Are Demons at Work Today?

The Bible has a lot to say about demons in both the Old and New Testament. In the Old Testament they're usually just called "evil spirits", and usually named "demons" in the New Testament. other names for them are "familiar spirits", unclean spirits, lying spirits, and principalities. Today I took a look at a great many passages that dealt with demonic possession or influence.  Once you begin reading them and writing down the symptoms each person had, it becomes very obvious that demons are alive and hard at work in our world today!  Let me give you some examples.  Remember that these are just examples and there are many more in the old Testament and even a some more in the New Testament. But this will give us more then enough to chew on for today. The Bible tells us that although all of these things can be cause by demon possession or demonic influence, they are not always caused by demons. People can get sick or do many of these things just because of our sin nature and/or because we live in a broken world. 

Demonic possession manifests itself in many ways: 

1. can’t speak, can’t hear, self harming, (Mark 9:17, Mark 9:18, 25; Matt. 9:32). 

2. can’t speak or see (Matt. 12:22). 

3. epilepsy, self harming, attempted suicide (Matt. 17:15, 18). 

4. great strength, insanity, cutting, self destruction, attempted suicide, screaming, going naked - inappropriate behavior, living in tombs or other inappropriate places, isolating, violent, (Matt 8:28–34; Mark 5:1–20; Luke 8:26–39) . 

5. convulsions, screaming, self harming, (Mark 1:26; 9:20). 

6. paralysis, screaming, cripples (like from a stroke) (Acts 8:7). 

7. high fever, Demons often manifest symptoms of diseases.. (Luke 4:38). However, not all physical problems are of demonic origin. In the Gospels illness and possession are often differentiated (cf. Mark 1:32, 34; 6:13; Matt. 4:24; 10:8; Luke 4:40–41; 9:1; 13:32).

8. harming others, (Acts 19:15–16). 

Also from the Old Testament: 

9. attempted murder, violence (1 Samuel 19:9–10 and many others). 

10. acting treacherously, (Judges 9:23). 

11. depression, (1 Samuel 16:14-16). 

12. prostitution, orgies, idolatry, murdering children, are all things that the people who worshipped idols (which are demons) did. When you worship a demon, they have a hold on you and cause you to do all these things and more. This is spoken about all though the OT, but I’m only going to list a couple that speak about it. (Deuteronomy 32:17, Ezekiel 16:15–21). 

Finally, back in the New Testament in Romans 1:21–32 we see a lot more of what demons cause in humans: 

13.  adultery, fornication, homosexuality and other perverted sexual acts, transvestites, trans genders, envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice, gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant, boastful, disobedient to parents, senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless, and finally filled with every kind of evil and wickedness.  

I'm sure you noticed as you read through this list that many things are repeated over and over. This whole list, and especially the last part may have made you think of another passage like it did for me, as it's very similar. This is the passage that speaks about what people will be like in the last days... the very times we're currently living in:  “But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be 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— having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.” (2 Timothy 3:1–5) 

So does this mean that we can blame all the horrible things that are happening today on demons and say it's not the fault of the persons themselves?  Absolutely not!  Demons can't influence or possess anyone who's not willing to allow it. Do you think that if we told people that these things could be caused by demons that the people would be horrified and quit doing them?  No, they'd just say we're crazy and continue, because they like their sins, and they like not being held accountable for them. That's why they pushed so hard for them to be normalized. I think the most we can say "in general" is that these things can be caused by demons, but also by our sin nature.  How can we tell the difference?  I honestly don't know for sure as I haven't tried to study that. What I do know though is that it doesn't matter what's causing it.  If we have a loved one that is described by these things, all we need to do is pray to our loving, and merciful God that He would save them and free them from Satan's clutches.  Another thing we can do is tell them to flee from sin like Joseph did (Genesis 39:10–12), resist it and draw near to God instead (James 4:7–8) and He will draw near to you. So we don't have to worry about figuring out whether it's demons, sin, or the world we live in that's causing these things to happen to people.  I just think it's good to know that demons are often involved when these things manifest.  Another way we could add to this study would be to look up the scriptures that speak about Satan and how he operates. That could give us more insight into what's going on today too. 

Knowing  all this, especially in the times we're living in, shows us that Satan and his demons are alive and well, and working as hard as they can to harm and kill as many people as they can, prevent people from being saved, and make as many who are saved as useless to God as they can. Mainly it reminds us that we are at war and need to stand firm in our faith and not fall prey to Satan's schemes. We can fight back by making sure we read and study God's Word daily, and so allow it to keep renewing our minds, apply the scriptures we read to our lives and pray constantly for the salvation of our loved ones and for ourselves to become more like Jesus daily. Most of all, don't allow this to cause you to fear. We have a friend who is much stronger than any demon or Satan, so we have no reason to fear as long as we know Him!  

