WHAT IS THE LEVEL OF YOUR FAITH?

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A.W. Tozer wrote, “The man of pseudo faith will fight for his verbal creed but refuse flatly to allow himself to get into a predicament where his future must depend upon that creed being true. He always provides himself with secondary ways of escape so he will have a way out if the roof caves in. What we need very badly these days is a company of Christians who are prepared to trust God as completely now as they know they must do at the last day (facing death).”

Sadly, Jesus tells us that in the last days before His return when persecution of Christians increases there will be a great falling away/apostasy, and those with pseudo faith will not endure. Already we are seeing institutional churches compromising with the world on issues such as homosexual pastors, gay marriage, and now transgenderism. Every age has its defectors, but the falling away at the end times will be extensive and worldwide. The whole planet will be in rebellion against God and His Christ. Every coup requires a leader, and into this global apostasy will step the Antichrist.

“Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed (Antichrist), the son of perdition” 2 Thessalonians 2:3

“Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared ” 1 Timothy 4:1-3

“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.” Matthew 24:9-12

We should not be surprised, persecution comes with the territory of being a Christian and living out our faith.

“Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.” 2 Timothy 3:13

The Parable of the Sower is also relevant here: The seed that fell on the rocky ground in the time of testing fell away. “And the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe for a while, and in time of testing fall away.” Luke 8:13

MOST ADULTS SAY BELIEF IN GOD IS NOT NECESSARY TO HAVE MORAL VALUES

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Adults in more than a dozen countries say it’s not necessary to believe in God to lead moral lives or have good values, according to a recent study. 

The majority of respondents were based in secular Western European countries of Sweden (90%), France (77%), the United Kingdom (76%), the Netherlands (76%), Spain (74%), Belgium (69%), Italy (68%), Germany (62%) and Greece (60%). Most respondents in other countries located outside Western Europe but still considered to be part of Western civilization, including Australia (85%), Canada (73%), and the United States (65%), also maintained that a belief in God is not necessary to “be moral and have good values.” Majorities of respondents in the Eastern European nations of Poland (67%) and Hungary (63%), which have governments sympathetic to traditional values and religion, said the same.

People in Israel and Singapore were more evenly divided on the question, with 50% and 54% of those surveyed, respectively, saying that a belief in God was a prerequisite for morality and having good values. Malaysia, a Muslim country, was the only country where the overwhelming majority of participants (78%) saw belief in God as necessary for leading a moral life with good values.

In the U.S., those who believe religion is not important (92%) and the religiously unaffiliated (88%) were most likely to view a belief in God as unnecessary for living a moral life and having good values. Majorities of all subgroups based on partisan identification, education level, gender, and age group indicated that a belief in God was not necessary to live a moral life. Even among those who described religion as “important” to them, a narrow majority (51%) suggested that a moral life is possible in the absence of a belief in God.

If God does not exist then how do we know what is good or bad or right or wrong? To say that something is objective is to say that it is independent of what people say or think, e.g. the Holocaust was objectively wrong even though the Nazis thought it right. To say that there are objective moral values is to say that something is good or evil independently of whether or not any human believes it to be so.

The atheist Richard Dawkins says, “There is at bottom no design, no purpose, no evil, no good, nothing but pointless indifference… we are machines for propagating DNA… It is every living object’s sole reason for being.”

Without God, there is no basis for the objective moral values that do exist.

Paul wrote about “liars whose consciences are seared” (1 Tim. 4:2 ESV). What did he mean? What is a seared conscience? For that matter, what is the conscience? Our conscience is given by God; the inner voice that inflicts us with feelings of guilt when we have sinned.

“They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them on that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus.” Romans 2 :15-16

If you want proof that we are living in the prophesied last days before Jesus returns these Poll results are just one of the prophesied signs being revealed in our day.

“But understand this, that in the last days, there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth.” 2 Timothy 3:1-7

“For in those days, there will be such tribulation as has not been from the beginning of the creation that God created until now and never will be. And if the Lord had not cut short the days, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, whom he chose, he shortened the days.” Mark 13:19-20

MANY CHURCH GOERS WILL CHOOSE APOSTASY

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Jesus tells us that faced with the choice of persecution unto death or apostasy, many churchgoers will, unfortunately, choose apostasy. They will deny Jesus is the son of God and live for a short period of time longer than their faithful brothers. In both Luke and Matthew, we learn they will even betray their brothers and sisters who remain faithful. This is a horrible and almost unthinkable situation. Jesus says the love of “many” will become cold. I believe the parable of the ten virgins reveals that as many as 50% of people in our churches are not born again and they will choose apostasy rather than martyrdom. At greatest risk may be those people who were expecting to be “snatched away” in a Pre-Tribulation Rapture.

“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.“

Do you trust God enough to be with you through whatever He calls you to do even martyrdom? Do you remember what happened when Stephen was stoned to death?

