PERSECUTION JEWELS!--No.4!       DO 2878  8/93

Lift Up a Standard!
         1. "Standard" was the word used in battle for the spear that carried the flag or emblem of the forces that were fighting. Usually it was a long pennant type of flag, one of those triangular ones, and it was tied up right under the blade of the spear. The flags were put on spears because the spears were long and could be seen above the heads of the forces. The standard bearer would carry the flag at the forefront of the battle to show where the frontline forces were. The soldiers following behind could really tell where things were at just by looking and seeing where the flag was.
         2. So "when the Enemy comes in like a flood," when the Enemy is attacking, "the Spirit of God shall lift up a standard against him" (Isa.59:19). In other words, God's forces immediately come to our defense. Praise the Lord! So you can sort of picture that after this when you hear that scripture, that the Spirit of God raises a standard against the Enemy! "Our weapons are not carnal, but mighty to the tearing down of strongholds" (2Cor.10:4). Amen!

Use Wisdom in Your Presentation!

         3. It may be wiser to try to sidestep the issues that people have a hard time swallowing and just try to preach the acceptable truth. You can say, "Yes, we believe that, but we understand that it's difficult for you to accept. Why don't we concentrate on the many things we agree upon?" You need to be tolerant of people who cannot understand your viewpoint, remembering that you have had years of education in the Word and Godly principles, and some of these outsiders are hearing them for the very first time. Don't just throw the egg in their faces and slap back like, "Take that!" There's a difference between being honest in trying to explain it, realizing that people have a hard time understanding, and seeming to brag about it.
         4. You have to show understanding and sympathy for people who are shocked at what you're saying! You can show that you understand that this is a shocking thing to them, but you can still strongly defend your position. You don't have to be boastful or brag about it, however.
         5. I know we've told our folks not to back down on things, but they can't just take the bit out of their mouth and break away like a runaway horse and slap people right in the face with some of our doctrines! Let's face it, the System is somewhat insane compared with us, but what do you have to do with insane people? You don't slap them in the face with their insanity; you have to sort of humor them. Of course, if they're enemies or very negative, critical or antagonistic, then you can fire back at them with both barrels! We're not going to back down in the face of our enemies' attacks, but we should handle sincere questions from friends or outsiders without blasting them away!

Our Enemies Will Be Dust under Our Feet!

         6. The Lord will raise up both friends and enemies through persecution. He had to raise up the enemies first in order to get us out of the closet and into the open, so then He could find the friends! We've had enemies like these for years, but recently we are winning new friends by standing up and fighting guys like these! Our enemies are just like little rats trying to attack us, trying to attack the Kingdom of God!
         7. The Lord says our enemies will be dust under our feet, that they'll bow down before us (Mal.4:3; Rev.3:9; Isa.49:23). Part of their punishment will be to some day see all the damage they've done and all the people they've led astray and all the lies they've told. In the meantime, they're just attracting attention towards us, which is God's purpose. So now we've got to come out strong and make it worthwhile!

Our Enemies Ignore the Good!

         8. Think of how much truth this guy had to wade through to pick out those little bones of contention. Think of how much flesh of the body they had to cut off to get down to a few tiny bones. They had to go through all the good and all the truth to get to the few things they object to. They just ignore the good we've done and the good fruit we've borne. Just exactly what do our enemies expect to accomplish? Do they really think they'll be able to stop us? They'll reap what they've sowed one of these days.
         9. God bless our teenagers! They certainly are coming to the fore as real fighters! I'll put my teenagers up against their spoiled church kids any day, and we'll soon see who knows more Bible and more truth and is willing to stand up for it! We'll soon see who knows how to witness best and win souls and do good! The Lord was sure right about the refining fires of persecution really bringing out the gold, purging and making white! (Dan.11:35; 12:10).

Persecution Is Good for Us!

         10. As David said, "Before I was afflicted I went astray, but in my affliction I cried unto the Lord" (Psa.119:67; 18:6). So afflictions are good for us. All these trials and tribulations and persecutions we're going through nowadays are good for us, good tests to see who's got it! And if you've got it, it will make you stronger, bolder, braver and more faithful to the Lord, more loyal, able to stand up for Jesus!
         11. Remember the story about the two little girls who stood up for Jesus when the atheist was preaching in the park? They said they couldn't preach or witness, but they could stand up for Jesus, and they got up and sang "Stand Up for Jesus!" The crowd was practically in tears! And it so encouraged other Christians who were not speaking against the evil atheist that they got up on the stump soapbox and started preaching away! (See ML #399:81-83.)
         12. Their example encouraged others, and our example right now is encouraging a lot of others in all these cases. It's paid to come out and fight, but it also has a price. It's taken a lot of suffering. Even our lawyers are suffering; they're getting persecuted now and finding out how much our enemies hate us. Our enemies hate us because the Devil hates us. I got the verse the other day, "For the Devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time" (Rev.12:12). This is something which is supposed to happen during the actual reign of the Antichrist.
         13. But it's great! I'm just thrilled at all the battles we're winning and all the souls we're winning! These outstanding people who are suddenly listening to what we have to say hardly knew we existed before! We were considered the scum of the Earth, but now they're fascinated with our message! Thank You Jesus!

