Above Rubies Daily Encouragement Blogs

In Isaiah 63:7-10 Isaiah exalts Gods “lovingkindnesses” (plural!) and His “great goodness” which He bestowed upon Israel.

Verse 9 says: “In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them; and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bare them, and carried them all the days of old.”

But verse 10 says: ‘BUT they rebelled and vexed his holy Spirit: therefore he was turned to be their enemy, and fought against them.”

How sad when God is forced to be the enemy of His own people!

God looked for helpers but there was none to help. He wondered that there was no one to uphold and plead Israel’s cause or to intercede on Israel’s behalf (Isaiah 59:16).

In this great hour of America’s history there is the possibility that we could reach the same plight before God that Israel was in. I hope not.

However, many in the church are indifferent to whole-hearted prayer and standing in the gap to turn this nation back to waiting on God. Who will give time to daily cry out for a breakthrough and a great revival of zeal and strength amongst God’s people?

The question is: if God did not let Israel backslide as a nation without reaping the consequences, why would He let America’s church get away with spiritual apathy and indifference to waiting upon God who alone can save us?

We cannot go very far with a flat tire! We cannot go anywhere at all with a flat battery. We can’t even start the car, let alone go anywhere.

Those of us who sense the great need of this hour must get our spiritual tires pumped up and our spiritual batteries recharged if we want revival and the breakthroughs we long for.

Without God’s Holy Spirit zeal, willingness, fervor, and fire flowing through the veins of the church we will end up in a greater trouble than we could ever dream.

In a short time this coronavirus brought about a lot of death and destruction, not only through the virus, but now through the implications of the lockdown. Many businesses have gone bankrupt. Suicide hotlines have increased 600%. Liquor sales have increased 300 - 600%. The church should earnestly be seeking to stand in the gap lest things get worse than they are right now.

The zeal of God operating in us will not allow us to be indifferent, apathetic, and unmoved to the spiritual needs of this hour. The zeal of God will consume us just as it did Jesus (John 2:17).

Isaiah 40;31: “But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”

Be encouraged.

Colin Campbell

7. WAIT FOR GOD TO LEAD THE WAY THROUGH AND OUT

The children could not possess the promised land without going through the trials of the wilderness. Neither can we be victorious in the trials that befall us, whether they be small or large, if we do not seek God’s direction and His specific strategies.

Waiting upon God often requires a period of patience. This does not mean that we sit around and do nothing and let the enemy destroy us. Waiting on God is an active thing.

Psalm 123:2: “Behold, as the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their masters, and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress; so our eyes wait upon the LORD our God until that he have mercy upon us.”

Those who are involved with the CIA cannot sit around and do nothing. Absolutely not, for the safety of our nation depends heavily on what they learn concerning the activities and plans of our enemies. They must be the best listeners. They must discover the ways our enemies are planning against us. They must learn how to spy and how to decode.

Our God has an answer for every difficulty that comes our way and He calls us to be good waiters and listeners. We must be very active in our waiting and listening. Every trial that befalls us comes with a specific and often different answer from God.

Presumption on our part is something that God detests. The fall in the Garden of Eden was, among many things, the sin of presumption because they did not listen to and obey God’s specific instructions regarding the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

Psalm 19:12, 13: “Who can understand his errors? Cleanse thou me from secret faults. Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me: then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression.”

Perhaps “the great transgression” is just doing things our own way because we don’t take the time to wait on God.

History will reveal how much we have presumed to act as a nation during this corona pandemic. Many states have taken actions that have not benefited their people and have caused more deaths.

We the church are God’s CIA agents for the governments of our countries, states, and cities. We are meant to be like Daniel who provided the kings of their captivity with the answers to their dreams and visions.

We should always be waiting, watching, and listening. The church will remain impotent and without answers all the while we do not learn to wait and listen.

Numbers 14:44, 45 tells us how the Israelites who had not listened to God “presumed to go up unto the hill top: nevertheless the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and Moses, departed not out of the camp Then the Amalekites came down, and the Canaanites which dwelt in that hill, and smote them, and discomfited them,”

Saul was not a good waiter, listener, and obeyer. 1 Samuel 13:11, 12 says: “And Samuel said, What hast thou done? And Saul said, Because I saw that the people were scattered from me, and that thou camest not within the days appointed, and that the Philistines gathered themselves together at Michmash; Therefore said I, The Philistines will come down now upon me to Gilgal, and I have not made supplication unto the LORD: I forced myself therefore, and offered a burnt offering.”

