Why Are So Many Deceived?

The widespread deception we see in ‘Christianity’ today, is NOT because a bunch of born-again Christians are reading the Bible on their own, prayerfully trusting the Holy Spirit to lead them, and then coming up with crazy ideas. NO!

(And yet, that is what organized ‘Christianity’ leads you to believe will happen if you don’t regularly attend ‘church’ and put yourself under the (supposed, but unscriptural) ‘spiritual covering’ they claim to provide.)

‘But I would have you know, that the head of every man is CHRIST . . . ‘ (1 Cor. 11:3)

The widespread deception is because people have set aside the Scriptures that tells us that the former example is PRECISELY how we are supposed to learn!

‘But the Comforter, [which is] the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.’ (John 14:26)

‘But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.’ (1 John 2:27)

Likewise, it has never been God’s intention for one man to rule over any group of people, whether it be a local church, or a nation. And yet, there again, we see that most ‘churches’ today have a pyramid shaped design with the ‘lay people’ at the bottom and a pastor at the very top.

The mainstream Christian ‘churches’ are now revealing the poison fruit of their disobedience and unscriptural practices. There are hundreds (thousands?) of denominations, all in various degrees of apostasy and doctrinal error.

Meanwhile, those people who have rejected this system and ARE prayerfully reading their Bibles, leaning on the Holy Spirit to teach them, are finding a remarkable unity in understanding.

Disobedience to God’s design will not bring God’s blessing. And in this case, it will put you in extreme danger of being caught up in deception. I hope that you will heed the instructions in God’s word, and that you will pray about the best way that YOU can be in obedience to God’s design. It could be a matter of spiritual life or death for you and your family.

Surfing

Do you remember how, in school, you would listen while the teacher explained something, then you would get sent home with HOMEWORK to practice and perfect your skill?

Serving God is the same way. The Bible is full of instruction. Then, God sends trials and tribulations so that you can practice and perfect doing the things He has told you to do.

If there were no trials and tribulations, you would get no practice. Without practice, you would never make the transition from being a ‘hearer of the word’ to being a ‘doer of the word’.

No one learns to surf without waves.

Saved by Faith, or by Works?

‘Then said one unto him, Lord, are there few that be saved? And he said unto them, STRIVE to enter in at the strait gate: for MANY, I say unto you, WILL SEEK to enter in, and shall not be able.’  (Luke 13:23-24)

Notice Jesus doesn’t just say ‘many won’t enter in’.  Instead, He says ‘many will SEEK to enter in but won’t be able’.  These are not just worldly, indifferent people–they are people who WANT to enter into Heaven.  What is the difference between those who seek to enter in but can’t, and those who strive to enter in and are able?

‘Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but HE THAT DOETH THE WILL OF MY FATHER which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, YE THAT WORK INIQUITY*.’  (Matthew 7:21-23)

According to Strong’s, those who ‘work iniquity’ are those who do ‘anomia’

iniquity = anomia (G458)

1) the condition of without law

..a) because ignorant of it

..b) because of violating it

2) contempt and violation of law, iniquity, wickedness

 

This passage separates between those who DO the will of the Father, and those who don’t–and further clarifies it as those who live by His law vs. those who don’t.

Now, we know that as Christians we are not bound to the Mosaic Law.  But we ARE expected to follow the Ten Commandments (and the four restrictions in Acts 15:20).

‘ . . . but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.’  (Jesus, Matt. 19:17)

According to Matt. 7:21-23, the difference between eternal life and damnation is whether or not you follow God’s Commandments.  NO, we do not OBTAIN salvation by following the Commandments, or any other thing that we might do.  There is no salvation apart from faith in Jesus’ finished work on the cross.  But when we become Christians we enter into a blood covenant with God, and our part is to do His will.  If we aren’t doing His Will, then we aren’t ‘abiding’ in Him.  If we aren’t doing His will, then we are walking in the flesh.  Christianity today is misrepresented as a free bus ticket: we say a ‘Sinner’s Prayer’ and then get a free ride.  But that’s never what God intended.  His will is to have

‘ . . .  a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:’  (1 Peter 2:9)

When God made the first covenant (the ‘Old’ covenant) with the people of Israel, Moses gave the people The Law

‘And Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the LORD hath said will we do.’  (Exodus 24:3)

Then a blood sacrifice was made, to seal the covenant.

We are heirs to a better covenant.

‘But this [shall be] the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.’  (Jer. 31:33)

Not only does He write His law in our hearts, He gives us His Holy Spirit, to will and to perform it.  This covenant was sealed by the blood of Jesus.

In return for being redeemed from the bondage of sin and judgment, we are to yield ourselves as living sacrifices to Him.