The Family--Radical and Uncompromising!

         14. I'm tired of having to defend ourselves and try to justify ourselves to the System! I'm sick and tired of putting up with the System's criticisms and negative critiques of us, when they're so guilty of making such a God-damned hell of a mess of things themselves!
         15. As we come out more and more strongly against the Antichrist and his devilish System, we may lose a few friends; but if they're real friends, we won't lose them. It may make them take a stand! It may show them they can't compromise and they can't sit on the fence and think they can play both ends against the middle. It's either all or nothing at all!
         16. I expect to die for some of the things I've said! We are radical, far-out, uncompromising and unconventional, and we're going to stick by our convictions and not back down!
         17. There's no halfway about the Family! There's no use in trying to hide and pussyfoot around and tiptoe around and explain ourselves away. The Lord isn't going to let us get away with that kind of attitude.
         18. People say, "Nudity and sex, oh my! How shocking! How terrible! How awful! Especially amongst religious people!" How hypocritical, when sex is such a major part of the world today! But, "Oh my! Christians? Christians with nudity and sex?" They never heard of such a thing!
         19. We're not going to go running every time they challenge us; from now on, we're going to hit'm right between the eyes! In fact, we're going to fire first if necessary! We've got nothing to be ashamed of. If you're ashamed of me and the things I've said and done, then you'd better quit. Are you ashamed of our doctrines? If you are, then you don't belong here, because you're going to have to stick up for them!
         20. We're going to cut the ground right out from underneath our enemies! Of course, if they won't receive the Word of God, they're not going to listen to you, though you've come back from the dead! But there might be a few real Christians who will wake up and get the point.

The Devil's Attack on Christians!

         21. There's nothing the Devil would like better than to get ahold of our children, because they're our best testimony, our best witnesses, our best proof of the pudding! And there's no end to all the different kinds of abuse they can accuse you of. Right now they've taken most of the Godly and Scriptural things all true Christians do and labeled them "abusive."--Our high standards of education, our loving but firm disciplinary methods, our Godly monitoring of our children's activities, our Scriptural way of socializing our children, etc. They call it psychological abuse, emotional abuse, educational abuse, medical abuse, insufficient socialization, etc.

Spiritual Adultery!

         22. These people in the world and even in the churches who condemn us and accuse us of an "adulterous lifestyle" are themselves guilty of spiritual adultery! You'd better watch out that you are not guilty of spiritual adultery also. You say, "What is spiritual adultery, Dad?" It's running around and fucking the idols of this world when you're supposed to be the Bride of Christ! You can even do that walking through a shopping center if you don't watch your mind and your step!
         23. What do people worship today? Do they actually still worship the idols of ancient days? Some people do in some countries. But what have you seen people worship mostly in this supposedly advanced civilization?--Car, money, and home!

Sticking Up for FFing!

         24. What some outsiders think are sins have resulted in many salvations in our ministry of FFing. Are you going to back down on that? God bless our people who have staunchly stood up for it! Even quite a few of our people, some of whom are now leaders, have witnessed that they were won through FFing, so people have seen through these testimonies that FFing did have good fruits!
         25. And we didn't stop FFing because it was wrong! Don't let'm put you in that kind of a corner! It's only because it is one thing we can do without, including AIDS! "Not all things are expedient," or they'll speedily get you condemned! (1Cor.10:23). There are a few things we can do without that otherwise we are perfectly free to practice if we wanted to and if they didn't cause so much trouble.

Will You Stand Up for Your Convictions?

         26. If you think something is a sin, then for you it is a sin (Rom.14:14,23). Be careful you don't do anything that you think is a sin. Are you convinced in your own heart? Have you got the conviction to stand up for your faith in these things?--Or are you going to abandon them all now and run because you're getting a little persecution for them, because you might have to die for them!

