FACING SIN REALISTICALLY AND HONESTLY

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“Sin will take you further than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, cost you more than you would ever want to pay.’ This quote was made by Ravi Zacharias.

In the Bible we have the story of King David as a perfect example of the truth of Ravi’s words. Starting with neglecting his duty by not being with his army during a significant battle, then adultery, betrayal, deceit and ending up with murder.

I wonder, now, if Ravi didn’t speak these words as an echo of his own broken soul. I think he was a man who wanted to honour God with his life. But he was also a man in whose heart sin had wreaked all kinds of havoc and Ravi had somehow justified his behaviour in his own mind.

Sadly, this is a common pattern for many ministry leaders today. They enter into ministry as normal men with flaws, sin patterns, and areas in need of sanctification, just like anyone else. They are trained to understand and exposit the Bible, to lead the church, and to build the ministry. And, along the way, the institution assumes their personal, emotional, and sexual health are all growing at the same pace as their ministry capability. 

The truth is; that their soul—like all of ours—is still desperately in need of being discipled and trained into wholeness and holiness. The only catch is, for the leader, this permission—this pathway—does not exist. Once the leader is in place, the institution expects him or her to have it all together and to lead his congregation well, and certainly not struggle with sexual sin. And if they do? Well then, at this point, the easiest thing to do is hide it or lie about it. The environment that has been created in Christian ministry inadvertently encourages the leader to perform well and hide the negative issues of their personal life.

Nearly 100 years ago, German Theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer wisely stated:

“The pious fellowship permits no one to be a sinner. So everybody must conceal his sin from himself and from the fellowship. We dare not be sinners. Many Christians are unthinkably horrified when a real sinner is suddenly discovered among the righteous. So we remain alone with our sin, living in lies and hypocrisy. The fact is that we are all sinners.” (Bonhoeffer, Life Together, p. 110. HarperOne, 1954.)

In the following scripture, David tells us of the consequences of hiding our sin it adversely affects our body and how we function.

“For when I kept silent (about my sin), my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer. Selah
I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,” and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah” Psalms 32:3-5

Every leader needs to have mentors, a place of true accountability. True accountability means that the leader has a safe, trusted group of peers they purposefully choose to go to with everything.

Culturally, even within the church, the following questions are never addressed. Why is our sexuality holy? Why is gender important? Why does intercourse illustrate the same kind of oneness God desires to have with us? Why is marriage sacred? Why is repentance so important?

Parents also need to understand a 15 year-long conversation about sex is far more effective than several “talks” at various stages of life. There is no shame or embarrassment in talking about something God created.

“Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea.” Mark 9:42

YOU NEED TO KNOW JESUS

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“For this reason God highly exalted Him and gave Him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow — of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth — and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Philippians 2:9-11

JESUS MILLENNIAL KINGDOM IS COMING (This Kingdom by Geoff Bullock)

VERSE 1: Jesus, God’s righteousness revealed, The Son of Man, The Son of God, His Kingdom comes, Jesus, Redemption’s sacrifice, Now glorified, Now justified, His Kingdom comes.

CHORUS: And this Kingdom will know no end, And it’s glory shall know no bounds, For the majesty and power of this Kingdom’s King has come, And this Kingdom’s reign, And this Kingdom’s rule, And this Kingdom’s power and authority, Jesus, God’s righteousness revealed.

VERSE 2: Jesus, The expression of God’s love, The Grace of God, The Word of God Revealed to us, Jesus, God’s Holiness displayed, Now glorified, Now justified, His Kingdom comes

CHORUS: And this Kingdom will know no end, And it’s glory shall know no bounds, For the majesty and power of this Kingdom’s King has come, And this Kingdom’s reign, And this Kingdom’s rule, And this Kingdom’s power and authority, Jesus, God’s righteousness revealed.

BRINGING CLARITY TO THE GOSPEL

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The book of Genesis is foundational to the entire Bible. Jesus and all of the New Testament writers considered the Old Testament as true history and foundational to all that they wrote. The foundational doctrines are all established in Genesis, origin of man, nature of man (made in the image of God), sin, death, marriage, God’s judgement of mankind with the worldwide flood of Noah’s day, origin of God’s nation Israel and its purpose. Jesus and the N.T writers all quoted from Genesis.

Did you know that having clarity about the opening chapters of Genesis (i.e. clarity about origins) brings clarity to the Gospel itself? It’s true! Thus, one of the enemy’s tactics is to spread a fog of compromise over the Bible’s account of origins. Learn how we can detect wolves in sheep’s clothing—who are distorting God’s Word—and why compromising ideas such as theistic evolution, the gap theory, day-age theory, the framework hypothesis, and progressive creation, obscure the plain gospel message.

