Do you know about the ‘ICE Agents’ that God is sending out? (Matt. 13:41)

Whether you see yourself as a ‘Christian’, a ‘Conservative’, or perhaps a ‘Christian Conservative’...please hear my heart as I struggle to make sense of what is happening in our country with our immigration policies and challenges that are ripping this country apart.

There's nothing wrong for any sovereign country to have stringent immigration policies, nor is it wrong to stop the flow of ‘illegal entries’ which has been a huge campaign issue and talking point here in the U.S. for decades.

But never in a million years did I ever see it being even remotely feasible to 'round up and remove’ countless numbers of people who ended up here year ago (‘not the legal way’) and who have established families and businesses and livelihoods in this country and are living decent productive lives here.

It's one thing if we’re apprehending violent criminals that are not citizens and we kick them out... fine; or arresting people who may be 'abusing the system'. But this idea of rounding up untold thousands, if not millions (alleged goal) of those who simply don’t have ‘valid documentation’ and are taken into custody without any form of warrant or due process...just arrest them and cart them off...in what world does this even make sense, let alone sound ‘humane’? (That is a rhetorical question, so please hear me out before you want to make this 'political')

And here is the statement I hear repeated all the time...by many who profess to be followers of Jesus: ”They broke the law!”; or...”If they had just obeyed the law, they would not have to suffer these consequences!”

Guess what, friends...God has been saying that ever since the beginning of time -(Gen. 2:17; John 5:14). Do you know what ‘sin’ even is, according to the Bible’s definition? - Sin...is breaking God’s laws (1 John 3:4).

And here’s the kicker - nearly all Christians will readily admit...they ‘sin everyday’. That means they are ‘breaking God’s laws’...daily, if not multiple times a day (Matt.12:36-37), and you might want to go mark that passage in your Bible now...."by your words you will be condemned..."

So for all those who continue to harp from their lofty pulpits of self-righteousness how people should just ‘obey the law’...I merely want to remind you that the day is coming when YOU...will be judged in the same manner in which you are judging others- “For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged.” (Matt. 7:2 NLT). His words, not mine.

And ‘No’, I am not implying that we cease from having ‘laws and regulations’ in our country nor am I advocating we ‘empty our prisons’. (The enemy loves to toss out controversial questions/scenarios to muddy the waters of discussion when truth is involved)

But it is this one issue of how to deal with ‘illegal aliens’ in this country which so many are divided on, and how so many of those who claim to be followers of Jesus... are responding to this very divisive topic...that concerns me.

I’m not entering the fray of ‘political debates’ simply for the love of debating/arguing political issues. I am sending out a warning plea for us all...to examine our hearts (2 Cor. 13:5) and advising that we better be on the ‘right side’ of this one issue...before God’s ‘agents’ come knocking on YOUR door! Do you have your ‘papers’ in order? (Luke 13:6-9; 1 John 3:2-3; 2 Cor. 7:1).

Hence...my reposting this very relevant message I posted from last June. Please take the time to read....and maybe read through the parable of the wheat and tares beforehand, found in Matt. 13:24-30; 36-43.  You might just look at the verse where the servants were advised not to 'uproot the tares'...and just let things play out until God gets involved.  

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[6.13.25] This is not intended to be a ‘political post’, and yet I know many will see it only as that, similar to the one I shared back in January following the National Prayer Service and the comments made by the woman minister who directed them at the newly sworn in president.

But I am sensing a very disturbing and somber unrest in my spirit this morning after reading a couple of articles in the news, as well as seeing this image of a poster that apparently was released by our Department of Homeland Security this week. [And for the record, this post has NOTHING to do with the recent riots, protests, or arresting of violent criminals that are here ‘illegally’.]

Whether you consider yourself to be a ‘believer’(follower of Jesus)...or not, I would be puzzled as to why seeing this image would not cause you some unrest as well. And that is about as close to the line of engaging in a ‘political’ post that I will get to.

I say this because if anyone has been following my posts the past 3.5 years, about the only thing you have seen here, other than the occasional pics of our grandsons that I share, have been my messages and Bible lessons that I believe are directed to the ‘body of Christ’ at large. I do not see myself, nor have I set myself up to be some self-proclaimed ‘prophet from God’. But I won’t lie when I say that my heart/spirit are burdened by all I am seeing in my Bible and what I am witnessing unfold before us today in this world.

Many of the things that are taking place in our ‘natural’ world...I believe are a ‘shadow’ of what is happening in our ‘spiritual’ world, and I know some will roll their eyes at that one. But if there is any truth to this, let me share briefly why this story has unnerved me.

If you are a ‘Christian’ who has no qualms with the direction we are moving in with this ‘cleansing of illegals’ in this country, I simply would like to direct your attention to a parable that Jesus shared in Matt. 13:24-30, and His explanation of this parable which He gave to His disciples in private (36-43).

While the majority of people will want to debate the pros/cons of this DHS policy of removing ‘foreign invaders’ from our country, I want to remind any and all students of the Bible that Jesus made it clear...at the ‘end of the age’ (39)...God will also be sending out ‘agents’.... to ‘weed out’ all the ‘illegals in His kingdom’ (41). He refers to these agents as ‘reapers’ or ‘angels’ and they are going to ‘gather up’ all those who do not bear genuine ‘fruit’. And there was a distinct difference between the fruitful wheat...and the tares in that field, which Jesus said represented the ‘world’ (38)

And if you want to get into specifics, Jesus lays it out there in vs. 41- they will gather up all that ‘offends, causes, and/or practices... sin’. He makes no distinction as to which church they may attend, or not. “Everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin, and a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever” (John 8:34-35). His words, not mine.

If you care to read more on how the Bible distinguishes between those who are God’s children, and those who are not: You might read Romans 8:14 and 1 John 3:4-10. Then follow up with 1 John 5:18 that says: “We know that whoever is born of God does not sin...and the wicked one does not touch him.” And let me be clear, this idea of ‘weeding out’ is a continuous theme in our New Testament – (Matt. 3:7-12; 7:15-20, & John 15:4-6).

That might explain why Paul admonished us: “having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” ( 2 Cor. 7:1)

One final reminder to draw some parallels to: You may be perfectly fine with watching a ‘brown skinned’ family down the street get called in and asked to provide ‘proof of documentation’ that they are indeed...’legal U.S. citizens’, and if not...’hasta la vista, baby’. They should have known better, right? Maybe they will cry tears and plead to those in authority and tell them how they have been good hard workers, paid taxes, gone to church, coached soccer teams, etc. Again...I’m not here to argue the fairness of all this, nor do I feel compelled to start protesting and taking up arms.

But it’s important to know that in that ‘spiritual world’ that Jesus came to teach us about...He too, made it clear when He said: “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness (sin)!’ (Matt. 7:21-23)

It seems a day is coming when God wants to see our documentation as well proving we are ‘citizens in His kingdom’, which would be our ‘fruit’. And that is when many will say...”But Lord...look at all these other things we did in your Name!” They too will hear, in a matter of words...”Hasta la vista, sinners”.

Since we are going to be judged in the same manner in which we have ‘judged others’ (Matt. 7:1-2), you might want to check out your own papers while you are at it. John 13:34-35,1 Cor. 13:1-8 and 2 Cor. 13:5 would be a good place to start.

He who has ears to hear....let them hear...