I do not consider myself a Bible teacher, but a reporter that
watches the signs of the times and quotes Scripture. Everyone of us must
test all things we see and hear by Scripture regardless of whether
we're seminary trained or not. Each of us is a workman that needs to
study to show ourselves approved unto God, rightly dividing the Word of
Truth. We do not let others do our thinking for us.
So when I
heard a Bible teacher quote this verse and rightly interpret that the
Restrainer is indeed the Holy Spirit, I was surprised when he followed
that up with saying that the Holy Spirit will be removed from His
dwelling within us believers and would return to how He operated before
Pentecost, by merely being upon and not in the saint. He said that when
the Restrainer is 'removed' the Church stays behind to face the
antichrist.
"And now you know what is restraining, that he may be
revealed in his own time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at
work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the
way. And then the lawless one will be revealed..." - 2Th 2:6-8a
That is a frightening and unbiblical thought. There are so many NT
passages that show that the Holy Spirit is a guarantee of our redemption
and that without the Holy Spirit, we are none of His.
"Now He
who establishes us with you in Christ and anointed us is God, who also
sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our hearts as a pledge.
(down-payment) - 2 Cor 1:21-22
"Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption." - Eph 4:30
"In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel
of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the
Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge of our inheritance,
with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of
His glory." - Eph 1:13-14
We've been sealed and God is not going
to unseal us and leave us helpless to face the antichrist (a judgment
upon a Christ-rejecting world) without the protection of His indwelling
Spirit. I love how Chuck Smith used to put it -- No Groom is going to
beat up the Bride before the wedding.
The point I am making is
that no matter how impressive your favorite teacher might be -- don't
let your guard down - test everything s/he teaches - hold fast to that
which is good and scriptural. In this dark hour of the Great Apostasy,
no man's teaching is to be accepted unless it passes muster with "thus
saith the LORD." Remember the Bereans.
Keep on the alert!!
"But as it is written: 'Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.'
But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit
searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the
things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so
no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have
received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God,
that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God."
- 1 Cor. 2:9-12
Don't ever tire of defending the Truth of God's Word. It's a
thankless job but one all of us are assigned to do. (Jude 3) It's not
some specialized ministry; but defending the Gospel is equally as
important as proclaiming it.
This week in cyberspace, I was kept
busy doing just that. In retrospect, a lot of opposition to the doctrine
of solo-Scriptura (by Scripture alone) came at the hands of those who
lay claim to the Reformers, ( particularly Martin Luther) who termed all
the 'solas' in the first place. Now these Reformers are defending
Tradition and putting it on equal par with God's Word. (See this week's
discussions with Chris Rosebrough.)
On a blog I monitor, there
was a post about all the suffering of believers and the need for
intercession for our brothers and sisters who are hurting. I affirmed
that, agreeing wholeheartedly that we need to pray for one another. Then
I added my own lament, "This world needs the Lord to come and set up
His Kingdom in Zion!" An emergent blogger responded to me, "For
years I've rejected the notion that The Kingdom is anything other than
present because The King is inescapably present and we’re His subjects."
I chimed in, "...When Jesus rules from the Throne of David in Jerusalem
– they’ll be no terrorists, no unsolved murders, no street crime, and
even the animal kingdom will live in harmony,. Let’s see you do that!
Until you can, you better keep on praying “'THY Kingdom Come.'"
Then a blogger who uses the moniker MLD (Martin Luther's Disciple) got
in on the action, saying: "If you read St Peter in Acts 2 you will see
that he clearly states that Jesus is already sitting on and ruling from
David’s throne. How did you miss that?"
My response: "MLD – Keep
reading – the next chapter Acts 3:19-21 — He sits on the throne in
heaven until the time of restoration when He will then sit on His throne
in Jerusalem. He rules in our hearts – not in the unbeliever’s heart –
He will come back with His saints who will rule and reign together with
Christ on the restored earth, ie “the time of restoration'"...
The emergent guy, still trying to straighten me out responded,
"Apocalyptic language is metaphorical and not definitive. The figure is
of Jesus continuing His present reign, one He clearly established during
his pre ascension presence. If Jesus is not present King and we His
present ambassadors and agents of redemption then you’re missing out on
the glory of His Kingdom."
As you can see, I did not even refer
to any Apocalyptic book, but to the book of Acts. Jesus certainly does
rule in the hearts of the believer, His ambassadors, but the idea that
that fulfills all the promises of Him setting up His earthly Millennial
Kingdom, and we saints returning with Him to rule and reign with Him, is
irrational.
