Jesus tells us that He came into this world to testify to the truth, (John 18:37), and for that ‘crime’, He was spit on, mocked, criticized, hunted down, condemned, beaten and murdered.
Jesus was and is, to this very day, a threat. He is a threat to false religions including Gnosticism. He is a threat to a rebellious, stubborn, perverted and unbelieving world. He is a threat to paganism to hedonism, to all forms of Marxism including Globalism. Jesus is a threat to all forms of illnesses, diseases, sickness, poverty, loneliness and depression.
Greater yet, Jesus is the greatest Hope and Friend to the orphan, the widow, the oppressed, the lonely and the lost. He is The Merciful, Kind, Loving, Forgiving Savior offering His life to redeem a lost and perishing world.
Despite the fact that Jesus was a demonstrable threat to the rulers of this world, a stumbling block to the Jew and foolishness to the Gentile, His Church grew.
AD 1 The Church of Jesus Christ, The Body of Christ, had no buildings, little money and no wealth. The Church was a Movement.
Matthew 16:18, says, “And I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it. verse 19. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven.” verse 20. Then He gave the disciples strict orders that they were to tell no one that He was the Christ.”
Jesus said to “make disciples; collect no money except to make your journey.”
Although the penalty for becoming a Christian was often death. The Church grew exponentially, creating the greatest threat ever to the rulers of darkness and of this world. But then, in or around AD 49 something began to change.
AD 49. The Church expanded into Greece. The Church became a philosophy to many. Still, the Church grew and size and influence.
The seeds of distortion were sown. Satan and the world knew they could not overcome Jesus directly, so the enemies of Christ appealed directly to the hearts and minds of sinful men with money, influence and power.
AD 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.
AD 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.
AD 1607. The Church reaches America.
AD 1681. The Church became corporate. It had become a business and incorporated. It became regulated by the government.
But that was not enough. There are those who doubted that Jesus’ ways and methods could fulfill His Great Commission, so they would stop and nothing to make the Gospel and Jesus more palatable, more entertaining, more sensual.
The Corporate Church continued to grow but it needed money. Money to support growth and expansion, which meant the Corporate Church needed more people.
AD 1777. The state of Virginia granted tax exemption to houses of worship.
The state sponsored 501(c)(3), ‘government leash’ was introduced and the Church willing submitted to this tether.
AD 1894. The corporate church was granted tax exemptions by the Federal Government.
AD 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 began 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.
THE GREAT FALLING AWAY HAS BEGUN: THE 5TH TRIBULATION SEAL?
AD 1968. The church ordains homosexuals as clergy.
AD 1972. The United church of Christ ordains homosexual clergy
AD 1992. Agenda-21, the blueprint for the New World Order and a One World Government.
The Bible tells of the beginnings of the idea of a One World Government and warns this system is coming again – in the Last Days.
“They said, ‘Come, let us build for ourselves a city, and a tower whose top will reach into heaven, and let us make for ourselves a name, otherwise we will be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.’
“The LORD came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built.
“The LORD said, “Behold, they are one people, and they all have the same language. And this is what they began to do, and now nothing which they purpose to do will be impossible for them.” Genesis 11:4-6
DON’T BE DECEIVED
The agenda of this “migration” and Globalism or One World Government is not the stuff of just any book. It is stuff of THE BOOK, that is The Bible.
THE TOWER OF BABEL REEMERGES – ONE WORLD?
Genesis chapter 11 gives us the prophecy, the foreshadowing of the coming One World Government.
The Tower of Babel, built around 2242 B.C., was a post-Flood rebellion against God by Noah’s descendants. As told about in Genesis 11:1-9, it is meant to explain why the world’s peoples speak different languages. According to the account, a united humanity in the generations following the Great Flood, speaking a single language and migrating eastward, comes to the land of Shinar (שִׁנְעָר). There, they agree to build a city and a tower tall enough to reach heaven.
(NOTE: “tall enough to reach to heaven” can be a metaphor for “man reaching to heaven, making himself god, to accomplish his own desires. This is the ‘Utopian dream’ of the Socialist and Communist manifestos; the State being our god – from cradle to grave)
This effort of uniting in a global community has been underway for about 4,200 years, about 100 years after ‘The Flood’, but before Abraham was born.
This is ‘forecast’ or what is Prophesied in the Bible. Is it underway? Should we PREPARE? (More on this, later).
These are exciting times in which we live! But we must be prepared to ‘endure to the end’, most likely the end of the 5th Seal of Revelation, as Jesus said in Matthew 24. And by all accounts, it would seem we are at that stage!
