The four levels of the presence of God are the:

1. Omni-presence
2. Indwelling presence
3. Manifest presence
4. Evidential presence

Omni-presence

The omni-presence of God simply means that God is everywhere whether we perceive Him or not. The prefix, “omni,” is a Latin term meaning, all or universal. So you could call this the universal presence of God, or say that God is all-present. God is everywhere always because “… all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” (Col. 1:16-17 ESV). King David summarized it well when He wrote, “Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence?” (Psa. 139:7 ESV).

“Am I a God at hand, declares the LORD, and not a God far away? Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him? declares the LORD. Do I not fill heaven and earth? declares the LORD.” Jer. 23:23-24 ESV

“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.” Rom. 1:19-20

Indwelling Presence

The indwelling presence is “Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Col. 1:27). As Jesus told Nicodemus, we must be born again to enter into the Kingdom of God (Joh. 3:3). We were born sinful because we were born of Adam (Rom. 5:12, 17), but by grace through faith God raises us to new life in Christ (Eph. 2:8; Rom. 8:11). He makes us a new creation in Christ, transforming our lives through the seed of life He plants within us: His own Spirit.

“By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit.” 1Jo. 4:13

“Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? …” 1Co. 6:19 ESV

“In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.” Eph. 1:13-14 ESV (2Co. 1:22, 5:5)

Manifest Presence

The manifest presence differs from the indwelling presence in that it falls upon (Eze. 11:5), rushes upon (Jud. 14:6, 15:14; 1Sa. 10:10, 11:6), or is smeared upon you instead of dwelling within you. This is what the Bible refers to as the anointing. The word, “anoint,” is a Hebrew word which means, “to smear on, to rub with oil”.

Jesus began His public ministry by reading out of Isaiah 61, declaring that the Spirit of the Lord was upon Him because He was anointed, and revealing that God’s anointing is for a purpose.

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Luk. 4:18 ESV

The manifest presence of God is for a purpose: to empower us to touch the world around us with the power of God. In short, you receive power to do God’s will when the Holy Spirit falls upon you (Act. 1:8).

“… God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.” Act. 10:38 ESV

Evidential Presence

The evidential presence is a term that I coined to describe what the Bible refers to as the glory of the Lord. The glory is when the presence of God is not only evident to you, but perceivable to those around you as well. It is the presence of God on display. It is for that reason that I describe it as the evidential presence. The ultimate example of the glory of the Lord is the incarnation of Jesus. His name is Emmanuel, meaning,  “God is with us.” He is the radiant and glorious presence of God. In Him, all the fullness of God was made evident to us all (Col. 1:19; Heb. 1:1-3).

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” Joh. 1:14 ESV

Adam and Eve “heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden,” and because they sinned they “hid themselves from the presence of the Lord” (Gen. 3:8). Since they tried to hide themselves physically, this indicates that they experienced the presence of God physically as well (Gen. 3:7). Even after this, God continued to make His presence evident to mankind in various ways. The Bible says that He had shown His glory to all of Israel through His voice, booming out of the midst of fire.

“And you said, ‘Behold, the Lord our God has shown us his glory and greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire. This day we have seen God speak with man, and man still live.” Deu. 5:24 ESV

The glory of God is the atmosphere of Heaven, the very substance of the Kingdom — the evidential presence of God Himself. God is still revealing Himself to mankind just as He always has (Mal. 3:6). After all, why would God not reveal Himself to His own creation? The moments that I’ve experienced the glory of God have ruined me and reshaped me at the same time. There is nothing like His presence.

My prayer is that God will cause you to hunger for your own experience in His presence — to know the nearness of God Himself. I pray that you would desire to know Him for who He is.

Four Levels of the Presence - A post from JeremyCaris.com -

“… What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it?” 1 Cor 4:7 ESV

Passive vs. Active Aggressive Receiving

With a little research, you will find that dechomai speaks of receiving in a passive way. It is a passive verb which indicates receiving in the sense of welcoming and accepting. Lambano is a completely different way of receiving and understanding. Lambano is an active aggressive verb which indicates receiving into action or taking possession through action.

Let me illustrate the difference. If someone threw a glass of cold water on you on a hot day, you would dechomai the water, welcoming and accepting it without having to do anything. However, if someone handed you a glass of cold water, making it available, and you then intentionally interacted with them to take it into your possession, you would lambano the water. Either way, you received it. Through this illustration, you can see why lambano is translated, “take”, as often as it is translated, “receive”. Let’s look at some examples in the Bible. [I will add comments to these scriptures inside brackets.]

