Bashan Ministries

Shemittah

This presentation was initually written during the COVID pandemic.
The priciples remain unchanged...

The Shemittah, also known as Shemitah or Shmita happens after every 49th year, being the seventh of a series of seven-year cycles as described in Exodus 21:2, 23:10–11, Leviticus 25:1–7; Deuteronomy 15:1–11 and 31:10–13. It is patterned after God’s day of rest at the conclusion of His creation—the seventh day. It is also called the sabbatical year or shǝvi’it that means seventh, or sabbath of the land. The sabbath year Shmita means release.

Leviticus chapter twenty-three is a list of the various feasts of Israel where God declared that they are His feasts. Man did not “invent them” and verse 14 indicates that they are to be observed as a statute “for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings”.

When Jesus commanded the disciples to remain in Jerusalem and wait there until the Holy Spirit came, it was in such a season.

Acts 2:1 states that “when the day of Pentecost was fully come”, the Holy spirit arrived. That was the feast of Shavuot (also known as the feast of weeks as seen in Leviticus 23:15-21.

The Jews had to “count the Omer” for 49 days.
The disciples prayed for 49 days.
The Jews had a Jubilee on the 50th year.
The Holy Spirit came on the 50th day. There is a pattern.

There are precisely timed times and seasons in God. Clearly, He is working to a set plan and there is much more to this than we realize.

Part of His plan includes bringing a release to His people. It may be argued that Jesus brought a change and He did, but these feasts of the Lord remain as perpetual statutes.

It is evident that we still need to be released from things that are causing fear and distress and this is not negating the efficacy of His ministry. He broke the power of those things over us, but we must put it to work.

If we take COVID as one example, we need not fear it if we have a good relationship with the Lord, based on scriptural precedents, but simple tasks like shopping for food are becoming daunting.
Supermarket shelves are emptying. The last time was panic buying, but this time it is different, mainly due to logistic and similar problems. Farmers can keep growing their products, but getting them from farm to table is the issue.

We are being exposed to contract tracing procedures and during COVID, lockdowns and mandatory wearing of face masks.
The use of face masks is absurd really if we investigate the real effectiveness and their inherent design. In simplest of terms, when wearing one, we inhale the stale air we just exhaled. Neither do we really know what is inside those face masks.
Many surgeons say that they are not needed and that they only wear them to avoid things like blood splatter when operating.

We need to ask how effective they really are and if there is indeed some form of conspiracy—what is in the jab itself? Is it a placebo, a “computer operating system” as some people imply, a hidden “poison”, such as Graphene Oxide.
Do your own research!!!

Most people are simply “conforming” without question.
The government is dictating terms, but this should not surprize us as it has happened before as in Daniel’s day.

Many religious scholars and leaders have formed their own opinions, not taking into account that the principles or “laws” of God remain unchanged. He talks in terms of an everlasting covenant; a covenant that will last for one thousand generations and more He has not changed and His word abides forever. If so, then such covenants are still valid!

They have relevance and Shemitah is no exception.

It has very practical application insofar as it allows the land to lay fallow to enable it to recover after the previous seasons of constant agricultural activities.
Unless the land is permitted to rest, the soil can be depleted and on most occasions the only way men address such issues is to use chemicals.
We are witnessing misuse and overuse of chemicals today, especially in our food and medical supplies that the bible callssorcery and witchcraft . This is seen in Revelation 9:21 where the original word is pharmakeia, from which we derive the word pharmacy.

God never intended man to rely on chemicals. We place our trust in them—man-made products, more than we do on God. That is like worshiping the cast calf (we call it the golden calf) and there is a difference.

There is an association or relationship with “the calf” and pharmaceuticals.

Man is now relying more on chemicals injected into the body instead of turning to God for the remedy.

If we pause and reflect on the matter, the original sin was ingesting something into the body that God had forbidden.

I was shocked to discover the significance, for but more of that on another occasion. I urge you to search this matter also.

You may plant your land for six years and gather its crops. But during the seventh year, you must leave it alone and withdraw from it. The needy among you will then be able to eat just as you do, and whatever is left over can be eaten by wild animals. This also applies to your vineyard and your olive grove.
Exodus 23:10–11

“God spoke to Moses at Mount Sinai, telling him to speak to the Israelites and say to them: When you come to the land that I am giving you, the land must be given a rest period, a sabbath to God. For six years you may plant your fields, prune your vineyards, and harvest your crops, but the seventh year is a sabbath of sabbaths for the land.
It is God’s sabbath during which you may not plant your fields, nor prune your vineyards.
Do not harvest crops that grow on their own and do not gather the grapes on your unpruned vines, since it is a year of rest for the land. [What grows while] the land is resting may be eaten by you, by your male and female slaves, and by the employees and resident hands who live with you. All the crops shall be eaten by the domestic and wild animals that are in your land.”
Leviticus 25:1–7