This morning as I was reading the Bible (currently
in the books of Psalms and Romans), this verse struck me as a
confirmation that I used the right term when I said that Jesus would
return and set up "His Kingdom in Zion."
"The Mighty One, God the LORD, Has spoken and called the earth From the rising of the sun to its going down. Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God will shine forth. Our God shall come, and shall not keep silent; A fire shall devour before Him, And it shall be very tempestuous all around Him. He shall call to the heavens from above, And to the earth, that He may judge His people:" -Ps. 50:1-4
This is not merely speaking of Christ's first coming since nothing very
tempestuous was in the manger in Bethlehem. God confirmed His Word that
it would indeed be "Out of Zion" that all the rest would be fulfilled.
A-Mills, Preterists, and Kingdom-Now people cannot sway those of us who
hear the Master's voice away from the promises in the Bible. We await
the fulfillment of every jot and tittle.
Until then, keep your Ephesians armor on tight.
"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." Eph 6:11-12
"Repent therefore and be converted,
that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come
from the presence of the Lord, and that He may send Jesus Christ, who
was preached to you before, whom heaven must receive until the times of
restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His
holy prophets since the world began." Acts 3:19-21
"Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me. But to the wicked God says: 'What right have you to declare My statutes, Or take My covenant in your mouth, Seeing you hate instruction And cast My words behind you?'" - Ps. 50:15-17
This morning while I was going before the LORD in prayer, my son's
voice interrupted me. "Come here quick mom," he said. I groaned, not
wanting to break my focus on what the LORD was laying on my heart. He
pointed out the dining room window to a deer laying in the bushes
between our house and the neighbor's. "She's hurt. She has a gash in her
leg. She limped there and laid down and could not put any weight on
that back leg; it has a gash in it."
I called the police to see
if they could help her. The dispatcher said to me, "I'll send an officer
there to put her down." The officer came within a minute and said,
"I've been looking for her since yesterday. She was hit by a car as she
was slipping on the icy road. I can't get a good shot at her at this
angle." Just then my cat got out of the house and wanted to see what we
were looking at. We couldn't stop her and she scared the deer to her
three hooves. The deer had nowhere to go - a shut gate on one side and a
police officer on the other. On his instructions I went out my back
door and opened the gate and she hobbled through it and through the yard
into the woods. He said she has a chance to mend since there doesn't
seem to be any internal injuries - she'll just either die or live with a
bad leg.
So how does this illustrate what I was about to share
this morning? you may ask. I may be stretching the analogy, but what was
on my heart this morning was my fellow sheep who have been wounded by
abusive leaders and are now hurt and on their own. I know the pain of
isolation from a church fellowship. Being cut off from fellow sheep due
to an injury sustained by an under-shepherd at the instigation of a goat
in the flock happens way too often. I might compare the lies of the
goat to the icy condition and the careless leader to the car that hit
the deer. Now that poor deer is more vulnerable to the elements and the
wounded Christian in this comparison will be scarred for life or
possibly even lose the faith, which would be comparable to dying,
spiritually-speaking.
I don't know if you've noticed, but the
condition of the church, now that the goats are in control and the sheep
are scattered, is close to self-annihilation. The sad story I shared
yesterday about the empty church buildings all over Europe give
testimony to the failure of institutional churchianity. But Jesus had
His own people in those places - as He said to the seven churches in
Revelation - there are some who have not defiled their garments. He
follows that with the command to "Come out from among her, My people."
I believe we're almost there, if not there already. The watchmen have
done their duty to reveal hidden dangers, expose evil, and confront
abusive leaders. And yet the people still flock to the hirelings and
fill up the pews in the buildings where they eat up all the wood, hay
and stubble. And the sheep are not welcome among them.
What more
can be done? God will soon stop all His warnings and the judgment that
will fall upon the church before He takes it to the world will be great.
The ax will fall. At this point 'there is no remedy.'
Let's stay connected in cyberspace. Especially for those who are no longer welcome in the circle of merry-makers.
Even so, LORD come!
"And the LORD God of their fathers sent to them by his messengers,
rising up betimes, and sending; because he had compassion on his people,
and on his dwelling place: But they mocked the messengers of God, and
despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the
LORD arose against his people, till there was no remedy." - 2 Chr
36:15-16
"Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be
ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed
through the sea;...But with many of them God was not well pleased: for
they were overthrown in the wilderness. Now these things were our
examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they
also lusted...Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and
they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world
are come. Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he
fall." 1 Cor 10:1,5-6,11-12
Of all the dates we circle on our calendars - from holidays to
birthdays and anniversaries -- the one that affects me the most is
January 1 - New Year's Day.
