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Secrets of the Kingdom of God and the End Times.
In the Parable of the Sower we learn about the four different soils which represent the condition of our heart, which in turn determines if there is a bounty, or famine from God’s word.
Using the four soils as an example, only one person out of four, will respond to the Gospel and produce fruit. This is discouraging that only 1 of 4 people may respond when we share the gospel with them, but…we also find out that it isn’t up to us to change or convert anyone, but it is their response that convicts them. If we do our part, the rest is up to God and that person to respond. So…one out of four isn’t bad…is it? When we look at our world today, this is actually encouraging.
So, what secret of the kingdom of heaven, is Jesus trying to explain to the disciples in the case of the weeds.
Matthew 13:24 “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. 25. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. 26. When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared. 27. The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’ 28. ‘An enemy did this,’ he replied. ‘The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’ 29. ‘No’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may root up the wheat with them. 30. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.”‘ (NIV)
In Jesus’ day this very thing would occur. An angry farmer would sow weeds in another mans field. There were strict laws made to prevent this from happening.
So what was a farmer to do when he discovered that there were weeds, (probably darnel which looks like wheat until it begins to mature)growing along side his wheat?
Here is how Jesus explains the parable.
37. He answered. “The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. 38. The field is the world, the good seed stands for the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, 39. and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels. 40. As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. 41. The Son of Man will send out his angels and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. 42. They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear. (NIV)
While studying this passage I was amazed at how much we are told about the end-times. The field is the world, so this passage is not about different types of Christians, it is about unbelievers who are professing to be Christians that are among us. In what we consider to be the church, (the wheat), there will be counterfeit Christians, (the weeds). They will be among us and we will not be able to always discern the difference. An example of this would be Judas among the other disciples. They had no idea of what was in the heart of Judas Iscariot. Think about how much time they had spent together. They traveled, slept, ate, and preached as a group. Yet…they had no clue.
Jesus said pulling up the weeds may also pull up the wheat, so to let them grow together. The time will come at the end of the world that God will separate the weeds from the wheat. The judgment for the weeds cannot be misunderstood. They will be thrown into the fiery furnace.
What can this teach us? We cannot judge another persons heart, and we are not to. This will be the job of the angels at the end of the world. In the meantime we will have to abide among the unbelievers who profess to love and follow Christ. So God’s kingdom has counterfeit Christians and real Christians. While we cannot judge another’s heart, we do have to be alert to the false teaching from those INSIDE the church. Those who truly walk with the Lord have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit while those professing to know Christ, but do not, are counterfeit.
This is further expressed in the parables about the Mustard Seed and the Yeast.
These two parables are not explained by Jesus. I believe this is so because there is more than one interpretation for each. For the purpose of this study we will focus on the counterfeit aspect of the kingdom. These verses are from the KJV.
The Mustard Seed
Matthew 13:31 Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: 32. Which is indeed the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.”
I have heard a positive interpretation of this parable that says that the tree is the spreading of the gospel to all the nations, and that the church will become a powerful influence in the world (field). The Bible does say that the gospel will be heard by all before the end comes, and this will happen, but let’s look at another interpretation.
This tiny mustard seed naturally grows to the size of a garden herb plant. In this scenario the plant becomes a huge tree of unnatural proportion. This plant is inflated beyond its normal size. It is so large that birds lodge in the branches. A bird that “lodges” has taken this to be its home. This tree represents an inflated kingdom of heaven. What is it inflated with? All throughout the Bible we are warned of false teachings. Many of these false teachings are full of prosperity, inspiration and feel-good messages. One can see how the kingdom of heaven may be artificially expanded with unconverted Christians.
Could the mega-churches of today be part of this apostate kingdom of heaven with birds nesting in its branches. The birds from the previous Parable of the Sower depicted the birds as evil. These birds came and devoured the Word of God. Now we have “birds of the air” residing in this kingdom. These birds also symbolize evil. Many of the sermons in the churches are lacking in truth of the Word. The Bible is no longer taught. The birds have come and devoured the seed, The Word.
What about those who are in the process of establishing the five-fold apostolic ministries of prophet and apostles? They are determined to build a kingdom here on earth so that Jesus can return to claim His church, the spotless bride. They say the billion soul revival is just around the corner. There is a problem with this, which will be addressed a bit later. Those deeply involved in Kingdom Now theology are creating an extensive network that will connect to a world-wide spirituality which will ultimately invite the world ruler to step in.
The Yeast (Leaven)
Matthew 13:33. Another parable spake he unto them: “The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened.
Three measures of meal was a common offering in biblical times. In this instance we have a woman hiding yeast in the meal until the whole portion was leavened. The yeast was mixed throughout the flour. We know what happens to dough once yeast is added. It inflates and grows easily to double its original size. The yeast changes the entire texture of the dough. Now in those days yeast was added the same way one keeps a starter of sourdough bread on hand today. It is kneaded in till it is completely infiltrated into the whole loaf.
So what does this mean? Yeast is always spoken of in the Bible as an evil influence. Yeast was forbidden in ceremonies (Exodus12:15) and we are told “Take heed and beware of leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.” Matthew 16: 6.
So Jesus is telling us about the inflation of the kingdom of God and of its unnatual, bloated, puffed-up expansion. The cause? Evil. We have the birds of the air in the tree and the yeast in the dough infiltrating the church before Christ returns.
This kingdom of Christians (the true church) will have counterfeit Christians among us. The Bible predicts a falling away from the faith. II Thessalonians 2:3 says “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.”
So… this inflated kingdom He speaks of will not a righteous, holy, god-fearing kingdom. In fact, this kingdom will be laced with sinful false teachings that will entice believers AWAY from the truth preparing the world for the son of perdition, the AntiChrist. II Timothy 4:3-4 “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned into fables.”
When Jesus Christ returns this will end the kingdom of heaven as He speaks of it in these parables. This kingdom of heaven on earth will be misinterpreted by those wanting to advance God’s cause for their own desires. These parables prophesy what God’s kingdom sadly will look like before His return. We have already been told the blind will not understand, but to the disciples the mystery is opened to them. As disciples today, we should see what is happening in our churches, see the mangled doctrine, because we have been forewarned over and over again in the New Testament.
Can you see how the three parables, The Sower, The Weeds and the Yeast, build upon each other? The first parable is explained, with us learning that the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven will be understood by disciples but not the world. The world does not comprehend or care, that faith will depart from the earth…not multiply. The gospel will be spread to the ends of the earth but the takers will be few. The seed will not take root. The birds who eat the seed, Jesus explains as the “wicked one”. Along with the wheat, weeds will grow in the field (world), and live side by side. The mustard seed, the tiniest of seeds, grows into a huge monstrous tree with birds (evil ones) nesting in it. The bread (the kingdom) is also expanded unnaturally by the hidden yeast (evil).
Satan himself is introducing false ideas, false gods, and false religion into all of society. This is nothing new, but can’t you see the change in the church? At first little by little, lies are introduced and the congregations like the lies. But why is it that they cannot see the deception? THEY DON’T WANT TO. People don’t have time to read their Bible, or have time for prayer.
The kingdom of God on earth will be populated by mostly counterfeits by the time Jesus returns. My take on this is that the church will be totally infiltrated and those who will not accept this new spirituality introduced by the birds, will have to go underground. Why do i believe this? It is happening today.
Now what about the billion soul revival? This is not biblical because of Luke 18:8. “…when the Son of Man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?” In fact, about the end-times, Jesus says in Matthew 24:9 “..and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake.” What about Matthew 7: 14? “But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” This verse was recently cited to a dominionist who said this was being “nit-picky”. Today Bible believing Christians are being ridiculed and sneered at, being called uneducated and unenlightened. The derision is rampant.
Weeds & Yeast
The secrets of the Parables are not secret to those who walk the narrow path, who have committed their life to the Lord, and who have been empowered by the Holy Spirit. Those who hold to the truths of the Word of God will not be deceived by the hypocrisy and false teachings of the weeds and their rebellious words inflated by the yeast.
Please….examine yourself and the commitment you have or haven’t made to the Lord Jesus Christ. The future for the weeds is less than promising, indeed. The church, the true believers, are the kingdom of heaven today. The perfect kingdom we still wait for…after the physical return of Jesus Christ.
So take heart, brothers and sisters in Christ. Luke tell us in 21:28, “Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that the kingdom of God is near.”
“Even so, come Lord Jesus.”
It is with great interest that I read about those who are building the kingdom of heaven here on earth. There are many struggling to find peace and unify this world into what they think is God’s kingdom using extra-biblical revelation. Of course, God’s perfect kingdom is not of this world but apparently that is beside the point.
While studying Matthew, it startled me to realize the secrets that are revealed about the kingdom of heaven in chapter 13. Of the seven parables in this chapter, there are only two parables that Jesus himself explains. The Parable of the Sower and the Parable of the Weeds.
Each parable starts “the kingdom of heaven is liketh”, except the parable of the sower, which has the phrase,”Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven.”
What is it about these two parables that Jesus explained outright to us, that is so important.
First I should note that parables were used because those who were sincere in wanting to understand the truth, those who were truly seeking Jesus, understood. Those who did not understand were merely listening to stories, their hardened hearts not seeing or hearing. But those who were sensitive to the words were convicted. Those who wanted to know more would inquire further.
The Parable of the Sower. Many of us are familiar with this parable.
Matthew 13:3-9
3. “And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold a sower went forth to sow; 4. And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up: 5. Some fell on stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth: 6. And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. 7. And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up and choked them: 8. But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixty fold, some thirtyfold. 9. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.”
It was at this point that the disciples asked why Jesus spoke in parables. He said, 11. “Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but them it is not given.”
So why were the mysteries revealed to the disciples but not to the others?
Matthew 11:25 “At that time Jesus answered and said, “I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes.”
Matthew 13:17 “For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things ye hear, and have not heard them.”
I Cor 2:10,14 “But God has revealed it to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God…The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.”
The truths that Jesus was speaking of, was foolishness to those who did not have the spirit of God and so instead reveals his truths to those who are childlike when they come to Him. Jesus had just preached the Beatitudes on the Sermon on the Mount as to what our “attitudes” as children of God were to be, and yet the people would not believe.
Matthew 13:12-13 “For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.”
We must take the full counsel of God. Those who interpret scripture to their liking or warp its message by taking it out of context… have no light in them. If you are looking for understanding and knowledge in the bible you will find it, but if you are closed to the truth…the truth you do have….will be taken from you. What a huge implication this is. If you turn your back on the Word of God, any understanding you have….will be removed. What light you have received….will taken from you.
This would like be receiving multiple warnings from your power company. After rejecting them over and over again by ignoring the bills, the plug will eventually be pulled. The power will be turned off. Likewise if you continually reject the complete teachings of the word of God, what little light you may have….God will turn out.
How careful we must be… to read the bible from front to back to ensure the understanding of his Word.
Jesus then says that this fulfills a prophecy in Isaiah 6:9-10. “Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart. and convert, and be healed.”
God told Isaiah to go and preach to a people who wouldn’t respond, so that their guilt would be certain. As Trapp wrote, Isaiah would “Preach them to hell.” What preacher could be satisfied with a ministry that made the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and shut their eyes? Isaiah might not be satisfied with it. The people might not be satisfied with it. But God would be satisfied with it. This shows what the word of God can accomplish when it is received with open eyes, ears, and heart. It brings understanding to our heart, it makes us return, and it brings healing to our lives. If you are under the word of God and these things aren’t happening to you, ask God to work with your eyes, ears, and heart! (David Guzik)
Matthew 13:15 “For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.”
