” was of Adam’s bones and flesh and had his DNA except slightly altered so as to have the characteristics of a fe-male and to be able to conceive and carry a new human baby, either male or female.

[Gen 2:24 ESV] Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.

This speaks of a physical unity, a merging of a male and a female into one. The “flesh” of Adam and Eve was originally eternal, did not decay or ever die. This merging of Adam and Eve was a closeness different from that of mankind after the fall. It speaks of an eternal unity, true “soul mates.”

The God ordained marriage between a redeemed man and a redeemed woman is a blood covenant. This covenant is a solemn, binding, and permanent or eternal agreement representing a total exchange of lives between two parties. It is sealed by the shedding of blood representing life. It is likened to the covenantal marriage between God and humanity.  

[Gen 2:25 ESV] And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.

They were pure, holy, they did not know about good and evil. Everything was good.

[Gen 1:31 NKJV] Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

 

Mankind’s original nature

Mankind is like God, in His likeness. Mankind has a triune nature, Body, soul, and spirit like God.

God is Spirit

[Jhn 4:24 ESV] God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth."

[Psa 51:11 ESV] Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me.

[Isa 63:11 ESV] Then he remembered the days of old, of Moses and his people. Where is he who brought them up out of the sea with the shepherds of his flock? Where is he who put in the midst of them his Holy Spirit,

[Mat 28:19 ESV] Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

[Mar 12:36 ESV] David himself, in the Holy Spirit, declared, "'The Lord said to my Lord, "Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet."'

[Luk 1:35 ESV] And the angel answered her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy--the Son of God.

[Luk 3:22 ESV] and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove; and a voice came from heaven, "You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased."

[Jhn 14:26 ESV] But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.

[Act 10:38 ESV] how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.

 

God has a body

[Exo 24:10 ESV] and they saw the God of Israel. There was under his feet as it were a pavement of sapphire stone, like the very heaven for clearness.

[Exo 24:11 ESV] And he did not lay his hand on the chief men of the people of Israel; they beheld God, and ate and drank.

[Eze 1:26 ESV] And above the expanse over their heads there was the likeness of a throne, in appearance like sapphire; and seated above the likeness of a throne was a likeness with a human appearance.

[Eze 1:27 ESV] And upward from what had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were gleaming metal, like the appearance of fire enclosed all around. And downward from what had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and there was brightness around him.

[Rev 5:1 ESV] Then I saw in the right hand of him who was seated on the throne a scroll written within and on the back, sealed with seven seals.

 

Jesus

In a natural, human body

[Luk 2:12 ESV] And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger."

[Luk 2:16 ESV] And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger.

[Mat 27:58 ESV] He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered it to be given to him.

[Jhn 19:40 ESV] So they took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen cloths with the spices, as is the burial custom of the Jews.

 

In a spiritual body after His resurrection

[Luk 24:39 ESV] See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have."

[Mar 16:9 ESV] Now when he rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons.

[Mar 16:12 ESV] After these things he appeared in another form to two of them, as they were walking into the country.

[Mar 16:14 ESV] Afterward he appeared to the eleven themselves as they were reclining at table, and he rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen.

[Mar 16:9 ESV] Now when he rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons.

[Mar 16:12 ESV] After these things he appeared in another form to two of them, as they were walking into the country.

[Mar 16:14 ESV] Afterward he appeared to the eleven themselves as they were reclining at table, and he rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen.

[Rev 5:1 ESV] Then I saw in the right hand of him who was seated on the throne a scroll written within and on the back, sealed with seven seals.

[Rev 5:6 ESV] And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.

[Rev 5:7 ESV] And he went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne.

 

God has a soul - emotions, passions, activity of the mind, activity of the will, activity of the character

Emotions

[1Ch 21:15 NASB20] And God sent an angel to Jerusalem to destroy it; but as he was about to destroy it, the LORD saw and was sorry about the catastrophe, and said to the destroying angel, "It is enough; now relax your hand." And the angel of the LORD was standing by the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.

[Eze 24:14 NASB20] "I, the LORD, have spoken; it is coming and I will act. I will not overlook, I will not pity, and I will not be sorry; according to your ways and according to your deeds I will judge you," declares the Lord GOD.'"

[Jhn 11:35 NASB20] Jesus wept.

[Eze 36:5 ESV] therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Surely I have spoken in my hot jealousy against the rest of the nations and against all Edom, who gave my land to themselves as a possession with wholehearted joy and utter contempt, that they might make its pasturelands a prey.

[Psa 2:4 NKJV] He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; The Lord shall hold them in derision.

[Psa 2:5 NKJV] Then He shall speak to them in His wrath, And distress them in His deep displeasure:

Remembers

[Rev 18:5 ESV] for her sins are heaped high as heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities.

Makes decisions

[Jhn 1:43 ESV] The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, "Follow me."

Loves

[1Jo 4:19 ESV] We love because he first loved us.

Reasons

[Job 13:3 NKJV] But I would speak to the Almighty, And I desire to reason with God.

[Isa 1:18 NKJV] "Come now, and let us reason together," Says the LORD, "Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be as wool.

 

Therefore, mankind also has a body, soul, and a spirit

Body

[Gen 2:7 ESV] then the LORD God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.

[Gen 2:21 ESV] So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh.

[Gen 2:22 ESV] And the rib that the LORD God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man.

[Gen 2:23 ESV] Then the man said, "This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man."

 

Soul – The inner being of mankind, seat of appetites, emotions, passions, activity of the mind, activity of the will, activity of the character.