‘What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost [which is] in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.’  (1 Cor. 6:19-20)

‘Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God–this is your spiritual act of worship.’  (Romans 12:1)

To simplify it,

‘Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment.

And the second [is] like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.’  (Matt. 22:37-40)

And how do we find the love to fulfill these two commandments?  We walk in the Spirit, and not in the flesh. The Holy Spirit is the love of God, living in us, and flowing through us. The Holy Spirit will work in our heart to desire to do, and to perform the will of God.  The Holy Spirit will not lead us into sin.  The Holy Spirit will keep us on the path.

‘Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;’  (Titus 2:12)

The Holy Spirit works in conjunction with the Word of God, to change us from the inside out.

‘And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what [is] that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.’  (Romans 12:2)

‘ . . . Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.’  (Ephesians 5:26-27)

How do we walk in the Spirit? We say ‘no’ to worldly lusts and ungodly temptations, thereby ‘crucifying the flesh’–because if we are walking in the flesh, we are not walking in the Spirit.  And we pray and read the Word of God . . . and then we live what we learn.

‘For my yoke [is] easy, and my burden is light.’  (Matt. 11:30)

His yoke is easy, and His burden is light–but we must CHOOSE to walk on the narrow path.  We must STRIVE to enter in.  That striving is not a ‘work’ . . . it is our flesh and our will we strive with.  But if we say no to the flesh and yield ourselves to Him, His Spirit will lead us into all righteousness.

‘Teach me to do thy will; for thou [art] my God: thy spirit [is] good; lead me into the land of uprightness.’  (Psalm 143:10)

There is much confusion about ‘works’, but  here’s what the Bible says, in a nutshell:

‘For BY GRACE are ye saved THROUGH FAITH; and that not of yourselves: [it is] the gift of God: NOT OF WORKS, lest any man should boast.’  (Ephesians 2:8-9)

‘Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.’  (Galatians 2:16)

But

‘What [doth it] profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him? . . . faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone . . . I will shew thee my faith by my works.’  (James 2:14, 17, 18)

‘But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?  Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar?  Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?

And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God. Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.‘  (James 2:20-24)

Saving faith produces ‘works’ in keeping with that faith–and that is God’s will for us.

‘Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.’  (Titus 2:14)

‘And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works’  (Hebrews 10:24)

‘That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.’  (2 Timothy 3:17)

‘[This is] a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men.’  (Titus 3:8)

‘For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.’  (Ephesians 2:10)

Who are the ‘saints’?

‘ . . . they that keep the commandments of God, AND the faith of Jesus.’  (Rev. 14:12)

There really is no contradiction at all, except in the minds of those who don’t consider the full counsel of the Word of God.

Celebration in the Midst of Darkness

If I understand Bible prophecy right, there is a fantastic event coming, even in the midst of the darkest hour the world has ever, or will ever, endure.  No, it’s not the Rapture . . . it will happen before that.  It is an event that no one talks about, that I believe has been hidden from our understanding–hidden in plain sight, for all the prophets talk of it.  That event is the revealing of the identities of those who are descended from the ‘missing’ ten tribes of Israel.

‘Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered; and it shall come to pass, [that] in the place where it was said unto them, Ye [are] not my people, [there] it shall be said unto them, [Ye are] the sons of the living God.  Then shall the children of Judah and the children of Israel be gathered together, and appoint themselves one head, and they shall come up out of the land: for great [shall be] the day of Jezreel.‘  (Hosea 1:10-11)

Long ago, God divorced the ten tribes of the Northern Kingdom, also known as ‘Israel’ (the Southern Kingdom was known as Judah–today’s ‘Jews’).  The prophecies of Hosea tell of the day when God forgives Israel and brings her back to Himself.

‘For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and [without] teraphim:  Afterward shall the children of Israel return, and seek the LORD their God, and David their king; and shall fear the LORD and his goodness in the latter days.’  (Hosea 3:4-5)

Prior to that day (and on the horizon now) is the day that the eyes of the Jews will be opened:

‘And it shall come to pass in that day, [that] I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for [his] only [son], and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for [his] firstborn.’  (Zech. 12:9-10)

‘In that day’ is referring to the time of the Psalms 83 war, when the enemies of the modern day nation of ‘Israel’ will make war against her and take her land.  Although they will at first prevail against her, God is going to somehow, supernaturally, intervene and turn things around.

‘Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah [and] against Jerusalem. And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.

In that day, saith the LORD, I will smite every horse with astonishment, and his rider with madness: and I will open mine eyes upon the house of Judah, and will smite every horse of the people with blindness.‘  (Zech. 12:2-4)

‘But I will have mercy upon the house of Judah, and will save them by the LORD their God, and will not save them by bow, nor by sword, nor by battle, by horses, nor by horsemen.‘  (Hosea 1:7)

Then ‘Israel’ will actually have her borders enlarged!

