by Randy Willis
“So teach us to number our days,
That we may gain a heart of wisdom.” — Psalm 90:12
Introduction
Numbers in the Bible have meaning. A rainbow typically has seven colors. God created the rainbow.
And God said: “This is the sign of the covenant which I make between Me and you, and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth. It shall be, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the rainbow shall be seen in the cloud.” — Genesis 9:12-14
Yes, numbers hold symbolic and significant meaning within scripture. Three, four, twelve, and forty are examples. But there is another one: seven. Seven often symbolizes completeness, perfection, and divine wholeness. In Christianity, the Christian Sabbath is also known as the Lord’s Day. The Bible records that God rested on the seventh day after creating the universe in six days.
There is another person mentioned in the Bible many times. He, too, knows the importance of the numbers to God. In Christianity, 666 is famously known as the “number of the beast.” Satan knows Biblical math far better than this hayseed cowboy. He also knows the meaning of eternity.
From the beginning, Satan has distorted God’s Biblical truths, casting doubt on them with his first lie: “Did God Say?” (Genesis 3:1). Satan then explains why you can’t trust God. He does that with God’s promise to Noah, as seen in the rainbow symbolizing God’s covenant made with Noah. Man can trust God’s covenants and promises in the Bible. Satan seeks to distort that truth as well.
Like all of God’s blessings, Satan sets out to distort them. We see this in the marriage covenant. We see this is the birth of our most innocent. We see it from many pulpits in America today. This dilutes the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It compromises and adulterates the truth of the inerrant and infallible Word of God.
Man wants to do things his way, not God’s way. And that includes Biblical numerology as evidenced by the use of six colors, not seven, in God’s rainbow. In English, there are generally considered to be eleven basic colors. Scientists estimate there are many more colors the human eye can perceive. My question is, why do rainbows typically only use seven?
Where am I headed with this? God’s hand is everywhere in His creation. The grandeur of God’s creation can be found from the smallest microorganisms to grand phenomena. We see this grandeur today as the James Webb Space Telescope discovers distant galaxies.
“The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament shows His handiwork.” —Psalm 19:1
A Little Bit of Background on Me Before I Get to the Subject at Hand
I was fetched up on the Old Danbury Road a “fur piece” up the shell road from Angleton. The population was 100 trillion if you count mosquitoes, rattlesnakes, and my Catahoula Leopard Dog, “Bob.”
No, I never walked the three miles to school barefoot in the snow, but don’t tell my grandkids. Anyhow, it never snowed in Angleton anyway.
I have explained to my grandchildren that when I was a kid, we had “book learning.” They smile as I tell them. Our education included the 3 Rs: readin’, ‘riting, and ‘rithmetic. That latter one, including ciphering, has always been of interest to me. I know, what do those strange words mean from yesterday? Look them up in Encyclopedia Britannica or use Google if necessary.
Daddy bought Encyclopedia Britannica in a moment of weakness. No, there was no attractive saleswoman, but Daddy’s humble attempt to enhance my education. Although Daddy never said it, I believe he secretly knew I was no farmer. He knew I had no future in front of a turning plough either. Nor did I have a future behind the south end of a north-bound cow.
Daddy and me. He was 44, and I was 14. I pulled a “bush hog” behind a tractor for many a mile. This was a friend’s tractor. We owned a used lugged-wheeled John Deere, also known as “Poppin’ Johnny.” We had to start it with a flywheel, not a battery. I now have arthritis in my left shoulder as a result of how hard it was to crank that beast.
However, there was one problem with Mama and Daddy’s dream for me: a better future. They could not afford to send me to a place no person in our family had ever been. That place was college. That math I knew all too well: bills plus bills, equal not enough.
But Daddy had an “ace in the hole,” or should I say shovel in a levee. He got me a job shoveling rice levees working for Babe Scott for $8 a day. I also hauled hay with my best friend, Billy Adams. We earned eight cents a bale for loading, transporting, and stacking the hay in a barn. Our goal was 100 bales a day after school. Our $4 each would buy a pair of Levi’s with “two bits” to spare.