Jesus was telling the disciples that what was true of the Israelites was also true of this crowd. Isn’t this true of people today? We do not want to hear anything that may convict of us our sinful lives, so we close our eyes to the truth. We do not want to admit that our pathways are wrong or that we may have believed a lie so we continue to put our hands over our ears and sing a song to drown out the voice of God in our wicked hearts. What an eternal fatal decision.
Matthew 13:17 “For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things, which ye hear, and have not heard them.”
So why have these prophets and righteous men seen not and heard not? I looked at Strongs Concordance [G1937] desire. Here is the meaning.
1) to turn upon a thing
2) to have a desire for, long for, to desire
3) to lust after, covet
a) of those who seek things forbidden
Desire, covet, lust, things forbidden! Now this is beginning to make some sense.
Jude 19 “These be they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit.”
It is at this point that Jesus explains the parable.
Matthew 13:19 “When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path.”
We can easily picture a trodden path. The soil is hard here and the Word of God bounces off. A man’s heart is hard in the same manner. He hears the Word but he doesn’t want act on it. The seed does not penetrate. The birds come and eat the seed before it has time to soften man’s heart.
We know this as the parable of the sower of the seed, but upon closer look it is truly about the condition of the soil. The seed is always the same. Let’s look at the next soil.
Matthew 13:20-21 “The one who who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the Word and at once receives it with joy. But since it has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away.”
This seed fell on rocky places and maybe found a bit of soil between the rocks. Here it sprouts quickly but when the conditions get dry or hot, the sprout withers. There is no root or foundation to sustain it. This is how it is when we hear God’s Word and start to go to church, but this soon becomes inconvenient or people start to criticize our faith so we fall away when times get tough.
Matthew 13:22 “The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the Word, but the worries of this life and deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful.”
Isn’t it just like life to become full of pastime pleasures. Shopping, boating, golfing, tennis, movie theaters, plays, etc. When the truth of Word of God becomes second to lifes whims and riches, it becomes choked among the thorns. We forget about the treasure we had in our heart, and instead long for the treasures made of wood, silver, and gold. Our other gods.
Matthew 13:23 “But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”
So the description of the soil is the condition of man’s heart when he hears the gospel. It may be any part of God’s word at anytime of ones life.
What four soils best describes your heart right now?
1. It is hard-trodden, rejecting any truth that may ask you to change your ways?
2. How about rocky? Does God’s Word reach down deep to your very soul or are the roots of God’s Word shallow and ready to wilt in the heat?
3. Is your soil congested with thorns which crowd out God’s Word so that it cannot flourish?
4. Is your ground fertile? Do you welcome the seed of God’s Word into your heart and let it grow to maturity?
This fertile ground is now broken into 3 more categories. A thirty-fold Christian may be who believes but can be lukewarm at times. A sixty-fold Christian may be someone who lives for the Lord but does not surrender entirely. But a hundred-fold Christian would be one who has commited fully to the Lord in all ways.
So it is not the seed or the sower who does not produce. It is the condition of the soil that tells the story of what one can expect when the seed is planted into it. Different soils produce different reactions. Only one of the four soils will produce fruit. What fruit have you produced for God? Is your Christian life thriving because of obedience to the Word? Do you read and study the Bible daily to ensure that you are on the right path?
The worker is not to blame. The sower has done his job by spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Next: The Parable of the Weeds – Counterfeit Christians
The Bible teaches that all Christians should grow in spiritual discernment.
For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you have need again for someone to teach you the elementary principles of the oracles of God, and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For everyone who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to the word of righteousness, for he is an infant. But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil.
– Hebrews 5:12-14 NASB
Paul told the Thessalonians:
Do not quench the Spirit; do not despise prophetic utterances. But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; abstain from every form of evil.
– 1 Thessalonians 5:19-22 NASB
While he encouraged the Thessalonians not to discount or dismiss the Holy Spirit – by despising that which was being taught as coming from God (prophecy) – Paul instructed them to test everything.
In other words, if someone preaches or teaches something that he or she claims was inspired by God, we are not to despise it – which would result in quenching the Holy Spirit.
However, we are to carefully examine that which is being taught.
Earlier, Luke called the people of Berea – where Paul and Silas had been sent to preach – “more noble-minded that those in Thessalonica,” because
they received the word with great eagerness, examining [anakrino] the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so. Therefore many of them believed, along with a number of prominent Greek women and men.
– Acts 17:11-12 NASB
Thus the Bereans did not quench the Spirit, but rather tested what was being taught, using Scripture as their guide.
How to grow in spiritual discernment
The only way to grow in spiritual discernment is
a) by relying on the guidance of the Holy Spirit who indwells every true Christian, and
b) by stuyding God’s Word, the Bible.
These two go hand-in-hand:
The Holy Spirit
One can not expect someone who has just accepted Jesus Christ as his savior to have a full, working knowledge of Biblical theology. The Bible indicates that people come to Jesus because the Holy Spirit draws them and they respond to His invitation.
When someone accepts Jesus Christ, he becomes regenerated (born again – a new person, spiritually). Among other things, he receives the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, which puts him at a great advantage over non-Christians. Paul puts it like this:
11 For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man’s spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.
12 We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us.
13 This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words.
14 The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.
15 The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man’s judgment:
16 For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct. – 1 Corinthians 2:11-16
The Bible
The Bible provides the standard against which all teachings must be tested:
All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; 17 so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.
– 2 Timothy 3:16-17 NASB
Hand-in-hand
This reliance both on the guidance of the Holy Spirit and on God’s Written Word should keep Christians focused on God.
If Christians were to rely only on their ability to listen to the Holy Spirit, they would leave themselves open to all manner of private teachings and interpretations – without any rules by which to rest such revelations.
At the same time, it they were to rely only on their own ability to interpret and apply the Scriptures, they would leave no room for God’s guidance in revealing to them the riches of his Word.
As Christians our focus should always be on the living God, with whom we have an interactive relationship.
Relying on the discernment of others
No Christian is an island. There is much to be learned from one another, as we share the wisdom and insights God has revealed to us from His Word, by His Holy Spirit.
Sadly, though, many Christians leave the responsibility for discernment almost completely up to others. Their guidance comes primarily from televangelists, authors (and, more often than not, their ghost writers), their pastors, or their favorite websites.
That’s like being spoon-fed by someone else – marking one as an infant, rather than as a mature Christian:
For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you have need again for someone to teach you the elementary principles of the oracles of God, and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For everyone who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to the word of righteousness, for he is an infant. But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil.
– Hebrews 5:12-14 NASB
By all means, let’s learn from one another – eagerly receiving the word, while also examining everything carefully.
Discernment as a spiritual gift
Christians who believe that the Spiritual Gifts are still available today, see the gift of “distinguishing between spirits” (discerning whether they are human, from God, or demonic), to be a special form of discernment (revealed, instead of learned):
Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.
– 1 Corinthians 12:7-11, NASB
This article taken from Apologetics Index
What is it, that is so compelling to people looking for God, that they are drawn to the new age mysticism cloaked in Christian terminology?
I can surmise by my own experience. I came back to the Lord about 5 years ago and found that the churches have changed drastically. I remember as a young girl, clutching my bible in Sunday school and then listening to the congregation leaf through the pages of their bibles searching for the scripture the pastor was preaching about. But hey…we don’t need to bring our bibles anymore. Everything we need to know is printed right on the bulletin. How does one know that the truth is being taught when bibles are no longer required at services? What a dangerous situation this presents to the congregation.
Does anyone remember the days when followers of Christ lived lives of holy surrender to his will, and let the filling of the Holy Spirit guide, comfort, strengthen, and convict them? It is no wonder that there are people starving and thirsting for God because he is no longer found in many churches.
So what is being presented today? What is the New Age gospel? What is the new mysticism that is being promoted in many churches today? Those who who no longer attend church are finding their search for God in the bookstores. Unfortunately, the New Age section and the Religion section are now being blended together.
I went to the Blue Letter Bible and searched for the word “mystery” in the KJV version and came up with 22 verses in the New Testament.
Many of these verses have Paul explaining the mystery being revealed of the Gentiles being included in the Kingdom of God, and there is the mystery of the changing of our bodies from mortal to immortal at the rapture, and then the mysteries of the end-times in Revelation.
I would like to start by focusing first on:
Ephesians 1:9 Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:
What is the mystery of his will? Verses 8-10 is a wonderful passage that is telling us that we need His wisdom and understanding to know His will. How is it given? The believer is given the gift of the Holy Spirit. The gifts we receive are spiritual wisdom and discernment. To those who do not walk in the Holy Spirit these are hard concepts to grasp.Wisdom to know what God’s will is for you and His will for the universe is given those who are in Christ.
How about:
Colossians 1:26-27 Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: to whom God would make known what is glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:
Verse 27 is relating again to the Gentiles, but take a close look at this “But now is made manifest to his saints”. What does this mean? It means that there is “NO BIG SECRET” to be revealed only to a few or the elite. The problem of Gnosticism is again being addressed here. There is no secret knowledge because God is making himself known to those who are in Him. There is no secret way to discover God’s will, there are no secrets that can be obtained outside of his Word. The truth of God’s word is available for all to discover if they are truly seeking Him. The mystery is an open secret, but the truths remain impossible mysteries for those who are unbelievers.
This is why many are seeking alternate methods to find God. They cannot relate to the truth of the Bible, so one then has to find spirituality by other means. There are other methods easily available to those who seeking an easier way to God other than repentance and total committment to turning away from sin. People like their sin. They like thought processes that downplay its eternal significance. Using mysticism itself as a method to locate God is dangerous. The are two spirit worlds. If you are looking outside of the Bible and its precious word to find God…you will instead find the counterfeit. The counterfeit spirit downplays sin and minimizes it. Doesn’t this sound like the seeker friendly churches we are seeing today?
Let’s go on to:
Ephesians 3: 3 How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery
Ephesians 3:4 Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ
Ephesians 3:9 And to make all men see that what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ:
Here Paul tells how the church is made one in Christ and explains that this was not previously revealed. God gave this revelation to Paul. This mystery was hidden in the past, and now is revealed by Paul to all. This message was also prophesied in the Old Testament even though the prophets did not understand the mystery was to include Jew and Gentiles alike. The church is a glorious example of faith in Jesus Christ as we await His second coming. As time goes on, the church will become more hated and ridiculed for not conforming to the world and its universal religious system being implemented today. This system is found in the form of seeking the “secret knowledge”. How this appeals to our pride, that we have found some secret knowledge available only to a few. The truth is that the knowledge of God is actually open and available to all believers.
Oh how Satan lies…the lies never change. You can be as God. You can find God within. You are God.
Why do people search for truth within themselves? There is nothing good in us and our hearts are corrupt.
Romans 7:18 For i know that in me, that is, in my flesh, dwelleth not good thing:
How is it that those involved in the contemplative prayer movement can condone the thought of “going within” to find Jesus? If we go “within”, we will find instead that our fleshy desires produce nothing good.
Let me ask you..are you so steeped in the Word of God that you would recognize a counterfeit gospel? If someone said to you…come join our group we have found a new way to Jesus, would you be wary of this approach? What about methods of worship or prayer..if someone said to you..pray the word Jesus over and over again till your mind becomes a blank… would you do it?
Many of these methods offer a mystical way to Jesus…One has to remember that there will be false prophets and false spirits posing as Jesus.
I Timothy 3:16 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.
We can know without controversy, there is no doubt, we all can know and understand, that godliness comes from Jesus Christ who came to us in the flesh, whose power came from the Holy Spirit is now at the right hand of God. Only through Jesus can we find godliness. We have no righteousness of our own.
So is this a mystery to you? We will never know all the mysteries of God or the universe while we are here on this earth, but we can know what God has revealed to us in His Word, and through the leadings of the Holy Spirit. We all have a purpose here on this earth. God will reveal to you the mystery of His will to you. It takes prayer, reading His Word daily, and a giving up of what it is that WE want to do. By taking up the cross daily and relenting our will to His, the mystery of God, is revealed to us by the Holy Spirit.
