"Battle lines are being drawn." Are you wearing your spiritual armor? Is your sword in your hand?
There are some men in the faith who think that women should not use
that part of the Ephesian 6 armor. They allow women to wear all the
defensive armor, but not the one offensive piece of equipment: the Word
of God. They would say that women can only quote the Bible to other
women - but never in mixed company. I'm not willing to be disarmed. The NRA can have their guns, but I want to hold onto my sword and wield it like a Samurai.
That does not mean that I want to take a position of male leadership in
the church. That does not mean I want to chop off my hair and act
masculine. That does not mean I want to lead verse-by-verse Bible
studies or teach a Doctrine class at seminary. What it does mean is that
in my communication with everyone -- the world, the church, the devil
-- I want to lift up what God has to say on every matter that comes up
in any location. He just might have something to say through me.
I
bow to Scripture. I see God's wisdom in putting spiritually strong
Christian men in places of leadership in the church. All sword-wielding
Christian women seek such leaders to serve the LORD with and follow
their lead on the battlefield. In fact, they are in peril without such
generals in God's army.
But some elders would rather suppress the
truth in unrighteousness if it is a female speaking it. The ugly battle
of the sexes in the world has come into the church. I would say to such
men: "What? Came the word of God out from you? Or came it unto you
only?"
The devil has pitted the men against the women in the
church. There are two extremes and they both need to be shot down. Both
are driven by our culture. One extreme wants female ordination and even
places women as bishops in the church, a position to which no woman is
called. The other extreme wants female subordination to men with
unquestioning obedience. They don't allow a woman to even witness to an
unsaved man. When the Bible tells believers to "submit one to another"
they don't think that goes both ways.
Jesus said that His
followers would not lord it over one another the way the gentiles do.
But in this male/female wrestling match in the church, that is exactly
what happens. The body of Christ will be splintered and powerless
against the wiles of the enemy if half the LORD's army is not allowed on
the field.
"Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His
might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand
against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and
blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of
the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the
heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may
be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand." -
Eph 6:9-13
"For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ
Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on
Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free,
there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus." -
Gal 3:26-28
LikeFlint Radio Show 5 - An interview with Jackie Alnor:
"It’s a warm welcome to our guest, Jackie Alnor, a veteran watchman,
researcher and Christian journalist. Jackie is well-known for her
ministry in discernment, and can be found at her blog, Scattered Sheep
Report. She is also the author of the book, The Fleecing of
Christianity, which tracks the influence of the spirit of antichrist in
the church via televangelism, the prosperity gospel and end times
deception. Jackie shares a little of her
background and how she came to start her research in the area of
discernment. We also look at the NAR (New Apostolic Reformation), and
particularly at Lance Wallnau and C. Peter Wagner, (Presiding Apostle
Emeritus of the International Coalition of Apostolic Leaders, Global
Spheres Inc. and the Wagner Leadership Institute)."
Has any professing 'Christian' ever accused
you of worshiping the Bible? Or have you been accused of putting God in a
box when you test things by His Word?
These are common strategies of the enemy of our souls to dissuade you from remaining in God's Word.
To the first accusation - Do I worship the Bible? I worship the Word -
the Logos - who became flesh and dwelt among us. "In the beginning was
the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." I worship
that Word - and since Scripture is God-breathed, I certainly will praise
His Word.
Accusing a disciple of Christ Jesus of worshiping
the Bible would be like accusing a woman in love of worshiping the
letters she gets from her fiance while he's away in the military. For
me, I will hold fast the Word of life as I await our Bridegroom's
return.
To the other mindless accusation of putting God in a
box for testing all things purporting to be 'spiritual' by the Word, my
response would be: God's Word puts the parameters on itself. We've been
given the whole counsel of God and 'the sword of the Spirit, which is
the word of God.'
Know the source of those indictments against
us and, as Jesus did when the devil tempted him in the wilderness, stand
on God's Word and use your spiritual armor to quench those fiery darts.
Pray for those who are listening to the enemy when they speak his slimy
words.
Hold fast to the Word of Truth!!
