Then a scribe came and said to Him, “Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go.” Jesus said to him, “The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” Another of the disciples said to Him, “Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father.” But Jesus said to him, “Follow Me, and allow the dead to bury their own dead.”
That is an odd thing to say to someone who wants to follow you, isn’t it? What does Jesus mean?
A scribe in the Bible, was a man learned in the Mosaic law and in the sacred writings, an interpreter, teacher. Scribes examined the more difficult and subtle questions of the law; added to the Mosaic law decisions of various kinds thought to elucidate its meaning and scope, and did this to the detriment of religion.
Scribes were trained and enrolled in the Sanhedrin political and judicial council headed by the high priest (in his role as civil ruler); in the Talmud it is described as primarily a religious legislative body headed by sages, though with certain political and judicial functions. (notes from the Online Bible edition)
So, Jesus tells this Scribe, this judge and sage, “The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”
Foxes retreat to the safety of their lair. They live and remain in their holes, venturing out only to gather food and water, then they scurry back to the safety of the hole. Their focus is on their safety and their hole in the ground.
Same for the birds. They have the nest they build to lay eggs and raise their young. A safe place. They, too, venture out for food, but their focus is on the safety of a nest.
BUILDING HIS CHURCH
Jesus, however, is on mission. He knows that He is the permanent sacrifice for the reconciliation of all people to God. He is doing the work of His Father. Time is short.
He is telling this scribe and His disciples that He has neither the time nor the intention of settling into a “hole in the ground” or building “a nest” into which they can settle down and feel safe.
He has no time for building programs, no time for social programs, no time for endless debate over the ‘cummin and dill’ of the Torah or the endless list of man’s constructs designed to explain and contain the Holy Scriptures. No time for holes in the ground or nests.
Jesus is saying that He is the foundation of His Church, and He is on the move, building His Church. He is the foundation for Temple of the Holy Spirit in the hearts, minds and souls of people.
His Church is Spiritually alive, organic and naturally fluid and on the move; It cannot be contained by a program or an institution. It is powerful, transformative, life changing, world altering and cannot be taught in a school on religion.
If you come to know Jesus, you will know His Church, and it is not to be found in a building, a hole in the ground or a nest.
A.D. 1 – THE CHURCH WAS A MOVEMENT
In AD 1 The Church of Jesus Christ, The Body of Christ, had no buildings, little money and no wealth. The Church was a Movement.
Jesus said to make disciples; collect no money except to make your journey.
However, the penalty for becoming a Christian was often death.
Still, the Church grew exponentially.
A.D. 49 – THE CHURCH BECAME A PHILOSOPHY
The Church expanded into Greece. The Church became a philosophy to many. The Church grew and size and influence.
A.D. 313 – THE CHURCH BECAME AN INSTITUTION
The Church expanded into Rome and it gained recognition. It grew in power and popularity. It obtained wealth, buildings, property and influence. It became an institution.
A.D. 380 – THE CHURCH BECAME A CULTURE
The Church expanded into Europe. It was becoming a worldwide phenomenon. It grew in wealth, stature, power and influence. It had become a culture.
A.D. 1607 – THE CHURCH BECAME A BUSINESS
The Church reaches America.
A.D. 1681 – The Church became corporate.
It had become a business and incorporated. It became regulated by the government.
The Corporate Church grew. It needed money to support growth and expansion, which meant the Corporate Church needed more people.
A.D. – 1777 The state of Virginia granted tax exemption to houses of worship.
A.D. – 1894 The corporate church was granted tax exemptions by the Federal Government.
A.D. 1954 The Federal Government regulated what a church could and could not say in order to retain tax-exempt status.
The church continued to grow, and in order to attract more people, the Corporate Church lowered its membership and doctrinal standards. More people became ‘members’ and gave more money to support more growth.
The Church corporation is complete with leaders, boards and membership and a business model.
Local churches compete against one another for members (customers). The church is selling itself in “three line slogans”.
The Church members now have choices and have become religious consumers. Church people can shop around for the religious brand and standards that best suits them. (2 Timothy 3)
The Leadership (pastors and preachers) have become CEOs, disciples have become church leaders, growing their 501(c)(3) business models.
Record numbers of pastors quitting because of stress, burnout or are being fired by their congregations (some stats say 1500 – 1700 leave “the ministry” each month).
Church debt in America soars; church foreclosures soar.
A.D. 1968 –THE CHURCH DEFIES GOD and Ordains Homosexuals As Clergy.
A.D. 1972 –The United church of Christ ordains homosexual clergy
A.D. 2010 – The Lutheran church ordains homosexual clergy
A.D. 2012 – The Presbyterian church, USA, ordains homosexual clergy
A.D. 2020 –The Church Is Losing and Has Lost Influence and Credibility.
The church is losing members. So they change their message and their methods to one resembling the ways of the world so they can ‘stay in business’.
A.D. 2020 – A STRANGE NEW GOSPEL.
The church is teaching and living a different Gospel which is clothed in the staged entertainment of colorful flashing lights, banging cymbals, sensual drum beats, and pulsating music that stimulates the flesh, coupled with the promise of cheap grace, “Drive through salvation and spiritual fast food”. A very different Gospel, from the one of the Apostles.
We, The Church, The Body of Christ, You and I, must return to Jesus’ Way. We must be doing those Works that Jesus does and the way He does them.
Jesus faced the same circumstances during His earthly ministry. But He and His disciples stood out from the crowd. They were counter-cultural. They were reviled, mocked, spit upon, and persecuted. And they changed the world and glorified God!
A.D. 2025 – The postmodern church is inventing new ways of ‘doing church’ in order to connect to the culture is an utter compromise of God’s Word. It is an utter failure! God has said that we are not of this world – we are not to think and act like it.
Please stop looking, acting and dressing like pagans. It is shameful and puts the message of Christ to shame.
Christ Alone is all you’ll ever need – The Bible Alone is enough – Faith in Jesus alone is all-sufficient.
Let’s think, act and be like Jesus. You be the standard-bearer. Honor Him. Others will follow.
If you have your Bible, we will be looking at TWO verses. John 3:16 as our introduction and Matthew 4:17 as our focus verse. (And yes that is rights. Just 2 verses today).
Before we start, I want to say something about The Bible and why it is important that we take the time and effort to know the Word it contains and why we must be careful to stay within its boundaries and confines. The Bible Itself says we must not stray. Joshua 1:7-8 says, we are “not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may achieve success wherever you go. (And that) this Book shall not depart from our mouth, but we shall meditate on it day and night, and that we are careful to do according to all that is written in it; for it is only then you will make your way prosperous, (as the Bible describes prosperity), and then you will achieve success” in the matters concerning this Word and in its application to our lives.
Secondly, the Bible tells us that it is the without any error, inerrant, infallible, indestructible, and the inspired, Breathed Word of God.
It is CREATIVE, CAUSATIVE, INSTRUCTIONALand PROPHETIC. It is Prophetic in the sense that it tells the Truth to you and when you are in Him and His Word is in you, it will tell the Truth THROUGH you!
And finally, it is “profitable for teaching, for our rebuke, for our correction, for our training in righteousness; so that we, the men and women of God may be fully capable, equipped for every good work.”
THE GOOD NEWS!
John 3:16-17, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life.For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but so that the world might be saved through Him”.
So that the word might be SAVED through Him. SAVED. Just what does that word bring to your mind?
“To be saved – SOZO – in the Bible, means to be rescued from destruction and brought into divine safety“. To deliver or protect— (From Strong’s Bible Concordance).
SAVED: To be made safe, to be made healthy, to be made whole (complete with purpose), NOW and for all of eternity,
Made safe, to be made healthy, to be made whole In your body. In your mind. In your soul and spirit.
Made safe, to be made healthy, to be made whole In your home. With your family, your children, your spouse and relatives. In your work. With your friends. In every aspect of your life.
(This is not a magic formula or a spell. It is the Word of God through your faithful, submissive obedience in following Jesus.
This is the Good News that God gave John to proclaim.
This is the Good News and the reason God sent us His Son. Jesus.
This is the Good News that Jesus proclaims to the world, then and now.
And this is the reason Jesus sends His followers, His disciples, into the world – to tell the world about this Good News.
And how would that to happen?
Now, come with me as we step back in time to around A.D. 30, when Jesus appeared on the scene in Galilee.
“Now when Jesus heard that John had been taken into custody, He withdrew into Galilee; and leaving Nazareth, He came and settled in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali. This happened so that what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet would be fulfilled:
“THE LAND OF ZEBULUN AND THE LAND OF NAPHTALI,
BY THE WAY OF THE SEA, ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE JORDAN, GALILEE OF THE GENTILES —
THE PEOPLE WHO WERE SITTING IN DARKNESS SAW A GREAT LIGHT, (SAW A GREAT LIGH”)
AND THOSE WHO WERE SITTING IN THE LAND AND SHADOW OF DEATH,
UPON THEM A LIGHT DAWNED.” A LIGHT DAWNED.
Gensis 1:1 tells us that God said “let there be light”; and the Words of God in Matthew 4:16 are no less significant, no less creative and now less prophetic that those from Genesis 1.
Then In verse 17, read, “From that time Jesus began to preach and say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
This is Jesus’ first known and His shortest sermon.
In Matthew 4:17, the Bible tells us, FIRST that “From that time” what time is this? This can be considered as one of the most important historical time markers in the Bible – it is a line of demarcation.
This is the point Jesus began His earthly ministry as commissioned by God the Father, and
This is beginning of the invasion of earth by the kingdom of heaven! The greatest of all spiritual wars has begun!
GOD is announcing that He has come back to reclaim what is His and those who are His! He is here to take His land and to take His kids back from the devil’s captivity – you and me and millions more like us.
This event is a NEW dawn, a NEW beginning – no less fantastic that when in the beginning God said, “LET THERE BE LIGHT”, GOD is now saying “A GREAT LIGHT HAS DAWNED”.
And like we recited earlier in the Lord’s Prayer, “Your Kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven”, Jesus is saying that time is at hand!
Next we are told that, “Jesus began to preach and say”,the word used here from the Greek language is ‘kerusso’. This is NOT a casual statement nor is it just a narration. It is a word of formality, gravity and an authority which must be listened to and obeyed; something which has been done, first in the Spiritual realm and to be manifest in the natural. It is not a general statement nor is it a request. It is PROPHETIC command. Kerusso!
Next, let’s notice that Jesus says “Repent”. What is often overlooked but should be glaringly obvious is that Jesus does not tell us WHAT to repent from. We typically assume we are to repent of our sins. But that is not what He actually says. He simply says, “Repent”.
But REPENT from what?
“Repent,(‘metanoeo’), from the Greek, means to change one’s mind – to change one’s mind for the better.
And if it is that we are to REPENT of our sins, it is just as important to know that the word Sin, from the Greek word ‘hamartia’ – literally means to be without a share in; to miss the mark. To miss the mark both of all that God has intended for your life and all that He has for you now, and for all of eternity.
It is commonly accepted that Jesus meant that we are to heartily amend, with abhorrence of our past sins. And it can mean that and it DOES mean that. BUT IT MEANS SO MUCH MORE.
So, when Jesus says to REPENT, the overall meaning, the connotation of this word it to CHANGE AND CONDITION YOUR MIND TO THINK LIKE JESUS, TO SEE THINGS FROM HIS PERSPECTIVE AND TO RESPOND IN ALL CIRCUMSTANCE AND SITUATIONS OF LIFE AND DEATH AS JESUS DOES.
This requires a radical redefining or our understand. It demands that we turn our minds to what Jesus sas and what He means – even if it makes us uncomfortable.
Jesus is saying that REPENTANCE is a radical reformation and shift in our paradigms. It is a change in our attitudes, and of our mindset, our will and emotions from how we naturally see things to HOW JESUS SEES THINGS. It is a change in the all the choices we make in life so WE CAN SEE THEM AS JESUS SEES THEM.
Jesus is saying we must change how see or view and deal with our relationships with others, our families, marriage, and even our disputes. How we react to being wronged, how we give of ourselves, of our time of our resources. How we view work, money, wealth, and anxiety. How we view our community, our country and the world and how we view the lost – from how we see them to HOW HE SEES THEM. We must see the world around us and what Jesus is commanding of us AS HE SEES IT. THAT IS TRUE AND COMPLETE REPENTANCE.
We begin to see that the Words of Jesus are life giving words. They protect us, they guide and direct us. They strengthen us and provide us with purpose and hope.
And finally, in this verse, Jesus says, for the kingdom of heaven is nowat hand(The words ” the Kingdom of Heaven” are so descriptive that you must take the definition of each word and consider the impact and importance.
The Kingdom of God is now at hand, describes the long awaited arrival of the Messiah who is now to establish His Kingdom on earth. As the “Lord’s Prayer” even says, “Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven”. A Kingdom of forgiveness, of grace, mercy, justice and eternal salvation. A Kingdom conquering death, disease, sin and darkness.
His Kingdom is a royal power, a kingship, dominion, rule and the right or authority to rule over a kingdom; the royal power of Jesus as the triumphant Messiah and the royal power and dignity conferred on Christians in the Messiah’s kingdom.” This is our calling and our role as Christians, Disciples of Jesus,
And finally, the phrase, the kingdom is now “At hand.” (“At hand” comes from a Greek word of with a meaning like the ‘crook of your arm’ and with the action like a mounting wave which has the power to knock you off your feet and roll you over and over; indicating a distance which is as close as your hand is to your wrist, AND as Luke 17:21 puts it, “the kingdom of God is now within you”. Romans 10:8 ALSO tells us, that “THE WORD (OF GOD) IS NEAR YOU, IN YOUR MOUTH AND IN YOUR HEART”.
Jesus is saying, we are to “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is now at hand”.
Now, FINALLY – Here is a Mystery:
Believe it or not, and as strange as it may seem, the One who spoke these prophetic words, possesses the power which is able to transform your life, so radically, so completely, so thoroughly, that those who knew you beforehand, would hardly recognize you afterwards. In fact, if and when you embrace and absorbed His Words into your heart, mind and soul as His devoted follower you would hardly be able to recognize yourself when the process is complete.
You might even have to ask yourself, “Can I really be that man or that woman who went about under my name before?”
You are, in one sense the same person, but in another sense, you will have become someone utterly different. Made new. Reborn. A new creation.
This can be most easily accepted by a new believer, as the rest of us may think, “yes, I have already done this”. But when Jesus, speaking to Nicodemus, said, “you must be born again”, He spoke those words in the Aorist tense which means this is a continuing action. The Aorist tense has no regard for the past, present or the future. In this tense they are one-in-the-same. In others words, “In Christ Jesus, you are born anew, each and every day”. He is not saying you must be saved over and over. He is saying our repentance and rebirth in Him is made new and refreshed each and every day. This sanctifying process of perfecting us into the image and likeness of Jesus continues until we are, one day, home with Him, at last!
Please understand that what I am about to say, does not negate the trials, tribulations and troubles we will face in this life. They are part of our being sanctified. Nonetheless, this intensely real power to which I am referring, can pick you up today – right now – from the midst of loneliness, failure, ruin, misery, despair or any difficulty, and in the twinkling of an eye, as Paul said, IN THE MIDST OF THE PROBLEMS YOU FACE IN LIFE, He can begin to solve those problems, smooth out the difficulties, cut you free from entanglements and place you clear, safe and happy upon the highroad of freedom and opportunity – IF YOU CAN UNDERSTAND HIS PLAN AND PRUPOSES, AND ARE WILLING AND ABLE TO ENDURE THIS PROCESS.