“And if ye shall say: ‘What shall we eat the seventh year? behold, we may not sow, nor gather in our increase’; then I will command My blessing upon you in the sixth year, and it shall bring forth produce for the three years. And ye shall sow the eighth year, and eat of the produce, the old store; until the ninth year, until her produce come in, ye shall eat the old store.”
Leviticus 25:20–22

“I will scatter you among the nations, and keep the sword drawn against you. Your land will remain desolate, and your cities in ruins. Then, as long as the land is desolate and you are in your enemies’ land, the land will enjoy its sabbaths. The land will rest and enjoy its sabbatical years. Thus, as long as it is desolate, [the land] will enjoy the sabbatical rest that you would not give it when you lived there.” Leviticus 26:33-35

“At the end of every seven years, you shall celebrate the remission year. The idea of the remission year is that every creditor shall remit any debt owed by his neighbor and brother when God’s remission year comes around. You may collect from the alien, but if you have any claim against your brother for a debt, you must relinquish it....” Deuteronomy 15:1–6

“Moses then gave them the following commandment: ‘At the end of each seven years, at a fixed time on the festival of Sukkoth, after the year of release, when all Israel comes to present themselves before God your Lord, in the place that He will choose, you must read this Torah before all Israel, so that they will be able to hear it. ‘You must gather together the people, the men, women, children and proselytes from your settlements, and let them hear it. They will thus learn to be in awe of God your Lord, carefully keeping all the words of this Torah. Their children, who do not know, will listen and learn to be in awe of God your Lord, as long as you live in the land which you are crossing the Jordan to occupy’.” Deuteronomy 31:10–13

Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: I made a covenant with your fathers in the day that I brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage, saying: “At the end of seven years ye shall let go every man his brother that is a Hebrew, that hath been sold unto thee, and hath served thee six years, thou shalt let him go free from thee”; but your fathers hearkened not unto Me, neither inclined their ear.” Jeremiah 34:13–14

Additional readings: Nehemiah 10:31; 2 Chronicles 36:20–21; 2 Kings 19:29, 35; Isaiah 37:30

Benefits & Purpose

The purpose of the Shemitah was to allow the land to recover from agriculture and to provide sustenance for the poor.

During Shmita, the land is left to lie fallow and all agricultural activity, including plowing, planting, pruning and harvesting is forbidden by halakha (Jewish law). Cultivation techniques such as watering, weeding, trimming and mowing may be performed as a preventive measure only. Any fruits or herbs which grow of their own accord and where no watch is kept over them are deemed hefker (ownerless) and may be picked by anyone.

It is meant to break the cycle of perpetual debt and poverty in which many people found themselves trapped.

All debts, except those of foreigners, were to be remitted. The people of Israel were instructed to forgive debts owed by fellow Israelites, refrain from direct cultivation, and permit people and animals to harvest the free-growing crops that remained.

Although normal “work” was not to continue, God ensured that food supplies were maintained and that no one was left without anything. In essence, it was a total release of everything that bound people and enabled then to make a fresh start.

As with many religious concepts, men introduced their own “interpretation” on what God had declared and done. This is why we see the many sects, rifts and divisions and diverse areas of the church today (see 1 Corinthians 1:10-18; Colossians 2:16-23) and it is evident that it just is not working. In our own experience, we are dealing more now with “unchurched” folk who are fully aware of such things and do not want the form of “Christianity” they witness. They do not understand why we are so divided and do not want our “churches”. Often times it is a matter of the converted preaching to the converted and we think we are doing a great job, but in all reality are not making a real impact in our local societies. Many folk talk of church growth, measuring their own environment perhaps, but not factoring in the reality that one church grows because of church migration and so on.

As for “interpretation”, certain Talmudic scholars developed a mechanism known as a pruzbul to effectively negate the scriptural command to forgive the debts of a “friend or brother” (Deuteronomy 15:2). Such men chose to interpret it in such a way that only private debts are cancelled. Making a pruzbul transfers the debt to a public religious court, so the debt is theoretically no longer between friends, brothers, or neighbors. According to this “interpretation”, the once-private debt is fully recoverable, and nothing is forgiven (see Mark 7:8–9). Other interpretations of the law effectively nullified it. Many “Christians” tend to avoid The Law, thinking that Jesus did away with it, but He did not do that—He fulfilled its requirements and in so doing set us free from the curse of The Law.

We can not keep The Law and if we attempt to live by it, we will fail and if it is in only one point, we effectively break all of The Law.

If we are pedantic about it, we have hundreds of laws to contend with—all found in scripture and all practical. We have citizenship laws, criminal laws, laws concerning estates, laws dealing with governments (all being broken today), laws concerning contracts and loans, tort laws, social security and welfare laws, laws of sanitation and cleanliness, laws concerning food, marital laws, laws of nature and physics and spiritual laws.

