THE FINAL CHARGE

 

By Alice Childs -

Beloveds, we are very near the culmination of the great battle of the ages that was begun when Lucifer, Son of the Morning, rebelled against his Creator, and the mystery of iniquity that would result in the fall of mankind was born.

 

Family of God, everything in human history - every conflict, every lie, every act of violence, every theft, every ounce of pride, every cold-hearted and self-loving attitude, every murder, every torture, every war - ALL have been the result of man following Satan's lies in rebellion against Creator God.

 

This is the crux of the entire fallen, sin-wrecked, Hell-bound world. All that we are witnessing now and all that is yet to come is a result of the everlasting hatred and rebellion of Satan against Jehovah God.

 

We are living at the terminus of a revolt that was begun before man was created. Tragically for all mankind, Adam, the first man, deliberately chose rebellion, following the lies of the Serpent.

 

Satan has hated those of every generation who have, by God's grace through faith, believed and called upon God the Son for salvation. Satan has ALWAYS hated those who love God. He has persecuted God's people in every generation from Adam's until this very second.

 

We are the final generation. It should come as no surprise to us as this millennia-old conflict reaches its apex that we who are called by Jesus's name, washed by His blood, rescued from eternal death by His blood - like those believers before us - we too in these last closing moments of the great Conflict of the Ages will be mocked, abused, hated, and some murdered and martyred for His namesake.

 

Satan has killed billions throughout the ages. And those he has not killed he has, to one degree or another, persecuted in every way allowed to him.

 

We know that we are at the very end just before the rapture; therefore, we also know that Satan is pulling out all the stops because he knows his time is short. We know that all their masks are off now. We see Satan's agenda clearly among those who are deniers of God's truth and those who are openly hostile to God and His Word. We see all the masks of civility and common decency being ripped away. Behind the facade, the grinning, gibbering, insane hatred of Satan and his demons is being clearly revealed.

 

Believers in the first-century church saw the evil behind the political mask of Rome as millions died a martyr's death because Satan hates God. They saw the demonic hypocrisy of the religious Jews who also hated and denied their own Messiah and persecuted and killed ALL, both Jews and Gentiles, who did believe on Jesus as Messiah and Savior. Millions upon millions saw the glowering hatred behind the false and demonically deceptive piety of the Roman Catholic Church. Those who believed in Jesus alone endured untold horrors at the hands of the Church of Rome in the numerous waves of persecution throughout the centuries, including the spawned-in-Hell savagery of the Inquisition.

 

In every pagan culture that has ever existed, those who have chosen to follow God have faced Satan's wrath and fury. And although Satan tried his best and although billions have lost their earthly lives, they loved the name above all names, Jesus their Savior, more than they loved their own lives. Billions have been killed by Satan and his minions; nonetheless, God ALWAYS has a remnant that Satan cannot touch, cannot silence, cannot eradicate, and cannot defeat. God ALWAYS has a remnant.

 

In our GENERATION, WE are that Remnant. Depending on when Jesus calls us up, not all of us as part of the body/bride of Christ may make it to be alive at that glorious moment, but we WILL "ALL BE CHANGED." Dead or alive, we of this final generation will partake of this glorious event, either by being resurrected from our graves or caught up in the air.

 

Before God delivers His Remnant Church and His final judgment begins, we believers in these end times find ourselves face-to-face with the blazing, demonic hatred of the last generation of reprobate, God-hating, demon-possessed humanity who are rabidly crying out for the one who will be the Antichrist. These demon-possessed God-haters whose ranks even now are swelling to fill the earth are rabidly working to destroy every vestige of freedom and every mention of God, salvation, and the name of Jesus across the earth. We are witnessing their ranks swelling and their hatred and demonic fury rising. They hate us because they hate God. They despise us because they despise the name of the crucified and risen Savior Jesus Christ.

 

They hate His Word as well because it is through the prophetic Word - that has already been fulfilled, is being fulfilled at this moment, and that is shortly to be fulfilled - that Satan and all his horde know their doom is at hand. Prophecy coming will consummate the eternal defeat of Satan.

 

These modern reprobates, just like all who have hated and rejected God's so great salvation, hate the eternal triune God-head. They hate the incarnate Christ. They especially hate His infallible, inerrant, and immutable Word because it records their doom. And finally, they hate each of us who are believers called by His name and cleansed by His blood. They hate us because they hate Him.

 

We are so very close to the deliverance of the Church, both dead and alive, via the resurrection/rapture. Family of God, it is now that we MUST gird ourselves in our spiritual armor. We must wield the Sword of the Spirit effectively as we "earnestly contend for THE faith" (Jude 3). Any moment now, we will hear the sound of God's celestial trumpet. Any moment now, we will hear King Jesus's shout for us to "Come up hither!"

