Give these instructions to the church. 1 Ti 5:7 through 16.

 When we finished 1 Timothy 5:6 we were given these instructions. Ignore the fact that it seems to speak only to widows because it does not.

But the widow who lives only for pleasure is spiritually dead even while she lives. NLT

Anyone, who is living purely for their own pleasure is spiritually dead.

Notice what Paul says in his letter to the church in Rome.

"The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body, God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins.

He did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for us, who no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit.

Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit.

So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death.

But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace.

For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God’s laws, and it never will. That’s why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God.

But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you.

(And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.)

And Christ lives within you, so even though your body will die because of sin, the Spirit gives you life because you have been made right with God.

The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you.

And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you."

(Romans 8:3-11 NLT)

Paul tells Timothy

Give orders to this effect, so that no evil may be said of anyone. 1 Timothy 5:7 BBE

Again, why would Paul have to say, the person “who lives only for pleasure is spiritually dead even while they live”?

Verse 7, as you can see above, tells us that Paul does not want anyone to be able to speak evil of us. In the current environment in which we live, the liberals seem to have the leisure to make things up, but not necessarily. An example of this very thing came to me recently, from Pastor JD Farag. In his message entitled, “Godless Chatter - 1 Timothy 6:20-21 – November 1st, 2020.” Pastor JD spoke about the things we have shared on social media, and he spoke specifically about Presidential candidate Joe Biden and his son, and how Christ died for them as well. Apparently, he has read some of our posts, and it caused him to cry, as he believes that many of us would have a difficult time leading anyone to Jesus based on how we have excoriated the Biden's.

I am aware of the repercussions of slanderous statements but sharing well-known evidence against persons who are actively pursuing illegal actions; and, even worse, live in unflinching denial of those facts, seems reasonable to me.

Does what I say mean that the father and son team should not be exposed?

Not if they are going to continue to boldly lie about their actions while calling the current President an evil man. If the Biden's repented of their actions and turned their lives over to Jesus Christ, I believe I could say, they are Christians; none of that, however, makes them safe. My goodness, we have to give the tree time to produce good fruit. Does that make sense to you?

Paul continues this focus on the widows until we reach verse 16.

1 Timothy 5:8 NLT But those who won’t care for their relatives, especially those in their own household, have denied the true faith. Such people are worse than unbelievers.

Television shows are frequently based on reality, and so the reality is that families have ignored caring for their relatives. If you have ever seen the movie, Christmas Vacation, with Chevy Chase and Randy Quaid, you might understand why you might want to deny care for some of your relatives. The NLT does not make it clear, as it appears that these relatives have denied the true faith; but that is not the case, as translations, such as the CEV, point out that it is us who have given up the faith, and are worse than someone who doesn't have faith in the Lord.

1 Timothy 5:9-10 CEV For a widow to be put on the list of widows, she must be at least sixty years old, and she must have been faithful in marriage. (10) She must also be well-known for doing all sorts of good things, such as raising children, giving food to strangers, welcoming God's people into her home, helping people in need, and always making herself useful.

Why are there stipulations, such as being at least sixty years old; faithful in marriage; having raised her children well, and faithful in taking care of strangers?

Because it shows faithfulness and a Godly attitude. Children raised by someone like this, would, because of their teaching, take care of their mother. Why even the strangers, because of her faithfulness, would then take care of this dear lady, as well. The bottom line, this was the closest thing there was to social security.

1 Timothy 5:11-15 CEV Don't put young widows on the list. They may later have a strong desire to get married. Then they will turn away from Christ (12) and become guilty of breaking their promise to him. (13) Besides, they will become lazy and get into the habit of going from house to house. Next, they will start gossiping and become busybodies, talking about things that are none of their business. (14) I would prefer that young widows get married, have children, and look after their families. Then the enemy won't have any reason to say insulting things about us. (15) Look what's already happened to some of the young widows! They have turned away to follow Satan.

To say, just because they get married, they will turn away from Christ, can apply to most of us men as well.

Does marriage make you lazy?