“And Simon answered, “ Master, we toiled all night [trying to catch fish] and took [lambano] nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.” Luke 5:5 ESV

“When he [Jesus] was at table with them, he took [lambano] the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them.” Luke 24:30 ESV

There is no fisherman that I know of who expects fish to jump out of the water and directly in into their boat. They know they must lambano the fish, taking them into possession through some kind of action. In the same way, Jesus reached out to lambano the bread, receiving it unto Himself through action.

Do You Lambano?

“For everyone who asks receives [lambano], and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.” Luke 11:10 ESV

God holds out provision, making it available to all who are in Christ. Then He tells us to pray for it, asking in agreement with what He’s already demonstrated is His will through Christ. Then we must reach out and take what He is offering in order to receive it. God assures us in His Word of His unchanging desire to answer our prayers, and yet He wants us to come asking earnestly, persistently, boldly, and expectantly. Our receiving from God is not meant to be a passive act. God wants to interact with us. There must be action in both His giving and our receiving.

If you received Christ as your Savior and the sacrifice for your sins, then you do understand how to lambano. Everything you receive from God comes exactly the same way: by grace through faith — reaching out to take hold of what He is freely offering. Not a single person has ever received Christ any other way. God acts and we respond. God initiates and we cooperate.

Intentionally Receiving

Now, let’s look again at the first verse I quoted:

“… What do you have that you did not lambano? If then you lambano it, why do you boast as if you did not lambano it?” 1 Cor 4:7 ESV

In other words, nothing that you’ve received from God was automatically and unintentionally received into your experience, so why boast as if you don’t know why God apparently gave you more favor than anyone else who is in Christ? Instead of boasting, you should teach others how to lambano!

“As each has received [lambano] a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace:” 1 Pet 4:10

“Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received [lambano] it, and it will be yours.” Mark 11:24 ESV

This literally means, “Whatever you ask in prayer, lambano it by faith, and it will be yours.” Receive it by taking it! The Biblical act of receiving looks like the intentional action of taking. No one takes hold of something, all the while wondering if they really have a hold on it. They take hold of it and know that they have it as they are receiving it to themselves. They reach out, grab it, and pull it in. That’s how you receive from God.

Good Stewards of Grace

“But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me.” 1 Cor 15:10 ESV

Now, let’s take it a step further. In the same way you receive a gift, use it. 1 Peter 4:10 gives you permission to lambano a gift from God with the intention of serving others. In fact, doing so makes you a good steward of His fully available and varied grace. When someone needs something, you have access to a warehouse full of “all things pertaining to life and godliness” — all available for the taking. A good steward uses what God has entrusted to their care and produces increase from it (Mat 25:14-30). This is part of the work that God gives us to do, and by doing it, God is glorified (Joh 17:4).

Secrets to Increase: How to Receive From God - A post from JeremyCaris.com -

“The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom, and whatever you get, get insight.” Pro 4:7 ESV

A Revelation of Christ

Wisdom from above always starts with knowing God Himself — with a revelation of Jesus Christ. Paul unlocked revelation that turned the world upside down, which he received through a revelation of Christ Himself.

”For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man’s gospel. For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.“ Gal. 1:11-12 ESV

“Who is there among you who is wise and intelligent? Then let him by his noble living show forth his [good] works with the [unobtrusive] humility [which is the proper attribute] of true wisdom.

But if you have bitter jealousy (envy) and contention (rivalry, selfish ambition) in your hearts, do not pride yourselves on it and thus be in defiance of and false to the Truth.

This [superficial] wisdom is not such as comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual (animal), even devilish (demoniacal).

For wherever there is jealousy (envy) and contention (rivalry and selfish ambition), there will also be confusion (unrest, disharmony, rebellion) and all sorts of evil and vile practices.

But the wisdom from above is first of all pure (undefiled); then it is peace-loving, courteous (considerate, gentle). [It is willing to] yield to reason, full of compassion and good fruits; it is wholehearted and straightforward, impartial and unfeigned (free from doubts, wavering, and insincerity).

And the harvest of righteousness (of conformity to God’s will in thought and deed) is [the fruit of the seed] sown in peace by those who work for and make peace [in themselves and in others, that peace which means concord, agreement, and harmony between individuals, with undisturbedness, in a peaceful mind free from fears and agitating passions and moral conflicts].” James 3:13-18 AMP

Get Understanding

This immediately causes me to revisit the proverb, “The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom.” It is now adequately clear that we should interpret this to mean, “The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom from above — godly wisdom!” This may seem incredibly simplistic, but if you continue along this line of thought you will see that it is invaluable to our lives. The wisdom of God would become more clear to us in the midst of many controversies if we would learn to look for the opposing fruit of these two kinds of wisdom.