God told His people what to do after going to the bathroom, gave instructions regarding womens’ health and going into quarantine for communicable diseases, all part of “The Law”. Although we are in “days of grace” and in “New Testament” conditions, these things still work for us and the question to ask is if we have tended to stray away from them. The church of today has a role and function that now seems to differ from the biblical ideals.

There is much more to it than many ”Christians” think and they remain constant and unchangeable.

Problems emerge when we “interpret” them to suit what we choose to believe or disbelieve. By hiring non-Jewish people to work the land for example, the landowner claims to be “following the Shemitah” by not cultivating the land personally—because others were doing it. The idea was that he was not physically laboring himself and so met God’s requirements, but this was like getting someone else to lie, or to steal or kill for him without actually doing the deed himself. The motive was still there, so he had in fact sinned.

Such a trait is prevalent in the modern day church, whereby man has introduced his own traditions, rules and regulations and often times such approaches are often in direct contradiction to what God has actually said. Perhaps for such reasons, the promises of God have not been fully manifest. God cannot break His own rules. He has given His word and that is final—but it is up to us to trust and obey Him and allow Him to do what He said He would do instead of “interpreting” things as the Jewish farmer is doing.

The implications

If we are indeed in a Shemitah, as I believe we are, perhaps it would be wise to look into what it means to us. We are not all farmers. Most of us have a job. We go to work to “earn a living” and this is perfectly acceptable. Some prosperity doctrine teaching states that we have a job to get money for seed sowing and that can lead to error. Places like 1 Timothy 5:8 tell us that we are to provide for our families and if we do not, we have denied the faith and are worse than infidels. The man is the breadwinner. He is the hunter/gatherer and his wife is the home-maker. My dear wife is the epitome of the Proverbs 31 lady and we function as one in such an identical way that it amazes me and this is how it should be.

Many modern pastors adopt a “prosperity doctrine” approach that is only partially correct—as it is often taken to excess. The teaching of sowing and reaping is correct, but it often becomes self-centered. We are told to give—so that we can receive and whilst this is true, we should be able to give—even if we get nothing in return. We are told to tithe, but correct biblical tithing is all about food to be eaten in God’s presence at the place of God’s choosing as an act of worship. Money only enters into it when the people need to sell their produce to travel and they can then buy food on their arrival. Check it out!

The oft-quoted reference to Malachi chapter 3 refers more to the priests than is believed and for a different purpose.

From the days of your fathers you have turned aside from My laws and did not guard them. Turn back to Me, and I shall turn back to you,” said יהוה of hosts. “But you said, ‘In what shall we turn back?’ Malachi 3:7

The priests had strayed off course and had ceased honoring God according to His original commands and God was correcting them.

You may wonder what that has to do with Shemita.

It is all about change. God is in the business of changing things. He is in the business of setting captives free. He is bringing us all into a new season.

He labored for 6 days and stopped laboring and the implication is that we are about to enter into the seventh—a rest.

Perhaps it is time for that change to be implemented. Some time ago, especially when the coronavirus started to emerge, I mentioned that it seems as if God has “hit a reset button”. The whole world is feeling the affects. It may or may not be due to COVID, or part of any conspiracy theory that is being kicked around. This may be the end of a period of time when all of the old things shall be brought to a halt and we are given some breathing space to rest and recuperate just as Shemita provided.

Under the old system, the farmer sweated and struggled with diminishing crops simply because the soil had been depleted.

God told him to stop, but He still provided for everything the farmer needed.

Under the old system, people got into debt and God hit the reset button to erase that debt.

Under the old system we have struggled with our own self efforts and basically all we attempted, often with little results.

With Shemita, God may be pushing a reset button in such a way that we can finally see things clearly.

The great reset

Although I have said that I wanted to avoid getting caught up in the end time prophecies that abound, we cannot ignore the fact that there is a great reset agenda already in motion. It may be setting the stage for the one world government often talked about.
The Great Reset is the name of the 50th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum that was held in June 2020.

The theme of the January 2021 51st World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland with a multi-stakeholder network in 400 cities around the world was “The Great Reset” and it was also to be the main theme of the WEF’s summit in Lucerne in May 2021, that was postponed to 2022.

High-profile business and political leaders attended such meetings, convened by Charles, Prince of Wales and the WEF chief executive officer Klaus Schwab who spoke of rebuilding society and the economy following the COVID-19 pandemic. Schwab listed three core components of the Great Reset:

Creating conditions for a “stakeholder economy”

Building in a more “resilient, equitable, and sustainable” way—based on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) metrics which would incorporate more green public infrastructure projects

To “harness the innovations of the Fourth Industrial Revolution” for public good.

The World Economic Forum generally suggests that a globalised world is best managed by a self-selected coalition of multinational corporations, governments and civil society organizations.

It sees periods of global instability – such as the financial crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic – as “windows of opportunity to intensify its programmatic efforts”.