Pray daily for discernment, wisdom and that the Lord will keep you alert to the sheep in wolves clothing and hidden in His deep truths of the faith.
http://www.letusreason.org/Default.htm
Mike Oppenheimer of:
Let Us Reason Ministries
MY TESTIMONY
I was brought up Jewish, went to Shabbat quite faithfully each Friday and celebrated the holydays at the temple and with family. Our family like many others, gathered together on the high holy days in observance. I attended Hebrew school twice a week and learned the language and eventually was Bar Mitzvahed and confirmed. While attending classes I asked a lot of questions about God the Rabbi could not answer. Though I continued each year, mainly to please my parents, I became less interested in the traditional religion of my parents and feeling hindered in my spiritual development, leaped head first into my own brand of freestyle spirituality after graduation.
By my own search in reading and attending lectures and gatherings I got involved in the New Age Movement, became a vegetarian and for 15 years practiced yoga and meditation. I ended up using psychedelic drugs for a time (LSD, mescaline etc.), as part of my regular religious observances and smoking “pakalolo” (pot) became part of my normal lifestyle. During these times I also experimented with various religions and the occult. I felt they each contained some part of the truth of the one “true” religion, just as Rosicrucianism teaches all religions are petals on the same flower.
I studied about the Ancient Masters of the East, learning about Buddhism and Zen I picked up on a number of the practices. I had a number of spiritual experiences which at the time I was sure were from God and leading me to a greater knowledge of myself and Him. I discovered and believed in the Ascended Masters that were guiding our world into a greater evolutionary path. I was involved with UFO’s and channeled messages. I was sure I was on the right spiritual path because of the various signs things just fell into place. At the same time I also read the Bible (even the New Testament), not denying my Jewish roots. I began reading over 50 books a year, having an insatiable spiritual appetite, but God was working on my exit out of this spiritual bondage.
I had also started to surf before beginning my spiritual pilgrimage. I fell in love with the sport and began traveling, surfing and entering contests. Surfing became my livelihood after I learned to shape surfboards for a living. I became the NY champion for a number of years and eventually the eastern surfing champion for two years. Hawaii proved to be an irresistible attraction due to its fantastic surf. I moved permanently to Hawaii with my girlfriend Kathy in the mid 70’s. This gave me more freedom to pursue both my first love of surfing and my freelance spirituality. We thought we were becoming enlightened. Reading books about the Ascended Masters involvement and “learning” about Earth’s past history on Lemuria and Atlantis. We desired to become servants of the New age movement, convinced that if we all united we could usher in an age of spiritual cooperation and enlightenment that so many were talking about. After nine years my searching came to a head when my girlfriend Kathy and I started to pursue our spiritual hunger more seriously and became involved in the “I Am Movement” (the Saint Germaine Society of the Ballard’s). Through calling on angels and powers unknown to us and by “decreeing” and using the Violet Consuming Flame to eradicate past life karma, we were learning to become active in the New Age Movement. At the time, Kathy was practicing affirmations, mantras, studying herbology, polarity therapy, kinesiology and learning about the supposed spiritual energies of the body. She also was a manager of a health store on the Island of Oahu.
At the same time, the Lord started moving ahead with His rescue plan and during one week we had two friends over who had recently became Christians. One was also a surfer that I knew from New York. We talked about end-time events for hours. Since I was familiar with, as I had been reading the Bible for years, and was especially fascinated about the end of the age. (At that time we both thought Christians were very narrow minded about their view of the Bible, God and the world. Kathy and I used to laugh about how the New Age was coming in without Christians even being aware of it, and were still trying to live in the old traditions and were not going to be part of it). Later that week my friends invited us to a seminar that just so happened to be on the New Age Movement with speakers Dave Hunt, Johanna Michaelson and Hal Lindsey. Talk about timing! It was also during that same week that I heard an audible voice say, “I am the Lord your God, you shall not want.” I recognized this was from Psalm 23 from my Jewish upbringing and had never experienced anything like it. Inside I knew this was the God I was searching for but still did not know. It was only later I would understand why this voice was outside and not from inside me.
I attended the Christian conference on Bible prophecy and the New Age Movement that week while Kathy stayed home doing her New Age affirmations. She wasn’t feeling well that day and unknowingly had really been going through a spiritual battle all that week. At the conference, I was shocked to hear the other side of the story. The information I heard seemed incredible. The speakers knew all about the occult techniques Kathy and I were following and practicing, and about the New Age Movement’s master plans. I spoke to Dave Hunt briefly during a break and he answered a number of important questions. One was why Jesus said, “why you have forsaken me?” Though I was reading the Bible all these years I could not understand the gospel contained in it. I was blinded by the viewpoints ingrained from the New Age influences. I was also challenged by Dave on the occult practices in which I was personally involved practicing. He was aware of the “I am societies” practices. One question he asked was, “If you’re God did you create the universe? I had never thought this through. If I’m trying to become god through all these New Age techniques, how could this be possible, when God was always all knowing and all powerful (according to the Scriptures and what I had heard through their speaking that night). It was through this question that a chain of events led to the Lord really ministering the truth to my heart and mind. When the conference resumed Johanna spoke and I was relating to a lot she had experienced, especially in regards to the Ascended Master “Jesus”. Then she spoke about another Jesus – the true Jesus of the Bible, which came as a total shock. I never thought there could be false Jesus’ parading around as the real one. They were only Jesus by name but not the One who is God come in the flesh. It all made sense. When she prayed my heart was pierced, I knew I had heard the truth, but the question was; what would I do about it?
All the way home I wrestled with the realization that I had wasted the past 15 years believing and doing the wrong things. (Prior to this I thought Christians were very narrow minded but now I had to reconsider that I was too open-minded and had bought into a lie.) I asked my friends who took me to the meeting numerous questions that were running through my mind. Being new Christians, they could answer only a few of them. They just kept saying to me, “we know the Bible is God’s Word and Jesus is the truth.”
Kathy was waiting up for me when I got home. It was late and she was actually scared that I would come home a Christian from the meeting! As I came in a peace came in the house and on her, as I sat her down and shared about how the Christians viewed the last days and how it wasn’t anything like what we were being taught in the New Age Movement. It was then that the Holy Spirit revealed to Kathy that not only were we following the wrong Jesus (2 Cor.11:4), but that we were worshiping Satan, and that he is a real being. Then the fear of God fell upon us and for the first time we got down on our knees and prayed to the true living God to forgive us for the occult beliefs we had been deceived into practicing. The Lord got the last laugh, but it was a pleasant one of victory.
The next morning we both went to a Christian church and the pastor got to the pulpit and said that he was told to change the sermon. He spoke on sin, Satan and Jesus Christ, we thought our friends had tipped him off but it was the Lord. We heard the gospel explained and dedicated our lives to the Lord, repenting and asking Christ to forgive us. Thank the Lord He intervened. We were saved together in the year 1986. It was later that week I found out that it was on the 20th anniversary of my confirmation day when God spoke that previous week to me Psalm 23. The last thing I read in front of the congregation in the temple 20 years before had been Proverbs 4:1-2 “Hear my children, the instruction of a Father, and give attention to know understanding. For I have given you good doctrine, forsake not my law.” Unfortunately, I did forsake His Law, for 20 years- but God brought me and my soon-to-be wife back. Five weeks after our spiritual birth Kathy and I were married and today have a 15 year old son who has been learning and become very interested in the debate of creation versus evolution among other interests.
Immediately, I began to study the Bible and learn apologetics in order to give answers to those who ask why we believe in Christ and why Jesus is God in the flesh. Since 1988 I have continued teaching on the cults and aberrant world views including how the cults deny grace and opt for works to be accepted by God. These include the Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormonism, and also the occult (New Age world view) which is now very present inside the Church.
By the grace of God I have had the privilege to have taught at Hope Chapels, Calvary Chapels, Church of Christ, Youth With A Mission, United Methodist Church, Grace Brethren, Assembly of God and various other Hawaii congregations. I have also had the opportunity to share in small group studies around the Island and have been involved in a number of debates. The Lord has currently provided us with the opportunity to host a TV program and had live call-in broadcast called “Let Us Reason” on a local Christian station as well as featured on several other live radio broadcasts in Hawaii. I am currently a missionary for Witness Inc., the world’s largest counter cult ministry reaching out to Jehovah’s Witnesses.
In 1994 Let Us Reason Ministries was founded as an up-to-date apologetic resource center to instill both confidence and a desire to lead others to Christ. This is done by helping equip believers with both Biblical, and logical answers for their Christian faith. I have learned many things along the way that need to be passed on to others to encourage as well as equip them in their witnessing. It’s my hope that this ministry will be able to prompt believers to personally meet and evangelize people who are in cults and false religions as well as discern and call attention to false doctrine within the Church.
Mike Oppenheimer
(used with permission from Let us Reason)
Here is another testimony that you might like to read.
kim
https://kimolsen.wordpress.com/2007/12/25/a-testimony-of-a-former-new-ager/
and another
https://kimolsen.wordpress.com/2007/09/13/the-toronto-deception-by-former-tacf-pastor-paul-gowdy/
“Earnestly contend for the faith….pulling them out of the fire.”
Jude was the half-brother of Jesus. It is interesting that he refers to himself as “the servant of Jesus Christ, brother to James” and does not tell of his relationship to Jesus. He may have done this to give God the glory and not to attract attention to himself.
He wanted to write about salvation, but it was apparent that he felt it was necessary to write a different letter to the believers. This is a letter of warning for false teachers and false doctrines that are entering the church.
1. “Jude the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them, that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ , and called:”
Who was Jude writing to? “…them, that are sanctified by God”, “Called.” This letter written by Jude is to Christians or the believers. It is always helpful to know who the books of the Bible are addressed. So this book written by Jude, is a warning to the flock.
Jude is probably best known for this verse.
3. “Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.”
I would like to point out aspects of this verse and how it applied to us today.
“Earnestly contend for the faith.”
Let me rephrase this verse using terms from the dictionary. Seriously assert for the faith. Zealously struggle with those who oppose the faith. Sincerely maintain the faith. Speak forth the truth. Even though I like, speak forth the truth, the words struggle and maintain are just as relevant. “Struggle” because as time goes on there will be more and more opposition and “maintain” because it means to retain or keep the gospel as it is in it’s original form.
All these statements set forth what we are to do, but are we? Are we studying the Word daily with prayer so that we could recognize deception if we saw it? “…which was once delivered unto the saints.”
The truth was delivered once. It is not to be changed, altered or configured to one’s owns desires. “…unto the saints.” Who are the saints? Ephesians 1:1 “…the faithful in Christ Jesus.”
4. “For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.” “Crept in unawares?”
Remember this is the church, the believers, Jude is talking to. Men have c r e p t in u n a w a r e s . This is an alarming statement. It should make you look behind you to see who is crouching, getting ready to pounce. But the reality is that we are not always acknowledging the false teaching, because we are UNAWARE. Yes, we are unaware of all who are ungodly, condemned, denying God and Jesus, and turning God’s grace into immorality. How disconcerting… that there are those who have slipped in among us and we have not noticed.
Jude is warning us. You would think by their description we would recognize them. This would indicate another warning. If we cannot recognize these men…are we like them?
Look at this phrase…”denying the only Lord God.” How many are today saying that there are many paths to God? With the explosion of Eastern religion in the West, we will hearing this more and more. Contemplatives using eastern style meditation also are leaning toward this denial of Jesus Christ as the only way and the downplay of sin.What is implied is that these men know of God’s grace, yet….they use this grace as an excuse or pardon for sin. Also note the tense of this verse. It applies to all time. But these men are destined for condemnation and Jude gives examples.