 

Family, we are in the last seconds of the last minutes of the last days just before the Remnant Church is caught up to meet our Lord in the air! Don't get discouraged now! No matter how bad things get here, keep sharing the gospel! Keep warning of coming judgment even if no one is listening. They may not listen now, but after we are gone, many WILL heed and remember. Finally, keep looking up!

 

Brethren, we KNOW Satan's tactics; they have never changed. He uses lies, deceit, discord, depression, fear, envy, pride, and intimidation. Nevertheless, regardless of his wiles and tactics, we KNOW that he is an ALREADY DEFEATED FOE. To the eternally saved and sealed believer in Christ, Satan and all his fallen angelic and demonic horde are nothing more than paper tigers who can do NOTHING to eternally saved and eternally kept believers. Oh, he may kill our body IF the Lord allows him that power, but he can NEVER have our blood-bought, eternally sealed spirits because WE BELONG TO THE ONE WHO BOUGHT US WITH HIS BLOOD AND SEALED US BY HIS RESURRECTION!

 

Family of God, don't be afraid of what's going on around us, no matter how bad it gets or how close it comes to our door. Don't cower in fear; stand in faith! We must pick up our Bibles, bow our heads and hearts before the Lord, and then stand firm upon His Word.

 

As we make our final charge - as we give our final push - let us contend for the faith until the moment that we either draw our last breath, or until our vile bodies are changed from corruptible to incorruptible, from mortal to immortal "in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye."

 

Our deliverance is just barely beyond our line of vision. As the late Jack Kelly used to say, "We can almost hear the footsteps of the Messiah!" Be encouraged, be bold, be wise, be faithful, and be EXCITED because the redemption of our bodies (Romans 8:23) draws (very) near!

 

"If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his Lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also" (John 15:18-20, KJV).

WHAT'S STOPPING YOU?

BY- Nathele Graham 

                                                      

What an amazing time to be alive. Prophecy is being fulfilled so fast it's hard to keep up. The world seems to be falling apart and cold-hearted violence is everywhere. In truth, that's the way of the world. Satan is the god of this world and he's a loser. He and his minions have no love for humanity and have patiently corrupted the minds and hearts of many people who are allowing hatred to rule their lives. Christians are the only people who are standing in the way of Satan totally taking over the world because we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit. As long as we're here, we need to take a stand for Jesus. How can the lost people of the world ever come to salvation if we keep silent? 

"For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in him whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?" Romans 10:13-14.

The news is filled with reports of violent riots in cities throughout the United States and they just don't quit. The people who are destroying businesses and people's livelihood are filled with a satanic hatred that's hard for me to understand. When I see their faces in news reports my heart breaks. These people need prayer. They're lost and ignorantly being led by other people who are lost. They aren't the enemy, Satan is. Satan has gripped their lives and his hatred flows through their actions. Are we to hate them? We need to follow the example of Christ and pray for them. We need to tell them about Jesus.

 

Those of us who say we follow Christ need to get about the business of presenting the Gospel to this lost world. It's not only those who are rioting who need to hear, but lawmakers who pass laws that legalize sin and who are doing their best to stop Christians from worshiping together. You might ask your neighbors if they know Jesus. If they don't, then share the Good News with them. Can you explain to someone who's not a bad person, by human standards, why they need to repent and accept Jesus? It might be a good idea to study Scripture now. Everyone sins, but when facing God's judgment that isn't an acceptable defense for your sin. 

"For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God;" Romans 3:23. Sin began in the Garden of Eden and sin separates us from God. "For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." 1 Corinthians 15:22. 

Because God loved us with perfect love, He provided the only way for us to spend eternity with Him. He entered His creation and willingly offered Himself as the ultimate sacrifice for our redemption. He shed His own blood for you and me. 

"For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures;" 1 Corinthians 15:3-4. 

If you've accepted His free gift of salvation, then you need to share the Gospel with others.

 

Many Christians are under the false impression that life is continuing just like it always has. They see the horrible violence happening worldwide, but like to say "These things have always happened and every generation has felt they lived in the final days". The people who say that don't study Biblical prophecy. Peter told us that this would be the attitude of many people in the last days. 

"Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, and saying, Where is the promise of his coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation." 2 Peter 3:3-4.

