A WAKE UP CALL FOR CHRISTIANS

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The following verse from Revelation should be a wake-up call for all Christians. John is given this revelation about the final 3 1/2 years before Jesus returns to Earth for the battle of Armageddon. The Antichrist is allowed by God to exercise authority over the Earth and to wage war against the Saints.

“If anyone has an ear, let him hear: If anyone is to be taken captive, to captivity he goes; if anyone is to be slain with the sword, with the sword must he be slain. Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints.” Revelation 13:9-10

Surely, for nonbelievers, these prophetic Scriptures prove the Bible is the inspired word of God. Who would follow a God who allows his enemy to slay His followers? Only born-again believers who have received the Holy Spirit can understand and obey this instruction to endure even unto death.

“And the beast (Antichrist) was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months. It opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his dwelling, that is, those who dwell in heaven. Also, it was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them. And authority was given it over every tribe and people and language and nation, and all who dwell on the earth will worship it, everyone whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who was slain.” Revelation 13:5-8d

THE GOOD NEWS: The following words are written to the church of Philadelphia, the sixth church, the church that is raptured by God at the end of the sixth year before He pours out His wrath upon an unrepentant world with the Trumpet and Bowl judgements.

“And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: ‘The words of the holy one, the true one, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, who shuts and no one opens. “‘I know your works. Behold, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut. I know that you have but little power, and yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name… Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth. I am coming soon. Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown.” Revelation 3:10-11

This word given to the church of Philadelphia is so different from the word given to the church of Laodicea, the seventh church, which is left behind to face the Trumpet and Bowl judgements.

“And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: ‘The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God’s creation. “‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.” Revelation 3:14-17

The good news for these people left behind to face the wrath of God is they still have a chance to repent and be saved.

“I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.” Revelation 3:18-19

Each of the seven seals and each of the seven churches reveals what transpires on Earth during the final seven years before Jesus returns to Earth. It is at the sixth seal and the sixth year, when the celestial signs appear in the sky and we are told the great day of God’s wrath has come.

“Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?”

It is the sixth church, the church of Philadelphia that is raptured at the end of the sixth year.

It is immediately after the sixth seal that the four angels are told not to pour out God’s wrath upon the Earth until the 144,000 Jews, servants of God are sealed on their foreheads.
“Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees, until we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.” And I heard the number of the sealed, 144,000, sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel:” Revelation 7:3-4

Next John sees all those who were raptured standing before the throne of God the Father and Jesus.

“After this, I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” Revelation 7:9-10

It is only after this scene, that the seventh seal is opened and the first of the seven trumpets is blown initiating the seven Trumpet judgements.

THE CHURCH THAT IS LEFT BEHIND TO FACE THE WRATH OF GOD

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Televangelist Keith Moore’s ministry Faith Life International has purchased a third jet following a fundraising campaign to raise $10 million. The used Dassault Falcon 7X jet acquired by Moore’s ministry was listed for sale at $17.5 million, while a new model would have cost $60 million.

In addition to the Falcon 7X, Faith Life International also owns a Dassault Falcon 900 EX (tail number N7KM) and Raytheon 390 (tail number N8PJ) jets. Moore is a licensed pilot and certified to fly all three jet models; however, both Falcon jets require an additional pilot in the cockpit.

Creflo Dollar’s new Gulfstream G550: After televangelist Creflo Dollar asked for 200,000 donors to give $300 each to fund the purchase of a new $65 million Gulfstream G650 jet back in 2015, he faced an immediate backlash due to critical international news coverage. Instead of purchasing the Gulfstream G650, Dollar’s property holding company, World Heir, acquired two used jets: a Gulfstream G-IV (tail number N878SM) and a Learjet 60 (tail number N978SM), which was recently sold.

Why can’t these churches see that they fit God’s description of the church at Laodicea? It is the seventh church representing the church in the seventh year of the 70th Week of Daniel, the final year before Jesus returns to Earth with resurrected Saints to fight the battle of Armageddon and usher in His Millennial Kingdom (http://www.millennialkingdom.net) The church of Laodicea is left behind to face the wrath of God that is poured out with the Trumpet and Bowl judgements over the final year. The sixth church, the church of Philadelphia, is raptured and kept from the wrath of God.