No, the laziness has to already be there; either that or one or the other has massive co-dependency issues.

Choosing to be a busybody and gossip, is a choice to get involved in things that are NONE of your business. See, these younger ladies can get remarried, have children, and be supported, in time, by family. Paul's underlying motivation is that the enemy has no accusation against you because it can turn some away to follow Satan.

1 Timothy 5:16 NLT If a woman who is a believer has relatives who are widows, she must take care of them and not put the responsibility on the church. Then the church can care for the widows who are truly alone.

Another example of this last verse came from the historian, William J. Federer, who spoke on “Socialism: The Real History, From Plato to the Present.” In his recent talk at Calvary Chapel Chino Hills, he spoke about how that families and the church were the social systems of the day. Sadly, we turned that authority over to the government, which destroyed it and our freedom.

The Hypocrisy of Liars, 1Timothy 4:1- 5.

 We closed out 1 Timothy chapter three with words meant to establish us and fill our hearts with faith. These words also define who Jesus is and give us words of strength and trust to share with others.

Why then, is there a need to open this fourth chapter of 1  Timothy by telling the young church leader - a young man that Paul treats as a son, that there will not only be those who turn away from what we believe, but they will work their way back into the church and start teaching in resistance to what Paul has taught?

A question such as this would only be valid if Timothy had not experienced demonic resistance such as this. Paul had already experienced this very thing, and, as we will see, the Spirit of God had spoken to him about the depravity and how those in the early church were not going to have to wait for two thousand years to experience this apostasy.

[As a side note, the mere usage of the term apostasy has many saying, Ah yes, that is the sign we were looking for. You need to know two things: 1. It is not your sign, and 2. We, those who thought we were sensible,  reading our bibles, could see that 2 Thessalonians 2:3 calls for a falling away of the church. The problem is that lying hypocrites got into the church and intentionally changed the meaning of the word apostasia to suit their momentary need. The Geneva Bible is one of the earliest translations, and they translated apostasia correctly and used the word a departing. That departing is the catching away of the church.] 

To make this report of Paul's even worse, the NLT, Paul calls them hypocrites that follow after deceptive spirits and teachings that come from demons.

I told you one of the prime examples that we, as citizens, who enjoy a civil society, have to deal with is BLM inc. Founded by a Lesbian Marxist, BLM’s leadership consult with the dead for their daily direction. In doing this, they are following the teachings of demons.

But what if many of these people who have turned away from sound teachings are not so dramatic?

1 Timothy 4:1-5 ERV  The Spirit clearly says that in the last times, some will turn away from what we believe. They will obey spirits that tell lies. And they will follow the teachings of demons. (2) Those teachings come through people who tell lies and trick others. These evil people cannot see what is right and what is wrong. It is like their conscience has been destroyed with a hot iron. (3) They say that it is wrong to marry. And they say that there are some foods that people must not eat. But God made these foods, and those who believe and who understand the truth can eat them with thanks. (4) Everything that God made is good. Nothing he made should be refused if it is accepted with thanks to him. (5) Everything he created is made holy by what he has said and by prayer.

What was Paul trying to say when he said, "the Spirit expressly says."?

Many would say (if they were willing to be vulnerable) that they have no idea what it is like having the Spirit speak to them.

Since the Spirit is closely associated with wisdom, and we see wisdom spoken of in the Proverbs, then perhaps the voice of the Spirit sounds much like what we perceive as wisdom, which was way before the advent of fortune cookies. So we are talking about the voices that you comprehend to be in your head. Look at the words of Solomon, one of the wisest men on earth at the time.

“Wisdom calls aloud in the open air and raises her voice in the public places;” Proverbs 1:20 CJB

I happen to believe that the Holy Spirit frequently speaks to us, but because we are so attuned to the voices in our head, we think that thought or idea was our own and therefore dismiss the possibility that God could or would be talking to us.

We cannot get away from Paul - who, by his own admission, was an expert in the Old Testament. Therefore he must be referring to scriptures that will establish a viable witness for us. It’s either that or Paul, refers to the faith fathers, such as Abram, Moses, and Samuel, to name a few, to validate how God speaks to us.