5. “I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not.”
Jude is saying that we should know why the Israelites were destroyed. Do you remember the story of how God led the Israelites with pillars of smoke and fire, fed them manna from heaven, parted the Red Sea, yet they still “believed not”? They did not endure to the end because of a lack of faith.Then Jude gives two more examples of punishment and judgment. The fallen angels are being held for judgment day and similarly Sodom and Gomorrah experienced the: 7. “vengeance of eternal fire.”
These ungodly men will experience a punishment similar to Sodom and Gomorrah.
6. “Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignitaries.” This is a startling description of these godless men, yet it says that we can be unaware they are among us. How can this be? Let’s look a few possibilities.
I have read some pretty strange words from those in the prophetic movement. Before I continue…my personal view should be made known. I believe the prophetic movement to be mostly false. I have read many of the prophecies and most are the same predictions over and over again. Many I believe are channelers and are not hearing from God. They are not discerning the spirits. Their methods of contact with the spirit world, mirror the occult practices that have been used for centuries. This divination is detestable to the Lord. Deut 18:12. Nevertheless, I do believe there are some believers who have been given dreams and visions. There has also been many downfalls and scandals concerning those who are involved in false ministries. Look at the countless who have sadly fallen due to sexual sin. There is a correlation between sexual sin and those who defile the flesh. Let it be said that much of it is due to ungodliness and those who give themselves over to other forces besides the Holy Spirit.
“Despise dominion and speak evil of dignitaries”.
My bible parallels over to 2 Peter 2:10 “But chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government.” Presumptuous are they, self-willed, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignitaries.
Dominionism which is an end-time deception, involves two main situations. There are those who want to reconstruct the apostolic ministries of disciples and apostles, which is called the 5-fold ministry and then there is the idea that Christians need to dominate the earth and “take it back”. Those are who trying to create a new apostolic order in our churches are usually self-appointed apostles. They want to be in charge. They are rejecting God’s authority and those who are now ministering to the churches they want to take over. This was demonstrated recently by a young man who is involved with a deluded ministry. He wrote a book stating one has to ask permission of the church, to leave the congregation. What? Why should anyone in the church have this kind of control over the congregation? They shouldn’t but that is what is being put forth and implemented today. Any church that has this kind of power is a cult.
The time is here that the ungodly of this world are being called godly. We can see that the Dalai Lama was greeted with honor this year by President Bush. Would this same honor be bestowed to a Christian minister? The time is upon us that godly men will be labeled intolerant and that they are denying peace to our world. The fact that the bible says that Jesus Christ is the only way will become ridiculous to the “spiritualists” of the world. This is already happening. The narrow path to Jesus Christ is now being labeled as narrow-minded. Those who are “narrow-minded” will not accept the unity of religions and will be the fundamental outcasts. Those who will not accept the many roads to God will be the minority of the future. It is unfortunate but the future is already here.
If we jump up to Jude 10 we will find this of the godless men among us: “But these speak evil of those things which they know naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt themselves.”
What does “which they know naturally”, mean? Back to 2 Peter 2:12-13 “But these as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the thinks that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption. And shall receive the reward of unrighteousness, as they that count it pleasure to riot in the day time. Spots they are and blemishes, sporting themselves with their own deceiving while they feast with you.”
“How ironical that when men should claim to be knowledgeable, they should actually be ignorant; when they think themselves superior to the common man they should actually be on the same level as animals, and be corrupted by the very practices in which they seek liberty and self-expression.” (Green)
Many today profess to have special knowledge and prophesy falsely. One can prophecy from the soul instead of from God. Here, one who may be full of pride, purports to tell another what God’s will is. 2 Peter 1:21 says, “For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.” Does God speak to us directly? Yes, I believe He does. We can know his leading, and we should know His voice. His Still Small Voice. The Holy Spirit will guide us. But the rule is the Word of God. Those who go by what men say will be open to deception.
11. “Woe unto them! For they have gone the way of Cain…of Balaam…of Korah.” 12. “These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds they are without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit witherith, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots:”
The false prophets are doomed because they have not the faith of Abel who offered his first fruits, but have murder in their hearts, the greed of Balaam, and the desire to be in charge like Korah (Cor-e) who wanted to replace Moses, but was swallowed up by the earth. Hatred, greed and rebellion . This was the downfall of these men. Do not follow anyone who resembles them. for they want to take you with them. Korah was destroyed as well as his followers, so look for godly and biblical teachers.Verse 12 does not refer to spots (blemishes) as angels but as sinful men. These spots partake of the agape feast which is meant to edify all. Instead the false leader feeds only himself instead of tending to the flock. These men are also like clouds without water, for they bring nothing to drench the crops and have nothing to drink for those who thirst.
These trees, or men, are “twice dead”. This is probably a reference to physical and spiritual death.
13. “Raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever.”
Those involved in the prophetic movement constantly give words about disasters, raging seas and tsunamis. But I bet they do not know that false prophets are called “raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame:” Isaiah 57:20 says: “But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt.”
The wandering stars, may be as a shooting star which briefly lights up the sky and then fizzles out for good. What good is a wandering star? One cannot navigate by it, or be assured where it will be at any given time. These stars ultimately will see darkness forever.
Verses 14-15 speak of judgment. Jude is still talking about “them”, as Enoch prophesied, “Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousand of his saints, to execute judgment upon all..” Four times the word ungodly is used. “..and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches (harsh words) which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.”
What are the characteristics of these false teachers? Jude 16: “These are murmurers, complainers, walking after their own lusts; and their mouth speaketh great swelling words, having men’s persons in admiration [2296] because of advantage.”
Again we can refer back to the Israelites as they grumbled and complained while wandering in the desert. God was not pleased, and obviously He is not pleased with these ungodly teachers. Teachers walking after their own lusts, are pleased with their position and the recognition they receive. Great swelling words.
Have you read some of the prophetic words out there? God must have left out huge portions of the Bible because I don’t have a clue what these “words” really mean. Many words, come from those who have “special knowledge”. Again I believe in leadings from the Lord but one should stick to the written word.
You want to be deceived? Get on the “prophetic ministry” train, and ride through the tunnel of doom. The Greek word [2296] thaumazo also means to marvel or awe. So these men caused quite a stir in their audience. Don’t we see this today? Look at how many are marveling at the signs and wonders that false teachers are producing today. These teachers are using biblical phrases and teachings among the false manifestations. Many are not questioning where their power lies, instead desiring it for themselves.
Jude 17 “But, beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of the apostles our Lord Jesus Christ.”
These men were foretold by the apostles. This should be nothing new to us and so we should presently be expecting and discerning them.
1 Timothy 4:1 “Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;” Acts 20:29 “For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter among you, not sparing the flock.”
Grievous wolves? Matthew 7:15 “Beware of the false prophets which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.”
There are the wolves again. One description is ravening and one is grievous.Strong’s defines ravening [727] as ravenous, rapacious, robbing.Grievous [926] is violent, cruel, unsparing.Now the wolves [3074] are cruel greedy destructive men.
False prophet [5578] one who, acting the part of a divinely inspired prophet, utters falsehoods under the name of divine prophecies.So among us, the church, we have ravenous, rapacious, robbing, violent, cruel, unsparing, cruel and greedy men, who are acting the part of a divinely inspired prophets, uttering lies as divine prophecies. And we have difficulty separating these men from the true believers!
Jude 18 “How that they told you there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lusts.”
You know….. I am really sick of these guys but I must continue.
Jude 19 “These be they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit.”
There are many today who are asking “Where is this God of yours?” One might expect this of the secular world…but leaders in the church? Yes, they are asking this if only to themselves. That is why there are those who are seeking to build a kingdom here on earth. Those who truly have “no spirit”, believe they do have a special mission here on earth to sate their passions of the things that are forbidden to them.The word sensual [5591] relates to the natural, governed by the breath, like the animal world, something in common with the brutes.In this verse “they who separate” [592] are the ones making divisions and disjoining the church. I wonder what spirit these men do have….?
So far, these verses have given us a thorough view of what these men are like and their ungodly ways.So now comes verses 20-25 What are we to do about these men?
Out of the next six verses, four tell us how to keep and present ourselves and the other two, how to deal with the ungodly men.
Jude 20-21 “But ye beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost, keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.”
So first before we do anything we are to take a look at ourselves first. Are we building ourselves up in our faith? Are we seeking holiness? It is at this point that we can compare our lives with the lives of the false teachers. The Holy Spirit bears witness to us that we are children of God and that others who also walk in this spirit are members with us in the spiritual family of God, the church. If we walk this path following Jesus Christ, we know the direction and boundaries. Straying from this path happens to Christians, but there is a difference between stumbling, and getting up and going on.
Following Jesus Christ is the only way to contentment for those who love and desire Him only. We discover that it is only by the power of the Holy Spirit that we truly glorify God, and desire to grow in holiness to please Him and live a life set apart. How do we know that the Holy Spirit lives within us? We grieve over our sin. The Holy Spirit convicts us. We may still struggle with sin but we want to overcome it.
Pray for strength. Are you in Christ? Do you desire to grow in holiness? Have you set yourself apart from the world and its enticements? Are you actually pursuing this path or just meandering? We are to keep our eye on God.
Titus 2:13 “Looking for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ;”
Jude 22-23 “And of some have compassion, making a difference: And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh.”
At first reading, I thought that making a difference, would be a result of my compassion, but this is not necessarily so.
Strong’s concordance says [1252] making a difference is:
“To separate, make a distinction, to try, decide, to learn, to withdraw from.”
So to make a difference is to discern these men and make a determination about them. Jude offers two solutions here.
The first is to make a distinction about them but to also have compassion, but we are to separate from these men. Here is where many fail. They do not know scripture and do not know how separate these men’s lies from biblical truths. Then there are those who know scripture but decide they prefer satan’s lies. Lies that satisfy the flesh.
God has called many out of deceit. God has pulled them out of apostasy, lukewarmness, and indifference. So we must have mercy and compassion on those who are stumbling but we must not follow them.
And others we are to “save with fear”.
[5401] save with fear. Dread or Terror.
We are to pull or snatch others from the fire. We are save or rescue them, hating the spotted garment. And why would we do this? Because those who walk with the Lord and have the Holy Spirit hate sin.
Okay….so who are those that we are to have compassion on yet stay separate and who are those that we are to pull out of the fire?
Are we to separate from the false prophets and snatch those who are listening to them? Hopefully, we are building ourselves up by praying in the Holy Spirit because we will need wisdom and discernment on how to approach others who are in error.
Are you in a situation with God, that you know you will never slip out of His hand? I mean you KNOW! Do you know that a life without Christ is impossible? A mediocre life in Christianity is no longer good enough for the regenerate. Do you know that your life is not in your hands anymore because you have given it back to your creator? Those who truly know Jesus Christ live every moment for the glory of His name.
One thing we do know is this:
Jude 24-25 “Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, To the only wise God our Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.”
Thanks be to Jude who tells us we are to contend for the faith, and by its truths, snatch others from the fire.
I just wanted to provide a place for everyone to make prayer requests. We all have someone dear to us that needs the mercy of the Lord, or we may need some prayer for ourselves when we are discouraged from Satan’s attacks. We must expect oppostion from the enemy and prayer gets us through this. All that I ask is that when leave a prayer request make sure you pray for those who have left their own requests.
Be as specific as you like but keep it short. Make sure that anything you say about a friend or family member would not be embarrased by your request.
We have the Word of God to guide and teach us but prayer is how we communicate with the Lord which enhances our relationship with Him.
Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834-92) was England’s best-known preacher for most of the second half of the nineteenth century. In 1854, just four years after his conversion, Spurgeon, then only 20, became pastor of London’s famed New Park Street Church (formerly pastored by the famous Baptist theologian John Gill). The congregation quickly outgrew their building, moved to Exeter Hall, then to Surrey Music Hall. In these venues Spurgeon frequently preached to audiences numbering more than 10,000—all in the days before electronic amplification. In 1861 the congregation moved permanently to the newly constructed Metropolitan Tabernacle.
Spurgeon’s printed works are voluminous, and those provided here are only a sampling of his best-known works, including his magnum opus, The Treasury of David. Nearly all of Spurgeon’s printed works are still in print and available from Pilgrim Publications, PO Box 66, Pasadena, TX 77501.
Always hungry for the Word, I have been enjoying the many quotes that people have been using from C. H. Spurgeon. I decided to take a look at a Spurgeon site and start reading some of his sermons.
It is like…wow…the truth…unadulterated messages from the Word itself. Oh, how spirit-filled this man was…you can read and hear it in his words. The words come tumbling out of his mouth as they are truly spoken from the Holy Spirit. Holy Spirit filled words. How wonderful!…how….rare!
Seeing, example after example of false prophets, spouting new age ideas, ministering false gospels, I needed to read Spurgeon to assure myself that I knew the truth when it was being truly administered. Someone who knew scripture, who wasn’t turning it into pretzels, with circular reasoning, or snipping off part of a verse off with scissors and pounding it into an ill-fitting jigsaw puzzle of apostasy.
Here Spurgeon speaks of what is expected of the true mininsters of God and about repentance. Here is the link to this sermon, but below are a few timely quotes:
From the Sermon: Apostolic Exhortation.
“Accursed let him be that takes away from the gospel of Jesus Christ that he may win popular applause, or who bates his breath and smoothes his tongue that he may please the unholy throng. Such a man may have for a moment the approbation of fools, but, as the Lord his God liveth, he shall be set as a target for the arrows of vengeance in the day when the Lord cometh to judge the nations. Peter, then, boldly and earnestly preached the gospel—preached the Christ of the gospel—preached it personally and directly at the crowd who were gathered around him.”
“Oh! blessed readiness of a soul on fire with the Spirit, Lord, grant it to us evermore.”
“The object of the Christian minister should always be to withdraw attention from himself to his subject, so that it should not be said, “How well he spake!” but, “Upon what weighty matters he treated!” They are priests of Baal, who, with their gaudy dresses, and their pretensions to a mysterious power, would have you look to themselves as the channels of grace, as though by their priestcraft, if not by their holiness, they could work miracles; but they are true messengers of God who continually say, “Look not on us as though we could do anything: the whole power to bless you lies in Jesus Christ, and in the gospel of his salvation.”
“Go on, my dear brethren, preaching the gospel boldly, and be not afraid of the result, for, however little may be your strength, and though your eloquence may be as nought, yet God has promised to make his gospel the power to save, and so it shall be down to the world’s end.”
“We are not come to tell you that you must reform a little, and mend your ways in some degree: except you put your trust in Christ, forsake your old way of life, and become new creatures in Christ Jesus, you must perish. This—nothing short of this—is the gospel requirement. No church-going, no chapel-going, will save you; no bowing of the knee, no outward form of worship, no pretensions and professions to godliness- ye must repent of your sins and forsake them, and if ye do not this, neither shall your sins be blotted out. Thus much, then, on the first point: the apostle commanded men to repent and be converted.”
“When our Lord Jesus Christ was nailed to the tree by sinners, sin only did then literally and openly what all sin really does in a spiritual sense. Do you understand me? Those offendings of yours which you have thought so little of, have been really a stabbing at the Deity. Will you not repent, if it be so? While you thought your sins to be mere trifles, light things to be laughed at, you would not repent; but now I have shown you (and I think your conscience will bear me out) that every sin is really an attempt to thrust God out of the world, that every sin is saying, “Let there be no God.” Oh! then there is cause enough to repent of it.”
Oh Lord, I pray that those who are involved in false ministries will have their eyes opened to the truth. I pray that false teachers will see the result of their rotting fruit, and repent of their sin. Amen.
I first read this sermon Saturday December 8th and I just watched it on youtube Sunday. If you have ever wondered why preachers are predicting judgment on America, because you believe we are a Christian country, watch or listen to this. This man is preaching the “hard to take truth”…..get a cup of coffee, sit and listen… it is 58 minutes. This 58 minutes may change your life forever.
http://www.heartcrymissionary.com/ | www.sermonaudio.com/gcc
SHOCKING YOUTH MESSAGE STUNS HEARERS ––SO SHOCKING AND BIBLICAL THE PREACHER WAS NEVER INVITED BACK
Matthew 7:13-27
Paul Washer
It’s a tremendous privilege for me to be here this afternoon with you. Before we begin with any further speaking, I would also like to go to the Lord in prayer. I would ask you to pray. There is so much going on here this afternoon, so much that you don’t understand, but I’ll tell you where I’m coming from. I’ll preach as a dying man to dying men and women and youth. I’ll preach as though I will never preach again, and I will tell you things that you will misunderstand. I will tell you things that make you so angry with me, and I’ll tell you things that you will deny. And I will tell you things and you will say I have no right to tell you what I’m telling you. But before you come to any conclusion about what is being said here this afternoon, you ask yourself one question.
You see, preaching is a very dangerous thing. It’s dangerous for me because the Bible says that false teachers will undergo greater condemnation. If what I tell you today is not true, I’m in a great deal of trouble and have every right to do this with fear and trembling, because I will stand condemned before God. But if what I tell you today is true, then you’re the one with cause for fear and trembling, because if I correctly interpret this passage of Scripture that I’m going to give you, it is as though God was speaking through a man. Your problem will not be with me; it will be with God and His Word. So, the only question that has to be decided here this afternoon is––Is this man before us a false prophet? Or is he telling us the truth? And if he is telling us the truth, then nothing else matters except conforming our lives to that truth.
Let’s go to the Lord in prayer.
Father . . .Father, I am so small and so pitiful, Father, in so many ways. You know, Lord, You
know, though dear God, should false fire be the only thing ever placed on Your altar, or could
fire come down from Heaven amidst all the noise and the clamor and the activities . . . could fire
come down from Heaven and these dead bones live, You know me. In Your sovereignty, I pray
and I beg before the throne of God that You would be gracious to us, that You would open up
hearts and minds. Lord, we can’t wait for them to open theirs; they never will. Open up their
hearts and minds and cause them to see biblical truth. Breathe on them. Grant them repentance.
Grant them faith. Bring them into Your Kingdom, Lord, for Your own glory, for the sake of
Your own great name, do this thing, Lord. As the brother said, let it be so, Lord, so that no man
will take credit for it, so that no man will lay his hand to the ark of God and, if he did, that You
would strike him down dead, Lord. Oh, God, move among us, please, because we have no other
hope. We have no other hope. These children have no other hope except that You move.
Amen.
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I’ll be teaching from Matthew chapter 7. If you have your Bibles, follow with me. In Matthew
chapter 7, verse 13, Jesus said:
Enter through the narrow gate for the gate is wide and the way is broad
that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the
gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who
find it.
Beware of the false prophets who come to you in sheep’s clothing but
inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Grapes
are not gathered from thorn bushes, nor figs from thistles, are they? So every
good tree bears good fruit, but every bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree
cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree
that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So then,
you will know them by their fruits.
Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter into the kingdom of
heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven will enter.
Many will say to me on that day, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your
name and in your name cast out demons and in your name perform many
miracles. Then I will declare to them, I never knew you. Depart from me, you
who practice lawlessness. Therefore, everyone who hears these words of
mine and acts upon them may be compared to a wise man who builds his
house on the rock. And the rain fell and the floods came and the winds blew
and slammed against that house and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded
upon the rock.
Everyone who hears these words of mine and does not act on them will be
like a foolish man who builds his house on the sand. The rain fell and the
floods came and winds blew and slammed against the house and it fell, and
great was its fall.
I stand here today . . . I’m not troubled in my heart about your self-esteem. I’m not troubled in
my heart about whether or not you feel good about yourself, whether or not life is turning out
like you want it to turn out, or whether or not your checkbook is balanced. There’s only one
thing that gave me a sleepless night. There’s only one thing that troubled me all throughout the
morning, and this is this. Within a hundred years, a great majority of people in this building will
possibly be in hell. And many who even profess Jesus Christ as Lord will spend an eternity in
hell.
You say, Pastor, how can you say such a thing? I can say such a thing because I don’t do my
Christian work in America. I spend most of my time preaching in South America, in Africa, and
Eastern Europe. And I want you to know that, when you take a look at American Christianity, it
is based more upon a godless culture than it is upon the Word of God. And so many people are
deceived, and so many youth are deceived, and so many adults are deceived into believing that,
because they prayed a prayer one time in their life, they’re going to Heaven. And then, when
they look around at others who profess to know Christ and see those people also just as worldly
as the world, and they compare themselves by themselves, nothing troubles their heart. They
think, well, I’m the same as most in my youth group. I watch things I shouldn’t watch on
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television and laugh about the very things that God hates. I wear clothing that is sensual. I talk
like the world. I walk like the world. I love the music of the world. I love so much that’s in the
world, but bless God, I am a Christian. Why am I a Christian? I don’t look any different than
most of the other people in my church. Why am I a Christian? Because there was a time in my
life when I prayed and asked Jesus Christ to come into my heart.
I want you to know that the greatest heresy in the American evangelical and protestant church is
that, if you pray and ask Jesus Christ to come into your heart, He will definitely come in. You
will not find that in any place in Scripture. You will not find that anywhere in Baptist history
until about 50 years ago. What you need to know is that salvation is by faith and faith alone in
Jesus Christ. And faith alone in Jesus Christ is preceded and followed by repentance . . . a
turning away from sin, a hatred for the things that God hates and a love for the things that God
loves, a growing in holiness and a desire not to be like Britney Spears, not to be like the world,
and not to be like the great majority of American Christians, but to be like Jesus Christ! [Theaudience then erupts in applause].
I don’t know why you’re clapping. I’m talking about you. I didn’t come here to get amens. I
didn’t come here to be applauded. I’m talking about you.
People so many times come up to me and say, “Oh, I’d love to follow you into Romania”; “I’d
love to follow you into the Ukraine”; “I’d love to preach where you preached and planted
churches in Peru in the jungle.”
And I tell them, “No, you wouldn’t.”
They say, “Yes, I would.”
I say, “No, you wouldn’t.”
“Why?”
“Because you’d be excommunicated from the church down there.”
What we need to see . . . I’m not trying to be hard for the sake of being hard. Do you realize how
much love it takes to stand before 5,000 people and tell them that American Christianity is
almost totally wrong? Do you know what it’s going to cost me to never be asked back again to
something like this? To be unpopular? Do you know why you do it? You don’t do it because
you get paid well. You don’t do it because men love you. You do it because you love men and
because, more than that, you want to honor God.
I want to tell you something. We’re going to go into Scripture, and I want you to look at it as it
really is. It’s not comparing yourself with others who call themselves Christians. Compare
yourself to the Scripture. When someone, a young person, comes to a pastor or a youth minister
and says, “I’m not sure whether or not I’m saved,” the youth minister will usually throw out a
cliché: “Well, was there ever a time in your life when you prayed and asked Jesus to come into
your heart?”
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“Well, yes.”
“Were you sincere?”
“Well, I don’t know, but I think so.”
“Well, you need to tell Satan to stop bothering you. Did you write it in the back of your book . . .
the back of your Bible like the evangelist told you when you got saved, write down the date so
that any time you doubted you could point him to the Bible?”
What superstition has overcome our denomination? Do you know what the Bible tells Christians
to do? Examine yourself. Test yourself in light of Scripture to see if you are in the faith. Test
yourself to see if you’re a Christian.