CHURCH OF LAODICEA: LEFT BEHIND TO FACE THE WRATH OF GOD

“‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.” Revelation 3:15-17

CHURCH OF LAODICEA: “BE ZEALOUS AND REPENT“

“I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.” Revelation 3:18-20

CHURCH OF PHILADELPHIA: “KEPT FROM THE HOUR OF TRIAL”

“‘I know your works. Behold, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut. I know that you have but little power, and yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name... Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth.” Revelation 3:8,10

THE CHURCH THAT WILL BE LEFT BEHIND TO FACE THE WRATH OF GOD

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“Thank you, Jesus”: Kenneth Copeland praises God for a new Bentley car. Prosperity gospel preacher Kenneth Copeland thanked Jesus for a dying man’s seed offering of a Bentley with a Breitling clock, which he had given in the hope that it would bring healing. It did not.

At Kenneth Copeland Ministries’ annual Southwest Believers’ Convention in Fort Worth, Texas, held from July 29 to Aug. 3, the 87-year-old televangelist regaled attendees with stories about his passion for Breitling watches, of which he owns around 36 coveted timepieces.

Speaking on “How to Walk by Faith and Not By Sight” two Mondays ago, Copeland delighted in showing off the diamond-encrusted Breitling adorning his left wrist to a man seated in the front row. “Do you think that one’s pretty?” Copeland asked the man. “It’s a Breitling. It has diamonds around the edge. Someone gave me that one.”

Copeland said he began gifting Breitling watches as seed gifts, adding that he and Pat Robertson, the late founder of the Christian Broadcasting Network and host of “The 700 Club,” had a “tradition” of gifting Breitlings to each other.

Bible scholar Justin Peters, a harsh critic of World of Faith prosperity preachers and the New Apostolic Reformation movement rebuked Copeland’s “wicked” teaching that sowing “a seed” will heal the sick.

“Kenneth Copeland knows full well that the people listening to him don’t follow him for exposition of Scripture; they are there for promises of health and wealth,” Peters said. “And there are a lot of sick people listening to him. Not just at this convention but all over the world. And they are sick; they are dying, some of them. And some have sick children, children who are dying.

As a warning to the televangelist who has boasted of being a billionaire, Peters quoted from Matthew:

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of Heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in Heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.'” Matthew 7:21-23,

Peters said he does not hate Copeland but was filled with “righteous indignation” because of the “audacity” the televangelist had to tell the story of a man who sowed a seed for healing from cancer yet died. “He’s dead,” Peters lamented.

Kenneth Copeland and all those he has deceived represent the seventh church of Revelation 3, the Church of Laodicea. It is the church that is left behind to face the wrath of God with the Trumpet and Bowl judgements. It describes the church in the seventh year of the 70th week of Daniel 9:24-27.

“For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.” Revelation 3:17-19

The sixth church, the Church of Philadelphia, is raptured. It represents the church in the sixth year of the 70th week of Daniel 9:24-27.

“‘I know your works. Behold, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut. I know that you have but little power, and yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name… Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth.” Revelation 3:8,10

THE CHURCH THAT IS LEFT BEHIND

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The tragic shooting at Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church in Houston is another sad reminder that sin is irrational, evil, and enduring.

The mayhem caused when a woman with a rifle opened fire led Osteen to say, “In the face of such darkness, we must hold onto our faith and remember evil will not prevail.” That’s good theology: In the long run, the God of the Bible triumphs. But that long run is much less temporal than it is eternal. Christians know no immunity from pain in a world cursed by sin. Instead, they look to a universe cleansed from sin and everlasting life in the presence of their Lord and King.

Osteen seems eager to talk about other things. According to him, “We’ve got to make our [church] services good. They’ve got to uplift people. They’ve got to walk away saying, ‘You know what, I feel better today.”’

Walk away feeling good? “Uplift?” Is this why God became both a man and, on the cross, the very essence of sin (II Corinthians 5:21)? This is Christianity without Christ, a spiritual oxymoron that removes the centre of the gospel and then throws only a shadow of hope on those in desperate need of transformation. It is grace reduced to psychological slobber and truth as a buffet from which you can select only those things you find appealing.

Lakewood’s statement of belief is sound, although basic. It’s my hope that Osteen and those on his large staff truly believe in the necessity of new birth in Christ and the need for faithful obedience to Him. But these things are not what Osteen preaches. His best-selling “Your Best Life Now” is hundreds of pages about how to obtain fulfillment without a single mention of dying to self and the cost of following Jesus. Instead, Pastor Joel recommends “letting go of the past” and tells us that we must “find strength through adversity.” In themselves, these things can aid you in regaining your emotional equilibrium. But is that it? Is this the message of the cross? Is this why, all over the world, martyrs are dying for their love of Jesus?

