Revelation 3:8 Greek translation: “I know your works and labor enjoined by you in spreading the Gospel to build my Church! I have opened a door of evangelism for you that no man can shut. You have a small strength yet you have kept speaking my intelligent words and have not denied and taken away my name which describes my character.” Comment: The 21st Century Church faces the same challenges the 1st Century Church did! We have the same God and the same Devil! Nothing has changed! People today like then will either follow God or the Devil! The Catholic High School in Kentucky got a taste of the Devil right in our own National capital! The political left controlled media through a lie to shame them and the Christ they follow! They tried to frame these children into looking like bad characters and attacking their faith! They did the same with Judge Kavanagh! To defame Jesus and try to get them to deny their faith in God! However Christ told the Church at Philadelphia and to us today that I have opened a door for you that no man can shut! The church was commended by Jesus for not denying his name! The 21 Coptic Christian’s that were beheaded about 3 years ago by their Muslim captors did not deny the name of Christ! Satan wanted to defame these children to defame the name of God! What the devil misses is that we are only saved by the name of Jesus! None of us are perfect yet Christ has made us perfect by his sacrifice on the Cross before God! Forgiven sinners! Unforgiven sinners have no hope! Jesus has taken our sin upon himself! That is why I will never deny his name! Children are the pawns of the left and abortion is their biggest game to deny God and sanctity of life itself! When God has no value in any culture then life has no value! James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com
Author: whoisgod
Church at Philadelphia! Revelation 3:7
Historical Background: This city was founded by King of Pergamum around 190 B.C. This King had a nickname Philadephus or brother lover! This King had a special devotion to his brother Eumenes II. Comment: So what is meant by the Key of David? It is found both in the Book of Revelation and Isaiah! It means to have control over or authority! King David had control and authority over Jerusalem and Israel. Jesus is the descendent of David and is the fulfillment of the Davidic covenant! Jesus has been given the keys to Heaven, Hell and the grave! He has complete authority over God’s Creation! Christ has authority over life and death! Remember in Revelation 1:18, Jesus said he has the keys of death! Jesus was raised from the dead! Jesus also raised mortals from the dead and has promised his followers the same rewards! What door Jesus closes no man can open! What door Jesus opens no man can close! Some people may try but will never succeed! What God has for you and his promises to you are sure and forever! This is the introduction Jesus has given of himself to the Church at Philadelphia! It is the same introduction Jesus gives to you and me in the 21st Century because he is the same yesterday, today and forever! James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com
Power in the Name! (Continued)
Revelation 3:1-6 Comment: Sardis was the richest city in the area of Asia Minor! A major trade route, gold found in it’s river and the Sardis precious stones mined in the region! A beautiful climate with no threats to the residents and protected by the Roman Empire! The Sardis gem is a blood red colored stone. Remember the High Priest breastplate contained 12 stones each representing the 12 tribes of Israel. The Sardis stone represented the tribe of Benjamin the youngest son of Jacob. It is one of the stones in one of the twelve gates in the walls around the temple in Heaven. The city had an interesting history! Conquered by the Greeks, Persians and the Romans and was leveled by a great earthquake! The affluence of the city brought an attitude among the Christian’s there that they did not really need God! We can make it own our own! Jesus told them they had defiled their garments! Jesus told them they must overcome or their names would be blotted out of the Book of Life! Jesus said if they overcome their condition he would confess their names to the Father! The red Sardis stone should have reminded them of Christ’s blood! The blood moon we saw in the sky last night should have reminded us of his blood! The red color in the rainbow in the sky reminds us of his blood! The Apostle John in Chapter 4 had a vision of Heaven and he saw a rainbow around the Throne of God! Christ’s blood should remind us of two things! Salvation and judgment! It is two sides of the same coin! Salvation or redemption means nothing without judgment! You will have judgment only with out Salvation but you cannot have salvation without judgment! Christ took our judgment upon himself at the Cross! The rejection of Salvation is serious because if you reject the Savior then you take your own judgment and separation from God forever! That is why the only unpardonable sin is to reject Jesus Christ! If you reject Christ as many did at the Church at Sardis then he Christ becomes your judge! Christ’s blood is the blood of God himself made as the only sacrifice for sin! It is costly! I as a mortal might give my life for a friend or my nation but for the whole world? They do not deserve it! Neither do I! By Grace you are saved not of yourselves! Most of the members in the Sardis church fell in love with the world! They were like the fly in the spider’s net! They looked like a Christian but they were dead and hollow inside! The life of Christ had been sucked out of them by the cares of this life! None of us want the form of Godliness but to deny his power! The church was deceived into believing the world could offer them more than Christ! I could lay down my life for Christ yet it would redeem no one! His blood is more precious than silver and more costly than gold! James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com
Science & Faith!