 It's understandable that a non-believer might say that, but it's hard to understand how those words can come from a Christian. Yes, I've heard those words from the mouths of more than one Christian. Jesus fulfilled many prophecies at His first coming, such as the virgin birth, being born in Bethlehem, and the manner in which He would die. That wasn't the end of prophecy. Since Israel was reinstated as a nation in 1948, many, many more prophecies have been fulfilled. It won't be long until the Rapture happens and Daniel's 70th week begins...just as prophecy says.

 

From the time of Abraham, the Jewish nation has been God's chosen people. Throughout their history they have sometimes been in proper fellowship with God and other times they've fallen away. When Jesus came the first time, He walked among the Jewish people to bring them to faith in Him. Sadly, the leaders rejected Him. A spiritual blindness has prevailed among most of those people since then. 

"For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles be come in." Romans 11:25. 

That blindness is beginning to lift. That fact alone tells us that the end times are upon us. It won't be long until Christians are taken Home in the Harpazō (also known as the Rapture). We don't know when it will happen, but prophecy points to it being very soon. That's why we need to take a stand for Jesus and share the Good News with everyone...including those mislead people who are raging a violent attack on America as they riot in the streets. Since God alone knows what number constitutes the fullness of the Gentiles and when that fullness will come about, what should we be doing? Should we sit idle and speculate on dates that the Rapture might occur, or should we work to bring the lost to salvation so the fullness of the Gentiles will be accomplished? Jesus told us to preach the Gospel. 

"And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." Mark 16:15. 

That wasn't a suggestion by our Lord, but a command. Maybe you aren't called to go to Portland, Oregon, or to New York City and evangelize to the rioters, and maybe you're not called to travel to remote jungles to share the Gospel, but you are called to preach the Gospel to every creature.

 

Picture this: You're walking in the park one day and see an old man sitting on a bench. He looks very sad and a little afraid. You have a sudden urge to speak to him. He's a widower and his children all live in another state. He's just found out he has cancer and only has a few months to live. You could pat him on the shoulder and say "I'm sorry" or you could say "I'm sorry, but can I ask if you know Jesus Christ and the promise of eternal life He offers?". It might take some courage to speak to him about Jesus, and you need to have answers to any questions he might ask. Wouldn't it be wonderful if he was the one? The last Gentile that would trigger the Rapture? 

"For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Romans 6:23. 

You have to let him know that only Jesus Christ will bring eternal life. Whether or not he's the one who brings about the Rapture isn't your call. He's a sinner who needs to know that Jesus Christ offers eternal life. He needs to ask Jesus to forgive him before it's too late.

 

Jonah is an interesting figure in history, and most of us have some idea of what he did. God called him to go to the evil and wicked city of Nineveh and tell them to turn from their sin or they would be destroyed. Of course, Jonah ran in the opposite direction! Does that sound like Christians today? God says to go and be a witness, but we run. It took a life-changing experience for Jonah to finally do what God said. 

"Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights." Jonah 1:17. 

After the great fish vomited Jonah onto the shore, he reluctantly went to Nineveh. Jonah hoped they would ignore his words and that God would destroy them. He was very disappointed that the leader and all the people of Nineveh repented and their judgment was delayed for many years. If you're a Christian then you've had a life-changing experience by accepting Christ as your Saviour. Are you, like Jonah, running away from sharing the message of salvation with others? Do you think that some people just don't deserve to hear the Good News? Jesus gave all of us a job to do. We must share the Gospel of Christ. Jesus said we must. 

"Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen." Matthew 28:19-20. 

Baptizing is important and I don't want to marginalize it, but what good is baptizing someone who doesn't understand the reason behind it? We need to preach the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ and tell the lost why they need salvation.

 

Every Christian should be anticipating the Rapture. There are many signs that tell us it's on the very near horizon and it's not wrong to be very excited. God wants us to anticipate it. Paul tells us there's a reward waiting for those who look forward to His coming. 

"Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing." 2 Timothy 4:8. Believe me, I'm as anxious for the Harpazō as anyone, but I must be about my Father's business right up until I hear His voice calling me Home, or until I die. Is there any way to hurry it along? Well, since we are to be Raptured when the fullness of Gentiles is complete, I need to tell more people about Jesus. It's much better to be out there on the battle front preaching the Gospel instead of sitting around and dreaming of the Rapture. Scripture encourages us to evangelize. The Rapture of Christians must occur before Jesus' Second Advent. We are to yearn for it, and until our last breath we need to do what we can to share the Gospel.

 

"If ye love me, keep my commandments." John 14:15.