This presumption cost him the kingdom. Read the whole story in chapter 13.

The church of Jesus Christ is always meant to be listening for the greatest intelligence of all. We must learn to wait upon God.

Habakkuk 2;1: “I will sand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved. And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.”

I believe we have a president who is willing to listen to the advice of church leaders. There are many that need to hear from God these days when fear is rampant.

Where are the CIA and the FBI of the church, those who can provide God’s answers and apply His intelligence? Who will enlist?

Be encouraged,

Colin Campbell

Is God proving us? Oh, yes, He is.

Exodus 16:4 says: “That I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law, or no.”

Exodus 20;20: “And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not.”

Read also Deuteronomy 8:2, 3, and 16.

Trials and difficult times are designed by God to mature us. What is the point of going through trials if we are not teachable enough to learn the valuable lessons that come with each trial?

The only way out of the wilderness of testings and trials is to trust and lean.

Song of Songs 8:5: “Who is this that cometh up from the wilderness, LEANING upon her beloved?”

It is true that one side does not fit all. There are often many variables that need to be considered in order of priority. Here in the USA there are people who want to use COVID-19 to support their own agenda. There are health scientists of high standing who want to keep the country locked down for months, all the way to the 2020 elections. They say this is the only way to go because of the need of being scientifically cautious. They are not willing to take risks at all.

However, we all know that the economy cannot survive a drawn out shut down. It could also swing the elections away from Donald Trump who would be blamed for a broken economy.

At the same time, the one-world globalists, people who believe in global warming, population control, big government, and who do not believe in God, do not want the church to hinder their tyrannical rule of the masses. These people believe in extreme socialism and do not believe in a democratic election of government. To them, the masses are basically ignorant, rebellious, and upstarts.

They do not want “we the people” to have any say in the way this world is to be governed. These Marxist, socialist, government proponents are extremely bigoted. They are agitators. They are unteachable in the ways of righteousness.

They are heady, proud, and high-minded. They have destroyed the economy of every country they have taken over. They will do all they can to denounce those who stand in their way. They hate our president, Donald Trump, because he promotes nationalism as opposed to globalism.

Donald Trump believes that every government should work hard to make its own country great and successful and not seek world domination. Our president stands with the church and for the church and in his speeches promotes the name of Jesus and Christianity perhaps more than any other president before him.

This pandemic has many lessons to teach us. We must not let our adversaries who have no faith in God (because they have no scientific data to prove that He answers prayer) destroy our freedoms and keep us away from our churches.

Collective prayer is powerful. I trust that all churches will open up again very soon (if not sooner) and will be attended in larger numbers than they were before. It is a big mistake to give away our attendance to church. Whatever freedoms we give away are often difficult to regain. It is quite possible that our great economy was closed down because of the fear of litigation.

Song of Solomon 8:5 teaches us that there is a way to overcome and come forth from the wilderness of trials and temptations. That way is to lose our independence and become totally dependent on God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Let’s be teachable. Honest. Truthful. Wise in God’s wisdom instead of worldly wisdom. Humble. And always be open for more truth from God.

First the trials, then the breakthroughs!

Be encouraged.

Colin Campbell

1 Corinthians 6:19, 20: “Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost, which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are brought with a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s".

We should take heed to what happened to the people in Nehemiah’s time where irt says in Nehemiah 9:27: “They have dominion over our bodies . . . at their pleasure, and we are in great distress.”

Nor do I believe we should blindly surrender ourselves to anyone who calls himself a pastor (and I am one of them by the grace of God.) We must know them by their fruits.

I do not believe we should blindly surrender ourselves to anyone who calls himself a politician unless we truly know they are servants of “we the people.”

However, I do believe with all my heart that we can and should submit ourselves without question to the One who loves us and gave Himself for us. His name is Jesus Christ. He alone can be trusted completely. He will never fail.

Although He is the ruler of the whole universe, He adopted us to be His sons and daughters. As our Father God, He has made Himself available to us 24/7 and He is only a prayer away. He is the only One worthy of our total allegiance.

More to come.

Be encouraged.

Colin Campbell

4. SEEK THE TRUTH

As time has gone on the truth is coming out as to how this pandemic started. We need to be prayerful as to what should be done about Bill Gates and his foundations, his involvement with COVID-19 (CERTIFICATE OF VACCINATION ID), and population control. Bill Gates is way out there on global warming and the global mandate.