Close analysis of these points reveals a pattern that seems to be leading towards a one world government, the emergence of the antichrist and more. Interestingly Klaus Schwab is a satanist.

I recommend that you conduct your own research into such matters and avoid the acceptable normal sources, social media and news agencies that already show signs of being bought off or are part of the organization and secret societies.

We are indeed living at a crossroads in humanity. I do however have good news and it brings me back to Shemitah.

Jubilee

This is something that we need to investigate more than we do.

You shall count off seven weeks of years—seven times seven years—so that the period of seven weeks of years gives you a total of forty-nine years. Then you shall sound the horn loud; in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month—the Day of Atonement—you shall have the horn sounded throughout your land and you shall hallow the fiftieth year. You shall proclaim release throughout the land for all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you: each of you shall return to his holding and each of you shall return to his family. That fiftieth year shall be a jubilee for you: Leviticus 25:8-11

I recommend that you read the entire chapter as it is very interesting.

This Shemittah is unique. In the natural, many or most people will probably only have one Jubilee. I am now in a Jubilee period, as I met the Lord in 1968. This year will be my 54th year as a born-again believer and this excites me because God has used Jubilee to give people a restart. He is talking to my wife and me about a brand new ministry venture. It is one we have anticipated for a long time now and when we ask about the timing, He kept telling us to wait, but now the tone of His voice has changed as He is telling us to get ready for it and prepare for it. Many people grow impatient and try to make things happen and that really does not work. People can and create “Ishmaels” that way. Conversely, we can hesitate and miss the season and there are numerous scriptural accounts to verify that.

We are dealing with a God who has laid down precise, set times and seasons.

Jubilee means that when we are in it, we have assignments to complete on behalf of others.

The stage is already set for a Daniel 9 scenario. Israel and certain Arab nations have entered into an accord together and the world is living in a tribulation shadow.

People who do not attend any church know about the antichrist or the mark of the beast and are asking us if “this is it”.

I am a pre-tribulation preacher, believing from biblical analysis and from personal experience that the church shall be gone before then. It is easy to form opinions on theory and have debate, but when someone has an experience, that is another matter. No one can argue about your testimony and I have one. I’ve been to heaven more than once and have been “taken up” towards what I can only describe as the “Great white throne” in an instant in time that I can only liken to the rapture—the “catching away”

It will occur—in a flash; a twinkle of an eye, in a micro-micro-micro-second. Paul spoke of this, his revelations and visits to heaven.

I speak the truth and our tasks are to preach truth, not opinion or theological “interpretation”.

I wrote this in the year 2022 that according to the Jewish calendar is the year 5782.

If we look at this from a numerical viewpoint, 5+7+8+2 = 22. This is a number that speaks about disorganization and disintegration. It also describes attempts to denigrate, corrupt or alter God’s word and we are witnessing this often now, including certain areas of “the church”. It also refers to evil leadership. Jeroboam and Ahab were Israel’s worst kings, each reigning for 22 years.

The leaders in many countries today are, to be polite, questionable, if not evil.

God had told His people that after the time had been fulfilled and things needed to be reset, He introduced Shemitah.

Every “Shemitah of Shemitahs” if that is an apt description, whilst everything seems bad and the world is getting darker and more evil, involves a plan of God. I believe more than ever that He is giving us—the Church—an opportunity of a lifetime.

Paul said in Romans 4:20 that when sin abounds, God’s grace much more abounds. Light overcomes darkness and you can prove that very easily. You can go to the bottom of a coal mine at midnight on a moonless night and strike one match and its feeble flickering glow will pierce that darkness.

We are the light of the world and are the only light some people will ever see. When we meet others who do not know the Lord, do not become a religious freak and talk “Christian jargon” as they will most likely not understand it.

Many dislike it. We have had meetings with potential leaders of our nation and they concur. From the feedback received they want to introduce a much needed change and I often mention change. The Lord keeps talking to us about change.

One thing I have observed as I touched on earlier is that many people now distrust “churches” of any persuasion. When I spoke at one public meeting, I said that I was a pastor and deliberately added that I dislike “religion” evoking immediate applause. When I mentioned about getting back to the basics, I again received much applause. I said that our politicians have failed us and also that the church as they understand it had failed them and the response was the same. People who say that they do not believe in God and others who have new age activities all agreed. Many people approached me later to thank me. Something is happening out there—and they know it.

People are looking for answers that work and they know that “the church” has not helped. Perhaps it is time we can start to provide the answers—workable answers. We really need to let our light shine not make it shine and when asked questions about certain things, be able to answer them.