 That's the question at the heart of the matter of evangelism. Do you love Him? Do you love Him enough to keep His commandments and go and teach all nations, even your own? Prophecy is exciting and a great study; there is much to learn and be excited about. Through the study of prophecy, we know that the Harpazō is imminent, which means it can occur at any moment. That's very exciting. There's nothing standing in the way of that awesome event except possibly that one person God has been putting on your heart to seek out and speak to. Maybe it's the old man on the park bench or a waitress at your local café. Listen to the urging of the Holy Spirit and share God's truth.

 

What's stopping you from sharing the Gospel? The events that are unfolding in Israel and in the streets of America tells us that time is swiftly coming to an end. Obey Jesus' command to share the Gospel. Don't let anything stop you.

 

God bless you all,

An Examination of the 'Day of the Lord'

- by Mark A. Becker - 

 [Note: This author is a pre-Tribulation rapture believer, and this article reflects that view.] "But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up" (1 Peter 3:10). 

Introduction

 This one verse of Peter's encompasses the entire "day of the Lord," and it does us well to study it in light of its prophetic implications for a better understanding of future prophecy. "But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night;" This is the front bookend to the "day of the Lord, and it begins with the rapture of the church. The word "thief" is conveyed to us a few times in the Word of God concerning the Lord's coming, and it always refers to the rapture of the church. The significance can't be overstated. When something is repeated in Scripture, you can be certain it is of great significance. 

Let's take a look at these passages.

 "But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. "Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation. For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him. Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do" (1 Thessalonians 5:1-11).

 Note the "they/them" and the "we/us" in this passage of Scripture. "[T]he day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape." But we will! (Emphasis mine). "... [L]et us watch and be sober," looking for the Lord's return for His church, "[f]or God hath not appointed us to wrath [as He has the Christ-rejecting world], but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ." (Emphasis mine) 

What about the passages in Revelation before, during, and after the Tribulation?

 "Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame" (Revelation 16:15). This seemingly out of place statement is right in the middle of the passage of Scripture describing the last battle as Christ is preparing to come back to destroy Antichrist, the False Prophet, and the armies of the world. 

Why is it there, and who is it for?

 As with everything concerning the Word of God, Scripture has to be interpreted with Scripture. One isn't allowed to make their own decisions on the "who, what, where, how, and why" without consulting the rest of the Bible. A well-known tool for studying Scripture is known as the "law of first mention." That is, we should always go back to the first mention of a particular word or phrase to get a better understanding of what those future word or phrase usages are trying to convey. In this particular case, the first time "thief" is used in regard to the Lord's coming is Matthew 24:42-44, right after Jesus taught the rapture of the "one taken, and the other left." (Please see my article: "Is the Rapture of the Church in the Olivet Discourse?" https://www.raptureready.com/2020/07/19/is-the-rapture-of-the-church-in-the-olivet-discourse-by-mark-becker/ or https://www.faithwriters.com/article-details.php?id=205125 for more on this teaching). 

Here is the passage:

 "Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh" (Matthew 24:42-44). (Emphasis mine) 

It is obvious that this verse, seemingly popping up out of nowhere, in addition to the "law of first mention," signals to us that the target audience must be the church. Remember, for two thousand years, Christians have been reading this book, seeking its promised blessings (Revelation 1:3), and the Lord wants to remind them that He is coming back for them soon. It's as if, right in the middle of John's writing about the sixth vial, Jesus shouts, "Stop the presses! I have a message for my church!"

 "Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame." "Lest he walk naked, and they see his shame," refers to those self-proclaimed false converts that are left behind after the rapture of the church and have to go through the Tribulation. They still have a chance to truly come to Christ during the most horrific time the world will ever see, but those chances are very slim indeed.

 "Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee" (Revelation 3:3). 

This verse pretty much sums up the rapture revelation in association with Jesus coming as a "thief." "And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work" (Revelation 22:12). This verse as well is to the church, as believers that survive the Tribulation will have no other reward (as far as Scripture reveals) other than to enter the wonderful Millennial Kingdom of Christ, which in and of itself will be quite rewarding! 

A Helpful Note on the "Day of Christ"

 There is a distinction between the "day of the Lord" and the "day of Christ" or the "day of Jesus Christ." 

"Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy, For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now; Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ: Even as it is meet for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart; inasmuch as both in my bonds, and in the defence and confirmation of the gospel, ye all are partakers of my grace. For God is my record, how greatly I long after you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ. And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment; That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ" (Philippians 1:4-10). 

Paul is praying for the Christians at Philippi, and note how he urges the faithful to "be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ," and that "He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ." What day is this "day of Christ" and the "day of Jesus Christ"? It can be none other than the rapture of the church. 

