Great message from Rev Calvin Robinson at the Oxford Union in the UK. He shocked this group with God’s truth. Make sure you share this message widely.
Calvin Robinson: I feel LIBERATED after being CANCELLED by the Church of England for having the wrong opinion on the Bible. Believing it is all God’s Word, the truth by which we should live.
I have just added another video of Calvin being interviewed and it is good to learn that Calvin will be preaching in another church. Both of these videos need to be viewed and shared.
In Genesis 6:13, we read that before the Flood, regarding “all flesh”, God said to Noah, “I will destroy them with the earth” (’eretz). Then, in Genesis 9:11, after the Flood, God confirmed to Noah that by the Flood He had indeed destroyed the created Earth, when He said, “never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth” (’eretz). Whatever constituted the ’eretz that was created on Day 1, God destroyed it by the Flood cataclysm.
Corroborating God’s revelation to Noah that the created Earth (’eretz) had been destroyed in the Flood (Genesis 9:11) is the record of widespread destructive volcanic and sedimentary processes evident in the Precambrian rock record. In the Precambrian we see evidence of huge volcanoes, depositing lava accumulations up to 22 km thick, including abundant products of explosive volcanic activity.
Rocks of the Precambrian cratons, including the exposed Precambrian shields, comprise some 71% of the Earth’s total land area. Extensive study of exposed Precambrian strata, motivated by its content of valuable minerals, has resulted in the accumulation of copious geological information on the Precambrian.
This information can be used by creationists to incorporate all of the Precambrian into a Genesis Flood geologic model.
There are abundant products of volcanism, including explosive volcanism, and volcanic lava sequences up to 22 km thick, throughout the Precambrian geologic record. Superpositional relationships of distinct lithological associations enable global correlation of early Precambrian strata. A Genesis Flood geologic model is proposed wherein the Flood cataclysm was initiated by a sudden reduction of gravitational force which decompressed the earth’s hot, water-saturated mantle. The Precambrian rock record was extruded from the mantle and deposited during Day 1 to Day 40 of the Flood cataclysm.
Widespread evidence of destructive volcanic geologic activity throughout the Precambrian corroborates the Scriptural record of the destruction of the created earth (’eretz) by the Flood cataclysm (Gen. 9:11).
This should lead us to preclude a Creation Week or Antediluvian origin for the Precambrian geologic record, and instead consider all of the Precambrian as Flood deposited. Walker noted that the Precambrian Strelley Pool Chert formation in the Pilbara region of Western Australia (figure 6) is underlain and overlain by rocks deposited from volcanic eruptions, and suggested:
“From a biblical perspective, it is inconceivable that volcanoes would be active during Creation Week, depositing volcaniclastics and tuff such as comprise parts of the stratigraphic sections [emphasis added].”
Widespread evidence throughout the globally correlated Precambrian rock record of huge explosive volcanic eruptions comprises tuffs, ignimbrites, pyroclastic flows, volcaniclastics, accretionary lapilli/lapillistone, and agglomerates. The processes necessary for the accumulation of accretionary lapilli/lapillistone include an atmospheric ash column, moisture, accretion, deposition, and lithification. We might reasonably question whether atmospheric ash columns would have been occurring during Creation Week.
Deposition of even the thinnest of these volcanic accumulations, the 10.5-km-thick Swaziland Supergroup (figure 3), over six days during Creation Week, would require lava to accumulate at 1.75 km stratigraphic thickness per day. The 22.0 km-thick-lower Pilbara Supergroup of Western Australia (figure 6) would need to accumulate at 3.67 km of lava per day if deposited during Creation Week.
On the basis of the volcanic content, and especially the explosive volcanic content, and the widespread destruction of organisms throughout the Precambrian, we should, I suggest, question a Creation Week or Antediluvian origin for the Precambrian rock record, reconsider the way we interpret the Precambrian fossil record, and conclude that the Precambrian is all Flood deposited.
