Tag: God’s love

The Angel of the Lord

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Throughout the Old Testament you will see a reference to “the angel of the Lord”. Who is the angel of the Lord? The angel seems to be not only of the Lord, but the Lord himself. 

   The first time we read about the angel of the Lord is in Genesis 16:7-13. In verse 10, the angel tells Hagar that he will increase her descendants so much that they will be too numerous to count. Could an angel do that? In verse 11 He refers to himself as Lord, and in verse 13, Hagar refers to Him as God.

“You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me”

   In Genesis 22:11 we see the angel of the Lord stopped Abraham from killing his son. In verse 12 He refers to Himself as God.

“But the angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!”

“Here I am,” he replied. “Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.” (Genesis 22:11-12)

Then in verses 15, the angel of the Lord again speaks to Abraham.

“The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time and said, “I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore.” (Genesis 22:15-17).

   When the angel of the Lord appears to Moses in the burning bush (Exodus 3:2-6), He leaves no doubt about who He is, with His many references to being God.

“There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.”

“When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” 

And Moses said, “Here I am.” 

“Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God. (Exodus 3:2-6)

   We see the angel of the Lord again in Numbers 22:21-38, when He confronts Balaam and his donkey. Here He reproofs Balaam and instructs him. In verse 38 Balaam refers to the angel of the Lord as God.

   In Judges 13, the angel of the Lord tells Manoah and his wife that they will have a son, (Samson), and gives them instructions for raising him. Later Manoah said to his wife, “We are doomed to die….We have seen God.” 

   In John 6:46, Jesus says that: “No one has seen the Father except the one who is from God”. 

   So who is “the angel of the Lord”? Obviously, it was not the Father who came as the Angel of the Lord. If it were God and it was not the Father, then it must have been the Son, our Lord. The Angel of the Lord is no ordinary angel.

   What do we know about “the angel of the Lord”?

1. He is not an Angel.

2. He is not God the Father, because no man has seen the Father.

3. He is God, because the scriptures say He is.

4. He appears to be God, but separate from God (the Father) as Christ (the Son) and the Holy Spirit are.

5. He forgave sin, which only God can do.

   Is this Christ? Did Christ walk upon the earth centuries before He was born a baby in Bethlehem? Not all Bible scholars are willing to say it is the Lord, but it certainly could have been, He was with Father from the beginning.

J. M. Wilson writes that while identifying him with God the Son is most tempting, “..it must be remembered that at best these are only conjectures that touch on a great mystery……The appearances of the angel of the Lord…..culminated in the coming of the Savior, and are thus a foreshadowing of, and preparation for, the full revelation of God in Jesus Christ. Further than this it is not safe to go.”

   Most Bible scholars and students don’t hesitate to make that claim however. Calvin wrote:

“I am rather inclined however, to agree with the ancient writers, that in those passages wherein it is stated that the angel of the Lord appeared to Abraham, Jacob, and Moses, Christ was that angel.”

   C. F. Dickason stated that the angel of the Lord “According to all evidence……seems to be the preincarnate Son.”

  Billy Graham writes: “There are no grounds for questioning the very early and traditional Christian interpretation that in these cases there is a preincarnation manifestation of the second person of the Trinity.”

   We know that Christ was here from the beginning, (John 1:1-4), and we can assume that “the angel of the Lord” was most likely Jesus.

Books by Jerry, many of which you may read for free on Prime: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Jerry-Blount/author/B06XK4GJT1

  1. Things You Probably Didn’t Learn in Church
  2. Basic Christianity: Living a Joy-Filled Life and Making a Difference
  3. The End Times: Signs and Prophecy
  4. Noah and the Great Flood: Proof and Effects
  5. Following Jesus and Fishing Along the Way: Stories of God’s Great Outdoors
  6. The Rapture: Coming Soon
  7. Delighting in the Lord: Enjoying a Close Walk with Jesus
  8. Evidence of God: Proof beyond Doubt  

Daniel’s Amazing Prophecy

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Daniel was truly a man of God. We first read about Daniel shortly after Judah was captured by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon. Daniel, along with other young men, was taken from Judah to Babylon to be trained for the king’s service. 

We are probably more familiar with the story of Daniel being thrown into the lion’s den, than we are of his prophecies, which predicted the future. Be that as it may, his predictions of the future are much more important to us. They were so accurate, that critics of the Bible claimed they had to be written after the fact. They claimed the book of Daniel was a book of history rather than prophecy. However, the discovery of ancient manuscripts, some dating back to 250 BC, have quieted those critics.

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Are YOU going to heaven?