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 15:13). 

Vaxxers, Anti-Vaxxers, and the Health of the Body

The way Michelle answers this question is a fantastic way for us to determine how we should respond to any debate or problem with another person we're having!


by Michelle Lesley

Q: I was wondering if you could help me work through this issue: some people at my church did not vaccinate their children. While I do see that people have very strong opinions about this issue, it creates a hazardous situation for some of the members. For example, a young expecting mom can not come and worship because she could contract measles from an unvaccinated child and put her unborn baby at risk. (Not a hypothetical, these are the doctor’s orders. She should not be around unvaccinated children.) The same goes for newborn babies and their families. I am wondering if I should speak to the pastor about this issue, since I believe that the anti-vaxxers act unlovingly towards those who cannot come and attend church until their children are vaccinated. However, I fear that it would cause division and divert the focus from Christ to political or medical issues.

A: To vaccinate, or not to vaccinate? It’s a tough issue to discuss these days. I have a strongly held position on vaccinations. I’m not going to share it because as you’ve aptly pointed out, that would do nothing but cause division and divert the focus of this article and my ministry from Christ and His Word to a far less important issue. I will say, though, that, my personal position on vaccinations aside, I miss the “good old days” – like 30 years ago – when this wasn’t an issue that had Christian women practically scratching each other’s eyes out. We really should be ashamed of that regardless of which side of the issue we’re on. As sisters in Christ, we can, and should, do better.

I’m not a medical professional, so if you clicked on this article looking for me to say, “Vaxxers/Anti-Vaxxers are right because…science,” I’m sorry, but you’re going to be disappointed. (You’ll also be disappointed if you came here to argue your position in the comments section. I won’t be posting argumentative or inflammatory comments from either side.) My priority is to address the biblical side of how individual Christians and our churches should approach this issue.

Being godly and obedient to Scripture is exponentially more important than your stance on vaccinations.

So let’s take a look at some biblical principles involved in the vaccination issue:

Is your stance on vaccinations an idol?

How strongly do you feel about vaccinating compared to how strongly you feel about evangelizing the lost? How much time do you spend talking about vaccinating compared to how much time you spend discussing Scripture with others? How much reading have you done about vaccinating compared to how much you read your Bible? Has your stance on vaccinations ever caused you to sin in thought, word, or deed?

Making decisions about your child’s health is, of course, important. But it is not anywhere near as important as the things of God, and it is certainly not more important than the things of God. Prayerfully reflect on the portion of your heart, soul, mind, and strength you invest in the vaccination issue. If it’s more heart, soul, mind, and strength than you invest in studying your Bible, prayer, evangelism, or attending and serving your church, then the vaccination issue has become an idol for you. Repent.

You shall have no other gods before me. Exodus 20:3

And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. Mark 12:30

Do you trust God’s sovereignty?

God is sovereign over life and death, sickness and health. The reason you are alive and reading this article is that it is not God’s will for you to be dead right this minute. If it were, you would be.

Think of all the stories you’ve heard of people who were practically religious about wellness, healthy eating, and exercise who dropped dead out of the blue in their 30’s or 40’s. Now think about the people who have lived into their hundreds. When the newspaper interviews them and asks about the secret to longevity, the centenarian inevitably responds with something about eating eggs and bacon and drinking a few beers every day. You can do everything “right” and still die young, and you can do everything “wrong” and live longer than most people. Even if the pregnant woman isn’t exposed to measles at church, she could be exposed at work, the store, the park, the post office, a restaurant, even her own husband or her other children could bring it home. And even if she is exposed, it’s not a foregone conclusion that her unborn child will be harmed. God is the one who decides all of that, not our own actions.

Should we be good stewards of our health and our bodies? Of course. Christians are to be good stewards of everything God gives us. But beyond being a good steward and making decisions as wisely as possible, the life and health of your child is in God’s hands, right where it belongs. If it is within God’s plan for your child to be healthy, your child will be healthy. If it is within God’s plan for your child to have an illness or disability, your child will have an illness or disability. And there’s nothing you can do about that except praise God in whatever situation He sends your way.