Does this mean your will always be physically well or mentally strong or rich by the worlds standards or famous? No. No. A thousand times no.
But it does mean that you can find purpose and meaning and usefulness in even the worst of life’s circumstances.
He can free you to go and shape your life as God would have it – a life full with purpose and of promises met.
He can throw open the MANY prison doors that hold you captive, and liberate you.
He is the healing balm for the bruised and broken heart.
He can inspire you with new thoughts and ideas, so that your life’s work may be truly original, meaningful and lasting.
He can impart new and wonderful kinds of knowledge, as soon as you really want such knowledge – glorious knowledge – strange things not taught in schools or written in ordinary books.
He can find your true place in life, and put you into it, too.
He can find the right friends for you, kindred spirits who are interested in the same ideas and want the same things that you do.
He can provide you the type of prosperity that means freedom. Not as the world knows prosperity. But the type of prosperity that means true Freedom. Free to be and to do and to go as God has called you to be and to do.
This Power of God can teach you all things you need to know, if only you are receptive and teachable.
But Jesus said, “You must first repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand”.
So, if your life is lacking the continuous flow of the fruit of the Spirit, the love, the joy, the peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control, Now, Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is now at hand.
If your life is missing out on the works that Jesus did, and even greater works of teaching and preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom which can heal all kinds of sickness and diseases, Jesus says today is the day of your salvation – repent, for the kingdom of heaven is now at hand.
If you are living in loneliness, fear, doubt lack and want, Jesus says today is the day of your salvation – repent, for the kingdom of heaven is now at hand.
If you are and your behaviors are “friendly” with the world but at odds with the Words and Teachings of Jesus, Jesus says today is the day of your salvation – repent for the kingdom of heaven is now at hand.
You know, from the day we are born until the day we die, the 23rd Psalm tells us that we will walk through the valley of the shadow of death in this lifetime. And that God has set at table before us in the presence of your enemies, and that He has anointed our heads with His Oil and that our cup overflows. And His goodness and mercy will follow us all the days of our lives. And our dwelling place will be in the house of the Lord, forever.
The day of our salvation is now at hand. You can experience the richness of being saved. You can feast at the table He has set before you, even in the presence of your enemies of lack, want, sickness, poverty disease, loneliness and the like. You no longer need to miss the mark or to be left out of the things He has prepared for your life to Bless you and to prosper your soul.
You are made safe, and rescued from eternal harm. You will have found a rich and fulfilling purpose in and for your life, now. You can be made secure in all your relationships and in all the matters of your life. You can be assured of an eternal life with Him. THIS IS THE TABLE HE HAS SET BEFORE YOU.
I am not big on things like having prophetic visions, a Word from God and the like. The reason is that the Word of God is complete, so a Word from God must line up with the Word of God. And I am certain and I believe that the Bible teaches there are no ‘new revelations’;
The Bible warns, “For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke of a letter shall pass from the Law, until all is accomplished! Therefore, whoever nullifies one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven.”
Also, the Bible says “I (Jesus) testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book;and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his part from the tree of life and from the holy city, which are written in this book.”
So it is with great caution I share this:
Today I had a thought, or a “Word” if you will, and it goes like this, “
The Lord God is ready and will soon permit a great shaking of the United States – a shaking to her core. (This will be the beginning of the fulfillment ofDaniel 12, and specifically Daniel 12:10, which says,“Many will be purged, cleansed (or whitened), and refined, but the wicked will act wickedly; and none of the wicked will understand, but those, (the instructors) who have insight (the wise), will understand.”)
However, during this current time of what seems to be a relative peace – which is really no peace at all – we are to prepare ourselves, our families and our churches for what is coming.
We in the United States will soon suffer an economic collapse followed by a social upheaval and collapse, and governmental collapse, military defeats preceding a collapse of our military and a loss of our medical systems. There will be a spread of diseases, food shortages, famines, widespread poverty, death, and sudden earthquakes.
Many churches will likely fill up with people looking for protection, help, and spiritual advice but since most churches have become lukewarm or even apostate, they will not be able to offer any help, solace or direction. This will cause many churches to become targets of ridicule, persecution censure by a new emerging government and the public at large. These church leaders will encourage surrender and capitulation rather than resist by remaining faithful to Christ in order to escape persecution. Although many of those who remain faithful to Christ may suffer, those who endure to the end, will be saved.
Why am I saying these things and how and I justify saying these things? I am saying these things because I believe them; and I believe them because of what I read about and what I see going on in the world; I believe these things because of what history has shown us; I believe these things because what the most widely read ancient script, the Bible, forecasts, (i.e., prophecies), about what is coming, and I trust that source because of its past accuracies. And I am saying these things because I like to consider myself as a critical cognitive and linear thinker, and I believe and pray that I am correct when I say that God has given me discernment.
Here is my case, stated:
(1). Jesus warned in Matthew 24:4-31,that “In the Last Days, we will see a rise of false Christs and false prophets. (Although, this was an ongoing problem since as early as A.D. 35. See Matthew 24:4-5), do you not see these things increasing in our day with new religions, new belief systems, cults, greedy and narcissistic media preachers claiming to represent Jesus? These are events pointing to what Jesus referred to as the “Last Days”.
(2). Jesus also said, “In the Last Days, there will be famines and earthquakes”. (This has been a regular occurrence since as early as A.D. 35 or earlier. See Matthew 24:7 and the Fourth Tribulation Seal, found in Revelation 6:5-8). Do you not see these things happening in our day? If you aren’t ‘denominationally biased’ could this reasonably be a clue to the timing of the “Last Days”?
(3). Jesus said, “In the Last Days, there are wars and rumors of wars. (Wars and rumors of war have been occurring since as early as A.D. 35 or earlier. But we have never had the capacity to wage the most destructive global war we now see. (See Matthew 24:6 and the Second Tribulation Seal, found in Revelation 6:3-4).
(5). Jesus said, “In the Last Days, there will be a falling away from the faith.” (This has been an ongoing problem since as early as A.D. 35, and has been increasing to this very day. See Matthew 24:10).
These things, false Christs, wars and rumors of war, famines, earthquakes and plagues, persecutions, martyrs, which Jesus calls the ‘Birth Pangs’ of the tribulation (see Matthew 24:8), are nothing new; and from these cited verses, we can plainly see that the first 5 tribulation Seals are being manifested, and the effects had begun between the time of the birth of Jesus and A.D 95, and have been overlapping and increasing in their intensity since those early days.
It is also important to note that at this point in history, all of these things are now happening concurrently!
Can you not see the clues to the timing and the occurrence of the first 5 tribulation seals?
Acts 2:14-17, (the Apostle Peter), saying, “let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel: ‘And in the last daysit shall be…’ (Spoken and written in or around A.D. 30 to A.D. 60). Do you see this clue to the timing of the Last Days?
1 Peter 1:20, (the Apostle Peter), saying, “He, (Jesus), was foreknown before the foundation of the world, but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you.”(Spoken and written in or around A.D. 30 to A.D. 60). Do you see this clue to the timing of the Last Days here?
1 Peter 4:7, (the Apostle Peter), saying, “The end of all things is at hand.” (Spoken and written in or around A.D. 30 to A.D. 60). A clue!
2 Peter 3:3. (the Apostle Peter), saying, “knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days.” (Spoken and written in or around A.D. 30 to A.D. 60). Is this true in our day, also?
If these verses say all these things began occurring in or around A.D. 30 to A.D. 60, and Peter called those days the LAST TIMES, THE LAST DAYS, and it is THE END OF ALL THINGS.
What would you think, now?
1 Corinthians 10:11, (the Apostle Paul), says, “Now these things happened to them as an example and warning [to us]; they were written for our instruction [to admonish and equip us], upon whom the ends of the ages have come.” (Spoken and written in or around A.D. 30 to A.D. 60).
Hebrews 1:2, (the Apostle Paul), saying, “but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son.” (Spoken and written in or around A.D. 30 to A.D. 60).
Hebrews 9:26, (the Apostle Paul), saying, “But as it is, Jesus has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.” (Spoken and written in or around A.D. 30 to A.D. 60). Could it be any clearer? The Last days began at the appearance of Jesus!
If these verses say all these things began occurring in the LAST TIMES, THE LAST DAYS, and it is THE END OF ALL THINGS.
What would you think?
2 Timothy 3:1, (Timothy), saying, “But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty.” (Spoken and written in or around A.D. 30 to A.D. 60).
If these verses say all these things began occurring in the LAST TIMES, THE LAST DAYS, and it is THE END OF ALL THINGS.
Would you now think the Last Days began? Want more?
1 John 2:18. (the Apostle John), saying, “Children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come. Therefore, we know that it is the last hour.” (Spoken and written in or around A.D. 30 to A.D. 60).
Revelation 1:9, (The Apostle John), saying, “I, John, your brother and fellow participant in the tribulation.” (Spoken and written in or around A.D. 95 to A.D. 100).
According to the words and the testimonies of Jesus , His disciples and Apostles, the “LAST DAYS – THE LAST TIMES – THE END OF THE AGES – THE END OF ALL THINGS – THE BIRTH PAINS OF THE TRIBULATION” began with the Birth of Christ Jesus.
(The following in these parentheses is very detailed, technical and written language and context specific. But this is very important for a correct and complete understanding of these eschatological matters. It is probably best suited for the devoted follower of Jesus and the serious Bible student.
And, yes, I have been told by several ‘self- proclaimed bible experts’ that these things were only the times of persecution and not the tribulations of the Judgment Seals. Let me be Biblically clear: the use of the word ‘tribulation’ appears just 19 times in the English Standard Version of the Bible.
Sixteen of those instances are in the New Testament, and each instance, tribulation is translated from the Greek word ‘thlipsis’, whether referring to a time before or after the Sixth Tribulation Seal and the rapture.
Then in Matthew 13:21 we see, “yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation (thlipsis) or persecution (diogmos) arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away.” Each word is distinct in its meaning and in its context – tribulation versus persecution.
“For then(tote)there will be(eimi = future tense)great (megas) tribulation(thlipsis), such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be.”
And again, in Matthew 24:29-31, Jesus makes a distinction between the Birth Pains phase of the tribulation (Seals 1 through 5), and the Great Tribulation (Seals 6 and 7, and the Trumpet and Bowl Judgments) when He says,
“Immediately (eutheōs)after (meta) the tribulation(thlipsis)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. 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. 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.”
Finally, these same experts will say that Matthew 24:29-31 is neither the rapture nor is it the second coming of Jesus. But the scripture says,
“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…and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.“
Finally, before the breaking of the Sixth Tribulation Seal and the Great and Terrible Day of The Lord, 2 Thessalonians 2:1-4 instructs us, “Now we ask you, brothers and sisters, regarding the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, that you not be quickly shaken from your composure or be disturbed either by a spirit, or amessage, or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. No one is to deceive you in any way! For it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God.”
Jesus sternly warns, in Matthew chapters 24 and 25 of these coming events and that we are to prepare.
(And, I am not alone in these matters and with this view: Well-known and respected men and women like Pastor and teacher John Piper , missionary Corrie Ten Boom have come to this realization. And Zion’s Hope Ministries, offers sound Biblical evidence and excellent geo-political news, overlooked by the bias of religious denominationalism.)
Exegesis is “the process of careful analytical study of the Bible to produce useful interpretations of those passages.” (The word “exegesis” comes from the Greek term, exegeomai, which means “to explain” or “to narrate” or “to show the way”.
The process of exegesis involves asking questions of the text that might unearth new insights. However, The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary is clear that the goal of exegesis is “to know neither less nor more than the information actually contained in the passage. Exegesis places no premium on speculation or inventiveness” and “novelty in interpretation is not prized.”
Simply put, exegesis is not about discovering what we think a text means (or what we want it to mean), but what the biblical author meant. It’s concerned with intentionality; what the author intended his original readers to understand.
The opposite approach to Scripture is eisegesis, which is the interpretation of a passage based on a subjective, non-analytical reading. The word eisegesis literally means “to lead into,” which means the interpreter injects his own ideas into the text, making it mean whatever he wants.
Obviously, only exegesis does justice to the text. Eisegesis is a mishandling of the text and often leads to a misinterpretation. Exegesis is concerned with discovering the true meaning of the text, respecting its grammar, syntax, and setting. Eisegesis is concerned only with making a point, even at the expense of the meaning of words.
Second Timothy 2:15 commands us to use exegetical methods: “Present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.” An honest student of the Bible will be an exegete, allowing the text to speak for itself. Eisegesis easily lends itself to error, as the would-be interpreter attempts to align the text with his own preconceived notions. Exegesis allows us to agree with the Bible; eisegesis seeks to force the Bible to agree with us.
The process of exegesis involves, (1), observation: what does the passage say? (2), interpretation: what does the passage mean? (3), correlation: how does the passage relate to the rest of the Bible? and (4), application: how should this passage affect my life?
Eisegesis, on the other hand, involves, (1), imagination: what idea do I want to present? (2), exploration: what Scripture passage seems to fit with my idea? and, (3), application: what does my idea mean? Notice that, in eisegesis, there is no examination of the words of the text or their relationship to each other, no cross-referencing with related passages, and no real desire to understand the actual meaning. Scripture serves only as a prop to the interpreter’s idea.
First, “the interpreter-teacher” decides on a topic. Let’s say, for purpose of this example, today, the sermon will be about “What is heaven like?” The interpreter reads Colossians 3:1, “Therefore if you have been raised with Christ [to a new life, sharing in His resurrection from the dead], keep seeking the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God”. And the point the interpreter-teacher wants to make is that “we are already in heaven”.
He then goes on to use a story known as “The Allegory of the Cave”, which was presented by the Greek philosopher Plato to compare “the effect of education and the lack of it on our nature”. It is written as a dialogue between Plato’s brother Glaucon and his mentor Socrates and is narrated by the latter. In the allegory, Plato describes people who have spent their entire lives chained by their necks and ankles in front of an inner wall with a view of the empty outer wall of the cave. They observe the shadows projected onto the outer wall by objects carried behind the inner wall by people who are invisible to the chained “prisoners” and who walk along the inner wall with a fire behind them, creating the shadows on the inner wall in front of the prisoners. The “sign bearers” pronounce the names of the objects, the sounds of which are reflected near the shadows and are understood by the prisoners as if they were coming from the shadows themselves.
Only the shadows and sounds are the prisoners’ reality, which are not accurate representations of the real world. The shadows represent distorted and blurred copies of reality we can perceive through our senses, while the objects under the Sun represent the true forms of objects that we can only perceive through reason.
Socrates explains how the philosopher is like a prisoner freed from the cave and comes to understand that the shadows on the wall are not the direct source of the images seen. A philosopher aims to understand and perceive the higher levels of reality. However, the other inmates of the cave do not even desire to leave their prison, for they know no better life. (this color print is from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.)
