Tag Archives: Bill Cloud
Who Made These Things?
Who Made These Things?
(#023 from Suffer Well Devotional Series©)
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Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. (James 1:17)
Love, peace, joy, contentment, patience, goodness, faithfulness, humility, wisdom, integrity, tenderness, and all other good things come down from Me, the Father of lights. You might be tempted to apprehend these things through your own selfish desires (James 1:14), but do not be deceived (v. 15); do not be enticed to believe they come from anywhere but Me.
What exactly are these things that your soul longs for? Yes My child, ask yourself. And in a sober moment you will realize that they all belong to Me. Each one was created to entice My children to enter My domain, to be as I Am. In other words, to search for the Kingdom of Heaven that is in you. (Luke 17:21) It is very risky to think you can gain access to any of these apart from Me? If you could, if anyone could partake apart from Me, then what did My Son die for, and how are your desires different from the pagans? No My child! These things are only for My children and obedience is the key that releases access to them within you.
Can a wicked man enjoy peace? Never! I will not allow that man to experience real peace (Isaiah 48:22). Can an adulterer have love? Never! I will not allow that perversion to stain My love. Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with [Me]? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of [Mine]. (James 4:4) Can a greedy man know contentment? How could he when greed takes the life of its owners (Proverbs 1:19)? Only the one who prospers in Me will know true contentment. Can a contentious woman know tenderness? It can never be, as she is like a continuous dripping that cannot be contained (Proverbs 27:15-16). My tenderness is for the contrite, which is a blessing reserved for My obedient children.
All things were made through [My Son], and without Him nothing was made that was made. (John 1:3) And He has become the open door that you might attain them. Those who do not know Him, and therefore Me, will never experience these spiritual blessings. They are reserved for My children only. But you cannot stand at the doorway; you must walk through it.
Do you need help? Ask and you shall receive. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. (Luke 11:10)
A Little Leaven Suffer Well
A Little Leaven
(#021 from Suffer Well Devotional Series©)
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Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed the Messiah, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. (1. Corinthians 5:6-7)
A Little Leaven…
Mom and dad fight and use angry words
The Lump
The children hear the fight and fear enters their hearts.
The fear turns to anger and then bitterness.
The children act out with rude behaviors toward friends.
Friends feel unloved and insecurity enters their hearts.
Friends tell their parents how they were treated badly.
They don’t want to play together anymore.
Even the friend’s parents build unhealthy mindsets towards the children.
Offenses destroy friendships!
The Lump
Mom shows impatience with store clerk due to anger at dad.
Store clerk gets upset, as she is tired of being treated badly by customers.
Store clerk yells at mom in frustration.
Boss hears of the account and fires store clerk on the spot.
Store clerk was a single mom who can no longer support her family.
She develops unhealthy fear, self-condemnation, and regret.
Fear destroys future opportunity!
The Lump
Dad neglects to show up at a vital business meeting due to frustration with mom.
Dad’s business partner takes over the meeting in a pinch.
The business partner is not prepared for meeting and loses a big account.
The partner becomes angry and bitter because the dad missed the key meeting.
The dad becomes angry and bitter because the partner is ill-prepared.
They have a huge blowout.
The future of the company and income for partners and all employees are in jeopardy.
Bitterness destroys lives and futures!
…leavens the whole lump!
It only takes a little leaven to leaven the whole lump (Galatians 5:9). That is a very dangerous thing if you use the leaven of the Pharisees: bad doctrine (Matthew 16:11), and hypocrisy (Luke 12:1). Therefore, purge out that old leaven. Instead of the leaven of the Pharisees, sprinkle the “leaven of the Kingdom” on your lump (Matthew 13:33). The Kingdom is righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit (Romans 14:17). Kingdom leaven will restore and preserve friendships; it will eliminate all doubt and fear; and it will neutralize bitterness with the sweet Fruit of the Spirit. Purge out that old leaven and hope is restored!
Two of You. Take Action!