[Psa 42:11 ESV] Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.

[Mat 16:26 ESV] For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?

Spirit

The eternal, most inner part of mankind

[Gen 2:7 ESV] then the LORD God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.

The place of communion between God and mankind

[Pro 20:27 ESV] The spirit of man is the lamp of the LORD, searching all his innermost parts.

[Jhn 3:6 ESV] That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

When Adam and Eve brought sin into the world, their original sinless spirit in effect died (became essentially inactive).

[Eph 2:1 ESV] And you were dead in the trespasses and sins

[Psa 51:5 ESV] Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.

 

Salvation, redemption is a new birth of man’s spirit.

[Jhn 3:3 ESV] Jesus answered him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God."

[Jhn 3:6 ESV] That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

A new creation, a new man is born that is a child of God the Father

[2Co 5:17 ESV] Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

[Rom 8:16 ESV] The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,

However, this new creation is at this time still housed in an earthly body (flesh) with the old soul. The process of sanctification is the life process of the new born again spirit merged with the indwelling Spirit of God taking control of the old soul and day by day changing it into the likeness of God’s soul.

[Gal 5:17 ESV] For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.

[Rom 7:15 ESV] For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.

[Rom 7:16 ESV] Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good.

[Rom 7:17 ESV] So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.

[Rom 7:18 ESV] For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out.

[Rom 7:19 ESV] For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing.

[Rom 7:20 ESV] Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.

[Rom 7:21 ESV] So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand.

[Rom 7:22 ESV] For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being,

[Rom 7:23 ESV] but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members.

[Rom 7:24 ESV] Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?

[Rom 7:25 ESV] Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.

[Rom 8:5 ESV] For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.

[Gal 5:25 ESV] If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.

[Rom 8:14 ESV] For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.

The fullness of salvation and redemption

For those humans who have been born again spiritually [their spirit born again and merged with the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit] there is coming a time when the earthly, human body and soul will be changed into a spiritual body and soul. This new spiritual being will be eternal, pure and holy, and will be like the risen Jesus.

[1Jo 3:2 ESV] Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.

[1Th 4:15 ESV] For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.

[1Th 4:16 ESV] For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.

[1Th 4:17 ESV] Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.

[1Th 4:18 ESV] Therefore encourage one another with these words.

[1Co 15:35 ESV] But someone will ask, "How are the dead raised? With what kind of body do they come?"

[1Co 15:36 ESV] You foolish person! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies.

[1Co 15:42 ESV] So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable.

[1Co 15:43 ESV] It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power.

[1Co 15:44 ESV] It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.

[1Co 15:45 ESV] Thus it is written, "The first man Adam became a living being"; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit.

[1Co 15:46 ESV] But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual.

[1Co 15:47 ESV] The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven.

[1Co 15:48 ESV] As was the man of dust, so also are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, so also are those who are of heaven.

[1Co 15:49 ESV] Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven.

[1Co 15:50 ESV] I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.

[1Co 15:51 ESV] Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,

[1Co 15:52 ESV] in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.

[1Co 15:53 ESV] For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality.

[1Co 15:54 ESV] When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory."

[1Co 15:55 ESV] "O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?"

[1Co 15:56 ESV] The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.

[1Co 15:57 ESV] But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

This is the good news of the Gospel of the Lord Yeshua. But, to become a son or daughter of God, you must be “born again” by the Holy Spirit. There is only one way.

[Jhn 3:3 ESV] Jesus answered him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God."

[Jhn 3:4 ESV] Nicodemus said to him, "How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?"

[Jhn 3:5 ESV] Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.

[Jhn 3:6 ESV] That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

[Jhn 3:7 ESV] Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again.'

[Jhn 3:8 ESV] The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit."

[Jhn 3:9 ESV] Nicodemus said to him, "How can these things be?"

[Jhn 3:10 ESV] Jesus answered him, "Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things?

[Jhn 3:11 ESV] Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but you do not receive our testimony.

[Jhn 3:12 ESV] If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things?

[Jhn 3:13 ESV] No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man.

[Jhn 3:15 ESV] that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

[Jhn 3:16 ESV] "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

[Jhn 3:17 ESV] For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.

[Jhn 3:18 ESV] Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.

[Jhn 3:19 ESV] And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.

[Jhn 3:20 ESV] For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed.

[Jhn 3:21 ESV] But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God."

 

[Rom 10:8 ESV] But what does it say? "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart" (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim);

[Rom 10:9 ESV] because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

[Rom 10:10 ESV] For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.

[Rom 10:11 ESV] For the Scripture says, "Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame."

[Rom 10:12 ESV] For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him.

[Rom 10:13 ESV] For "everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."

[Act 4:12 NKJV] "Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."

 

Mankind - Who and What are we?

Mankind - Who and What are we? 

Soul and Spirit - Being Born Again

https://youtu.be/qU8QQe7Spu4?si=3utZj5vaUI1WCRhI

Preparing for 2026

 

Preparing for 2026

D.P. Weary

January 2026

 

Preparing to prepare

We are hearing from many sources including pastors, theologians, and Bible teachers that 2026 is to be a year of preparation. But, preparation for what and how do we prepare? As Bible believers in Jesus [Yeshua] we know that the answers to these questions lie in the Word of God, the Bible. But we must remember that the Bible itself tells us that the truths, the wisdom of God that are in the Bible are spiritual, are spiritually discerned, and are revealed to believers by the Holy Spirit.

