Revival: It's Personal

So many wayward leaders in the church are trying to cash in on the next Great Awakening. It's almost like some sort of competition to see what preacher will be in the spotlight of the next big revival.

But, what really matters to each and every one of us is our own joy in the LORD and the strength of His might. Our love and enthusiasm tends to grow cold -- especially when we do not renew our spirits by dwelling in His Word. The cares of the world are certainly choking Jesus out of many people's busy lives.

It used to be that you could get to church on Sunday for a time of refreshing away from the pressure of daily life; sing the praises of our God; enjoy the sweet fellowship of the saints; listen to an uplifting message and the Word rightly divided. You would leave church pumped up on Jesus, ready to take on the world.

During this time of the Great Apostasy though, church is more often a time for some motivational speech by a narcissistic guy who thinks too highly of himself, or a monotone bland packaged sermon from a lectionary delivered by a guy on salary. 

We cannot expect the preacher or teacher to do for us what only God can do -- that work in our hearts as we are filled with the Holy Spirit and baptized in His love. The renewal we seek will not be found at the next 'wave' in the church. We cannot look to some man or program to breathe life into our groggy spirits anymore than we can blame others for our own indifference. 

It's time to get back to that personal relationship each of us has with Jesus. There's no middle-man. There's no intercessor between us and Him. We are instructed to 'abide' in Christ. Cast our cares upon Him. Trust in Him. Commit our way unto the LORD. 

No one can do that for us.

"Trust in the LORD, and do good;
Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.
Delight yourself also in the LORD,
And He shall give you the desires of your heart.
Commit your way to the LORD,
Trust also in Him,
And He shall bring it to pass."
- Psalms 37:3-5

"Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!
Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near."
-- Phil 4:4-5

ANTI-TRINITARIAN CULT IMPERSONATES RAPTURE READY By Jackie Alnor, Director, Rapture Ready Radio

Member/s of a Herbert W. Armstrong cult have deceptively started a Facebook page called Rapture Ready International Ministries. People thinking they are joining in uplifting discussions about the soon return of Jesus instead are led into false teaching. On this FB ‘about’ page they list their website as www.raptureready.com - which is the site of Rapture Ready, a website that keeps believers up-to-date on news items and articles about the end times.

No doubt, the majority of the subscribers to this FB page are friends of Rapture Ready and listeners of Rapture Ready Radio.

The problem came to my attention on February 17, 2016 when a meme of the inside of a cathedral showed up in my timeline with the words, “There is no such thing as the trinity! There is only 1 God.”  It linked to a page called “Real Bible” that was discovered to be associated with the United Pentecostal Church UPC, considered heretical for their “Oneness” doctrine – the belief that God the Father became the Son and then became the Holy Spirit, as opposed to the doctrine of the Trinity that defines God in three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – distinct, yet One God.

The discussion that followed between me and the FB page’s moderator, Walter Hernandez, consisted of his attempt to denounce the Trinity and defend his viewpoint. To do so, he posted three links to the same source, the United Church of God, producers of the TV program Beyond Today. The UCG on their website calls the Rapture a false teaching, demands legal observance of the Sabbath, and denounces the doctrine of the Trinity.

So I looked up Rapture Ready’s position on the Trinity and posted it in the thread:

"Who is Elohim? Elohim is the plural word for God in the Hebrew language. It can refer to three or more. It is used of the Father, Son and HOLY SPIRIT throughout the Old Testament. Even though it is translated "God" it should be "Gods." All translators use "God" instead of "Gods" to emphasize the unity of the Trinity. This unity of the Trinity is stated clearly in the Old Testament by using singular verbs with the plural noun, Elohim."

It is just like cults to be sneaky and not operate on the up-and-up. They pretended to be one of us – impersonating RaptureReady.com – showing RR's link as their own – just to deceive people and try to draw away those who trust Rapture Ready -- Bait-and-switch tactic of wolves in sheep’s clothing.

I had already un-friended Mr. Hernandez for coming to my own Facebook page, arguing with my friends about the Trinity and showing Ambassador College as his place of training. Ambassador College is an institution of the late Herbert W. Armstrong, a heretic and dangerous religious leader who taught that we can become gods.

Rapture Ready’s owners, Todd Strandberg and Terry James were contacted and neither of them know Walter Hernandez -- Strandberg confirming that the Rapture Ready International Facebook page has no connection to RaptureReady.com.

If you are one who has been fooled into thinking this FB page is valid, you might want to leave a rebuke in the comments before making a hasty retreat.

Addendum-

After my confrontation of this bogus Rapture Ready Int'l Facebook page, the owner of the page issued this statement after taking the "Ready" out of the title of his page. However he continues to show RaptureReady.com as his website in the 'about' page.