Consistent with Genesis 7:11 and Proverbs 3:20a, Noah’s Flood may have been initiated by God causing the mantle to heat in a cataclysmic global thermal-tectonic episode, cracking open the earth’s crust and driving out water to the earth’s surface. Secular scientists have found evidence of episodic rifting events at the margins of North America between 0.8 and about 0.6 Ga. These are thought to record the fragmentation of a Neoproterozoic supercontinent.13,14 This is consistent with the breaking open of the crust by the fountains of the great deep, followed by further continental extension and then ocean formation.
Bending rock sounds like the feat of a superhero. But this incredible achievement really occurred in the earth’s past. There are many places around the world where thick layers of rock are folded, sometimes at angles of 90°! One prominent example is the Carbon Canyon Fold.
The Carbon Canyon Fold is located in a side canyon adjacent to Grand Canyon itself. The layers making up the fold are a sequence of sandstone, siltstone/claystone, and limestone. Together, they make up the Tonto Group. In most places, the Tonto Group layers are just as horizontal as when they were deposited. But this is not the case with the Carbon Canyon Fold. How were these layers warped at such an unusual angle?
Conventional wisdom tells us that the oldest layers of the Tonto Group layers are approximately 525 million years old. Geologists think the uplift that folded the Tonto Group layers started between 70 and 50 million years ago. It was not complete until a mere five million years ago.
This model is problematic, however. There is no known mechanism by which the Tonto Group could have remained wet and pliable for 465 million years! The folded nature of this rock unit is incredible evidence of their relative youth. Those who believe these layers were formed over vast eons of time proposed other ideas to explain how the layers were folded long after hardening into rock.
Metamorphism is a process capable of making solid rock pliable again for folding. This can occur when the rock experiences extreme heat and pressure far beneath the earth’s surface. However, this cannot explain the folded layers seen in the Tonto Group. Metamorphism completely alters a rock’s mineral makeup. For example, such heat and pressure turn sandstone into quartzite. Claystone turns into a schist. Meanwhile, limestone turns into marble. If metamorphism were responsible for folding the Carbon Canyon Fold, evidence for this process should be obvious.
The best explanation for the warped nature of the Carbon Canyon Fold does appear to be that the process of folding occurred in the not-too-distant past. Most young-earth geologists think the uplift that caused the folding occurred over a period of time lasting just hundreds, and not millions, of years. If hundreds of millions of years passed between the formation of the Tonto Group layers and their uplift, the Carbon Canyon Fold should be a jumble of shattered rock fragments. The fact that they are not stands as testimony to their relative youth.
This article comes from a new blog post put together by a group of young scientists that are working under well-established Ph.D. Creation scientists https://newcreation.blog
Why are younger people departing from a Biblical worldview? How did this happen?
Satan developed a strategic plan to destroy God’s Word and he took aim at the foundational book of the Bible – Genesis.
Take God out of the creation story and you destroy the Biblical foundations: man and woman made in God’s image, marriage, supernatural beings, angels, including enemies of God – a fallen angel called Satan and his demons, The Fall of mankind, a worldwide flood of Noah’s Day, confusion of languages (Tower of Babel) that established the nations, andGod established His nation, Israel for His purposes. All leading to God, JESUS, entering history at the appointed time.
Evolution has been Satan’s most successful strategy. If Darwin’s evolution is true, God is not necessary to explain the existence of the Cosmos. It evolved over billions of years. To do that you have to make Noah’s Flood a myth and yet just about all people groups around the world have a flood story in their foundational history and numerous geologists of today recognize that there is abundant evidence in the rocks and fossils that speaks of water-related rapid catastrophic deposition, just as would be expected with Noah’s Flood. Sadly, the growing number of neo-catastrophists still cling to millions of years by assuming many sequences of catastrophes separated by millions of years.
Schools and universities now teach evolution and the Big Bang as fact. The U.S. District Court on December 20, 2005, charged that even teaching intelligent design (ID) was an unconstitutional establishment of religion. Even many theological schools have now accepted evolution and billions of years as scientific fact which has destroyed Biblical history and belief in an inerrant Bible.
Once God was removed from history then it was only a matter of time before God’s commandments were also jettisoned from every area of life: government, law, sex, marriage, family, life (abortion and euthanasia), and finally lawlessness abounds.