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Everyone wants to go to heaven. The joy and peace that we will have when in heaven will be far greater than anything we can imagine. Being with family and friends who have gone before us and spending eternity with them. Living in a place of perfect love. 

But if we miss heaven — well, it’s not something we want to think about — an eternity in hell.

Thankfully, God has made it easy for us to go to heaven. He sent His Son to die on the cross and redeem our sins with His blood (John 3:16). Jesus paid the price for our sins and redeemed us from the death that we deserve. He made it possible to someday stand before God.

Life’s most important question should be, “Are you going to heaven when you die?” If Jesus returns tomorrow, will you be ready?

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Knowing Peace in Troubled Times

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Throughout the Bible, it speaks of having peace in our lives over and over again. God wants us to have peace in our lives. The last thing He wants is for us to live in fear.

Jesus told His disciples before He left, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” (John 14:27)

If you know Jesus as your personal redeemer, you can have peace in your life regardless of the circumstances. It is a spiritual peace deep within our souls that the world can never know without knowing Jesus.

“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:7)

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Love – Our motive and Power for God’s Service

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In Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, he explains just how
important love is in the life of a Christian.


“If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not
have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If
I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all
knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do
not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor
and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not
have love, I gain nothing” (1 Corinthians 13:1-3).


Of all of the gifts of the Holy Spirit, love is the most
important. There were great prophets of old, such as Daniel and
Isaiah, who had the gift of prophecy. There are great preachers
today who possess the gifts of wisdom and knowledge for
preaching and teaching. There are those who have the gift of
healing or speaking in tongues. These gifts are all great, but we
are told that those who possess love are greater still. Mary of
Bethany was so full of love that she held a higher position than
any of these.

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Can we Comprehend the Greatness of God?

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As we consider the greatness of God, we may be inclined to think of events or miracles that
have happened to ourselves or others or the great love of the Father to offer His Son as a
sacrifice for our sins. Maybe we would consider His creation of the human body with all its
complex and intricate elements and its DNA code that is 67 billion miles long—the same as
about 150,000 round trips to the Moon. To think of all He has created is mind-boggling.
Consider the earth’s beauty and majestic wonders that cause us to stand in
awe of His creation. Or consider the universe with over a billion known galaxies; planets
that are so large that they make the earth look like a golf ball next to them. Wow!
A light year is a measure of time, that is how far light travels in a year, which is 5.88
trillion miles or 9.46 trillion kilometers. The observable universe is 93 billion light-years across.
To most of us, that is an incomprehensible number, yet the universe goes beyond that.
How far, only God knows. As enormous as the universe is — God is bigger. God created the universe, therefore it
cannot contain Him. He is far greater than His creation.
God tells us that His thoughts and ways are beyond us. They are beyond our human
minds to grasp or understand.

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When we Die — Do we Go Direct to Heaven or Soul Sleep

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The Bible teaches us that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord, (2 Corinthians 5:8).

Jesus told the thief on the cross, “today you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43). Jesus didn’t say today you will sleep. The confusion comes from the fact that sleep was often used as a term for death. For instance when Jesus spoke to the disciples about Lazarus: “Our friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go that I may wake him up.” Then His disciples said,” Lord, if he sleeps he will get well.” However, Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought that He was speaking about taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus said to them plainly, Lazarus is dead” (John 11:11-14).

At death, our spirit separates from our body. Our body returns to the ground and our spirit returns to its maker.

“and the dust returns to the ground it came from, and the spirit returns to God who gave it” (Ecclesiastes 12:7).

The apostle Paul said: “I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far” (Philippians 1:23). “(I) would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord” (2 Corinthians 5:8).

Paul was not looking forward to soul sleep, he was looking forward to being with the Lord.

Without a body, there would be no need for sleep. Sleep is for our human mortal body to rejuvenate itself. The body is what requires sleep, not our spirit. The body will go into the ground and sleep, but our souls will be in heaven with the Lord (Ecclesiastes 12:7).

Paul spoke of falling asleep instead of dying when he wrote to the Thessalonians.

“Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep” (1 Thessalonians 4:13-15).

Notice in these verses, Paul says that Jesus will be bringing those that have fallen asleep with him, in other words, He will be bringing the saints that have died with Him. If He is bringing them with Him, then it is obvious that they are in heaven now and not in the grave.

In the parable of Lazarus and the rich man, Lazarus went immediately to heaven and the rich man went immediately to hell.

Finally, when John was given a vision of heaven, he described the Christians that were martyred as souls crying out for revenge, they definitely were not sleeping. In every reference in Revelation to human beings in Heaven, they are conscious, not sleeping. As Paul said, to be absent from the body, is to be present with the Lord. The instant we die, we will be in heaven with Jesus! What a glorious time that will be!