"That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain" (Philippians 2:15-16). Paul eagerly looked forward to "rejoice in the day of Christ," when we would all meet together in the clouds to be forever with the Lord (1 Thessalonians 4:17).

 "Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. 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, the son of perdition;" (2 Thessalonians 2:1-3).

 The church at Thessalonica had been deceived in believing that the "day of Christ" was "at hand" and that they had essentially missed it. This was not the case, obviously, as Paul goes on to say that "that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first." While there certainly is a "falling away" happening within the church in regard to pure doctrine and the infiltration of demonic teachings (1 Timothy 4:1), this, unfortunately, has always been a problem within the church. Paul's epistles often battled blatant false doctrines infecting the church on numerous occasions. But this is not the primary meaning behind the phrase, as rendered, in this verse. 

Dr. Andy Woods has written a powerful book called, The Falling Away: Spiritual Departure or Physical Rapture? explaining that the Greek word translated "falling away" is "apostasia" and means "departure" or "departing," translated as such in seven previous English translations, including the Wycliffe, the Coverdale, the Tyndale, and the Geneva Bibles. This is most definitely the proper translation, and I highly recommend Dr. Wood's book for further information regarding this subject. The 1599 Geneva Bible translates 2 Thessalonians 2:3, 

"Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a departing first, and that man of sin be disclosed, even the son of perdition." This departing is the rapture of the church. "For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day" (2 Timothy 1:12).

 "Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing" (1 Timothy 4:8).

 "That day" is clearly the day of Christ: a day we are all waiting for with great eagerness and joyful expectation. The longing to be with our Lord Who gave His life for us is beyond human language to communicate. The "day of Christ" - the rapture - that comes as "a thief in the night" is the event that initiates the "day of the Lord." "[I]n the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up." This is the back of the bookend; it completes "the day of the Lord" climaxing with the dissolving of the universal elements (2 Peter 3:11) for purification and cleansing from all the sin in our world, and the corruption of the cosmos for that sin (Romans 8:22), setting up the recreating of the new heavens and new earth (Revelation 21:1). 

Conclusion

 "But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up" (1 Peter 3:10). 

Now that we have seen how this wonderful verse is prophetic bookends of the entire "day of the Lord," you can now share this with your family and friends. When they ask what the "day of the Lord" is, share with them this verse and explain what it means. Explain to them that the "day of the Lord" begins with the rapture of the church followed by a gap of time, the seven-year Tribulation, Christ's Second Coming, His glorious Millennial Kingdom, the Great White Throne Judgment, and concluding with the passing away of the heavens and the earth. Then joyfully exclaim that what follows is our Lord's re-creation of the earth and heavens. This ushers in the never-ending Eternal Kingdom where we will abide in the New Jerusalem that will be filled with love, joy, peace, and everlasting fellowship with our God and Savior, Jesus Christ, for all eternity! What a glorious "day" that will be! 

Love, grace, mercy, and shalom in Messiah Yeshua, and Maranatha! 

OUR FATHER KNOWS BEST

By Pastor Mike Taylor

105 “ Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.106 I have sworn, and I will perform it, that I will keep thy righteous judgments.” (Psalms 119:105-106)

When I was a child, I followed my parents teachings, because they said so. Being a little guy, these people I called “mommy and daddy" were relied on for everything. They were so much stronger and bigger than me and how could I not do as I was told? When my dad said jump, it was usually “how high?”. Or at least in following his verbal command, I jumped at doing what he said because of fear.

All of us remember as being children, when our parents told us something to do, even though we did not understand why, we did it anyway. Remember being a little person and saying that often uttered word, “why”? In my house, the response was usually, “because I said so”. And if we disobeyed the rules of our parents or the warning not doing as we were told, what was the end result? Correct, we got our behind tanned with a wide belt or a paddle. We obeyed out of fear. Fear of discipline and the pain it would result in.

42 “And the Lord said, Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his lord shall make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of meat in due season?

43 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.

44 Of a truth I say unto you, that he will make him ruler over all that he hath.

45 But and if that servant say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; and shall begin to beat the menservants and maidens, and to eat and drink, and to be drunken;

46 The lord of that servant will come in a day when he looketh not for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in sunder, and will appoint him his portion with the unbelievers.

47 And that servant, which knew his lord's will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes.”(Luke 12:42-47)

If you were around in the '60s, there was a show called “Father Knows Best”....it was a family show that dealt with family issues...in the end, the father of the family knew what was best for each of them. So it is with our Heavenly Father...He knows the beginning from the end and everything in between. He watches over us and gives us blessings that we don't deserve, if we follow what He has told us in His Word......