The institutional church has abandoned God’s word and lost its power. It is no longer relevant and in fact considered a danger that must be controlled by legislation.
Most parents still try to teach Christian values to their kids: how to be kind and generous and hardworking, etc. They have disciplined their kids in life skills like keeping a clean room and working hard at school and being polite. But at school, they are taught evolution and therefore the Bible and the God of the Bible are myths. The Bible and its God are no longer relevant, and “SIN” what is that? We can make up our own rules. Hence, abortion, euthanasia, homosexuality, gay marriage, and transgenderism are all acceptable lifestyle choices.
Unless parents tackle the creation/evolution issue and therefore the historical accuracy of God’s Word they will have little to no impact on their children’s evolutionary worldview which allows them to live the life they choose. Why would they choose all the constraints the God of the Bible requires? However, God’s Word is true; fulfilled Biblical prophecy proves it to be an accurate record of God’s dealings with His world. Parents need to teach this truth so their children will submit to their Creator and reject the lies of their enemy Satan who is out to destroy them. To help parents teach biblically, God has raised up ministries like Creation Ministries International (CMI – http://www.creation.com) and Answers in Genesis both with Ph.D. scientists who can clearly show evolution as a failed theory and that the Bible’s “young earth” history is supported by scientific evidence. They have excellent resources for Christians to use. Also, discipleship must be daily, and not just in life skills, but apologetics, theology, prayer, the power of God, and missions.
Also, Children need to be taught how to become born-again Christians with the Holy Spirit indwelling their spirit. We cannot live the Christian life without the Holy Spirit. We are told the Holy Spirit is the one who produces the fruit of the Spirit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, faithfulness, gentleness, goodness, kindness, and self-control. He is the one who will make us Christ-like (sanctification). He is the one who provides all nine gifts (1 Corinthians 12:4-11) of the Spirit for ministry. Much of the institutional church teaches that God the Father sent Jesus to provide the way back to the Father by His sacrifice for us on The Cross but they do not teach that Jesus made it possible for the Father to send the Holy Spirit to enable us to live the Christian life and all that entails. It is the power of God.
PRAYER
Father, we thank you for ministries like CMI that are addressing the attack on the inerrancy of your Word. Bless them we pray and show us how we can play our part in supporting their efforts, particularly with churches in our area of influence. We pray for Christians in schools and universities that they may be able to bring your truths to light in their sphere of influence. Equip them with the correct materials to use by guiding them to websites like http://www.creation.com. Heavenly Father we ask you to raise up churches that will operate like the early churches described in the Book of Acts in the power of the Holy Spirit to do what you called us to do:
“Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely, I am with you always, to the very end of the age” Matthew 28:19-20
“ You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also.”2 Timothy 2:1-2
“Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old, he will not depart from it.” Proverbs 22:6
Why should you be living eternally now? All believers will appear before the judgment seat of Christ and whilst our eternal destiny is safe what we have done will affect our rewards. For Christians that are raised in the first resurrection and are raptured with the living Saints, it is generally agreed that we will face the judgment seat of Christ during the time (Isaiah 34:8, Isaiah 61:2, Isaiah 63:4) we are in heaven before returning to earth with Jesus. If you disagree, keep in mind that these are not my words, but God’s. Jesus, speaking to both believers and unbelievers, said, “I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words, you will be condemned.” Matthew 12:36-37. Also, Paul said, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil”2 Corinthians 5:10
There are two different judgments in God’s Word: the judgment of faith, and the judgment of works. The judgment of faith relates to our eternal salvation, while the judgment of works relates to our eternal rewards.
For Christians, salvation took place in a moment in the past. It was free, it can’t be lost, it is the same for all Christians, and it is solely based on a faith that is ours by the grace of God alone. By contrast, future rewards are earned (by God’s grace), can be lost, differ among Christians, and are based on our efforts.