AD 2010. The Lutheran church ordains homosexual clergy
AD 2012. The Presbyterian church ordains homosexual clergy
The Episcopal Church in the United States and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) have also allowed ordination of openly gay and lesbian candidates for ministry for some years.
Internationally, churches that have ordained openly lesbian or gay clergy include the Church of Scotland, the Church of England, the Church in Wales, the Church of Sweden, the Church of Norway, the Church of Denmark, the Church of Iceland, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland, the Evangelical Church in Germany, the Methodist Church in Britain, the Protestant Church in the Netherlands, the United Protestant Church in Belgium, the Swiss Reformed Church, the United Protestant Church of France, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, Anglican Church in Canada, the Old Catholic Church, the Czechoslovak Hussite Church and the United Church of Christ in Japan.
Millions of people (approximately 52 million) “attend church” in one of the 300,000+ churches in America, at least once a week each month. However, when people were asked the topic of the “sermon” they heard after 24 hours, only about 10 percent could tell you. When asked to cite the most important lesson they received, most just shrugged.
An estimated 1.2 million hours each week (1) are spent in sermon preparations; it takes about another 300,000 hours in delivery of these sermons (2) at a staggering potential cost of over $750 millions dollars nationally, each week (3). Yet, only 5% of those hearing these sermons, remember anything about them after 72 hours.
SCANDALS IN THE CHURCH
A quick Google search for scandals just in the ‘mega church’ shows 1,910,000 hits. Omit the words ‘mega church’ and you’ll get 39,200,000 hits. What is going on?
In order to save space here, I am giving you a link to an article “SHIPWRECKED – Enemies Within the Church”, detailing Satan’s invasion of and work within the postmodern church.
AD 2019. The church is losing and has lost influence. In addition to church scandals, false teachings, drift and malaise, fueled and aided by the ‘Covid-19 pandemic’ the church in 2019 is losing members and adherents. Much of the church is teaching and living a different Gospel than that of the Apostles. (George Barna research; Pew Research). When confronted with their sins, the church erupts in finger pointing, denials and blame-placing rather than demonstrating a humble self-evaluation and repentance.
THE ONE WORLD GOVERNMENT EMERGES – 2022
AD 2020. Agenda 2030, is the completion of Agenda-21. A One-World Socialist movement, grounded in Marxism, merging all nation’s governments and consolidating all forms of technologies, food production, healthcare systems, banking and financial systems, currencies and more.
The breadth, depth and complexity of this once-covert operation is breathtaking. This is dealt with in great detail by clicking THE ONE WORLD GOVERNMENT EMERGES – 2022. The only matter standing in the way of the completion of Agenda 2030 and complete global control is Christianity and that final obstacle is being effectively neutralized and transformed into a New Age One World Church.
AD 2022. THE ONE WORLD CHURCH EMERGES.
The foregoing photo has great eye appeal when trying to describe a New Age One World church. But it is just a pictural metaphor. The REAL THING, however, is this:
Introducing themselves as a “Human Fraternity”, Pope Francis, head of the Catholic Church, and His Eminence Ahmed Al-Tayeb, Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, issue and sign the Document on “Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together”, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The Zayed Award for Human Fraternity is jointly bestowed on His Holiness Pope Francis and His Eminence Ahmed Al-Tayeb.
Their stated mission is “to inspire all people to live the values of human fraternity.” Their statement goes on to say that, “we believe the values of the Document on Human Fraternity are key to promoting peace on all levels: between individuals, organizations, nations, and even between humanity and the environment. As our increasingly fragmented world continues to suffer from extremism and intolerance, our innovative initiatives aim to put human fraternity values into action by inspiring leaders and empowering youth, women, and vulnerable communities, to pursue and realize a more peaceful future.”
Granted, on the surface, these are worthy sounding goals. Problems emerge when you realize the endemic differences between Christianity, Islam and the Judaism in matters of faith and God and how those matters are played out in daily life. Most will say those differences are irreconcilable.
Inspired by the meeting between His Holiness Pope Francis and Grand Imam Al-Tayeb, His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, allocates a plot of land on Saadiyat Island in Abu Dhabi to build an Abrahamic Family House – a concrete implementation and physical manifestation of the Document on Human Fraternity. These three religions will be represented in the construction this Abrahamic Family House, which is suggested be a ‘beacon of mutual understanding, harmonious coexistence, and peace among people of faith and goodwill’.