28 “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.” (Romans 8:28-29)

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

OUR HEAVENLY FATHER

 I remember growing up in church and hearing messages that could only be described as “hell fire and brimstone” sermons. A lot of people came to the altar to repent out of having the living daylights scared out of them. No one who came down wanted to experience a never ending judgment of torment by fire. Was their basis for repentance based on faith or pure unadulterated fear of an all consuming God? Of course, the answer was fear, but better fear than no response at all. Many of these same people when they felt that had appeased God, returned to their lifestyles, as if nothing had ever happened in their lives. Why is that?  Because they got past their fear. Oh, they knew that to sin was not part of their “being saved”, but hey, (I did it this time and nothing happened, right? If I do it again, maybe nothing will happen again. God doesn’t see and I won’t get caught.) So they keep doing the same sin, over and over and expect no discipline for their actions. They reason “God is love and He saved me, so I’m good”. No need to fear anymore.  I  have many people email me and lament that the world believes that if they say a simple prayer, that they have a free pass now to do whatever they want and get away with it.

Let us make a bold statement. You can not offend God.  God is  not a God of meanness. You can not cause Him any injury or inflict harm on Him. God does not sit around just waiting for you to mess up and hit a button labeled “SMITE". But God IS a God of judgment. God will ultimately discipline all who He calls His children and those who do not belong to Him, as they have rejected the only payment for their sin, Jesus Christ death on the cross and resurrection., God will bring judgment onto every one of us, just as your human parents did, in love for those who are His. Why? Because He wants you to grow in His nature and His ways. He wants to spend eternity with His children and cannot abide sin in our lives. God disciplines on two levels, first in correction and then in final judgment. Question? How much can you push God, by repeating the same sins over and over and not have correction and final judgment? Yes, God is a God of mercy and patience, but there is a time when God’s patience runs out.

11  “Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.
12  Though a sinner do evil an hundred times, and his days be prolonged, yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, which fear before him:
13  But it shall not be well with the wicked, neither shall he prolong his days, which are as a shadow; because he feareth not before God.” (Ecclesiastes 8:11-13)

Those who have no fear of God and  have no need for God, think they can do whatever they please, as they rely on themselves. Godly fear is a product of wisdom and those who do not fear God out of respect and reverence, God calls a fool. I didn't say it, GOD does.

1  “The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good.
2  The LORD looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God.
3  They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one.”(Psalms 14:1-3)

BLESSINGS AND CURSES

Looking back at the bible’s example of a people most blessed, and those most cursed because of their disobedience, we look at Israel who disobeyed God and did not continue to fear Him.


1  And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth:
2  And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God.(Deuteronomy 28:1-2)

As you read this passage, God explains to the nation of Israel the blessings they will receive if they hearken unto the voice of God and follow His commands. But beginning in verses 15 to the end of the chapter, God warns them of not following His commandments. The curses and judgments are staggering

15 But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee:

16 Cursed shalt thou be in the city, and cursed shalt thou be in the field.

17 Cursed shall be thy basket and thy store.

18 Cursed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy land, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep.

19 Cursed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and cursed shalt thou be when thou goest out.

20 The Lord shall send upon thee cursing, vexation, and rebuke, in all that thou settest thine hand unto for to do, until thou be destroyed, and until thou perish quickly; because of the wickedness of thy doings, whereby thou hast forsaken me.

21 The Lord shall make the pestilence cleave unto thee, until he have consumed thee from off the land, whither thou goest to possess it.

22 The Lord shall smite thee with a consumption, and with a fever, and with an inflammation, and with an extreme burning, and with the sword, and with blasting, and with mildew; and they shall pursue thee until thou perish.

Read the entire chapter of blessing and curses, but God will discipline those who rebel against Him until God says:

65 “And among these nations shalt thou find no ease, neither shall the sole of thy foot have rest: but the Lord shall give thee there a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, and sorrow of mind:
28:66  And thy life shall hang in doubt before thee; and thou shalt fear day and night, and shalt have none assurance of thy life” (Deuteronomy 28:65-66)

Israel's disobedience to the voice of God affected the national character, until  many years into the future, God had had enough of their disobedience of His Word and His people, the nation of Israel were sent  into exile, not once, but twice until modern day revival of that nation. So it was with them, so it is with us...God does not change and the man who is wise follows after Him, as a sheep after a Good Shepard.