Salvation is about God’s work for us. Conversely, rewards are a matter of our work for God. When it comes to salvation, our work for God is no substitute for God’s work for us. God saves us because of Christ’s work, not ours. Likewise, when it comes to rewards, God rewards us for our work, not Christ’s. (Our good works are empowered by the Holy Spirit; nevertheless, we need to submit to Him so God refers to it as our work.)
Let me be sure this is perfectly clear. Christ paid the price for all of our sins, once and for all (Hebrews10:12-18). If we have trusted Him for that provision, we will not pay the eternal price, the second death. He has fully forgiven our sins, and we are completely secure in Christ’s love (Psalm 103:8-18; Romans 8:31-39). Our salvation is sure, and we will not undergo the judgment of condemnation (John 5:24; Romans 8:1).
But although the forgiveness of our sins has every bearing on our eternal destination, it has no automatic and effortless effect on our eternal rewards, apart from the fact that God’s sanctifying work comes out of our salvation, and therefore we should expect that the Holy Spirit’s presence in our lives should lead us to do good works that God will reward. But we must choose to do the works He prompts us to do. Neither does it mean our choices have no consequences in eternity. Forgiven people can still lose their rewards or forfeit eternal positions of responsibility they could have had if they’d served Christ consistently and faithfully before death.
Trust in Christ, lean on Him, and draw upon Him for power, for apart from Him we can do nothing. But if we hope to receive a reward, we must still do the necessary work. As our forefathers put it, to wear the crown we must first bear the cross.
Just as there are eternal consequences to our faith, so there are eternal consequences to our works.
What we do with our resources—including our time, money, and possessions—will matter not just twenty minutes, twenty days, or twenty years from now. It will matter twenty trillion years from now.
Though Paul insists we are saved by faith, not works (Titus 3:5), he also clearly states that the choices we make and the things we do have eternal implications, and that we will each answer to God for the works we have done in this life:
If anyone builds on this foundation [Christ] using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames. (1 Corinthians 3:12-15)
Those believers who have been less faithful and obedient in their walk with Christ will not suffer loss of salvation! But they will suffer loss of the reward that would have been theirs had they been more Christ-centered and faithful in their service to Jesus.
What 1 Corinthians 3 says is so sobering that a temporary loss doesn’t seem likely. This loss of rewards appears permanent, for while we will all serve God in our resurrected bodies on His New Earth, there appears to be a finality to the fact that after death comes judgment (Hebrews 9:27). If there are any future judgments for our service to God on the New Earth, we are not told about them in Scripture. Of course, we should anticipate for our future service He will say to all of his children, “Well done!” And yet, despite Scripture’s silence on this, I think it’s very possible that God, who is by nature a rewarder (), may continue to reward His people for faithful service on the New Earth. That resonates with me, and I don’t see anything unbiblical about it. It fully fits His nature as a Father who takes joy in saying “Well done” to His devoted children.
Earning Our Full Reward
First Corinthians isn’t the only passage that speaks of losing reward. The apostle John wrote, “Watch yourselves, so that you may not lose what we have worked for, but may win a full reward” (2 John 1:8, ESV).
To win a full reward would be glorious, wouldn’t it? But surely all of us will regret some of our decisions on that day when we “suffer loss” or “lose what we have worked for.” Anticipating standing before the judgment seat of Christ should motivate us to follow Him wholeheartedly and generate in us a proper fear of God.
All of us will be full of joy in Heaven, but those who served Him faithfully, particularly in the midst of adversity, will have been made, by God’s grace, into larger vessels. They won’t be fuller of joy, but they will have a greater capacity, and their fullness will accordingly contain even more joy. (Hence the special place in Revelation given to the martyrs.) There won’t be envy or regret, because of our new natures, and all will be full of joy, yet there will be true continuity and eternal consequence so that what we do—not just what we believe—in this life affects the next.
Maybe one way to say it is that the “loss” of rewards is in some sense permanent, but the “suffering” of that loss will be temporary. God will do away with the suffering (Revelation 21:4), but that is after the judgment, after we give an account to the Lord. The suffering of regret will be there at the judgment (how could it not be?) before entrance to the eternal state, but then comes the learning and purifying and eternal rejoicing. Perhaps we’ll offer a short, entirely sincere, “I regret my lack of faith and faithfulness,” expressing this to our God who graciously forgives. Then, with that forever behind us, we move on to eternal joy.