He concludes by alleging that Christian’s current view of heaven is like that of the people trapped in the Allegory of The Cave. It is a sweeping assumption, overly broad in its accusation, and breathtakingly inaccurate, incomplete and totally inadequate. He goes on to hypothesize that only heaven is real and the earth or the natural world is just a shadow, like the shadows on the wall of a cave, reflected by the light of a fire. I suppose one could find some similarity in the Bible verse found in 2 Corinthians 4:18, which says “while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal”,but even this verse and the surrounding verses are Paul telling us about his own life and ministry and NOT about what heaven is like. In the world’s eyes, Paul’s life was an incredible failure. At the height of a career that would reach much higher, he left it all for a life of hardship, suffering and persecution, with eventual martyrdom. Paul recognized that the world only sees the outward, not the unseen eternal things. When we look at the things which are seen, all we see is our light affliction, and then it doesn’t seem very light! But when we look at the things which are not seen, then we see and appreciate the eternal weight of glory.
Paul isn’t saying that all afflictions automatically produce glory. It is possible to allow suffering to destroy us and to let affliction make us bitter, miserable, and self-focused. However, if we will look to the things which are not seen then our affliction will work in us an eternal weight of glory.(Comment in this color is taken from David Guzik’s Enduring Word Commentary). But, even 2 Corinthians 4:18 is not about what heaven is like.
Certainly, there is nothing wrong with preaching about what heaven is like. And a cursory reading of Colossians 3:1 seems to support that passage as an apt illustration. However, the above interpretation is totally wrong. First, using a secular philosophical teaching to illustrate and illuminate a Biblical truth is speculative at best and errant at its worst.
This interpreter-teacher (or others) may point to the many parables, allegories and idioms used in the Bible as justification for using Plato’s the Allegory of the Cave. However, when the Bible uses such methods to tell a story, the characters and-or events are symbols representing other events, ideas, or people, they are based on pre-existing and familiar people, places and things. They are NOT secular-philosophical assumptions, or presumptions.
Our interpreter-teacher is using an eisegesis to skillfully syncretize Biblical truth and scriptures verses with philosophical teachings which come from the imagination of man, in order to lend some religious credence to his remarks.
For example, our interpreter-teacher says, “the author of The Allegory of the Cave is telling us to step out of the cave and to see the brilliance of the sun. But the captive in the cave says, “And be blinded by the intensity of the sun? No thank you! We have lived in this cave for decades and centuries, and if it was good enough for my grandpa, it’s good enough for me!”.
Our interpreter-teacher then goes on to allege that the Apostle Paul, based on 1 Colossians 3:1, in many ways is calling us, as Christians, to step out of our cave and into the light of the sun; in other words we should come out of our darkened minds of ignorance and simplicity and become enlightened. (Thus the transition – the eisegesis – the syncretism). The Apostle Paul is calling us to set our minds on heavenly things, not on things of this earth. He goes on to state “that we go on to explore the message of this passage in Colossians, we are going to do it through three points:
The first point is that you are already in heaven, whether you know it or not.
Secondly, heaven is for real.
And, thirdly, heaven is a world of love.”
Our interpreter goes on to cite verse one, that “you have been raised with Christ”;
Verse three, “you have died with Christ”;
And then in a reference to Ephesians 2:6, “You have ascended with Christ”.
All of this to further his personal interpretation that heaven is real and our current existence is just a shadow.
Then in a slight-of-hand movement, our interpreter-teacher, goes to Ezekiel 10:9 and sarcastically uses several complex symbolisms from the Bible to explain what heaven looks like, saying “and remember, this is oh-so crystal clear”, know that it is NOT clear at all. (This is an effective deflection to confuse the listener-student about thier own view of heaven so they will lay their old “caveman, cave-like, neanderthal beliefs” aside, and enter into the light of this new revelation” about what heaven is really like.
A problem for our interpreter-teacher arises if the Christian-listener is a Bible student and will read and study Ezekiel chapter 10, only to discover that Ezekiel 10 is not meant to be a description of heaven. It is The Vision of God’s Glory Departing the Temple. Our interpreter-teacher is misleading the listener a false teaching.
Ezekiel 10 serves as a sobering reminder of the consequences of straying from God’s righteous path. The departing Glory of the Lord from the Temple, however, doesn’t signify an eternal absence, but a call to repentance, encouraging us to invite God’s glory back into our lives by living in obedience and faith.
The Themes of Ezekiel 10 are:
God’s Majesty and Power,
Divine Judgement,
Divine Presence and Absence,
Prophet’s Visionary Experience,
Symbolism of Cherubim.
The Topics of Ezekiel chapter 10 are:
Ezekiel’s Vision of God,
The Glory of the Lord,
The Cherubim,
The Wheel within a Wheel,
The Departure of the Glory of the Lord from the Temple,
The People:
Ezekiel,
God,
Cherubim.
The Locations named in Ezekiel chapter 10 are:
The Temple in Jerusalem,
The threshold of the temple,
East gate of the Lord’s house.
Our interpreter-teacher further confuses the student-listener by using a “dietetical” approach by having omitted the real intention of Ezekiel chapter 10.
It is a skillful presentation with a the intention of ‘salting the oats’ of the listener to come out of their ancient and archaic cave which is a metaphor for our ‘old way of thinking about heaven and scriptures’ and to come into the light and thirst for this new way of thinking, this new revelatory view of God and heaven.
His presentation completed, our interpreter-teacher concludes with an invitation for his listeners to accept Jesus’ free gift of heaven, which is without cost. Of course this can be practically irresistible to the ‘heavy burdened and weary traveler of earth’.
Of course Jesus does call, and does encourage each and every person to put down his or her burdens of this earth and to look to Him for relief. And the Bible is abundantly clear that this greatest of Gifts cannot be earned nor can it be purchased for any price. However, Jesus also makes abundantly clear that we trade in or sacrifice our old life for a new life with Him. And indeed, the salvation of one’s soul begins immediately for the person who accepts these terms, and lasts eternally. It is upon these conditions that we will live with Him in heaven, forever.
But let’s be clear: The gift is NOT heaven. Heaven is only the result of the Gift. The Gift is Jesus. The gift is His mercy and forgiveness. He gift is the eradication of power and the penalty of sin and death. The result of The Greatest of all Gifts is an eternity with Him in heaven.
Our interpreter-teacher’s first point is that you are already in heaven, whether you know it or not, is true, however, it is positional.
Secondly, our interpreter-teacher says heaven is for real. True.
And, thirdly, heaven is a world of love. Oddly put, but true.
Our interpreter-teacher goes on to cite Colossian 3:1, that “you have been raised with Christ”; and, in verse three, “you have died with Christ”; and finally, in a reference to Ephesians 2:6, “You have ascended with Christ”. This is to point out that these verses sound as if they were written in the present tense, suggesting that they have already come to pass. However, all three verses cited are in the aorist tense, which means they are positionally true in the past, as well as in the present and will be true in the future. This is what is known as “positionally” true, and “progressively true” in its application. One day it will be “practical” and true.. God has said it, we are in the process of getting these, so it is as good as done, but not just yet.
Our interpreter-teacher has some very creative thoughts and ideas and is very entertaining in his Osteen-esque way of preaching. But, in the meantime, I say let’s leave the inerrant Word of God as it is presented in the Bible. It is written to all people in a way to be understood by all people. Now, as Paul instructed Timothy, God instructs you, “therefore, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.All Scripture is inspired by God and beneficial for teaching, for rebuke, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man or woman of God may be fully capable, equipped for every good work”.
There is so much that has been made about Jesus’ death, burial and His resurrection. Some of it from first-hand witnesses, some from speculation, and some from doubters. But, in the end, it is up to you to decide. Pray, ask God for insight and wisdom. Search, study and glean the scriptures. All of this was foretold. It occurred with uncanny and frightening accuracy. Even the enemies of Jesus knew it was coming and tried to prevent it. Despite all the evidence and the world altering results, it is still accepted only by faith, and this faith is not blind. It is the hallmark of a true believer who has eyes to see.
Jesus Is Risen!
Matthew 28:1, Now after the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the tomb. Verse 2. And behold, a severe earthquake had occurred, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled away the stone, and sat upon it. Verse 3. And his appearance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow. Verse 4. The guards shook from fear of him and became like dead men. Verse 5. And the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who has been crucified. Verse 6. He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying. Verse 7. And go quickly and tell His disciples that He has risen from the dead; and behold, He is going ahead of you to Galilee. There you will see Him; behold, I have told you.”
(Commentary Break): There are scores of commentaries for you to read which will go into dizzying detail about the day, the time, the earthquake, the witnesses, the angel, the guards and these events. Go read them. But the final point is that Matthew spoke to first and witnesses and recorded what occurred. And if this is not enough, then look at the prophecies, the events leading up to Jesus’ mock trial, His execution, burial and resurrection; consider the sighting of Jesus and His interactions with people after His resurrection. All first-hand witnesses. And still, it’s up to you to believe, and that, only by faith. And, as Jesus has said, ‘if you don’t believe the words, then believe by the Works that preceded His death and those that followed Jesus’ resurrection’. Believe by the millions upon millions of lives that have been changed for the better. (also see GotQuestions.org). (End Commentary Break).
Verse 8. And they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to report to His disciples. Verse 9. And behold, Jesus met them and said, “Rejoice!” And they came up and took hold of His feet, and worshiped Him. Verse 10. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go, bring word to My brothers to leave for Galilee, and there they will see Me.”
(Commentary Break): The Bible contains over 63 commands to “fear not” or “do not be afraid” in the context that God is over all and working in all things. In fact, He promises that He will work all things to work together for the good of those who are called according to His purpose (see Romans 8:28). Now listen to what faith and obedience to His Word brings when God says, “fear not, bring word…and they will see Me”. In this specific case, the disciples, Jesus Christian brothers, were to leave for Galilee and there they will see Him. Now you, brothers and sisters, take action: You need not fear. Bring Word, go to Him, and you will see Him! This is both a promise and a prophetic command. Do it! (End Commentary Break).
Verse 11. Now, while they were on their way, some of the men from the guard came into the city and reported to the chief priests all that had happened. Verse 12. And when they had assembled with the elders and consulted together, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers, verse 13, and said, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came at night and stole Him while we were asleep.’ Verse 14. And if this comes to the governor’s ears, we will appease him and keep you out of trouble.” Verse 15. And they took the money and did as they had been instructed; and this story was widely spread among the Jews and is to this day.
The Great Commission
Verse 16. But the eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had designated to them. Verse 17. And when they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some were doubtful. Verse 18. And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Verse 19. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, verse 20, teaching them to follow all that I commanded you; and behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
(Commentary Break): Notice that the 11 disciples proceeded to Galilee, and they worshiped Him when they saw Him. And even standing there, worshiping the visible living Jesus, SOME WERE DOUBTFUL. As unbelievable as that seems, Jesus still sent ALL ELEVEN of them, even the doubters, to go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to follow all that He has commanded. (End Commentary Break).
Please, dear friends, the time of His return is drawing near. Let’s stop standing around looking skyward, as the angel said. It is not ours to know the day or the hour, but He will return at the right time, in the same manner He left. Ours is to be ready and found doing all that He has commanded us.
In the meantime, we have been called and sent. It is past time to stop playing religion and stop just attending church and take these Spiritual Gifts He has put within us and use them profitably according to His purpose, mission and calling to us!
Living your life for Christ is your testimony and witness to what God has done. You, being full of the Spirit, full of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control in all you do, and when the time comes tell them about the reason for your Hope. JESUS!
The “Urban Dictionary” puts it this way: “An American idiom commonly used in military operations to mean the first soldiers to go into a war zone. In common usage, it means the first to venture into a new endeavor. A trailblazer.”
The Bible uses a similar term to describe relationships between Christians in general and between husbands and wives in particular. The word is “Hupotasso“.
You will never find that word spelled, as such, in your Bible, though. It is the Greek word ‘hupotasso’ used for “Submit to” or “be subject to”.
The King James uses the word “submit” but, it reads this way in the New American Standard version of the Bible:
Ephesians5:21, “and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ.”
Verse 22. Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord. Verse 23. For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body. Verse 24. But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything.
The intention of “submission or subjection” is found in the CONTEXT of the words in this chapter of Ephesians, which encourages us to be wise and moral, kind and pure, gentle and forgiving.
The context is also found in the meaning of the words in these verses.
Specifically, “Hupotasso” comes from a Greek military term meaning “to arrange [troop divisions] in a military fashion under the command of a leader”. These troop formations were called a Phalanx. The Phalanx was the formation, usually in triangular form, in which The hoplite phalanx of the Archaic and Classical periods in Greece (c. 800–350 BC) was the formation in which the hoplites would line up in ranks in close order.
Hoplites were citizen-soldiers of Ancient Greekcity-states who were primarily armed with spears and shields. Hoplite soldiers utilized the phalanx formation in order to be effective in war with fewer soldiers. The formation discouraged the soldiers from acting alone, for this would compromise the formation and minimize its strengths.
The hoplites would lock their shields together, and the first few ranks of soldiers would project their spears out over the first rank of shields.
Those at the front were, what we would call today, THE TIP OF THE SPEAR or the POINT MAN. They presented the first defense against the enemy and were the first to engage the enemy and the first to take casualties.
The phalanx therefore presented a shield wall and a mass of spear points to the enemy. Making frontal assaults against it very difficult.
It also allowed a higher proportion of the soldiers to be actively engaged in combat at a given time, rather than just those in the front rank.
This word, “Hupotasso”, in non-military use, is “a voluntary attitude of giving in, cooperating, assuming responsibility, and carrying a burden”.
The Bible gives this as an example for husbands and wives to cooperate and to successfully navigate life and in waging wars against ‘their common enemy’, Satan.
The wife is fully engaged in the marriage relationship, but, God says the husband is to be the Tip of the Spear in order to protect and preserve and, if necessary, the first to fall.
Interestingly, Ephesians 5:22, “be subject to your own” uses the word “idios” which means, uniquely one’s own, peculiar to the individual. It is “stronger than the simple possessive pronoun (‘own’). This emphatic adjective means ‘private, personal’ “.
God gives each husband a wife, designed by God, Himself, to fulfill a role specifically for that husband. God gives the wife gifts, talents, abilities and a calling uniquely designed to serve God and to compliment and to complete the husband.
This is why the Bible says “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless.
“So husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself”.
It is also why God says “Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord”.
Neither, the husband nor the wife, can be made complete as persons when finding refuge, protection and provision. But as a God given ability, you can mature and sustain one another, until you understand this Spiritual principal and follow it.
Marriage has mutual strength through commitment and cooperation with one another under God’s Steady Hand.
Please take this to heart, dear ones. This message is so important.
The world and the Devil are deceiving the family in to thinking ‘what works for you is OK”. It is NOT OK. God’s design, His plan and His Word is what gives life, and life more abundant. Stop following the world and REASON through God’s Word. Understand it and live!
So, how does this apply to women in the church, and specifically women as pastors in a church? In this instance, it is much simpler to explain from Scriptures and even easier to understand than the first half of this article. Allow me to lay the groundwork:
First, all Scripture is the Breathed-out Word of God, according to 2 Timothy 3:16-17. The Bible tells us that the Word of God is without any error, is dependable, revealing, powerful, piercing, and eternal. It is the lamp unto our feet and the light upon our path. John 14:14-18 tells us that the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and that Jesus is the Word! Additionally, Jesus tells us that He came to tell the truth (John 18:37), and that He in fact is The Truth (John 14:6). So, it is safe and wise to believe and to do whatever the Bible says – especially the plain things!