Dr Mark Harwood of Creation Ministries does a great job of bringing clarity to the Gospel by addressing these compromising views of Genesis. As I have explained many times on this website, fulfilled prophecy proves the Bible is the inerrant word of God. Moreover, CMI and many PhD scientists such as Dr Mark Harwood on http://www.creation.com show clearly that the physical evidence of the world, particularly for a worldwide flood, supports a young earth history of this world. His presentation runs for about 45 minutes. The balance is Q & A. and explanation of the resources that are available from CMI.

THE W.E.C. GREAT RESET-FORERUNNER TO MYSTERY BABYLON AND THE MARK OF THE BEAST

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Klaus Schwab and the World Economic Forum define the Great Reset in terms of the convergence of economic, monetary, technological, medical, genomic, environmental, military, and governance systems. The Great Reset would involve vast transformations in each of these domains, changes which, according to Schwab, will not only alter our world but also lead us to “question what it means to be human.” In terms of economics and monetary policy, the Great Reset would involve a consolidation of wealth, on the one hand, and the likely issuance of universal basic income (UBI) on the other. It will invariably include a shift to a digital currency, including a consolidated centralization of banking and bank accounts, immediate real-time taxation, negative interest rates, and centralized surveillance and control over spending and debt.

While every aspect of the Great Reset involves technology, the Great Reset specifically entails “the Fourth Industrial Revolution,” or transhumanism, which includes the expansion of genomics, nanotechnology, and robotics and their penetration into human bodies and brains.

Of course, the fourth Industrial Revolution involves the redundancy of human labour in increasing sectors, to be replaced by automation. But moreover, Schwab hails the use of nanotechnology and brain scans to predict and pre-empt human behaviour. The Great Reset means the issuance of medical passports, soon to be digitized, as well as the transparency of medical records inclusive of medical history, genetic makeup, and disease states.
They indicate it could include the implanting of microchips (Mark of the Beast) that would read and report on genetic makeup and brain states such that even crossing a national border might one day involve a detailed brain scan to assess an individual’s security risk

In terms of governance, the Great Reset means increasingly centralized, coordinated, and expanded government and “governmentalities,” the convergence of corporations and states, and the digitalization of governmental functions, including, with the use of 5G and predictive algorithms, real-time tracking and surveillance of bodies in space or the “anticipatory governance” of human and systems behaviour.

Suffice it to say for now that the WEF envisions a bio-techno-feudalist global order, with socioeconomic planners and corporate “stakeholders” at the helm and the greater part of humanity in their thrall.

The mass of humanity, the planners would have it, will live under an economic stasis of reduced expectations, with individual autonomy greatly curtailed if not utterly obliterated. As Mises suggested, such planners are authoritarians who mean to supplant the plans of individual actors with their own, centralized plans.

Is the United Nations about to become the One World Government ruled by global billionaires? Will this be Mystery Babylon of Rev 17-18?

The World Economic Forum is driving this process right now with help from Bill Gates and the Rockefeller Foundation. Our Governments know it and don’t oppose it. Once it assumes power, how does the United Nations match the biblical prophecies of Mystery Babylon? What will be its capital city? Watch this Nelson Walters video to discover our future.

RACIAL RECONCILIATION THROUGH FORGIVENESS IS NOT ON OFFER OUTSIDE OF THE GOSPEL

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In relation to the question of race, we need to consider the secular mindset of today’s racial illuminati. They employ the categories of guilt and innocence but apart from a conviction that God has dealt with universal guilt by the sacrifice of his innocent Son. Therefore, whites are guilty because they are white; blacks innocent because they are black.

Redemption and reconciliation through forgiveness is not on offer, only perpetual repentance on the part of one group.

For most of the last two thousand years Christians have believed that God deals with nations as nations and enters into closer relations with societies that claim him as Lord. This belief in the national covenant, only recently out of fashion, is where Frederick Douglass, Abraham Lincoln, and Martin Luther King, Jr. turned when faced with such questions in their own time.

This anthology, Race and Covenant explores the theme of national covenant in scripture, history, and contemporary American society as well as the theology and practices of covenant communities. Its authors suggest new strategies for finding racial reconciliation in this troubled time.

Featuring contributions from W.B. Allen, Joshua Berman, Timothy George, Derryck Green, Alveda C. King, Glenn C. Loury, Gerald R. McDermott, Joshua Mitchell, Evan Musgraves, Osvaldo Padilla, James M. Patterson, Jacqueline C. Rivers, R. Mitchell Rocklin, Robert Smith, Jr., Carol M. Swain, Mark Tooley, and Robert L. Woodson, Sr.