My Mother and Daddy. Ruth and Julian “Jake” Willis. 1967 The Old Danbury Road between Angleton and Danbury, Texas. Our “library,” in the background, is Encyclopedia Britannica, with two huge Britannica Almanacs on top.
During my teenage years, I would pore over our Encyclopedia Britannica. I also read Britannica’s Almanacs with the same fervor. Later, I did the same with my mother’s Reader’s Digest short stories. I also explored my Father’s Zane Grey and Louis L’Amour Western novels. However, it was Brazoria County’s Bookmobile that opened my mind to other opportunities in life. Thank God for public libraries. Thank God for the Brazoria County Library Foundation, which I was honored to speak at a year ago.
There was also the ultimate “wish book.” Sears and Roebuck’s catalog, which was published twice a year. It could barely fit in our rural mailbox. It had a million items that did not fit our budget either.
Shopping malls would phase out Sears’ mail-order catalogs in favor of an array of stores. These stores offered a million items that we also could not afford. Nevertheless, Mother loved to “window shop” at Brazos Mall in Lake Jackson. Angleton had no mall. Mama’s doctor had suggested Brazos Mall was perfect for her daily walk. She could get her walk in without being eaten alive by mosquitoes.
Mother never bought anything at the mall. None of the mall’s stores offered the popular trading stamp reward program S&H Green Stamps. These stamps were a staple in Mother’s tight budget. She preferred the more “exclusive” Gibson’s Discount Store and Bottom Dollar Store in Clute, or the local fire sale stores. Unlike Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the Bible, these clothes did not have the spell of smoke on them.
Mama would buy on a “layaway plan” when she could. The payment for an item in installments was almost always completed just before Christmas Eve. Mother sold Avon for extra money. I can smell an array of Avon’s floral fragrances as I write. I recently walked past a lady at HEB. When I smelled the Honeysuckle Blossom fragrance, I almost turned and called her mother. It was the most precious moment, but it made me miss her.
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I was especially interested in Mama’s large Bible. It was the Good Book. Mama bought me a smaller Bible when I was eight. It was that year I walked the “sawdust trail” at Temple Baptist Church in Clute, Texas. Billy Sunday used the metaphor of walking to the front of his tent revivals. He called it “hitting the sawdust trail.” Sunday used that term because the aisles in revival tents were covered with sawdust. It was a public declaration of faith in Jesus. Some challenge the legitimacy of this “path” to salvation today. All I know is, I’ve never doubted my salvation for a moment, and my race is almost run.
Throughout my three-quarters of a century, the Bible has been my rudder. It has guided me through more storms than I ever could have imagined as a boy. As I journey through this final season, it feels like the “winter” of my life. I long for the shores of heaven. There, I will be greeted by the One who gave His life for me and my Mama and Daddy. And hopefully, many friends, I am sure, some wished I’d kept my faith to myself.
There, in Heaven, the storms of life will be no more. There will be no funerals and no tears. Death will have lost its sting. I watch the photos from the James Webb Telescope, as I mentioned earlier. It appears that we know very little about the universe. Jesus is referred to as the Lord of Creation in Colossians 1:15-17. That will be a “class” in heaven I will want to attend.
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As Jesus’ words in Matthew 24 unfold before my eyes today, I pray, “Come quickly, Lord Jesus.”
Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” — Matthew 24:3
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Today, I inform my array of doctors and nurses that I have a “medical degree” from the University of Google. Therefore, please pay close attention as I work on my “Doctor of Theology” from the University of Social Media. With that in mind, please refrain from taking notes. Add a dash of salt (make that a box) as I discuss my fascination with biblical numerology.
Oh, about that math. I almost forgot.
Or do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me with more than twelve legions of angels? — Matthew 26:5
Sorry for the wings on these angels. I am using my “sanctified imagination,” as Pastor E.V. Hill would say. The Bible says we encounter angels without recognizing them. Therefore, it’s unlikely that all angels have wings. However, cherubim and seraphim do have wings. Please grant me this allegory. No, we do not become angels when we die.