But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. And he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God… And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.” Acts 7:55-56, 59-60

In the following passage in Philippians, Paul builds on Jesus’s instructions to be fearless in the face of persecution. First, he admonishes Christians to stand firmly together. It is this unity in faith that accomplishes God’s goal. Standing firm in persecution, a unified Church is living in a manner worthy of the gospel. Earlier Paul states that “to live is Christ, to die is gain” (Phil. 1:21). If we truly believe that Gospel message, what will we fear? When persecutors see Christians standing in absolute faith that a better life and reward is coming, it is a witness to the persecutors of both their coming judgment and the sure salvation of God. This is God’s battle plan. How many millions of our opponents will see this and be converted by this faithful act of witness?

“Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God. For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake, engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have.” Philippians 1:27-30

ABANDONMENT OF OBJECTIVE TRUTH AND COMMON SENSE

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Why are people so hostile to the idea of objective truth? They are deeply hostile to the thought of anything that in any sense stands in judgement over them. The idea toward which they are most hostile is, of course, the idea of there being a God. But they are almost as hostile to the idea of there being an objective universe that doesn’t care what they think and could make their most cherished beliefs false.

The abandonment of common sense is exactly because of our deep-seated desire to not have anything, not even an impersonal universe, be in the position of judging us, our actions, or our beliefs. And so to avoid this, we reject common sense in favor of the fancy of theory (e.g. Evolution and random chance as a means of creating this universe of order and complexity beyond our understanding), yet in doing so we confirm not theory, but Biblical revelation itself, particularly “end times” prophecies of what the world will be like prior to Jesus second coming.

“ For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and wickedness of men who by their wickedness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. Ever since the creation of the world his invisible nature, namely, his eternal power and deity, has been clearly perceived in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse; for although they knew God they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking and their senseless minds were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man or birds or animals, or reptiles. Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves. because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.

For this reason, God gave them up to dishonorable passions. Their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural, and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in their own persons the due penalty for their error. And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a base mind and to improper conduct. They were filled with all manner of wickedness, evil, covetousness, and malice. Full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, and malignity, they are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Though they know God’s decree that those who do such things deserve to die, they not only do them but approve those who practice them.” Romans 1:18-32 (RSV)

I have included this video but would caution you that it is almost 2 hours long and the content is deep and complex. Jordan is seeking the truth but as yet I doubt He has committed his life to our Lord Jesus Christ. I say that because he makes no mention of the Holy Spirit, nor does Peter Kreeft for that matter. Jesus made it possible for our Heavenly Father to send the Holy Spirit to indwell our spirit so that we can live a Christian life. The Holy Spirit is our counsellor, comforter, and teacher. He produces the fruit of the Spirit (9) in our lives and provides gifts of the Spirit for ministry (9). Once we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour, He provides the means for us to be Christian by providing the third person of the Trinity to empower us.

Dr. Peter Kreeft and Dr. Jordan B Peterson discuss spiritual endeavor, delving deep into where we came from as a religious species, where we are now in the age of technology, and how we combat hedonism with personal sacrifice. Dr. Kreeft is a professor in the field of Philosophy and teaches at Boston College and King’s College in New York. When Dr. Kreeft was a student, he was asked to examine Catholicism which led to his conversion. He’s written more than eighty books on the subject, such as “Handbook of Christian Apologetics” and “Socrates Meets Jesus.” He gives us many gems of wisdom.

THE LIE OF PSYCHOLOGY

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Dave Hunt takes a wrecking ball to the lie that Psychology is somehow “scientific” and useful to the Christian. He proves that Psychology is nothing more than a sham sold to Christendom by seducing spirits. Where are the pastors with the courage to speak up about this widespread deception?

Dave spoke the following words at least 30 years ago.

“To avoid the seduction that is at the heart of apostasy, we must be able to distinguish the voice of Christ through His Word from the confusing mixture of truth and error that is spoken in His name,” Hunt wrote in Seduction of Christianity written in 1985. He added “Those who would escape the growing seduction must get back to the Bible and know what they believe and why, rather than succumbing to the temptation of accepting facile answers provided by so-called ‘experts.‘”

FALSE PROPHETS AND TEACHERS IN THE LAST DAYS

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Some of the most popular preaching in America presents a message of positive thinking. The alternative Gospel of Joel Osteen and the prosperity preachers, Copeland, Hinn, Hagan, Meyer, Hickey, Price, Roberts Hagee, Tilton, Koontz, and sadly many others, forgo the cross and advises us to merely “do our best.” At its heart, this is pure legalism of the worst variety. In this message, Dr. John MacArthur examines the alternative gospel of the prosperity preachers and explains why legalism-lite is still legalism. This message is from MacArthur’s 2010 West Coast Conference, “Christless Christianity” and is an end-times sign.