But there will be no ongoing suffering, for all our regrets about our past will be overshadowed by God’s grace. Yet if there were no reckoning, no “suffering loss” then the 1 Corinthians 3 passage would be meaningless (which is exactly what most teaching on the subject reduces it to). Some will object that this is a sort of Protestant purgatory, just shorter in duration than languishing in the flames of Catholic purgatory. But the suffering is not in the eternal state, only in a temporal judgment, and judgment must involve the negative as well as positive or it too is meaningless. The biblical statements of “giving an account” and that include “works done in the body, whether good or evil” are unmistakable in that regard. (Doing the evil will clearly have taken away from the rewards that would have come from doing good.)
Consequences without Condemnation
Since all who know Jesus go to the intermediate Heaven immediately when we die, it appears that whenever this judgment happens, it will be after we get there. So, while God will one day wipe away every tear from our eyes (Revelation 21:4), it seems likely that when we must give an account for our lives, there will be, for a time, some regrets and tears and a sense of that loss Scripture speaks of.
I realize this is hard to grasp. I am just trying to be true to all God’s Word says, instead of choosing only parts of it. This may sound like a sort of condemnation and punishment, but we are assured this isn’t the case, for “There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1).
Ephesians 1:7 says, “In him [Jesus] we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace”. The Bible teaches not only forgiveness of our sins but also consequences for our choices. These consequences apply despite our forgiveness. Forgiveness means that God eliminates our eternal condemnation; we will not be ultimately punished for our sins, but there may be immediate consequences in this world due to our sins. Forgiven people can still contract AIDS, go to jail for drunk driving, or suffer the death penalty, for example. A murderer or drug dealer can be fully redeemed and forgiven, and may still spend the rest of his life in prison. He may lose his family as well as his freedom. After all, the thief on the cross remained there despite his confession of faith.
In Heaven, God appears to say that while all our sins will be forgiven and there will be no ongoing shame or regrets, nevertheless at the judgment seat an initial and temporary sense of shame, regret and sorrow seems likely, though one that will soon be swallowed up by eternal grace and joy.
Prepared for Good Works
One of the most often quoted passages in Scripture states, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).
It’s a wonderful truth, but verse 10 immediately follows with more truth about works: “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” God has prepared a lifetime of good works and we will give an account to Him for whether or not we have done them.
Surely each of these passages and others like them implies that while we will be fully forgiven in Christ and be forever totally cleansed and purified by His redemptive work, we will nonetheless be held accountable for what we have and haven’t done in this life.
It seems reasonable we won’t be joyful at the very moment we have to give an account for our sins, the careless words we have spoken, and all the wood, hay, and straw of our lives that will be consumed in the fire, that could have instead been gold and silver and precious stones. And at the same time, we will find great pleasure in the rewards God has given us, and we will celebrate the rewards He gives to others.
Embracing Paradox
But how does this all fit with the truth about the forgiveness of our sins? I think of the example of Charles Spurgeon, who didn’t try to reconcile every paradox or apparent contradiction in the Bible. Speaking of the truths of God’s sovereignty and human responsibility—which I also believe to be applicable to the truths of complete forgiveness and accountability at the judgment Spurgeon said this:
“These two truths, I do not believe, can ever be welded into one upon any human anvil, but one they shall bein eternity: they are two lines that are so nearly parallel, that the mind that shall pursue them farthest, will never discover that they converge; but they do converge, and they will meet somewhere in eternity, close to the throne of God, whence all truth doth spring.“
Spurgeon also wrote, “Those who will only believe what they can reconcile will necessarily disbelieve much of divine revelation.” Our desire for logical consistency, as we understand it, can become our God. Then we, not Scripture and not God, become our own ultimate authority. We end up ignoring, rejecting or twisting Scripture that doesn’t fit our chosen theology.
On the contrary, our theology should reflect Scripture itself, and wherever Scripture teaches apparently contradictory ideas, our theology should embrace those same ideas, rather than resort to a consistency that rejects part of God’s revealed Word.
