Numbers 33:55 (KJV) Don’t Excuse What Will Destroy

Numbers 33:55 (KJV)

But if ye will not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you; then it shall come to pass, that those which ye let remain of them shall be pricks in your eyes, and thorns in your sides, and shall vex you in the land wherein ye dwell.

I tend to apply passages such as this to the sin problem in my own flesh. The New Testament teaches us to “mortify the deeds of the flesh.” If I allow any trace of sin a place in my life—if I justify it, excuse it, or take pleasure in it—not only am I opposing the Word of God, but I am also setting myself up for trouble. As this passage puts it, those sins become “pricks in your eyes, and thorns in your sides.”

I try to be as non-judgmental of others as I can (though I admit I fail often) because I already have all I can do to judge what’s going on in this flesh of mine.

But there are many—perhaps the majority—who choose not to apply passages like this personally. They can only see the brutality of the text. Here’s the harsh reality: generally, those who take that approach also turn a blind eye to how truly terrible humanity is when unrestrained.

• They blame the gun, not the gunman, for mass shootings.
• They blame society, not the individual, for crime.
• Some even deny the Holocaust ever happened—or at least that it was as bad as history records.

The fact is, we do not know just how evil the Canaanites were. We forget that God’s judgment, unlike ours, is perfect. We make mistakes. He does not. To put God on trial for what we cannot understand is to put Him on the same level as ourselves. And that is really the problem: people have made themselves a god before God.

Closing Thought:
I learned about the tragic shooting of Charlie Kirk several hours after I wrote this Daily Visit with God. In light of his murder, this truth struck me even harder. Sin left unchecked in the heart and mind always leads to destruction. Whether in my own life or in society at large, what is not mortified will grow into thorns that wound, corrupt, and destroy. Only by humbling ourselves before the perfect judgment of God, and clinging to His righteousness, can we hope to overcome the evil that so deeply plagues this world.

#MortifyTheFlesh #SinDestroys #GodsJudgmentIsPerfect #HolinessMatters #ThornsInTheSide

Don’t Excuse What Will Destroy: Tolerated Sin Turns Deadly

👉 Sin tolerated will always grow into thorns that wound the soul. God’s Word in Numbers 33:55 warns us of the danger of leaving sin unchecked. The real question is: Are you excusing sin—or mortifying it through Christ?

💬 What do you think—why do so many people today excuse sin instead of confronting it? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

📲 Hungry for more solid, biblical teaching? Visit marvinmckenzie.org for Bible studies, videos, and resources rooted in the King James Bible.

👉 Join our community in studying God’s Word and strengthening your faith.

To my readers:

Thank you! It is a great joy to me to know you read the thoughts and lessons God has given me in His word. I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to leave comments.

For this and, more than 6800 earlier Daily Visits with God, visit https://mckenzie-visit-with-god.blogspot.com. There you will find daily visits going back to 2005.

If you have been blessed by this blog, please subscribe to my feed and share it with others.

My books, and other resources, are available at:
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Join me at Daily Visits with God Podcast
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Numbers 33:55 (KJV) Don’t Excuse What Will Destroy

Matthew 6:3 (KJV) Secret Prayer

Matthew 6:3 (KJV)

But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth

Just a few miles south of Astoria, past Four Corners on Old Hwy 101, on the Lewis and Clark Road, stood the building of Lewis and Clark Bible Church.

The church had once been pastored by Paul Hatt, almost a legend in the area. He had assumed the congregation when a handful met in a converted mink barn. Under his leadership, the church had grown to nearly 300 people and built a beautiful building out in the country. But then the congregation turned on their pastor, dismissed him, and dwindled to only a handful in the huge auditorium.

I had come to Astoria in 1984 to plant an independent Baptist church. We were meeting in an abandoned service station just north of Four Corners on Old Hwy 101, and I had become familiar with the story of Lewis and Clark Bible Church.

Wow, we needed a better facility so badly!

We had no money and, frankly, at that time fewer people than the Lewis and Clark congregation. But we did have a pastor. They did not. (As it turned out, they didn’t really want one. They had decided pastors cost money and have expectations.)

I used to sit across the valley from that church building, open my Bible to this passage, and in secret ask God to give me that building. I never told anyone. I never made a big deal about it. I just asked God for the building and left it in His hands.

God did not give us that building. But He did give us one—north instead of south, inside city limits rather than in the country. I never asked for it, but in that case the small congregation of Bayview Baptist Church had been watching me. They came and asked me if I would consider pastoring them.

Can I tell you? God is, and He hears the secret prayers of those who put themselves in His hands. I am afraid much of what passes as Christianity today is nothing more than a religious machine. They do not believe God does anything. Their motto is, “God helps those who help themselves.” So they never think to pray real prayers to the living God in secret and discover that He genuinely helps those who trust Him, ask Him, and wait for Him to work.