And let’s consider why we’re being good stewards and making wise decisions. Sometimes, without our even realizing it, fear of what might happen causes us to think that if we can get all our ducks in a row just right, we can ward off anything bad happening. It’s kind of a superstitious or even a prosperity gospel (“If I just do all the right things to appease God, He’ll protect me from what I fear.”) way of thinking.

Superstitious worry and fear are not to be our motive for stewardship and wise decision-making. Our motive should be honoring and obeying God in every aspect of our lives and then trusting the outcome to Him. There are health concerns with vaccinating and there are health concerns with not vaccinating. Whichever choice you make, you must trust God with the outcome of your child’s health, rather than trusting in your decision, the experts, studies, statistics, etc.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Proverbs 3:5-6

And he said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of Lord.” Job 1:21

What’s love got to do with it?

A major problem in the church today is that everybody thinks she gets to define what Christian love is. And most of the time that individualized definition is selfish or worldly or both. If Sister A says something or does something Sister B doesn’t like, Sister B accuses Sister A of being unloving.

No way. We don’t get to mishandle God’s Word and use it as a weapon or tool of manipulation against our brothers and sisters. That is wrong. If we’re going to accuse someone of being unloving, we’d certainly better make sure we’re using the Bible’s definition of love, not the world’s and not our own. And the Bible nearly always addresses the issue of Christian love not from the perspective of, “Is my sister in Christ being loving to me?” but “Am I being as loving to my sister as Christ is to me?” John 15:12-14 is Jesus’ example to us of this: This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.

Jesus’ instruction to the disciples is to give love, not to concern themselves with whether or not they’re receiving enough love from the other eleven.

Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you.

Who is about to lay down His life here? Jesus. And who are His friends? The disciples. Jesus is teaching them to focus on laying their lives down for others, not to expect others to lay down their lives for them.

The fact of the matter is that we’ve got to demonstrate selfless love to others even when they’re not demonstrating that kind of love to us.

By not vaccinating, are anti-vaxxers being unloving to fellow church members who can’t be around unvaccinated children? Are vaxxers being unloving toward anti-vax church members by accusing them of being unloving for not vaccinating their children? We need to be very careful here. The Bible does not address vaccinations, which means it’s not a sin to vaccinate and it’s not a sin not to vaccinate. That puts vaccinations in the category of adiaphora, or Christian liberty, to work out our own salvation and follow our own, biblically informed, consciences. It is a sin to violate your own conscience. So, if a sister in Christ has prayerfully searched the Scriptures and made a decision about vaccinations that is in keeping with her conscience, and you are insisting she do something that violates her conscience (or you’re saying she’s unloving for refusing to violate her conscience), who is the one who’s really being unloving here?

Which is greater, our love for our position on vaccinations or our love for brothers and sisters in Christ who hold the opposite position?

…work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, Philippians 2:12b-15

And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother. 1 John 4:21

Are you dying to self?

The Christian life is a continuous act of crucifixion of the flesh and denial of self. There is no point in our journey with Christ at which we can sit down, cross our arms and say, “I’ve been serving others non-stop. Now it’s time for somebody to serve me.”. (I’m embarrassed at how many times I’ve had this attitude myself.)

How does that work itself out in the context of this reader’s question? The pregnant woman does everything she can to love and serve her anti-vaxx brothers and sisters while protecting her unborn child. She looks for a workaround in which she bears the burden of making sacrifices, not the anti-vaxxers. At the same time, the anti-vax church members do everything they can to love and serve the pregnant woman while maintaining what they believe is the wisest decision for their children’s health. They look for a workaround in which they bear the burden of making sacrifices, not the pregnant woman. (Every decision we make comes with responsibilities. Christian anti-vaxxers, part of your responsibility when you choose not to vaccinate is not only to protect your child, but also to protect, as far as you’re reasonably able, anyone your child might infect.)

Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Philippians 2:3-4

So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. Romans 8:12-13

Are you thinking outside the box?

Outside the world of math, there is rarely only one solution to a problem. (And even inside the world of math there are some problems which have several possible solutions!) It’s probably not the case that the only choices in this situation are that either the anti-vaxxers keep their children at home (or vaccinate them) or the pregnant woman has to stay home. Your idea of going to your pastor is spot on. Just make sure you’re going to him with the attitude of, “Could we meet together as a church body and brainstorm a workable solution to this issue? I’m willing to make sacrifices,” rather than, “Please tell those anti-vaxxers how wrong they are and make them vaccinate their children or stay home.” (Not saying you would have that latter attitude, just making a comparison.)