Certainly, any and all of our regrets about our past will be overshadowed by God’s grace, which is the good news of the Gospel. There is comfort in 1 Corinthians 4:5, which says God “will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart. Then each one will receive his commendation from God.” God will apparently find something to reward “each one” for. This makes sense, for no one can truly be born again without having demonstrated some fruit for which God can reward us.
Let’s Live in Light of Eternity Now
All of this argues for cultivating an eternal perspective in which we seek to live each day in light of eternity—not out of dread, yet with the right kind of fear of God and heartfelt love that desires to please our Lord and Savior.
In his book When Christ Comes, Max Lucado writes, “You can be certain you won’t regret any sacrifice you made for the kingdom. The hours of service for Christ? You won’t regret them. The money you gave? You’d give it a thousand times over. The times you helped the poor and loved the lost? You’d do it again. . . . You’d change the diapers, fix the cars, prepare the lessons, repair the roofs. One look into the faces of the ones you love, and you’d do it all again.”
An eternal perspective isn’t something we have to wait until Heaven to have. So I’ve often given readers and listeners this advice: live now the way that you will one day wish you would have. Don’t postpone obedience, holiness, purity, drawing close to God, and serving others.
Five minutes after we die, we’ll know exactly how we should have lived—it will be too late to go back and change anything. God has given us His Word so we don’t have to wait until we die to know how we should have lived. There’s no second chance for the unbeliever—but also no second chance for the believer! Just as missionary C. T. Studd said, “Only one life, ’twill soon be past; only what’s done for Christ will last.”
You and I have one life on this fallen earth in which to follow Jesus and invest in Heaven. Let’s not miss the opportunity. God will one day take away all our sorrows, but why go into eternity with regrets? Here’s a prayer for us: May what will be most important to us five minutes after we die become most important to us now.
Let me add KNOW YOUR WHY:
To bring glory to God
To know God’s will for your life
God wants to use me to bring people into His Kingdom
Adapted from the article: “Will We Have Regrets at the Judgment Seat of Christ?” December 5, 2022 by Randy Alcorn http://www.patheos.com
Living Eternally Now is available o Amazon or from me direct: ron@bakb.com.au
Why is the mark of the Beast the unforgivable sin? Rev. 14:9-10 is clear about the eternal fate of those that take the mark of the Beast.
“And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, he also will drink the wine of God’s wrath, poured full strength into the cup of his anger, and he will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and they have no rest, day or night, these worshipers of the beast and its image, and whoever receives the mark of its name.”Revelation 14:9-11
Sadly, well-respected Bible teachers such as John McArthur have come out and contradicted the Biblical account and said that people who take the mark of the Beast will be able to repent and receive the redemption offered by Jesus Christ. This questions the inerrancy of the Bible and what if the mark of the Beast is not just a microchip but transforms the person and makes them a hybrid like the Nephilim. Jesus said that the last days will be like the days of Noah when the Nephilim were on the earth. In Rev. 9 what does it mean that death will flee from them? Also, Rev 16:2 when those with the mark have loathsome sores but cannot die. Could the mark of the Beast produce a genetic transformation? Perhaps the recipients are promised eternal life by receiving the Beast’s demonic “DNA”? Listen to what Nelson and Doug have to say about this possibility.
In Australia,Victorian Premier Dan Andrews said biblical views on abortion and sexuality are, “appalling, intolerant, hatred, bigotry, and just wrong.”
Daniel Andrews, the Roman Catholic Premier of Victoria, has not only defied the God of the Bible, turned a deaf ear to the wider Christian population, but has specifically rejected the teachings of his own Church.
How quickly what we saw as foundational human rights such as freedom of speech, religion, and association are clearly eroding under the Andrews government, and other governments nationwide.
We should not be surprised as Jesus warned us that persecution/tribulation will escalate in the last days and that we will be hated by all nations for standing up for Jesus and His values.