Therefore, when the Bible says, “As in all the churches of the saints,the women should keep silent in the churches. For they are not permitted to speak, but should be in submission, as the Law also says.If there is anything they desire to learn, let them ask their husbands at home. For it is shameful for a woman to speak in church.”
I have read the numerous opinions and commentaries on this matter of women being ordained as a pastor. Reading the pros and cons doesn’t take one long to determine what the varying authors believed before they wrote their opinion. One such opinion, found on Bible.Org, written by a Sandra Glahn, who holds a Master of Theology degree from Dallas Theological Seminary (DTS) and a PhD in The Humanities, Aesthetic Studies from the University of Texas at Dallas, tries to frame the Apostle Paul’s words in the context of spiritual gifts, specifically prophecy and speaking in tongues. I find her attempt clumsy and severely biased at best, and the use of eisegesis, a deliberate distortion of scriptures, at worst, connecting dots that don’t align, so to speak.
The context of Paul’s remarks are about orderly worship but come under the heading of submission to authority as a protective covering as described throughout the Bible
1 Corinithians 11:2-3,“Now I commend you because you remember me in everything and maintain the traditions even as I delivered them to you. But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God.”
The rebellious and feeble attempts to change the meaning and the context of this matter and these verses, should cause the rebel to remember these words: “Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say…?
His Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. God sent His Son to seek and to save – to make safe, to make whole, to make healthy and sound, with a great purpose and direction in life! And to as many as received Him by faith, He has given them the right to be the children of God.
For your own sake and safety, don’t change even one letter or iota of His Word! Believe and Live!
Judas’ Remorse, Jesus Before Pilate, Jesus Mocked, The Crucifixion, Jesus Burial
The central theme of the Bible, of course, is God the Father, God the Son (Jesus), and God the Holy Spirit, but it is also a comprehensive and extensive spiritual document about the creation of humanity, the cosmos and their ultimate end.
The Bible is also the longest ‘breathed out’ love letter ever written and it is written to you by God, which is about you and for you. His Words are spoken to you and if you will consume His Words, (that is to ‘eat His Body and drink His Blood’), He will speak His Words through you! You will have become His instrument to effect His plan, purpose and mission on the earth.
Therefore, it is beyond important to know what he Bible is saying to you so you can come to know God in an intimate and personal way. Then you can gain an understanding of what He is saying to you, about you, for you and through you. Please don’t get lost in the narrative; focus on Him and what He is saying to you.
Judas’ Remorse
Matthew 27:1,Now when morning came, all the chief priests and the elders of the people conferred together against Jesus to put Him to death; verse 2, and they bound Him and led Him away, and handed Him over to Pilate the governor.
(Commentary Break): Please re-read Matthew 27:1-2, and cast them in the light of Ephesians 6:12, “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places”. There are two realms. The Spiritual realm and the realm of ‘flesh and blood’, or the natural realm. These verses are comparing and contrasting these realities. Our battle is not against people, but against the rulers, and the powers, and against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places which possess and influence people of flesh and blood to do their evil and wickedness. Which realm is at work in the hearts and minds of the chief priests and the elders? And why would these spiritual forces of darkness and wickedness influence these priests and Elders to confer against Jesus, and to put Him to death? And, why would they eventually hand Jesus over to Pilate?
By understanding these things, you can see and get a better understanding of the battle that rages for your and every man, woman, boy and girl’s heart, soul and mind. These verses, when correctly understood and personally applied, can tell you the deeper meaning and motives of the spiritual forces of darkness and of wickedness. They have come only to kill, steal and destroy! The Bible and these verses in particular, can instruct you and empower you to resist and overcome evil. This is personal. Very personal! (End Commentary Break).
Verse 3. Then when Judas, who had betrayed Jesus, saw that Jesus had been condemned, he felt remorse and returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, verse 4, saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” But they said, “What is that to us? You shall see to it yourself!” Verse 5. And he threw the pieces of silver into the temple sanctuary and left; and he went away and hanged himself.
(Commentary Break): Here is the continuing example of a person, (flesh and blood), having been influenced and possessed by the rulers, the powers, the world forces of darkness, and spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places, to do their evil works.
Read again the cold, heartless and wicked response to Judas repentant cry when he bemoans “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” And look at the result; Judas hanged himself. These are the forces which are crouching outside your door, waiting to influence you, to whisper lies to you, to kill and destroy you.
This is not just a story about Judas or a drama about betrayal and murder. This is the cosmic and spiritual battle we all face. This is about life and death and eternity. This is about you and me. This is very personal! (End Commentary Break).
Verse 6. The chief priests took the pieces of silver and said, “It is not lawful to put them in the temple treasury, since it is money paid for blood.” Verse 7. And they conferred together and with the money bought the Potter’s Field as a burial place for strangers. Verse 8. For this reason that field has been called the Field of Blood to this day. Verse 9. Then that which was spoken through Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled: “AND THEY TOOK THE THIRTY PIECES OF SILVER, THE PRICE OF THE ONE WHOSE PRICE HAD BEEN SET by the sons of Israel; Verse 10. AND THEY GAVE THEM FOR THE POTTER’S FIELD, JUST AS THE LORD DIRECTED ME.”
(Commentary Break): True to form, the chief priests follow their manmade laws above all else, even above their Torah. They “tithe mint and dill and cumin, while neglecting the weightier provisions of the Law, such as justice and mercy and faithfulness”. They are, as Jesus has called them, “blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel, and hypocrites! They clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence!”
Dear ones, please listen. Just like these religious scribe, Pharisees and chief priests, many churches today have these same the rulers, and powers, and world forces of darkness, and spiritual forces of wickedness influencing pastors, elders and teachers, who ardently and stubbornly follow the laws of their own denomination or of their own making while neglecting the weightier provisions of the Law, such as justice and mercy and faithfulness. They too, are blind guides and hypocrites full of robbery and self-indulgence. Do not their bidding, point them out and flee from them. Jesus has warned that these days would come. It began in His time on earth and has intensified in these Last Days. (End Commentary Break).
Jesus before Pilate
Verse 11. Now Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor questioned Him, saying, “So You are the King of the Jews?” And Jesus said to him, “It is as you say.” Verse 12.And while He was being accused by the chief priests and elders, He did not offer any answer. Verse 13. Then Pilate said to Him, “Do You not hear how many things they are testifying against You?” Verse 14. And still He did not answer him in regard to even a single charge, so the governor was greatly amazed.
Verse 15. Now at the Passover Feast the governor was accustomed to release for the people any one prisoner whom they wanted. Verse 16. And at that time they were holding a notorious prisoner called Barabbas. Verse 17. So when the people gathered together, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release for you: Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?” Verse 18. For he knew that it was because of envy that they had handed Him over.
Verse 19. And while he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent him a message, saying, “See that you have nothing to do with that righteous Man; for last night I suffered greatly in a dream because of Him.” Verse 20. But the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowds to ask for Barabbas, and to put Jesus to death. Verse 21. And the governor said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release for you?” And they said, “Barabbas.” Verse 22. Pilate said to them, “Then what shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?” They all said, “Crucify Him!” Verse 23. But he said, “Why, what evil has He done?” Yet they kept shouting all the more, saying, “Crucify Him!”
Verse 24. Now when Pilate saw that he was accomplishing nothing, but rather that a riot was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this Man’s blood; you yourselves shall see.” Verse 25. And all the people replied, “His blood shall be on us and on our children!” Verse 26,Then he released Barabbas for them; but after having Jesus flogged, he handed Him over to be crucified.
(Commentary Break): These things had to be accomplished to fulfill the scriptures. I hope you have read these things with this one thing in mind: Jesus is innocent. You and I are the guilty parties. But He was silent when the accusations and the charges were being made. He knew what He was doing, and it was out of love for you and me that He endure this shame and punishment.
Psychologist might say that crowd hysteria had taken over, but they would have been blind to what was truly at work. Satan had released rulers, and powers, and world forces of darkness, and spiritual forces of wickedness and they were now influencing and speaking through the crowds. Undoubtedly, a frightening sight.
Pilate, however, saw through the subterfuge and declared Jesus as innocent. He tried to distance himself, making the feeble statement, “I am innocent of this man’s blood”, but he still condemned Jesus to death.
Then, prophetically, all the Jews in the crowd replied, “His blood shall be on us and on our children!” And so it has been, throughout the ages, on the Nation of Israel.
However, the Apostle Paul explains and warns, in Romans 11:20-24, “That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand by your faith [as believers understanding the truth of Christ’s deity]. Do not be conceited, but [rather stand in great awe of God and] fear [Him]; for if God did not spare the natural branches [because of unbelief], He will not spare you either. Then appreciate the gracious kindness and the severity of God: to those who fell [into spiritual ruin], severity, but to you, God’s gracious kindness, if you continue in His kindness [by faith and obedience to Him]; otherwise you too will be cut off. And even they [the unbelieving Jews], if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in; for God has the power to graft them in again. For if you were cut off from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and against nature were grafted into a cultivated olive tree, how much easier will it be to graft these who are the natural branches back into [the original parent stock of] their own olive tree? (End Commentary Break).
Jesus Is Mocked
Verse 27. Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole Roman cohort to Him. Verse 28. And they stripped Him and put a red cloak on Him. Verse 29. And after twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and put a reed in His right hand; and they knelt down before Him and mocked Him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” Verse 30. And they spit on Him, and took the reed and beat Him on the head. Verse 31. And after they had mocked Him, they took the cloak off Him and put His own garments back on Him, and led Him away to crucify Him.
Verse 32. As they were coming out, they found a man of Cyrene named Simon, whom they compelled to carry His cross.
The Crucifixion
Verse 33. And when they came to a place called Golgotha, which means Place of a Skull, verse 34, they gave Him wine mixed with bile to drink; and after tasting it, He was unwilling to drink it.
Verse 35. And when they had crucified Him, they divided His garments among themselves by casting lots. Verse 36. And sitting down, they began to keep watch over Him there. Verse 37. And above His head they put up the charge against Him which read, “THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.”
Verse 38. At that time two rebels were being crucified with Him, one on the right and one on the left. Verse 39. And those passing by were speaking abusively to Him, shaking their heads,40, and saying, “You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” Verse 41. In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes and elders, were mocking Him and saying, verse 42, “He saved others; He cannot save Himself! He is the King of Israel; let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe in Him. Verse 43. HE HAS TRUSTED IN GOD; LET GOD RESCUE Him now, IF HE TAKES PLEASURE IN HIM; for He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” Verse 44. And the rebels who had been crucified with Him were also insulting Him in the same way.
Verse 45. Now from the sixth hour, (which was noontime), darkness fell upon all the land until the ninth hour (which was 3 p.m.). Verse 46. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “ELI, ELI, LEMA SABAKTANEI?” that is, “MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?” Verse 47. And some of those who were standing there, when they heard it, said, “This man is calling for Elijah.” Verse 48. And immediately one of them ran, and taking a sponge, he filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed, and gave Him a drink. Verse 49. But the rest of them said, “Let us see if Elijah comes to save Him.” Verse 50. And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and gave up His spirit. Verse 51. And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth shook and the rocks were split. Verse 52. Also the tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; verse 53, and coming out of the tombs after His resurrection, they entered the holy city and appeared to many. Verse 54, Now as for the centurion and those who were with him keeping guard over Jesus, when they saw the earthquake and the other things that were happening, they became extremely frightened and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!”
Verse 55. And many women were there watching from a distance, who had followed Jesus from Galilee while caring for Him. Verse 56. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.
Jesus Is Buried
Verse 57. Now when it was evening, a rich man from Arimathea came, named Joseph, who himself had also become a disciple of Jesus. Verse 58. This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered it to be given to him.Verse 59. And Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, verse 60. and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had cut out in the rock; and he rolled a large stone against the entrance of the tomb and went away. Verse 61. And Mary Magdalene was there, and the other Mary, sitting opposite the tomb.
Verse 62. Now on the next day, that is, the day which is after the preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered together with Pilate, Verse 63. and they said, “Sir, we remember that when that deceiver was still alive, He said, ‘After three days I am rising.’ Verse 64. Therefore, give orders for the tomb to be made secure until the third day; otherwise, His disciples may come and steal Him, and say to the people, ‘He has risen from the dead,’ and the last deception will be worse than the first.” Verse 65. Pilate said to them, “You have a guard; go, make it as secure as you know how.” Verse 66. And they went and made the tomb secure with the guard, sealing the stone. (End Chapter 27).
(Commentary Break): This series of events actually began with the birth of Jesus, but take a precipitous turn at the noon hour on the day of Jesus’ crucifixion. The Spiritual Real of the Kingdom of Heaven breaks through to the natural realm for all to see. On the day of Jesus’ crucifixion, darkness fell upon all the land, during the middle of the day, from noontime until three p.m., when Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “ELI, ELI, LEMA SABAKTANEI?” that is, “MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?” And some of those who were standing there, when they heard it, said, “This man is calling for Elijah.” And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and gave up His spirit. And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth shook and the rocks were split. Also the tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the tombs after His resurrection, they entered the holy city and appeared to many. Now as for the centurion and those who were with him keeping guard over Jesus, when they saw the earthquake and the other things that were happening, they became extremely frightened and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!” (End Commentary Break).
The beginning of the Last Days began with the birth of Jesus. The first five seals of the tribulation have been broken from around A.D. 1 through A.D. 95, (see Revelation 6:1-11), and have been overlapping and the effects have been intensifying. These are the harbingers of the coming sixth tribulation seal (see Revelation 6:12-17), which will bring a Great Tribulation such as not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, and never will be again. (see Matthew 24:21).
The next, and final chapter of the Book of Matthew, will put an exclamation point on what had been foretold and has come to pass! Jesus has risen from the dead, conquering death and negating the penalty of sin for all who believe.
Paganism can be equated to hedonism, representing those who are sensual, materialistic, self-indulgent, unconcerned with the future, and uninterested in more mainstream religions.
Hedonist’s, and therefore Pagan’s underlying motivation of all human behavior is to maximize pleasure and avoid pain. As a form of egoism, it suggests that people only help others if they expect a personal benefit. Pleasure is the sole source of intrinsic value. It asserts that other things, like knowledge and money, only have value insofar as they produce pleasure and reduce pain. This view divides into quantitative hedonism, which only considers the intensity and duration of pleasures, and qualitative hedonism, which holds that the value of pleasures also depends on their quality. Pleasure and pain are the only factors of well-being, and that people have a moral obligation to pursue pleasure and avoid pain. The goal is to increase overall happiness for everyone therefore, each person should only pursue their own pleasure. Outside the academic context, hedonism is a pejorative term for an egoistic lifestyle seeking short-term gratification. Pagans are usually described in terms of this worldly stereotype.
Paganism, it could be fairly said, is a form of Gnosticism, i.e., emphasizing personal spiritual knowledge (gnosis) above the orthodox teachings, traditions, and authority of religious institutions. It is a collection of religious ideas and systems that coalesced in the late 1st century AD among Jewish and early Christian sects.
This is an accurate and adequate description of what has infected the psyche of a majority of people in American. You can see it being played out in our lives, through our media entertainment, in our medical systems, in our legal systems and government and now, even in our churches.