2 Chronicles 15:2 does convey the idea that God is with you, along with His voice, but it does not explain how Paul could say that “the Spirit expressly says.”

“...the Lord is with you while you are with Him. If you seek Him [inquiring for and of Him, craving Him as your soul's first necessity], He will be found by you;...” (2 Chronicles 15:2b AMP)

And, this verse opens the door of explanation as to why He may not be talking to you, as you make NO effort to be with Him.

Unfortunately, 1 Timothy 4:1 is the only place we find the Greek word rhētōs used in scripture, so I cannot fall back on another scripture for my reference.

The word expressly, or explicitly is the Greek word rhētōs and means to express in words.

Webster’s dictionary defines the word explicitly as an adverb, which means to speak plainly, expressly, without duplicity, or disguise or reservation of meaning, not by inference or implication.

AVOW', is to declare openly, or simply to own.

Where else do we see this level of openness and honesty?

In God's conversations with Abram, where God would say, “as for Me,” God showed His character, as he declared openly, and He owned what He said by saying, He swore by Himself.

“Such teachings come from the hypocrisy of liars whose own consciences have been burned, as if with a red-hot branding iron.” 1 Timothy 4:2 CJB

A fitting quote from Dr. J. Vernon McGee.

“'Speaking lies in hypocrisy.' The apostate will pretend to be very pious and very religious. I have come to be suspicious of this pious position taken by super-duper saints who claim to have something special. My friend, if you do have the truth, it will make you humble because the first thing you will find out is how little you know.”

Hypocrisy is the Greek word hupokrisis and means acting under a feigned part.

You might say, as some do, are you kidding me! You're telling me that these people were faking it the entire time. On a personal note, several of my grandchildren have a daddy who did all the appropriate, religious actions, tears and baptism included; however, every time I encounter a study like this, I think of him. It sure seems like what he did was just an act.

Paul, in verse two, speaks of “their conscience being seared.” If this were literal, nerve endings would be burned off, and scarring would have taken place. In the surgical arena, they use a device that simultaneously cuts and seals, but nerves inevitably become damaged in the process.

1 Timothy 4:3-5 NASB “men who forbid marriage and advocate abstaining from foods which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth. (4) For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with gratitude; (5) for it is sanctified by means of the word of God and prayer.”

The opportunity for people who come to the Lord, to become legalistic is an opportunity looking for a victim; this happens within the “faith movement.” Having been in the faith camp for several years, I would have fought with you, saying, NO, they are not because we only teach the Bible. To be honest, my first response is to say; Paul is talking about Jews. This assertion is probably valid as Paul, for many years, made his first stop in the synagogues, where he preached this gospel of Jesus Christ. The Jews, still to this day, abstain from certain foods; for example, they have no room for a pulled pork sandwich. Paul wrote about this very thing in his letter to the church in Rome.

As you read the passage, consider how your liberty could cause someone else to stumble. This life in Christ is not about living a legalistic life; it’s about consideration.

“I know and am convinced in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself; but to him who thinks anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean. For if because of food, your brother is hurt, you are no longer walking according to love. Do not destroy with your food him for whom Christ died. Therefore do not let what is for you a good thing be spoken of as evil; for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. For he who in this way serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men. So then we pursue the things which make for peace and the building up of one another. Do not tear down the work of God for the sake of food. All things indeed are clean, but they are evil for the man who eats and gives offense. It is good not to eat meat or to drink wine or to do anything by which your brother stumbles. The faith which you have, have as your own conviction before God. Happy is he who does not condemn himself in what he approves. But he who doubts is condemned if he eats because his eating is not from faith, and whatever is not from faith is sin.” (Romans 14:14-23 NASB)

The word destroy is the Greek word apollumi and has a wide range of meanings: to destroy fully, or lose. But also figuratively mar.

According to Webster’s dictionary, MAR is to injure by cutting off a part or to wound and make defective.