This coming week, the world will look back at 2014 and lament all the fallen heroes, from Robin Williams to Joe Cocker.
The false prophets will ignore last New Year's failed prognostications,
and give us a big list for 2015 that will be equally empty and
meaningless.
But I will reflect on 2014 privately, take stock of
what was accomplished and what I failed to accomplish. Recall the good
memories with family and friends, alongside the sad memories as well.
Then I'll turn my attention to the coming year. I won't be making any
new year's resolutions, but I look forward to completing what I started
this year but haven't finished. I anticipate a move to the other side of
the country and trust the LORD for His timing on that.
For many
people, a new year represents a fresh start in life -- a time to
recommit one's steps for the LORD to direct. His grace is always there
for those who return with a repentant heart.
The times we live in
seem even more perilous than they did this same time last year -- on
the global perspective. The birth pangs are getting stronger as the
signs of the times that Jesus foretold are part of the daily headlines.
We don't know which ones coming in 2015 will touch us personally.
As we are "hidden in Christ" we know that nothing happens to us without
His consent and He will work all things together for our good since we
love Him and are called for His purpose. Knowing that, we can face the
new year without fear because His love is perfect.
So Happy New Year's everyone. Maybe this will be the year He gathers us together to meet Him in the air!
Maranatha!
"He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, 'He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust.' Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler And from the perilous pestilence. He shall cover you with His feathers, And under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler. You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, Nor of the arrow that flies by day, Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday. A thousand may fall at your side, And ten thousand at your right hand; But it shall not come near you." - Psalms 91:1-7
For many, Christmas holds many wonderful memories of a childhood of
toys and joy and the pleasures of the season. For others, like myself,
memories of Christmas can be painful and full of disillusionment and
times of abandonment.
I was the fifth of nine children; a big
Catholic family - the middle child. I was the least favored child - I
could scream louder than my siblings; I was always the target of my
mischievous older brother (remember Sid in Toy Story?) because I would
come between him and my younger siblings to protect them even knowing I
would lose the fight. But he was Mom's favorite boy and she would always
believe him over me. When he hit me and I screamed, my mother would
turn around and slap me for screaming. Remember, I could scream loud and
it annoyed her.
The presents under the Christmas tree always
held out hope for a big payoff on the big day. All of us would wake up
real early to see what Santa left us. I remember a new bike would be
there for "Sid" and other terrific gifts for certain special boys and
girls. Lots of joy all around. Even though my gifts were never as
wonderful as those my siblings received, I didn't notice but I was happy
with my inferior gifts of cheap dolls, and on one occasion, a Ouija
Board. My dolls wouldn't last much past the new year once 'Sid' got
ahold of them and either tore their heads off or drew mustaches on them
with a pen.
One year all of us had a sad Christmas. Our dad had
a heart attack a week earlier and was still in the hospital. That year
my parents were having some financial hardships and somehow that
affected Santa's generosity. Church members from St. Emydius chipped in
and dropped off a big box of old toys they needed to get rid of to make
room for the new ones Santa was bringing their little ones. It was a
very sad offering - rather than bringing joy, it caused a lot of tears
all around.
On that sad Christmas morning, not knowing if our
daddy would make it out alive, the brat down the street came over
excitedly to show us all the toys Santa had brought her. She had new
skates, a new Barbie with all the accessories, and beautiful new
clothes. I had always doubted the existence of Santa, despite my
parents' constant reassurance of his existence, but seeing that the
little girl who earned a big coal and ashes in her stocking made out
like a bandit, that was the final straw -- Jackie, there is no Santa
Claus.
That spelled the end to my looking forward to Christmas -
I was 10-years-old. My siblings went on believing in Santa and I would
argue with them that there is no Santa Claus and that would irritate my
mom even more.
A few years ago, one of my sister's (the favored
one) and I attended the funeral of an old family friend. We gathered at
their family's home afterwards. I began asking Mary Ann, the family mom
and my mother's former best friend (my mom had already died), if the
deceased knew Jesus. She seemed offended by the question, saying that he
was not religious. I dropped the subject. As we were preparing to
leave, Mary Ann said she had a real funny story to share.
She
recalled how my mom would do all her Christmas wrapping over at her
house so that none of us would peek into the bags. One time when mom was
all finished with the wrapping of what Mary Ann said were fabulous
toys, my mom noticed there was nothing there for her middle child. She
recalled that it was Christmas Eve and all the stores were closed. She
said mom ran out to the local pharmacy and grabbed something from the
toys aisle that was already totally depleted. She came back with
something junky, wrapped it nice and pretty and put on the tag "to
Jackie, from Santa." Mary Ann chuckled and laughed as she told the
story, thinking it was the funniest thing she'd ever seen. It cut me
like a knife.