One of the major ‘tells’ of a Pagan is that if you ask them why they believe certain things, their answer will be without a foundation. They will usually say, “That is just how I feel” or “that is just what I believe.” Indicating that what they believe is based on their feelings, which springs from past or present experiences that were either extremely pleasurable or extremely unpleasant or traumatic. These people can be found to be undependable, unpredictable, and unstable in their ways displaying a narcissistic personality disorder and can be extremely dangerous to those around them.
This behavior, more recently, can be seen on display in the American democrat political party and their adherents. (It is also foundational in Socialist, Communist and Marxist ideologies and practices.)
PAGANISM – IN THE CHURCH
Many of the traits of this ‘new gospel’, which is similar to the Gospel of Jesus found and taught in the Bible, is divergent as it is an individual-centered or self-centered, ‘feelings or emotion-based’. It is a false gospel.
It has been and is being propagated and promoted by several popular non-mainline religious groups, particularly the American Charismatic movement, Pentecostalism and Word of Faithmovement. In great part, because their beliefs are emotion-based and are ‘individual-centered’, their doctrines and practices are wildly popular and are attracting many new converts, and are leading many mainline denominations and churches to adopt many of their practices.
It can be found to be subtle in some forms and is brazenly open in other forms. It can be seen to be manifested in people exercising controlling or manipulating behaviors, extreme social competitiveness, people who are arrogant, being aloof demanding others earn your attention or approval, and is particularly demonstrated by the absence of civility, which are all behaviors demonstrated by hedonists, Gnostics, and narcissists.
In the church this kind of behavior can be seen as polite avoidance of those around you, and especially toward newcomers. It is demonstrated as a sense of self-piety, self-importance, a need to be closest to the pastor or leadership of the church, clustering with the more important people and leaving others to ‘their own kind’, to name a few behaviors. And, it is endemic.
So, why does this matter? (I really dislike this question and dislike answering it, even more).
It matters because once a person adopts this type of mindset, even inadvertently, they are in danger of being snared by the grip of a pathological disorder known as narcissism, and it can lead to the deeper problem of a narcissistic personality disorder.
Here are some symptoms of narcissistic personality disorder and how severe they are and how they can vary. People with the disorder, even though they may try to disguise or hide these symptoms, can:
Have an unreasonably high sense of self-importance and require constant, excessive admiration.
Feel that they deserve privileges and special treatment.
Expect to be recognized as superior even without achievements.
Make achievements and talents seem bigger than they are.
Be preoccupied with fantasies about success, power, brilliance, beauty or the perfect mate.
Believe they are superior to others and can only spend time with or be understood by equally special people.
Be critical of and look down on people they feel are not important.
Expect special favors and expect other people to do what they want without questioning them.
Take advantage of others to get what they want.
Have an inability or unwillingness to recognize the needs and feelings of others.
Be envious of others and believe others envy them.
Behave in an arrogant way, brag a lot and come across as conceited.
Insist on having the best of everything — for instance, the best car or office.
At the same time, people with narcissistic personality disorder have trouble handling anything they view as criticism. They can:
Become impatient or angry when they don’t receive special recognition or treatment.
Have major problems interacting with others and easily feel slighted.
React with rage or contempt and try to belittle other people to make themselves appear superior.
Have difficulty managing their emotions and behavior.
Experience major problems dealing with stress and adapting to change.
Withdraw from or avoid situations in which they might fail.
Feel depressed and moody because they fall short of perfection.
Have secret feelings of insecurity, shame, humiliation and fear of being exposed as a failure.
It matters because it shows that we have veered from our historical and traditional beliefs and behaviors, established in and guided by Judeo-Christian moral and ethical standards. The very foundations that established this once great nation and provided a safer and more prosperous world are being eroded and replaced with a religious fervor by a pagan mindset and hedonistic attitudes and practices, dividing people, setting them at odds and creating a more hostile world.
If you will be honest with yourself, you can probably say you have seen these behaviors in our society, among some of your friends or acquaintances, in the media, in political circles, in our government, in our educational systems and sadly, in many of our churches. And, if you are old enough, you may have the benefit of the perspective afforded by hindsight – and able to see the contrast of the way things used to be.
Hedonism, Gnosticism, and Narcissism are the roots. Paganism is the tree bearing the bad fruit of incivility, possessing the seeds of uncontrolled anger, hatreds, murders, wars, sexual perversions, impurity, indecent behavior, idolatry, witchcraft, hostilities, strife, jealousy, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, envy, drug and alcohol abuse and addiction and more. (see Galatians 5:19-21).
Paganism is an opposition to The Good News of Jesus Christ and by its very nature destroys everything good that it touches, or perhaps I should say it is infecting everyone it touches and they are destroying everything good that they touch!
JOIN THE REMEDY – BE THE REMEDY
Jesus is the Remedy and He is inviting you to join Him. And He is saying to you as He has said to Peter, “upon this massive rock” of many believers, I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you know as true from my Words, you will bind or restrict on earth as it shall have been restricted in heaven, and whatever you permit and call as completed on earth, shall have been permitted and competed in heaven, where all things originate and find their beginnings. (see Matthew 16:18).
Remember, our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist on the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.
You are to know what this means: Stand firm having belted your waist with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having strapped on your feet the preparation of the gospel of peace; in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of evil. Wear fast the helmet of salvation and raise the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. (see Ephesians 6:10-17).
Listen friends, the old ways would say that if someone gouges you in the eye, they must pay with their own eye. If a tooth gets knocked out, knock out the tooth of the one who did it.’ But I am saying to you, do not entangle yourself in violence! If you are slapped on one cheek, turn the other cheek, too. And if you are ordered to court, and your shirt is taken from you, give your coat too. Give to those who ask, and don’t turn away from those who want to borrow.
There is a tradition that instructs you to love your friends and hate your enemies.But I am saying to you, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! In this way you will be acting as true sons and daughters of your Father in heaven. For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust too. But you are to be perfect and spiritually mature, even as your Father in heaven is perfect. (see Matthew 5:38-48).
You know that you are to continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of through the teachings and the example of Jesus, knowing from whom you have learned them,and since that time of your conversion to Christ you have come to know the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
You know that all the Scripture is inspired, and is literally breathed out by God, and is beneficial for teaching, for rebuke, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man or woman of God may be fully capable, equipped for every good work. (see 2 Timothy 3:14-17).
You are to walk by the Spirit so your life will bear the fruit of the Spirit which is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,gentleness, self-control..Those who belong to Christ Jesus will have ‘crucified the flesh’ with its passions and desires. And, if we live by the Spirit, let’s follow the Spirit as well.Let’s not become boastful, challenging one another, envying one another. (see Galatians 5:16-26).
So, do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and pleading with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
Finally, brothers and sisters,
whatever is true,
whatever is honorable,
whatever is right,
whatever is pure,
whatever is lovely,
whatever is commendable,
if there is any excellence and
if anything worthy of praise,
think about these things.
As for the things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.(see Philippians 4:6-10).
The time is now that each of us get back on course, and closely follow Jesus. Follow Him in all that He has said and continues to say; in all that He has done and continue to do; and all that He Is.
(1). HOLY. The most important element of God’s nature is His holiness. Holy means “set apart,” and God is clearly separate from His creation based on His nature and attributes. Holiness is the foundation of all other aspects of God’s character. Revelation 15:4 says of God, “You alone are holy.” Revelation 4:8 describes the four living creatures who sing to God day and night, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.” It is God’s holiness that makes Him the “consuming fire” that will judge all sin (Hebrews 12:29). Beautiful doxologies exalting God’s holiness are found throughout Scripture, including Psalm 99:9; Psalm 33:21; Psalm 77:13; Psalm 89:18; Psalm 105:3; and others.
(2). ETERNAL. It is also important to understand that God is an eternal spirit (John 4:24). He is one God (Deuteronomy 6:4) who has always existed as three distinct Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. He does not have a physical body (although the Son became incarnate). A doctrine is false if it denies the Trinity, views God the Father as a man, or denies the humanity and deity of Christ (see 2 John 1:7).
(3). SOVEREIGN. God is also, by nature, sovereign. He is judged by no one and has absolute authority over the entire universe and everything in it. His sovereignty is expressed in many ways, including His omnipotence. All of His ways are right (Psalm 145:17), and whether mankind believes God’s ways to be “fair” is irrelevant. The Lord God is not constrained by time or place. He has a plan, He has had it from eternity past, and His purpose will be accomplished (Daniel 4:37; Psalm 115:3).
(4). IMMUTABLE. Another key aspect of God’s nature is His immutability. He does not change, being the same “yesterday, today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). He states outright in Malachi 3:6, “I the LORD do not change.” Because of His unchanging nature, we can depend on His blessings: “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows” (James 1:17).
(5). OMNIPOTENT. The Almighty’s sovereignty speaks to His right to do whatever He wishes, and His omnipotence speaks to His ability to do so. He also knows everything, from eternity past to eternity future, everything we think, do, and say. He has personal knowledge of every person who has ever lived or will live, knowing them intimately in every way. It is encouraging to hear God’s words in Jeremiah 1:5, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart.”
(6). RIGHTEOUS. We must not overlook God’s wrath, which flows from His holiness. He has a righteous anger against sin (Psalm 7:11), and, because of God’s impending judgment, mankind needs the gospel message of grace and salvation.
(7). LOVE. It is also God’s nature to love (1 John 4:16), and in His love for the world, He sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, to redeem us (John 3:16). Nothing less than a perfect sacrifice would do. Love is more than an attribute of God; He is literally the essence of love. This is stated clearly in 1 John 4:8, “Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.” God’s love is eternal. Because He is immutable, His love never changes. His love is perfect and holy.
“For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38–39).
(1). INFINITE. Self-existing, without origin. Jehovah or Yahweh is the most intensely sacred name to Jewish scribes and many will not even pronounce the name. When possible, they use another name.”
(2). IMMUTABLE. He never changes.
(3). SELF-SUFFICIENT. He has no needs.
(4). OMNIPOTENT. He is all powerful.
(5). OMNISCIENT. God is all knowing.
(6). OMNIPRESENT. He is everywhere, all the time.
(7). WISE. He is full of perfect, unchanging wisdom.
(8). FAITHFUL. God is infinitely unchanging and true.
(9). GOOD. God is good all the time.
(10). JUST. Infinitely right, fair and perfect.
(11). MERCIFUL. Infinitely compassionate and kind.
(12). GRACIOUS. Inclined to spare the guilty.
(13). LOVING. Always and forever, He loves us.
(14). HOLY. God is perfect.
(15). GLORIOUS.
Here are some Biblical descriptions that Biblestudytools.com and GotQuestions.org left out:
God is invisible. Romans 1:20.
God is with you in all that you do. Genesis 21:22.
God is not a man, that He would lie, Nor a son of man, that He would change His mind; Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? Numbers 23:19.
The LORD your God is the One fighting for you. Deuteronomy 3:22.
God is a consuming fire, a jealous God. Deuteronomy 4:24.
God is within you. Luke 17:21.
God is near. Luke 21:31.
God is True. John 3:33.
God is Spirit. John 4:24.
God is revealed. Romans 1:17
God is evident. Romans 1:19.
God is for us. Romans 8:31.
God is holy. 1 Corinthians 3:17.
But I want you to understand that Christ is the head of every man, and the man is the head of a woman, and God is the head of Christ. 1 Corinthians 11:3.
God is faithful. 2 Corinthians 1:18.
God is living and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, even penetrating as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. Hebrews 4:12.
God is a consuming fire. Hebrews 12:29.
God is one. James 2:19.
God is light. 1 John 1:5.
DEEPER WATERS
God, Himself, put it most simply and succinctly when He said, “I AM THAT I AM.” (see Exodus 3:14).
But, What and Who is God, exactly? It is hard to answer that question because, as John 1:18 explains to us, “No one has seen God at any time; God the only Son, who is in the arms of the Father, He has explained Him.” (New American Standard Version).
It is clear that God is undefinable, and we can know Who He is, and that He is describable, but even this is from our weak and finite perspective.
So, I ask again, beyond knowing the attributes and nature of God, is it possible to know What God is? Can we know His Essence? (This is such a revered matter, a holy matter that to the Hebrew Jew, it is impermissible to even utter His Name, as it would be blasphemous to them).
I would like to put forward an idea. And it is just an idea. But it can be considered to be based on what we can and do know about God – but this may be a little ‘out there’, if you will:
Holy Scriptures, the Word and Breath of God tell us “without faith it is impossible to please Him, for the one who comes to God must believe that He exists, and that He proves to be One who rewards those who seek Him.”
So, in seeking God, it begins with faith. Furthermore, Scriptures tell us that it is faith that produces belief, and it is through our belief that we can know God exists. A good start, yes?
Furthermore, He tells us that He rewards those who seek Him. So, let’s seek Him.
GOD SAID
The idea that God has spoken or that God has a voice is mentioned scores of times throughout Scriptures.
Genesis 1:3 says, “And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.”
The Hebrew word for ‘said’ when associated with God, is ‘amar’, which translates “to utter, say”. This word is found 45 times in the King James Version of the Bible.
Deuteronomy 4:33 says, “Did ever people hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as thou hast heard, and live?”
DEEPER WATERS YET
The Hebrew word for voice when associated with God is ‘qol’, wich translates as “sound, or voice”. This is found two times in the Bible.
In the Abrahamic religions, the voice of God is a communication from God to human beings through sound with no known physical source. In rabbinic Judaism, such a voice was known as a “bat kol”, and was a “heavenly or divine voice which proclaims God’s will or judgment”. It differed from prophecy in that God had a close relationship with the prophet, while the “bat kol” could be heard by any individual or group regardless of their level of connection to God.
According to Pastor Chuck Swindoll, you can’t always tell from Scripture whether God’s voice is audible or “heard” by some other means. When Saul (later Paul) was on the road to Damascus, he heard the voice of the resurrected Jesus talking to him in a vision, and the sound could be heard by his entourage. It was audible. In Genesis 6, God spoke to Noah and gave him specific instructions. We might assume that the voice was audible, that is, he heard spoken words with his ears, but the Lord may have “spoken” to him mind to mind. We don’t know for sure. God’s voice to Daniel sounded like thunder, but centuries earlier to Elijah, He spoke with “a noiseless sound.” In Samuel’s case, God spoke in such a way that Samuel literally heard His voice. He spoke with the voice of a normal Hebrew man so that the boy thought it was Eli calling to him from the other room.
Regardless, when God spoke we do know people heard His voice. At times, God’s voice created an audible sound. And, explained is the very simplest form, it is known through physics, that a voice produces sound, and sound is carried along and measured as sound waves. Sound waves have frequencies of vibration; these frequencies are known as harmonics.
DEEPEST WATERS
When God spoke, audibly or not, He created the cosmos, the worlds, the earth and life! The very elements of the cosmos were created by the creative force of His Voice.
I posit that science is in the process of discovering God and all that God has created. (The great majority of them just do not want to recognize Him or His existence. They want the glory.
However, science recognizes, through disciplines of physics, that a voice produces sound, and that sound is carried along and measured as sound waves. Sound waves have frequencies of vibration; these frequencies are known as harmonics.