6 However, we speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. 7 But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, 8 which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. 9 But as it is written: "Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him." 10 But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. 11 For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. 13 These things we also speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. 14 But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. [1Co 2:6-14 NKJV]

So, this article or teaching is being written to those who have accepted Yeshua as their personal Lord and Savior. They have confessed their sinful nature, have publicly confessed that Yeshua is the Son of God the Father, and truly believe that He was crucified, died, then rose again alive.

8 But what does it say? "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart" (that is, the word of faith which we preach): 9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. [Rom 10:8-10 NKJV]9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. [1Jo 1:9 NKJV]

The moment someone accepts Yeshua as Lord and Savior, something wonderful happens. They are born again.

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. [1Pe 1:3-5 ESV]

3 Jesus answered him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." 4 Nicodemus said to him, "How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?" 5 Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again.' [Jhn 3:3-7 ESV]           

Again - ἄνωθεν ánōthen, an'-o-then; from G507; from above; by analogy, from the first; by implication, anew:—from above, again, from the beginning (very first), the top.

There is only one way to become born again spiritually and to be a part of the Kingdom of God, it is through Jesus [Yeshua]!

[Jhn 14:6 NKJV] 6 Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

[Jhn 3:5 NKJV] 5 Jesus answered, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.

This new birth is by the Holy Spirit. We see when this happened for the disciples.

19 Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, "Peace be with you." 20 When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. 21 So Jesus said to them again, "Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you." 22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 "If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained." [Jhn 20:19-23 NKJV]

The Holy Spirit could not be imparted into them until after the Lord’s death and resurrection. When Yeshua came to them right after His resurrection He breathed on them and imparted the Holy Spirit into them. And they were “born again.” A new order of beings was created, a new man. Not yet complete because this new man was still housed in an old, earthly body. Paul called it a body of death [Rom 7:24]. But Yeshua did give them something awesome, authority! Authority to even forgive sins [by leading them to Jesus]. Now they had been given the authority to minister “in His name, the name of Yeshua [Jesus].”

But then, after spending 40 days ministering and teaching about the Kingdom of God, what did Yeshua do? He told them to go to Jerusalem and wait for “the promise of the Father.”

1 The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, 2 until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen, 3 to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God. 4 And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, "which," He said, "you have heard from Me; [Act 1:1-4 NKJV]

The 12 disciples, along with other disciples, [120 in all, apparently now being born-again during Yeshua’s 40 days of teaching in Jerusalem], obeyed in faith yet still fearful because of the Romans. They went to an upper room in a house in Jerusalem and waited for 10 days. They we born again, had been given authority, but what was missing? What was this promise?

4 And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, "which," He said, "you have heard from Me; 5 "for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now." 6 Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, "Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?" 7 And He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. 8 "But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." [Act 1:4-8 NKJV]

What was missing was the power to enforce their new authority. A cop trying enforce the law against a criminal with a gun is in a bad way. He needs a gun; he needs power to enforce the authority he has “in the law.” These 120 disciples were born again, they had the Holy Spirit, they had the power of the Holy Spirit within them. But, it had not been released. That was the promise of the Father. The disciples had to be obedient, go to Jerusalem, and wait in faith for the power to be effective in their new assignments to be Yeshua’s witnesses to the end of the earth.

8 "But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." [Act 1:8 NKJV]

So, what happened? Acts 2 happened.

[Act 2:1-4, 16-21, 37-43 NKJV] 1 When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. ... 16 "But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: 17 'And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your young men shall see visions, Your old men shall dream dreams. 18 And on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days; And they shall prophesy. 19 I will show wonders in heaven above And signs in the earth beneath: Blood and fire and vapor of smoke. 20 The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD. 21 And it shall come to pass That whoever calls on the name of the LORD Shall be saved.' ... 37 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" 38 Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 "For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call." 40 And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, "Be saved from this perverse generation." 41 Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them. 42 And they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers. 43 Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.

Here is where I feel I need to address the church; the born-again believers in Yeshua the Messiah, Jesus the Christ. The authority and power of the Holy Spirit is within you. The “fruit of the Spirit” and the “gifts of the Spirit” are within you. But, have they been released, manifested in and through you? This is an issue of quenching the Spirit. There are some believers that know and have a relationship with the Father and the Son, but not the Holy Spirit. This neglect of the Holy Spirit results in a powerless, fruitless life. And further, since it is the Holy Spirit that is the teacher and revealer of the wisdom, truths, and the deeper thing of the Word, the Bible, it will be very difficult for even a believer to “know the times, and know what to do” in the days ahead of us. These are days when the true church needs to be like “the sons of Issachar.”

32 of the sons of Issachar who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do, their chiefs were two hundred; and all their brethren were at their command; [1Ch 12:23, 32 NKJV]

So, before we even begin to look at what we are to prepare for and how to prepare, we need to all ask for a fresh revelation of the person of the Holy Spirit. We need to develop a personal relationship with Him. To ask the Father for a fresh release of the fruit of the Holy Spirit in our lives, and a fresh release of the Holy Spirit’s power and His gifts of office and workings.

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. [Gal 5:22-23 NKJV]

9 (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), [Eph 5:9 NKJV]

1 Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I do not want you to be ignorant: ... 4 There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5 There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. 6 And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all. 7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: 8 for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills. [1Co 12:1, 4-11 NKJV]

11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, [Eph 4:11-12 NKJV]

So, let’s begin seeking what to prepare for and how to prepare with a prayer. A prayer all believers need to pray every day. A prayer for a fresh revelation of the Holy Spirit, a fresh release of His character [His fruit] in our lives, and a fresh release of His power. We also need to be seeking and willing accept His personal assignments for each of us in the days ahead.