“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake. And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” Matthew 24:9-14
While this life is fraught with many trials and tribulations, the sufferings we experience are to be counted as incomparable with the glories to come. This anticipation for glory sustains us and brings forth one major reason why we persevere: we hope in the age to come rather than in this broken and fallen age.
Paul says, that in the same way, this hope for glorification sustains us, the Spirit sustains us, for He knows precisely how to intercede on our behalf before the Father.
Where words and utterances fail us in our prayers, the Spirit transforms them into prayers that match the will of God. The Spirit’s work of intercession on our behalf is part and parcel of our endurance; we endure not only for the hope of the age to come but specifically because part of the Spirit’s work is to bring about endurance in us.
Human suffering has a purpose that culminates in glory. To make that even clearer: the purpose of our trials and sufferings is to bring us to the final redemption, where we see God face to face, free from the pain, devastation, and destruction caused by the curse of sin, our adversary Satan, and death itself.
“For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:38-39
It’s no secret the Bible is receiving less support in contemporary culture, but new statistics from Gallup showcase how much modern culture is impacting Americans’ views and perceptions of Scripture. The survey, which has attracted attention since its release, contains several eye-opening findings.
Just 20% now believe the Bible is the literal word of God, down from 30% in 2011 and 24% in 2017. These statistics are remarkable considering 40% said the same in 1980. The steep decline puts definitive numbers to the moral slide many Christians have discussed over the past few decades. Meanwhile, there’s a new record high among Americans who believe the Bible is a collection of “fables, legends, history and moral precepts recorded by man.” Just 10% held this view in 1980, though that proportion has swelled to 29% in 2022, the highest ever recorded by Gallup.
it appears the most notable development is the shift away from a literal approach and toward the belief Scripture is “fables, legends, history and moral precepts recorded by man.” As Gallup noted, these findings coincide with a decrease in Americans’ perceived importance of religion in their lives. Just 44% said in 2022 religion is very important in their lives, down from 60% in 2002. It’s interesting to note that, during the same timeframe, the belief the Bible is the actual word of God also plummeted from 30% to 20%.
There is no doubt in mind that this has been due to academia swallowing the lie of evolution as the cause of the Cosmos. The prime mover for evolution was Charles Darwin who believed that natural selection was the mechanism by which evolution brought this complex world into existence. Natural selection can only select from what is already in existence it does not take us from GOO to YOU. The only other mechanism that science can add is mutation and yet mutation is the loss of information from the DNA. It does not add complex information once again to take us from GOO TO YOU.
Dr Dean Kenyon – From Darwinist to Creationist
In 1969, Dr. Dean Kenyon, a Professor of Biochemistry at Stanford University, co-authored the book entitled Biochemical Predestination which was adopted in the USA as a graduate textbook and was regarded as the seminal work on the naturalistic formation of living cells from the chemicals of the earth. In the 1980s Kenyon realised that the discovery of DNA revealed that complex information on the DNA controlled all of the complex machinery that the electron microscope revealed is in every cell. There are manufacturing units that make all of the chemicals needed for life and transport devices to take these complex chemicals to where they are needed in the organism. All evidence of complex design that only an Intelligent Designer with an intelligence beyond our comprehension could construct.
It is beyond my comprehension that evolution is still being taught as fact in our schools and universities. For more evidence to support creation go to http://www.creation.com where you will find that many Ph.D. scientists are now proponents of Intelligent Design.
If you want the truth about this Intelligent Designer you need to go to His revealed Word to us. The Bible reveals that He controls everything that happens in His world and is capable of ensuring that what is in it is inerrant.
“All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:16-17
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” John 1:1-5
Prominent Evangelical pollster George Barna says that most Americans blend their beliefs to create “a customized worldview” that is far from biblical as the country is in a spiritual “crisis.” The founder of The Barna Group, who now leads the Cultural Research Centre of Arizona Christian University, spoke recently at the Family Research Council’s (FRC) Pray Vote Stand Summit, a Christian conservative voting rally held in Atlanta. Barna told those gathered that he believes one of the “brilliant strategies of the evil one” is luring people into believing that they can combine and adopt as many worldviews as they want. Barna warned that “America is a nation in crisis” because its citizens do not hold a biblical worldview and will instead add their own “worldly ideas.”