Is your sanctuary large enough that if the pregnant woman sat on the far end of one side and the unvaccinated children sat on the far end of the other side that they would be far enough apart to keep her from exposure to the measles? (She would need to discuss this with her doctor.) Does your church have more than one worship service (two a.m. services or an a.m. and a p.m.)? An agreement could be reached in which the pregnant woman comes to one service and the unvaccinated children come to the other service. Does your church have a baby cry room/nursing room (a room fussy children can be taken to so they don’t disrupt the service and/or in which moms can nurse babies, that has the sermon “piped in” via video or speaker)? Could something be worked out where the pregnant woman and the unvaccinated children take turns “attending” the worship service in this room each week? If your church doesn’t have a room like this, could one be rigged up? If no other solution can be worked out, and it actually does boil down to someone having to stay home from church, could the pregnant woman and the unvaccinated children take turns staying home from church?

These are just some possible solutions off the top of my head. If the vaxxers and the anti-vaxxers will all come together in an attitude of self-sacrificial love (and, what an incredible opportunity for a pastor to lead his people through putting this into practice) and the desire to serve one another, surely something can be worked out. (And let’s keep in mind, this is only a temporary situation until the baby is born and is old enough to be vaccinated himself. It’s not going to last forever.)

In the body of Christ, no issue is an “us vs. them” issue. It’s always a “we’re all in this together” issue.

I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. Ephesians 4:1-6

Posted with permission:

michellelesley.com/2019/04/22/the-mailbag-vaxxers-and-anti-vaxxers-and-the-health-of-the-body/

One of the great "hidden" Perks of being Saved!

 

I'm sure we're all familiar with the scripture that tells us to count it all joy when we face trials (James 1:2), and most of us have basically said: "What???" when we read that.  However, once we understand why the Bible consistently tells us that, it will bring us joy, for this is one of the great blessings, or "perks" that God gives us when we're saved.  You see, before we're saved, like everyone else, trials and suffering have no real purpose. They happen to everyone. No one is ever left out. You just have to get through them however you can, and keep on going.  But once we're saved, they DO have a purpose!  Their purpose is to make us more like Jesus, which is God's main plan for us on this earth. He's preparing us to live with Him forever.  Now when I say, "making us more like Jesus", I don't mean anything more than that He's forming our character to be like our Lord's. We will still be our self, with our own personality, talents, etc; but we will respond to life, both the good things and the bad, the way Jesus did and does. 

To me, when I see an unsaved person going through a really hard time, my heart aches for them. I can't imagine having to go through those kind of things and it having no purpose at all.  In fact, lately I've been seriously considering using this as a way to tell people about our Lord.  Simply beginning by asking them, "If you're going through a trial, which would you prefer? To have it mean something - to have a wonderful purpose in your life, or to have it be totally meaningless?"  I can't imagine anyone saying they'd rather have them mean nothing in the bigger scheme of things, can you?

All this ties in with knowing that our God, the God who loves us and died and rose again to save us, is in control, and He is using whatever has happened in our life for our good, to make us more like Jesus so we can have an even closer, deeper relationship with Him.  In other words, that boss who fired you, or who won't give you the raise, or the teacher who hates you, or the accident that injured or killed your loved one, wasn't a surprise to God.  He didn't suddenly give His control of everything over to anyone or anything else.  He has either caused or allowed this to happen and He will use it to make you the very best you can be, to make you more like Jesus. He's doing that because He loves you and wants to have a deeper, more personal relationship with you. 

So when trials come, your job is to trust Him, knowing that He will take care of you.  If you lost your job, He will be your provision and will give you another job at the perfect time. If you're ill, or in pain, He will comfort you and even ease your pain at times, and will heal you in His perfect timing - either in this life or the next. But either way, He will take care of you. 

If a loved one has died, grieve yes. Even Jesus did that! But grieve knowing that this is not the end, if your loved one was saved, then you will see them again. If people are slandering you or treating you unfairly in some way, realize that God wants you to trust Him to take care of the situation. Your job is to continue to trust Him to do just that, remembering that you're to rely on Him and not take matters into your own hands. We're to always have the same attitude that Jesus had, which is shown to us in His life and in the following scriptures. (Philippians 2:5, 1 Peter 2:19-23, Romans 12:19–21, Matthew 5:21–24, Matthew 5:39–42, Matthew 5:44–47) Obviously, it's not easy to live the way the Lord wants us to, and we couldn't do it at all without His constant help and encouragement. Another great encouragement is when we can look back at our lives and see how trials really have made us more like Christ!