Three religions, Catholicism (1.2 billion), Islam, (1.9 billion), and Judaism, (15.2 million), are represented. What is glaringly absent is (non-Catholic) Christianity, (1.3 billion).
This cooperation or merger of religions is more than an a ‘document on human fraternity for world peace and living together’. This is a merging of three of the world’s most populous religions who, in one way or another, are historically in opposition to, or hostile to, the Superiority and Supremacy of Jesus Christ as the Son of God, Lord and Savior of the World.
Catholicism clearly states supremacy and superiority lies within the Catholic Church. Biblical Christianity and Roman Catholicism are two different religions that practice and believe different things about how one is saved, the authority of the Bible, the priesthood of believers, the nature of man, the work of Christ on the cross, etc. The list of irreconcilable differences between what the Bible says and what the Roman Catholic Church says make any joint mission between the two impossible. Those who deny this are not being true to what they say they believe, no matter which side they are on. Any Catholic who is serious about his faith will reject what a serious evangelical Christian believes, and vice-versa.
Likewise, Judaism rejects Jesus as God and Savior or the world. Islam stands in opposition toward Christ and Christianity and advocates for the destruction and eradication of Israel.
Finally, this ‘Document of Human Fraternity’ is nothing more than the next step of the Ecumenical Councils, which began its work as early as AD 325, merging religions to establish a one world religion and church.
MECCA
It has begun. There are completed plans to merge government and religions into a One World system. This is a “must watch” twenty-seven-minute video by David Rosenthal of Zion’s Hope Ministries, titled “The Mystery of Babylon” which highlights and explains the rebuilding of Islam’s Mecca as a leading shipping port, entertainment center and the premier Muslim religious site in the world with the intention of drawing millions of young people to Mecca.
THE TAMING OF JESUS?
If you were to visit most of the postmodern churches around America or the western world, you might wonder if you wandered into a religious night club or a media event. Tattooed preachers with the latest haircuts, hip jeans full of holes, giving elaborate speeches, accompanied by flashing lights, and a crowd swaying in time with adrenaline producing music.
Church leaders, production managers and CEO’s may have been tamed and transformed into the likeness of this world, but don’t be deceived. Jesus is untamed. He is the same yesterday, today and forever! He is returning soon, as the Lion of Judah, to collect His redeemed, to rapture His Church and to exact judgement on a wicked and rebellious world.
OUR RESPONSE?
“Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” James 4:7
Gird up for War!
WHY DID JESUS COME INTO THE WORLD?
- TO TESTIFY TO THE TRUTH
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 36, and 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?”
Jesus has told us, in 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 have heard so many preachers, bible teachers and detractors alike, try to justify or explain away these Words of Jesus because they just cannot fathom the gentle and sweet ‘dashboard Jesus’ saying such things as we find in the verses cited. These same confused preachers really get tied in a knot over John 14:12. They will begin their commentary of teaching it with, “what this really means is…”.
Jesus said what He meant and meant exactly what He said. He is our model for our counter cultural resistance to the growing global threat of Communist-Marxist-Globalism, And we need to get on with it.
Jesus’ time on earth was spent fulfilling the purpose, and will of His Father (Matthew 5:19, Matthew 5:39). Jesus was on a singular mission (John 6 :38) and nothing would stand in the way of accomplishing that mission: “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
Jesus had a divine appointment with a cruel Roman cross. Read what He said when Peter proposed to get in the way of His mission:
Matthew 16:21- 23, “From that time Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day. Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You.” But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.”
We do not literally have an appointment with a crucifixion, but, the Bible is clear in Galatians 5:24, that “Those who belong to Christ Jesus crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” and again in Galatians 2:20, the Apostle Paul reminds us that, “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” which must be true for all who follow Jesus because we are on mission with Jesus. Our ‘old self’ must die so our new selves can follow and serve Him.
Jesus always, taught the Will of His Father, then, demonstrated what He taught. He expects us to do the same. Ephesians, chapter six, gives us a clear teaching and picture of the type of preparation and resolve we are to assume.
Ephesians 6:10-17, tells us, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. 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. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand firm therefore, HAVING GIRDED YOUR LOINS WITH TRUTH, and HAVING PUT ON THE BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS, and having shod YOUR FEET WITH 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 the evil one. And take THE HELMET OF SALVATION, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”
Stand, i.e., continue safe and sound, stand unharmed: Acts 26:22.
Stand ready or prepared: Ephesians 6:14. One who does not hesitate, does not waver, of one who vanquishes his adversaries and holds the ground, also of one who in the midst of the fight holds his position against the foe, to persist, continue, persevere: (so as not to fall from thy faith).