It's Impossible to Keep All the World's Laws

         27. "Whosoever shall be a friend of the world is the enemy of God!" (Jam.4:4). What do these court cases want to force us to do? They want us to worship the world, be friends of the world, be like the world, obey all the laws of the world! This is impossible for us! Don't worry about it! You'll never in this world keep all their laws! They can't even keep them all! You never know, when you go down the street, you might even spit and be breaking a law! In some places you are! The System has got so many laws, it's impossible to keep them all, even for their own people!
         28. There are certain laws we can't obey, and those are the laws that try to make us stop preaching the Gospel, stop witnessing and stop leading people to Jesus. They won't even let you have anything religious on governmental premises in the United States today. Think of it! The U.S. has gotten to be an atheistic country. It's just as secular as Russia was, except there are more Christians in the U.S. who still think they have the freedom to worship.

Are You Going to Obey God or Man?

         29. The disciples asked the System, "Which is right, to obey you or to obey God?" (Acts 4:18-19,33). And they went out straightway and disobeyed them and kept right on preaching Christ anyhow! Are you going to do that? Are you going to keep straight on sticking up for what you believe, regardless of whether they forbid you and say it's wrong and "if you do that any more we'll put you in jail"? Are you ready? It's going to come!

Can't Win All the Cases!

         30. You can't ever expect the world to love you (John 15:19). You can't ever expect those courts to always believe you and receive you and vindicate you and justify you! It's not going to happen. Sorry. If you thought we were going to win all our cases, you were wrong! It can't happen, not if we stick up for the truth--not if we testify the truth!

Martin Luther: "Here I Stand, I Can Do No Other!"

         31. They had Martin Luther on the spot! They asked him if he really preached Salvation by grace, and he said, "I sure do! Here I stand, I can do no other!" Luther wouldn't recant, God bless him, and his kings stuck up for him. So the Reformation took place, or we might have all been Catholics today! Can you say with Martin Luther, "So be it?" (Family: So be it!)

God's Assault Forces!

         32. Challenge'm! Sock it to'm! (Tongues) Hallelujah! Thank You Jesus! Praise You Lord! "Listen to the Words of your father, and hear what he has to say. These Words are true and faithful!" Thank You Jesus!
         33. I'm not only calling you to come and live for Jesus, Beloved. Are you willing to also be a martyr and die for Jesus? Well, that's what some of you are going to have to do one day. I believe it. There may be some Christians who will be able to hide when the AC and his forces completely take over the world and the Great Tribulation begins, but the Lord has given us a challenge, and He's made it very clear that we will not merely hide. We have to be the assault forces who are going to lead the charge against the Antichrist System!

All Out for the Lord and All in to the Family!

         34. The time has come that you're either going to be all for it, all out, all on the altar and ready to die as martyrs for the Family and what we believe, or you're going to be against it, like some who have already left us. They couldn't take it. They saw what was coming. They knew that just like Judas, if they didn't desert and join the Enemy, they were going to get clobbered and be persecuted.
         35. Also, they thought they weren't getting sufficient honor and glory in the Family. They weren't getting high positions and leadership, which they felt they deserved. They weren't getting enough credit. That was the Devil's problem too, pride! He wasn't satisfied being next to God, he wanted to be God Himself. They weren't satisfied being next to the prophet, they wanted to be the prophet!--And in some of their trickery they even tried to imitate the prophet, imitate my voice on the phone and lie and steal! This is the kind of people our self-righteous enemies are using--criminals, liars, thieves, usurpers!
         36. Let me tell you, if God has called you to this Family and you're not all out for the Lord and in to the Family, you're eventually going to be all against, because there's no in-between, there's no compromise! The time has come that you're going to have to be willing to suffer and to die as martyrs for Jesus and the Family and for what we believe! Like Jesus said, "He that is not with Me is against Me" (Mat.12:30).

Prayer for the Persecuted in France!

         37. Lord, rebuke our enemies and draw our Family closer to You through this attack. Rebuke those devilish fiends that have no reason except the Devil's own hatred to arrest our people and cast them into jail. We've committed no sins, no crimes!
         38. The System's own people are going to do the System damage by fighting us, because we do them nothing but good. Lord, show all the officials and the judges and the police that our people have done nothing whereof they should be accused. Show them like You did Pilate, so that they will see nothing wrong with these just people! (Mat.27:19).
         39. Protect Thy little ones, Lord, You promised! Keep them, make them a testimony all over the world! Praise the Lord! Thank You Jesus! We know You will. You have made them a great witness and testimony, a final sign and final witness to this wicked earth. Bless them, Lord, and keep them, and make them an even greater witness! Show those who are of a right mind and just heart the truth, in Jesus' name!

