Jesus Promised to Rebuke and Chasten the Laodicean Church–That’s Us!!

‘These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world YE SHALL HAVE TRIBULATION: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’  (Jesus, John 16:33)

‘I PRAY NOT THAT THOU SHOULDEST TAKE THEM OUT OF THE WORLD, but that thou shouldest KEEP THEM FROM THE EVIL. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. SANCTIFY THEM through thy truth: THY WORD IS TRUTH.’  (from Jesus’ prayer to the Father on behalf of Christians, John 17:15-17)

‘ . . . But they said, We will not walk [therein].  Also I set watchmen over you, [saying], Hearken to the sound of the trumpet. But they said, We will not hearken.’  (Jer. 6:16-17)

‘And it was given unto him* TO MAKE WAR WITH THE SAINTS, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.’  (Rev. 13:7)

*’The Antichrist’

‘ . . .  the words [are] closed up and sealed till the time of the end. MANY SHALL BE PURIFIED, AND MADE WHITE, AND TRIED . . . ‘  (Dan. 12:9-10)

‘After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne . . . And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they WHICH CAME OUT OF GREAT TRIBULATION, AND HAVE WASHED THEIR ROBES, AND MADE THEM WHITE IN THE BLOOD OF THE LAMB.‘  (Rev. 7:9, 13-14)

Have you ever stopped to wonder how the American/ Laodicean, last-days, lukewarm Church goes from their condition in Rev. 3:17 . . .

‘Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art WRETCHED, and MISERABLE, and POOR, and BLIND, and NAKED . . .’  (Jesus, Rev. 3:17-19)

. . . so disgusting to the Lord that He promises to spew them out of His mouth in verse 16 . . .

‘ . . . I will spue thee out of my mouth.’  (Rev. 3:16)

. . . to being in white robes, washed in the blood of The Lamb in Rev. 7:14?  There are two ways it can happen, verse 19 explains:

‘As many as I love, I REBUKE AND CHASTEN: BE ZEALOUS THEREFORE, AND REPENT.’  (Rev. 3:19)

Some will heed the call to be zealous and repent.  The rest will be rebuked and chastened.

How does a Christian get into such an awful condition, but by neglecting to study and live by God’s Word?  The Word WILL SANCTIFY those who know it AND LIVE IT, but I believe that those in these last days who refuse to be sanctified by The Word, will be sanctified by persecution and tribulation instead.   All of us must, by whatever means, be sanctified (made holy).

The preTrib Rapture doctrine is false.  As we can see, the American portion of the Church (where this deception thrives) is anything BUT ready to make their entry into the presence of God in Heaven.  So, what’s YOUR motive for believing this false teaching?

‘Whosoever shall seek to save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it.’  (Luke 17:33)

While you’re believing a lie, you’re busy missing the truth.  And you’re also missing the comfort and increased faith that the Lord is giving to those who ARE willing to accept the truth.  The irony is, your fear of facing tribulation and persecution may be the VERY thing that puts you in the position of having to go through it.  Walk in faith instead, knowing that God is able to deliver those who put their trust in Him.

‘But without faith [it is] impossible to please [him]: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and [that] he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.’  (Hebrews 11:6)

Adopt Paul’s attitude:

‘Yea doubtless, and I count all things [but] loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them [but] dung, that I may win Christ,’  (Philippians 3:8)

Take Jesus’ words seriously:

‘And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.’  (Matthew 10:38)

And remember

‘He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.’  (John 12:25)

‘For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time [are] not worthy [to be compared] with the glory which shall be revealed in us.’  (Romans 8:18)

At the end of it all, we win!

‘And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.’  (Rev. 12:11)

‘And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom [is] an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.’  (Daniel 7:27)

‘Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.’  (Luke 12:32)

Fear Must Be Overcome With Faith

‘Whosoever shall SEEK TO SAVE his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it.’  (Luke 17:33)

God isn’t mocked.  He knows our hearts.  If we realize our attitudes aren’t right . . . see that we are falling short . . . we must repent and ask Him for help.

Yes, there are fearful things ahead–but fear isn’t an option for a Christian, anymore than lust is.  We must repent of fear and fight it, through prayer and READING THE BIBLE (faith comes by hearing the Word of God).

It is fear that drives people to cling to the (false) preTrib Rapture doctrine.  They ‘seek to preserve [their] life’.  This is natural and understandable–but so are lust, lying, stealing, etc.  We must overcome our own selfish desires and sinful nature, take up our cross and follow Him.  By the power of the Holy Spirit living in us, we CAN have victory over the flesh!!  And He WILL sustain us through WHATEVER He calls us to.

Don’t think fear is that big an issue?

‘But the FEARFUL, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the LAKE WHICH BURNETH WITH FIRE AND BRIMSTONE: which is the second death.’  (Rev. 21:8)

Wow.  That’s sobering.

As a Christian, when we give in to fear, we negate our testimony to all who are around us.  When we give in to fear, we are calling God a liar, because He has promised to take care of us and to be with us always.  Our fear says we don’t really believe that’s true.