In fact, in the 6th century BC, Pythagoras developed the science of harmonics. Legend has it that he was inspired by the sounds emanating from a blacksmith’s shop; producing experimental music with hammers and anvils, Pythagoras realized that the relationship between different musical notes can be expressed in the form of simple mathematical ratios. Pythagoras saw in this a fundamental theory of the universe, and redefined the world, from the motion of celestial bodies to the emotional fluctuations in a human body, as iterations of a kind of cosmic music. More than a millennium later, Johannes Kepler interpreted this musica universalis as proof of Divine splendor, and devoted his career to a description of the geometric and harmonic order of our solar system.
Efforts to chart this celestial harmony can produce strikingly aesthetic images. Kepler’s sketches proved as much in his publications – as does this work by software developer Howard Arrington. Arrington used his own Ensign software to visualize the relationship between pairs of planets, producing a series of intriguing geometric mosaics. Better yet, he shares the program with which he created his images, so that you, too, can capture the music of the cosmos.
Let me be clear that harmonics do not explain or define God. God created all things and harmonics came into being.
God is always speaking. God speaks by the Holy Spirit, through the Bible, through prayer, circumstances and through the Church to reveal Himself, His purposes and His way. This is the nature of God’s voice.
God and His Voice are inseparable. He and His Voice are eternal, omniscient, immutable, and omnipresent. The heavens, (the universe, the cosmos), are speaking and are declaring His Glory.
The heavens were filled with, are filled and shall continue to be filled with the Voice of God. This is the harmonics and the music of the cosmos. This has been the will of God from the beginning.
All things have come into existence by the Will and the Breath and the Word of God. And, the Bible tells us repeatedly that as Christians we are to know this and do the will of God. This is the key to everything from hearing God’s voice, to following Him, resting in Him finding His protection over our lives, receiving His promises, living in His presence, living and walking in the Spirit of God, to answered prayer.
We must hear and obey His Voice (the harmonics of God) and find live in His Will, which is walking in agreement, as in a symphony, with God!
As James says in Acts 15:14-15, Simeon has described how God first concerned Himself about taking a people for His name from among the Gentiles. The words of the Prophets agree, (‘sumphóneó’ from the Greek, meaning to agree, to be in harmony, to be of one mind, i.e., I agree with, harmonize with, agree together), with this, just as it is written.”
Please click this link symphony, and review and study this commentary on this word ‘agree’, as in symphony, from Biblehub.com.
GETTING TO THE BOTTOM
We are living in the presence of an invisible God. We cannot see Him, and in fact, no has ever seen God. But God sent His Son, as His exact representation so we could know Him.
His presence reaches from before time into infinity. His power is indescribable and undefinable. The sun, moon, the stars in all the cosmos are diminished by His glorious radiance. Yet we are His. He cares for us. He keeps us. God is both within us, and He encompasses us. We are continuously bathed in and by His radiance.
Nonetheless, we can resist Him. We can rebel against Him. We can deny that He is and that He exists, even as we rest and glory in His presence, because He has permitted us the freedom and power of choice. We can choose to acknowledge and submit to Him and be made safe, or we can deny Him and lay claim to our complete annihilation. This is true because He is eternal, and without Him there is nothing. If you are without God, you will have nothing after this life except an eternity alone in a vast darkness, where there is wailing and gnashing of teeth.
With all of this in mind, the only real and true benefit from knowing these things about God is to apply what you now know. Choose. Choose to know Him. Choose to become His son or daughter. Choose to stand in His radiance and bathe yourself in His glory. Let His voice, the sound of His voice, the vibrations of His voice and the harmonics of His voice penetrate your mind, soul, spirit and body. Do this purposely. Do this often. Do this continually. Practice the presence of God in your daily life.
KNOW AND DO THE WILL OF GOD – PRACTICE HIS PRESENCE
The Breath and Words of God shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to observe and to do according to all that is spoken; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have insight and achieve success. Has He not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not be terrified nor dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go. (See Joshua 1:8-9).
He has spoken and says you are to consume His Words, absorb His voice as if they are the flesh of the Son of Man and drink in His presence, His nature, His being and His existence as if it is His blood, and you have life in yourselves.
The one who consumes His Words and Breath as if they are eating His flesh and drinks in His presence as if it is His blood, has eternal life; and He will raise you up on the last day.
For His flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink. The one who eats His ‘flesh’ and drinks His ‘blood’ dwells in and remains in Him, and He in you.
Just as God the Father sent Jesus, and He lives because of the Father, if you consume Jesus and all that HE IS, you also will live because of Him.
Jesus is the bread that came down out of heaven, but not the same bread as the Jewish fathers ate and died; if you eat This Bread, you will live forever. (See John 6:53-58).
Your Brother and Friend,
Mike Young
PS: Psalm 1:2 – But his delight is in the Law of the Lord, And on His Law he meditates day and night.
Psalm 4:4 – Tremble, and do not sin; Meditate in your heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah
Psalm 27:4 – One thing I have asked from the Lord, that I shall seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the Lord And to meditate in His temple.
Psalm 63:6 – When I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You in the night watches,
Psalm 77:6– I will remember my song in the night; I will meditate with my heart, And my spirit ponders:
Psalm 77:12 – I will meditate on all Your work, And on Your deeds with thanksgiving.
Psalm 119:15 – I will meditate on Your precepts And regard Your ways.
Psalm 119:23 – Even though rulers sit and speak against me, Your servant meditates on Your statutes.
Psalm 119:27 – Make me understand the way of Your precepts, And I will meditate on Your wonders.
Psalm 119:48 – And I shall lift up my hands to Your commandments, Which I love; And I will meditate on Your statutes.
Psalm 119:78 – May the arrogant be put to shame, because they lead me astray with a lie; But I shall meditate on Your precepts.
Psalm 119:148 – My eyes anticipate the night watches, So that I may meditate on Your word.
Psalm 143:5 – I remember the days of old; I meditate on all Your accomplishments; I reflect on the work of Your hands.
Psalm 145:5 – On the glorious splendor of Your majesty And on Your wonderful works, I will meditate.
Typically, in our church buildings and organizations today, we are being taught or “fed” an entertainment based gospel intermixed with just enough religion and “Bible idealism” to make us think that is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I am not saying the information presented in the sermons you may hear is incorrect. I am saying that it is just that – It is information. Most of these sermons are recitals, stories and narratives of what is written in the Bible. It is left to you to decide what to do with that information, how to apply or use that information in your daily life and why applying what you have heard is important.
Compounding the problem of making these decisions, as I see it, is the fact that methods used by churches to communicate this Bible recitals, stories and narratives is by way of,
Religious Lectures
Religious Addresses
Religious Discourses
Gospel Preaching
Bible Sermons
Religious Teaching
Christian Discipleship training
Studies show that most people don’t remember sermons, lectures, addresses or speeches. They don’t even remember paragraphs. What people remember are simple statements, slogans, and phrases. I don’t remember any speech John F. Kennedy gave, but most of us of a certain age remember his statements,
“Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country” and, “I am a Berliner!”
I don’t remember any sermon preached by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., but I do remember his famous phrase,
“I have a dream!”
People tend to remember:
10% of what they read.
20% of what they only hear.
30% of what they only see.
50% of what they see and hear.
70% of what they say and write down.
90% of what they DO
People will more frequently remember simple repeated statements, slogans, and phrases.
This is the difference between having the truthful statement and knowing the truth.
But most churches are giving sermons that are little more than narratives about the Bible. That is not to say, they are informative and educational, and some are even inspirational – at times. Sometimes these narratives even conclude with a moral motto or an exercise on ethics. Other times the hearer is left to make their own conclusions.
But this is like an alphabet soup. All the letters are in there, but they are all mixed up – just floating around in a broth, so you can nibble on the ones you find to your liking.
Conversely, God has a Message, and His Message gives us His Purpose, His Plan and His Methods and directions for life. It is for us and all of His creation. You can live but you cannot live successfully without it.
One man simply puts it this way:
“Listen. Do you hear God calling you? If you can hear Him, you should listen. And He can change your life in amazing and radical ways, if you really do wish to change. If you wish to become a different person altogether in the sight of God and man; if you really do want health and peace of mind, and spiritual growth that leads to maturity, then Jesus, clearly shows you how it is to be done. The task is not an easy one, but we know that it can be accomplished, because there are those who have done it, but there is a price which must be paid; and the price is the actual carrying out of these principles in every corner of your heart, mind, soul, life, and in every daily transaction, whether you feel like it or not, whether you want to or not, and more particularly where you would much rather not.
If you are prepared to pay that price in order to really and truly break with the ‘old man or woman’, and to allow God to start the creation of the new one, then the true Gospel of Jesus Christ and following Him will indeed be your Sermon on the Mount of Redemption, Salvation, and Liberation.”
Jesus’ Gospel Message and plan shows that there is a purpose to His creation. It shows that there was and is a beginning that had and still has a purpose. His Message and Plan has an end with a purpose, and He has prepared an eternity with a purpose, waiting for those who respond. And whether you believe it or not, does not change one iota of His Message, His Purpose, His Plan and His Method. But whether you believe it or not, does make all the difference for you.
Here is a brief outline of His Message, His Purpose, His Plan and His Methods, for you, from its beginning to the end:
Humankind was created with a flaw; a sin nature. (Genesis 2:17).
Humankind sinned and thereby failed, and condemned themselves to toil in the soil by the sweat of our brow, and ultimately to eternal destruction. (Genesis 3:19).
The great global deluge, also known has Noah’s flood, was a harbinger of things to come and an example of God’s judgements. He says there is a judgement coming, however, such as the world has never seen and will never see again.
God provided a remedy for our sin-flaw and for our ultimate destruction; a Savior to redeem us and to save us from our sin, failure and destruction. (John 3:16).
There are those who say they don’t believe this and that they don’t need to be saved. Their ultimate end is set. They will live and they will die and that is the end. And they are right, for themselves, if they believe that. They will indeed perish.
God, through the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus, our redeemer and Savior, made a way for us to live now and eternally with Him. He gives us an internal roadmap for life and for our eternity. And, by this one offering, this sacrifice, God is bringing us into the sinless perfection that is required to be in His presence. And by this one sacrifice, He is perfecting all those who are being sanctified – that is being made right and holy with Him. (Hebrews 10:14).
He is coming, at the sounding of the trumpet, on the clouds where every eye will see Him, and He will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other, and we will be with Him forever. (Matthew 24:29-31).
He will gather His armies and defeat His enemies and cast them into the lake of fire. (Revelation 19:11-29).
In the End, He will have created a new heaven and a new earth. Perfect in every respect. We will live with Him, in His perfect presence, and with one another (those who have been called and chosen), in the new Jerusalem, our perfect home in heaven, forever. (Revelation 21, 22).
Everything that occurs in everyone’s lifetime is part of this process. Some will respond and begin this process of being made into His perfect image.
However, be aware that much of what happens in your lifetime will be nothing more than a distraction, and unless you keep your mind focused on Christ and His Calling, His Message, His Purpose, His Plan and His Methods, you can be distracted and in danger of straying.
Let me break it down this way:
THIS IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE JESUS SAYS
Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
But the Good News is,
John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes Him should not perish but have eternal life.
And Jesus instructs us in,
John 14:6, “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
Romans 10:9, “Because, (it is only) if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”
Ephesians 2:8-9, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
John 3:3, “Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
Matthew 7:21-27, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’ “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.”
WHAT DOES JESUS SAY WE ARE TO DO?
1 Peter 2:21, “For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps.”
Matthew 16:24, “Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.”
John 8:12, “Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
1 Corinthians 11:1-2,“Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ. Now I commend you because you remember me in everything and maintain the traditions even as I delivered them to you.”
Luke 9:23, “And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.”
3. WHAT WILL HAPPEN WITH ME AND TO ME?
Matthew 10:22,“And you will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.”
John 12:26,“If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also.If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.”
Matthew 4:19, “And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
1 Peter 1:14-16, “As obedient children,do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”
John 15:16-17, “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. These things I command you, so that you will love one another.”
Matthew 4:19-25, “And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Immediately they left their nets and followed him. And going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and he called them. Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him. And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people.”
4. WHAT DOES THIS MEAN TO ME?
John 15:14,“You are my friends if you do what I command you.”
Matthew 10:38, “And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.”
James 2:20-24,“Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”, and he was called a friend of God. You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. “
John 15:5-8,“I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.”
Matthew 11:28-30, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, andI will give you rest.Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
Romans 8:16-17,“The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.”
John 14:2-3, “In My Father’s house are many rooms; if that were not so, I would have told you, because I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I am coming again and will take you to Myself,so that where I am, there you also will be.
Revelation 22:12-14,“And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last. Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city.”
WHAT ARE THE ODDS?
You know, it’s odd that people say they believe this or that they believe that, but have no substantial basis for what they believe. It just sounds good to them. One saying goes, “it is your own truth”. Okay. But that is truly a fools-folly.
Finally, please, reason with me.
If you were a gambling man or woman, and you were given the odds of 1 to 100, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, 000, (or 1 to 10 to the 157th power), in favor of something coming to pass, would you bet against it?
These are the odds against – yes, AGAINST – Jesus Christ having fulfilled just 48 of the over 450 prophecies written about Him. But, facts show that
In order to give you some perspective, electrons are very small objects. They’re smaller than atoms. It would take 2.5 TIMES 10 to the 15th power of them, laid side by side, to make one inch. Even if we counted 250 of these electrons each minute, and counted day and night, it would still take 19 million years just to count a line of electrons one-inch long. 19 MILLION YEARS!
Read that again, please. Why is that significant?
It is significant because it gives us evidence that the Bible is true and correct when it says that Christ Jesus came to earth and is the Savior of the world.
It gives YOU evidence, if you choose to pay attention, that your life can be eternal with the only LIFE source which gives eternal Peace, Safety, Security, Joy and fulfillment the universe has ever known or ever will know.
Just think about it: It is a scientific and a mathematical impossibility that HAS COME TO PASS! No odds can defy the REALITY of Jesus Christ.
5. FROM THE ALPHA TO THE OMEGA
So, that is the alpha to the omega. From the beginning to the end. Now, it is up to you. I would urge you to use the one gift God has graciously given to each of His created – the power of choice. A free will. You only get this one chance at life. Make your choices wisely.
As a result, as a nation we are radically redrawing moral boundaries. For example, those surveyed were more likely to say it is morally unacceptable to renege on repaying a small debt to a relative than to have an abortion.
Less than half said it was morally unacceptable to tell a lie to protect their personal interest or reputation, with 27% saying it was morally acceptable or that it was not a moral issue at all.
Lying, stealing, killing, murdering, sexual perversion, alcoholism, drug addiction, and increasing violence of all kinds have been on the rise for decades.
When a society loses its ability to trust its institutions, its authority figures, its government, then it will cease to function which can lead to the kinds societal chaos and anarchy we are now witnessing.
When members of society cannot trust or depend on one another it will descend into widespread violent discord, and eventually, it will cease to exist.
There are those who claim that statistics show that things are no worse today than they have ever been in America. But statistics can be subject to several variables. In this case, there are three standards of judgment.
(#1). Some are based on situational ethical standards, which are subject to the interpretation of the individual based on their personal view of the situation or circumstances at hand. This standard is highly subjective and is never static.
EXAMPLE: It is okay to steal food if you are hungry and cannot afford to pay for it.
EXAMPLE: It is okay to lie if you don’t think it will hurt anyone or if you think it will protect someone from a hurtful truth.