#SecretPrayer #TrustGodsTiming #FaithNotMachines #GodAnswersInHisWay #QuietFaith

Secret Prayer: Faith in the Quiet Place

✨ God still hears prayers whispered in secret. Matthew 6:3 reminds us that faith isn’t about show—it’s about trusting Him to work in His time and way. Many today rely on self-effort, but real Christianity depends on a living God who answers hidden prayers.

❓ Have you ever seen God answer a prayer in an unexpected way? Share your story in the comments—I’d love to hear it!

📲 Hungry for more solid, biblical teaching? Visit marvinmckenzie.org for Bible studies, videos, and resources rooted in the King James Bible.

👉 Join our community in studying God’s Word and strengthening your faith.

To my readers:

Thank you! It is a great joy to me to know you read the thoughts and lessons God has given me in His word. I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to leave comments.

For this and, more than 6800 earlier Daily Visits with God, visit https://mckenzie-visit-with-god.blogspot.com. There you will find daily visits going back to 2005.

If you have been blessed by this blog, please subscribe to my feed and share it with others.

My books, and other resources, are available at:
https://marvinmckenzie.org

Join me at Daily Visits with God Podcast
https://marvinmckenzie.substack.com/

Merch at my Teespring store https://macz.creator-spring.com/
Be a witness with hats, mugs, t-shirts, sweat shirts, and more

Let’s have coffee?
The link to Ko-fi  is an opportunity to support this effort to reach a world of souls with the Word of God. I would appreciate any gift you can give. 

Matthew 6:3 (KJV) Secret Prayer

Numbers 31:16 (KJV) The Counsel of Balaam

Numbers 31:16 (KJV)

Behold, these caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to commit trespass against the LORD in the matter of Peor, and there was a plague among the congregation of the LORD.

Balaam attempted to walk a very fine line between obeying God and enjoying the rewards of worldliness. The Bible never says he cursed Israel, but it does say he taught Israel to sin through compromise. It also tells us that he lived for reward.

I am concerned that there is far more “counsel of Balaam” among us today than we care to admit or even recognize. Balaam seemed to have a sincere desire to obey the Lord. He heard from God, and there were even lines of worldliness he would not cross. Yet he was never willing to come out from the world and be separate. He could not take that extreme step. He would not teach, preach, or insist that God’s people must refuse relationships with the world.

• How could one get ahead in life with such an extreme stance?
• How could a preacher ever expect to gain or keep a congregation?
• How could the next generation ever be expected to follow such preaching?

Today, the preacher’s “counsel” might not sound like counsel at all. It is more likely to take the form of compliance—toleration. To refuse to stand against worldliness becomes, in itself, a form of worldliness. For the one charged to counsel souls away from the world, ignoring worldliness is to counsel people to trespass against the Lord.

• It is extreme. - at one time it would have been labeled “the lunatic fringe” of Fundamentalism.
• It is unpopular.
• It is opposed to human reason.

But to refuse it is the error of Balaam for reward.

#CounselOfBalaam #BeSeparate #StandAgainstWorldliness #TruthOverToleration #ComeOutFromAmongThem

The Counsel of Balaam: Silence Becomes Counsel to Compromise

⚠️ Are we seeing the counsel of Balaam in today’s churches? Numbers 31:16 warns us how compromise led Israel into sin and judgment. Many Christians wonder: Is toleration of worldliness just as dangerous as open sin?

👉 What do you think—should preachers today speak boldly against compromise, even when it’s unpopular? Share your thoughts in the comments!

📲 Hungry for more solid, biblical teaching? Visit marvinmckenzie.org for Bible studies, videos, and resources rooted in the King James Bible.

👉 Join our community in studying God’s Word and strengthening your faith.

To my readers:

Thank you! It is a great joy to me to know you read the thoughts and lessons God has given me in His word. I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to leave comments.

For this and, more than 6800 earlier Daily Visits with God, visit https://mckenzie-visit-with-god.blogspot.com. There you will find daily visits going back to 2005.

If you have been blessed by this blog, please subscribe to my feed and share it with others.

My books, and other resources, are available at:
https://marvinmckenzie.org

Join me at Daily Visits with God Podcast
https://marvinmckenzie.substack.com/

Merch at my Teespring store https://macz.creator-spring.com/
Be a witness with hats, mugs, t-shirts, sweat shirts, and more

Let’s have coffee?
The link to Ko-fi  is an opportunity to support this effort to reach a world of souls with the Word of God. I would appreciate any gift you can give. 

Numbers 31:16 (KJV) The Counsel of Balaam

Matthew 4:21 (KJV) The Sons of Zebedee

Matthew 4:21 (KJV)

And going on from thence, he saw other two brethren, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in a ship with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and he called them.

 

Peter and Andrew were fishers, just like James and John. And just as James and John were called to follow Jesus, they too left their craft to follow the Lord.

But unlike Peter and Andrew, James and John were identified by their father, Zebedee. Eleven times in the New Testament we find this identifier; in one of those references, the two are not even named directly but simply called “the sons of Zebedee.”