... the eyes of the Lord Yahweh rest upon the godly, and his heart responds to their prayers. But he turns his back on those who practice evil.
Why would anyone harm you if you’re passionate and devoted to pleasing God?
But even if you happen to suffer for doing what is right, you will have the joyful experience of the blessing of God.
And Don’t be intimidated or terrified by those who would terrify you. But give reverent honor in your hearts to the Anointed One and treat him as the holy Master of your lives. And if anyone asks about the hope living within you, always be ready to explain your faith. 1 Peter 3:12-15

If you do not know, admit it and find out. Don’t guess. If you meet someone with a need or problem be ready to pray and if possible lay hands on them. It can be subtle and discreet, but establishing that point of contact does work. I’ve sometimes reached out as if to pat the other person on the shoulder as a simple inoffensive gesture, knowing that the anointing on me and in me—the same anointing Jesus had and the same anointing you have (or should have) can be released. We need to exercise wisdom and discretion of course.

As this world system seems to be grinding to a halt, people like us are God’s hands and feet and His mouthpieces. It is one thing to get involved in talk, especially talk about prophecy and end time events, but talk is cheap. The Kingdom of God is not in word only but in demonstration and power as per 1 Corinthians 4:20.

God is doing many things today that are astounding. If He could open the Red Sea for a whole nation, He can open a way for us today. If He could feed a nation for 40 years in a harsh desert, He can and will care for His people today. The bible tells me that there was not one feeble one in their midst and that their clothes never wore out.

In this change process, one of the things that God is doing is setting up what He is calling Green Spots in various places around the world that are a little like the cities of refuge in the Old Testament where people ran to in times of need.

Various governmental agencies are already acting like dictators, even here in Australia, mandating all kinds of lockdowns and restrictions, all supposedly in the interests of the community. Our state of Western Australia has already introduced an evil policy of forcing people to take the jab. With little or no warning, they have introduced policies that unless one can provide a vaccination certificate they are not permitted to enter most places. The few exceptions are to buy food and absolutely necessary items. No one can enter or leave the state without official sanction and the Premier has declared that its borders will remain closed indefinitely.

Despite the statement that he has good intentions for the community, this is a totalitarian dictatorial rule.

Nationwide food shortages exist, not because of problems with farming, but because the people who get the products to the markets produce can’t do their job, are ill after taking the jab, are forced into quarantine unnecessarily or are sacked because they do not want to get vaccinated. The system world wide has been grinding to a halt.

I purchased it because the deal included a large gift box of their products. On January 17, they sent me an email apologizing for the delay, advising it would take another 6 or 7 weeks before the goods will arrive. I replied with a thank you message, saying that I understand and received a personalized message printed in bold capitals and special colours, instead of the usual computerised auto responder messages to say how much they appreciated that. They have since followed up, but the delay remains.

Ford, Toyota, Isuzu and VW car dealers advise that they are not permitted by the manufacturers to sell certain models on display.

In many instances, orders for new vehicles lodged now will not arrive until May at best. Many new car manufacturers are experiencing delay in production because of chip shortages.

The world champion tennis player Novak Djokovic was the center of controversy concerning his COVID vaccination status and his Visa entry to Australia was revoked and he had to leave the country. His lawyers said that the immigration minister erroneously cancelled his visa on the grounds the tennis star is seen as a “talisman of a community of anti-vaccine sentiment”. The report stated:

In an application lodged with the Federal Circuit Court l and released online by the Federal Court, Djokovic’s lawyers argue the visa cancellation is legally invalid. They are disputing Immigration Minister Alex Hawke’s decision to cancel the visa on the grounds that Djokovic’s “presence in Australia may cause an increase in anti-vaccination sentiment, in effect because he may be perceived by some as a talisman of a community of anti-vaccine sentiment, leading to various negative consequences”.Mr Hawke’s reasons for the decision, emailed to Djokovic’s lawyers last night and published by the court this morning, say his presence in Australia poses a health risk because it could encourage fewer people to get vaccinated and boosted. The minister argues it could also lead to an increase “in civil unrest of the kind previously experienced in Australia with rallies and protests which may themselves be a source of community transmission”. Djokovic’s legal team argues the minister failed to consider that his detention and forced removal from Australia may also foster anti-vaccination sentiment.

What is confusing is that the government insists entry to the country is permissible only on proof of double vaccination—and two weeks in quarantine at the visitor’s personal expense—and have a negative RAT test. If the vaccines really work, why is there such a need? Many reports received show that most of the illnesses are experienced by people who have had the jab.

What is even more confusing is that the government advertised that they have purchased 70 million test kits (for a population of just under 26 million people but they did not provide 1 at airports. We get confused messages about our borders. The Prime Minister said that he had ordered enough doses to vaccinate everyone 14 times!

Outlets such as pharmacies were in short supply, some even without any supplies.

If you look at such news, this illustrates how unstable authorities really are. They kept changing the rules and statistics and routinely break their promises and continue.

Several years ago the Lord told us that it is possible for the state of Victoria to be permanently closed and that they may secede from the commonwealth. On face value, Western Australia already seems to be doing just that and it was dubbed “Fortress WA”.

