Saturday, August 24, 2013

The last days for the Church - us - doesn't look too good.

The last days for the Church - us - doesn't look too good.

We've talked a lot about false teachers, cults, false prophets etc and how there are so many false teaching these days. We've talked about the great lie and how many unbelievers will be deceived by the antichrist during the tribulation. We often talk about how unbelievers are deceived. But we haven't talked about something that's become quite obvious to me lately.

If you read 2 Timothy 3:1-9 and other scriptures like it that talk about what it will be like during the last days, there's one thing that seems to escape our attention...who is being deceived. It's the Christian's Paul's talking about here, not unbelievers! That's why they'll "have a form of godliness but deny it's power". It's part of why Jesus asks if He will find anyone with faith when He returns. (Luke 18:8) Yes, unbelievers are deceived - but then they've always been deceived. That's nothing new at all and certainly not noteworthy enough to warn us about. What is important enough to warn us about however, is that there will be many deceived Christians during our time.

I'm seeing this myself more and more the closer we get to the end of our age. Why now more-so then before? Simply because the end of the Church age draws near, at which time Satan will finally be allowed the power he so desperately wants. We know that, but we haven’t really thought about what it means to us. We see how Satan’s stepped up his programs and his schemes in every area of life in the news every day and talk about it. But we’re strangely silent about what he’s done to the church over all this time, except the false teachers and teachings.

He’s caused the world to fear death more then ever; to where people don’t like to even think about it much less talk about it. He’s also convinced the vast majority of people that death is the same for everyone – you just have to read one of the numerous near death experience books that have been published lately to learn that. The big things on people’s minds besides money is to look and feel younger no matter your age and no matter what you have to do to attain it. Anything to stave off death awhile longer. Right in line with that comes the world of medicine and all that they offer to help people “look and/or feel younger”. They have a pill for just about everything. And, if you’re one of those folks that don’t like to take medicine or don’t trust it; that’s ok, they’ve got so called “natural supplements” that will do the same thing only better for you!

When people are finally forced to think of death, when they have to attend a funeral, what do they hear? Do they hear a minister speak of the life to come for those who are saved and what will happen to those who aren’t? Very, very rarely! Usually they hear some junk about how the person will be another angel watching over their loved ones, and they’ll all live happily ever after – and that will be said over the worst criminal that has never known Christ except as a swear word!

Why is all of that so important today? Because this is the end. It’s the end of the age of Grace, the age of the Church and most of those who are saved don’t have any idea of what’s going to happen to them next or why! At the most, some might know about the rapture, but that’s about it for most folks. Many Christians seem to have the erroneous idea that everyone will be the same in heaven, no one will have more or less and that God won’t care about anything we’ve done or not done here anyway. All that’s going to be over, right? I’ve even heard Christians ask why they should bother studying the bible when they’ll know it all when they get to heaven anyway! Another erroneous idea from Satan, that we’ll all suddenly know everything. I feel tempted to explain that one as it’s one that’s been widely accepted, and show the scriptures that show this isn’t true, & explain the ones that people think “prove” it, but I’ve done that in a number of studies on the board already and that’s not what this is for, so I’ll refrain from that for now.

God is calling His Church to get ready! He’s been calling to us for quite some time now. I’ve said that over and over here many times. I’ve felt it deep in my soul and in my bones. Many of the things that Satan has beguiled the unsaved with, he’s also used against the Church. The vast majority of Christians, those truly saved, don’t know their bibles. They rarely if ever read them, much less study them. They’re much too busy with what they perceive as “life”…going to work, raising their children, doing the shopping, cleaning the house, and everything else that has to be done every day. In fact, their lives don’t look very different from the lives of their unsaved neighbors. While all those things do need to be taken care of, they should never come before or between us and our time with the Lord.