Two Kinds of Fruit

Check-Check, One-Two, One-Two

Here’s were the rubber meets the road; or were the fruit meets the juicer, if you prefer. People can be very convincing, even hard to oppose, because their words and thoughts are well studied, organized, and sharply presented. But, if you want to evaluate what they say, you can first put their ideas under a little pressure and see what comes out when the fruit is squeezed. You’ve got to play the role of fruit inspector, checking apparent wisdom against the Biblical standard and then seeing it for what it is.

Earthly Wisdom

So let’s be extremely clear about this. Earthly wisdom produces bitter jealousy, envy, contention, rivalry, selfish ambition, and pride. Therefore it is in stark defiance to the Truth. This will seem impossible to one who exhibits earthly wisdom, because they think they are promoting truth with their wisdom. But the fruit proves it for what it actually is, and the Bible clearly says that this sort of fruit is in absolute defiance to the truth. Whatever truths they may have, whatever facts they do know correctly, are made completely irrelevant and ineffectual by their earthly wisdom.

It’s worth noting that these fruits are produced from within the person promoting this superficial, earthly wisdom. The messenger is intimately integrated with their message. As they release their earthly wisdom, they also release these fruits into the atmosphere around them, carrying it with them where ever they go.

Godly Wisdom

Truth in the hands of a person with godly wisdom is a powerful thing. It is also in exuberant support of Truth. This means that whatever revelation they have, whatever truths they wield, will be made relevant and effectual by their godly wisdom.

Therefore, get wisdom from above; get godly understanding. Do not forget what godly wisdom really is, and do not turn away from it (Pro. 4:5).

Seeking the Wise - A post from JeremyCaris.com -

My eyes still fill with tears when I see the footage, or think about the costly price that has been paid in blood and tears on that day, and every day since then until now. My wife and I had been at the twin towers not long before they fell, and we were at ground zero soon after they were gone. Yet, as we stood in a desolate field in Shanksville, PA where the heroes of Flight 93 were laid to rest in the wreckage, the blistering quiet ripped through our souls. These are moments that change you. These are moments that shape and define you.

Both leaders and critics were forged that day. I wish to share a few of the leadership lessons that resonate with me as I remember this day. It’s my goal to attain a life that exhibits such leadership.

1. A leader must be resolved to do whatever it takes to confront whatever the day may require, regardless of the cost.
2. Strong leaders embody a sense of determination to overcome all obstacles and odds.
3. True leaders inspire others with a resolve to move forward from where we are today.
4. Under pressure, a good leader remains loyal to purpose, principles, and people.
5. Secure leaders only make promises that they intend to keep.
6. True leaders do not waiver in their commitment to live up to their word.
7. Leaders must be willing to submit their own lives to severe criticism in fulfilling their purpose.

7 Leadership Lessons from 9/11 - A post from JeremyCaris.com -

“But Jesus answered them, My Father has worked [even] until now, [He has never ceased working; He is still working] and I, too, must be at [divine] work.” John 5:17 AMP

We are made in God’s image. Therefore, we operate effectively when we do what we see the Father doing as Jesus demonstrated. We are designed to operate exactly the way He does.

We create as God creates. God creates by a process of: (1) thought, (2) intention, (3) decree, and (4) expectation. This is the same process that we must follow. To explain it in a little more depth as it applies to us, we create by: (1) asking and seeking in your heart, (2) believing with intention, (3) decreeing with thanksgiving, (4) and then expecting to receive.

First, you ask, seek, dig, and search the written word in the power of the Spirit until you are fully convinced in your heart of God’s will and of what’s available to you personally right here and now. Then, you believe that you have already received it even though you haven’t seen the manifestation of it yet. You can do this because once you’ve seen it in spirit, it has already been given to you (Heb. 11:1). The thought of your heart is the initial substance of creation.

Faith does not activate what you hope for or what you know you should believe. It will not activate what you want others to think you believe or even what you want to believe. It will only work with what you honestly hold in your heart with expectation. It has already begun the process of transition from the spiritual realm to the physical realm. If you see it in spirit, it is already real and you know that you have what you asked for because Jesus hears you.