This stirring passage from Derryck Green’s contribution itself commends the book:

Blacks have been systematically targeted, attacked, hurt, and damaged. Slavery and segregation, while not unique to America, were evil. They were sins against the national covenant, and these sins have been massive impediments to the peace and unity which most blacks and whites seek. The residual of white racial chauvinism, though legally outlawed, continues to guide far too many hearts and minds. Some black anger and resentment are therefore understandable; some are not. But it doesn’t matter. Jesus was very clear that the obligation of his followers is to upend the normal cycle of reciprocating anger, antipathy, and hostility. As his disciples, black folks in the churches must initiate reconciliation, and that begins with forgiveness.

Extracted from article Race, Covenant, and Forgiveness by James F Keating in The Catholic Thing, Saturday July 10th, 2021

THE HUMAN WILL

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Are you saved and have eternal life? If so, it is entirely of God’s grace. Are you lost and destined for a second death? It is entirely of your own will.

“You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.“ John 5:39-40

The following Scripture makes God’s position clear, He desires that all would be saved.

“I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Saviour, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” 1 Timothy 2:1-4

The human will must ever be taken into account, and never must we place the God of all grace, whose very name is Love, in the position of being the unwilling One. and we the willing.

You decide your fate: eternal life with your Saviour and Creator or a second death in the Lake of Fire.

“But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.” Revelation 21:8

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away,… Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” Revelation 21:1-4

LIVING ETERNAL NOW

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All that is not eternal is eternally out of date,’ said C. S. Lewis. It is one of those fresh and startling comments from Lewis that made him notable.

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Available on Amazon as a trade paperback or eBook.

However, we live in a world that is increasingly moving away from God and His Instruction Manual, His Commandments. A world controlled by unbelievers that have no concept or interest in eternity. The here and now is all that matters. It appears that the Prince of the World is reigning supreme. Thankfully, God has revealed in His history book, the Bible, that He allows mankind to be dysfunctional for a time, but He calls His children to be part of the Kingdom of God and to pray that His will may eventually be done on earth as it is in heaven. Even the smallest acts of kindness that we do here on earth has eternal significance.

“And whoever gives one of these little ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple, truly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward.” Matthew 10:42

It is God’s bigger picture which enables us to live better in our own little picture. This is how John Wesley pictured the world: “I seek another country, and therefore am content to be a wanderer upon earth. More graphically, he wrote: ‘I desire to have both heaven and hell ever in my eye, while I stand on this isthmus of life, between these two boundless oceans’.“

The Bible reveals that indeed God’s will, will be done on earth when Jesus returns to earth to fulfill the covenants He made with the nation Israel. The nation He established for His purposes. Jesus will rule and reign the nations on this earth for one thousand years. It is only after His Millennial reign that this earth will pass away. Then, after the second resurrection and the White Throne judgement God creates a new heaven and earth.

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away… And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.” Revelation 21:1-3

Since the Fall, this world has always been in a state of rebellion and dislocation. The result: Hitler, Marx and Mao to name a few of the madmen in my lifetime. Augustine of Hippo described unbelievers as those who are left to ‘wander in a circuitous maze finding neither entrance nor exit.’ To the lost unbeliever, Utopia is always elusive – one problem is replaced by another and yet another.

In many places there is near-panic about Covid-19 and the possibility of death. God uses catastrophes such as this to challenge unbelievers and provide Saints with opportunities to give them the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. 1 John 2:15-17

GREAT TEACHING ON THE HEART BY LEADING CARDIOLOGIST

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Great testimony and teaching from Dr Sam on our heart attitude towards things of this world and God. Dr Sam learned the hard way as he made becoming a doctor the idol he worshipped most and it was not until he cast that idol aside in favour of God, did God open up the door for him to become not only a doctor but a leading cardiologist.

I almost did not post his testimony as Dr Sam has got the timing of The Rapture wrong, but his testimony is so good I have posted it regardless. Dr Sam has The Rapture occurring before the last seven years (70th week of Daniel) before Jesus returns to earth with the Saints to rescue Israel at the battle of Armageddon. However, as most of you would know, I contend that the Bible makes it clear we go through the tribulation period but God does not pour out His wrath upon the Saints and that His wrath is poured out when the scroll is opened with the Trumpet and Bowl judgements. God uses the tribulation, even great tribulation which occurs during the seals being opened to sort the wheat from the chaff, The hot from the cold and the lukewarm. It will only be the overcomers that are taken up at the Rapture. It will occur with the trumpet blast at the opening of the seventh seal. The church of Philadelphia is taken up but the church of Laodicea is left behind. Each church represents the church during each year of the seven years as do the seals. The seventh seal heralds the Rapture and the Wrath of God being poured out on an unrepentant world for one year and ten days. Jesus said His return would be like the days of Noah and it will be in terms of lawlessness but also the wrath of God in Noah’s day lasted one year and ten days.