Science investigates; religion interprets. Science gives man knowledge, which is power; religion gives man wisdom, which is control. Science deals mainly with facts; religion deals mainly with values. The two are not rivals! Martin Luther King Jr.
Power in the Name (Continued)
Revelation 2:12-17. Comment: When a King of a Nation marries a wife she becomes the Queen! The Greek name “Pergamos”, means “Married to Power.” The new queen only has power because she is married to the King! Most of the world wants to have power! Political power! Financial power! Military power! Religious power! Why? Mostly to dominate and control other people! My Bible says his church his bride is married to Christ!That gives us power! Power not to bring people into bondage and slavery but to free people from the bondages of sin! Has the church had abuses with it’s power? Yes! Jesus is very careful who he gives power to! Knowing man has the potential for using his power for his own gain at the sacrifice of people he is very selective with his power! No mortal is perfect and God understands this as their creator! The Church at Pergamos was married to Christ! Jesus commends them for holding fast to their faith even though Satan’s seat was very close to them! Much about the mission field is walking into Hell and delivering captives from the fire! Our three years in India enabled us to experience this! The fire is all around you yet not burned! Mission work is a fiery furnace experience! Antipas a member of this church was martyred yet they kept their faith in Christ! However Jesus was disappointed in some church members who held unto the Doctrine of Balaam? This caused some members to commit fornication! Some church members clung to the Doctrine of the Nicolaitans! You cannot be married to Christ and Satan at the same time! You must divorce one and marry the other! Jesus asked them to repent or he would fight against them with the sword of his mouth! That is judgment would come to them according to his Word! So 21 centuries later what Doctrines in the American church oppose the Word of God? The Doctrine of Darwinism! That is atheism! Evolution! The Doctrine of Socialism! Founded by Marx, Engel, Lenin, Stalin, Hitler, Mussolini and others who were all followers of Darwin! Homosexual’s, lesbian’s and transgenders are Doctrines that oppose the Word of God! The list goes on but the more obvious examples! Do not forget drug use with 73000 casualties last year here in America! How about abortion! The casualties are millions yet if we stay married to Christ and not to the prostitutes of our culture Christ will carry the day for us! Jesus holds all power for good and he will and does have the last say because he is God! All judgment is rendered unto him yesterday, today and forever! James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com
Power in the Name! (Continued)
The Church at Smyrna is the second of seven churches mentioned in the Book of Revelation. (Revelation 2:8-11). If you look at an old world map it is second closest church to the island of Patmos. The Greek name for this city Smyrna means; “Anointing oil.” Jesus commended this church and found nothing wrong with it! I wonder why? Smyrna was the suffering church! When you suffer for Christ and his Kingdom there is an anointing from him that comes over your life! We do not look for suffering but if you follow Christ it will come to you! Jesus told them he saw their tribulation, poverty and the blasphemy of their oppressors! He commended them for being put in prison for his name! He encouraged them to be faithful unto death! He told them a crown of life awaits them and that they will escape the second death! Jesus said we must be born again! This is how you escape your first death! Then Jesus has taken your judgment for sin for you and then you escape the second death! Remember God’s whole Kingdom is based on suffering and sacrifice! So what evidence would there be that I am saved and in Christ? If I would sacrifice my own life for others! If you are not saved you will sacrifice others for yourself! Just the opposite behavior! Look at your own life! Which is it? We are not saved by our works but the works of Christ however my works will reflect who I am following! Jesus or Satan? Satan has sacrificed you with his sin! Jesus has sacrificed himself for your sin over 2000 years ago on a Cross at Calvary! You cannot save yourself but by his power and his name all things are possible! James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com
Power in the Name! (Continued)
On the previous post we talked about the meanings of the names of the seven churches that the Apostle John mentioned in the Book of Revelation. That is the names of the cities these churches resided in. We spoke of the meaning of the Greek word Ephesus. Now let us look at the city of Thyatira. What does the Greek word Thyatira mean? The word means; “To be controlled by a woman.” Jesus had many good things to say about this church however he corrected them on the woman named Jezebel! (Revelation 2:20) She was using the power of sex to seduce church members! Nothing new here! The name Jezebel means a worshipper of Idol’s! One truth I found out while living in India is that Idol worshippers make themselves God! Sex is a gift from God! Like any gift it can be used to either honor God or dishonor him! We face the perversion of sex here in America today in that the popular culture promotes gays, lesbians and transgenders as something honorable! The evil today is no different than it was in the 1st Century! The church today faces the same challenges! The good news is we have the same Christ! Jesus name is higher than the name of a controlling woman! Just like the city of Ephesus we cannot lose our first love to Christ! Will you exalt any name above the name of Christ? If we demote God then we promote Satan! The choice is ours to make but our choice determines our outcome both today and eternally! Chose Christ today and forever! James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com
Power in The Name!
