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Daily Devotional, Year 2 – SEPTEMBER 23

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Flee To The Mountain!

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Part 7:

“Prosperity-Driven” Gospels!

TO READ PART 1, CLICK HERE… “May 30th (Flee To The Mountains!)”

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“And it came to pass,

when they had brought them forth abroad,

that He said, ‘Escape for thy life;

look not behind thee,

neither stay thou in all the plain;

escape to the mountain,

lest thou be consumed.'”

Genesis 19:17

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Picture – Lot Escapes Sodom – www.thebiblerevival.com offers free Bible clipart – Public Domain.

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This above verse from Genesis is the command and warning from God to Lot: Lot being the nephew of faithful Abraham. 

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Yes, God was going to destroy Sodom and its surrounding cities! Because Sodom had spurned God’s warnings, it had reached its day of the fierce judgment of Almighty God!

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And Lot and his family had unknowingly moved to a wicked city, merely for the sake of convenience, safety, and prosperity! But Lot came to despise the wickedness of city life!

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But by now, Lot was stuck there! His family, no doubt, learned to love the pleasures and conveniences which an opulent city afforded them. And they grew insensitive to the prevailing wickedness of that city!

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And their consciences became blunted by the daily association with sin, as is written… “Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners.” 1st Corinthians 15:33.

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Picture – Lot Escapes Sodom – www.thebiblerevival.com offers free Bible clipart – Public Domain.

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LOT, THE PROGENITOR OF ‘PROSPERITY GOSPELS?’

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Yes, as the sad account of Lot and his decision to live close to the Sodomites, for prosperity’s sake, one might imagine that Lot was the progenitor of the modern-day prosperity-driven gospels.

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And while he took his family to that rich fertile valley in hopes of becoming financially prosperous, yet in the end, only escaped as it were through the fire of Sodom’s Judgment Day.

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Lot Flees Sodom – by Benjamin West – www.christimages.org – US Public Domain

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PSALM 73

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Now listen to this following Psalm and how another of God’s servants likewise coveted the prosperity of this world…

“But as for me, my feet were almost gone;

my steps had well-nigh slipped.

For I was envious at the foolish,

when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.”

Psalm 73:2, 3  

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Here we have a testimony which many Christians can relate to!

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Especially in today’s cornucopian societies, it’s so easy to envy those who prosper in the world.

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New York Times Square – terabass – cropped image – Wikipedia – Share-alike License

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PSALM 73 CONTINUES…

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And listen as the Psalmist continues concerning those who prosper in the world…

“For there are no bands in their death:

but their strength is firm.

They are not in trouble as other men;

neither are they plagued like other men.

Therefore pride compasseth them about as a chain;

violence covereth them as a garment.

Their eyes stand out with fatness:

they have more than heart could wish…

Behold, these are the ungodly,

who prosper in the world;

they increase in riches.”

Psalm 73:4-7, 12

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Oh yes, these prosperity ideologies may be fine for the people of the world to pursue, but the Christian’s great focus and chief desire is now to be Heavenward, seeking to be transformed into the image of Christ.

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Yes, whether it is those so-called “Name-it-and-claim-it” gospels in the liberal churches, or the “entrepreneurial spirit” in the more conservative ones.

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Audience hands – cropped & altered – Wikimedia – Universal Public Domain

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IGNORING THOSE IN NEED

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We live in a world in which there are many people who are suffering deep poverty.

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And so, for those so-called Christians who strive to increase earthly Mammon, the following passage from the New Testament aptly fits…

“Go to now, ye rich men,

weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you…

Your gold and silver is cankered;

and the rust of them shall be a witness against you,

and shall eat your flesh as it were fire.

Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days…

Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth,

and been wanton; ye have nourished your hearts,

as in a day of slaughter.”

James 5:1, 3, 5

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In this lost world there are many who are starving, not only for earthly bread, but also for the Bread of Life!

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Starving little girl – Wikipedia – Public Domain

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ABRAHAM & LOT: AN ALLEGORY

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You see, Abraham and Lot present an allegorical picture of two kinds of riches:

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1: Lot represents the earthly Mammon of living for this world,

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2: Abraham represents the spiritual riches obtained by letting go of this world and living for Heaven!