Realizing this, we can truly be joyful that our Lord has given a great purpose to the bad things that happen in our lives. “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” (James 1:2–4) By the way, that word, "consider" could also be translated, "evaluate". He's not saying that we should automatically have a feeling of joy when something bad happens to us. He's telling us to look at the situation and see it from an eternal viewpoint - how God is going to use it. Then we can be joyful and also give Him thanks which is the other thing He tells us to do at all times: “give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (1 Thessalonians 5:18) and “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!” (Philippians 4:4) Notice that we're not told to feel joy about whatever is happening, but instead we're to "rejoice in the Lord".  We rejoice because God has saved us and given us a purpose, and even given the bad things that happen to us a good purpose. We rejoice because we now belong to Him and one day this awful sin nature will be completely gone and we'll never have to deal with it again!  Just writing this makes me want to stand and praise our awesome God!!!!

Is God Judging us now?

I hear people ask or wonder if God is judging their country, the world or their city, etc. They generally site things like the transgender garbage or abortions or both or other things like them. The thing is that God began judging most of the civilized countries a while ago and no one seemed to notice it. Well, we noticed it, we just didn't realize it was a judgement. I'm speaking of how there seems to be little true discernment in the Church; like it disappeared some time ago. This is in fulfillment of scripture. It's easy to know why there's no true discernment, which is why the people are swallowing false teaching and even outright heresy whole. It's because they no longer read and study their Bibles daily as the Lord commands us to do. He even tells us that is the only way we can get discernment. But because of the lack of discernment and all the false teaching and heresy that's now in the church and every part of our lives the Church is going through what's usually called "the great falling away" (1 Timothy 4:1). That is a judgement of God on His children who haven't obeyed Him. Remember, 1 Peter 4:17 tells us that judgement always starts with God's family. The great falling away is actually preparing the way for the Antichrist.

Then, on top of the great falling away, as though that wasn't enough, we have the fact that sin has gone rampant all over the world. By this I mean all sin, but we see it especially in sexual sins which is another indication that the end is near. This is because God first allows those who have rejected Him and His Word to have a sexual revolution. He simply stops restraining sin and that causes the sexual revolution. We saw that as far back as the 60's, but people didn't turn back to the Lord. Then the Lord lifts his restraint even more and allows the sins of homosexuality and transgender etc to increase, a homosexual revolution if you will, as judgements on those who refuse to accept His gift of salvation. (see Romans 1:18-32)  Still in Romans 1, when people still don't return to Him, He gives unbelievers over to a reprobate or depraved mind. This is a mind that's marked by corruption and evil; it's perverted. When we take even a quick look around today, it's very easy to see that this mind is what is at work in unbelievers today, including those unbelievers that are pretending to be Christians. 

So all of these particular sins are happening today as a judgement of God - again, preparing for the Antichrist. Romans 1:24-28 is especially relevant here. Finally, God tells us what else will happen because He's given them over to these sexual perversions, and here we see all the other sins that we're seeing in abundance today: “They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless.” (Romans 1:29–31) Another good list of what people are like today can be found in 2 Timothy 3:1–5.

In conclusion we can see that the falling away is God's judgement on the Church, and the sexual sins and perversions etc are His judgement on the unbelievers. Both of which are preparing the way for the Antichrist. That does not mean the Tribulation has begun - it hasn't. This is preparing for it to begin though. Just as all the so called "natural disasters" are also preparing for the antichrist and are like mini previews of what will happen during the Tribulation. They are therefore warning His children that play time is over and they need to get really serious about their faith, as well as judging those who don't believe. The problem is that in most judgements, including these, true believers also get hurt because of them.  Believers can be hurt by these judgements because unsaved family members will have the depraved mind, so there is more division in families; Christians will also face more persecutions. But we are safe from the depraved mind, because we have the mind of Christ.  The difference between a believer and unbeliever being hurt by a judgment is that the judgment that harms a believer will be used for His good by the Lord to make him more like Christ; so it has a purpose. 

While being made more like Christ is always the best thing that can happen to us - to be made more like Christ -, now it's especially important that we become more like Him. So now is the time to put our noses into His Word every spare moment we have, as well as dedicating a good amount of time to reading His Word every day. For it is through reading and applying His Word to our lives that God changes us, transforming us to be more like Christ, and renewing our minds so we can have the mind of Christ. There's not much time left before the rapture will occur, (it could be today!) so I'd suggest getting rid of anything in your life that interferes with spending time with the Lord and in His Word. 

Will the Rapture Be Invisible?