“And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.” 1 John 5:14-15 ESV

Once you ask and believe, once you “see” it, you decree it! You don’t ask any more. You decree, expecting to see it manifested. This is where most of us sabotage the process. Without an understanding of God’s ways, most simply wait and continue asking and hoping instead of believing and decreeing. This often develops into doubt, which obstructs faith. Each of us already has enough faith if we have become a new creation in Christ (Rom. 12:3).

“You shall also decide and decree a thing, and it shall be established for you; and the light [of God's favor] shall shine upon your ways.” Job 22:28 AMP

You have the faith! You just need to remove anything that is obstructing your faith from flowing freely. Eliminate all doubt. Remove everything that hinders. Replace every ungodly belief and false doctrine until your thoughts and beliefs are aligned with the perfect and eternally relevant example of Jesus Christ. Then decree it and expect it to be fulfilled. Let your faith flow freely!

The Effective Operation of Raw Faith - A post from JeremyCaris.com -

Super-Conspiracies

“… charge certain persons not to teach any different doctrine, ⁴ nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies, which promote speculations rather than the stewardship from God that is by faith. ⁵ The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. ⁶ Certain persons, by swerving from these, have wandered away into vain discussion, ⁷ desiring to be teachers of the law, without understanding either what they are saying or the things about which they make confident assertions.” 1 Timothy 1:3-7 ESV

Further in the same letter, Paul returns his attention back to this standard, saying, “Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness;” (1Tim. 4:7). He then concludes his letter by expounding on the nature of “any different doctrine,” along with what it produces.

“If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness, ⁴ he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy craving for controversy and for quarrels about words, which produce envy, dissension, slander, evil suspicions, ⁵ and constant friction among people who are depraved in mind and deprived of the truth …” 1 Timothy 6:3-5 ESV

Conspiracism is nothing more than speculation and myth, and it does not promote stewardship from God that is by faith. Christians who preach conspiracism as though it is part of God’s message to the Church are promoting speculation, vain discussion with vain and confident assertions about things they have no way of actually knowing, stirring up unnecessary and irrelevant controversy and dissension, slandering leaders and those in authority, inspiring evil suspicion, and questioning the intent of every move that leaders make. In short, it causes pointless constant friction within the Church, but it produces nothing good. We need to maintain God’s worldview, which He gives us in His Word. Therefore, Paul says to deal with those who teach myths and promote speculation within the Church by charging them to stop teaching it and stop devoting themselves to it.

Respect For Authority

“First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, ² for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.” 1 Timothy 2:1-2 ESV

“Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. ² Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. ³ For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, ⁴ for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer. ⁵ Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God’s wrath but also for the sake of conscience. ⁶ For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. ⁷ Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.” Romans 13:1-7 ESV

In contrast to conspiracism, the Bible teaches us that God ultimately “removes kings and sets up kings” (Dan. 2:21), and that “the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will” (Dan. 4:17; Dan. 4:25). Proverbs 21:1 says, “The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord; he turns it wherever he will.” We either believe the entire Bible is the inspired Word of God or we don’t. The assumptions and implications of conspiracism challenge the infallibility of the Bible and the sovereignty of God in the affairs of men.

You Become What You Behold

“The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light, ²³ but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!” Matthew 6:22-23 ESV

You control your own eye, and if you devote it to searching out darkness then you have taken yourself off course. You are responsible to maintain control over your perspective. Jesus reveals that if you don’t keep your perspective healthy, you will ruin your own life. Your perspective is never healthy if it opposes a proper Biblical worldview. This is why Jesus rebuked Peter saying, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man” (Mat. 16:23). It was for this same reason that Paul said, “Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth” (Col. 3:2).

“And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.” 2 Corinthians 3:18 ESV

As Bill Johnson eloquently states, “Darkness is completely inferior to light. Most of the church has too big of a devil.” And, “complaining is to the devil what praise is to God.” He also says, “We will always reflect the nature of the world we are most aware of,” because your “faith is agreement that empowers the reality of what you believe to manifest in your life.” Therefore, “We are not to live in reaction to the devil. We are to live in response to God.” The attitudes and mindsets that are inspired by conspiracism eventually cripple a person’s ability to see anything but darkness and compels them to live in an ongoing reaction to the devil.

Good News vs. Conspiracism

The Good News is extremely good; news full of life, faith, hope, and love. Yet, nothing about conspiracism even appears to be good news. Nothing about it edifies, encourages, or exhorts the Church. Jesus didn’t preach the message of conspiracism, even though the political culture of that day was far more dire than ours is today. Neither did any of the Apostles preach a message other than the Good News of the Kingdom and of Christ. The Bible speaks very strongly against embracing the mindset of conspiracism because it denies the sovereign rule of God while promoting fear, especially the fear of man.