Initial vaccine mandates started with 1 dose, then 2 doses and at th etime,they kept increasing. Our government stated that the wait time to be eligible for the 3rd booster shot was being reduced, but at least one other country already started promoting what they call “4th dose triples protection”. Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt stated, “older Australians and perhaps those working with vulnerable patients” are being considered for a fourth dose of a Covid vaccine. Their rhetoric does not make sense, when official reports state quite categorically that they do not know much about the new strains that kept emerging, yet they kept introducing new laws and state that new versions of the vaccine were on the way. They had no intention of ceasing this farcical imposition during the "pandemic".

Little wonder why people are confused, cynical or fearful.

This is one reason why I keep telling people everywhere to conduct their own investigations and to trust no one, other than the Lord. We need truth and stability and the only source for such is God, who does not change.

With Shemittah, God provided by supernatural means for the requirements of His people for one whole year. Every seven years, this process was repeated and people knew precisely where they stood. They did not need anyone to interpret His meaning. It is a simple, “do this” or “do not do that”. This was His command in the garden and that was questioned.

If we can return somehow to the simple fact that He knows best and has a plan for everything and that it is a good one, we would be much better off. By His command they were not permitted to work as we understand work. They had to leave the natural food supplies alone and let the produce grow by itself. They had no vaccinations! They did not have the pharmaceutical supplies or chemicals on which we have become dependent. Everything was natural. They needed nothing and lived well.

Perhaps there is a “great reset” being planned by evil men, but I do not want to be too embroiled in the possibilities of that.

I am more interested in what God is doing. The reset that interests me is the one that God is orchestrating.

He said that He intends to shake everything until everything that can be shaken will be shaken until there is nothing left to shake.

We should look more closely into this and please take note of my emphasis:

My child, don’t underestimate the value of the discipline and training of the Lord God, or get depressed when he has to correct you. For the Lord’s training of your life is the evidence of his faithful love. And when he draws you to himself, it proves you are his delightful child.” Fully embrace God’s correction as part of your training, for he is doing what any loving father does for his children. For who has ever heard of a child who never had to be corrected

We all should welcome God’s discipline as the validation of authentic sonship. For if we have never once endured his correction it only proves we are strangers and not sons.

And isn’t it true that we respect our earthly fathers even though they corrected and disciplined us? Then we should demonstrate an even greater respect for God, our spiritual Father, as we submit to his life-giving discipline.

Our parents corrected us for the short time of our childhood as it seemed good to them. But God corrects us throughout our lives for our own good, giving us an invitation to share his holiness.

Now all discipline seems to be more pain than pleasure at the time, yet later it will produce a transformation of character, bringing a harvest of righteousness and peace to those who yield to it.

So be made strong even in your weakness by lifting up your tired hands in prayer and worship. And strengthen your weak knees, for as you keep walking forward on God’s paths all your stumbling ways will be divinely healed!

In every relationship be swift to choose peace over competition, and run swiftly toward holiness, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord. Watch over each other to make sure that no one misses the revelation of God’s grace. And make sure no one lives with a root of bitterness sprouting within them which will only cause trouble and poison the hearts of many.

Be careful that no one among you lives in immorality, becoming careless about God’s blessings, like Esau who traded away his rights as the firstborn for a simple meal. And we know that later on when he wanted to inherit his father’s blessing, he was turned away, even though he begged for it with bitter tears, for it was too late then to repent.

For we are not coming, as Moses did, to a physical mountain with its burning fire, thick clouds of darkness and gloom, and with a raging whirlwind. We are not those who are being warned by the jarring blast of a trumpet and the thundering voice; the fearful voice that they begged to be silenced. They couldn’t handle God’s command that said, “If so much as an animal approaches the mountain it is to be stoned to death!”

The astounding phenomena Moses witnessed caused him to shudder with fear and he could only say, “I am trembling in terror!”

By contrast, we have already come near to God in a totally different realm, the Zion-realm, for we have entered the city of the Living God, which is the New Jerusalem in heaven! We have joined the festal gathering of myriads of angels in their joyous celebration! And as members of the church of the Firstborn all our names have been legally registered as citizens of heaven! And we have come before God who judges all, and who lives among the spirits of the righteous who have been made perfect in his eyes!

And we have come to Jesus who established a new covenant with his blood sprinkled upon the mercy seat; blood that continues to speak from heaven, “forgiveness,” a better message than Abel’s blood that cries from the earth, “justice.”

Make very sure that you never refuse to listen to God when he speaks! For the God who spoke on earth from Sinai is the same God who now speaks from heaven. Those who heard him speak his living Word on earth found nowhere to hide, so what chance is there for us to escape if we turn our backs on God and refuse to hear his warnings as he speaks from heaven?

The earth was rocked at the sound of his voice from the mountain, but now he has promised,

“Once and for all I will not only shake the systems of the world, but also the unseen powers in the heavenly realm!”