French Persecution!--Real Torture!

         40. I'll tell you, the Antichrist is here! Who could have ever imagined such torture and mistreatment! Imagine those guys operating in the name of the law to try to supposedly protect children, and then brutalizing them! They're devils! The AC is sure running things from behind the scenes, and they're getting away with what I would consider even worse than murder! Murder is the easy way out. What they're doing to us is real torture! What worse torture can you have than to have your children taken away?--Nursing babies snatched from their mothers' breasts! Women handcuffed virtually naked outdoors!--All kinds of horrible atrocities!
         41. You talk about Hitler or the communists, these people are practically their equals! They haven't quite gotten to branding irons and electric shocks yet, but they're getting there in a hurry, and even worse! They're using psychological torture right now. It's psychological torture for the kids, and psychological torture for the parents who were separated from their children, even mothers from nursing babies. This is horrible! I'm just absolutely shocked that they even got away with it! At least these attacks on us keep us before the public so we can stand up and fight and get the message out!

Prayer for the Day!

         42. Lord, it's amazing how much mercy You have on us, how much You tolerate us. As you say in Your Word, You know how weak we are and You remember that we are dust (Psa.103:13,14). You are so good to us, Lord. You do everything to please us because we please You. Sometimes we feel like spoiled children, You're so good to us. We have our troubles, but nothing is too hard for us. Praise the Lord! Thank You Jesus!
         43. Why You chose me, I don't know, Lord. It doesn't seem that I'm that good or great.
         "'Tis odd that God should choose a Jew,
         But He chose, which shows God knew His Jew!"

Praise the Lord! We do like to please You, Lord, and obey and guide Thy children. Thank You for today and for strength, and for healing me and making me so much stronger again. Thank You Jesus!
         44. Thank You for a good night's sleep and safekeeping. Thank You for this nice place and for all Thy goodness and mercy. Continue to bless and keep us, Lord, and make us a blessing. Give us wisdom. Guide and protect us. Help us to acknowledge Thee in all our ways, and please direct our paths. Thank You how You did yesterday and how You'll do it again today. Thank You for providing every need, even luxuries! Keep us safely here, Lord.
         45. Bless Thy Family around the world, Lord, Thy children who love Thee and serve Thee and love others. Keep them safe and continue to provide for them. Thank You for making them a blessing and a testimony. We rebuke the Enemy! Glorify Thyself, Lord, and cause the wrath of man to praise Thee! (Psa.76:10).
         46. Care for Thy children, Lord, and comfort them where they're having troubles. Win glorious victories out of seeming defeats! Give our lawyers wisdom, as we've prayed before, that You would make them ten stories tall! Give them wisdom and cleverness and make them unconquerable warriors in battle, turning the machinations of our enemies back upon their own heads!
         47. Rebuke all of our sickening, bitter, ridiculous enemies! We put them in Your hands to deal with them as You know best. Continue to protect us from them. Let them fall into their own traps and snares (Psa.9:15; 141:10).
         48. Rebuke the Enemy in France, Lord! Expose them for what fools they are! Make the Family a real testimony. You're giving the world its last chance before the end. Help us to use it wisely, both for those who receive and believe, and for those who oppose. Help us to use every opportunity to glorify Thee. Help even our little children to be a good testimony of the wonderful way in which they've been raised and all the Word that they have received! Encourage, comfort and strengthen them, Lord. Help them to know that You love them in spite of everything.
         49. Give us joy and enjoyment in our work, Lord, Thy work, as we lead Thy sheep. Bless Maria, Lord. Give her strength, comfort her, touch and heal her. Rebuke this eye problem, in Jesus' name! Strengthen her and have Thy way. Strengthen her body as she goes through this extra strain.
         50. Thank You for helping me to take a little nourishment. Thank You for keeping me alive and well and strong enough to do Thy work. Keep us today in Thy will. Have Thy way and help us to follow You and acknowledge You in all our ways. Direct our paths, Lord (Pro.3:5,6). Bless and keep us.
         51. Thank You for this little nest, Lord, and for supplying all our needs. Thank You for leading and guiding us and for all Your blessings! Help me with Thy paperwork, it's a big job! Help our staff in all they have to do in their care of us. Bless the children!--And bless the dear typist that transcribes this. Thank You for making her such a blessing, in Jesus' name! Amen! GBY All! We love you! FIGHT ON! We'll WIN!


Copyright (c) 1998 by The Family