Two of You
(#020 from Suffer Well Devotional Series©)
“Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.” (James 1:21-25)
It is in love that I come to both of you. Yes, although you are one person, your heart is certainly divided; you often forget what you look like in the mirror. I do not; I see both faces! And it might come as a surprise, but My mature children can see both faces as well. They can spot you through the mask and cannot be preyed upon like My younger sheep. Know this; I Am a fierce Shepherd and will not excuse the fleecing of My flock, especially My young defenseless ones.
Woe to you who praise Me before the multitudes and then steal from My people. And I don’t just mean money, but even more insidiously, the theft of truth. Woe to you “desiring to be teachers of the law, understanding neither what you say nor the things which you strongly affirm.” (1 Timothy 1:7) Woe to you who use Me to market your goods and increase the scales in your favor. Woe to you who use your “righteousness” to ravish My elect.
Who told you My punishment would be immediate? Who told you that My rod only manifests in ways you can perceive? Did you not believe Me when I warned, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay, and again, Yahweh will judge His people. It is a fearful thing, to fall into the hands of the living Mighty One?” (Hebrews 10:30-31)
Yes, I do desire mercy over sacrifice; however, I judge every wrong, as this is what I promised My Son I would do. And I will not shame His sacrifice as if I were a man and as if He were an animal. Let it never be said that I did not warn you that His shed blood only guarantees your eternity. That’s right, His blood has secured your eternity; but your daily choices secure My favor while you live. As it is written, “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?” (Romans 6:1-2) If you insist on living in sin, being a hearer and not a doer, My chastening is perfect and well deserved. When My right arm moves against you, it will correct your wrongs. Will you not repent and return to Me before then?
“For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of the Almighty rather than burnt offerings.” (Hosea 6:6) Yes, mercy over sacrifice is pleasant to your ears; of that I Am certain. It is your acknowledgement of all that I Am that is in question. If you had, you would be doers and not just hearers.
Broken Cisterns Equal a Broken Life
What fills us? What drives us? What helps us? The only answer we should have it, it’s not about what we want but what Yahweh wants. We must learn to deny ourself and follow Him.
Broken Cisterns
(#019 from Suffer Well Devotional Series©)
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“My people have committed two sins [evils]. They have forsaken Me, the fountain of Living Waters, and they have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water.” (Jeremiah 2:13)
Am I not I Am who points out transgressions in order to save you? Am I not I Am who sent My Son so that you would return to Me in repentance? Consider this before you readily entangle yourself with the world’s delicacies. My Son was sent to manifest My desire and to redeem a people unto Myself. This could only be done through a demonstration of My power (Ephesians 1:19-20). And, it is only by that power that you can overcome your disobedient choices to continually eat from My forbidden tree, the carnal desire for “free will.”
Stop! Listen! Think! Remember! It is I who draws you back to Me (John 12:32). It is I who chose you (John 15:16). Are you really so dull of mind to think you can fill your own cisterns and be satisfied? The abundance you long for, what will truly fulfill your soul’s desires, can never be “self” generated. I will ultimately dismantle anything that does not align with My will. The vessels I fill have no leak and no lack, and do not desire more than I freely give.
Loved one, I cannot be housed in unclean vessels. Dry bones (Ezekiel 37:1-14) will be your reward apart from Me, nothing but whitewashed tombs (Matthew 23:27). How joyful you were the day I found you. Now, you must count the cost of every thought and action (Luke 14:25-33); this is what I require from My children.
I call Heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live. (Deuteronomy 30:19) Stop trying to fill your own cisterns; they can never hold Living Water. Instead, choose life.
WARNING Beware of Tovia Singer Outreach Judaism
Rabbi Tovia Singer has a ministry called Outreach Judaism and tries to teach people Yeshua (Jesus) is not the Messiah. This video is a public call to repent to Tovia Singer and a warning.
Never a Robot! His BLOOD!
I am no longer a slave to sin. I am a child of God. HIs Blood has saved me. The life is in the blood. Are we following Yahweh by choice? How important is free will? We discuss all that in this video.
Never a Robot!
(#018 from Suffer Well Devotional Series©)
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For we know that the Law is spiritual; but I am carnal, sold as a slave to sin. (Romans 7:14)
A quaint conversation joined midway through:
Church folk 1: Well, I do have free will. I can make my own decisions, like choosing Jesus.