We should be prayerful about what should be done about Dr. Farci and his involvement with COVID-19, especially its manufacturing and his involvement with population control through viruses and vaccines.

We constantly hear the president say that the swamp must be drained. Credible information is coming to light that is mind-blowing concerning wealthy, high-ranking people who have no fear of God. These people are globalists in their mindset, and they believe in a one-world government.

Because they do not have any biblical viewpoint on which to base their beliefs, they do not care how many people die because of their experiments with population control viruses and vaccines.

We are beginning to find out that there has never even a vaccine invented yet that has not had some dangerous impact on multitudes of innocent people—many have died or their lives dangerously affected.

We must earnestly pray that our president, who is under enormous pressure, will not be deceived by these godless billionaires who believe they are the saviors of the world. Whoever does not agree with them are easily dispensed of in some way.

There will be some who disagree with those of us who question government. However, I firmly believe that it is naïve to blindly put our trust in man.

Isaiah 2:22 says: “Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils: for wherein is he to be accounted of?”

I am not one who is given to conspiratorial thinking. I am an optimist and despise cynicism. I believe with all my heart that God is all-wise and all-knowing and will share the truth with all those who seek Him with all their hearts.

Psalm 27:8: “When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, LORD, will I seek.”

Proverbs 28:5: “They that seek the LORD understand all things.”

Be encouraged.

Colin Campbell

2. DO NOT LET FEAR DRIVE YOU TO PANIC

2 Timothy 1:7: “God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”

A friend shared with me about their pastor who the Sunday before closing down public services because of the fear of spreading COVID-19 spoke on 2 Timothy 1:7. And yet at the end of the service, he reminded everyone not to shake hands and announced there would be no more series until further notice!

In countries where persecution of Christian gatherings is most severe, true believers take enormous risks to meet together in undisclosed underground secrecy, in caves, forests, and alternative houses.

Don’t we believe in divine healing and protection? Psalm 91 10 says: “There shall no evil befall thee, either shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.”

Don’t we believe in togetherness? Hebrews 10:25 states: “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting (encouraging) one another: and so much the more as ye see the day approaching.”

Christianity is very much a togetherness. We fellowship together. We worship together. We pray for one another together. We encourage one another when we come together. “One another” Scriptures are mentioned over and over again.

No matter what all the naysayers think, I believe there is something very special about Christians coming together.

It is important to collectively pray together for our leaders, kings, and for all that are in authority (2 Timothy 2:1-3). There is something powerful about the collective, unified prayer of agreement.

Matthew 18:18: “Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. For where two or three are GATHERED TOGETHER IN MY NAME, THERE AM I IN THE MIDST OF THEM.”

Our president Donald J. Trump desperately needs our prayers All our leaders need our prayers, especially in these most challenging times.

If some are too fearful to gather in larger crowds, they could meet together in smaller gatherings in homes.

How can we have Christ in the midst if we do not even gather tougher in small groups, let alone larger ones?

The prayer of agreement is based on the context of where “two or three are gathered together” and there is even more faith in a larger crowd of believers.

The right to assemble in a peaceful way is written in the First Amendment to the Constitution. It states: “The First Amendment to the United States Constitution prevents the government from making laws which regulate an establishment of religion, prohibit the free exercise of religion, or abridge the freedom of speech, the freedom of the press, the right to peaceably assemble, or the right to petition the government for redress of grievances.”

It is a big mistake for the church to close its doors in the midst of a pandemic for the church represents Christ and His door is always open. He has no fear of gathering with His people for it is written in Psalm 22:22: “I will declare thy name unto my brethren: in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee.”

We never closed our doors throughout this whole virus and the Lord protected us and we enjoyed amazing services. Unto Him be all the glory.

Proverbs 29:25: “The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe.”

Inside of Christ there is no fear of a pandemic. It is the opposite. Inside of Christ there is a peaceful, healing stream. Psalm 46:4 says: “There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High.”

The fear of God trumps the fear of man.

More points to come.

Be encouraged.

Colin Campbell

P.S. GREAT NEWS!
Many churches are beginning to assemble together again. If you hear of a church near you that is assembling again, gather with them. This will make the devil mad, but it will make Christ glad that His people are coming together again.

