As previously stated, every honest, Truth-seeking believer will ask himself the following questions: Who is my boss? What is his brand? Do I ride his brand? The first question is always the same–the Biblical God. Question #2 is also answered uniformly–the Holy Bible. Question #3 is where professing Christendom has gotten off track. There is an expression that fits the Christian lifestyle perfectly: “If you are going to talk the talk, you must walk the walk.” Eventually, walk must equal talk. Otherwise, one is a hypocrite–a category of believe that God rejects (Mat. 15:9/ Lk. 6:46/ Jn. 8:31) When talk must be followed by walk, Church people refuse to stay the course. Let us now examine the Book all church people claim is God’s “brand” in order to examine the walk (lifestyle) the God of that tome commands us to walk in order to spend eternity with Him.

In First Peter 1:15,16; 2:5,9 we read the following Words that were  spoken to Peter by God through His Holy Spirit. These Words were directed to His church: “… as He Who has called you (out of darkness) is holy, you must be holy in all areas of your life for it is written, ‘Be you holy for (because) I am holy … You also, as lively stones, are built up into a spiritual house (temple/church)–a holy priesthood–in order to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God by Jesus Christ …  You are a holy people, a chosen generation (group), a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people called to manifest the praises of Him who has called you out of darkness (sin) and into His marvelous light (holiness).'”

In Second Peter 3:11,14 the apostle writes to the church: “… what manner of people must you be in all holy conversation (life/walk) and godliness … without spot and blameless.” In Colossians 1:22 the Apostle Paul tells the people in the Colossian Church that they must walk in strict obedience (to God’s Word) so that Jesus will be able to present them to God “unblameable and unreproveable in His sight” following His Second Advent. Note that in all of the above statements there is no mention of repenting after every inevitable sin, no mention of Adam’s sin gene in their spiritual dna, no “Only believe,” or “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved.” Peter and Paul had already taught their followers the fine print of God’s Word. Satan’s false prophets present only the Biblical headlines. God’s men teach the other 99% of what He said. It is in the Biblical fine print that He tells us how to bring the headlines to fruition–how to “ride God’s brand.”

Question: Why must we who claim oneness with God be holy in our individual lives (walk)? Answer: Because He is holy. Moral: WE MUST BE LIKE HIM. PERIOD. In order to spend the next life with Jesus Christ we must live as He lived in this life. We must walk as Jesus walked (1 Jn. 2:6)–we must RIDE GOD’S BRAND JUST AS HE DID.

Collectively we must be a HOLY NATION, A ROYAL PRIESTHOOD, A PECULIAR PEOPLE. By manifesting Christ’s characteristics to those around us we show that we have been called out of Satan’s darkness and into God’s light. The English word “church” means “called out ones.” God has called His saints out of the world, including Satan’s church world, to be observably different from the world and its false church systems–Catholicism and Protestantism. His saints are to be His light in the darkness that surrounds them. He commands us to be godly, without spot and blameless. In summary: WE MUST WEAR HIS BRAND. He speaks to those who claim to be His but refuse to wear His brand in First John 2:4: “He who says ‘I know Him” and does not obey His commandments is a liar and the Truth is not in him.” Jesus said that God’s Word was Truth. Therefore, anyone who claims to be God’s son and does not obey His Truth (ride His brand) is lying and is “ever learning but never coming to the knowledge of the Truth” (2 Tim. 3:7).

Note that in the above paragraph there is no mention of the sin-repent, sin-repent cycle that is so popular with the “sinner saved by grace” crowd known universally as “the church.” Paul tells us in Hebrews 6:1 to stop talking about repentance from sin and to QUIT SINNING. In verse 6 he says that to remain in the sin-repent cycle is to “fall away” from the Lord, to “crucify Christ afresh” and thereby to “put Him to an open shame.” This is Satan’s “brand.” Those who ride it are declaring that their boss is God’s premier enemy. L.J.