“Father, in the name of Yeshua I come to you today asking for fresh, new, and vibrant relationship with the Holy Spirit. Holy Spirit, I want your fruit, the fruit of the Spirit to manifest more and more in my life. I want a fresh anointing with your power that I may be a powerful witness for the Godhead in the world around me. I seek your giftings and office or assignment for the days ahead of me. Teach me, equip me, and empower me to bring the Godhead glory and to be an effective instrument in preparing the way of the Lord for the days ahead of us.”

What are we to prepare for?

Now let’s ask the Holy Spirit, just what are we to prepare for in 2026 and how are we to prepare?

The first thing we are going to do is a word search in the Bible for “prepare.”

From the New Testament -

Prepare – hetoimazō - to make ready, prepare, to make the necessary preparations, get everything ready

metaph.

drawn from the oriental custom of sending on before kings on their journeys persons to level the roads and make them passable

to prepare the minds of men to give the Messiah a fit reception and secure his blessings

What immediately comes to mind are the scriptures dealing with John the Baptist.

[Mat 3:1 NKJV] In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea,

[Mat 3:2 NKJV] and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!"

[Mat 3:3 NKJV] For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying: "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the LORD; Make His paths straight.' "

[Mar 1:2 NKJV] As it is written in the Prophets: "Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, Who will prepare Your way before You."

[Mar 1:3 NKJV] "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the LORD; Make His paths straight.' "

John the Baptist came in the spirit and anointing of the prophet Elijah to prepare the way for the first coming of Jesus [Yeshua] to the earth. But now the call is to prepare the way of the Lord for His second coming before the great and dreadful day of the LORD.

[Mal 4:5 NKJV] Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet Before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD.

It is not the true church that should be preparing the world for the second coming of Jesus to the earth? What should the church be doing to prepare? In part, just what John did! But now the call is to prepare the way for the King, not the gentle Shepard, the Lamb of God. This second coming is a day of judgment. It is the great and dreadful “day of the Lord.”

This “day of the LORD” is a day of judgment.

[2Pe 2:9 NKJV] then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment,

[2Pe 3:7 NKJV] But the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same word, are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.

[1Jo 4:17 NKJV] Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world.

[Psa 9:7 NKJV] But the LORD shall endure forever; He has prepared His throne for judgment.

[Isa 9:7 NKJV] Of the increase of His government and peace There will be no end, Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, To order it and establish it with judgment and justice From that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.

[Jer 23:5 NKJV] "Behold, the days are coming," says the LORD, "That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness; A King shall reign and prosper, And execute judgment and righteousness in the earth.

[Joe 1:15 AMP] Alas for the day! For the [judgment] day of the LORD is at hand, And it will come [upon the nation] as a destruction from the Almighty.

[Joe 2:1 AMP] Blow the trumpet in Zion [warning of impending judgment], Sound an alarm on My holy mountain [Zion]! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble and shudder in fear, For the [judgment] day of the LORD is coming; It is close at hand,

[Joe 3:14 AMP] Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision (judgment)! For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision [when judgment is executed].

[Amo 5:18 AMP] Woe (judgment is coming) to you who desire the day of the LORD [expecting rescue from the Gentiles]! Why would you want the day of the LORD? It is darkness (judgment) and not light [and rescue and prosperity];

[Oba 1:15 AMP] "For the [judgment] day of the LORD draws near on all the nations. As you have done, it shall be done to you [in retribution]; Your [evil] dealings will return on your own head.

[Zep 1:14 AMP] The great [judgment] day of the LORD is near, Near and coming very quickly. Listen! The [voice of the] day of the LORD! The warrior cries out bitterly [unable to fight or to flee].

[Eze 30:3 NET] For the day is near, the day of the LORD is near; it will be a day of storm clouds, it will be a time of judgment for the nations.

[Amo 5:18 NET] Woe to those who wish for the day of the LORD! Why do you want the LORD's day of judgment to come? It will bring darkness, not light.

 

Now let’s go back and see if we can find some Old Testament scriptures that are dealing with “preparing the way of the Lord.” Especially those that deal with the Lord’s second coming.

[Isa 40:1 NKJV] "Comfort, yes, comfort My people!" Says your God.

[Isa 40:2 NKJV] "Speak comfort to Jerusalem, and cry out to her, That her warfare is ended, That her iniquity is pardoned; For she has received from the LORD's hand Double for all her sins."

[Isa 40:3 NKJV] The voice of one crying in the wilderness: "Prepare the way of the LORD; Make straight in the desert A highway for our God.

[Isa 40:4 NKJV] Every valley shall be exalted And every mountain and hill brought low; The crooked places shall be made straight And the rough places smooth;

[Isa 40:5 NKJV] The glory of the LORD shall be revealed, And all flesh shall see it together; For the mouth of the LORD has spoken."

[Isa 40:6 NKJV] The voice said, "Cry out!" And he said, "What shall I cry?" "All flesh is grass, And all its loveliness is like the flower of the field.

[Isa 40:7 NKJV] The grass withers, the flower fades, Because the breath of the LORD blows upon it; Surely the people are grass.

[Isa 40:8 NKJV] The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever."

[Isa 40:10 NKJV] Behold, the Lord GOD shall come with a strong hand, And His arm shall rule for Him; Behold, His reward is with Him, And His work before Him.