CHURCH OF PHILADELPHIA: “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

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… Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.” Revelation 3:15-17,19

HOW SATAN WORKS

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John Cooper of the successful band Skillet described the man, who was an agent of Satan, as well as a music agent, a promoter and a businessman who was a “mover and shaker.” 

“And he said, ‘It’s your time, John, but you have got to disassociate from Christianity. You’ve got to stop talking about Jesus so much. … Don’t do Christian interviews. Don’t do Christian music festivals. If people ask you what your songs are about, I’m not telling you to lie. Just don’t offer up the information about Jesus,’” he continued.

“Then he said something else. And this is what got me, and this is what I think is interesting,” Cooper continued, he said, ‘But John, think about the good you could do for your faith. If you got rich and famous, think about what you could do for Jesus, if you stop talking about Jesus.’“

Cooper said that phrase was the “turning point” of his career.

“I went to the bus. I told my wife about the conversation. We prayed about it. And it was … almost instantaneous. I knew that that is not the Lord. It was from the enemy, Satan. He was trying … to get me to be quiet, and it had the opposite effect.”

A decade later, Skillet is now a Grammy Award-nominated, multi-platinum band. Cooper has a popular YouTube series in which he is very outspoken about his faith and shares his thoughts about current events.

In an episode of Abby Johnson’s podcast “Politely Rude” released in August, Cooper revealed the motivation behind his boldness. He said he was shocked to find that many people no longer believe in absolute truth and called the changes unfolding in culture “scary.” 

“We need to be extremely vigilant about the Word of God,” he emphasized. “We need to be extremely vigilant about what the Bible says because if we are not, then we will begin to read the Bible with that same sort of relativism. And when you do that, you’re not starting from a premise that the Word of God is absolute, that God’s Word is supreme.”

“What happens in relativism is you say, ‘No, I am supreme. My feelings are supreme. My experience is the brain. I can find truth in my heart,’” Cooper added. “Then I look through that filter at the Word of God, and then I shape the Word of God to meet my needs. So we need to be extremely vigilant about this because it is wrecking Christianity.

JESUS RETURN TO THIS EARTH IS NEAR

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When Jesus was asked by His disciples about the end times and His return to this earth:

“Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age? Matthew 24:3

The following two paragraphs are just a sample of the detail Jesus gave them in His response entitled the Olivet Discourse.

“And Jesus answered them, “See that no one leads you astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray. And you will hear of wars and rumours of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. 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. 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 24:4-14

Jesus does not paint a “rosy/joyous” picture to attract followers. Why would anyone want to follow Him when this is their fate? It should challenge the sceptic as to Jesus authenticity. In addition, what Jesus prophesied is in fact unfolding in our time. Fulfilled Biblical prophecy proves the Bibles authenticity.

This idea that Jesus’ second coming is imminent is found throughout Scripture. The following scripture tells us not only to wait for Jesus second coming but also that He will deliver us from the wrath to come.

“and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.” 1 Thessalonians 1:10

This scripture reinforces that Jesus is coming again to deliver us from a time of affliction.

“and to grant relief to you who are afflicted as well as to us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels.” 2 Thessalonians 1:7

The following two scriptures address the purpose of His first coming and the blessed hope we have for His second coming. The second scripture also covers His promise to deliver Israel from its enemies.

“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ,” Titus 2:11-13

“so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.” Hebrews 9:28

Expecting Jesus to return should make us watchful, diligent in our faith, and eager to live holy lives in preparation to rule and reign with Jesus in His Millennial Kingdom.

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“For Zion’s sake will I not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth.
And the Gentiles shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy glory: and thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of the Lord shall name.” Isaiah 62:1-2 The name of the city from that day shall be, The Lord is there.” Ezekiel 48:35

“Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.” Revelation 20:6

You need to start thinking about the role Jesus will assign to you during His Millennial reign on this earth. Remember, Jesus and the Saints will rule with a rod of iron. Satan is bound for most of the Millennium but God has revealed that he will be released at the end and he is able to assemble an enormous army from people who have been born during the Millennium to come against Jesus and the Saints. “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick;
who can understand it?” Jeremiah 17:9

“And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.” Revelation 20:7-9