Now this phrase “once and for all” clearly indicates the final removal of things that are shaking, that is, the old order, so only what is unshakeable will remain. Since we are receiving our rights to an unshakeable kingdom we should be extremely thankful and offer God the purest worship that delights his heart as we lay down our lives in absolute surrender, filled with awe. For our God is a holy, devouring fire! Hebrews 12:5-29

This shaking seems to be happening. It almost seems at times as if we are waiting for something to happen.

We know it is coming, but might not be fully aware of what it is, but when it happens the shockwave will have a rippling affect that will go all around the world. This is just as true in the natural as it is in the spiritual. It is estimated that the plume from the Tongan volcano is estimated to have reached approximately 35 kilometers high. Under certain conditions a volcanic explosion like this can temporarily cool the atmosphere of the entire planet. The recent Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha’apai eruption was heard as far away as Alaska! Tsunami warnings were issued from the California coast to the East coast of Australia. Sometimes a deep rumbling sound is heard from deep within the earth before an earthquake and the shockwaves can reach far and wide from the actual fault.

Such rippling affects do occur in the spirit realm.

You and I never met Adam and Eve in person, but what they did affected us.

Saul of Tarsus was killing believers thinking that he was doing God a favor until Jesus transformed him and after that the man we now know as Paul wrote most of the New Testament. You might not be aware of it, but he wanted to quit, saying in essence that dying was gain as he could leave his physical body to go home to be with the Lord, but he chose to remain after the Lord ministered to him as he was in the Mamertime prison in Rome. He told us in Romans 8:13-31:

I am convinced that any suffering we endure is less than nothing compared to the magnitude of glory that is about to be unveiled within us. The entire universe is standing on tiptoe, yearning to see the unveiling of God’s glorious sons and daughters!

For against its will the universe itself has had to endure the empty futility resulting from the consequences of human sin.

But now, with eager expectation, all creation longs for freedom from its slavery to decay and to experience with us the wonderful freedom coming to God’s children. To this day we are aware of the universal agony and groaning of creation, as if it were in the contractions of labor for childbirth. And it’s not just creation. We who have already experienced the firstfruits of the Spirit also inwardly groan as we passionately long to experience our full status as God’s sons and daughters—including our physical bodies being transformed. For this is the hope of our salvation.

But hope means that we must trust and wait for what is still unseen. For why would we need to hope for something we already have? So because our hope is set on what is yet to be seen, we patiently keep on waiting for its fulfillment.

And in a similar way, the Holy Spirit takes hold of us in our human frailty to empower us in our weakness. For example, at times we don’t even know how to pray, or know the best things to ask for. But the Holy Spirit rises up within us to super-intercede on our behalf, pleading to God with emotional sighs too deep for words.

God, the searcher of the heart, knows fully our longings, yet he also understands the desires of the Spirit, because the Holy Spirit passionately pleads before God for us, his holy ones, in perfect harmony with God’s plan and our destiny.

So we are convinced that every detail of our lives is continually woven together to fit into God’s perfect plan of bringing good into our lives, for we are his lovers who have been called to fulfill his designed purpose.

For he knew all about us before we were born and he destined us from the beginning to share the likeness of his Son.

This means the Son is the oldest among a vast family of brothers and sisters who will become just like him.

Having determined our destiny ahead of time, he called us to himself and transferred his perfect righteousness to everyone he called. And those who possess his perfect righteousness he co-glorified with his Son!

So, what does all this mean? If God has determined to stand with us, tell me, who then could ever stand against us?

I have heard it said that we are saved; we are being saved and we shall be saved and from such scriptures already shared, we live in a state of expectancy and hope. In Deuteronomy 29:29, Moses said that there are two kinds of things to consider—those that are concealed and those that are revealed. Obviously, we need to know what God wants us to know. These are the things that have been revealed, but there are things at a given moment in time that He has not yet revealed—but shall do so at the appropriate time. In such instances, it would be foolish to try digging for information God does not want us to know—yet, but He could reveal them later.

Many people spend vast amounts of time and energy looking at things and in so doing, cease making the Holy Spirit their source of truth and that is idolatry. God can lead us in our search processes of course, but in His time and in His own way.

There have been times I have asked the Lord certain questions to which He has politely to me to mind my own business, but at a future date, suddenly reminds me of my question and provides the answer I need—not necessarily what I seek...

Some people once asked me way back in the mid1970 era what the white stone and hidden manna seen in Revelation meant.

I knew that the hidden manna speaks about revelation and understanding, but I did not have any understanding of the significance of the white stone. It was in the early 1990 period when the Lord suddenly reminded me one evening of my question and explained it.