With respect to preparing the way of the Lord, Isaiah tells us to comfort His people Israel, that their warfare is ended, their iniquity pardoned. Isaiah tells us that the glory of the LORD will be revealed and that all flesh will see it. He tells us that the Lord will come with a strong hand to rule, that His reward is with Him and His work before Him.

This last sentence might be a prophecy about the Lord’s second coming at the end of the seven years of tribulation. Isaiah tells us that He will come to rule with a work before Him. This might be referring to the 1000-year rule of Jesus on the earth after His return. The reward that is “with” Him is probably His Bride, the raptured true church.

The last verse of Isaiah 40 reassures us that those who trust in the Lord will have what it takes to deal with all the events leading up to His return.

[Isa 40:31 NKJV] But those who wait on the LORD Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint.

The prophet Malichi also gives us some clues as he deals with the days of the coming of Elijah before the awesome day of the Lord’s coming.

"Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the LORD of hosts. [Mal 3:1 ESV]

But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner's fire and like fullers' soap. [Mal 3:2 ESV]

He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and they will bring offerings in righteousness to the LORD. [Mal 3:3 ESV]

Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the LORD as in the days of old and as in former years. [Mal 3:4 ESV]

"Then I will draw near to you for judgment. I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, against the adulterers, against those who swear falsely, against those who oppress the hired worker in his wages, the widow and the fatherless, against those who thrust aside the sojourner, and do not fear me, says the LORD of hosts. [Mal 3:5 ESV]

"For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble. The day that is coming shall set them ablaze, says the LORD of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch. [Mal 4:1 ESV]

But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall. [Mal 4:2 ESV]

"Remember the law of my servant Moses, the statutes and rules that I commanded him at Horeb for all Israel. [Mal 4:4 ESV]

"Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes. [Mal 4:5 ESV]

And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction." [Mal 4:6 ESV]

Malichi tells us that these days are days of the Lord’s judgment. Days of refining like the purifying of silver. Days when the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble in a fire. But for those who “fear His name”, those that have put their trust and faith in Yeshua, righteousness will rise with healing in its wings.

But is there more to this word “prepare” than this. Did the Old Testament give us more information about the days ahead?

Let’s see what looking up the word “prepare” [azar in the Hebrew] might show us.

"The bows of the mighty men are broken, And those who stumbled are girded with strength. [1Sa 2:4 NKJV]

For You have armed me with strength for the battle; You have subdued under me those who rose against me. [2Sa 22:40 NKJV]

It is God who arms me with strength, And makes my way perfect. [Psa 18:32 NKJV]

For You have armed me with strength for the battle; You have subdued under me those who rose up against me. [Psa 18:39 NKJV]

"Therefore prepare yourself and arise, And speak to them all that I command you. Do not be dismayed before their faces, Lest I dismay you before them. [Jer 1:17 NKJV]

[Jos 1:9 NKJV] "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go."

What we find are many references to war. There are assurances of victory, defeat of the enemy, and strength for God’s people. We find that God arms His people with strength for the battles and subdued their enemies. God admonishes His people to prepare, arise, speak all that He has commanded, and not be dismayed, be strong, of good courage, and not be afraid [do not fear]. Over 50 times in the Bible, God’s people are told “do not fear”. Fear is one of Satan’s favorite weapons. The days ahead of us will be days of war and battles, both in the natural and spiritual.

 

What will these days be like?

We see that in the days ahead of us we are dealing with the days preceding the Lord’s return to the earth. So, what will these days be like? What are we to prepare for?

[2Ti 3:1 NKJV] But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come:

[2Ti 3:2 NKJV] For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,

[2Ti 3:3 NKJV] unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good,

[2Ti 3:4 NKJV] traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,

[2Ti 3:5 NKJV] having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!

[2Ti 3:6 NKJV] For of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts,

[2Ti 3:7 NKJV] always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

[2Pe 3:3 NKJV] knowing this first: that scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts,

[2Pe 3:4 NKJV] and saying, "Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation."

The disciples ask Jesus this same question In Matthew 24.

 [Mat 24:3 NKJV] Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, "Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?"

[Mat 24:4 NKJV] And Jesus answered and said to them: "Take heed that no one deceives you.

[Mat 24:5 NKJV] "For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will deceive many.

[Mat 24:6 NKJV] "And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.

[Mat 24:7 NKJV] "For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places.

[Mat 24:8 NKJV] "All these are the beginning of sorrows.

[Mat 24:9 NKJV] "Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name's sake.

[Mat 24:10 NKJV] "And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another.

[Mat 24:11 NKJV] "Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many.

[Mat 24:12 NKJV] "And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.

[Mat 24:13 NKJV] "But he who endures to the end shall be saved.

[Mat 24:14 NKJV] "And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.

Jesus tells us that the days ahead of us will be days of great deception, including in the religious world with many false prophets. There will be wars and rumors of wars and conflicts between nations and ethnic groups. There will be serious famines, pestilences, and earthquakes around the world. There will be persecution and conflict against both Christians and Jews, especially for those that believe in Jesus [“for My name’s sake”]. Finally, we are told that lawlessness will abound [flourish, greatly grow]. But we are also told that the gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations!

What we notice immediately is that all these things are occurring right now. There were 11 major wars occurring in 2024 and the number escalated in 2025. There we 100 to 150 border armed conflicts in 2024 and again the number escalated in 2025.” As we enter 2026 the issue of wars and ethnic conflicts is escalating dramatically.

