Tag: Faith

SHOCK AND AWE

For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short.

Matthew 24:

21 For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. 22 And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short.

29 “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

1 Thessalonians 4:

15 For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.

Revelation 20:

4 Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. 5 The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.

THIS IS THE FIRST RESURRECTION. 

6 Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.

David…

DELUSION

The content discusses the urgent need for a truthful understanding of scripture amidst widespread delusion and deception. It critiques modern churches that emphasize positive messages over the principles of God’s wrath and judgment, warning of a false sense of security. The author highlights biblical examples of unheeded warnings and consequences.

2 Thessalonians 2:9 The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, 10 and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. 11 Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe THE LIE, 12 in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

Delusion and deception are everywhere. As I face the lies, I hold to one truth. The Bible says what it means and means what it says. Yes, even that understanding can and has been taken too far by some. Any truth, taken to an extreme, becomes a lie. Yet the Bible, understood as one would understand any book, is the truth. On this I stand.

Pastors stand in their pulpits and speak of how God led them to this passage or that and how God led them to preach on this particular subject. That sounds so holy and righteous that we sit in awe and listen to the message God has given our pastor. There is, however, a problem to that… I have noticed that in almost every case, God leads them to preach happy sermons on happy verses. That is interrupted by the appearance of sermons on tithing when the church treasury is falling behind. Sometimes it appears to me that not tithing is the only sin committed by the parishioners; it is certainly the only sin that God leads his pastors to preach against.

This has led to today’s very lopsided church. We see and understand the love, mercy and grace of God but we cannot comprehend the wrath, judgment, holiness and righteousness of God. Our God neither sees nor judges sin, and He certainly does not call his children to repentance or punish them when they are disobedient.

Revelation 3: 14 “And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: ‘The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God’s creation.

15 “‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! 16 So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. 17 For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. 18 I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see.

What God says of the church in Laodicea is certainly appropriate and easy to apply to the church of today. Many scholars have seen the order of the seven churches as being chronological and historical. If that is so, Laodicea would represent the church of the last day, our church.

This deception has led many Christians to believe that Jesus died to save America and their cushy lifestyle. If you think I am wrong, watch a Trump Rally. We are overloaded with so called “CHRISTIAN PATRIOTS”. Our churches can tolerate abortion, transgenderism, and child genital mutilation… we can tolerate anything as long as they leave us alone. If I, or anyone else, start speaking of judgment or the fall of the United States, we are met by the unbelieving cries of “Shut Up! God loves America too much to ever judge her and she will never fall… God has sent Donald Trump to save us in our sin and empower us to continue in our sin… The God of the New Testament would never judge or destroy America; He is a God of Love, Grace and Mercy!”

2 Chronicles 7: 19 “But if you turn aside and forsake my statutes and my commandments that I have set before you, and go and serve other gods and worship them, 20 then I will pluck you up from my land that I have given you, and this house that I have consecrated for my name, I will cast out of my sight, and I will make it a proverb and a byword among all peoples. 21 And at this house, which was exalted, everyone passing by will be astonished and say, ‘Why has the Lord done thus to this land and to this house?’ 22 Then they will say, ‘Because they abandoned the Lord, the God of their fathers who brought them out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold on other gods and worshiped them and served them. Therefore he has brought all this disaster on them.’”

In the part of 2 Chronicles Chapter seven we never read, God promises to destroy Israel, and the Temple dedicated to his Name and to scatter his people. On the very day the Temple was dedicated, God Almighty promised to destroy it if they leave him and will not repent.

Jeremiah 14:11 The Lord said to me: “Do not pray for the welfare of this people. 12 Though they fast, I will not hear their cry, and though they offer burnt offering and grain offering, I will not accept them. But I will consume them by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence.”

Lying Prophets

13 Then I said: “Ah, Lord God, behold, the prophets say to them, ‘You shall not see the sword, nor shall you have famine, but I will give you assured peace in this place.’” 14 And the Lord said to me: “The prophets are prophesying lies in my name. I did not send them, nor did I command them or speak to them. They are prophesying to you a lying vision, worthless divination, and the deceit of their own minds.”

Ignoring everything God had said on the day the Temple was dedicated, the prophets in Israel held on to and promulgated “Happy Lies”. Jeremiah faced the same problem the Watchmen of today are facing; for every watchman, there are a hundred false prophets. And the people love the false prophets and hate the watchmen.

Jeremiah 14: 18 If I go out into the field,
    behold, those pierced by the sword!
And if I enter the city,
    behold, the diseases of famine!
For both prophet and priest ply their trade through the land
    and have no knowledge.’”