 

In all the fiction books, shows and movies, the rapture is presented as all of the believers being invisible when they are snatched up to be with the Lord. Most of us simply accept that without question, but I tend to question everything and wanted to know what the bible actually says about this. I think you might be surprised at what I discovered.

The only thing the bible says directly about the rapture is that we will be changed and that it will happen in "the twinkling of an eye". After that, in 1 Cor 15:51-52, we're simply told the dead will be raised with their new bodies and then our bodies will be changed. Nothing at all about it being invisible to other people. In one way it will be invisible, simply because it will happen so fast that anyone watching a believer at the time wouldn't actually "see" anything change. One second they'd be like they always had been and the next, they'd have imperishable bodies like our Lord had. So if the Bible doesn't actually say, how else can we find out without looking beyond it? We need to look at other examples of when something similar happened.

We know that Enoch was the first one to be taken to heaven without dying, but that's all the bible says about him so it's no help. The next one was Elijah and that tells us quite a bit. His story is in 2 Kings 2:11–18. First a Chariot and horses or fire appeared and forced Elisha away from Elijah as they were walking together. Then a whirlwind appeared and Elijah was taken up to heaven in it, in the full view of Elisha! He saw it all.

There's also an example in Revelation when the 2 prophets are brought back to life and taken up to heaven in Rev 11:12-13. First they heard the loud voice saying "come up here" and they then went up to heaven in a cloud. The verse states quite matter of factly that this happened while all the people were watching them. Immediately after this happened there was a bad earthquake. I mention this because we're going to see that there are often earthquakes or some other "natural" phenomenon surrounding events like this. Just as in Elijah's case when we saw the whirlwind.

Finally, we can look at some things that happened when Jesus was here before. First we have His transformation. This was seen by the 3 apostles. They saw Jesus, Moses and Elijah together. That story is in Matthew 17:1-5. So again, He was seen by them, although He told them not to tell anyone until after He'd risen from the dead. the disciples also heard the voice of the Father at that time, telling them that Jesus was His Son and He was very pleased with Him, and that they should listen to Him. This was something they'd remember the rest of their lives and Peter even talked about it in 2 Peter 1:16-17 as I'm quite sure the others did as well.

We also have all the stories of Jesus raising people from the dead. One moment their bodies were quite dead, and the next, they were quite alive. Even Lazarus whose body had already begun to decompose, was seen quite alive once the Lord called him back to life.

Finally, we have the reports of when our Lord died, when He was resurrected and when He ascended to Heaven. It's not spoken about much, but in Matthew 27:51-53 we're told that after the curtain in the temple was torn, there was an earthquake. Tombs broke open and were told many people who were considered to be holy people that had died, were resurrected at the time of our Lord's death. We're not told where they went or what they did for the next couple of days, but when our Lord was resurrected they were seen in Jerusalem by many people. That's always amazed me! It must have really blown people's minds back then and it's really surprising to me that there's not more about it in the Bible. But then again, I'm quite sure that it was something that was so well known and spoken about constantly that they probably figured there was no reason to write more about it.

Next, when our Lord was raised from the dead there was another earthquake. An angel or two appeared and scared the guards half to death. This was when the women had gone to the tomb to anoint His body, and the angels told her that He was alive and they'd see Him soon. (Matthew 28:2-7) We know the Lord was seen by many people during the next 40 days as we're told any number of times that "God caused Him to be seen", such as in Acts 10:40.

Finally, when the Lord ascended to Heaven, He didn't do this in secret. He'd been talking to a large crowd in fact. He gave them his last command and began to lift up into the air right in front of their eyes! We're told about this in Acts 1:9–11, Mark 16:19,and Luke 24:51.

Everything I've spoken about here wasn't done in secret, no one was invisible. Other people, believers and unbelievers alike saw these things. There are many other incidents in the OT where the Lord revealed Himself to people. Sometimes to one or two, and sometimes to large crowds. There was always something like an earthquake or clouds, strong wind, or fire happening whenever this would happen. But He certainly wasn't invisible and neither were they. He always had a reason whenever something supernatural like this would take place. Sometimes it was to reward someone, or teach them so they could teach others, or sometimes it was to warn them. Other times, such as when Jesus was here, it was to confirm that Jesus was in fact His Son and had the authority to do what He said He would. And sometimes it was a mixture of those reasons.