“In 2025, there were 16 major earthquakes worldwide. Major earthquakes are typically defined as those with a magnitude of 7.0 or higher (Mw) on the moment magnitude scale, according to standards used by the USGS and in seismic summaries. This number aligns with the global average of about 15–16 such events per year (based on records since 1900), though 2025 was notably active and deadly due to high-impact events.” Grok 

As 2026 begins several large earthquakes have already occurred and earthquake activity is predicted to increase dramatically.

In 2025, there were 71 confirmed volcanic eruptions worldwide, involving activity at 63 different volcanoes. Of these, 29 were new eruptions that began during the year, while others were continuations from previous years.” Grok

New activity/unrest was reported for 5 volcanoes from January 8 to 14, 2026. During the same period, ongoing activity was reported for 22 volcanoes.

The current level of persecution of Christians and Jews, famines, lawlessness, and corruption, deception, and just plain evil around the world these days speak for themselves. In the days ahead, these things will only get worse. These are the things Jesus told us to prepare for. Thess things are the beginning of the birth pains of the second coming of Yeshua, Yeshua the King!

 

So, how do we prepare for and deal with such days as these?

First, we remember that the battles are the Lord’s.

Then David said to the Philistine, "You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. [1Sa 17:45 NKJV]

"This day the LORD will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you. And this day I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. [1Sa 17:46 NKJV]

"Then all this assembly shall know that the LORD does not save with sword and spear; for the battle is the LORD's, and He will give you into our hands." [1Sa 17:47 NKJV]

So, the preparation is for the second coming of the Lord. The preparation includes having the fear of the Lord, remembering His law and commandments, repentance, speaking to the people all that He commanded, and not being dismayed or fearful. We are also to know that the battle is His and that He will equipment or arm us with strength for the battles ahead.

With respect to preparing the way of the Lord, Isaiah tells us to comfort His people (Israel), that their warfare is ended, their iniquity pardoned. Isaiah tells us that the glory of the LORD will be revealed and that all flesh will see it. He tells us that the Lord will come with a strong hand to rule, that His reward is with Him and His work before Him.

The last verse of Isaiah 40 reassures us that those who trust in the Lord will have what it takes to deal with all the events leading up to His return.

Malichi tells us that these days are day of the Lord’s judgment. Days of refining like the purifying of silver. Days when the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble in a fire. But for those who “fear His name”, those that have put their trust and faith in Yeshua, righteousness will rise with healing in its wings.

There are assurances of victory; defeat of the enemy and strength for God’s people. That God arms His people with strength for the battles and subdued their enemies. God admonishes His people to prepare, arise, speak all that He has commanded, and not be dismayed, be strong, of good courage, and not be afraid [do not fear]. Over 50 times in the Bible, God’s people are told “do not fear”. Fear is one of Satan’s favorite weapons.

 

 

 

The disciple Peter gives us some advice about how to live in days such as these.

[2Pe 3:10 NKJV] But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.

[2Pe 3:11 NKJV] Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness,

[2Pe 3:12 NKJV] looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat?

[2Pe 3:13 NKJV] Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

[2Pe 3:14 NKJV] Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless;

[2Pe 3:15 NKJV] and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation--as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you,

[2Pe 3:16 NKJV] as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures.

[2Pe 3:17 NKJV] You therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked;

[2Pe 3:18 NKJV] but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.

 

More instructions

What are we to do? We should do and preach what John the Baptist did. What should the church be doing and preaching? Just what John did!

John’s assignment was to “Prepare the way of the LORD” for His first coming to the earth. His How was he preparing the way? What was he doing and saying [preaching]?

[Mar 1:4 NKJV] John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.

[Mar 1:5 NKJV] Then all the land of Judea, and those from Jerusalem, went out to him and were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins.

[Luk 1:17 NKJV] "He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, 'to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,' and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."

[Luk 3:3 NKJV] And he went into all the region around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins,

[Luk 3:4 NKJV] as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, saying: "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the LORD; Make His paths straight.

[Luk 3:5 NKJV] Every valley shall be filled And every mountain and hill brought low; The crooked places shall be made straight And the rough ways smooth;

[Luk 3:6 NKJV] And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.' "

[Luk 3:7 NKJV] Then he said to the multitudes that came out to be baptized by him, "Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?

[Luk 3:8 NKJV] "Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones.

[Luk 3:9 NKJV] "And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."

[Luk 3:10 NKJV] So the people asked him, saying, "What shall we do then?"

[Luk 3:11 NKJV] He answered and said to them, "He who has two tunics, let him give to him who has none; and he who has food, let him do likewise."

[Luk 3:12 NKJV] Then tax collectors also came to be baptized, and said to him, "Teacher, what shall we do?"

[Luk 3:13 NKJV] And he said to them, "Collect no more than what is appointed for you."

[Luk 3:14 NKJV] Likewise the soldiers asked him, saying, "And what shall we do?" So he said to them, "Do not intimidate anyone or accuse falsely, and be content with your wages."

[Luk 3:15 NKJV] Now as the people were in expectation, and all reasoned in their hearts about John, whether he was the Christ or not,

[Luk 3:16 NKJV] John answered, saying to all, "I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

[Luk 3:17 NKJV] "His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather the wheat into His barn; but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire."