Do you realize if I dismissed us right now and told everyone to go knock on every door in this
city, do you know what we would find out? Ninety-nine percent of the people, at least, in this
city believe themselves to be believers. If you go back to your hometown and knock on every
door . . . because I went back to my hometown after I got saved and knocked on every door, and
you know what I found out? Everyone in my town is a Christian. Eighty-five percent of them
do not go to church, and those who do go to church are not concerned about holiness. They’re
not concerned about serving. They’re not concerned about being separate from the world.
They’re not concerned about the Gospel being preached among the nations. But, bless God,
they’re saved.
Why are they saved? Because some evangelist who should have spent less time preaching and
more time studying his Bible told them they were saved, and he did it so he could brag about
how many came forward in his next revival.
I love you, and there are men here who love you. And I want to go into Scripture now, now that
I’ve shocked you into light. I want you to listen to me. Listen to the Word of God and begin to
ask yourself some questions. First of all, Enter through the narrow gate for the gate is wide andthe way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. There is a
narrow gate.
And you know, historically–one of the reasons I’m a Southern Baptist is that the Southern
Baptists have always been quick–when other denominations have failed to realize this–the
Southern Baptists have always been quick to realize that there is one gate; there is one God; there
is one mediator between God and man; and His name is Jesus Christ. It’s not multiple choice.
Not every road leads to Rome. As a denomination, we have always told people what Jesus told
people: I am the way, the truth, and the life, and no one comes to the Father except through me.
So, I praise God for that, that the only way any human being on this earth will ever be saved is
through Jesus Christ, and that is all. Because you need to realize the Bible says, For all havesinned and come short of the glory of God, and you have no idea what that means, that we were
born radically depraved and God hating, that we would have never sought God, never come to
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God. We have rebelled against God, broken every law. It’s not just an issue that you have
sinned. The issue is you’ve never done anything but sinned. The Bible says in the prophets that
even our greatest works are like filthy rags before God. And because of that, you know what we
deserve? The wrath of God. The holy hatred of God.
You say, “Now, wait a minute. God doesn’t hate anybody. God is love.” No, my friend. You
need to understand something. Jesus Christ taught, the prophets taught, the apostles taught this
-that apart from the grace of God revealed in Jesus Christ our Lord, the only thing left for you
is the wrath, the fierce anger of God because of your rebellion and your sin.
When I speak in universities, they’re always quick to point out, “No, God cannot hate because
God is love.” And I tell you God must hate because God is love. You see, I love children;
therefore, I hate abortion. If I love that which is holy, I must hate that which is unholy. God is a
holy God. That’s something that the Americans have forgotten. Many of the things that you
love to do, God hates. Did you know that?
Pray for revival. You’re going to have a youth meeting; you want God to move, but before you
go there you watch programs on television that God absolutely despises. And then you wonder
why the Holy Spirit hasn’t fallen on a place and why you have to create false fire and false
excitement. Because God’s not in it. God is a holy God and the only way you and I could ever
be reconciled to a holy God is through the death of God’s own Son when He hung on that tree.
Now listen to me, if you’re saved here tonight, you’re not saved because the Romans and Jews
rejected Jesus. You’re not saved because they put a crown of thorns on His head. You’re not
saved because they ran a spear through His side, and you’re not saved even because they nailed
Him to a cross. Do you know why you’re saved if you are saved? Because when Jesus Christ
was hanging on that cross, He bore your sin. The sin of God’s people and all the fierce wrath of
God that should fall upon you fell upon His only begotten Son. Someone had to pay that price.
Someone had to die. It was God the Father who crushed His only begotten Son. According to
Isaiah 53, it says, It pleased Yahweh to crush Him.
People say the cross is a sign of how much man is worth. That’s not true. The cross is a sign of
how depraved we really are, that it took the death of God’s own Son. The only thing that could
save a people like us was the death of God’s own Son under the wrath of His own Father paying
the price, rising again from the dead. Powerful to say, this is the Gospel of Jesus.
Now what are you called upon to do? You say you go through the narrow gate. How do you do
that? Jesus said, The time is fulfilled. The Kingdom of God is at hand. What must you do? In
Mark, He tells us . . . repent and believe the Gospel.
You say, “Brother Paul, I got saved by praying and asking Jesus Christ into my heart.” And I’m
sure you did, but you weren’t saved by a magic formula or some words you repeated after
someone else. You were saved because you repented of your sins and you believed, and not only
did you do that in the past, you continued to do it even until now, because when Jesus . . . a
proper translation of that verse He gave is this: The Kingdom of God is come. The time isfulfilled. Now, spend the rest of your lives repenting of your sins and believing in Me.
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Conversion is not like a flu shot. “Oh, I did that. I repented. I believed.” The question is my
friend–are you continuing to repent of sin? Are you continuing to believe? Because He who
began a good work in you will finish it. He will finish it.
Now, we as Southern Baptists preach that you’re supposed to go through that one and only gate
which is Jesus Christ. But we as Southern Baptists have forgotten something. And I want youth
ministers and pastors and everyone to listen to me, parents, we have forgotten a very important
teaching in the Gospel. It says that, not only the gate is narrow, it says the path is narrow. What
we basically do is lead someone to Christ, lead someone in a prayer and then they spend the rest
of their life living just like the world, and if you deny me on this, I can bring the statistics to
prove you wrong. Gallup poll, Barnard polls, every kind of poll you can possibly look at, when
it questions the morality of the church in America against the morality of those who claim to be
lost in America, the polls find no difference. Now that is statistics. It has nothing to do with
religious interpretation. Those are statistics.
Book after book is being churned out by theologian and philosopher and sociologist alike. What
has happened to the church? We find out that abortion in the church is just as prevalent as
outside in the world. We find that divorce is just as prevalent. We find that immorality . . . you
know as well as I do, there are youth here right now who are practicing immorality and yet
worshiping God in the same breath. You know there are youth here that are doing drugs and yet
coming to youth group. You know, watching and doing things that are not appropriate for a
Christian, and yet they’re coming to the youth group, believing themselves satisfied, believing
themselves saved, and no one is saying anything except this: They’re carnal Christians. They’re
really Christians; they’re just carnal. That was a doctrine that started in a Baptist seminary, that
is not a Southern Baptist seminary, several decades ago. It is not biblical and it is not historical.
My dear friend, there is no such thing as a carnal Christian.
You say, “Now, wait a minute, Brother Paul. First Corinthians chapter 3, Are ye not carnal.
Paul said that.”
No, that’s what Paul said. You need to read the whole book to find out what he meant. You see,
one of our problems, youth, listen to me . . . most of our Christianity is based on clichés that we
read on the back of Christian tee shirts. Most of our Christianity comes from songwriters and not
the Bible. Most of what we believe is dictated to us through our culture and not by the Bible.
The Bible never teaches that a person can be a genuine Christian and live in continuous carnality
and wickedness and sin all the days of their life. But the Bible teaches that the genuine Christian
has been given a new nature. The genuine Christian has a Father who loves them and disciplines
them and watches over them and cares for them.
My heart is breaking because you know as well as I do, young people, let’s not be hypocrites
about it. Let’s not hide it. There are so many. You know them. You might be one of them, or
you at least know that they’re in your youth group. They come to youth group. They do all this
stuff, but in their heart, they’re as wicked as wicked can be. There is no difference. There is no
light. Everything that the world does, they do, and it’s appropriate; it’s okay. My friend, that’s
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not Christianity. They’re not in danger of losing their reward. They’re in danger of hell. They
know not God.
What don’t we teach? When was the last time you heard someone say there’s not only a narrow
gate into Heaven but a narrow way? Jesus indicates that one of the principal signs of being a
genuine Christian is that you walk in the narrow way. Do you know what the sign for being a
genuine Christian in America is? You prayed a prayer one time. Isn’t that amazing? What are
you asked if you doubt your salvation? Did you pray a prayer one time? What does Scripture
teach? Examine yourselves. Test yourselves in the light of Scripture to see if you’re in the path,
because a Christian will be different.
Now, am I saying that a Christian is without sin? No, because, in First John, we learn that
Christians do sin, and if any man does not acknowledge his sin, he knows not God. He’s not
walking in the light? So what is the difference? What am I really getting at? What I am getting
at is this. If you are genuinely a born-again Christian, a child of God, you will walk in the way
of righteousness as a style of life. And if you step off that path of righteousness, the Father will
come for you. He will discipline you. He will put you back on that path. But if you profess to
have gone through the narrow gate, but yet you live in the broad way, just like all the other
people in your high school, just like all the other people who are carnal and wicked, the Bible
wants you to know that you should be terribly, terribly afraid because you know not God.
I fear men who have spent most of their life telling other men that they are saved. I fear you if
you’ve done that. You don’t tell men they are saved; you tell men how to be saved. God tells
them they are saved. What we have forgotten to believe is that salvation is a supernatural work
of God, and those who have genuinely been converted, regenerated by the power of the Holy
Spirit is going to be a new creature. The Bible says, If any man be in Christ, he is a newcreature. So we find out here in Scripture that there is a narrow gate and a narrow way.
We go into verse 15. Beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardlyare ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. One of the things you need to realize is
this–something a wise man told me a long time ago. He said, “Paul, your best friend is the one
who tells you the most truth.” In America, we have become so thin-skinned that no one can
rebuke us. No one can tell us we are wrong. And ministers and leaders alike have bought into
this lie. We do not want to offend. We want to be seeker friendly. What you need to realize is
there is only one seeker and His name is God, and if you want to be friendly to someone in your
church, you need to be friendly to God. And you need to be more concerned for the glory of
God than you are for the attitudes of men. But another thing you need to realize is the person
who loves you the most will tell you the most truth.
One of the greatest distinguishing marks of a false prophet is that he will always tell you what
you want to hear. He will never rain on your parade. He will get you clapping. He will get you
jumping. He will make you dizzy. He will keep you entertained, and he will present a
Christianity to you that will make your church look like a Six Flags over Jesus and keep you so
entertained you are never addressed with great issues such as these. Is God working in my life?
Am I growing in holiness? Have I truly been born again?
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Listen to me. If everyone in this town believes themselves saved, and we know that’s not true by
Scripture because the Bible says that few will enter in, how do you know that you’re saved?
How do you truly know that you are saved? Because someone told you? Because you prayed a
prayer? Because you believed? Well, let me ask you a question. How do you know you
believed? Because everybody says they believe. How do you know you’re not like them? Do
you know how the Bible teaches you that you know you are saved? Do you know how Baptist
theology, up until about 50 years ago, would have told you how you know you have been saved?
You know you have been saved because your life is in the process of being changed, and your
style of life is one of walking in the paths of God’s truth.
And when you step off those paths in disobedience, as we all do, God comes for you and puts
you back on the path. One of the greatest evidences that you have truly been born again is that
God will not let you talk as your flesh might want to talk. God will not let you dress as the
sensual world and the sensual church allows you to dress. God will not allow you to act like the
world, smell like the world, speak like the world, listen to the things that the world listens to.
God will make a difference in your life.
He says here, as we go on, verse 16: You will know them by their fruits. How will you know a
false prophet? In the wider application here and all of Scripture, how will you know if someone
is a genuine Christian? By their fruit. By their fruit, my dear friend. Look at your life. Look at
the way you walk. Look at the way you talk. Look at the passions of your heart. Is Jesus in
there somewhere? Or is He just some accessory that you add on to your life? Is He just
something that you do on Wednesday or Sunday? Is He something that you give a mental assent
to? Is He an accessory or is He the very center of your life? And what is the fruit that you’re
bearing? Do you look like the world? Act like the world? Do you have and experience the
same joys that the world experiences? Can you love sin and relish it? Can you love rebellion
and relish it? Then you know not God. You will know them by their fruit. God has the power
to change them.