‘In that day will I make the governors of Judah like an hearth of fire among the wood, and like a torch of fire in a sheaf; and they shall devour all the people round about, on the right hand and on the left: and Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place, [even] in Jerusalem.’  (Zech. 12:6)

All this is in preparation for the day of ‘Jezreel’.  This will be an event of momentous importance–so much so that God named a place in the Promised Land, in anticipation of that future day . . .a day that many of us will live to see, and some may even be a part of!

‘Jezreel’ means ‘God sows’.  What does God sow?

‘ . . . and they shall hear Jezreel.  And I will sow her unto me in the earth; and I will have mercy upon her that had not obtained mercy; and I will say to [them which were] not my people, Thou [art] my people; and they shall say, [Thou art] my God.’  (Hosea 2:22-23)

First Israel, where she lives now, will be punished, purged, and cleansed.  Then the remnant will be returned to the Promised Land.  ‘Jezreel’ will be a day of great rejoicing!  It is the day of forgiveness and restoration . . . of the remarriage of Israel to Jehovah God!!

‘And I will betroth thee unto me for ever; yea, I will betroth thee unto me in righteousness, and in judgment, and in lovingkindness, and in mercies. I will even betroth thee unto me in faithfulness: and thou shalt know the LORD.’  (Hosea 2:19-20)

‘For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all  countries, and will bring you into your own land. Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do [them]. And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.‘ (Ezek. 36:24-28)

I believe this complete, reunited Israel is the ‘woman’ spoken of in Revelation 12:6 and 14 . . .

‘And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred [and] threescore days. . . And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.’

”Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto her. And I will give her her vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope: and she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt. . .

 And in that day will I make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven, and [with] the creeping things of the ground: and I will break the bow and the sword and the battle out of the earth, and will make them to lie down safely.’* (Hosea 2:14-16, 18) 

*Compare this to Ezekiel 34:25 and 28 . . .

‘And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause the evil beasts to cease out of the land: and they shall dwell safely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods . . . And they shall no more be a prey to the heathen, neither shall the beast of the land devour them; but they shall dwell safely, and none shall make [them] afraid.’

Read the following passages for context, to confirm that they’re related and that this understanding is correct: Hosea 1-3, Ezekiel 34 (and 36-37), and Jeremiah 23:1-8.  They all foretell this grand event! I’ve only hit the highlights of what’s contained in these passages.

Let us stop living in fear of what The Antichrist is going to try to do to us, and know that God has a wonderful plan in store!  Even in a time of gross darkness, there will be light and rejoicing, provision and protection for His children.

‘Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou [art] with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.’ (Psalm 23:4-5)

‘And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.  And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.  And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.’  (Rev. 12:14-16)

Let us live with abandon, and put our faith completely in Him.

‘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)

‘If it be [so], our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver [us] out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.’  (Daniel 3:17-18)

Faith is the oil for your lamp.  If you hope to be one of the ‘wise virgins’, you must build your faith NOW, by reading His Word.

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

I cannot impart my faith to you–not now, not later.  Only the Holy Spirit can fill you with faith, and that comes by prayer and reading His Word.  Don’t neglect these things now, while you still have time.

It is also through the Word that we are taught how to walk in righteousness, and our minds are cleansed and renewed.  You cannot walk in the Spirit without prayer and reading your Bible.  If you are not walking in the Spirit, then you are walking in the flesh.  When you walk in the flesh, you don’t grow spiritually or bear spiritual fruit.  You are also choosing a very dangerous path–especially in these days of great deception.

You must walk IN THE SPIRIT for the promise of ‘no condemnation’ to apply to you:

‘[There is] therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.’  (Romans 8:1)

If we hope to be part of the remnant, then we must ‘walk worthy’ NOW.

‘For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of [them] whose heart [is] perfect toward him. . . ‘  (2 Chronicles 16:9)

‘Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.’  (Luke 21:36)

The exodus from Israel was a foreshadowing of what is soon to happen.  There is a great and exciting event on the horizon!  Let the hope of this day encourage you through the trials, testings, and persecution that are to come.  Never give up hope.

‘Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.  In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this [is] his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.

Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that they shall no more say, The LORD liveth, which brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt;  But, The LORD liveth, which brought up and which led the seed of the house of Israel out of the north country, and from all countries whither I had driven them; and they shall dwell in their own land.’  (Jeremiah 23:5-8)

(What I’ve learned and shared with you today is further confirmation, for me, of what I wrote some time ago: Worthy to Escape

Who Feeds YOU?