“For the Lord spoke thus to me with his strong hand upon me, and warned me not to walk in the way of this people, saying: ¹² “Do not call conspiracy all that this people calls conspiracy, and do not fear what they fear, nor be in dread. ¹³ But the Lord of hosts, him you shall honor as holy. Let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.” Isaiah 8:11-13 ESV

Do people conspire? Of course. Men plot and conspire to do all sorts of things. Jesus conspired to do the Father’s will. And there are indeed men conspiring to accomplish evil goals. Many such goals are being carried out now, such as, desensitizing our culture from right and wrong, allowing the massacre of millions of innocent children under the name of abortion for mainly selfish convenience and labeling it “women’s rights”, and authoring school books that teach a generation to think from a humanistic perspective. People are working together to accomplish their agenda, on many different levels. None of this is new, and none of this is surprising.

Men conspired to build the tower of Babel in defiance to God, and He thwarted their plans (Gen. 11:1-9). A king named Herod conspired to eliminate the threat of the prophesied King of the Earth being born into the world by killing all male children in the area under a certain age (Mat. 2). God thwarted his plan as well. You see, evil men do evil things, and evil spirits often influence and empower them to accomplish what would otherwise be impossible. All of this has become normal in our world, in the sense that it has been this way throughout all of recorded history after Adam ushered sin and death into the Earth by disobeying God (Rom. 5:12-14). But God came to Earth as the man, Jesus Christ, and triumphed over sin and death in order to reconcile the world to Himself (Col. 1:20, 2Cor. 5:19). The Bible says that He restored the Kingdom of God in the Earth and that there will be no end to the increase of his Kingdom and of peace (Isaiah 9:6-7). That is very good news.

What Is A Conspiracist?

13 Reasons Christians Should Reject Conspiracism

1. The Word of God directly opposes conspiracism.

This should be the only reason that a Christian needs. The Bible specifically and strongly rejects it and the fruit it produces in people’s lives. (Especially according to Isa. 8:11-13; 1Tim. 1:3-7; 1Tim. 4:7; 1Tim. 6:3-5.)

2. Conspiracism defines it’s own worldview instead of conforming to a Biblical worldview.

It was by aligning with the will of the Father that Jesus triumphed over the enemy, and it will be the same for us as we cooperate with the finished work of Christ. If we imagine that preaching conspiracism is doing the Father’s will, we need to look again at Jesus’s life and go back to imitating Him. His way is the best way. In fact, it is the only way.

3. Conspiracism contradicts the understanding that God rules the kingdom of men, thereby rejecting the sovereignty of God.

The Bible clearly shows that God gives authority into the hands of men whom He empowers to rule (Dan. 2:21, Dan. 4:17; Dan. 4:25, Rom. 13:1-7), including many ungodly kings who have ultimately served His purpose. Some of those kings even came to understand that God rules over all and His Kingdom will never be shaken or overthrown (Examples: Dan. 1-6).

Conspiracism rejects the heart and lifestyle of David who refused to defy King Saul, even after Saul had turned from God and worked hard to thwart the purposes of God under the influence of an evil spirit (1Sam. 16:14-23; 1Sam. 18:10; 1Sam. 19:9; 1Sam. 28:8). David remained zealous to honor, to the extent of mourning, weeping, and fasting over the death of Saul (2Sam. 1:11-12). Even at news of Saul’s death, David still regarded him as the Lord’s Anointed (2Sam. 1:14).

4. Conspiracism is what a victim mindset looks like when it is fully developed.

Conspiracism may fulfill a need for the conspirator to project their own unwanted ills onto a greater evil, thus minimizing their own faults by imagining they are exemplified in others, or at least justifying themselves through blaming their environment and culture. Conspiracism never empowers people to move forward, but instead it places demands on them while condemning them for failing to do what the conspiracist does not even do themselves. It stems from the idea that other people should make them happy, and it results in complaining about things that are outside of their control. These attitudes begin to empower the devil to affect how they view the world, especially how they view authority figures.

5. Conspiracism eventually opposes Christian character, especially in the area of respecting and honoring authority.

6. Conspiracism places extraordinary faith in evil men and the power of darkness, while diminishing trust in God.

Again, remember that there is a difference between a conspiracist and most who believe their theories. Conspiracism tends to place ruling leaders in an elite rank where they are eventually despised for their authority when they fail to live up to some form of idealism which the conspiracist had hoped for. They are then glorified by conspiracism in the sense that they are portrayed like gods with the power to manipulate nations like puppets on a string. The conspiracist does not understand the realities of leadership and conspiracism never produces true leaders itself since it is ruled by a victim mindset.