Now to the math. A Roman legion was 6,000 soldiers. Twelve of them would be 72,000 angels. Simple enough.
In Isaiah 37:36, it is recorded that a single angel obliterated 185,000 men in one night.
Now let’s multiply 185,000 recently deceased enemies by 72,000 angels. This was the number of angels Jesus said were available to Him on the night of His arrest. That figure is 13,320,000,000. That is, those 72,000 angels could destroy thirteen billion, three hundred twenty million people if Jesus called on them to rescue Him. That is more than twice the number of people living on Earth as I write.
Enough of the math. The point is, why did Jesus not summon the angelic host? Not a single angel was called. Not a single angel was recorded as being at Calvary as Jesus suffered, shed his blood, and died.
Jesus knew it was time for Him to pay the ultimate sacrifice. Jesus knew He was born to die for our sins. He chose to voluntarily lay down His life for the sin of the human race. My sin, your sin must be paid for.
If you could atone for your sin before a Holy God, then Jesus wasted his time. He suffered on a bloody cross in torment and shame for no reason if you could pay for your sin. Habakkuk wrote (Habakkuk 1:13), “Your eyes are too pure to look on evil.” The sacrifice for our sin had to be without sin. Jesus was without sin. Jesus was the sinless Lamb of God.
If Jesus had called the angels to rescue Him, there would be no need for payment for our sins. The Righteous would not have been slain for the unrighteous. The Just would not have given His life for the unjust. If the sinless Lamb of God had not died for the sinner, you and I, there would be no payment for our sins. We would remain for all eternity separated from Holy God, for He cannot look upon sin. The holiness of God is more than my mind can grasp, but I long to know more.
Hell, I know, that’s not a popular word, especially in today’s world. But those who shun the word are not alone. Satan, too, hates that word and is doing his best to convince this world that hell does not exist. After all, it’s not “positive thinking.”
The late preacher E.V. Hill said his mama would often say: “Hell is a place you don’t want to go.” My friend, Hell is a real place. There is no coming back from it. It is eternal separation from God. Read the scriptures in Luke 16:19:31, about the Rich Man and Lazarus. There is no crossing over from hell to heaven, nor the reverse.
Some believe you can return from death as a different life form if you lead a good life. Granted, the idea of reincarnation appears to be more compassionate than the concept of eternal hell. However, such concepts as reincarnation are not taught in the Bible. There is but one way, and that’s God’s way, the cross.
You might believe that living a better life than the “guy” next door will let you come back as a unicorn rather than a javelina pig. US Army General George S. Patton Jr. believed he had lived many past lives. Those included a Carthaginian general, a Roman legionnaire, and a soldier in Alexander the Great’s army.
You might also believe you’ll return as a roach if your karma is bad. Your salvation is not based upon your goodness, but Jesus’ righteousness.
We are saved by grace, not works. Ephesians 2:8-9 teaches that salvation is a divine initiative, not a human accomplishment. It’s a gift offered by God’s grace and received through faith, preventing anyone from taking credit for their salvation.
Grace is receiving what you and I don’t deserve, i.e., eternal life with Jesus Christ in Heaven for eternity. Grave is a gift to us, but was paid for on the cross.
Mercy is not receiving what you and I deserve, judgment, i.e., eternal separation from Jesus Christ in Hell. Both are offered to you and me in God’s “love letter,” the Bible. Jesus took our judgment on the cross. The Just for the unjust. The Righteous for the unrighteous. The Holy for the unholy. The sinless Lamb of God for the sinner, you and me.
“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” — Ephesians 2:8-9
The Bible teaches that after death comes the judgment. There is only one way to escape this judgment for your sin. And that is to accept Jesus’ substitutionary death on the cross for your sin.
When you die, you go to one of two places according to Scripture. You go out of the presence of God forever, or you go into the presence of God forever. Eternal separation from God is called hell. Spending eternity with God is referred to as heaven.
“And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes the judgment.” Hebrews 9:27
Do you wish to miss this judgment? Then settle out of court by accepting Christ’s payment on the cross for your sin.