One example:
Megachurch Pastor to Reopen Churches for In-Person Services this Sunday, Calls for Congregations Nationwide to Join

Pastor Brian Gibson to Open hIs Churches in Texas and Kentucky on Sunday, May 17th and Invites Churches Across America to Join; First Liberty Institute Pledges to Defend Gibson’s Constitutional Rights Should He Face Challenges

Go to:
https://peaceablygather.com/

Recently our closest city, Nashville, and a smaller city nearby were hit with a very powerful tornado which destroyed many homes and businesses in sections of the inner cities.

And now it is amazing to me how quickly the largest and most powerful economy in the world could come to such a sudden, screeching halt all over a sinister thing called COVID-19. Not only the USA economy, but all the world’s economies were wasted.

How easy it was to batten down the hatches, put a halt to all our civil liberties and freedoms, shut down basically all of our economical resources, and put everyone under CDC orders and regulations for the last two months without fully realizing how unbelievably difficult it is to turn the switch back on.

Once you turn the switch off, even for such a short period of time, it’s difficult to turn it fully back on again. The cost of shutting down is enormous and in this country, it amounts to several trillions of dollars, the loss of employment, the shortage of basic household items, and the list never stops.

What can we learn from all of this?

1. KEEP IN TOUCH WITH GOD AT ALL TIMES

During the reign of Darius, he appointed three presidents and 120 princes but gave to Daniel the leadership of them all. King Darius preferred Daniel above all others “because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king sought to set him over the whole realm.”

He was a very busy man in the matters of the kingdom of Babylon, and yet he took time to kneel before His God three times every day. This was his lifestyle. Daniel 6:10 says: “He went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime.”

When we cultivate the daily habit of prayer, we will be far more ready to handle difficulties and traumas that come our way, which they inevitably will. We must also train our children to cultivate the daily habit of prayer as we train them to face life.

Five more points to come.

Be encouraged.

Colin Campbell

This type of faith in Christ Jesus that Paul lived (not only talked about) was a life of pioneering, discipline, hard work, warfare, “blood and guts” fighting, and possessing his inheritance.

The Christianity that Paul preached was a far cry from what we see and observe in our modern 21st century church life.

What’s happening through this COVID-19 virus could well be a wake-up call for us to examine ourselves to see whether we have the faith that will enable us to be overcomers and victors.

It seems to me that we could face many more challenges ahead. We are certainly going to need all that there is in Christ to win. The double portion means walking in His fullness and all that He has for us.

Be encouraged.

Colin Campbell

Paul confessed in Philippians 3:13, 14: “THIS ONE THING I DO, forgetting those things which are behind, and REACHING FORTH unto those things which are before. I PRESS TOWARD THE MARK for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”

The Apostle Paul did not sit around taking his Christian life for granted. He was not casual with his inheritance that Christ Jesus had provided for him to appropriate and experience.

The early pioneers came to America with very little means apart from a big appetite to get here, work hard, and appropriate all the good things this new land had to offer them. There were no government handouts and benefits that entitled them to be slothful and easy going.

America had a lot to offer those would roll up their sleeves, get stuck in, stake their claim, and apprehend what the country had to offer.

It was not enough to arrive in America. And it’s not enough to just arrive in Christ.

On the other hand, it is a wonderful thing to arrive in America, the land of the free. It is a far more wonderful thing to be in Christ and to be free indeed.

Through the action of faith we have come into Christ. This is the first portion of our inheritance. The second portion is being filled with the Holy Spirit.

Experiencing His gifts and His fruit in our lives is not attained by the inaction of a faith that is self-pleasing, easy going, and has no spiritual disciplines.

We’ll look at what kind of faith we need tomorrow.

Be encouraged.

Colin Campbell

Jesus is the sixth day double portion and also our sabbath rest.

Hebrews 4:9 says: “There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.” Just as Canaan was the land the pilgrims of Israel sought to enter, so we also press toward a heavenly promised land called Heaven. However, we can experience, even in the midst of all the battles we face in life, an earnest (down payment) of all that He is by His Holy Spirit living in us.

Ephesians 1:13, 14: “In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise. Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.”

The Holy Spirit indwelling our weak, mortal bodies brings to us a foretaste of what is yet to come. The more we rest (trust, rely) and appropriate His double portion, the more effective we will be in our daily lives. There is a far greater anointing than any of the great prophets of Israel ever had in our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Hebrews 12:14-17 tells us how Esau despised his birthright and in so doing he despised the double portion.