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Abraham & Lot Part ways – www.christianimagesource.com

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SODOM RISING UP AROUND US!

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But today’s Christians have for the most part gone after all the pleasures and cares and proud pursuits of this present Sodomitish world, instead of taking refuge in the holy mountain of God!

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And God has rewarded our prosperity-driven ambitions and our pleasure-driven pursuits by allowing Sodom to rise up all around us and our children. 

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How in the world can we and our children escape the evil influences which are creeping into our homes, via television, radio, and Internet?

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Oh, I may be able to resist these things! But how can my family resist them? These influences are literally everywhere! At school, in the home, and with our family, friends and neighbors!

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Well, God is faithful and has provided a way of escape!

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SAME ADVICE FOUND IN NEW TESTAMENT

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You see, God gives us the same remedy which He gave Lot…

“Escape for thy life; look not behind thee,

neither stay thou in all the plain;

escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed.”

Genesis 19:17

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Here we have the directions of where we can take refuge from the approaching storm.

Picture – Lot Escapes Sodom – www.thebiblerevival.com offers free Bible clipart – Public Domain.

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OUR HEAVENLY BREAD & LIVING WATERS ASSURED

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But we need not despair! We have this promise…

“And there shall be upon every high mountain,

and upon every high hill, rivers and streams of waters

in the day of the great slaughter,

when the towers fall.”

Isaiah 30:25 (parenthetical comments by website editor)

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Yes, we are assured by God that our spiritual needs will be supplied.

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And so, Dear Stranger & Pilgrim, it is time to make our Exodus out of this Egypt, land of darkness, and go up to the place of refuge which God has abundantly prepared for us! 

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Elakala Waterfalls Swirling Pool Mossy Rocks – cropped image – Wikimedia – Share-alike License

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TO READ PART 8, CLICK HERE…

OCTOBER 26 (Flee To The Mountains, Part 8: Dwelling With The Devouring Fire!)

Campfire Pinecone – Emeldil at English Wikipedia – Share-alike license

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TODAY’S PRAYER…

“Dear Lord, Help me to lift up my eyes from this world and fix them Heavenward. Keep me from going after the vain treasures and pleasures of this life…

Marine Praying – Wikimedia – USMC Public Domain

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READ MORE…

To explore deeper into this subject, please read…”June 23rd (The Natural Man’s Prosperity Gospel)”, or you can also read…“July 6th (Power of Positive Thinking Gospels & Conservative Gospels)”

Question book magnify svg – Wikimedia – GNU license

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THE END

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TODAY’S FEATURED HEAVENLY SIGN

Info & pics of constellations on this site from Wikipedia & International Astronomical Union (click here)

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VALLEY OF DECISION GROUP…

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THE VALLEY OF DECISION CONSTELLATION GROUP.

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They appear in mid-summer in the eastern skies in pre-dawn hours. These are made of Cassiopeia (mount on left), and various stars from the Andromeda Constellation (valley) Pegasus (Mount of Cursing (middle mount) & Destroying Mount (right)), and Pisces (Broad Way to Hell). The galaxy which appears to be climbing the Mountain of Blessing is the Andromeda Galaxy. 

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The above Wikipedia star-chart shows this amazing constellation group as it appears from June to fall, just prior to the winter constellation group. Actually, these Valley of Decision Constellations appear in early summer in the pre-dawn hours. (Editor of this website has sketched in this constellation group onto this above Wikipedia star-chart.)

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READ MORE…

To explore deeper into this subject, please read… The ‘Valley of Decision’ Constellation

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TOMORROW:

SEPTEMBER 24 (The Commandments of God, Part 3: Love Not The World!)

Anti-Christian rally in Chicago – Wikimedia – Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license 

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20+ MINUTE AUDIO JEREMIAH STUDY

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ALL ‘NOBLE BEREANS’ (open-minded seekers of Bible truth) ARE ENCOURAGED TO BEGIN FOLLOWING THIS 650+ AUDIO BIBLE STUDY THROUGH THE BOOK OF JEREMIAH EACH DAY ON THIS DAILY DEVOTIONAL. 

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THIS IS STUDY #631 PRESENTED BY THE LATE HAROLD CAMPING…

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Prophet Jeremiah – www.christianimagesource.com – Public Domain

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