#2).Next are conditional ethics which highly subjective to the desires, needs, wants and opinion of the those making the judgment. This standard is unreliable and subject to manipulation. It says “I will give you my approval if you give me what I want”.
EXAMPLE: It is okay to gossip and hurt the reputation of someone if they will not support you in a project or in your efforts; or to promote them above others who are less qualified, because they support you – even if your behavior, project or effort is questionable. A tit-for-tat ethos.
(#3). Finally, a moral absolute – an absolute standard of truth. Coincidentally, the moral values and standards underpinning the foundations of the American Experiment, which sprang from a Judeo-Christian ethos, postulates a moral absolute – an absolute standard of truth. (This absolutism is stated in the second paragraph of our Declaration of Independence, “We hold these Truths to be self-evident…”).
EXAMPLE: You do the honest and the right thing simply because it is the right thing, regardless of how it benefits you – because the Bible says it is the only way.
Now I ask, using one of the standards are listed above, where do you stand? Please review the list below, of the TEN COMMANDMENTS which are taken from the Bible, and decide which of the three standards of ethics most closely defines your view of good morals and acceptable ethical standards. (at the end of each choice you received a score of 1, 2 or 3. Keep your score and total it when completed):
Situational – ‘It depends on the circumstances.’ (score 1 point).
Conditional – ‘It depends on what I get in return.’ (score 2 points).
Absolute – ‘There is no doubt about it.’ (score 3 points).’
“You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below….” This command forbids the use of any man-made image for the purpose of worship. No human has the ability to create a piece of artwork or construct a statue that accurately represents God. He alone is worthy of worship. (New Testament References:
Situational – ‘It depends on the circumstances.’ (score 1 point).’
Conditional – ‘It depends on what I get in return.’ (score 2 points).’
Absolute – ‘There is no doubt about it.’ (score 3 points).’
Don’t misuse God’s name—This command forbids mishandling, lightly using, or speaking in vain the name of God. (New Testament References: 1 Timothy 6:1, Matthew 5:33-37)
Situational – ‘It depends on the circumstances.’ (score 1 point).’
Conditional – ‘It depends on what I get in return.’ (score 2 points).’
Absolute – ‘There is no doubt about it.’ (score 3 points).’
Remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy—This commandment required the Israelites to set aside a specific day of the week to dedicate as a day of rest to the Lord—the Sabbath. (New Testament References: Hebrews 4:1-11 tells us that Jesus fulfilled this law completely. Christians find their Sabbath rest in the person of Jesus Christ. Colossians 2:16 confirms that New Covenant Believers are no longer required to adhere to Sabbath laws.)
Situational – ‘It depends on the circumstances.’ (score 1 point).’
Conditional – ‘It depends on what I get in return.’ (score 2 points).’
Absolute – ‘There is no doubt about it.’ (score 3 points).’
Honor your mother and father—This command requires that parents be shown honor and respect. It’s also the only command that comes with a promise. “so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you.” (New Testament References: Ephesians 6:1-2, Matthew 15:4-9)
Situational – ‘It depends on the circumstances.’ (score 1 point).
Conditional – ‘It depends on what I get in return.’ (score 2 points).’
Absolute – ‘There is no doubt about it.’ (score 3 points).’
Do not murder—This command forbids the premeditated killing of another human being. (New Testament References: Romans 13:9; 1 Peter 4:15)
Situational – ‘It depends on the circumstances.’ (score 1 point).’
Conditional – ‘It depends on what I get in return.’ (score 2 points).’
Absolute – ‘There is no doubt about it.’ (score 3 points).’
Don’t commit adultery—This command forbids breaking the sacred marriage covenant by having sexual relations with anyone other than one’s spouse. (New Testament references: 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, John 8:1-20)
Situational – ‘It depends on the circumstances.’ (score 1 point).’
Conditional – ‘It depends on what I get in return.’ (score 2 points).’
Absolute – ‘There is no doubt about it.’ (score 3 points).’
Don’t steal—This command forbids taking someone else’s possessions without permission. (New Testament References: Ephesians 4:28, Luke 19:8)
Situational – ‘It depends on the circumstances.’ (score 1 point).’
Conditional – ‘It depends on what I get in return.’ (score 2 points).’
Absolute – ‘There is no doubt about it.’ (score 3 points).’
Don’t give false testimony against your neighbor—This command forbids testifying falsely against someone in court, but the context also implies that lying is forbidden. New Testament References: Revelation 21:8, John 8:44)
Situational – ‘It depends on the circumstances.’ (score 1 point).’
Conditional – ‘It depends on what I get in return.’ (score 2 points).’
Absolute – ‘There is no doubt about it.’ (score 3 points).’
Don’t covet—This command forbids harboring a desire for someone else’s possessions, spouse, or property. (New Testament References: Colossians 3:5, Ephesians 5:3)
Situational – ‘It depends on the circumstances.’ (score 1 point).’
Conditional – ‘It depends on what I get in return.’ (score 2 points).’
Absolute – ‘There is no doubt about it.’ (score 3 points).’
Now, total your score.
(1). If you scored between 10 and 15 points, you lean toward situational ethics. You tend to be your own judge and jury and the judge and jury of others depending on how you view circumstances and situations. (You can be what some consider as a nice, caring person, and tend to take up matters of perceived social injustice with a driving passion, but often times your passions can cloud your judgment and will polarize people against you. Your circle of friends tends to be small and highly opinionated. You would be considered, by many, as a social and political liberal or a progressive.
(2). If you scored between 16 and 25 points, you lean toward conditional ethics. You tend to be self-centered. This one is hard to admit, but you know if you are. Your decisions and judgements based almost solely on how circumstances and situations affect you first and foremost, and what will benefit you most. I.e., what you will gain or get in return. You are probably a thoughtful person and a deep thinker. You might be considered as a social or political moderate, with friends on both the social and political right and left. Some people may consider you non-committal and undecided on many issues and would have a hard time trusting your views or opinions.
(3). If you scored between 25 and 30 points, you may lean toward an absolute standard of morals. You can tend to be a rule keeper and you could be hard on yourself and harsh toward others at times, unless you balance justice with mercy. You may tend to be more closeminded on issues as you have your mind settled on matters. You are probably a very transparent and dependable person and many will call on you for help. You would probably be considered a social and political conservative by most and far right by the progressive-left.
Next, regardless of what you chose as your standard of ethics, choose a word from these two sets of motivations, from the ones in red text or the ones in blue text. Find the motivating word or the word that most closely describes how you feel about the foregoing list of the Ten Commandments:
For example, “I shall have no other gods,(other than the God of Abraham, Jacob and Isaac)”. This implies you must believe absolutely, in the One True God of the Bible. You do not give room for other religious beliefs systems or other religion’s gods. Choose a word from either the red letter list or the blue letter list that best describes the most likely outcome of having the ‘only the One True Living God in your life’:
I DISAGREE that having OTHER gods in my life will result in :
sexual immorality, impurity,
sensuality (total irresponsibility, lack of self-control),
idolatry, sorcery,
hostility, strife,
jealousy, fits of anger,
disputes, dissensions,
factions [that promote heresies], envy,
drunkenness, riotous behavior,
OR
I AGREE that having OTHER gods in my life will result in :
love – unselfish concern for others, joy,
inner peace, patience
kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, gentleness,
self-control.
The main points here are:
Point number 1.
(a). If you lean toward ‘situational ethics’ you tend to be your own judge and jury and the judge and jury of others depending on how you view circumstances and situations.
(b). If you lean toward ‘conditional ethics’ you tend to be self-centered. This one is hard to admit, but you know if you are. Your decisions and judgements based almost solely on how circumstances and situations affect you first and foremost, and what will benefit you most. I.e., what you will gain or get in return.
(c). If you lean toward an ‘absolute standard of morals’ you can tend to be a rule keeper and you could be hard on yourself and harsh toward others at times, unless you balance justice with mercy.
Point number 2.
Knowing the motivations for your ethical standard can help you better understand others response toward you. For example, if you are constantly in personal conflicts it may be because you think others are ‘out to get you’ or that you deserve better than others, so your decisions and ethical standards are geared to that motivation.
If you want a better life for yourself and for others your motivation may be to apply kindness, self-control, patience and a modicum of love when making judgments of circumstances, situations and of others.
You might make better decisions if you know your motivations.
Point number 3.
(a). The social and political liberal-progressive left tends to adhere to the red letter list, above. They not only adhere to such thinking and behaviors, they promote and defend it and excuse or define the outcomes as ‘freedom’, i.e., being free to do as you choose despite the natural outcomes and consequences of hostility, selfishness, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envy, riotous behavior, disease, sickness, mental illness, poverty, divorce, broken relationships, broken families and premature death.
(b). The social and political moderate or libertarian may appear to straddle the fence on many of the issues found in both the red letter and the blue letter lists. They usually seem to be neither hot nor cold on many issues but tend to be lukewarm on most issues. They seem to adopt a ‘live and let live’ or that ‘everyone is entitle to their own view’ attitude toward life. I say ‘they seem to’ but they really to hold fast to their centrist views. I would dare to guess that this might define a majority the middle class.
(c). The social and political conservative and Christian right tends to adhere to the blue letter list, above. They not only adhere to such thinking and behaviors, they promote and defend it and define the outcomes and benefits as ‘freedom’, i.e., being free to do as God has directed and chosen for you, with the natural outcomes of love, (the unselfish concern for others), joy, inner peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control, right thinking, strong mental health, prosperity in your soul, mind and body, fewer diseases, less sickness, strong marriages, families and relationships and a longer healthier life.
NOTE TO SELF
It can be easier to follow and keep the letter of the law, i.e., keeping rules. It can much more difficult to follow and keep the spirit of the law, i.e., make your ethical decisions from a motivation of love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, gentleness and self-control. Justice balanced by mercy.
PS: I will leave you with this video. I do this cautiously because it has political overtones and is strictly secular in its approach to morals and ethics. It is a TED talk on The moral roots of liberals and conservatives by Jonathan Haidt. But it makes some good points.
The Bible tells us that all of the Law, (the Torah), and all Prophecies are to be fulfilled by Jesus. (see Matthew 5:17). In fact, the entirety of the Bible, all the narratives, all the events, each and every word points to a time when there would be a bright Scarlet Line etched into the cosmos and into the hearts and minds of every person on the earth.
This is the Blood of Christ, spilled on our behalf. An immutable Scarlet Linedrawn in the eternal sands of time, dividing truth from error, deception and lies, and life from death, and you must choose. Choose which side of this line you will stand.
Many people, Christians included, seem to miss or overlook the fact that the Bible is a purely prophetic book. About 27 percent of the Bible is predictive or prophetic, that is it ‘foretells’ the truth of what was, is and is to come.(By one count, Payne, J. B., The Encyclopedia of Biblical Prophecy, Baker Pub. Group, 1980, p. 675). The remaining 73 percent of the Bible is prophetic in the sense that it ‘forthtells’ these same truths and directly supports, explains and defines the predictive prophecies.
Surprisingly and sadly, however, you can listen to many preachers and Bible teachers tell what they call ‘stories’ from the Bible. They focus on the narratives and the moral lessons to be gained. They cannot see the profound prophetic significance of every word, sentence, chapter and book in the Bible. They assume, speculate and muse about many things written there, supposing what they might mean. Some will ignorantly or deliberately reframe the meaning of the Bible texts into their own perspectives.
There are those who foolishly try to redefine certain words in the Bible, or to convince others to there is no Line you can cross. They will say ‘it is not so. There is no true Line.’ They will say there are many different ways to see and interpret the things that Jesus spoke, taught and demonstrated. But, the Bible informs us, “But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture becomes a matter of someone’s own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.”(see 2 Peter 1:20-21). These men and women have Crossed The Line, and that is a dangerous game. (see Matthew 5:17-19, and Revelation 22:18-19).
I have to ask, in light of all this, why do they not just accept the Bible as it is written and in the context it is written? Why would anyone take these documents (The Bible), which they purport to believe, and then deny its accuracy and inerrancy? Is it a deliberate deception of evil intent, or is it lunacy, the work of fools? Or, both?
Why do I call this The Bright Red Line? It is because there are no ‘shadows of turning’ nor are there any ‘shades of gray’ in the Bible. There is the Truth and there is Error. One leads to life and the other leads to death. However, following ‘the letter of the law’, does little eternal good. It is living on the side of Truth, which is faith in and loving obedience to Jesus’ Words. Crossing that line only leads to trouble.
“For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.”Romans 8:6-8.
Those who ‘have eyes to see’, know that this Red Line is the demarcation of a permanent end to the power of sin and the sting of death. This is the Good News.
But to those who choose to ignore or cannot see the Scarlet Line, it marks the edge of the precipice to eternal darkness, damnation and the fires of hell. Simply put, the Bible is The Book of Life, The Word of God for all who would believe. For those people who would speculate otherwise, a millstone waits for their neck and the depths of the ocean for their grave, and all the plagues of the Bible and eternal death will be added. (see Luke 17:2, Revelation 22:18-19).
CAN THE BIBLE BE ABOUT COMPROMISE AND BALANCE?
The Bible is about balance – a radical balance of extremes.
Is this going too far? Is this ‘out of balance’? Is this too radical? What if I told you Jesus said or did things such radical things, such as:
John 18:37“Therefore Pilate said to Him, “So You are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say correctly that I am a king. For this purpose I have been born, and for this I have come into the world: to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to My voice.”
TO BRING A SWORD
Matthew 10:34, “Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. Verse 35. For I came to TURN A MAN AGAINST HIS FATHER, AND A DAUGHTER AGAINST HER MOTHER, AND A DAUGHTER-IN-LAW AGAINST HER MOTHER-IN-LAW; Verse 36and A PERSON’S ENEMIES WILL BE THE MEMBERS OF HIS HOUSEHOLD.”
TO FULFILL THE LAW
Matthew 5:17, “Do not presume that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill the Law and the Prophets.”
TO CALL SINNERS
Mark 2:17, “And hearing this, Jesus *said to them, “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick; I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
TO SAVE THE WORLD
John 12:47, If anyone hears My teachings and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world.”
TO CAST FIRE & BRING DIVISION UPON THE EARTH
Luke 12:49, “I have come to cast fire upon the earth; and how I wish it were already kindled! Verse 50.But I have a baptism to undergo, and how distressed I am until it is accomplished! Verse 51. Do you think that I came to provide peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather to create division.
WHAT HE REALLY MEANT
John 14:12, “Truly, truly I say to you, the one who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I am going to the Father. Verse 13.And whatever you ask in My name, this I will do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. Verse 14.If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.”
“(I never lie). I testify to the truth. I AM the Truth!
“I do not bring peace, but a sword to the world”.
“I am turning sons against their fathers, daughters against their mothers”.
“I am the fulfillment the Hebrew and Judaic law and that of their prophets”.
“I have the right to call sinners to righteousness”.
“I am bringing fire upon the earth and creating division”.
“I came into the Temple and beat men with a whip and turned over tables”.
“I am openly calling the scribes (lawyers) and Pharisees (religious elites) hypocrites, whitewashed tombs, robbers, murderers, blind guides”.
Jesus gave up His own life to give you a life.
Jesus died for sins He did not commit, so you could be forgiven of the sins you did commit.