He said, only 2% of U.S. parents with children under the age of 13 have a biblical worldview. “Why does that matter?” Barna said. “Because you can’t give what you don’t have. And here we have 98 out of every 100 parents in America who cannot give their children a biblical worldview because they don’t have one.
Barna cited research conducted by the Cultural Research Centre showing that there are seven major worldviews that Americans are most influenced by: biblical theism, Eastern mysticism, Marxism, moralistic therapeutic deism, nihilism, postmodernism and secular humanism. “As we look at America today, we know that there are a number of competing worldviews competing for the heart and the soul of the nation,” Barna said. “Each has a different understanding of everything that takes place in the world, a different explanation for why things are happening, a different concept of how you might best live your life.” The most common worldview isn’t any of the eight main adopted ones, according to Barna, who noted that the primary worldview dominating America is “syncretism,” or varying combinations of all eight worldviews into one belief system.
Australia is not much different from America in the speed with which it is moving away from a Biblical worldview. As mentioned, Barna believes one of the “brilliant strategies of the evil one” is luring people into believing that they can combine and adopt as many worldviews as they want. The way Satan has done that is by getting the teaching institutions, schools, and universities, to teach evolution, not creation, is how this world came into existence. The Bible’s account of Creation, the Fall, and the worldwide flood of Noah’s day is all myth, hence Genesis the foundational book of the Bible is not true so why should any of the Bible be true.
God has raised up many ministries to correct the attacks on God’s Word. One that was birthed in my country but now worldwide is Creation Ministries International: http://www.creation.com. One of the two founders of this ministry Ken Ham also birthed Answers in Genesis in the USA: http://www.answersingenesis.org.
A new study released by the Southern Baptist Convention-affiliated Lifeway Research titled the “State of Theology, found that 60% of U.S. adults believe that religious beliefs are “a matter of personal opinion” and “not about objective truth.”
Scott McConnell, the executive director of Lifeway Research, said in a statement released Monday that he believed the COVID-19 pandemic played a factor in the findings.
“Religious identity, beliefs, and behavior are interrelated,” said McConnell. “When in-person church attendance behaviors were interrupted and habits were broken, it affected some Americans’ beliefs about the need to gather with other believers to worship.”
“Many Americans think about God as if He had only revealed Himself in a vague, nondescript way. They seem to fill in the gaps with whatever they want to believe,” McConnell stated.
“This creates sharp contrasts between what Americans believe about God and how He revealed himself in great detail in the Bible.”
“Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” And Jesus answered them… For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are but the beginning of the birth pains. “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake. And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another.” Matthew 24:3,7-10
It is interesting that the study revealed that a little over half of U.S. adults (53%) still say sex outside of traditional marriage is a sin, in contrast to 42% who disagree. In fact, it marks an increase in Americans who see non-marital sex as sinful compared to 2016 when 49% said it was sinful which is a hopeful sign.
The study reported that 46% of Americans believe that the Bible’s condemnation of homosexual behavior is not relevant today, while 42% believe that it is still relevant.
“Discussions of sin are inherently theological because they explore whether God set standards and what behaviors miss this mark,” McConnell noted.
“So, those who acknowledge certain behaviors as sin are acknowledging a deity’s standards. This is a different discussion than whether society agrees on an ethical standard of conduct that we determine.”
Just as God’s nation Israel fell away from understanding God as Creator and the one whom they should fear. America a nation founded on knowing and fearing God likewise is falling away fast and opening the nation up to God’s judgment and ultimate wrath.
“Behold, to the Lord your God belong heaven and the heaven of heavens, the earth with all that is in it.” Deuteronomy 10:14
“And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments and statutes of the Lord, which I am commanding you today for your good?” Deuteronomy 12:11-13
Jesus told us beforehand that in the last days before His return that people would no longer believe He exists and to be feared, as a result, lawlessness will increase.
“And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.” Matthew 24:12-13
Will you be one of those that endure to the end and as a result be saved?
LIVING ETERNAL NOW 