Bible Warns of Apostasy and Persecution, Part 4
It is important to grasp the fact that they actually asked Jesus three individual questions here. They wanted to know when the Temple would be destroyed (“not one stone will be left on another”), they wanted to know what signs might be associated with the Second Coming, and finally, they wanted to know what sign(s) might be connected with the end of the age. It is also very important to understand that according to rabbinic sources, there are only two ages: this age in which we currently live and the coming age when Messiah will reign. When this current age ends, it will do so because the Messiah will return and start the new age.
Bible Warns of Apostasy and Persecution, Part 3
I believe Paul speaks of an apostasy from “the truth” here. If we see society now, we see that truth has become quite relative. There is nothing absolute about anything now. Much of what people consider to be “truth” is simply the latest fad or fashion defined solely by how people feel about something. Many to most decisions made today are based largely on emotional virtue, which is nothing more than political correctness or Cultural Marxism. Determining truth based on these things really creates a moving palette of “truth” that changes based on new “information” or “evidence.” Those who refuse to accept this new “truth” are often ostracized and denigrated, pushed to the outer fringes of society and often referred to as “haters.” Whatever will work to silence them is what is done.
Is Jesus Our Heavenly Handyman?
The best thing I can hope for in this life is that God will grant me the ability to see what I can control regarding my own quality of life (health). I can’t eat whatever I want to eat and believe that God is responsible for “healing” me. Poor health can contribute to depression, anger, anxiety, and a host of other things, including the constant pain and inflammation of Fibromyalgia. God is under no obligation to fix these things and they should not necessarily be part of the gospel presentation. Certainly, God wants us as healthy as possible but our health is often in our own hands.
Continue Reading February 29, 2016 at 9:35 AM Leave a comment
Bible Warns of Apostasy and Persecution, Part 2
Aside from mockers who come mocking the idea of Jesus as God returning to claim what is His, there is also the general tone of society that will exist during the end times and we will see it worsen as things lead directly up to the physical return of Jesus at the end of the coming Tribulation period. One thing to remember is that the Bible is a complete book. It must be allowed to interpret itself because even though there are roughly 40 human authors, physically writing their own book within a book over a period of approximately 1,600 or so years, the reality is that God is the main Author. He chose individuals to write down parts of His book, but it was God Himself who oversaw the writing of each book. The Bible is the only book that can claim this. No other comes close.
Bible Warns of Apostasy and Persecution, Part 1
I don’t want to get into setting dates, times, days, or hours. That’s not the point of this short series of articles. The point is for us to understand God’s prophetic timetable in light of society and it appears that it comes together. Can we…should we look for anything? If so, what? Should we become so preoccupied with the subject of the end times that we wind up being so focused on it that we fail to realize when we stop evangelizing and therefore fulfilling the Great Commission? Should our study of the end times cause us to want to be even more involved in the Great Commission? I think so. The way I look at it is that we are all one breath away from death anyway. No one alive now knows when they will die. That’s God’s department. If the study of the end times brings us to a greater awareness of just how close death is to everyone and helps us to lose the “ballast” in our lives that keep us from walking closer to God, then it has served it’s purpose (1 John 3:2-3). If we – on the other hand – tend to study the end times to simply gain “knowledge” and become puffed up, then it would be far better for us to not study that subject. I cannot emphasize how important this is for all to understand.
Portraits of Fellowship, Part 5: Moses
Folks, it is very difficult at times to “see” through the darkness into the future to the point where God actually provides an answer to the situation we are undergoing. We are often surrounded by circumstances that God is using for our growth and His glory. Satan wants those very same circumstances to weaken our faith and destroy our fellowship. We need to be like Moses, not Israelites. We need to trust God in spite of what we cannot see. That is not only how we enter into fellowship with Him but it is how we remain in fellowship with Him.
Continue Reading February 24, 2016 at 7:40 AM Leave a comment
Portraits of Fellowship, Part 4: Moses
Moses focused on God for His solution. Isn’t this what God tells us in Psalm 55:22? God echoes the same sentiment in 1 Peter 5:7, when he tells us to “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” Moses knew that casting his cares and concerns on the Lord would yield good results. Relying on himself would yield nothing good at all and and to react in a way that evidenced a failure to trust God would be sin.
Portraits of Fellowship, Part 3: Moses
Isn’t it wonderful to know that God uses ordinary people like Moses for His glory and their growth? In this particular case, in spite of his fear, Moses did everything correctly. He did not take out any fear he might have felt on the Israelites. Instead of becoming angry back at them for their lack of faith, he pleaded with them to trust the Lord. They felt overwhelmed and Moses could have felt the same way. Instead, he did what all of the Israelites should have done; trusted the Lord. As my pastor said in delivering his sermon on aspects of Moses’ life, Moses took the high road in spite of any fears he may have felt. He trusted God and God overcame in and through him.
Not All Jews Believe in Any God
Fellow Christian, it is not going to get easier. It is going to become more difficult. Life will separate immature, carnal Christians from those who take fellowship with God seriously. If you are not walking in fellowship with God, you are not being empowered to stand against the evil that is becoming openly prevalent today. Without being in fellowship with God, you will see people as “enemies” instead of as people who need the only salvation that is available today, in Jesus. They are not our enemies. They are enemies of the cross, but even so, our job is to present to them the gospel that saves.
Continue Reading February 19, 2016 at 10:27 AM Leave a comment
It’s Political Season in Case You Aren’t Aware
Satan is the god of this age (2 Corinthians 4:4). He is the ruler of the powers of the air (Ephesians 2:2). With God’s permission, he has designed a system for which he will one day gain full control and insert his spiritual son into the mix as the final lawless ruler of the fourth revised Roman Empire, as seen in Daniel 2, 7, 9, and 11. It is bound to happen. There is nothing we can do to stop it as it is written in the “stone” of God’s Word.
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