Last week, I had this inkling for a twinkie. I was at the gas pump, fueling up my '71 Super Beetle, Miss Betsy (who, by the way gets like 40 mpg) and went to check out. I grabbed a paper and the last pack of those creme filled wonder cakes I so enjoyed as a kid. I was the twinkie one, my sister was a ding dong -- haha. Seriously though, she refused twinkies and ate the chocolate stuff.
I slipped back in the car yet kept smelling something odd but just couldn't place where it was coming from. Old cards like Betsy tend to smell more like gasoline all the time but this was more of a fruity odor. Since it was dark and I was trying to get home after Youth, I didn't turn on any lights to investigate. Instead, I managed to open my package of Twinkies while steering and shifting gears - yes, crumbs galore but that's OK. One bite of my twinkie revealed there was indeed something amiss here. The taste was somewhat familiar but just didn't seem right. A flick on of the interior light revealed these were BANANA TWINKIES!!!! ARG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Who on earth invented such a travesty! This was not right at all. Of course, not wanting to be wasteful, I ate them anyway but the enjoyment was so totally NOT the the same.
Original twinkies are the bomb. I know God made them, peanut butter and flip-flops just for me. And now, someone has messed with the Twinkies. I cannot imagine who would actually want to eat the banana flavored fakes, especially not willingly when one had first tasted and enjoyed the best. I was verbally protesting outloud in my car about these "foreigners" who had now smelled up my car, reaking of a banana pudding. Don't get me wrong, I like banana pudding but not with my Twinkies!
Just then, a small analogy was revealed....The Gospel of Jesus day was a non-compromised word that was black and white. Either you were with Christ or against Him, walked with Him or walk in your own 'ability'. Today, there is this no-cost Christianity that speaks of how the Father loves us, forgives us and wants us all to be with Him in eternity. This is truth, yes, but only half truth. The problem with half-truths is that the other half tends to be a lie, if nothing else a lie of omission. This 'new gospel' has all the added bonuses of God's kingdom but has gotten an updated "new look", "new smell" and somehow made more "relative" today's people. But the one thing is lacks is the very TRUTH of God's word that also reveals there is a consequence of rejecting the entire Gospel -- that there is a hell, that is real. Jesus lived with the reality of hell's existence every day He walked this earth. He talked more about hell in the New Testament than any other thing -- more than love and more than angels. If you don't believe me, re-read the entire New Testament!
This no-cost, unaccountable message is much like those Banana Twinkies. It looks like the Original - has all the cake and cream filling, just like before but there is something FOREIGN inside that you cannot easily detect, perhaps only sensing something isn't quite right. The Bible warns us throughout the New Testament about false teachers, preachers and that "other gospel" that will occur in the last days. In order to know the truth, you have to know His Word -- READ THE LABEL and all the ingredients, making sure it is the real thing, not a masked imposter.
In Isaiah 14, the Word talks about how Lucifer (before he became the fallen one, Satan) was envious of the majesty of God.It reads:"WHAT A COMEDOWN THIS, O BABYLON! DAYSTAR! SON OF DAWN! FLAT ON YOUR FACE IN THE UNDERWORLD MUD, YOU, FAMOUS FOR FLATTENING NATIONS! YOU SAID TO YOURSELF, ' I WILL CLIMB TO HEAVEN, I WILL SET MY THRONE OVER THE STARS OF GOD. I WILL RUN THAT ASSEMBLY OF ANGELS THAT MEETS ON SACRED MOUNT ZAPHON. I WILL CLIMB TO THE TOP OF THE CLOUDS, I WILL TAKE OVER AS KING OF THE UNIVERSE!" ISAIAH 14:12-14.
Did you happen to pick up on the center theme of his character? If not, just count how many times the words, "I WILL" are spoken -- like five times! Jesus' only wanted His Father's will, not His own. He demonstrated this in the Garden of Gethsemane when he was praying so hard He sweated drops of blood. His will was crushed to fully allow His Father's will to be made known to the world.
I don't mean to be preachy, just another day of Holy Frustration brewing. :) I need that too of late, lest I fall into a complacent mode of existence. Lord, help me to walk in Your will, not my own this day and always.
So, I guess the weirdo analogy with the Banana Twinkies was just one of a reminder to always test the word against THE WORD, looking for the Truth, the whole Truth, and nothing but the Truth. The real Jesus is never self-seeking, never one operating out of his/her own will or so-called ability, only relying on God above for the daily needs to be met. For we are never promised tomorrow, only today and life can be truly but a vapor -- choose wisely.