What did Esau give away when he sold his birthright? Genesis 27: 27-29 tells us:

He gave away . . .
1. The kiss and blessing of his father
2. The dew of Heaven
3. The richness of the earth
4. Plenteous grain and wine
5. People to serve him
6. Nations bowing down to him
7. Lord over his brothers
8. The sons of his mother bowing down to him
9. Those who curse you will be cursed
10. Those who bless you will be blessed

Jacob had barely left his father’s presence when Esau came in from hunting. He also prepared food and brought it to his father.

Genesis 27: 32-34: “And Isaac his father said unto him, who art thou? And he said, I am thy son, thy firstborn Esau. And Isaac trembled very exceedingly, and said, Who? Where is he that hath taken venison, and brought it me, and I have eaten of all before thou camest, and have blessed ? yea, AND HE SHALL BE BLESSED. And when Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with a great and exceeding bitter cry. . .”

We must never take lightly the birthright that has been given to Jesus, the head of His body, the church. The head of the body shares His birthright in all its fullness with his body, the church.

What a tragedy if we fail to appropriate our Savior’s birthright, the double portion of all the Father in Heaven has given to His Beloved son.

Be encouraged.

Colin Campbell

Esau missed out but Jacob, the younger brother, inherits the title “Israel” and becomes listed with Abraham and Isaac as one of the three patriarchs of Israel through whom all the tribes of Israel (and Jesus Christ, the Son of God) would come.

Hebrews 12:16, 17: “Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright, For ye know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with rears.”

DAVID

David was a prophetic type of Christ.

David was the youngest son of Jesse, but God made him a firstborn. Psalm 89:18-20, 27: “I have laid help upon on that is mighty (a warrior): I have exalted one chosen out of the people. I have found David my servant; with my holy oil have I anointed him: . . . I will make him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the earth.”

JESUS CHRIST

Jesus was the ultimate firstborn and according to the promises of God we are to inherit all that He receives as the firstborn.

1 Chronicles 5:2 tells us that out of Judah came “the CHIEF RULER” which was Jesus Christ.

Colossians 2:9, 10: “For in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily, And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power.”

Romans 8:29: “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the FIRSTBORN among many brethren.”

Colossians 1:14, 15: “In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins: Who is the image of the invisible God, the FIRSTBORN of every creature.”

Colossians 1:19: “He is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the FIRSTBORN from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.”

Hebrews 12:23, 24: “To the general assembly and church of the FIRSTBORN (Jesus Christ), which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect. And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.”

Press into your double portion.

I’ll write more about this next post.

Be encouraged.

Colin Campbell

According to Jewish history and culture the double portion was given to the eldest son because he had the privilege and responsibility to make sure the father’s inheritance was shared to all members of the immediate family and to have extra inheritance to share with needy family members.

The birthright of the oldest son was greatly prized, but sadly there were some firstborn sons in the Bible who did not receive their double portion.

The challenge comes to us as God’s people who have also inherited a double portion in Christ Jesus. Jesus Christ is God’s firstborn and the Bible tells us we are “joint heirs with Him” (Romans 8:17). Because we are in Him, we inherit the double portion.

Are we walking in our double portion anointing or are we despising it?

Lets look at some exampes:

ADAM
Adam was the firstborn son of God in the natural. However, because of his sin and the fall in the garden of Eden, the great significance and honor of this title was given to another. It was given to God’s firstborn Son whose name is Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 15:22: “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.”

CAIN
Cain lost his privilege and honor of the firstborn inheritance (Genesis 4:10-16). Because Cain was cast out from the presence of God, it was possibly given to Seth as he is mentioned in the godly lineage through whom Christ came (Genesis 5:5, 6).

REUBEN
Reuben was the eldest son of Jacob, but he missed his birthright because he slept with his father’s concubine (Genesis 35:22). Instead it was given to Joseph’s sons.

As we read Jacob’s blessing to Reuben, we feel the sadness in Jacob’s words as he sees the prowess in his son, but cannot give him what should have been his right.

Genesis 49:3, 4: “Reuben, thou art my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength, the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power: unstable as water, thou shalt not excel: because thou wentest up to thy father’s bed; then defiledst thou it: he went up to my couch.”

1 Chronicles 5:1: “Now the sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel, (for he was the firstborn; but, forasmuch as he defiled his fathers bed, his birthright was given unto the sons of Joseph the son of Israel . . . For Judah prevailed above his brethren, and of him came the chief ruler; but the birthright was Joseph’s).

We will look at more tomorrow.

Be encouraged.

Colin Campbell