Do you see not only what the hypocrites can do, but what we, with our religious freedoms, can do to others?

 

Suffering compared with glory. Romans 8:18-30.

My first thought, the Glory of God's presence, is something I can only vaguely describe, and all I understand of heaven boils down to one simple word, peace. So, there truly is no comparison, especially those who sit beside me in church on Sunday, think they are having the roughest time if their finger breaks through the toilet paper.

Romans 8:18 NASB For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.

Sufferings is the Greek word pathēma which means something undergone, such as hardship or pain.

The “Me” in this sentence is Jesus Christ, with our lives centered on our relationship with Him.

The context is divided, but for the moment, we are focused on the sufferings.

So in what ways do we undergo hardship or pain?

Matthew 5:11-12 NASB "Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. (12) "Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for, in the same way, they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

People will insult you, persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because you have the life of Christ in you. Sadly, the majority of people are religious people.

Is that all? Hardly, as Paul, suffered the loss of all things.

Philippians 3:8 NASB More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ,

Jesus, on the other hand, was beaten beyond recognition and then placed on a cross to die.

An interesting point of view comes from the William's translation.

Romans 8:18 Williams  For I consider all that we suffer in this present life is nothing to be compared with the glory which by-and-by is to be uncovered for us.

Daniel, the Prophet, knew this all too well. He was taken into Babylon's captivity, from among the best of best of Israel, at a time when he would have been looking forward to being married, educated and leading his nation. Nebuchadnezzar would have had him castrated. The purpose behind that is to eliminate the sex drive, destroy Daniel's chance of ever entering a synagogue again, and to have a severe and lasting impact on any thought of you escaping. Did it work? Absolutely.

All of these examples demonstrated that they understood the context; that there is a future hope for those who have placed their life in Christ Jesus. Now, what specifically that future hope comprises is up for debate, but the one thing we know for sure, we get to spend eternity wrapped up in God's love.

In the case of Jesus, we have Hebrews 12.

Hebrews 12:2 NET. “keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the pioneer, and perfecter of our faith. For the joy set out for him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Jesus submitted himself to the cross because He knew the joy that would come out of His actions.

Romans 8:19-22 NLT  For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are.  (20)  Against its will, all creation was subjected to God’s curse. But with eager hope,  (21)  the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay.  (22)  For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.

Breaking down verses 19-22.

• Verse 19) points out that, “All creation eagerly awaits that future day when God will reveal who His children are.”
  This idea of creation should take us back to Genesis; for there, we see creation. The understanding is that all created things: plant life, rocks, the heavens, and all of creation, have longed to see the day of the Lord.
  
  
  Hosea 2:18 NASB "In that day I will also make a covenant for them With the beasts of the field, The birds of the sky And the creeping things of the ground. And I will abolish the bow, the sword, and war from the land, And will make them lie down in safety.
  
  
  The Psalms speak of this final time of peace.
  Psalms 96:10-13 NASB Say among the nations, "The LORD reigns; Indeed, the world is firmly established, it will not be moved; He will judge the peoples with equity." (11) Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; Let the sea roar, and all it contains; (12) Let the field exult, and all that is in it. Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy (13) Before the LORD, for He is coming, For He is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness And the peoples in His faithfulness.
  
  
  Look at this word judge for a moment.
  We all seem to have massive, constant, and negative perceptions about the word judge and the actions it potentially represents. Here, in the Old Testament, it is the Hebrew word shâphaṭ and means to pronounce sentence (for or against); by implication to vindicate or punish.
  Isn't that what any court should do? Vindicate or punish. Since the earth is simply the innocent victim of our human “modernization,” then the context leans heavily toward a vindication of the planet.
  
  
  Here is an example: 

  

  Louisiana's Cancer Alley

  All along the Mississippi river industries have dumped deadly pollutants, which permeates the surrounding land and groundwater. My current pastor made us aware of this when he talked about becoming aware that he had moved his family into this deadly area. People all along this stretch, have cancers.
  