When someone faced a judge in court, the evidence was presented and he made a ruling. He had one white stone and one black stone in his possession. If he presented the black stone, it meant that this person was found guilty. If he presented the white stone, the person was found to be innocent and acquitted. We have been acquitted of the sin principle, but that is only the start. We have to maintain the relationship and grow to full maturity. This was said in the context of Jesus’ message to the seven churches:

He who is able to hear, let him listen to and heed what the Spirit says to the assemblies (churches). To him who overcomes (conquers), I will give to eat of the manna that is hidden, and I will give him a white stone with a new name engraved on the stone, which no one knows or understands except he who receives it. Revelation 2:17. See also Isaiah 62.

God is talking to His people today and it is up to us to both listen and to take notice. The Lord was addressing believers—not the heathen. John the baptist came to God’s people first—not the heathen. In Isaiah 62 and elsewhere, God has stated that He has appointed watchmen who “stand on the wall” and proclaim truth. God does not want us to be misinformed, but we often cannot see what He is trying to show us. There are many reasons of course, but as we see in the seven churches in Revelation they had either stopped listening, or had allowed their eyes to turn elsewhere. It’s natural human nature. It is far simpler to hold onto church traditions and our established habit patterns—in all kinds of church groups from mega churches to a modest 2-person church; from a traditional and orthodox church to a “full gospel church”—and in so doing, not meet His criteria. These were churches! In Revelation 3:20, He was asking for that church to allow Him to come in! If those seven churches represent churches of our day where do we really stand?

Confusion is rapidly increasing today and confusion often comes when people want to know things that cannot be known, should be known but do not see it, or wanting to know things prematurely. Some people who say that they are “Christians” have not yet done what God has already asked them, but are seeking things in advance, having ignored or discarded those previous instructions. It is not a matter of what one believes, but of being in the right place, doing the right things and doing them at the right time that matters.

The precedents are there. The commandments of the Lord are there and the bible has many testimonials to attest what I say.

When God provided the manna in the wilderness, He instructed each individual had to collect only as much as was needed for that day. The pastor, the worship minister or the priest could not do it for them. Each person had to do it for themselves. If they took too much or hoarded it, the worms ate it or it went rotten—but on Shabbat (the 7th day), they could collect double and everything was OK. God’s law, or principle worked in exactly the same way as it was designed to work. What they gathered was the Omer.

The word Omer means sheaf. We first see this in Exodus 16 when God provided quail and manna. In Hebrew, counting the Omer is known as sefirat ha-Omer. It has enormous significance to us.

The Lord spoke to Moses: “I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Speak to them and say: By evening you shall eat flesh, and in the morning you shall have your fill of bread; and you shall know that I the Lord am your God.”

In the evening quail appeared and covered the camp; in the morning there was a fall of dew about the camp. When the fall of dew lifted, there, over the surface of the wilderness, lay a fine and flaky substance, as fine as frost on the ground. When the Israelites saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?”—for they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, “That is the bread which the Lord has given you to eat.

This is what the Lord has commanded: Gather as much of it as each of you requires to eat, an omer to a person for as many of you as there are; each of you shall fetch for those in his tent.”

The Israelites did so, some gathering much, some little. But when they measured it by the omer, he who had gathered much had no excess, and he who had gathered little had no deficiency: they had gathered as much as they needed to eat.

And Moses said to them, “Let no one leave any of it over until morning.” But they paid no attention to Moses; some of them left of it until morning, and it became infested with maggots and stank. And Moses was angry with them.

So they gathered it every morning, each as much as he needed to eat; for when the sun grew hot, it would melt.

On the sixth day they gathered double the amount of food, two omers for each; and when all the chieftains of the community came and told Moses, he said to them, “This is what the Lord meant: Tomorrow is a day of rest, a holy sabbath of the Lord. Bake what you would bake and boil what you would boil; and all that is left put aside to be kept until morning.”

So they put it aside until morning, as Moses had ordered; and it did not turn foul, and there were no maggots in it.

Then Moses said, “Eat it today, for today is a sabbath of the Lord; you will not find it today on the plain.

Six days you shall gather it; on the seventh day, the sabbath, there will be none.”

Yet some of the people went out on the seventh day to gather, but they found nothing.

And the Lord said to Moses, “How long will you men refuse to obey My commandments and My teachings?

Mark that the Lord has given you the sabbath; therefore He gives you two days’ food on the sixth day. Let everyone remain where he is: let no one leave his place on the seventh day.” So the people remained inactive on the seventh day.

The house of Israel named it manna; it was like coriander seed, white, and it tasted like wafers in honey.

Moses said, “This is what the Lord has commanded: Let one omer of it be kept throughout the ages, in order that they may see the bread that I fed you in the wilderness when I brought you out from the land of Egypt.” And Moses said to Aaron, “Take a jar, put one omer of manna in it, and place it before the Lord, to be kept throughout the ages.” As the Lord had commanded Moses, Aaron placed it before the Pact, to be kept. And the Israelites ate manna forty years, until they came to a settled land; they ate the manna until they came to the border of the land of Canaan. The omer is a tenth of an ephah.