‘Now the just shall live by faith: but if [any man] draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.  But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.’  (Hebrews 10:38-39)

‘. . .  we may boldly say, The Lord [is] my helper, and I WILL NOT FEAR what man shall do unto me.’  (Hebrews 13:6)

‘For GOD HATH NOT GIVEN US THE SPIRIT OF FEAR; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.  BE NOT THOU THEREFORE ASHAMED OF THE TESTIMONY OF OUR LORD, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of THE AFFLICTIONS OF THE GOSPEL according to the power of God;’

(2 Timothy 1:7-8)

‘FEAR NONE OF THOSE THINGS WHICH THOU SHALT SUFFER: behold, the devil shall cast [some] of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: BE THOU FAITHFUL UNTO DEATH, and I will give thee a crown of life.’  (Rev. 2:10)

‘ . . . that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;  And deliver them WHO THROUGH FEAR OF DEATH WERE ALL THEIR LIFETIME SUBJECT TO BONDAGE.’  (Hebrews 2:14-15)

Fear of death is a bondage–a bondage that Jesus (also) died to deliver us from!  Only fear God, and the wickedness in your own heart.

I’m not saying you’re in sin to be afraid or to feel fear–it’s what you DO when that happens that matters.  Do you ruminate on that fear? Do you worry endlessly?  Do you give in mentally, physically, or spiritually?  Or, do you fight the fear as though it were an enemy?  Do you rebuke it and ignore it and press on?

Faith is the enemy of fear.  Faith or fear–when things happen, you make a choice which to yield to.

‘But without FAITH [it is] impossible to please [him]: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and [that] he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.‘  (Hebrews 11:6)

‘Let us hold fast the profession of [our] faith without wavering; (for he [is] faithful that promised;)‘  (Hebrews 10:23)

God is FAITHFUL to perform what He has promised.  Read the Bible and find out WHAT He has promised.  Read stories of God in action, and  how He deals with His people.  Build your faith!!

‘So then FAITH [cometh] by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.’  (Romans 10:17)

‘Above all, taking the shield of FAITH, wherewith ye shall be able to quench ALL THE FIERY DARTS OF THE WICKED.’  (Eph. 6:16)

Believe Whatever You Like

It boggles my mind that, even when shown clear Biblical evidence to the contrary, some people who profess to be Christians will continue to believe in lies.  If that describes you, you are in a very dangerous place!

‘For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away [their] ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.’  (2 Timothy 4:3-4)

The part about having ‘itching ears’ . . . only listening to what appeals to us . . .  isn’t just talking about somebody else.  I would venture to say it’s talking about 98% of us these days!  Unless you STRIVE to compare what you hear to God’s Word, you will find yourself doing the same thing.  For some reason, in our day and time, it’s the natural thing to do.

How do YOU decide what you will believe?  Do you have an objective standard that you compare things against, or do you just believe whatever ‘feels right’?  In this life, you can believe whatever you want . . . whatever feels right . . . or sounds nice . . . or appeals most to you . . . if you want to, but if you don’t love TRUTH and seek after TRUTH you are on very dangerous ground.

The Lord HIMSELF is sending strong delusion, to people who do not love the truth (2 Thess. 2).  If YOU reject the truth when it is shown to you, then it could very well be said that YOU do not love the truth.  If you don’t love the truth, you will be overcome by the strong delusion and you WILL believe The Lie and follow the False Prophet and ‘The Antichrist’.  If you don’t have a love for the truth–PRAY FOR IT, because your eternal soul is at stake!

The correct response, when someone is showing you something from the Bible, is to PRAY that the Lord would give you discernment (because you don’t want to reject the truth OR believe a deception, right?).

Then, you PRAYERFULLY go to the Bible and start searching the Scriptures to see if what they told you is true.  At the very LEAST, read the verses they showed you, IN CONTEXT to make sure that they are using the verses as God really said them.  Reading a verse in context usually means reading the whole chapter they are a part of–sometimes more.

Most false doctrines are based on verses taken out of context (often a LOT of verses taken out of context), and ‘personal revelation’ of vague and difficult Bible passages.

If a person promoting a teaching says things like ‘the Lord revealed to me’ or ‘God told me’, or ‘I had a dream’, that doesn’t prove it was really a revelation from God.  There are plenty of deceiving spirits going around masquerading as ‘the Lord’ and whispering unBiblical things in peoples’ ears.  Be VERY careful of people who try to elevate their credibility by claiming divine revelation.

‘Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;’  (1 Timothy 4:1)

The Bible tells us that

‘ . . .  In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established.’  (2 Cor. 13:1)

God follows this pattern in His Word–things are repeated two or three times in Scripture.

The Bible also tells us

‘Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.’  (2 Peter 1:20)

So pay attention, and when someone tries to claim divine authority via personal revelation for what they are telling you  ( ‘the Lord revealed to me’ or ‘God told me’, or ‘I had a dream’, etc.)  be VERY cautious about believing what they say, and PRAY that God will protect you from believing any lies they may be telling.  Also, be careful of believing doctrines that are based on obscure verses, or verses that stand alone (the same idea isn’t repeated elsewhere in Scripture).

There’s no way around it.  WORK is involved in getting to the truth.  You can’t just be lazy and believe whatever sounds good when it passes through your ears.  You must PRAY for discernment AND open your Bible and read, to be sure that what you are told is TRUE!!

Too many pastors these days are preaching lies (deliberately, or because they themselves are deceived).  The Bible repeatedly warns us to ‘let no man deceive you’ . . . and God has provided each of us with plenty of access to a Bible!!

If the truth isn’t important to you, you WILL believe The Lie and be damned.  The Bible promises it (2 Thess. 2:11-12).  And those of us who believe lies, without opening and reading our Bible to see what’s true, will have no excuse when we stand before God, damned for believing THE Lie.