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Thank God, thank God Almighty, Jesus Christ took our place on the cross on Mount Calvary. Thank God Jesus Christ shed His lifeblood for you and me. Thank God, Jesus, God in the flesh, shed His blood, God’s blood, for you and me.
Sometimes, Simon Peter, yes, the Apostle, reminds me of me. And that’s no compliment. I am not being braggadocious. When Peter drew his sword in the Garden of Gethsemane to defend Christ, that is what I would have done.
Jesus said to Peter, “Put your sword back in its sheath,” after Peter had used it to cut off Malchus’s ear during Jesus’ arrest. Now, Peter was a big man, but not a swordsman, but a fisherman. I suspect he was not skilled enough to swing for his ear. He was aiming at Malchus’s head. If Jesus had not restored his ear, there might have been four crosses on Calvary’s hill. Please file this under “Randy’s Sanctified Imagination.”
It is not by the sword but by the Word of God. Oh, how hard that is for me to learn. I have never had a sword to cut off anyone’s ear. But I have cut deeply with my tongue and my deeds.
Join me today in laying down your sword and reading the Word of God, the Bible. May we discover once again that the victory is only in Jesus. Perhaps you need to say yes to Jesus—today. You will never regret that decision. Will you say yes to Jesus—today?
According to the Bible, we all have feet of clay and fall short of God’s glory. Our righteousness is described in the Bible as filthy rags. God’s grace (his undeserved favor) is available to us all. However, we must accept His gift of forgiveness. This gift was bought and paid for on the cross with Jesus Christ’s blood. You can say yes to Jesus’ free gift right now.
Our greatest need is forgiveness. Christ came to forgive us, but we must accept that free gift.
The most famous 25 words ever written: “For God so loved the world. He gave His only begotten Son. Whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)
If these words are how you feel in your heart, then pray:
“Heavenly Father,
I pray to You, asking for the forgiveness of my sins.
I confess with my mouth. I believe with my heart that Jesus is Your Son. He died on the cross at Calvary, so I might be forgiven.
Father, I believe that Jesus rose from the dead. I ask Jesus to come into my life as my personal Lord and Savior.
I turn from my sins and will surrender to your will throughout my life.
Your word is truth. I confess with my mouth that I am born again. I am cleansed by the blood of Jesus!
In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen!”
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Jesus will come again with all the angels of Heaven. He will be accompanied by His bride, the Church, and the saints of all ages. The Bible records in Revelation 5:11 that myriads upon myriads of Angels will be with Christ. Thousands upon thousands will accompany Him. 72,000 angels will be but a mere drop in the bucket on that day.
Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True… (Revelation 19:11)
The network’s cameras turn to the blazing light in the sky. There He sits mounted on a shimmering white stead engulfed in His Shekhinah glory. The saints of all ages are with Him, along with all the angels of Heaven, which are innumerable. And yes, nearby is His bride, His precious blood-bought church. —Randy Willis
Epilogue
We attended Temple Baptist Church in Clute, Texas, every Sunday morning, Sunday night, and Wednesday night. It seemed everyone attended church when I was a boy.
Christmas 1956, 519 Coleman Street Clute, Texas
Left to right: My Grandmother Lillie Hanks Willis, Daddy Julian “Jake” Willis, and Mother Ruth Willis. Me, Randy Willis is on the floor. Siblings from Mother’s first marriage to John Duke, who died: Buddy Duke, Jerry Duke, Marjorie Duke, and Dorothy Curbelo, whom my parents raised.
I took my new Bible and headed to Temple Baptist Church in Clute, Texas. My grandmother, Lillie Hanks Willis, was with me. My dog, Pedro, “photobombed” us at 519 Coleman Street, Clute, Texas
On a Wednesday night, my mother was unable to attend. Therefore, I walked to church from our home on Coleman Street. I was with my twelve-year-old sister, Marjorie. I was only eight years old. I had no intention of that hot August night in 1958 being any different from any other.
I cannot recall a word Pastor Bill Campbell said in his sermon. But I remember vividly another voice that spoke to my mind—my heart—my spirit. It was not an audible voice. It was a still, gentle voice. It was tender but ever so clear. The Holy Spirit told me to go forward and accept Christ as my Savior.