Church folk 2: Hmm. The bible says, “I [He] chose you.” (John 15:16)
Church folk 1: Yes, but that’s because He knew I would choose Him.
Church folk 2: Where does it say that in the bible?
Church folk 1: Well, I’ll have to look it up, or ask my pastor.
Church folk 2: I am positive it does not say that in the bible, or anything like that. As a matter of fact, it says you were chosen before the foundations of the world (Psalm 90:2), even in your mother’s womb He was your Mighty One (Psalm 22:10). So, are you saying He predestined all of this based upon what you would do?
Church folk 1: Yes right, that is what I’m saying. Well, I think that’s what I’m saying.
Church folk 2: The bible says that the carnal man is at enmity [hostile] towards Him and will not subject himself to Yahweh (Romans 8:7). It also says that we all sin and fall short of His glory (Romans 3:23). So, how did you get holy enough, you know, get over your carnality, long enough to choose Him?
Church folk 1: Well, I did ask Him into my heart. I remember the day like it was yesterday.
Church folk 2: I believe you. I am curious however; was that before or after He gave you a new heart (Deuteronomy 30:6)?
Church folk 1: Well, I guess after.
Church folk 2: So then, did you ask for the new heart before He chose you, or was your new heart His gift to you before there was anything in you good enough to seek Him (Romans 3:10-18)?
Church folk 1: Now that you put it that way, I guess it was His doing.
Church folk 2: So then, what you are really saying is that the new heart He gave you (Ezekiel 36:26) is what prompted your choice to believe, to “ask Him into your heart,” right?
Church folk 1: Well, I guess so, but I’m not a robot you know.
Church folk 2: No, you’re not a robot, just a slave.
“Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or slaves to obedience, which leads to righteousness?” (Romans 6:16)
If it was a virgin birth how is Yeshua in the line of David?
A Jewish lady asked me, how could Yeshua be the messiah if he is of a virgin brith and not of the seed of Joseph or from the line of David. Check out the answer..
We Don’t Trust God. We need to Follow Him!
We Don’t Trust You
(#017 from Suffer Well Devotional Series©)
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Every thought, every desire, and every action that does not conform to the will of the Father can be sized up in one simple statement. “I don’t trust you Yahweh.” “How can that be,” you ask? It really is so simple that a child will understand. Whenever you decide to go your own way, a way other than the Creator’s, you are saying that your way is better than His. It sets a very dangerous precedent and makes the undeniable statement that you ultimately don’t prefer His will over your own. Sin is always the verdict when this mindset prevails; it is a mindset that proves your lack of trust in Him.
For I know the plans I have for you,” declares Yahweh, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. (Jeremiah 29:11) If you could go forward in time and see what the Father has planned for you, certainly you would not choose your own path. You would not attempt to alter His plan. Every sin does just that. It alters or delays the speedy and bountiful result that He has planned for you. Yes, for followers of Yahshua the Messiah there is mercy and grace. However, you can choose the forty year journey or take the direct route and arrive in eleven days.
Repent! Realize that anything other than complete trust in the will of the Father alone is a sinful lack of faith. Sin always extends your journey and delays your arrival to the destination you so desire. Take time to seek His face (Matthew 6:33) and He will always reveal His perfect plan for your life. Yes, you may have to set out on your journey by faith, not knowing exactly how to get to your destination. However, your obedience to take the first step will be rewarded.
He is not like a man that He should lie to you (Numbers 23:19). His hope and future is what you were created for. The ability to reach your dreams in life is only limited by your recognition that Yahweh put them in your heart (center of intellect) in the first place, and your lacking faith that He will fulfill them. Delight yourself also in Yahweh, and He shall give you the desires of your heart. (Psalm 37:4) Delight yourself; Yes, it means to be soft or delicate toward, or in other words, to possess a soft heart toward Yahweh. He placed those desires in there and when your heart is soft (delights in Him), then He fulfills them. This is His plan; it cannot change. Only your heart can.
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. (Ezekiel 36:26)
Lips For Bulls – How to Love God
Of all the bible verses, of all the things we do, there are just 2 things He ultimately asks of us. Just 2 things! To Show love and to Know Him! All the other scriptures and commands teach us how to do those to things he requires of us. Every single one of us can surly do these 2 things, but we need to read his world to understand how to joyfully accomplishing them each day.