Jesus prayed for and died for even those who killed Him.
I could go on with examples, but you get the idea, right? Even His own family said, “He has lost His senses”. (Mark 3:21).
What I am illustrating is that, when kept in context, Jesus said exactly what He meant and meant exactly what He said. And no matter how much you wish that some of what He said were not so, the consequences for abrogating His Words, can be dire. It is like wandering off a path of safety into a nightmarish quagmire.
THE CHURCH
Jesus said He would build His Church, in or around A.D. 30, “And I say to you that you are Peter, (just one small stone), and upon (a more massive) rock, (constructed of many stones such as you), I will build My church”, (see Matthew 16:18), and that “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever youbind, (i.e., forbid) on earth shall have beenbound in heaven, and whatever you loose, (i.e., permit) on earth shall have been loosed in heaven.”And the prophetic work began.
But only a few years after Jesus had spoken these words, the drift of the Church began.
In or around A.D. 95, John heard these things and wrote them in seven letters to the 7 churches at that time:
Revelation 1, Verse 4. “John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from Him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before His throne, verse 5, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood, verse 6, and He made us into a kingdom, priests to His God and Father, to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.Verse 9. “I, John, your brother and fellow participant in thetribulation(which has now begun), and (in the) kingdom and perseverance in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. Verse 10. I was in the Spiriton the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like the sound of a trumpet, verse 11, saying, “Write on a scroll what you see, and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.”
These letter reveal that:
False apostles had crept into the church.
The church at Ephesus had lost its first love for Christ.
There were some in the church who were ‘of the synagogue of Satan’.
Those at the church of Pergamum held to the false teachings of Balaam, of sexual immorality and of the Nicolaitans.
There were those in the church at Thyatira who tolerated the woman Jezebel who called herself a prophetess, and she taught and led Jesus’ bond-servants astray so that they commit sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols.
There were those at the church of Laodicea who were lukewarm, toward God, and lazy, arrogant and self-reliant.
Herein lies the early seeds of drift, rot and failure within the Church. Here is where the church began to cross theRed Line Jesus had drawn.
There are several warning signs that the church has entered the age of apostasy, as described in the Bible. However, most Christians cannot adequately describe what this means.
2nd Thessalonians chapter 2, verses 1 through 3, tell us about the coming apostasy and of the timing, “Now we request you, brethren, (1) with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, that you
(2) not be quickly shaken from your composure or be disturbed either by a spirit or a message or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come.
We read about it again in Matthew 24:10, “And at that time many will fall away (from the faith), and they will betray one another and hate one another.”
Apostasy, from the Greek word apostasia, means “a defiance of an established system or authority; a rebellion; an abandonment or breach of faith.”
IN A.D 35 THE CHURCH WAS A MOVEMENT
During the time of Jesus’ earthly ministry, in AD 35, The Church of Jesus Christ, The Body of Christ, had no buildings, little money and no wealth, but, the Church was a Movement.
Jesus said to make disciples; collect no money except to make your journey.
The penalty for becoming a Christian was often death, still, the Church grew exponentially.
THEN THE CHURCH BECAME A PHILOSOPHY
A.D 49, The Church expanded into Greece. The Church became a philosophy to many. The Church grew and size and influence.
THEN THE CHURCH BECAME AN INSTITUTION
A.D 313, The Church expanded into Rome, and it gained recognition. It grew in power and popularity. It obtained wealth, buildings, property and influence. It became an institution.
THEN THE CHURCH BECAME A CULTURE
A.D 380, The Church expanded into Europe. It was becoming a worldwide phenomenon. It grew in wealth, stature, power and influence. It had become a culture.
THE CHURCH BECAME A BUSINESS
A.D 1607, The Church reaches America.
A.D 1681, The Church became corporate. It had become a business and incorporated. It became regulated by the government.
The Corporate Church grew. It needed money to support growth and expansion, which meant the Corporate Church needed more people.
A.D 1777, The state of Virginia granted tax exemption to houses of worship.
A.D 1894, The corporate church was granted tax exemptions by the Federal Government.
A.D 1954, The Federal Government regulated what a church could and could not say in order to retain tax-exempt status.
The church continued to grow, and in order to attract more people, the Corporate Church lowered its membership and doctrinal standards. More people became ‘members’ and gave more money to support more growth.
The Church corporation is complete with leaders, boards and membership and a business model.
Local churches compete against one another for members (customers). The church is selling itself in “three line slogans”.
The Church members now have choices and have become religious consumers. Church people can shop around for the religious brand and standards that best suits them. (see 2nd Timothy chapter 3).
The Leadership (pastors and preachers) have become CEOs, disciples have become church leaders, growing their 501(c)(3) business models.
And just like in business, record numbers of pastors quitting the ministry because of stress, burnout or are being fired by their congregations (some stats say 1500 – 1700 leave “the ministry” each month).
Contrary to what the Bible say about debt, the Church debt in America soars; church foreclosures soar.
THE CHURCH ABANDONS THE TRUTH
A.D 1968, Despite what the Bible teaches about homosexuality, the church begins to ordain homosexuals as clergy.
A.D 1972, The United church of Christ ordains homosexual clergy
A.D 2010, The Lutheran church ordains homosexual clergy
A.D 2012, The Presbyterian church, USA, ordains homosexual clergy
There are several warning signs that the church has entered the age of apostasy. As described in the foregoing paragraphs, we can see the onset, and its progression. Still, most Christians cannot adequately describe what this means.
Apostasy, from the Greek word apostasia, means “a defiance of an established system or authority; a rebellion; an abandonment or breach of faith.” This the final act the 5th tribulation seal, the climax of the apostasy, will usher in the beginning of the final 7 years of the Great Tribulation, the Great and Terrible Day of the Lord with the breaking of the 6th Tribulation Seal.
Despite all the signs and warnings, it seems like the contemporary church, (i.e., Christians), are far more concerned with their comfort and safety rather than taking up their Cross and following Jesus.
Again, I believe that most professing Christians do not have a good grasp on what it means to follow Jesus. If you ran a survey, most Christians might say that following Jesus is nothing more than doing a good deed here-and-there, attending church and being nice most of the time. And that discipleship is sitting in a classroom learning.
Jesus says, you must deny yourself and do His Will, His Way. You must leave family friends and home if necessary, and go where He directs and where He is needed. You must put your worldly concerns aside and focus on Him and His mission.
Additionally, many more professing Christians are more concerned with receiving a blessing than being a blessing. This too, is a departure from the way of Jesus.
We, The Church, The Body of Christ, You and I, must return to Jesus’ Way. We must be doing those Works that Jesus does and the way He does them.
Jesus faced the same circumstances during His earthly ministry. But He and His disciples stood out from the crowd. They were counter-cultural. They were reviled, mocked, spit upon, and persecuted. And they changed the world and glorified God!
The postmodern church’s way of inventing new ways of ‘doing church’ in order to connect to the culture is failing! We are not of this world – we must stop acting like it. We must be and act like Jesus.
Despite these things, we do not lose hope. There is a time coming, and is close at hand, when God will purge, cleanse, and refine His Church, in preparation for the wedding of the Groom, Jesus, and His Bride, the Church. (see Daniel, chapter 12).
Be Berean. Read, study and pray to be prepared.
Your Brother and Friend,
Mike Young
Ephesians 2:13, But now in Christ Jesus you who previously were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
Hebrews 9:14, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
1st Peter 1:19, but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ.
Hebrews 10:19, Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus,
1st John 1:7, but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.
Many of us are looking for our place in the order of things. We have a desire to be relevant at some level. There are those fortunate few who are content in whatever circumstance they find themselves. But for the rest of us, whether we acknowledge it or not, we are constantly searching for some semblance of relevance, or even, in some small way, a bit of significance.
There are myriads of reasons that people look for relevancy, whether it is for recognition, confirmation, affirmation, the need to feel wanted, appreciated or loved. But the reasons for this are subjects of their own. And I don’t want to delve into why people are that way or how they got there. I want to relate this matter of seeking relevancy to those within the church.
Before I go any further, I will confess that I have been one of those who suffered this malady, and I will tell you from observation, from study and from personal experience, being relevant or receiving recognition, confirmation, affirmation, the need to feel wanted, appreciated or loved does not satisfy this craving. It only stokes the fires of passion within. And unless this is properly dealt with, for the unfortunate, it can go from a need to a craving and for many it can turn into the psychosis of narcissism.
Narcissistic personality disorder is a mental health condition in which people have an unreasonably high sense of their own importance. They need and seek too much attention and want people to admire them. People with this disorder may lack the ability to understand or care about the feelings of others. But behind this mask of extreme confidence, they are not sure of their self-worth and are easily upset by the slightest criticism.
A narcissistic personality disorder causes problems in many areas of life, such as relationships, work, school or financial matters. People with narcissistic personality disorder may be generally unhappy and disappointed when they’re not given the special favors or admiration that they believe they deserve. They may find their relationships troubled and unfulfilling, and other people may not enjoy being around them. This is a truly serious matter and can have devastating effects, especially in the church.
It can be seen in those who crave positions within the church for visibility, individuality or influence, and recognition for admiration. Some common traits of people with narcissistic behavior that you may be able to spot are:
A Sense of Entitlement
A common sign of people with narcissism is the belief that their opinions are superior to others and deserve special recognition. They believe that others should be accepting and more obedient to their views and wishes, and that all the rules don’t necessarily apply to them.
Manipulative Behavior
Another common trait of narcissism is manipulative or controlling behavior. A narcissist will at first try to please you and impress you, but eventually, their own needs will always come first.
When relating to other people, narcissists will try to keep people at a certain distance in order to maintain control. They may even exploit others to gain something for themselves.
Need for Admiration
One of the most common signs of a narcissist is a constant need for praise or admiration. People with this behavior need to feel validation from others and often brag or exaggerate their accomplishments for recognition. They also like to feel appreciated in order to boost their ego.
In the church, this is manifested in their superiority of Spiritual abilities, Spiritual gifting and leadership skills and accomplishments.
Lack of Empathy
Lack of empathy is another sign of narcissism. This means that the narcissist is unwilling or unable to empathize with the needs, wants, or feelings of other people. They prefer to be in charge without collaborative groups. This also makes it difficult for them to take responsibility for their own behavior.
Spiritual Superiority or Arrogance
People with narcissistic behavior already see themselves or their opinions as superior to others, so they may become curt, rude or abusive when they don’t receive the treatment or recognition they think they deserve. While they hold themselves superior, they may speak or act rudely toward those that they deem as holding faulty views or are spiritually inferior.
Other signs include:
A sense of self-importance, exaggerating their achievements and talents.
A preoccupation with fantasies of success, power, or brilliance.
A belief that they’re more special or unique in particular areas than others and should only seek out other high-status people for associations.
Envy of others or the belief that others are envious of them.
Insisting they have the best views of everything.
Feeling they deserve certain privileges and treatment.
This is sometimes seen in the leadership of a church. But it is particularly dangerous when it comes from the pulpit or from the pastor. This type of narcissism is sometimes considered as spiritual abuse.
Sometime misnamed as “visionary”, “a controlling personality” or a “strict leadership”, narcissism is a psychosis and is usually well hidden behind what seem to be good intentions by the perpetrator.
Spiritual abuse is when a spiritual leader, such as a pastor, uses their power and influence to manipulate and control people. A spiritual abuser is not concerned with promoting the well-being of those he serves. Rather, he’s only interested in how people can further his plans and agenda.
Few things cause Christians to become disillusioned more than being ripped to pieces by spiritual abuse in the church. Few things do more to sully the name of Jesus more than abusive spiritual leaders.
There are few things more dangerous to a church than a pastor who is extraordinarily endowed on the gifting side and extraordinarily deficient on the character side. That guy is a decaying tie rod waiting to break. The progress can be impressive until the character collapses.
Here are six bright red warning signs of spiritual abuse.
There are ways to cope with a narcissistic person whom you cannot avoid, like a close family member or a work associate. But within the church, it becomes difficult to improbable. If you try to avoid a narcissist in a close community, like a church, they will seek you out to correct you publicly, by any and all means necessary. So, avoidance rarely works there. In these situations, if you are confronted by a narcissistic person, be polite, do not engage in conversation, just move along. They will eventually move on to someone else.
If it is a pastor in the church, you probably should find another church. Your church is suffering from a psychosis.
You cannot “fix” a narcissist. DO NOT TRY. Don’t condemn them. Don’t argue with them. Don’t try to befriend them to win them over. Do not try to socialize with them. Do not talk about them.
Do pray for them, privately. Do love them from afar. Do be polite to them. Do keep your distance.
If you have been negatively affected by someone like this, feeling of betrayal, disappointment, hurt, anger, sorrow and distrust are normal, but you must get healing and move past them. If you do not, the effects will continue to wear you down.
Pray to God for relief and wisdom.
It is natural to grieve. But, it is also natural to get past this stage and end it.
Seek Counselling.
Find a confidant who does not know the offending parties or the church.
Forgive as you are able.
If you find any of the traits mentioned in your own life, here is what you can do.
Begin to pray honestly to God for wisdom.
Get counselling.
Deliberately avoid seeking any position or opportunity for recognition or praise.
Find, study and memorize Bible verses about servanthood of the believer.
Go to a confidant or your pastor and talk about your concerns.
Trust God. He has this and He has you.
Having done these things, you have taken the step necessary to putting Jesus back on the throne of your life. I know it is much easier to give this advice than it is to do these things. But you can and you will.
“Have this attitude in yourself which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God,but emptied Himself by taking the form of a bond servant.”
This is a Psalm of David when he pretended madness before Abimelech, who drove him away. David was on the run. He was a fugitive from Saul and could find no refuge. David went into a cave at Adullam where many desperate men joined him, and he wrote this psalm and sung it in the presence of those men.
(The structure of this psalm is acrostic, the purpose of which serves to encourage learning and memorization.)
When you find yourself feeling like a fugitive in this life, emotionally or mentally on the run, pressed on every side by troubles and unable to find refuge or rest, and hiding away. Then sing this song aloud. Sing it as if nobody is watching!
Psalms 34:15-19
(New American Standard Version)
The eyes of the LORD are toward the righteous,
And His ears are toward their cry for help.
The face of the LORD is against evildoers,
To eliminate the memory of them from the earth.
The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears
And rescues them from all their troubles.
The LORD is near to the brokenhearted
And saves those who are crushed in spirit.
The afflictions of the righteous are many,
But the LORD rescues him from them all.
Embrace His Word. Let it live in you, and you in it!
Your Brother and Friend,
Mike Young
PSALMS 34:15-19
(Personalized – with Hebrew Translations for Keywords)
The eyes of the LORD are toward me, And His ears are open to my cry.
The face of the LORD is against those who do evil, To cut off the memory of them from the earth.
When I cry for help, the LORD hears, and rescues mefrom all my distress and troubles.
The LORD is near to me when I am heartbroken, and He saves those who are crushed in spirit.
Many hardships and perplexing circumstances confront me, but the LORD rescues me from them all.
These troop formations were called a Phalanx. The Phalanx was the formation, usually in triangular form, in which The 
This is why the Bible says “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless.
Marriage has mutual strength through commitment and cooperation with one another under God’s Steady Hand.
Situational – ‘It depends on the circumstances.’ (score 1 point).