Taken from the section on Heaven in “Things You Probably Learn in Church.” Things You Probably Didn’t Learn in Church is a book covering several subjects that are not usually not taught in church. Check out this book and my other books at: https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B06XK4GJT1



Satan’s most Strategic Weapon against YOU!

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Satan’s most strategic weapon against the believer is as the accuser. Why is this so effective? Because in our hearts we know we are unworthy of God’s love. Satan tells us we have sinned, we kept on sinning, he points out the failures in our lives, telling us God wants nothing to do with us. And our temptation is to look within and in our self-defense, try to find within ourselves some ground for believing Satan is wrong. We may be tempted to admit our helplessness and go to the other extreme, yield to depression and despair. Satan uses his accusations against us, charging us before God. If we accept his accusations we fail immediately. Thus, accusation becomes one of Satan’s greatest and most effective tools against the believer.

Why do we accept his accusations? Because we are hoping to have some righteousness of our own. We are hoping to be good enough by our own power. Satan’s accusations have caused us to look in the wrong direction for an answer.

Our need is to recognize the absolute sufficiently of the blood Christ shed on Calvery. It was there that He obtained our eternal redemption (Hebrews 9:12). He became our redeemer. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins.

When we are walking in the light with the Lord, the blood of Jesus cleanses us from all sin. It is not just some sin, but every sin. Big sins, small sins, sins that appear to be very black, and sins that are not so black, even sins that we think can not be forgiven. Yes, all sins, conscious or unconscious, remembered or forgotten, are all included in those words: “every sin.” The blood of Christ makes us clean and God the Father is satisfied.

It is the blood that cleanses us from all sin and unrighteousness. “But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.” (1 John 1:7)

What an amazing cleansing the blood does in our lives when we walk in the light with our Lord. Everything is exposed in the light. I cannot hide anything in my life, nor does God overlook anything. He has a perfect knowledge of me. He knows every tiny detail about me. He knows every thought I have. He knows my heart. And yet, because of the blood of Christ and His amazing grace, I stand in the presence of God, spotless, without blemish.

“Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow” (Isiah 1:18).

We must learn to put no confidence in the flesh, little wonder that we sin, for the very nature of the flesh is to sin. We must learn to rely completely on God for our salvation and not on our own goodness or abilities. As hard as it is to admit, we are helpless and weak, without the power of God in our lives. If we have expectations of ourselves, the result will be that when Satan comes along with his accusations, we will fail miserably.

God is well able to deal with our sins; but He cannot deal with a man under the accusations of Satan, because that man is not trusting in the Blood. The Blood of Christ speaks in his favor, but he is listening instead to Satan. Christ is our Advocate, but we the accused, side with the accuser. We have no recognition that we are not worthy of anything but death. God alone can answer the accused, and that by the precious Blood He has already done so. Never should we try to answer Satan with our good conduct but always with the Blood. We are sinful because of our sinful nature, but the Blood cleanses us from every sin. Praise God! Christ paid the price for our sins in full, and God is satisfied. Satan has no grounds for his accusations.

Our faith in the precious Blood of the Lamb, and its cleansing power; and our absolute refusal to be moved from that position can alone silence Satan’s charges and put him to flight.

“Who will bring a charge against God’s elect? God is the one who justifies; who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us.” (Romans 8:33-34)

The Significance of Christ Shedding His Bood on the Cross

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It is God’s holiness and righteousness that demand that a sinless life should be given as redemption for man. There is life in the blood, and that blood has to be poured out for our sins. God is the one that requires it in order to satisfy His righteousness.

We have to believe the blood which is precious to God, is sufficient payment for our sins and God is satisfied. 

“18 For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect” (1 Peter 1:18-19)

We are told that because of the cleansing power of the blood, we can boldly approach God’s throne of grace with confidence (Hebrews 4:16). We can approach God through His merit alone based on the work of the Lord Jesus in the shedding of His blood.  And never on our own merits or achievements, which fall miserably short of the perfection required to enter the presence of God. Your initial approach to God is made possible by the blood and only by the blood. This will never change regardless of your measure of attainment, whether you have consciously sinned or not. It is only by the precious shed blood of Christ that we can enter into the “holy of holies”, the presence of God. It is not and will never be by our own efforts or goodness. 

At the beginning of our Christian life, we are concerned with our actions more than we are with who we are. We are more distressed by what we have done than our inner being. We think if we could only change our actions, we would be more pleasing to God and would be better Christian. Therefore, we set out to change our actions and by doing so, set ourselves up for failure. The trouble is not on the outside but on the inside. It is not because we have done wrong, it is much deeper than that. It is because we are wrong and can never be right by our own efforts. Our only hope is in the blood of Christ that washes away our sins, cleanses us, and makes us as pure as new-fallen snow.