7. Conspiracism predictably mistrusts anything that an authority claims publicly, unless it supports their pre-existing theories.

Since the conspiracist automatically opposes authority, by default they also oppose any official statement that one in authority makes. Therefore, they often claim that the official story is a cover-up of the truth. They often reject first-hand accounts and evidence in favor of intangible claims and opinions which they regard as facts. The conspiracist would say that every record that contradicts their theory does so because it’s author has an agenda or is blindly promoting that agenda; that is, unless that record happens to be useful to their theory in some way. In other words, there is no impartial evaluation of evidence to find truth, which is the scientific method. The conspiracist simply rejects anything that opposes their theory while trumpeting anything that helps promote it.

8. There is no need to argue over supposed facts, truths, and proofs, when conspiracism relies upon a faulty premise.

9. Conspiracism would require large, multi-generational groups of evil super-humans to maintain their secrecy, unity, and advancement.

Conspiracism necessarily requires such a massive quantity of evil people to be involved and in extreme unity and secrecy over long periods of time that it defies reality. It erroneously imagines that the basic controlling power of the sinful nature of fallen mankind would not cause things like personal greed and selfish ambition to eventually derail the mass unity and secrecy behind super-conspiracy theories. Those who do not belong to Christ are, in fact, fully controlled by their sinful nature and slaves to it’s demands (Rom. 6:6, Rom. 6:20, Rom. 8:15, Gal. 4:3, 2Pet. 2:19). Not even groups within the body of Christ, the new creation sharing the same Spirit of Christ, has yet demonstrated the ability to maintain such unity of mind and purpose for such extended periods of time.

Conspiracism attributes too much power and capability to men who are dead in their sin and slaves to unrighteousness (Eph. 2:1-3, Rom. 6:16-23). Isaiah 2:22 says, “Stop regarding man in whose nostrils is breath, for of what account is he?” Even people who are working under the power of the enemy are cooperating with a defeated foe and a kingdom that cannot stand. It is absurdly unbiblical to imagine that God’s Kingdom will not continue to advance and ultimately fill the Earth (Isaiah 6:3; Isaiah 9:6-7; Dan. 2:34-35; Dan. 2:44-45; Num. 14:21; Psa. 72:19; Hab. 2:14; Rev. 2:27; Rev. 12:5; Rev. 19:15; Rev. 20:2-3). The Biblical perspective is a victorious one.

10. Conspiracism defies logic and reason, relying primarily on emotional conviction to discern what it considers to be facts and truths.

11. Conspiracism needs to prove it’s own theories by pointing to other theories with additional unprovable convictions, creating a cycle of illogical reason.

This perfectly exemplifies the purpose of “Occam’s razor,” which is one way to test the potential truth of opposing stories. Occam’s razor questions whether the alternate story explains more than the primary story, or if it is only more complicated and less feasible. In other words, a greater degree of truth is normally found in the more simple and straightforward explanation. Lies and imaginations tend to exaggerate and over-complicate truth. Every person who has worked with or raised young children should be able to attest to the reality of this conclusion. In addition, the larger and more involved a conspiracy becomes, the more difficult it is to accomplish. Leading large groups of people will demonstrate the practical difficulties and reality of this conclusion as well.

12. Conspirators commonly point to news stories and sources that promote what they believe while denying everything else.

Conspiracists will often refer to the media by terms such as, “state-run media,” believing them to be possibly paid-off, coerced, or otherwise manipulated to psychologically influence people to play along with the agenda of the ruling elite. Hypocritically, they will also cite news stories from those same sources which they claim reveal facts proving their own theories. As already revealed, this is because there are specific and limited reasons they trust any story or source: it adds support for prior assumptions, it is in opposition to authority or to the official story, and it fuels their own emotional response.

13. Conspiracism defeats it’s own theories with it’s own logic every time it is critically evaluated.

Practical Conclusions

There are other practical reasons why experts and professionals have long dismissed conspiracism. Yet, the worst thing about conspiracism is when Christians embrace it and begin to fear what man can and will do instead of looking to God as their King, Source, and Savior.