• He was calling the people to confess and repent of their sins.
• Warning the people that the kingdom of heaven was at hand.
• He was baptizing people. A baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.
• He came in the spirit and power of Elijah.
• He came “to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” 
• He preached bearing fruits worthy of repentance.
• He was warning that, every person which does not bear good fruit would eventually be cut down and thrown into the fire.
• He warning against unjust financial gain.
• He admonished people to take care of the poor and needy [give them clothing and food].
• He warned the people with power and authority [soldiers] to not intimidate anyone, accuse falsely, and to be content with their wages [not using their positions to gain money, power, or prestige].
• He came warning of the wrath to come.

John the Baptist came in the spirit and anointing of the prophet Elijah to prepare the way for the first coming of Jesus [Yeshua] to the earth. His message was to prepare people for the church age. The message of the Gospel was to be spread throughout the whole world.

[Mat 28:19 NKJV] "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

[Mat 28:20 NKJV] "teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.

 

But now we are preparing the way for the Lord’s second coming

Now we have additional revelations that John did not have. As never before we have the responsibility to share, preach, and teach gospel, the good news. God sent His son Jesus to the earth to shed His blood as a payment for our sins that in and through Him we might have everlasting life as sons and daughters of God the Father and as the Bride of the Son, Jesus!

But we also have the New Testament prophecies about the second coming of the Lord. Especially the book of Revelation. We have the responsibility to preach and teach about the Lord’s second coming as a warning and witness to the world that everything is about to change. The Kingdom of God is about to come to the earth. The day of judgment is upon us. The King is coming to rule and reign for 1000 years upon the earth. The true church should be preparing the world for the second coming of Jesus to the earth.

John the Baptist carried the anointing of Elijah and was preparing the way for Yeshua Moshiach, Jesus the Messiah. The true church has the anointing of the Holy Spirit and should be preparing the way of the Lord, for Yeshua ha Melek, Jesus the King! We should be bold and warn the world that “the day of judgment” is coming soon.

 

Certainly, making disciples and teaching them to observe all thing the Lord commanded is essential. This call is urgent because the day of judgment is near.

[Mat 28:19 NKJV] "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

[Mat 28:20 NKJV] "teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.

But preparing to be more than just survivors, to be overcomers and victors, to have a hope and even joy in a glorious future involves knowing what events lie in this future and how God deals with these current “days” of evil [Eph 5:16]. This is the very reason God spent over more than 25 percent of the Bible dealing with eschatology, the study of the last days, the day of the Lord. Preparing the way of the Lord for His second coming involves preaching and teaching about these events. But understanding these things requires something more. It requires the Holy Spirit!

This takes us back to the beginning of this article; the need for the Holy Spirit. The prophet Daniel was told many things about these last days, the day of the Lord. But he did not understand.

[Dan 12:1 NKJV] "At that time Michael shall stand up, The great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people; And there shall be a time of trouble, Such as never was since there was a nation, Even to that time. And at that time your people shall be delivered, Everyone who is found written in the book.

[Dan 12:2 NKJV] And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, Some to everlasting life, Some to shame and everlasting contempt.

[Dan 12:3 NKJV] Those who are wise shall shine Like the brightness of the firmament, And those who turn many to righteousness Like the stars forever and ever.

[Dan 12:4 NKJV] "But you, Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book until the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase."

[Dan 12:8 NKJV] Although I heard, I did not understand. Then I said, "My lord, what shall be the end of these things?"

[Dan 12:9 NKJV] And he said, "Go your way, Daniel, for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.

[Dan 12:10 NKJV] "Many shall be purified, made white, and refined, but the wicked shall do wickedly; and none of the wicked shall understand, but the wise shall understand.

[Dan 12:13 NKJV] "But you, go your way till the end; for you shall rest, and will arise to your inheritance at the end of the days."

God told Daniel that the words were sealed until the time of the end. Then “the wise” would understand. Now we know that this “wisdom” comes by revelation from the Holy Spirit. The true church needs to know and have a relationship with the third person of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit! That is where the wisdom to really know and understand the things of the last days comes from. When we know and have a relationship with the Holy Spirit we will understand, have a part to play, and the authority and power to execute our assignments.

Days of battles

Because we now know that these days are days of “battle” a significant part of our assignments will be as the Lord’s spiritual warriors. The true church is to be on the offensive! Our weapon is the Word of God, the sword of the Spirit.

The apostle Paul gives us some instructions.

Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. [Eph 6:10 NKJV]

Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. [Eph 6:11 NKJV]

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. [Eph 6:12 NKJV]

Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. [Eph 6:13 NKJV]

Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, [Eph 6:14 NKJV]

and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; [Eph 6:15 NKJV]

above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. [Eph 6:16 NKJV]

And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; [Eph 6:17 NKJV]

praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints-- [Eph 6:18 NKJV]

This is call to spiritual warfare, to warfare prayer. This is praying into and according to God’s plans for the last days and against Satan’s plans against God’s people. Once again, this requires knowing God’s plans for these days and knowing Satan’s plans and schemes. It also requires understanding spiritual warfare. These are the things the true church should be teaching and doing to prepare for the days just ahead of us!

Even though the days ahead might be days of trial, of darkness, evil, and sword still, we know the end of the story. The LORD wins and righteousness is being restored! And because of Him, we, the true church, wins. The King is coming! And we are now the voice in the desert crying, “prepare ye the way of the Lord.”

 

The good news

But there is more! Even though the days ahead will be days of war, trials, and spiritual warfare, for the born-again believer there is very good news! The Lord himself is going to insure that His bride will not experience the days of judgment and wrath.

1Th 1:10 and to wait for His Son from Heaven, whom He raised from the dead, {that is} Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath to come

We the true Church are now waiting for Jesus to come and rescue us from the wrath to come. From (ek = out of, from, by, away from)

Rev 3:10 'Because you have kept the word of My perseverance, I also will keep you from the hour of testing, that {hour} which is about to come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.