When we are walking in the light with the Lord, the blood of Jesus cleanses us from all sin. It is not just some sin, but every sin. Big sins, small sins, sins that appear to be very black, and sins that are not so black, even sins that we think can not be forgiven. Yes, all sins, conscious or unconscious, remembered or forgotten, are all included in those words: “every sin.” The blood of Christ makes us clean and God the Father is satisfied.

It is the blood that cleanses us from all sin and unrighteousness. “But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.” (1 John 1:7)

What an amazing cleansing the blood does in our lives when we walk in the light with our Lord. Everything is exposed in the light. I cannot hide anything in my life, nor does God overlook anything. He has a perfect knowledge of me. He knows every tiny detail about me. He knows every thought I have. He knows my heart. And yet, because of the blood of Christ and His amazing grace, I stand in the presence of God, spotless, without blemish.

“Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow” (Isiah 1:18).

This study is continued in my next post, “Satan’s most Strategic Weapon against YOU!”

What does it mean to be crucified with Christ?

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To begin with, we are all sinners. Romans 3:23 tells us, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”  We are sinners because we were born of Adam. It is not a matter of our behavior, but our heredity. I am not a sinner because I sin, but I sin because I am a sinner. It is not because I individually sinned that I am a sinner, but because I was in Adam when he sinned.

  Because by birth I come from Adam, therefore I am a part of him. What is more, there is absolutely nothing to change this. I cannot change myself to improve my behavior to be anything other than a part of Adam, a sinner. We derive our existence from him, and because his life became a sinful life, a sinful nature, therefore, the nature we derive from him is also sinful. Our trouble is our heredity, not our behavior. “For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners“ (Romans 5:19). We do not become sinners by what we have done but because of what Adam has done. This distinction is important. For instance, if I were to ask you who is a sinner? The most likely reply would be, “the person that sins.” Yes, that is true, but it is equally true that one who does not sin is also a sinner, because he is of Adam’s race. 

There are good sinners and there are bad sinners, there are moral sinners and there are immoral sinners, but they are all sinners alike and in need of redemption. We have probably all heard the question asked; how could God send this person or that person to hell when all they have ever done is good in their life? There again, it is not what they have done, but who they are. We are all from Adam’s race and we cannot change that, no more than we can change our parentage. I am a sinner because I sin, but I sin because I came from the wrong stock. I sin because I am a sinner.

What is the answer? The second half of Romans 5:19 answers this, “so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.” 

How then can we cut off our sinful heredity from Adam? There is only one way. Since we were born into sin, the only way out is by death. Death is the secret of our emancipation. Romans 6:2  “We are those who have died to sin.” How can we die? Certainly not by killing ourselves. The apostle’s next statement tells us: “Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?” Romans 6:3

“One died for all therefore all died” (2 Corinthians 5:14). When Christ was crucified, we were all crucified there with Him. The Lord Jesus died on the cross, shedding His blood to atone for our sins. Jesus chose to give His sinless life to satisfy the righteousness and holiness of God. The Scriptures never told us that we shed our blood with Christ. In His atoning work on the cross, Christ acted alone; no other could have a part. But the Lord did not die only to shed His Blood, He died that we might die also. He died as our representative. In His death, He included you and me. “Christ died, and we have been joined with him by dying too. So we will also be joined with him by rising from the dead as he did” (Romans 6:5 ESV).

We died as a race of Adam and rose as a new race. The Cross is then the mighty act of God that converts us from Adam to Christ. 

“For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin because anyone who has died has been set free from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him” (Romans 6:5-8). We are no longer heirs of Adam and his sinful race but are now heirs of Christ. All we need to do to receive our inheritance is to receive Jesus into our lives.

Our crucifixion can never produce the intended results by our will or by our effort, but only by accepting what the Lord Jesus did on the Cross. Romans 6:7 & 11 does not mean deliverance from sin that no longer exists, but that we are delivered from its power in our lives in increasing measure as day by day we rely on God.

It is God’s holiness and righteousness that demand that a sinless life should be given as redemption for man. There is life in the blood, and that blood has to be poured out for our sins. God is the one that requires it to satisfy His righteousness.

We have to believe the blood which is precious to God, is sufficient payment for our sins and God is satisfied because He said it was (1 Peter 18-19). 

“18 For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect” (1 Peter 1:18-19)

It is the blood that cleanses us from all sin and unrighteousness. “But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.” (1 John 1:7)

This study is continued in my next post, “The significance of Christ Shedding His Bood on the Cross.”