"What time I
am afraid, I will trust in Thee. In God I will praise His word, in God I
have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me....In God
will I praise His word: in the LORD will I praise His word. In God have I
put my trust: I will not be afraid what man can do unto me." - Ps
56:3-4,10-11
"Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him,
“If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall
know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." - Jn 8:31-32
"For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any
two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and
of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of
the heart." - Heb 4:12
I keep having a recurring theme in my dreams.
The story changes but the circumstances are the same. I find myself
seeing danger coming and pointing it out to those around me, but not getting through to anyone.
The latest dream was of a scene of my extended family sitting around
waiting for a 4-year-old to come home from pre-school on a bus. She
never shows up. I get upset and tell her parents to call the police or
go searching for her. But everyone says "Don't worry - she'll be here
soon." We wait and wait and then I look at the clock and it's 11 pm -
and the child is not back. I start screaming at everyone to do something
- while everyone else is still nonchalant. That's when I wake up.
It's not hard to interpret those dreams. It is how I feel as I try to
warn fellow believers of the apostasy. It's what I observe in the world
as the talking heads on the news report that Obama and John Kerry are
threatening Russia and no one gets excited about that. Back in the 60s
during the Bay of Pigs crisis, I can still see the concerned expression
on the faces of the newscasters reporting on the possibility of getting
into a war with Russia and how that could mean the end of the world as
we know it.
But today - "ho-hum" - business as usual.
I
was watching the game show Family Feud the other night. Host Steve
Harvey, a professing Christian, read the question: "We polled 100 single
women. What do you do if you have a hot date and do not have any sexy
underwear to wear? Top six answers are on the board." The contestants
got 5 out of the 6 correct that included - run out and buy some; just
wear your granny panties; keep the lights off; postpone the date - etc.
The answer that none guessed - "keep your clothes on."
It just
didn't dawn on them that dating didn't involve fornication. The moral
landslide of America and the world is no concern for sleeping people.
Couples shacking up, but not married, still attend their favorite
mega-church on Sundays for their weekly pep-talk and are received into
full communion - no questions asked.
The slogan of today is - "Don't worry; be happy."
Let's make some noise - we need to wake them up. I'm running out and buying myself a bull-horn.
Good night!
"The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. Corrupt are they,
and have done abominable iniquity: there is none that doeth good. God
looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were
any that did understand, that did seek God. Every one of them is gone
back: they are altogether become filthy; there is none that doeth good,
no, not one." Ps 53:1-3
"For when they say, 'Peace and safety!'
then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant
woman. And they shall not escape. But you, brethren, are not in
darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief. You are all
sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of
darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and
be sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk
are drunk at night. But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on
the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of
salvation. For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation
through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, that whether we wake or
sleep, we should live together with Him." - 1 Thes 5:3-10
I was listening to a popular Lutheran radio
host yesterday who loves to expose some of the most ridiculous purveyors
of prophetic soothsaying on his program. I appreciate the skill in
which he tests false prophets and wolves in sheep's clothing.
However, he began that program with an exhortation to his listeners to
stop studying eschatology. He says that should only be the purview of a
divinity professor focusing on such things for mere academic interest.
This amillennialist went on to say we should just focus on the basics -
repentance from sin, the life, death, resurrection of Christ. Well, I
think that is true for new converts, but the NT tells us to move on from
there.
"Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary
principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the
foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, of the
doctrine of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the
dead, and of eternal judgment." - Heb 6:1-2
Yeah, we got that
down. Now we study the deeper things of Scripture, which indeed includes
eschatology. If God didn't think it was important, He would not have
filled 1/3rd of the Bible with prophecy. Listening to the amils'
exhortations to put Bible prophecy on the shelf is what will shipwreck
the faith of many believers. Our joyful anticipation of the return of
the Bridegroom is the main element in staying in the attitude of
expectation.
He charged that those studying the signs of the
times were fearful every time they saw something threatening reported on
the news. Well, we're all watching the same newscasts - so I would
argue that it is those who cannot put today's trends into a prophetic
context who have something to fear.