JESUS, GOD OF THE OLD TESTAMENT ON EARTH

Travel with me, many years into their future, after Israel had been returned to their homeland to be rebuilt at the end of the Babylonian exile into the time of the coming of our Lord, Jesus Christ on earth. When Jesus began to teach, one of the most memorable of His sermons was the Sermon on the Mount. Here Jesus explained what was meant in the Old Testament of the commandments given to their fathers. What did Jesus say ?


5:18  “For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
5:19  Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”(Matthew 5:18-19)

In this sermon, our Lord developed what was written in the Old Testament, known to them as the Torah, or Teachings. These were the commandments given by this same God standing before them having fleshed them out in their spiritual intent so it could be understood plainly.

A CLARIFICATION OF MEANING

Let me make something very plain to the reader who may misunderstand. This is not about Law keeping, as no one can keep the Law. Paul spoke of this very fact, they were are not subject to the Law and it’s penalties, because we have been saved by grace and the Law has no effect on us....in penalty. What does Jesus mean then when He spoke of the commandments of God, emphasized by Himself and preached with authority?  Jesus was saying that if you follow the commandments as a way of life, to trust God that He knows what is best for each of us, then blessing will result. If we do not, then curses will follow. Let me illustrate.

Look at any prisoner in our penal system. Have any of these people followed the commandments of God? Of course not, as they have broken norms of society that are based on law. Man made laws came from one authority, Almighty God and based on the Ten Commandments and His judgments.  If you follow the law, you will have blessings such as guaranteed by the Bill of Rights and our Constitution, but if you break the laws, as each of these prisoners did, then you have lost your rights and have been cursed and are incarcerated for a predetermined amount of time. You have lost your freedom, your property, possibly your family, and ultimately some loose their life.

Turning to the born again Christian who follows after Jesus in belief and faith. What has happened to this person? They have become a  new creature in Christ Jesus and they follow His example. What is His example? Following what He said beginning with the Law of God handed down to mankind and ultimately to His sermon on the mount. Jesus gave us commandments to follow for a reason. It is the recipe for a productive and meaningful life. The world follows after their own lust and do what is right in their own eyes. Right or wrong, they follow their own humanistic idea of what is good for them. They have no need for God. Why? Because they do not trust Him. They don’t wish to know Him because they love their sinful ways. We who are called of God, have put our trust in our Heavenly Father and our Lord Jesus who knows the beginning from the end, and ultimately what is best and right for each of us.

Each of us choose consciously who we will follow. Jesus said:

6  Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
7  If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.”(John 14:6-7)

Our Father in Heaven, God Almighty, knew that we could not keep the letter of the Law. It is not in our nature or character to seek God or to know Him.


10:3  “For the wicked boasteth of his heart's desire, and blesseth the covetous, whom the LORD abhorreth.
4  The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God: God is not in all his thoughts.
5  His ways are always grievous; thy judgments are far above out of his sight: as for all his enemies, he puffeth at them.”(Psalms 10:3-5)

Man by nature, who is mortal, and prone to sin, does not follow after God or search for Him. God seeks us and draws us to Himself, through the work of the Holy Spirit to see Jesus, the only payment for the sins that we commit.

10 “As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:

11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.

12 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.

13 Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips:

14 Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness:

15 Their feet are swift to shed blood:

16 Destruction and misery are in their ways:

17 And the way of peace have they not known:

18 There is no fear of God before their eyes.”(Romans 3:10-18)

But God's Holy Spirit is at work in this world, calling all who will heed the call:

44  "No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.
45  It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me.”(John 6:44-45)

When we accept Jesus Christ by faith, as our Savior and Redeemer, we use that faith and belief to follow His way of life. Why do we follow His example and live His commandments? Because we TRUST Him!  To follow after Jesus produces blessing in this life, and all of eternity. To not follow after Jesus, accept Him as personal Savior by faith, leads to the flip side of this life, curses in this life and for all eternity. Follow Jesus produces right living and being obedient to His command produces another by product of our belief......character. Through trials and life’s never ending struggle to put on the new man and avoid evil, we become more like Jesus Christ and less like the world. It will never be complete in this life, but will be accomplished finally when our Savior and Lord changes us into what He is....Immortal Spirit.

1  Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:
2  By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
3  And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;
4  And patience, experience; and experience, hope:
5  And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.”(Romans 5:1-5)

 “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.

2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

3 And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.”(1^st John 3:1-3)

NATIONAL DISOBEDIENCE

As the individual decides to follow or to not follow after God, it permeates into all of society when a society has thrown the commandments of God to the curb.