  Now, how would God judge the land in this case?
  He would judge in favor of the land and demand restitution. Since man cannot fix this mess, He will, and we see this action in prophetic words throughout scripture.
  
  
• Verse 20) tells us, “For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it,”
  This speaks to the proper judgment that all creation must be subjected to. Everything was unwillingly subjected to destruction through Adam's actions. It's funny, but as a study group I was involved in began to consider what Paul wrote,
  Romans 5:14 NASB Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the offense of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come.
  
  
  A lady in the small group spoke up and said, why is it any of this stuff about Adam significant? To which I replied, there is nothing in scripture that is insignificant. If you don't comprehend the ramifications of Adam's actions, you will never grasp all that Jesus did and will do. Fortunately, for us, Romans 8:18-22 do just that as they begin to spell out a portion of God's judgment on behalf of the earth.
  
  
• Verse 21 NASB) “that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God.”
  Pay attention to the phrase; creation itself also will be set free from its slavery.
  If you recall, we went into this idea of slavery, in-depth. Paul used the horrific term, in reference to himself, as he opened his letter to the church in Rome. I spoke of how Paul was writing to a majority Jewish congregation. Therefore the word slavery was a word choice designed to make a monumental impact when they read it, for the Jews were foolish enough to say, “we have never been slaves!” What do you call the slavery they experienced in Egypt, or, how about that 70 years Babylon thing, an adventure? The point was, that slavery, in most cases, was less than a good thing, and always had negative connotations. So for Paul to call himself a slave was to voluntarily place himself under the total and complete control of Christ Jesus; and, he was calling for all believers to do the same. Now, Paul is pointing out that all of creation was involuntarily brought under the slavery of a new master, corruption, due to Adam's actions; however, it will all be freed by the glory of Jesus Christ.
  
  
• Verses 22, 23) “For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. And not only this but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body.”
  I can't hear it, and sometimes, for brief moments, I see the beauty of creation and wonder where the destruction is in this scenario. Let me give you an example: On several occasions, the family went to Yellowstone National Park. The Park is so big that it crosses through several northern states here in the United States. It is spectacular, and though the super-heated pools and geysers are deadly, they are intensely beautiful.
  
  
  What else does the verse tell us? 
  It tells us that we ourselves groan within ourselves, as we eagerly await for the redemption of our bodies. I am not sure what that groaning sounds like. My wife might tell you that I groan (in complaint) all the time, but I am not so sure that is what Paul is talking about. 
  Groan is the Greek word stenazō and means to sigh, murmur, pray inaudibly: - with grief, groan, grudge, sigh. 
  
  Now that I know what the word means I believe that I am an expert at this groaning thing.
  
  
  I want to touch on this idea that we “eagerly await our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body.”
  First, my adoption came the day I accepted Christ into my life; this is the same process that happened to you, if you accepted Christ (and all that He is.) So I am not sure I understand fully what this adoption process is all about. But that brings me to the second part, the part about the redemption of our bodies.
  I get this, I AM BROKEN, but I have Jesus and the Holy Spirit, and therefore I lean heavily upon them. When I do that, the most amazing things happen, and I get to see smiles on other broken faces. But clearly, there is something more, as this broken body and all its ramifications, will never go away unless something changes them. Fortunately, there is a day coming for the believer when this death associated with the earth, and the body will be done away.
  
  
  1 Corinthians 15:51-54 NASB (51) Behold, I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed, (52) 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 will be changed. (53) For this, perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality. (54) But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, "DEATH IS SWALLOWED UP in victory.
  Thank you, Jesus!!!

The peace that often comes when I submit myself to the instruction of the Holy Spirit is, to say the least, peaceful. But it only takes a moment, in some cases, for some self-righteous person to immediately try to admonish me and bring me back to earth. 

Again, I will explain.

One Sunday evening, several years ago, I went back to the church I grew up in. The pastor speaking that night had played a positive role in my life years ago, and he knows me. When the pastor ended his message that evening, he said, if you have had a miracle in your life, come down front and make yourself available to pray for someone else to have a miracle in their life, and so I did that.