We're told in Acts 17:31 that the resurrection is proof that Jesus is who He said He is and that there will come a day when He will judge the world. This is one reason why the resurrection and ascension were visible. God was letting everyone for all time know that He was serious and that Jesus would be the one judging every man, woman and child one day. While we aren't privy to seeing a lot of supernatural miracles of that kind in our time, the time is coming when once again the supernatural will happen even more frequently then it ever has before. That time is during the Tribulation. I'm not talking just about the judgments, but about the angels that will interact with humans during that time and other supernatural events like that, which will be almost common place then. There will not be a human being alive at that time who won't know for sure that God exists and is watching and able to do all that He says. That's why taking the Mark is unforgivable. When they take that mark, they will knowingly be choosing to worship the antichrist instead of God, and that's what makes it unforgivable. It sounds dire to us, but really it's not much different then happens every day. Each time a person refuses to accept the offer of salvation after hearing about it, they harden their hearts, until eventually their hearts are so hard that they couldn't change their minds if they wanted to. It's the same thing that will happen then. The only difference is that there will be a visible mark to prove it.

The day of judgment is something the Lord has warned about since the beginning and is obviously very important. Those who are saved have nothing to worry about because our sins have already been judged at the cross. Jesus paid the price for us. But it's something God wants everyone to be aware of, that one day, they will be judged. What better way to get that across to the generation that will go through the tribulation then the rapture? I believe that the rapture will be quite visible to everyone. I don't think they'll be able to see Jesus because He will be high in the air waiting for us. With the eyesight we'll have with our new bodies, we will be able to see Him as we rise up to meet Him there. I think it's quite possible that everyone on earth will hear Him call us to come up to Him, just as they'll hear Him again when He calls the prophets up to Him. He warned about this in the old testament and when He was here the first time. There's no reason for Him to keep this a secret from the rest of the world.

We also have a little know scripture in Luke that refers to the rapture. It's Luke 21:17–22.“All men will hate you because of me. But not a hair of your head will perish. By standing firm you will gain life. “When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near. Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those in the city get out, and let those in the country not enter the city. For this is the time of punishment in fulfillment of all that has been written.” (Luke 21:17–22) Here Jesus was warning them of what would happen shortly when Jerusalem would fall to the Roman's. After He rose to Heaven, we know He sent prophets and they also warned the Christians before Rome fell reminding them of what the Lord had said, and told them to flee to Pella. Because of that, all but a few Christians who were willing to stay and give up their lives in order to try and reach a few last souls for the Kingdom, were saved. They all had fled to Pella as the Lord had told them too, so only the unbelievers were left in the city when it fell. Why is this important to us? Because this passage is also showing what will happen at the rapture, when the believers will be spared God's wrath. Like most prophecies, this one too has more then one fulfillment. It was fulfilled back then and will be again at the rapture of the Church. “For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.”(1 Thessalonians 5:9) The Christians back then did not become invisible. They simply left the region. We too will simply leave. The difference will be our route since we will be going straight up into Heaven. Seem impossible? Ask Elijah, as he did this too as did Enoch and as will the two prophets. Like them, I believe we will rise up into the air in full view of all the people on earth.

If it's totally visible as I think it will be, how would that affect the lies that most others will believe? It won't affect it at all, in fact, it would make the lies more believable! Think about it. Seeing this happen would make people believe the new age lies, or the UFO theories etc even more believable to the unsaved! It would be right up their alley! BUT, it would also give those people that we've witnessed to and told about the rapture, and even better chance of believing the Truth and being saved, then having it be invisible would. Speaking of that, I do not for one second believe that people with jewelry, or false teeth or other things like that are going to leave those things behind on this earth the way the books and movies show it. I've always thought that was pretty sick and gory. For instance I had a pump implanted in my abdomen and a according to the movies, my friends would find a nasty bloody pump along with my dentures and my wedding ring, wherever I'd last been before the rapture. That's movies my friends, that's not the Bible! God doesn't need to remove things in order to change our bodies. As I said, the change will happen so quickly that no one will actually see that happen. But I'm positive nothing that's not original to our bodies will be left behind us. Those things will simply cease to be. They will have been changed right along with our natural bodies.

Let me share one last argument with you. We're told: “The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed.” (Romans 8:19) This doesn't say that creation is waiting for us to be changed and hidden away until the 2nd coming. It says it can't wait until we're revealed! When something is revealed, it's seen, it's not invisible or something to be guessed at or wondered about. Peter says in 1 Peter 5:1, that we will share in the glory to be revealed, so again we're told it's something that will be revealed, not hidden. This will also be true at the second coming, but there's no reason it's not true at the rapture as well. I'll leave you all now with the scripture we all know so well and look forward to, which I hope that we can all see with excitement and new eyes: “For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.” (1 Thessalonians 4:16–17)

Why does 1 Peter 4:7 say we need to be self controlled to pray?