There are some good teachers and preachers out there, but I trust no one 100%.  What I find brings about the most spiritual growth is listening to the KJV on MP3s (or reading it).  After you’ve heard or read enough of it, the Holy Spirit begins tying it together for you so that you understand things.  He will also bring verses to your remembrance when relevant (or key words from verses, so you can look them up).   This is the most important ‘food’ of all.

‘But the Comforter, [which is] the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, HE SHALL TEACH YOU all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.’  (John 14:26)

‘But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and YE NEED NOT THAT ANY MAN TEACH YOU; but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.’  (1 John 2:27)

Yes, we can learn from and sharpen one another–but we should not look to the teachings of men for sustenance.  Whenever anyone stands between us and the Word of God, we MUST pray for discernment about what they are saying, listen critically, and check to see if it lines up with The Word.  (That means taking notes or stopping the audio/video to look things up in the Bible.)

I don’t believe in revelation that comes apart from the Word of God.  The Holy Spirit will reveal things to you AS YOU LISTEN or read God’s Word.  If things are revealed to you at other times, He will also bring to mind the Scriptures that go with them.  Too many people are setting aside the Word in favor of revelation through dreams or visions, etc.

Be VERY careful when you hear people preaching, and be sure that what they are saying lines up with the Bible.  (Be VERY cautious when they say that JESUS told them something, or they had a  vision of Jesus!!)  Surprisingly,  there are preachers who will preach on a verse, but when you look it up in the Bible, you see they took it completely out of its context.

Another favorite of false teachers is to act as though they’ve received revelation or understanding of some obscure verse that no one else seems to understand.  If they are ‘successful’, doctrine is built around their ideas (doctrines of demons) and a new cult, movement, or denomination springs up.

What I’ve found, as I study the Word, is REPETITION.  Ideas are repeated throughout Scripture–often even in the same passage–stated two or three times in slightly different ways in order to fully reveal it.  ‘Stand alone verses’ should be set aside as something we simply don’t understand yet.

If what someone is teaching is like nothing you’ve ever heard before–be very suspicious!!  Especially if you have a hard time correlating it with what you already know from God’s Word.  PRAY for wisdom and discernment–especially at times like that.

‘If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all [men] liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.’  (James 1:5)

Wisdom and discernment are not just gifts of the spirit for certain people, any and ALL of us can pray and ask for them.  God will grant it to you if you ask, but it’s not permanent.  Pray for it daily for best results.  🙂

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)

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.

Another Verse Out of Context

Oh how this verse is misused today . . . to convince people that they must dig into the mystery knowledge which Satan has been using to bait the children of God with, since the Garden of Eden.

It is not ignorance of the hidden things (or the devil’s schemes) that causes the destruction of God’s people–it is the lack of knowledge of His Law and His ways, that leads to our destruction!

Read the verse in context:

‘Hear the word of the LORD, ye children of Israel: for the LORD HATH A CONTROVERSY with the inhabitants of the land, BECAUSE [there is] no truth, nor mercy, nor KNOWLEDGE OF GOD in the land.

By swearing, and lying, and killing, and stealing, and committing adultery, they break out, and blood toucheth blood. . . My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing THOU HAST FORGOTTEN THE LAW OF THY GOD, I will also forget thy children.’ (Hosea 4:1-2, 6)

Rather than spending your time delving into the dark workings of Satan*, spend your time digging into the truth of God’s Word.  If God wants you to understand what Satan is doing, HE WILL SHOW YOU!  I promise.

I never went looking for knowledge of Satan’s schemes, but God has shown me more of it than most of  you.  Not all knowledge is good.  Understanding of these things is not a matter of light and joy.  It is sorrow and heaviness, to know the things that Satan is doing.  And still, at the end of it all, what matters the most is that we seek the truth in God’s Word, and LIVE BY IT!!

Save yourself the drama, and stick to God’s Word.  There is less benefit to knowing what Satan is doing, than some of these teachers would have you believe.  (And they may very well be leading you astray.  They may be sharing some previously secret truths with you, but where are they ultimately leading you?  They say they are Christians, but I have reasons to doubt that . . . )

* Going to some of the websites, watching some of the videos put together by those involved with the dark powers (including the New Age Movement), can open you and your family up to their (the dark powers’) influence in your life.  Are you skilled in spiritual warfare?  Don’t think ‘no one sees me’ when you go to those sites, because the powers of darkness DO see you.  They can bewitch and seduce you (or your family members)–or they can battle against you.  Don’t go there, unless GOD has specifically led you to, and then, only with appropriate prayers to ‘cover’ yourself and family, and being prepared to do spiritual battle, if necessary.