The bible tells us even in the Old testament that deception will rule during this time, and it tells us why, but really, it's as plain as the noses on our faces. It's because God's children don't know Him or His Word. They say they know Him (have a form of godliness) but they can't know Him or His Will well, if they don't know His Word.

I'm talking about people here in the US and other so called "civilized" countries where His Word is freely available to everyone. I'm not talking about people who live in some bush tribe somewhere that don't know how to read, and have never heard of a bible. God can save them too and they can get to know Him, though not as well as we can who have His Word.

The Lord tells us that from those who've been given much, He will demand much; (Luke 12:48 b) and we've been entrusted with His Word. I don't think there's anything more important then that. Therefore, He says much more will be asked of us. But that doesn't seem to bother most Christians for some reason. I can't for the life of me figure out why. Do they somehow think that the Lord is going to tell them, "Well done good and faithful servant" when they haven't opened His Word and studied it regularly with Him? Or do they think He tells everyone that regardless of whether or not they've obeyed Him? I was going to say they can't be reading the same bible I do if they think that, but then most aren't reading it at all, much less studying it.

Satan has lulled Christians to sleep and somehow gotten them to believe that it's not necessary to study His Word, much less do so daily, even though we’re commanded to do so. (See 2 Timothy 2:15 for starters, after which there are so many more scriptures I’ve never tried to count them all.) They think that if a bushman in the jungle can do without God’s Word, then so can they, but God doesn’t work that way.

I know Satan's scheme to do this included churches like the Catholic church who told the people they shouldn't read it for themselves for so long, but you'd think that since the reformation when Christians died for the privilege of reading God's Word, that lie wouldn't hold any water anymore. I know Satan's scheme has also included telling Christians that they can't understand God's Word by themselves, and that it's hard to read, which is yet more lies. I've seen that Satan is so determined to keep God's children away from His Word, that he uses deception, confusion, and distraction, (three of his favorite tools) not only about God’s Word, but about or with friends, family, and other members of the body of Christ, causing strife, to stop people from getting into God's Word.

If you read 2 Timothy 4, you see again that it's Christians that Paul is talking about, not unbelievers. Christians that don't want to hear the Truth. They don't want to hear God's Word period. Instead they want "self help sermons" on how to get rich and make it in this world. They want something short and easy to read. Quick, simple answers. They're not interested in really digging into God's Truth and studying it. Because they don't really study God's Word, but at most read "proof texts" their favorite authors give them, they're deceived.

So how to Christians become "lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God—"? (2 Timothy 3:2–4 ) By not reading and studying God's Word daily. It's that simple.

Amazing isn't it? How simple it really is for someone to turn their life around...study God's Word with Him daily and become more and more like Him; for His Word restores us, renews our minds, replacing Satan’s lies with His Truth, sanctifies us, makes the simple wise, gives us discernment, joy and so much more. And how simple it is as well, to walk about instead with a form of godliness but denying it's power, because we haven't studied His Word.

God is calling His Church to get ready! He’s been calling to us for quite some time now. I’ve said that over and over here many times. I’ve felt it deep in my soul and in my bones. Time was running short and I did my best to try and get people to open their bibles and study. With each passing month and year, it seemed as though there was even more pressure on me to try and get people to study their bibles. There’s a battle going on right now. A battle for the minds and hearts of those who are really saved. Satan doesn’t want anyone to be ready when the Lord calls us to come to Him and he’s putting everything he’s got into stopping us. The Lord is calling us to be ready because He’s coming to get us very, very soon. Time is shorter then ever now. Honestly, it feels like the door is starting to close (or open depending on how you look at it). There’s not much time left. Please Church! Get Ready! Don’t let Satan stop you!!! I beg you! Open that Bible and study it every day with the Lord you will be spending eternity with. No, there’s not much time left, but with the Lord as your teacher, time doesn’t matter. What matters is that we be obedient and do it!

Revelation 19:7–8 —Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. *Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.” (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.) *
John 8:31–32 —So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, *and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” *
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