Today, as in Jeremiah’s day, being a pastor or a prophet can be a very good trade; it is good business. There are, however, rules that must be followed if one would eat well and live in a really nice house… You must preach only the “Happy Verses” and you must give only “Happy Words”. If you follow the rules, the offerings are large and your congregation grows… Break the rules, and you end up like Jeremiah… in the bottom of a well, looking up.

15:1 Then the Lord said to me, “Though Moses and Samuel stood before me, yet my heart would not turn toward this people. Send them out of my sight, and let them go! 2 And when they ask you, ‘Where shall we go?’ you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord:

“‘Those who are for pestilence, to pestilence,
    and those who are for the sword, to the sword;
those who are for famine, to famine,
    and those who are for captivity, to captivity.’

There comes a point of no return. Jeremiah preached the Word God gave him. The people did not listen but rather clung desperately to the words, dreams, and visions of their “Happy Priests” and their “Happy Prophets”. Everything Jeremiah said came true. The “Happy Prophets” suffered and died… Jeremiah lived. It is another story, but Jeremiah ended up with a remnant of Jews in Egypt. These Jews had seen the words of Jeremiah fulfilled in front of their eyes, yet when he gave them a message from God, there in Egypt, they looked him in the face and said, “We will not listen to you…” That group died… all of them, but Jeremiah would live to see another day.

Lamentations 2:
17 The Lord has done what he purposed;
    he has carried out his word,
which he commanded long ago;
    he has thrown down without pity;
he has made the enemy rejoice over you
    and exalted the might of your foes.

Then came Nebuchadnezzar… You really need to read the entire second chapter of Lamentations. We do not have time here, but Jeremiah is acting like a FOX reporter. He is walking through the streets of Jerusalem, reporting what he sees… There are dead bodies everywhere, women are killing and eating their own babies to try to avoid starvation… After surveying the whole situation, Jeremiah concludes: “The Lord has done what he purposed…”

Revelation 13: 5 And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months. 6 It opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his dwelling, that is, those who dwell in heaven. 7 Also it was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them. And authority was given it over every tribe and people and language and nation, 8 and all who dwell on earth will worship it, everyone whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who was slain. 9 If anyone has an ear, let him hear:

10 If anyone is to be taken captive,

    to captivity he goes;

if anyone is to be slain with the sword,

    with the sword must he be slain.

Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints.

That day is upon us, but the “Happy Prophets” and the “Happy Pastors” continue to spout off their lies… and the people love it!

Let me close with this warning to you, the Christian of today…

Jeremiah 14:14 …The Lord said to me: “The prophets are prophesying lies in my name. I did not send them, nor did I command them or speak to them. They are prophesying to you a lying vision, worthless divination, and the deceit of their own minds.”

And to the Happy Prophets and Pastors of today, this warning…

Jeremiah 14:15 …Thus says the Lord concerning the prophets who prophesy in my name although I did not send them, and who say, ‘Sword and famine shall not come upon this land’: By sword and famine those prophets shall be consumed. 16 And the people to whom they prophesy shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem, victims of famine and sword, with none to bury them—them, their wives, their sons, and their daughters. For I will pour out their evil upon them.

You have been warned!

David…

The Death of Faith

“Let God be true and every man a liar…”

Recently, I have seen books and read articles by seminary trained men who have educated themselves out of belief in the Gospel. Men who, having entered seminary as true believers came to the point, based on the things they had studied, where they no longer believed. There is a difference between seeking an education and seeking truth, between seeking knowledge and seeking wisdom. Those who seek knowledge for its own sake, or worse yet, to gain degrees, acclaim and the acceptance of their peers, will often find themselves educated to the point of disbelief. There is no chance that one seeking truth and wisdom should ever come to such an end.

There is one central truth and that is that God is Truth. Both Jesus and the written Word are truth and the Holy Spirit will lead you into all truth. If the facts that one learns seem to contradict that truth, they are either lies misrepresented as truth or partial truths twisted by the enemy of your soul and made to appear as if they oppose the Truth of God. There are no facts that oppose the Truth of God, only misinterpretations of either the “facts” or the Word of God.

For the sake of this article, let me site two examples that have led to the loss of faith in some. First, we will discuss the massive evidence that there was a pre-adamic civilization  and secondly that there are stories of the virgin birth that predate both Judaism and Christianity. These ideas have led men and women to renounce the Gospel. Perhaps these things have bothered you or caused you to question God and the Bible.