Let’s imagine for a moment Jesus teaching this passage, and you’re sitting out there listening.
And He looks at you. He says, “Thistles, thistles. Do you find thistles on fig trees?”
And you respond, “Of course not, Jesus. I mean, you’re not an agriculturalist; you’re not a
farmer. I mean, you’re a carpenter. But everybody knows, Jesus, you don’t find thorns on fig
trees.”
“Well, then, let me ask you another question. Do you find figs–good fruit–on thorn trees?”
“Why, no, Jesus. That’s absolutely ludicrous. I mean, you’re never gonna find thorns on a fig
tree, and you’re not gonna find figs on a thorn tree, Jesus. To say that could be
possible–anyone who tells you that, Jesus, you can mark it down . . . they’re either crazy or
they’re a liar.”
And then Jesus responds to you. “Well then, those who call themselves my disciples and bear
bad fruit, would not it be the same to say that they were either lying or out of their mind to make
such a statement?”
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Let me take it a little further. Let’s imagine that I show up late and I run up here on the platform,
and all the leaders are angry with me and say, “Brother Paul, don’t you appreciate the fact you’re
given an opportunity to speak here and you come late?”
And I’d say, “Brothers, you have to forgive me.”
“Well, why?”
“Well, I was out here on the highway, and I was driving and I had a flat tire and I got out to
change the tire, and when I was changing the tire, the lug nut fell off, and I wasn’t paying
attention that I was on the highway and I ran out and I grabbed the lug nut, and as soon as I
picked it up in the middle of the highway, I stood up and there was a 30-ton logging truck going
120 miles an hour about ten yards in front of me, and it ran me over and that’s why I’m late.”
Now, there would only be two . . . I know no one studies logic anymore, but there would only be
two logical conclusions. One, I’m a liar or, two, I’m a madman. You would say, “Brother Paul,
it’s absolutely absurd. It is impossible, Brother Paul, to have an encounter with something as
large as a logging truck and not be changed.”
And then my question would be to you–What is larger? A logging truck or God? How is it that
so many people today profess to have had an encounter with Jesus Christ, and, yet, they are not
permanently changed? Let me give you a few things to think about. You know I’m telling you
the truth. How many times do you go and rededicate your life over and over and over again?
How many times do youth groups go to things like this and get fired up and go back to the
church, and it lasts about a week and a half? And yet, “Oh, it was a great move of God.” No, it
wasn’t. If it doesn’t last, it wasn’t a great move of God. It was emotion. It was so many things,
but it wasn’t a great move of God. Has God worked in your life? Is God working in your life?
You will know them by their fruit. You will know them by their fruit.
Now, we go on, verse 19: Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown intothe fire so you will know them by their fruit. Look at this. You need to understand something
about Hebrew literature. When you and I want to emphasize something, do you know what we
do? We raise our voice. If we’re writing, we put it in bold letters, or we capitalize it. But to a
Jew, it’s different. When he wants to emphasize something, he repeats it and he repeats it.
That’s why you find Hebrew parallelisms in the Book of Proverbs. The wicked shall not live inthe land. The wicked shall be destroyed. He’s saying the same thing, just in a different way to
give greater emphasis. That’s what Jesus is doing over and over again here. You will know themby their fruit. You will know them by their fruit. You will know them by the path that they walk
in. You will know them by their fruit. You will know them by their fruit. And He says, Anyonewho does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. What is He talking about?
My dear friend, He is talking about the judgment of Almighty God that will one day fall upon the
world, that will one day fall possibly upon you.
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Oh dear friend, I cannot look into your heart. I am so easily deceived by my own heart, but there
is One who is not deceived. There is One who is not deceived, and He is not deceived by a
contemporary Christian culture. He knows. You will know them by their fruit.
And He goes on and He says this, verse 21: Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enterthe kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my father who is in heaven will enter. Do
you know what your profession of faith in Jesus Christ is worth? Absolutely nothing. Yes. Did
you read that passage? Study it. Not everyone who comes to me and says, Lord, Lord . . . noteveryone who professes, Lord, Lord, will enter into the kingdom of heaven. There are many
people who are going to profess, “Lord, Lord,” but they are not going to enter into the kingdom
of heaven. My dear precious child, are you one of them? “Lord, Lord.”
Now, again, let’s go back to Hebrew literature. He said, Lord, Lord. He didn’t say, Lord. What
does that mean? This fellow who is making this profession, he is not someone who just all of a
sudden decided, “It’s judgment and I better profess Him to be Lord.” This is a person who
emphatically declares to other people that Jesus Christ is Lord. He walks around saying, “Lord.”
He dances up in front while the musicians are playing, saying, “Lord.” He sings the songs,
“Lord.” But Jesus said to him, Depart from me. I never knew you.
Do you know, Billy Graham is one of the kindest, lovingest men; yet, Billy Graham has said he
believed that a great majority of people who attend Bible-believing churches are lost. He said
that he would be happy if even five percent of all the people who made professions of faith in his
campaigns are even saved.
When I’m in Nigeria . . . I was there last year visiting a mother whose son was in our church and
was martyred by the Muslims. In Northern Nigeria, when someone professes faith in Jesus
Christ, you pretty much know they can die because of that profession. But in America, oh,
consider the cost. Think. Examine your life in light of Scripture. Do you know the Lord? Do
you know the Lord? Because not everyone who says to him, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the
kingdom of Heaven, but what does it say here? Look what it says. Not everyone who says tome, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is
in heaven.
What is the sign that someone has become a genuine Christian? I wish that we would start
teaching this again. What happened to our theology? What happened to our doctrine? What
happened to our teaching? It went right out the window. No one wants to study doctrine
anymore. They just want to listen to songs and read the back of Christian tee shirts. What
happened to truth? Truth tells you this. The evidence–the way that you can have assurance that
you are genuinely a born-again Christian–is that you do, as a style of life, the will of the Father.
You say, “Oh, you’re talking about works.” No, I’m not. I’m talking about evidence of faith,
and it goes like this. Your profession of faith is no proof that you’re born again because
everybody in this whole country professes faith in Jesus Christ. Barnard tells us that 65 to 70
percent of all Americans are saved, born-again Christians. The most Godless country on the face
of the earth. Kill 4,000 babies a day but, bless God, 70 percent of us are born again. How do
you know that the faith you have is not false? A style of life that is concerned about doing the
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will of the Father, that practices the will of the Father, and when you disobey the will of the
Father, the Holy Spirit comes and reprimands you either personally through the written Word of
God or through a brother or sister in Christ, and God puts you back on the path again. If you’re a
genuine Christian, you cannot escape Him.
Let me give you an example. If I was your pastor and you were, let’s say, 14 years old and I
came back from preaching at one o’clock in the morning and I saw you standing out there in a
park or on a corner with a bunch of hoodlums, doing things you shouldn’t be doing and you’re a
member of our church, I would tell you, “Get in the car.” I would take you home to your father.
I wouldn’t be mad at you. I’d be mad at your father. I would tell him, “Sir, you are a derelict
father that you would allow your child to be out in such circumstances.”
I want you to know something. God is not a derelict father. If you can play around in sin, if you
can love the world and love the things of the world, if you can always be involved in the world
and doing things of the world, if your heroes are worldly people, if you want to look like them
and act like them, if you practice the same things they practice, oh my dear friend, listen to my
voice. There’s a good chance you know not God, and you do not belong to him.
Now, we bring this to a close, verse 22: Many will say to me on that day, Lord, Lord, did we notprophesy in your name, and in your name cast out demons, and in your name perform many
miracles. Then I will declare to them, I never knew you.
You say the most important thing on the face of the earth is to know Jesus Christ. That is not
true. The most important thing on the face of the earth is that Jesus Christ knows you. I’m not
going to get into the White House tomorrow because I walk up to the gate and tell everybody I
know George Bush, but they will let me in if George Bush comes out and says, “I know Paul
Washer.”
You can profess to know Jesus, but my question for you . . . do you know Jesus? Does Jesus
know you? And look how he describes the lost man here. He said, Depart from me you whopractice lawlessness. In Greek, anomia–a negative particle, a, “not”; word nomos, “law”–“no
law.” And this is what it means. Let me give you an accurate translation of this. Depart fromme–Listen to me, if I could come out there and hug you while I was telling you this, I would.
Listen to me. He says, Depart from me those of you who claim to be my disciples who confessedme as Lord and, yet, you live as though I never gave you a law to obey.
I just described a great majority of North American Christianity. If anyone starts talking about
law, if anyone starts talking about Biblical principles on what we’re supposed to do and not
supposed to do, how we’re to live and not supposed to live, everyone starts screaming,
“Legalist.” But Jesus said, Depart from me those of you who live–you called me Lord, but youlived as though I had never given a law.
In American Christianity today, pass through the gate. Praise God. Live like the rest of the
world and it’s okay. You’re just carnal. Maybe one day you’ll come back. Do you know what
happens because of our bad evangelism? We have gazillions of children saved in vacation Bible
school, and when they hit 15 years old, they enter into the world and live like demons, a great
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majority of them. And then when they’re around 30, they come back and rededicate their life.
Maybe they just got saved. Because, folks, it’s more than just telling someone you’re saved
because you acknowledged that Jesus is Lord. Satan acknowledges that Jesus is Lord. Is your
life in a process of change?
And then He drops down and He talks about two people–two foundations. Do you know what
this passage in contemporary . . . See it’s important to study theology and it’s important to study
history. The contemporary interpretation of this passage about the rock and the sand is basically
like this. If you’re a Christian, you need to build your life upon the rock because, if you build
your life upon the sand, you’ll be an unhappy Christian and your life won’t go right. That is not
what Jesus is teaching and history backs me up on it. It was hardly ever interpreted that way.
Do you know what the interpretation is? It goes like this.
There are two ways. There’s a narrow way and a broad way. Which one are you on? There are
two types of trees. There is a good tree that bears good fruit, and it’s going to Heaven. There’s a
bad tree and you know it’s bad because it bears bad fruit, and it’s going to hell. It’s going to be
cut down and thrown into the fire. There are those who profess Jesus is Lord and they do the
will of the Father who is in heaven, and there are those who profess Jesus Christ is Lord and they
do not do the will of the Father who is in heaven, and they go to hell–not because of a lack of
works, but because of a lack of faith demonstrated by the fact that they had no works.
And then he goes on. He says, not two Christians building their house on two different
foundations. No. This is a saved man and a lost man. The lost man hears the Word of God
preached but he lays no foundation. You cannot see in any way in his life how the Word of God
is forming and building and sustaining his life. His life is not–how many people in the
Southern Baptist Convention, regardless of all our numbers, regardless of everything we say, if
we were to simply take this passage and compare the people to this passage and say–Are you
building your marriage on the Word of God? Are you raising your children on the Word of
God? Are you doing your finances on the Word of God? Are you living, separating yourself
from the things of this world based upon the Word of God? How many would be able to answer
positively?
No, none of that. “I profess Jesus. He’s my Savior. My Sunday school teacher told me so.” Oh.
I know, like Leonard Ravenhill, an acquaintance of mine before he passed on, used to say, “I
preach in a lot of Baptist churches once.” I preach in a lot of places like this once. I could have
got up here today with a vocabulary that would have astounded you and preached you things that
would have lifted you up and floated you around this room. I could have told you stories that
would have made you laugh and stories about dogs and grandmas that would have made you cry,
but I love you too much for that. I know . . . I know, because the Word of God is true, that there
are people who believe themselves to be saved and they are no more saved. They’re not.