We must love the conspiracist from the heart, in both word and in deed to the extent that they allow us to show it. But we must not play games with solid Bible doctrine or be subtly influenced to disregard our firm foundation in favor of speculation and myth. We must not fear man, but God alone. We must pray fervently for those who are lost in the futility of conspiracism, asking God to shine His light brightly in their hearts to expose real Truth to them instead of darkness, opening their eyes to see Him in all His glory. Pray that they begin seeing what it is that God is doing in the Earth and learn to live in response to Him alone. His Kingdom Keep Coming! His Will Be Done.

Christians & Conspiracism - A post from JeremyCaris.com -

“[Love] does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.” 1Corinthians 13:6 ESV

More Than A Warm Fuzzy

Love rejoices with the truth. But true love does not rejoice at wrongdoing. Many of us have been taught a very one-sided, humanistic view of love that really isn’t Biblical or healthy. For instance, I have heard people say, “we just have to love people where they are.” While there is a lot of truth in that, the intention behind that statement too often means, “pretend everything is perfectly fine the way they are so that we don’t rock their boat.” In other words, confronting the reality of their life seems mean and unloving. Loving people where they are is good in itself, but it all goes bad when we pervert what that means because we’re missing this key characteristics of love in our own lives: love does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but it does rejoice with the truth.

God exemplifies true love. It is who He is. Amos 3:3 teaches that two cannot walk together unless they are in agreement. God will not walk in step with you; you must walk in step with Him. The only way to do so is in spirit and in truth, which ultimately means you must face His conviction. Even His conviction is true love, which extends into correcting us with discipline when we are not in agreement with Him. God defines love, and since He cannot rejoice in wrongdoing, true love cannot either. It can only rejoice with truth.

“If you turn at my reproof, behold, I will pour out my spirit to you; I will make my words known to you.” Proverbs 1:23 ESV

The Road of Reproof

God loves you, and He wants to speak personally to you. In order to do that, to bring you to that place, He reproves (corrects, convicts, scolds) you because He cannot rejoice at wrongdoing. Therefore, reproof is part of love. Now this doesn’t mean you should go around yelling at and scolding everyone that isn’t living the way you think they should. It means something much more personal and intimate than that. It’s meant for you. You will have to walk the road of reproof to get to the table of blessing. There is no other way of approaching it.

“Whoever spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him.” Proverbs 13:24 ESV

“For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.” Hebrews 12:6 ESV

“Let the godly strike me! It will be a kindness! If they correct me, it is soothing medicine. Don’t let me refuse it. But I pray constantly against the wicked and their deeds.” Psalm 141:5 (NLT)

“The ear that listens to life-giving reproof will dwell among the wise. Whoever ignores instruction despises himself, but he who listens to reproof gains intelligence.” Proverbs 15:31-32 ESV

The Way of Life

“For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching a light, and the reproofs of discipline are the way of life,” Proverbs 6:23 ESV

When the Bible says that discipline is the way of life, it literally means that it is the road leading to life. The Hebrew word in this scripture translated as, “way”, literally means road, distance, journey, manner, habit, or direction (Strong’s, H1870). Yet, many of us haven’t understood this part of the journey, this aspect of love called “reproof” and “discipline.” We have had so many bad examples in our own lives which we naturally see through like a window when we try to view God and understand what He means by this.

Many of us associate discipline with anger and failure, but that’s not at all the way God intends it. We have to grow beyond our experience-based view so that we can see the truth of it more clearly and, in turn, demonstrate a better example ourselves. Until we learn to embrace discipline, we tend to react in a negative way toward God and others because they cause us to confront our own error or wrongdoing. We often don’t want to listen to reproof because it makes us feel like a failure, ashamed, or even angry. Some may even think that it is a sign of anger toward us.

However, it is purely love when God confronts our error and wrongdoing. He loves us enough to confront those things that are standing between us. He desires to bring us past those barriers and into a place where there is nothing to hinder us from receiving His blessing. All of the warm fuzzy parts are waiting for us, but God disciplines us to remove issues in our lives that are preventing us from having what He is already holding out with an open hand.

“Poverty and disgrace come to him who ignores instruction, but whoever heeds reproof is honored.” Pro 13:18 ESV

“A rebuke goes deeper into a man of understanding than a hundred blows into a fool.” Proverbs 17:10 ESV

You can’t make yourself qualified to go straight to all the blessing without encountering reproof. You must surrender to Him, both to His blessing and reproof – to His love. It’s His way or no way at all. It is the way of life. There is no instant lottery ticket method for getting only the warm fuzzy parts without walking the path of discipline.