"There is no relation with the Rapture Ready or any of their publications. I am single out as a heretic because I am standing for the only true and Living God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Check the website and do your own research. He is coming back for us his church of his body. How sad that Christians should be united but there are divisions because we do not fit the theology and their seminary teachings instead if the word of God. How sad the state of this at this moment, but I am not surprise since Jesus Christ was single out as a son of the devil. Thanks God por his matchless Word of truth."

Love for the Truth with Cindy Hartline 02/01 by Rapture Ready Radio | Religion Podcasts

Love for the Truth with Cindy Hartline 02/01 by Rapture Ready Radio | Religion Podcasts: Cindy's guest is Nathan Jones from Lamb and Lion Ministries on the subject of Gog and Magog, a great war that will take place in end-times, which is mentioned in Ezekiel 38 and 39.

Just Passing Through

 FROM PASTOR RICHIE FURAY
Calvary Chapel Broomfield (Colo)
Founding member of rock bands Buffalo Springfield and Poco
Member of the Rock n'Roll Hall of Fame

"Please forgive me with this being so close on the heels of such a sensitive time, but with so many notable, public figures crossing that line into eternity – it always causes our hearts and minds to think about our own mortality, especially if they are of a young age – younger than we are. But the reality of death is a reality of life and each one of us will cross that fateful line one day. 

When a loved one passes our hearts are overwhelmed with grief, even if we really didn’t know the person, but we identified with their music or their movies or their books … and, it’s as if we did know them and when they die it causes us to stop and think about this reality of life. The writer of one of the books in the Bible, James, makes an observation (James 4:14):

“For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away”.

I believe we can all agree on one thing - we’re just passing through this life, on our way to eternity and the hereafter. On the way, on this journey we call “life”, we may have thoughts such as “what does the future hold” or “what matter does it make”, and for some, it is “eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we will die” – but then what? Is this life all there is to life? Have those thoughts ever crossed your mind? It’s interesting, but we all have philosophies, religions – a faith we choose to give us comfort in these thoughts; that’s why when one a loved or someone who’s had an impact on our lives passes, we comfort ourselves saying “they’re in a better place”. An atheist will tell you – this is it, “eat, drink and be merry”; while an eastern philosophy will tell you “you can work it out” – as you seek to attain nirvana – obliviousness (Webster: a goal hoped for but apparently unattainable: a dream) which, ultimately is nothingness; and if that’s all there is at the end of the day, then indeed life is meaningless, if in fact its ultimate end is nothingness. 

I wanted to share my thoughts because I am a Christian and I believe there hope beyond this life and I believe the way to heaven is possible, but it does come about through what we call death. The Bible teaches that death is an “exodus” – moving from one place to another – but “life” goes on. It is a door we will all go through. The Bible also teaches when we go through that door it leads one of two ways … into the presence of God (the Creator, Redeemer and Savior) for all eternity (heaven) or to be separated from Him for all eternity (hell) – this is my faith and regardless of what you believe, this is what life boils down to – a choice, a belief, a faith. 

The Christian faith is different from every other major religion and belief system of the world in that those religious system put the weight of getting to heaven on you, your performance, your efforts your works. The dilemma is how does one know when their performance has met the standard and what is that standard? The God of the Bible worked out the way to heaven and fellowship with Him through the work of Jesus Christ – thereby, getting to heaven is not based upon your or my “performance” but upon the “performance” – the work of Jesus Christ. You’ve probably heard it said: “everyone wants to go to heaven but no one wants to die”, but the per-requisite is, if heaven is a reality, we’re going to die and leave this world as we know it. According to my faith, Jesus died that I might live. At the end of the day, it’s as Jesus said:

"I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.
"And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?" (John 11:25-26)

As I said – faith is a belief system and each one, in making the decision about eternity (heaven and hell) will make a decision about Jesus who said: 

"I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 14:6) 

May those of you who read this receive it with the grace with which I have shared it; God desires fellowship with His creation (He is the Living God) and therefore He made the way to heaven possible in that:

"God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. (John 3:16-17)

This is my hope; this is my belief; this is my faith."

Sheep Crying Out

It seems like the scattering of the sheep is in high gear. Count yourself blessed if you have a church fellowship that keeps out the leaven, preaches the Word faithfully, and worships the LORD in Spirit and in Truth -- screening out songs that are unbiblical or that flaunt the flesh.

Churches today - for the most part (with the exception of the Bible-teaching faithful few) -- are either ritualistic (vestments and bells and smells), spiritually dead (droning dry speaker with disinterested pew warmers), charismaniac (flashing lights; a lot of words but no Word), or inclusive (gay pastor -- all are welcome). It's a sad, sad, sad day for the church.

How is it that the Bride is making herself ready??? 

The Mystery of Iniquity is securely embedded into what is known as churches. It's in control and there's no eviction notice that will change that. Has the time come when the words of Jesus are saying "Come out of her, My people." And when the sheep comply and leave, they have nowhere to go -- so they are scattered.