Yes, there is a little timidity when doing things like that, but you have to override the fear knowing that it is the brokenness and the enemy trying to keep you down when that happens. I often see myself as a big grizzly bear, and so I am not surprised that many avoid me, and that was happening this night. As I stood there, I began to scan the room; the Holy Spirit said, that one, go and get them, and so a second later, when the wife made eye contact, I motioned with my finger for them to come down. I laugh now as I think about the rapid chain of events that transpired. She turned to her husband, who looked back at me. A quick conversation ensued, but the hesitation was there. This all transpired in a few seconds, but that is when I heard the Holy Spirit, once again say, go get them, and so I did. At this point, they came rapidly. There must have been three or more; I did not count, as I was listening to the Holy Spirit and I was a little distracted. When we got back to the front again, I told them what I heard the Holy Spirit saying to me, and prayed over the two adults. We laughed, we cried, and it was amazing. I smiled like I couldn't stop, and shortly they went back to their seats, as did I.

Here is where self-righteous altar policewoman kicked into action. She came barreling across the front of the church and said to me, “who gave you the right to come down here and pray for people?” Can you imagine all the rapid-fire gut reactions I felt? I hesitated, it is often the best thing you can do in a pressure moment, and it will save your hide because your flesh will get you thrown in jail if you give it control. I said to her, he did, and I pointed at the pastor. She replied, well, you have to go through down front prayer training to do this! I glared back, and in a second, she walked away frustrated.

So, when it comes to the redemption of this body, there has to be something more, something that this broken body no longer understands. This brokenness goes back to Adam. Keep in mind my comment; if you don't comprehend the magnitude of what Adam did, you will never understand what Jesus did and is about to do.

What we are looking for is what we call and consider our HOPE.

Romans 8:24-25 NASB For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees? (25) But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance, we wait eagerly for it.


• “We hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.”
  We can't see it, and yet we long for it. What is it, this hope? His lovingkindness. Now honestly, that word deserves an explanation; however, it is too long for this expose' for it entails the entirety of scripture. It is the tale, much like the Chronicles of Narnia, the grand adventure that awaits us.
  
  
  Psalms 33:16-18 NASB The king is not saved by a mighty army; A warrior is not delivered by great strength. (17) A horse is a false hope for victory; Nor does it deliver anyone by its great strength. (18) Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear Him, On those who hope for His lovingkindness,
  
  
  What our hearts also long for is redemption.
  Psalms 130:7 NASB O Israel, hope in the LORD; For with the LORD there is lovingkindness, And with Him is abundant redemption.
  
  
  The conclusion of our lives here on the earth is a protection and peace from this onslaught of brokenness and destruction. 
  Proverbs 14:32 NASB The wicked is thrust down by his wrongdoing, But the righteous has a refuge when he dies.
  
  
  Some have stated that in heaven, we will have work. Work? Why does my mind see the pollutants involved with industry, such as: punching a clock, stress, some managerial dominance – such as I experienced, and a continuance of a lust based system of greed?  If the millennial reign has worked involved, how is it not based in this broken world system, as God restores double what you lost or did not have? 
  Zechariah 9:12 NASB Return to the stronghold, O prisoners who have the hope; This very day, I am declaring that I will restore double to you.
  This hope is beyond your wildest imagination.
  Ephesians 1:18 NASB I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,

If you don't know my Lord, you have no idea what you are missing, inexpressible Glory.

Romans 8:26-30 NASB In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; (27) and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. (28) And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. (29) For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; (30) and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.

Pertaining to Romans 8:26-30

Recently, somehow, the man-cave discussion turned to the Holy Spirit. The leader spoke about how he grew up in the Assemblies of God and how it was a mandate to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Perhaps that is true, and there was a definite push. Our experiences were similar, and we both let out some babble that we mimicked just to get some church lady off our backs.