There are large volumes that have been written which address both of these quandaries. If it interests you, let me suggest that you study further. For the sake of this short article, allow me to answer the objections in the shortest manner possible.

Some, who insist on a literal six-day creation, have suggested that all of the evidence that would seem to support a Pre-Adamic civilization may be understood in the light of the flood of Noah. They suggest that stratified layers are not the result of millions of years of build up but that they were formed during the runoff from the flood as larger and heavier objects sank deeper into the mud.  This is possible and satisfies some but certainly not all students of these things. There seem to be, in fact, a good number of exceptions which cannot be properly explained by a global inundation.

So, what if science should prove that a pre-adamic civilization did exist? What does that do to your faith? The answers to those questions, respectively, should be, “So what?” and “Nothing.”

 Genesis starts with these words, “ In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth WAS without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.” (Emphasis mine.)

The little word “WAS” in that passage is troublesome because it has caused a lot of confusion, has carried over into most translations and it is wrong…

The word translated “was” here is הָיָה (hayah). Hayah is a verb. It appears 76 times in the King James Version. It is translated, [to be, become, come to pass, exist, happen, fall out]. It is translated as “WAS” exactly once, in Genesis 1:2. It is an obvious mistranslation, but it is so popular that no other translations have dared to correct the error. It is never, with this single exception, translated “WAS.”

The verse, by all rights, should read, “And the earth BECAME without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.”

If you understand that one simple fact, no argument concerning the existence of a pre-adamic race could ever shake your faith…

Next, there have been stories of the virgin birth of gods and god men since the beginning and they predate the story of Jesus by thousands of years.

This fact has led some to believe that the early Christians simply mixed old pagan stories with the Hebrew Scriptures and came up with a new version of an old story… This has caused some to lose their faith.

Yet there remains a much better way to resolve the conflict. One must first concede that the Bible does not give us every detail of every story. We do not have full architectural plans for the Ark, and we do not have a list of names of all those who died in the flood. We just are not told everything and, practically speaking, we would not want to know every little detail.

What we do know is that God had a talk with Satan after the fall and told him of his future and the curse that now hung over his head. Scripture gives us a hint as to the content of that conversation, but it is certain that not every detail and every word is recorded.

In Genesis three, we read these words.

14 So the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this,

“Cursed are you above all livestock
    and all wild animals!
You will crawl on your belly
    and you will eat dust
    all the days of your life.
15 And I will put enmity
    between you and the woman,
    and between your offspring and hers;
he will crush your head,
    and you will strike his heel.”

We also know, from the book of Job and others, that Satan continued to have access to Heaven and conversations with God. What was contained in those discussions we cannot even guess, but God’s future plans were certainly mentioned. Satan knew part but not all. That he knew that a virgin would conceive and give birth to the Son of God is certain because it shows up repeatedly in the old stories of the gods…

First, Satan told men that in her sin, Eve had recreated herself as a “Free Woman.” As such, they should consider Eve to be Virgin Born… She, according to the Devil, created herself. Then, the pagan gods were virgin born and the pagan goddesses were all “Virgin Born” and “Virgin Mothers.” But the stories are crude and ugly… nothing at all like the story of Mary and Jesus… The Bible story just sounds like something that God would do. The pagan stories all sound like the Devil wrote them, and he did.

Look at Isis. Isis fell in love with her brother, Osiris, and married him. Before they could have sex, their jealous brother Set, killed Osiris and cut him into fourteen pieces and threw him into the Nile. Isis searched and found everything but his private parts which had been eaten by a fish. She sewed him back together, manufactured the world’s first dildo, sat on it and impregnated herself, making her the virgin mother of the god Horus. Horus was her son. He was also Osiris reincarnated. Isis married him when he was twelve years old. Horus was then god, the son of god and the husband, brother, and son of Isis…

I guess that was the best story Satan could think up. It made him, instead of Yahweh, the father of a virgin born god… Satan always wants to mimic God…

Compare that crude and ugly story with the story of Mary and Jesus in the Bible. Even though the story of Isis and Horus came first, it is obvious, to the Christian, that one story is demonic and the other heavenly. Which one came first is insignificant.

The same is true with every conflict. We must make the extrabiblical material fit the Bible and not the other way around. Most conflicts can be easily resolved. If there remain any conflicts that cannot be resolved, we must have the faith to believe that the conflict is based, not in fact, but in our own ignorance… We must always start out with the assumption that God and his Word are correct.

“Let God be true and every man a liar…”

David…