Jesus’ example of steadfast, unmovable courage which is our example and our command to be and to do the same:
CONFRONTING THE STORM
Mark 4:35-41, “On that day, when evening came, He said to them, “Let us go over to the other side.” Leaving the crowd, they took Him along with them in the boat, just as He was; and other boats were with Him. And there arose a fierce gale of wind, and the waves were breaking over the boat so much that the boat was already filling up. Jesus Himself was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” And He got up and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Hush, be still.” And the wind died down and it became perfectly calm. And He said to them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?” They became very much afraid and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?”
This is our model, our method and our calling in these last days!
CONFRONTING DEMONS
Luke 8:26-33 “Then they sailed to the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee. And when He came out onto the land, He was met by a man from the city who was possessed with demons; and who had not put on any clothing for a long time, and was not living in a house, but in the tombs. Seeing Jesus, he cried out and fell before Him, and said in a loud voice, “What business do we have with each other, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You, do not torment me.” For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For it had seized him many times; and he was bound with chains and shackles and kept under guard, and yet he would break his bonds and be driven by the demon into the desert. And Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Legion”; for many demons had entered him. They were imploring Him not to command them to go away into the abyss.
“Now there was a herd of many swine feeding there on the mountain; and the demons implored Him to permit them to enter the swine. And He gave them permission. And the demons came out of the man and entered the swine; and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.”
This is our model, our method and our calling in these last days!
CONFRONTING GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS
John 19:8-12 ”Therefore when Pilate heard this statement, he was even more afraid; and he entered into the Praetorium again and said to Jesus, “Where are You from?” But Jesus gave him no answer. So, Pilate said to Him, “You do not speak to me? Do You not know that I have authority to release You, and I have authority to crucify You?” Jesus answered, “You would have no authority over Me, unless it had been given you from above; for this reason, he who delivered Me to you has the greater sin.” As a result of this Pilate made efforts to release Him, but the Jews cried out saying, “If you release this Man, you are no friend of Caesar; everyone who makes himself out to be a king opposes Caesar.”
This is our model, our method and our calling in these last days!
BEFORE THE RELIGIOUS ESTABLISHMENT
Matthew 24:57-67, “Those who had seized Jesus led Him away to Caiaphas, the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were gathered together. But Peter was following Him at a distance as far as the courtyard of the high priest, and entered in, and sat down with the officers to see the outcome.
“Now the chief priests and the whole Council kept trying to obtain false testimony against Jesus, so that they might put Him to death. They did not find any, even though many false witnesses came forward. But later on, two came forward, 61 and said, “This man stated, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God and to rebuild it in three days.’” The high priest stood up and said to Him, “Do You not answer? What is it that these men are testifying against You?” But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest said to Him, “I adjure You by the living God, that You tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God.” Jesus said to him, “You have said it yourself; nevertheless, I tell you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.”
Then the high priest tore his robes and said, “He has blasphemed! What further need do we have of witnesses? Behold, you have now heard the blasphemy; what do you think?” They answered, “He deserves death!” Then they spat in His face and beat Him with their fists; and others slapped Him.”
This is our model, our method and our calling in these last days!
Jesus did not draw back. (He proceeded boldly to the Cross and secured our salvation!) We must not draw back. Jesus has all authority in heaven and on the earth and is with us until the end!
Remember, Jesus came to earth for these stated reasons – and these same reasons are our method and our calling:
TO TESTIFY TO THE TRUTH. We are to testify to the truth!
TO BRING A SWORD. We are to bring the sword of the Word of God!
TO FULFILL THE LAW. We are to fulfill the same law!
TO CALL SINNERS. We are to call sinners!
TO SAVE THE WORLD through Jesus. In a very real sense, this, too, is our calling, by lifting the Name of Jesus, telling others and leading them to Him
TO CAST FIRE & BRING DIVISION UPON THE EARTH. This, too, is our calling! The Word of God is a stumbling block to those who do not believe, dividing A MAN AGAINST HIS FATHER, AND A DAUGHTER AGAINST HER MOTHER, AND A DAUGHTER-IN-LAW AGAINST HER MOTHER-IN-LAW; (Matthew 10:35-36)
Dear Brothers and Sisters, this is not hyperbole, a philosophy or metaphor. Now is the time to gird ourselves up with the full armor of God and follow our Lord, the King of Kings into battle.
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 and must be fought with Spiritual Armament!
Your Brother and Friend,
Mike Young
Whitestone Fellowship 