When Jesus called, they left their nets, their ships, and their father. But they never left their relationship with him. In fact, there is an account in Scripture where their mother came to speak with Jesus.

The sons of Zebedee experienced very different outcomes in life. James, the son of Zebedee, was martyred early for his faith. John, the son of Zebedee, lived into his nineties and died of natural causes—the only apostle not to be martyred.

Families are dynamic and each one unique. Still, there is no good reason for a believer ever to abandon their parents, even after leaving them to follow Christ.

#FollowJesus #SonsOfZebedee #FamilyAndFaith #CalledToServe #BiblicalLessons

The Sons of Zebedee: Families and the Call of Christ

⛪ Jesus called Peter, Andrew, James, and John to leave their nets and follow Him. They didn’t abandon their families—they simply put Christ first.

👉 Are you willing to follow Christ no matter the cost? What’s the hardest “net” you’ve had to lay down to obey the Lord? Share your answer in the comments below!

📲 Hungry for more solid, biblical teaching? Visit marvinmckenzie.org for Bible studies, videos, and resources rooted in the King James Bible.

👉 Join our community in studying God’s Word and strengthening your faith.

To my readers:

Thank you! It is a great joy to me to know you read the thoughts and lessons God has given me in His word. I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to leave comments.

For this and, more than 6800 earlier Daily Visits with God, visit https://mckenzie-visit-with-god.blogspot.com. There you will find daily visits going back to 2005.

If you have been blessed by this blog, please subscribe to my feed and share it with others.

My books, and other resources, are available at:
https://marvinmckenzie.org

Join me at Daily Visits with God Podcast
https://marvinmckenzie.substack.com/

Merch at my Teespring store https://macz.creator-spring.com/
Be a witness with hats, mugs, t-shirts, sweat shirts, and more

Let’s have coffee?
The link to Ko-fi  is an opportunity to support this effort to reach a world of souls with the Word of God. I would appreciate any gift you can give. 

Matthew 4:21 (KJV) The Sons of Zebedee

Matthew 3:5 (KJV) God’s Man for God’s Time

Matthew 3:5 (KJV)

Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan,

Galatians 4:4 (KJV)
But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,

The time was ripe for the ministry of John the Baptist. He preached, “Prepare ye the way of the Lord,” but in fact, the Lord had been preparing the way for thousands of years.

They were prepared with a promise.
Dating all the way back to Genesis chapter three, the Jews had waited for the promised Redeemer.

They were prepared through Scripture.
To them were committed the oracles of God. Though over time many, if not most, had devolved into a meaningless religion, they still had a history of hearing, learning, and knowing what the Word of God said.

They were prepared through hardship.
Few people have suffered more than they. World powers surrounded them and frequently used their land to settle disputes with one another.

At that moment, they were prepared through occupation.
The Romans had invaded, taken control, and were a very present, daily irritant to Jewish faith, culture, and national pride.

Into this scene God interjected the likes of John. There was nothing polished, professional, or comely about him. He was uneducated, from a lower class, raised in the wilderness. He wore rough clothes and ate crude, common meals. But he had a compelling message—and he was sent from God.

I believe our world is ripe today for such a ministry. God has prepared us. The problem is we’re attempting to preach a “come out of this world” kind of message without ever leaving ourselves.

God isn’t looking for polish, professionalism, or education.

God wants a God-sent man willing to preach His Word without compromise.

#PrepareTheWay #GodsPerfectTiming #PreachWithoutCompromise #JohnTheBaptistMessage #RipeForRevival

God’s Man for God’s Time: Prepared for the Promise, the Scripture, and the Saviour

🌍 The world was ripe when John the Baptist cried, “Prepare ye the way of the Lord.” I believe it’s ripe again today. God isn’t looking for polish or professionalism—He’s looking for a man willing to preach and live His Word without compromise.

👉 Are you ready to be that voice in today’s wilderness?
💬 Share your thoughts in the comments: What do you think is the biggest obstacle keeping people from hearing God’s Word today?

📲 Hungry for more solid, biblical teaching? Visit marvinmckenzie.org for Bible studies, videos, and resources rooted in the King James Bible.

👉 Join our community in studying God’s Word and strengthening your faith.

To my readers:

Thank you! It is a great joy to me to know you read the thoughts and lessons God has given me in His word. I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to leave comments.

For this and, more than 6800 earlier Daily Visits with God, visit https://mckenzie-visit-with-god.blogspot.com. There you will find daily visits going back to 2005.

If you have been blessed by this blog, please subscribe to my feed and share it with others.

My books, and other resources, are available at:
https://marvinmckenzie.org

Join me at Daily Visits with God Podcast
https://marvinmckenzie.substack.com/

Merch at my Teespring store https://macz.creator-spring.com/
Be a witness with hats, mugs, t-shirts, sweat shirts, and more

Let’s have coffee?
The link to Ko-fi  is an opportunity to support this effort to reach a world of souls with the Word of God. I would appreciate any gift you can give. 

Matthew 3:5 (KJV) God’s Man for God’s Time