I have seen what I never thought I would see, but I have. What I have seen in our nation is an apathy for doing what is right in political office. Never would I have thought to have seen that the office of the past so called “leader” of the most powerful nation on earth, the President of the USA be given a pass over lewd behavior, or lying to the people, or trampling on our freedoms. It didn’t just start with this past “Idiot in chief” president, but has been going on for decades. We saw Bill Clinton who had an affair while in office and nobody held him accountable, they even glorified his behavior stating “When Clinton lied, nobody died” meaning GW Bush was guilty of lying and then gave a pass for a Liberal President for sexual misconduct and lying while in office. OH, Bush had his grievous errors in judgment and people blame him for starting unneeded wars, but this President that graced our TV’s most every night, by and far, took the cake.

And we the people, do not hold our elected officials that are supposed to be speaking for us to a higher standard of conduct. This includes our Congressman, our Senators, and our local officials at the state levels. No, we have become them. They are a reflection of the moral decay and the departure from common decency and following after God’s commandments, and the commands of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in both halves of the Holy Book we call the Bible. Remember what we just quoted in Deuteronomy 28 concerning blessing and curses? The national tone is one of moral bankruptcy and a decline in righteous living. No other nation has been given so much, as to require even the more.

48, “ But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.”(Luke 12:48)

All the world knows better but ignores the God of the Bible. As for mentioning the USA, she has turned her back on the benefactor who made  her great. Nation after nation has fallen because they did not follow the ways of God and chose not to honor or reverence Him. The USA is not any different. She has been blessed more abundantly than any nation on earth. She has had her zenith and her star has shown to the ends of the earth, but she has rejected her God and taken on pagan gods of idolatry and filth of perversions. Just look what is going on right now in this country with rioting, looting, murder, thievery, burning down property, the destruction of statues and even a call to demolish Mount Rushmore, as symbol of our history. Evil is growing rampant in this country with attempts to bring in Socialism/Communism all leading to a New World Order, or One World Government which will ultimately lead to the Anti-Christ.

It all starts with you and is a reflection of our national tragedy. You who read this, are you following the commandments of God? Have you followed His way of living based on the life of Jesus Christ? Have you believed in your heart, repented and decided that you have no hope apart from Jesus Christ and His sacrifice on Calvary’s cross to be the substitute for what you and I both deserve, which is death? Put your trust in the only hope you have for blessings in this life and the next. If you feel down, depressed, hooked on drugs or alcohol to numb that empty feeling of hopelessness you feel inside, then look up from the bottom of that pit you are living in and see the outstretched arms of God in the flesh, Jesus the Christ. He seeks to deliver you from the life you are living and only wishes to fold you in His arms. Feel and listen to that still small voice who speaks to your inner being? Jesus is the way, the only way and there is NO other way to be saved.

OBEDIENCE BY FAITH!

Obey His voice and His calling by faith. Accept His invitation to repent of those sins you have committed and will commit in this mortal life. Stand before Him with a broken heart and a contrite spirit and ask for forgiveness and mercy to cleanse you from all unrighteousness...You know what? He will do as you ask.

37  “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.
38  For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.
39  And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day”(John 6:37-39)

Paul the apostle wrote in Romans
23 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, (ALL OF US, my emphasis)

24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:

25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation (substitution) through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;

26 To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.”(Romans 3:23-26)

8 “But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach;

9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.

12 For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him.

13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

(Romans 10:8-13)
3:16  “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
17  For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
18  He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.

21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.”(John 3:16-21)

Romans 8:38-39
For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers,  neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

I firmly believe that this coming election is the most important election of our lifetime. It will determine if we follow the path that God and our Fore-Fathers laid down to create this nation, or we will have a government that will lead us into loss of freedoms, and the rise of Socialism/Communism with “Big Brother watching you”.

But nationally, we have a choice to make, although I don't see it happening, as I believe we are that close to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ in the coming rapture of His church, the Bride of Christ...but just in case, the Father who knows best lets this go on for a few years, then we as a nation need to commit to following our Heavenly Father and the Savior of the world, Jesus Christ.

14 “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”(2^nd Chronicles 7:14)

Revelation 22:17
The Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let him who hears say, "Come!" Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.

That Water of Life, is Jesus Christ. He paid the penalty for disobedience to His righteous law that convicts us all. To come to Him, is to make a personal choice to follow Him, to trust Him, by faith and actions to live as He lived to the best of our mortal ability TILL HE COMES. SO COME LORD JESUS.

This is pastor Mike Taylor, praying you obey that still small voice calling you to repentance and accepting Jesus as your personal Savior, by FAITH.
If you need prayer, counseling, or just a listening ear, email me at pastormiketaylor@yahoo.com .

 God bless you, till we meet at Jesus feet.