In fact it is those very
frightening signs of the times seen on the news that are being watched
by the unsaved that is scaring the hell out of so many of them. The
obvious perils of this life are driving many hopeless people into their
own fantasy lands provided by video games -- an escape from reality --
like Star Trek's Holodeck.
I received an email this morning
from one concerned about the encroachment of the great apostasy upon his
own beloved Calvary Chapel. He said, "Do we really have a chance to
save CC? ...It's pretty close to the time for Jesus to come and he will
only find a remnant. It is frightening to think of losing all those
souls. What will it take to stop what is happening to CC? "
I replied...
I agree - it is truly frightening. Remember Jesus' parable of the
wedding - the invited guests did not want to come when the hour for the
wedding arrived. They were too busy with the things of the world. And
the ten virgins, when it was time for the bridegroom to come, they were
sleeping and only five had oil in their lamps.
So the time has
come to go out to the highways and byways - we are His servants. We'll
convince some - but not all will trade their old rags in for wedding
garments. Perhaps those people see the signs all around them that what
we're saying is true, but are not concerned so much about the nature of
their own hearts as much as they are about getting out of harm's way.
We have our job cut our for us.
"Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet
what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him,
because we will see Him just as He is. And everyone who has this hope
fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure." - 1 John 3:2-3
“But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with
carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you
unexpectedly. For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the
face of the whole earth. Watch therefore, and pray always that you may
be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and
to stand before the Son of Man.” - Luke 21:34-36
Now that the prophesied great apostasy is in
full swing, are you noticing the buildup of hostilities? Jesus told us
that even our families would turn on us as we boldly proclaim His Truth
at home. And He warned that professing
believers of the "synagogue of Satan" would accuse us as they did to
Him. And of course the world powers would target us and marginalize us
as they indeed do.
Persecution is only going to get worse - so
hold onto your proverbial hat. The pressure put upon us is to silence
us. If you are tempted to respond by retreat - rethink that. Remember
our Master's words:
“For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words
in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also
will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy
angels.” - Mark 8:38
I find it interesting that Jesus connects
this to the end times when He comes back. We must set our faces like
flint and keep doing what we're doing even while they hurl rotten
tomatoes at us.
One very demonically inspired false accusation
I'm getting a lot - and if you heed Jude 3 I'm sure you are as well - is
that I hate people. That is why I challenge false teaching. I hate
people because I am against churches that agree to doing same-sex
weddings. I hate people because I use Romans 1 to renounce sodomy - so I
must hate the gay community.
It is an ugly accusation when
you know for a fact that your motivation is the exact opposite of hate.
You warn people because you love them and do not want to see them come
under the condemnation of God for following false teachers or being
deceived by the world's propaganda.
The very people telling us
that we hate others are the ones who hate us for what they see as
narrow-minded thinking when we take the Bible to heart. They're the ones
who clip out passages that they see as irrelevant in the modern world.
Or they redefine them and tell us "Oh that's your interpretation" when
you present them with a plain Bible verse. I always respond by
challenging them to give the right interpretation - they never attempt
that. They just resort to name-calling.
I love what God told the prophet Ezekiel when he was sent to prophesy and warn them of coming judgment:
“But the house of Israel will not listen to you, because they will not
listen to Me; for all the house of Israel are impudent and hard-hearted.
Behold, I have made your face strong against their faces, and your
forehead strong against their foreheads. Like adamant stone, harder than
flint, I have made your forehead; do not be afraid of them, nor be
dismayed at their looks, though they are a rebellious house.” - Ez 3:7-9
We need to be thick skinned today. The opposition against the Truth of
God's word is getting louder by the day. When such hatred is aimed at
us, we need to realize that it is truly Jesus that they are angry at -
we are not greater than our Master. If they hated Him, they would hate
us also.
So stay strong in the LORD and keep on the lookout!
“But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and
persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons. You will
be brought before kings and rulers for My name’s sake...You will be
betrayed even by parents and brothers, relatives and friends; and they
will put some of you to death. And you will be hated by all for My
name’s sake." Luke 21:12,16-