Lips for Bulls
(#016 from Suffer Well Devotional Series©)
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I will not take a bull from your house, nor goats out of your folds. For every beast of the forest is Mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills.I know all the birds of the mountains, and the wild beasts of the field are Mine. “If I were hungry, I would not tell you; for the world is Mine, and all its fullness [all that is in it]. Will I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats? Offer the Almighty thanksgiving, and pay your vows [promises] to the Most High. (Psalm 50:9-14)
It is simple; I say, “Offer thanksgiving and pay your promises.” But instead, you exert so much effort and endure so much self-inflicted struggle, all in vain. Who asked this of you? Do you think your striving is what draws Me near? Do you feel your fear or concerns for provision are some sort of sacrifice that earns you favor? Listen to Me child; My Son demonstrated the only type of sacrifice that I find pleasing, obedience unto death (Philippians 2:8). Your fear-driven sacrifices will never provide what you are looking for, or what I require.
I Am not like an earthly father who seeks to be obeyed, yet lives in sin. My ways are perfect. Yes, I do seek to be obeyed, but not because I Am a self-indulgent task master; My commands are life for you, not tasks (Leviticus 26:3-12). By obeying them, you live the abundant life.
There is no selfishness in My desire to be honored and glorified by you. Remember, I Am your Creator. The blueprint is Mine. The way to peace and joy cannot be altered by your bad doctrine. The only sacrifice I desire from you is the sacrifice of praise (Hebrews 13:15). The fruit of which brings about obedience to My commands. I have given you the instructions; they are your path to blessings, the way to peace and joy.
Do not be deceived any longer thinking that the bulls you choose to slaughter are pleasing to Me. My choice of “bull” is all that matters, and I choose your “self.” A sacrifice of praise from your lips is the authentic sacrifice I Am looking for; it says, “Though You slay me, I will trust in You (Job 13:15). In other words, I surrender my “self.” It empowers unconditional obedience and unquestioned loyalty. Offer thanksgiving and pay your promises; that is what I require; and that is what I will have.
If But Your Garment
What physical object in your life brings you comfort? There should only be one. See this video and learn what that object should be.
If But Your Garment
(#015 from Suffer Well Devotional Series©)
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Father, you gave me a measure of faith (Romans 12:3), and the directive to grow in the grace and knowledge of Your Son (2 Peter3:18). Your Son promised that He would not only be the author of my faith, but also the perfector [finisher] of it (Hebrews 12:2).
Heavenly Father, I have sought You without ceasing, often with tears. Yet, I’ve remained locked in the prison of my mind. Today, I again surrender all that has mentally crippled me, and I humbly ask the perfector to redesign my thinking. Yahshua, I present my life as a living sacrifice; transform my mind (Romans 12:1-2), so that I might see and not just hear You (Job 42:5). Transform my fleshly understanding into spiritual perception.
Why have I held onto these thoughts that keep me bound? I have attempted to surrender these things in the past, yet they remain. Has the prison of my mind actually become a safe place for me, like a child’s favorite blanket, which embodies the fragrance, texture, comfort, and security of what is familiar? Have I become comfortable in my prison, afraid to come out? In faith that possessing Your sound mind is my destiny, I again give You permission to take this blanket of fear and replace it with a touch of the hem of Your garment (Matthew 9:20), the garment of praise (Isaiah 61:3)
Remove my false comforts and save this child who is frozen in time, stuck seeking security from his favorite blanket. I will not go back there again. Yahshua, I declare that, from this day forward my mind is renewed, and my only security will be the hem of Your garment. And Abba, if I try to hold the old blanket tight against my chest, rip it from me.
“I know that You can do everything,
And that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You.
You asked, ‘Who is this who hides counsel without knowledge?’
Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,
Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.
Listen, please, and let me speak;
You said, ‘I will question you, and you shall answer Me.’
“I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear,
But now my eye sees You.
Therefore I abhor myself,
And repent in dust and ashes.”
(Job 42:2-6)
In the past, I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know. But, today my faith is perfected; I feel His garment.