[1Th 5:9 KJV] For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,

One of the more controversial events of the Last Days is what has been popularly called the Rapture of the Church. This doctrine has been much maligned in the church when it has been presented as an escape from all the troubles of the world rather than as a promise from God to keep His children from the wrath of God that is to come upon the earth in the last days. This has robbed the church of the comfort, hope, encouragement, and motivation to spread the Gospel that is to be found in the doctrine of this catching away of the church before the wrath of God is poured out upon the earth.

1 Thessalonians tells us that there will be a catching away of the true Church to meet the Lord in the air.

[1Th 4:13 NKJV] But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope.

[1Th 4:14 NKJV] For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus.

[1Th 4:15 NKJV] For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep.

[1Th 4:17 NKJV] Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.

[1Th 4:18 NKJV] Therefore comfort one another with these words.

Looking at this same event in 1 Corinthians:

[1Co 15:50 NKJV] Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption.

[1Co 15:51 NKJV] Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed--

[1Co 15:53 NKJV] For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.

[1Co 15:54 NKJV] So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory."

[1Co 15:55 NKJV] "O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?"

[1Co 15:56 NKJV] The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law.

[1Co 15:57 NKJV] But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

[1Co 15:58 NKJV] Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

Concerning when this will happen:

[1Th 5:1 NKJV] But concerning the times and the seasons, brethren, you have no need that I should write to you.

[1Th 5:3 NKJV] For when they say, "Peace and safety!" then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape.

This verse is important because many people will be deceived not expecting a time of “peace and safety” before the wrath of God is poured out and the days of the great tribulation begin.

[1Th 5:4 NKJV] But you, brethren, are not in darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief.

[1Th 5:5 NKJV] You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness.

[1Th 5:6 NKJV] Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober.

[1Th 5:8 NKJV] But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation.

[1Th 5:9 NKJV] For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,

[1Th 5:10 NKJV] who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him.

[1Th 5:11 NKJV] Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you also are doing.

O.T. prophecies of the Rapture:

Zep 2:3 Seek the LORD, All you humble of the earth Who have carried out His ordinances; Seek righteousness, seek humility. Perhaps you will be hidden In the day of the LORD'S anger.

The righteous will be hidden in the day of the Lord’s anger.

Isa 26:20 Come, my people, enter into your rooms And close your doors behind you; Hide for a little while Until indignation runs {its} course.

Isa 26:21 For behold, the LORD is about to come out from His place To punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity; And the earth will reveal her bloodshed And will no longer cover her slain.

God’s people will be hidden until the indignation (or judgment) runs its course.

Psa 27:5 For in the day of trouble He will conceal me in His tabernacle; In the secret place of His tent He will hide me; He will lift me up on a rock.

The righteous are to be concealed in the secret place of His tent (tabernacle) in the day of trouble.

Psa 31:20 You hide them in the secret place of Your presence from the conspiracies of man; You keep them secretly in a shelter from the strife of tongues.

Hidden in the secret place of His presence from the conspiracies of man.

Psa 57:1 Be gracious to me, O God, be gracious to me, For my soul takes refuge in You; And in the shadow of Your wings I will take refuge Until destruction passes by.

The righteous are hidden in the shadow of His wings until the destruction passes by.

Psa 91:8 You will only look on with your eyes And see the recompense of the wicked.

The righteous will not be a part of the judgment of the wicked.

Psa 91:9 For you have made the LORD, my refuge, {Even} the Most High, your dwelling place.

So, part of the preparing for the days ahead is to comfort, encourage, and build up the true church with these words.

 

The keys

 

In the end, it is faith in God, [the Father, the Son Yeshua, and the Holy Spirit], and in their Word, the Bible, that will be needed in the coming days. It is by faith that we know that everything happening in our world today is part of God’s master plan, His “Greatest Story Ever Told.”  He is in control. The last “chapter” of the Story involves days “of great trial of famine and darkness and sword,” faith in the Word of God carries us through because we know Him and we know the end of the Story. God is awesome and glorious and the end of the story is awesome and glorious! The King is coming for His Bride the true church. He is coming to fulfil His covenant promises to Israel. He is coming to establish His Kingdom on the earth!

 

This faith comes by hearing by the Word of God [Rom 10:17]. This Word of God, especially the Gospel, the prophets concerning the last days, and spiritual warfare must be preached, taught, and shared to prepare the world for the coming years. To do this with wisdom, understanding, authority, and power requires knowing and having a relationship with the third person of the Godhead, the Holy Spirit!

 

Therefore, we pray:

“Father, in the name of Yeshua I come to you today asking for fresh, new, and vibrant relationship with the Holy Spirit. Holy Spirit, I want your fruit, the fruit of the Spirit to manifest more and more in my life. I want a fresh anointing with your power that I may be a powerful witness for the Godhead in the world around me. I seek your giftings and office or assignment for the days ahead of me. Teach me, equip me, and empower me to bring the Godhead glory and to be an effective instrument in preparing the way of the Lord for the days ahead of us.”

           

Prepare ye the way of the Lord.

“These are the days of Elijah
Declaring the word of the Lord
And these are the days of your servant Moses
Righteousness being restored
And though these are days of great trial
Of famine and darkness and sword
Still, we are the voice in the desert crying
Prepare ye the way of the Lord”

THE KING IS COMING