Scattered sheep are not happy, well-fed creatures. They have no under-shepherds, although they know the voice of the Good Shepherd. So they roam every hill bleating for their Master and mostly apart from one another. They have a hard time distinguishing between wild goats and lost sheep.

Jesus said that those who do not gather with Him, scatters. Yet, many sheep are frightened and don't know whom to trust. In their condition, they tend to shy away from others, knowing there are dangerous wolves out there disguising themselves as sheep. About the only way to find a fellow sheep to snuggle with to stay warm is to find another one that looks exactly like they do. If they are spotted, or black, or some other color or mixture thereof, the sheep are fearful.

It would seem the only remedy for these scattered sheep is for their Good Shepherd to come to the rescue. They are watching and waiting for Him to come and take them to His pasture for safety and refreshing. They are not comfortable in enemy territory.

Baa-baaaaaaaaaaaa!!

"And I heard another voice from heaven saying, 'Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues. For her sins have reached' to heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities." - Rev 18: 5-6

"Jesus Wept." - John 11:35

The Father's Business

In this new year of 2016, I'm sure you, like me, will be monitoring the news and global events in the expectation of our soon reunion with our loved ones who have gone on ahead and our rescue by our Messiah as He comes for us and takes us to that place He has prepared for us.

We must remember though that God's Word as it was given to us is all we need to understand His plan for us and for the past, present, and future. It is not our vision for ourselves that matters, but how we fit into His plan that He lays out for us in His Word.

We have the Great Commission and that is our Father's business that we need to be about doing. Isn't it interesting that during the time of the outpouring of God's wrath, He does not leave this planet without His witness. The Church is His witness in this dispensation, and in the time of the soon coming Tribulation His witnesses are 144,000 from the tribes of Israel, along with His special two witnesses who will be in Jerusalem, and the angel flying through mid-heaven with the everlasting Gospel. Apparently the Church's assignment will have ended or he wouldn't need the others.

So we must occupy until He comes and look out for silly fables you will hear people spouting -- such as Bible Codes, some proclamation from the counsel of prophets, or other soothsaying devices that go beyond what is written.

As deception increases we must be more and more on the alert, not only for ourselves, but for others. Pay no heed to those who find their revelation outside the Bible, who peep and mutter to impress others with their grand insights.

Now is the time to set aside all those things that hinder us from hearing the words of our God as He unveils His Word to us and quickens it to the eyes of our understanding as He determines by His will -- and not our own.

Looking up!!

"God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power" - Heb 1:1-3a

"And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead? To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them." - Is 8:19-20

 

 

Forecast for Hope

Blizzards, fires, floods, tornadoes -- disaster forecasts are looking mighty grim on the weather channel today. A terror-alert has just been announced for major cities in Europe between Christmas and the New Year. Life on this planet seems more fragile than ever.

Many have lost loved ones this year and no doubt that paints their emotions as this year comes to a close. If the LORD tarries - there is still the consolation that 100 years from now all of us will have departed from this life. 

It is hard to fathom how people can walk around thinking that there is no God and no life after death. How depressing is that? That's even sadder than the Christians who do not believe that Jesus is coming back to rule and reign on earth for a thousand years. Those Christians must despair as well as they watch the birth pangs increase and see no purpose to it.

What a disappointment life must be for Christians who think that we are now ruling and reigning in the place of Christ. It is hard to believe there are such believers -- but Post-Millennialists/Preterists have such a defeated worldview. 

And the signs and wonders followers -- how do they feel when the feathers stop falling and the gold glitter fades away? Where can they go to find the next spiritual high? From Toronto to Lakeland to Redding -- all of that is empty thrills and chills.

But we who wait for our Savior to come for us His church have the comfort of knowing His Word is being fulfilled before our very eyes. We have a Lifeline to hold onto while we wait and a Hope for rescue before God pours out His wrath upon those dwelling carelessly on the planet. His supernatural power makes the weak one strong.

We must keep lifting up Jesus to this hurting world and pull as many as we can from the fire. Time is short and the window of opportunity to turn to the LORD is closing.

I showed the film, The Nativity, to the women in the prison on Christmas and had the opportunity to share the Gospel with inmates I had not seen before. I told them that we might envy those who lived when Jesus came who got to see with their own eyes His miracles and touch the hem of His garment. There were those who looked for the coming of the Messiah 2,000 years ago, but we are living in the time that will most likely see His second coming. 

Monitoring the birth pangs, as we do in this class, we can anticipate His return and bring joy to a place that seems joyless. Please pray for Sunny, Starla, and Cindy -- that the LORD would give them good soil where the seed planted can grow.

Spread the hope, joy, and good news while there's still time.

“Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out. And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself.” -- John 12:31-32

"Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure." - 1 John 3:1-3