I recall my response to the Holy Spirit as if it were five minutes ago: “Lord, I’m too shy. I would if my mother were here to go with me.”
I felt someone touch my left shoulder. My sister Marjorie was sitting in the back row with her friends. She could not have seen my face, for I was seated near the front.
She said, “I’ll go with you if you want me to.” I immediately stood and walked with her to the front of the church and made my decision public.
I know you do not have to have an experience like that to be saved. Nevertheless, I’m so grateful for that experience; it has never left my mind or my heart. I have never doubted that decision for one nanosecond.
I was nine years old in the above photo. I accepted Christ as my Lord and Savior when I was eight, three months before my ninth birthday. My mother always starched and ironed my shirts for church and school. The shirt above was slightly too big. The one below faded because it was a “hand-me-down” shirt, too. But I never cared. Most of my friends wore “hand-me-down” clothes.
Materialism was not in our vocabulary. The prosperity “gospel” craze was not in vogue. What I remember were sermons entitled “Trust and Obey” and “Power in the Blood.” My favorite stories are about the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s Well (John 4: 4-42). I also love the story of the “Prodigal Son” (Luke 15: 11-32). Both are powerful stories of Jesus’s love and forgiveness.
My mother, Ruth Lawson Willis. Headed to Temple Baptist Church. Our home was at 519 Coleman Street, Clute, Texas. 1956 Yes, we all wore our “Sunday Best.”
Mother’s Great-grandson, Corbin Willis, in 2024, 68 years later, in front of the same porch. We moved from this home in 1960 to Angleton. Daddy tried to buy the house, but it was too expensive, $3,500.
Satan is our enemy, not “Karen” next door.
Satan is our enemy, not “Karen” next door. “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:12)
One offensive weapon against the forces of evil is the sixth piece of armor that Paul discusses in Ephesians 6. It is the Sword of the Spirit, the Word of God. Jesus responded to Satan in the wilderness by quoting the Scriptures.
Prayer can be likened to an offensive weapon, a spear or lance. Put on the whole armor of God. You will find this in Ephesians 6:12. Use prayer to thank and praise the Lord. Bear your soul and heart to Him. Although He is not your ATM, remember He has said you have not because you asked not.
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The shield of faith has been my greatest defensive weapon. Without that enormous shield, the enemy’s fiery darts would have caused me to crash and burn long ago.
Don’t neglect your prayer life. That is easier said than done. I have always struggled with it because I was busy. As Chicken Little exclaimed, I only prayed when the sky appeared to be falling. Set aside a time and place daily for this most crucial part of your day: prayer. My chosen time is when I awake in the morning. It’s before the phone rings and the cares of life seek to overtake me.
My role is not to lodge complaints. I need to understand what His will is for me. I am to be a channel of prayer. There is no more extraordinary privilege or responsibility than standing on God’s side and praying for my children and grandchildren.
I pray for each of them by name, constantly and earnestly. I am specific in my requests. I always pray in the name of Jesus. Christ knows what is best for them and loves them even more than I do. I love to pray Psalms 91 for my family. The famous psalm says God will give His angels charge over you. I suspect a flock of angels was needed in my case. They had to work overtime in my youth.
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Let no one convince you otherwise, and they will try. Walk by faith in Christ. Remember, God is still on His throne and in control of your future.
From personal experience, the Holy Spirit is never late. Walk by faith in Christ, not sight. However, He rarely has been early in my case. I suspect that is how He has grown my faith. I have never enjoyed that part. I hated it in some cases. And it drives me crazy at times for patience has never been a virtue of mine.
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Grandpa’s advice is based on my life journey over the past three-quarters of a century. It is not some profound theological treatise. Others are far better at that than I am at debating all the many isms and schisms. With all my love—I love you more than life.
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“Your heart should be so hidden in Christ that a person has to seek Him to know you.” —Randy Willis
“Many today have just enough religion to inoculate them from knowing Christ.” —Randy Willis
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