Be Unlimited

“Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being, and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.” Psalm 51:6 ESV

So then, there are two sides to the same coin. If you separate them you are wrong. You would have to destroy the coin in order to separate the two sides, and  it would be useless and ineffective to accomplish it’s purpose. It is not any different with love. Without both sides of love, it is limited from accomplishing what it is intended to accomplish. Love has purpose!

We love it when we’re walking in truth and God’s rejoicing with us. But we tend to hate the other side of the coin because we haven’t understood that it is also love. If we are going to proceed to maturity we have to come to the point where we love the correction and discipline of the Lord. We must understand that it is part of His love for us. God disciplines us because He delights in us!

Give To God What Is God’s

Here’s what it comes down to: as you mature in the Lord you should reach a point where you can honestly embrace His discipline. Not in a sadistic sense, but from a place of understanding and a desire to grow in intimacy with him. You see clearly that He reproves you because He desperately loves you and wants you close.

“Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but he who hates reproof is stupid.” Proverbs 12:1 ESV

“He who is often reproved, yet stiffens his neck, will suddenly be broken beyond healing.” Proverbs 29:1 ESV

If we only accept one side of the coin, we’ll end up dysfunctional and God’s love will not be able to fully affect us because we are not allowing Him to fully love us. Be thankful for the reproof of the Lord. Every time you embrace it you will change, grow, mature, and overcome the very things that you could not on your own. He is setting a table of blessing for you and filling you with good things. He is showering you with praise as He rejoices over you and the truth that flows from your heart. Let Him fully love you!

Unlimited Love - A post from JeremyCaris.com -

And Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi. And on the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” 28 And they told him, “John the Baptist; and others say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets.” 29 And he asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Christ.” 30 And he strictly charged them to tell no one about him.

31 And he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again. 32 And he said this plainly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 33 But turning and seeing his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”

34 And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 35 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it. Mark 8:27-35

Revelation & Requirement

Jesus asks you, “Who do people say that I am?” This is where you begin to face the decision you must make. The kindness of God has wrecked your ability to walk away from Him without knowing who He is. And then he looks you squarely in the eye, and asks, “Who do you say that I am?” He is the center of everything, the full expression of the light and the glory of God. He is the eternal One, God manifested among us as a man, living under the limitations of mankind, yet uncorrupted by sin. Exposed to all and tempted in every way, yet he never surrendered to sin. Finally, in one profound act of absolute surrender, He took your place, paying the price of death that must be paid for your own sin. He is your Christ!

From the moment you realize who Jesus is, He turns and points up that dark and lonely hill where He laid it all on the line, speaking plainly to you for the first time about his suffering, rejection, and surrender. He talks openly about the incredibly steep cost. Just like Peter, your initial response is, “Why? It don’t understand. This cannot be right! It doesn’t make sense.” You fight with the inevitable truth, wrestling with everything you thought you knew. And just then, He leans in close and compels you with the words, “Follow me!”

Follow Further

He said those words to you once before when He called you aside from your meaningless life, grabbing your attention with hope. He urged you to believe His words and works. He caused you to let your walls fall down and take a chance at believing for something good again. In all of this, He required little of you. He asked only that you hear his words and take them to heart. Now He sees that you have seen the truth of who He is, and He calls you to follow further. He shows you His cross and tells you that it is yours as well. You must deny yourself to follow Him. You must surrender control of your life to God in faith that He will raise you up and awaken you to a new life — a life not your own.

It is here that your desire for self-preservation overwhelms you, and you fight for your very life. You see the severity of your own sin, the darkness of your own heart. You look for the hope and happiness that once filled your vision. You recoil suddenly, taking a step back in shock and horror. You assume that either it is not really God’s will, or you simply misunderstood. After all, you learned that He is bringing you hope, not death. You find a way to justify keeping things as they have been. You even go so far as to rebuke the very plan of God, expecting Jesus to pat you on the back and tell you it is okay. But instead, Jesus rebukes you and tells you sternly that you are living your life for yourself. You are setting your mind on the things that you desire. He brought you to the intersection of the rest of your life, His cross, and here He requires denial. You must either deny him or deny yourself. You have no other option.

Relent & Awaken

You wander in this aimless game until, by the grace of God, you find yourself at the foot of the cross again. Suddenly you hear His words echo in your heart, “Deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow Me!” It will never make sense until you relent, saying as Christ did, “Not my will, but Yours, oh God.”

And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Philippians 2:8

For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. 18 For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 1 Corinthians 1:17-18

Steps Ordered By God

The Intersection to the Rest of Your Life - A post from JeremyCaris.com -