My mom, no doubt, had confided in her friend all
the frustration she had gone through with my becoming a Bible-believing
Christian. My mom had told me, "I'm going to die a Catholic" and "I'll
never become whatever the hell you are." She was right - she died in the
good graces of Rome.
So if you are one like me that isn't filled
with the Christmas spirit -- don't worry about it. It is just an
invention of the Roman Catholic Church anyway and they don't like us.
Have a merry!!
"One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day
alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind. He who observes the
day, observes it to the Lord; and he who does not observe the day, to
the Lord he does not observe it. He who eats, eats to the Lord, for he
gives God thanks; and he who does not eat, to the Lord he does not eat,
and gives God thanks. For none of us lives to himself, and no one dies
to himself. For if we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die
to the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s." -
Rom 14:5-8
“Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I
did not come to bring peace but a sword. For I have come to ‘set a man
against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law
against her mother-in-law’; and ‘a man’s enemies will be those of his
own household.’ He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy
of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of
Me." - Matt 10:34-38
Whatever you're going through, you're not alone. Each of us is in a different place in our walk with Christ. Some of us are walking on high ground: pumped up, full of faith, excited about Jesus, Spirit-filled, and optimistic. While others are weak, stumbling, spiritually dry, lonely, doubting, and losing their way. At any moment we can be on the mountain or in the valley.
What we must keep in mind when we're looking down, is we must not look down on those in the valley. Those on a spiritual high mustn't discount those who are currently in the depths. This happens too often. Keep in mind, Jesus is the Author and Finisher of our faith and theirs as well. Our faith is tested from time to time and not one of us is immune. If we puff ourselves up, we could be setting ourselves up for a fall. Reminds me of the lyrics of an 80s hit:
"But don't forget, it's me who put you where you are now And I can put you back down too"
Or to put it another way, "And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted." (Matt 23:12) When someone close to us is backsliding, that is when we need to come alongside, not to razz them for their sinning, but to spoon-feed them God's Word since they are unable to feed themselves. Encourage them with a word spoken in due season, as the Psalmist says. Bless, do not condemn. It might just be you next time that needs the encouragement and that friend may have to do likewise for you.
Hard times, good times, end times -- all times, we need to be there for one another.
Maranatha!
"No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it." - 1 Cor 10:13
"Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted. Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. For if anyone thinks himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself. But let each one examine his own work, and then he will have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another. For each one shall bear his own load." - Gal 6:1-5
The essentials -- Jesus' birth, ministry, death, resurrection,
ascension, and return as Judge of the living and the dead-- beliefs
virtually all professing Christians hold onto in one way or another.
They're in all the creeds of Christendom.
But look at that list.
Only one thing on the list is yet to be fulfilled -- all the others are
a fact of history. We look back in wondrous awe at all He has done in
fulfillment of the prophecies as He relayed to His prophets. But even more glorious are the prophecies yet to be fulfilled recorded for us by those very same prophets.
Then why is it that our friends, family and foe alike trouble us for
our anticipation and the excitement we display in our -- some say
fanatical - watching of the birth pangs heralding His soon arrival?
We're even falsely accused of forsaking all He has done because of our
emphasis on what He is about to do. That is ludicrous of course, because
we are even more exuberant about His Gospel of repentance unto
salvation knowing that those we love, and the world upon which we have
compassion, have such a short window of opportunity to escape the things
soon to come upon this planet.
I wonder if the Jews in the first
century gave the old Rabbi Simeon a hard time as he lived for the
promise of the Consolation of Israel and expected it in his lifetime. I
wonder if they called the old guy a kook or a whacko for not shutting up
and just focusing on his duties in the Temple?
Like him, we must
close our ears to all the harassment, knowing the truth of what we have
staked our lives upon -- the veracity of the Word of God. Whether we
leave this planet by death or by rapture, we must hold onto our faith
that He will fulfill all -- every jot and tittle -- and let no one steal
our hope - our blessed hope - from our hearts.
"Hold onto your crown!"
"For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for
pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing
that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought
into captivity to the obedience of Christ, and being ready to punish all
disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled. Do you look at things
according to the outward appearance? If anyone is convinced in himself
that he is Christ’s, let him again consider this in himself, that just
as he is Christ’s, even so we are Christ’s." - 2 Cor 10:4-7
"And
we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love,
and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him. Love has been
perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of
judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in
love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment.
But he who fears has not been made perfect in love. We love Him because
He first loved us." - 1John 4:16-19