The seven churches in the Book of Revelation listed in Chapter two are Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamos, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea. Now each of these Greek names of these cities has a meaning! Even though Alexander the Great conquered these area’s centuries ago these cities were then under Roman rule! Remember the feet of clay of the image in the Book of Daniel Rome was the last of four Kingdoms to usher in the Christ! Let us look at the first city Ephesus! Why was this city listed first in Chapter two? Logistics! If you look at a map of the old world you will see this city is closest to the Island of Patmos where the Apostle John wrote these letters from. Smyrna is number two listed as the second closest to the island! So what does the name Ephesus mean? The Greek word means ; ‘To Let Go.” Jesus commended the Church at Ephesus for many things but when it came to discipline of the Church Jesus said you have let go of your first love! If you study the name and the meaning of these seven cities you will find a connection to the character of the people living there even believers! Whether the character is good or bad! This is not new to me for the three years we spent in India I found the same was true there! Hindu’s, Muslim’s and Sikh’s when they came to Christ would often change their names! They would take on a Christian name such as John, Peter or Paul or Mary. They would even publish their photo in the local newspaper announcing to the world of their name change! I have found the character of a person is related to the character of their name! Sadly most people do not know the meaning of their own name yet their character will reflect that name because their name is called to them everyday of their lives! My brother Thomas was a doubter! He doubted me because my name James means a suplanter! There is one name that is above every name! His name is Jesus Christ! There is power in his name because he is God! When we cast Demons out of people in India we could only use one name that would work! Jesus Christ! James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com
Lines in the Sand!
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn was a Russian novelist, historian, short story writer and a decorated military officer in WWII. He was a critic of the Soviet Socialism, Communism and the Gulag labor camps! He spent eight years of his life in a Soviet labor camp and lived to tell about it! He won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1970. Though a good military officer on the Eastern front and then the push into Prussia he could not overlook the brutality of the Soviet system! He witnessed Russian soldiers raping to death Polish and German women! He told his troops we are not any better than the Nazi’s! He wrote to a friend and expressed the need for a change in the Soviet Socialist system! His letter was intercepted and he was sentenced to 8 years in the Soviet labor camps! Everyday in these camps men would collapse from heavy work and a starvation diet! When they fell to the ground they were beaten to death with there own shovels! Day by day and year by year Aleksandr was weakened by these conditions! Finally he could no longer stand! He went down to his knee’s in fatigue! A nearby prisoner came close to him and drew a Cross in the sand for him to see! Then this fellow prisoner took his hand and wiped out the Cross in the sand! When he saw the Cross his body regained strength and he stood up once again and began to work! Aleksandr met the Christ that day who had made many more sacrifices than he had ever done! James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com
So Where are the Churches?
So where are the seven churches today listed in the Book of Revelation? Why did they not survive? Did they have really bad Pastor’s? Unfaithful members? The answer is the Greco-Turkish War! (1919-1922) It was a war between Christians and Muslims! The reason for the Muslim victory over Asia Minor is a complicated one! First of all Greece itself was divided politically in regards to the war! Europe itself was war weary from WWI. The Bolshevik Russia Revolution forming Socialism wanted to work against Christian governments in the West! With the Treaty of Moscow in 1921 Russian sent money arms and ammunition to the Muslims in Turkey! Starting in 1920 they sent them 6000 rifles, 5 million rounds of ammunition, 17600 shells and 442 pounds of gold bullion! Over the next two years they increased their aid! Here is a quote from Ernest Hemingway who was a war correspondent at that time for the Toronto Star; “Another night a British destroyer stopped a boatload of Turkish Muslim women who were coming from Asia Minor. On being searched for arms they turned out to be men! They were all armed and later proved to be Kemalist officers sent to organize the Turkish population in the suburbs in case of an attack on Constantinople. (Later Istanbul). The Armistice of Mudanna on October 15, 1922 followed by the Treaty of Lausanne Greece and Turkey came to an agreement to exchange populations. Over one million Greek Orthodox Christians were displaced; most of them resettled in Attica and the newly incorporated territories of Macedonia and Thrace and were exchanged for about 500 thousand Muslims. So these church populations were displaced mentioned in the Book of Revelation. James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com