 1 Peter 4:7 says "The end of all things is near, therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so you can pray." Have you ever wondered why Peter says we need to be self-controlled to pray? I did, and then it hit me. We need that because it's so easy to be distracted from praying, or even in the midst of our prayers as our minds tend to wander. See, even Peter knew about that problem! That sure made me feel better to know I wasn't alone with that problem. Plus, Galatians 5:22-23 tells us that self-control is one of the fruits of the Spirit which will increase as we grow in our faith. That's always been a big thing to me as I know that self control/self discipline isn't something easy for me, so it helps to know that the Lord will grow that within me as I continue in His Word every day. 

A Different Look at the Days of Noah

 

I wanted to share a different way of looking at Noah and his family. When we read about that time period, we often compare it to our own times, but when we're honest, we realize that things were MUCH worse then. Why?  Because God tells us that every single human being alive, from the smallest child, to the oldest adult, except for Noah's family, were completely evil, that every single thought they had was evil!  That can't be said about today, thank God!  And won't be said again, because even during the Tribulation there will be people who are saved. 

But here's the really interesting part. We're introduced to Noah's family after his sons have wives. But where did those women come from? They came from families who's thoughts were totally evil! Yet somehow, the Lord made their hearts soft enough to accept the Truth and come to love Him when they were introduced to it by Noah and his family.  Perhaps it didn't happen until they were engaged.  Maybe they didn't become actually saved until just before God told them to board the Ark. Perhaps, somehow, the truth was put in their hearts a tiny bit at a time over many years before they met Noah's sons, and then it all came together for them. We don't know when it happened, or how it happened, we only know that somehow it did. 

A second interesting point: With all this evil surrounding them constantly, the minds of those in Noah's family were kept clean!  Let me digress here for a moment and remind everyone that when the Bible speaks of our minds, or our hearts, it's actually speaking of both. Each word in the original language means our thoughts and feelings, so both are covered.  I tend to use the words the same way, so when I speak of one, I'm actually speaking of both. 

To recap then, with all the evil around them constantly, the minds and hearts of those in Noah's family were kept clean!  We know how hard that is to do in our own time when things aren't nearly as evil as they were then.  We're constantly bombarded with evil every day by the things we hear and see.  For us, whether we like to admit it or not, it's impossible to keep our minds and hearts pure on our own. Only with the constant help of our Lord can we hope to do that.  And when we fail, we have the promise that when we confess, we will be forgiven and cleansed, so we can start anew.  The same was true in Noah's day - they couldn't have possibly kept their hearts and minds pure without the Lord's intervention and help. 

When we read Philippians 4:4–7 (I hate to break it up and hope you'll take the time to read it all.) we see that the Lord promises to help us do just that: “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:7) Jeremiah 17:9 tells us that our hearts (and minds) are deceitful about everything and beyond cure, meaning only God can make that cure, and He does so as He renews our minds through His Word as we read it each day. In Prov 4:23 and numerous other scriptures we're warned to guard our hearts and minds.  We're told more in many other scriptures, such as: “Discretion will protect you, and understanding will guard you.” (Proverbs 2:11) But the bottom line is that we can't do it without God's help. Yes, we have to do our part by being in His word daily, applying it to our lives, and asking for His help in prayer, but the rest, is what God does. 

When we look at Noah and his family, we can see what an amazing job God did in guarding their hearts and minds!  I'm not suggesting that none of them ever sinned during all those years, of course they did!  They were sinful humans just like we are. The difference was that they were saved and God was guarding their hearts and minds to keep them for Himself. 

Ever since I realized this, I've been praying for myself and my loved ones that our amazing God would guard our hearts and minds just like He did for Noah and his family.  I have felt such a peace about it since I started doing this!  With all the evil around us constantly and being shoved into our children's and grandchildren's minds at school and everywhere else, it seemed impossible to have peace that my loved ones would make it through this life without become full of the world's philosophies, and fall for Satan's schemes and traps.  If one didn't get them, there were hundreds more that could. Now I can simply pray that He would guard our minds and hearts so that nothing contrary to His Holy Spirit will rub off on us. That He would prevent the worlds philosophies from corrupting our thoughts, and shield us from our own self centeredness, sin nature, and from our own confused and corrupted thinking. That He would protect us from the corrupt worldview and keep the Truth of His Word in our minds and hearts as He did for Noah and his family.

I just had to share it with you all in the hopes that it would give you the peace of mind that it's given me.