Looking back, that was not the Holy Spirit. How do I know that? Because there was no power, and for another eight years, I remained powerless and fear-filled. The enemy continued for years to tell me that this prayer language stuff was nothing more than nonsense. I have learned to ignore that ugly voice, for I now know without a doubt that when I pray in the Spirit I am doing battle in the Spirit.

P.S. The leader of the man-cave told us, that in time, while out walking the dog around the neighborhood, he received the infilling of the Holy Spirit. Our resident cusser, merely continued to rant about how unnecessary and how bizarre the Holy Spirit is. I believe that we, the church, are the ones who made it bizarre by denying the power of the Holy Spirit.

Romans 8:26 NASB “In the same way, the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words;”
• “In the same way, the Spirit also helps our weakness;”
  Jude 1:20b. NASB building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit,
  Ephesians 6:18a. KJV  Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit,
  2 Corinthians 5:4a. NET. For we groan while we are in this tent since we are weighed down,
  John 11:38a. AMP Now Jesus, again sighing repeatedly and deeply disquieted, approached the tomb.
  [Most translations indicate that he groaned.]
  Romans 8:27 NASB and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
• “and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is,”
  1 Corinthians 2:10 NASB (10) For to us, God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God.
  Revelation 2:23b. MKJV  And all the churches will know that I am He who searches the reins and hearts,
  Hebrews 4:13 MKJV  Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in His sight, but all things are naked and opened to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.
  Acts 15:8 NASB "And God, who knows the heart, testified to them giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He also did to us; [They were surprised, as they thought the Holy Spirit was only for the Jews.]

Romans 8:28 NASB And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.

• “ God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God,”
  Joseph, now second in command in Egypt, speaks to his brothers.
  Genesis 50:19-20 NASB But Joseph said to them, "Do not be afraid, for am I in God's place? (20) "As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive.
  Psalms 119:71 NASB It is good for me that I was afflicted, That I may learn Your statutes.
  2 Corinthians 4:15 NASB (15) For all things are for your sakes, so that the grace which is spreading to more and more people may cause the giving of thanks to abound to the glory of God.

Romans 8:29 NASB For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren;

• “ For those whom He foreknew,”
  This verse seems to make many lose sleep, as they consider the possibility that God might not have chosen them.
  What if I told you that God chose everyone. John 3:16 bears that thought out.
  John 3:16 NASB "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.
  Does everyone that God poured out His life for believe in Him?
  No, they don't. God knew this would happen and yet, projecting hope, put His Son on the cross anyway.
  Psalms 1:6 NASB For the LORD knows the way of the righteous, But the way of the wicked will perish.
  They only perish because they choose to. Psalms 31:7 seems to indicate that God knows every little thing that is coming your way.
  Psalms 31:7 NASB I will rejoice and be glad in Your lovingkindness, Because You have seen my affliction; You have known the troubles of my soul,
• “He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son,”
  2 Peter 1:3 NASB seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him
  He has given us everything so that we stay conformed to the image of His Son.
  2 Corinthians 3:18 NASB (18) But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.
  “of His Son,” The light of the good news is the glory of Christ. He is the Word and has been from the very beginning of time.
  
  2 Corinthians 4:4 NASB in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

The Apostle Paul, though we don't focus on it very much, went through a tremendous amount of abuse, almost all of it at the hands of religious zealots who were trying to protect their traditions. We, here in the United States, have no clue as to what suffering looks like. Here it is mere days away from Christmas of 2019, and I have learned that over a thousand have died at the hands of religious zealots in Nigeria, but no one talks of this. Why not? Because someone is trying to protect their traditions and status quo.

But what does Paul say?

Romans 8:18 NASB For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.

Somewhere down the road, and I do not believe it is that far away, we will see this glory that Paul speaks of. Who can obtain this glory? Anyone who believes that Jesus Christ died on the cross for them. Paul ends this study with these words from Romans 8:29, 30.

For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified. (Romans 8:29-30 NASB)

It sounds like one could easily get left out of God's mercy, but that is not the case, as we were all predestined to be conformed. Sadly, many of us choose not to follow. I prefer to conform to His image.