CHRISTIANITY WITHOUT CHRIST

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Have we arrived at a Christianity without Christ? Find out with guest Dennis Pollock and Tim Moore of the Lamb & Lion Ministries evangelism team as they provide their Prophetic Perspectives.

Lamb & Lion Ministries was founded in 1980 by Dr David Reagan as a non-denominational, independent ministry. The Ministry does not seek to convert people to any particular church. Rather, it seeks to lift up Jesus and draw people to Him as Lord and Saviour.

The Ministry was established for the purpose of proclaiming the soon return of Jesus. We do not believe it is possible to know the date when Jesus will return. But we do believe it is possible to know the season of the Lord’s return, and it is our conviction that we are living in that season. As all of my followers know this is also my calling.

2% OF MILLENNIALS HOLD A BIBLICAL WORLD VIEW

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Although 61% of American millennials consider themselves to be Christian, just 2% of them were found to hold a biblical worldview, according to a recent study released by the Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University.

A biblical worldview, as previously defined by Barna, includes believing that absolute moral truths exist, and that such truth is defined by the Bible, as well as firm belief in six specific religious views. Those views are that Jesus Christ lived a sinless life; God is the all-powerful and all-knowing Creator of the universe and He stills rules it today; salvation is a gift from God and cannot be earned; Satan is real; a Christian has a responsibility to share their faith in Christ with other people; and the Bible is accurate in all of its teachings.

Considering the American Worldview Inventory 2020 study found that only 6% of American adults, in general, hold a biblical worldview, the fact millennials (18- to 36-year-olds) were at 2% is not surprising. Moreover, it helps to explain the degree of lawlessness erupting across the country.

Even a rudimentary understanding of the foundations of the American republic reminds us that unless the United States maintains spiritual unity under the hand of God, it will not be able to sustain the freedoms that have made the nation unique and desirable. The heart and soul of the nation pursue other gods and beliefs to its detriment as a nation. 

The existing church has not been able to stop the decline that has been evident over the last decade, the war is over and an escalation of persecution of believers is a forgone conclusion. As could be expected, God is raising up His church as described in the Book of Acts. Holy Spirit led leaders such as Francis Chan understood the call of God in this regard. For the past nine years, his family has been in San Francisco, where they started “We Are Church,” which has grown to 25 pastors. No buildings or paid pastors.

Francis is now in Hong Kong reaching out to the unsaved in countries such as Myanmar (Burma) and is seeing God work miracles as he never saw in his church of 5000 in California.

Francis Chan, joined by others in his Crazy Love Ministries, pray on a summer vision trip in Hong Kong.
Francis Chan, joined by others in his Crazy Love Ministries, pray on a summer vision trip in Hong Kong. (Courtesy of Kevin Kim)

CHURCHES UNDER PERSECUTION

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What will churches do as persecution intensifies exactly as prophesied in God’s Word? Sadly, we already know, the majority will compromise with the world and its values. Most of the major denominational churches have already accepted homosexuality, transgender and gay marriage.

We can learn from the past; during the days of Nazi Germany there arose a Confessing Church Movement that separated from the churches that became the religious arm of the Fascist Nazi socialist movement. Of the 18,000 pastors in Germany during that time (1933- 1945) less than 5,000 were aligned with the Confessing Church which came under intense persecution.

Hence, only a remnant held fast to the biblical position, with most of the churches conforming due to political and societal pressure. Unfortunately, this demonstrates that when push comes to shove, a large percentage of pastors, churches and so-called Christians will bow to pressure and allow the norms of culture to become their credo for Christianity.

Hitler said, “You can do anything you want with pastors, they will submit. They are insignificant little people, submissive as dogs and they will sweat with embarrassment when you talk to them” (Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy, Eric Metaxas, 180). This sounds like some of the contemporary pastors in Western culture who always acquiesce to cultural “group think.”

We see this in churches in the USA, my own country Australia, and beyond. With the accelerated pace of the attack on religious liberty today, there will develop a great divide in the church between confessing churches and compromising churches similar to what happened in Nazi Germany. This will not be a divide based on denominational affiliation but based on the degree of loyalty to biblical fidelity. It is sad but true that more and more so called Christians will compromise core biblical values and standards rather than be stigmatized or persecuted and lose influence in society.

Fulfilled prophecies are proof the Bible is the inspired Word of God

In John 12:42-43 we see that many contemporaries of Jesus believed in Him but would not confess Him because they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.

“Nevertheless, many even of the authorities believed in him, but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God.” John 12:42-34

END TIMES: GREAT FALLING AWAY IN THE CHURCH

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Can we tell in advance who is going to be part of the Great Falling Away, The Apostasy? Can we anticipate apostasy in our church by observing the actions and beliefs of churchgoers? Based on what the Bible tells us, the answer is YES. Churchgoers may act like they believe, but remember Jesus said, “Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ Matthew 7:22

Watch this Nelson Walters YouTube Video to find the answers.