John Piper has outlined six problems with the “feel good” gospel. His analysis is a useful summary of where preachers like Osteen go far afield from “the faith once delivered” (Jude 1:3). According to Piper, such ministries as Osteen’s are characterized by:

  1. An absence of a serious doctrine of the biblical necessity and normalcy of suffering
  2. An absence of a clear and prominent doctrine of self-denial
  3. An absence of serious exposition of Scripture
  4. A failure to deal with tensions in Scripture
  5. Church leaders who have exorbitant lifestyles
  6. The prominence of self and marginalization of the greatness of God

The “serious exposition” of the good news of Christ involves things sinners often dislike hearing. As theologian Ray Ortlund reminds us, “The good news of the gospel begins with some really bad news. Our sins only provoke a bigger problem: the wrath of God. Our real problem is not our sins but God. He is angry, he isn’t going away, and there is nothing we can do about it.”

Nothing. We. Can. Do. About. It. No self-talk, no therapy, no learned technique to quell genuine guilt or silence the voice of divine conviction. This is the broad way against which Jesus so vividly warned, the way of Oprah and mysticism and prideful self-reliance. It might indeed lead to transient happiness but invariably takes one through the gates of hell.

The bad news of human sin and our inability to redeem ourselves is not the end of the story. “You were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked … and were by nature children of wrath,” Paul writes to the Christians in Ephesus, “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ.” Once dead, now alive: this is the key to your best life now and forever. “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” Ephesians 2:1-9

Followers of Jesus should pray that God would so arrest the heart and mind of Joel Osteen and all like him that they would repent of the false gospel they so happily broadcast and issue a new message, one that announces the righteous anger of a holy God and the gracious offer of a loving Father. He is one and the same, and His offer of hope, meaning, transformation, and life itself never changes.

Sadly, Joel and Lakewood Church represent the church of Laodicea that is left behind to go through the Trumpet and Bowl judgements of God.

‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.” Revelation 3:15-19

Compare this with the church of Philadelphia which is the church that is raptured at the trumpet blast at the opening of the seventh seal.

“‘I know your works. Behold, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut. I know that you have but little power, and yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name… Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth. I am coming soon. Hold fast to what you have, so that no one may seize your crown. The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God.” Revelation 3:10-12

WITHOUT REPENTANCE SALVATION IS NOT POSSIBLE

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Kirk Cameron and Ray Comfort discuss what is being preached in churches today. In the main, it is a man-made Gospel promising happiness, and other good things in this life, no mention is made of God’s requirement of righteousness. Jesus talks about this church in Revelation 3, the church of Laodicea. People need to know that they need God’s forgiveness. Kirk wisely challenges people’s consciousness (knowing right and wrong) that God has given to all of us.

Kirk Cameron has some tense moments during evangelism with some gang members. This episode talks about how the reason a sinner responds to the gospel determines whether or not he continues in his faith. Multitudes are not getting the true gospel, because of a lack of understanding when it comes to this principle.

We know in the last days that people who think they are saved will be left behind at the Rapture of the Saints to experience the wrath of God with the Trumpet and Bowl judgements. In Revelation, the Church of Laodicea represents the church that will be left behind at the rapture of the Saints.

‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see.“ Revelation 3:15-18

Those left behind on earth to experience the wrath of God still have an opportunity to repent as the following Scripture shows. They will see Jesus and the Saints being taken up to heaven and know that they did not die to self, so they could be born again by the Holy Spirit. You cannot be a Christian without the Holy Spirit. He produces the fruit of the Spirit in a Christian’s life and He is the one who provides the gifts of the Spirit for ministry.

“Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me. The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” Revelation 3:19-22

HILLSONG

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Hillsong Church’s International Ministry Director Darren Kitto claimed he would need to cover nearly $50,000 in pool expenses in 2018 as part of a $125,000 housing allowance for a Newport Beach, California, home he purchased in the Santa Ana Heights neighborhood for $1.85 million that features a “portable spa.”

The details on Kitto’s housing allowance claim for 2018 were highlighted in a trove of documents first made public on March 9 by Andrew Wilkie, an independent member of the Australian Parliament, thanks to the work of a whistleblower.

Last days church: what did Jesus have to say about the church that is left behind after the rapture of the Saints.

“‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.” Revelation 3:15-19

TIME TO TRUST GOD WITH YOUR LIFE

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This is an important message from Torben Sondergaard (thelastreformation.com) and it will challenge many Christians as to what it means to be obedient to God’s call on our lives. He exposes the truth about much of the church in America. There is so much lukewarmness in the church – it is the church of Laodicea,

“I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come into him and eat with him, and he with me. The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” Revelation 3:15-22

Torben is right, he says it is time to be serious with God, time is short, so it ultimately comes down to, do we trust God for the next step. If you do, life will be exciting beyond belief but make no mistake it will also be challenging. Thank goodness we have people like Torben who are leading the way and giving us an example to follow.