I know that there are some of you who look around and you think, “Well, I’m saved. I mean,
look, I look like everybody else in my youth group.” What makes you think your youth group is
saved? “Well, I’m like my parents”; or, “I’m like the adults in my church or the deacon or the
pastor.” What does that matter? You won’t be judged by them on the day of His coming. My
question for you, beloved, my question for you, little child–I mean, you could be my children,
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and I pray someday when my little boy grows that there will be a preacher who will stand before
him and say, “Enough of this!”
Let’s get down. What does the Word of God say? How does your life stand in front of that
blazing fire which is the holiness of God on that final day? Beloved, precious little girl, beloved,
precious young man, on that final day will your confession hold true? Are you saved? And I’m
not talking about, “Well, I think I’m saved.” You know, there’s a way that seems right unto aman, but it leads unto death.
“Well, I feel in my heart of my hearts that I’m saved.” Well, let me ask you a question. Did you
ever read that the heart is deceitfully wicked; who can know it? Shouldn’t you go to the
testimony of Scripture?
“Well, I know I’m saved because my mom, my dad, my pastor, everybody else told me I was
saved.” Well, I’m telling you this. What does the Word of God tell you?
We talk so much about being radical Christians. Radical Christians are not people who jump at
concerts. Radical Christians are not people who wear Christian tee shirts. Radical Christians are
those who bear the fruit of the Holy Spirit. Radical Christians are those who reverence and
honor their parents even when they feel like their parents are wrong. Radical Christians are
those who do not–now listen to me. This is going to make you mad, and I’m talking to boys
and girls. Radical Christians are those who do not dress sensually in order to show off their
bodies. If your clothing is a frame for your face, God is pleased with your clothing. If your
clothing is a frame for your body, it’s sensual and God hates what you’re doing. Everybody
wants to talk about a prophet, but no one wants to listen to one.
I’m talking about Christianity. I have spent my life in jungles. I have spent my life freezing in
the Andes Mountains. I have seen people die. A little boy, Andrew Myman [phonetic], the
Muslims shot him five times through the stomach and left him on a sidewalk simply because he
cried out, “I am so afraid but I cannot deny Jesus Christ. Please don’t kill me, but I will not deny
Him.” And he died in a pool of blood. And you talk about being a radical Christian because you
wear a tee shirt, because you go to a conference. I’m talking about holiness. I’m talking about
Godliness.
I wish–you know what a move of God would be in this place? If all of you came under
conviction, if I myself came under conviction of the Holy Spirit, we fell down on our faces and
wept because we watch the things that God hates, because we wear the things that God hates,
because we act like the world, look like the world, smell like the world, because we do the very
things, and we know not that we do these things, because we do not know the Word of God.
Because, even though we claim as a denomination that the Scripture is the infallible Word of
God, basically all we get is illustrations, stories, and quaint little novels. Oh, that God will glow
on this place, that we would turn away from our sin, that we would renounce the things that are
displeasing to God, and, then, that we would run to Him and we would relish Him and we would
love Him.
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Oh, that God would raise up missionaries. I don’t wish the same things your parents want for
you. They want for you security and insurance and nice homes. They want for you cars and
respect. I want for you the same thing I want for my son, that one day he takes a banner, the
banner of Jesus Christ, and he places it on a hill where no one has ever placed a banner before,
and he cries out, “Jesus Christ is Lord,” even if it costs my son his life. Oh, when he’s 18 years
old, if he says to me the same thing I said when I was a young man, “I’m going into the
mountains. I’m going into the jungle.” And they said, “You can’t go there. You’re insane. It’s
a war. You’re gonna die.” I’m going. When that little boy puts on that backpack, I’m going to
pray over him and say, “Go! God be with you, and if you die, my son, I’ll see you over there and
I’ll honor your death.”
Oh, God, let’s pray, let’s pray.
Oh, God, I don’t care about reputation. I don’t care what men think. I want You to be honored.
I want these young people to be saved. I want those that are saved to stop looking around at a
cultural Christianity that You hate and will spew out of Your mouth, and that they will look at
the Word of God and say, “I will follow Jesus.”
Oh, God, I pray for youth ministers and pastors and I pray that You’d fill them with the spirit of
wisdom and love and boldness and discernment. And dear God, whatever the cost, I pray that
you will raise up missionaries. I can’t help but look at these kids and think of my own little boy.
Oh, God, that You would save Ian and that You would raise him up and send him into the worst
part of the battle. Oh, dear God, raise up missionaries here. Raise up missionaries. Raise up
preachers and pastors and reachers and evangelists that know the Word of God. Oh, God, work
in this place, please work in this place, dear God. Please. Please. Please. Please.
Now with every head bowed, is there anyone here tonight that would say, “Brother Paul, I have
been living a lie. I claim to be a Christian but I love the world, and I look like it and smell like it
and I hate myself for it, and, Brother Paul, I am so tired of this Christianity that I’m living. I’m
just sick of it. I’m just sick of it. I want to be saved. I want to be saved.” I just want you to
stand up. “Brother Paul, I want to be saved.” Amen. Is there anyone else? Amen. Amen.
In a moment, we’re going to have an invitation. Those of you who stood up–I’m going to come
down here and I want you to meet with me. I want to talk to you. Now, you may be seated,
thank you.
Now, I want to talk to those of you who claim to be Christians. Does your life honor Jesus
Christ? Are you looking in His Word to find out how you’re supposed to live? I pray with all
my heart, the only thing that’s going to save the church in America, there’s only two
possibilities. One is a total reformation in our preaching and our study of the Word of God, and
the other is fierce, horrifying persecution. That’s the only thing that’s going to save the church
in America. Oh, I pray, I pray that you would return to the Word. I pray–listen to me, young
person. You need to know. You need to say, “Okay, how am I supposed to live before my
parents?” Go into the Word, find out, obey it. “How am I supposed to dress?” Go into the
Word, find out, obey it. “How am I supposed to talk?” “What am I supposed to listen to?”
Bring every thought, word, and deed into subjection to Jesus Christ.
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Now, I’m not going to ask you to stand because I am so tired of people coming forward and
making those commitments, and those commitments last them two minutes. I’m not here so I
can write up in my magazine that a gazillion of you came forward. I want you to go home and I
want you to live for Jesus Christ with all your heart. But if you need counseling, you say,
“Brother Paul, I want to–I want to live for Jesus Christ. I don’t know how. I don’t know how.”
In a minute, we’re going to give an invitation, and I do want you to come forward, not to make a
commitment. You want to make a commitment, you make that commitment right where you’re
seated. If you need to tell somebody, you go tell your pastor. You go tell your youth minister,
and you know what, we’ll know if that commitment lasts. You know how? Because it will last,
we’ll know if it’s from God.
Let me tell you something. For everyone who’s here right now, I want to tell you something. If
you made a decision to follow Jesus Christ, if you made a decision to get saved in these last two
days, I want to tell you something. If it was genuine, it will last. If after a few weeks you go
right back into the world, live like the world, act like the world, I want you to know something,
you didn’t get anything here this weekend. You got emotion, that’s about it. If you really got
something from the Lord, I want you to know something, it will last. And even if you try to run
away from it, you won’t be able to do it. You won’t be able to do it. Oh, I love you so much. I
love you so much.
I would ask that we all stand. If you need counseling about a decision that you have made but
it’s not clear, I want you to come forward. And I’m going to come right down here. Those of
you who stood up–there were many of you over there who say, “I need to know Jesus Christ,” I
want to come down here right now and I want to meet with you, and I want to go back over here
with you and some other counselors and I want to talk to you. And I want to tell you something,
not a five-minute deal, not a ten-minute deal. If you need to talk all night, we will stay. That is
the attitude of every counselor in this place. We will stay all night if necessary, all night. God
love you. God love you. Let me pray for you.
Dear God, please, Lord, there has been so much movement. Last night, Lord, I don’t know how
much of it was real, and I know that I saw people last night weeping. I saw people trying to
make commitments, and I believe that there was a great deal of what happened last night because
of You. I saw this morning a young man preach, Father, give his testimony, and I saw real
working of the Holy Spirit. I don’t know how much of all the decisions were real, but there was
real things going on. I pray right now, Father, I don’t know how much will be real. Only time
and eternity will show us that. But, oh, dear God, please, please, work, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
————————————————————————————————————-
From Contender Ministries this is an excellent response to “A Course in Miracles”. The impact will be great from this book because of Oprah Winfrey’s endorsement. Oprah Winfrey has been an advocate of the New Age Movement which is influencing many women.
We need to have answers for those who are following the “broad path”to destruction.
A BIBLICAL RESPONSE TO A COURSE IN MIRACLES
The Course in Miracles often speaks of Jesus Christ, God, the atonement, sin, and other Christian terms. However, when examined closely, it becomes very clear that the meanings given to these Christian terms are far more consistent with the New Age movement than Christianity or the Bible.
CREATION
Throughout the Course, the world is explained as simply an illusion created by the ego of man. The Bible however, teaches that the ego of man had nothing to do with the creation of the world.
Genesis 1:1 “In the Beginning God created the heaven and the earth”.
John 1:3 “All things were made by Him(Jesus); and without him was not anything made that was made.”
Paul writes in Col 1:16, “For by Him(Jesus), were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth.”
There was a creation for sure, but it was not done by man’s ego. All things were created by God alone.
REVELATION AND “ALL PATHS LEAD TO GOD”
On the topic of revelation, we should first realize that A Course in Miracles consistently contradicts Jesus own words, so it cannot come from the Jesus of the Bible. A Course in Miracles teaches that revelations are completely subjective and do not have to be consistent with another persons revelation or the revelation in the Bible.
A Course in Miracles vol.1, p.5 – “Revelation is intensely personal and cannot be meaningfully translated”
On The Course itself the text states “The Course is but one version of the universal curriculum. There are many others…They all lead to God in the end”
I Thessalonians 5:20-21 tells us “Do not treat prophecies with contempt. Test everything. Hold on to the good”. According to the Bible, not all prophecy is necessarily from God and we should test these claims against the Word of God so that we might separate truth from fiction. Jesus also commended the church at Ephesus because “you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false” (Rev. 2:2). If all revelations were equally valid and were all from God, it would make no sense to commend the church for recognizing false apostles. The Bible makes it clear that not all people who claim to speak for God are to be trusted. The Bible also tells us how to recognize these false teachers. If A Course in Miracles were truly from Jesus it would agree with the Bible. Isaiah 8:20 “To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, they have no light of dawn”.
All paths are not truth, and all teachings or beliefs are not to be trusted, especially if they teach that Jesus Christ is not the only one by whom we must be saved.
Luke 13:24 “Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to”
John 10:8-9 “All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved.”
THE INERRANT WORD OF GOD
A Course in Miracles makes the claim that the Bible is not without error. Apparently all revelation should be accepted as truth according to the Course, except the Bible. In the Bible’s case, The Course takes the liberty of presenting needed corrections in the scriptures where it suits them.
A Course in Miracles, vol 1 page 28-29
“The statement ‘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’ needs only one slight correction to be meaningful in this context; ‘He gave IT TO His only begotten Son’”.
In order to support their beliefs that Christ was not offered as a living sacrifice to cover our sins (sins they don’t believe exist), they change this verse to mean that God gave Jesus the world instead of God offering His Son to the world as a sacrifice. Since the Course defines the “Son” as each of us, the consequence of this revision is that instead of the world being given Jesus Christ, the world is given to us. They twist this verse further by believing that the “Him” in the verse means ourselves since we are the son’s of God. Instead of, as the Bible teaches, believing that belief in Christ saves us, the Course teaches that belief in oneself saves us.
Volume One page 87 also states that “the Apostles often misunderstood the crucifixion…and out of their own fear they spoke of the ‘wrath of God’ as His retaliatory weapon…These are some of the examples of upside-down thinking in the New Testament…If the Apostles had not felt guilty, they never could have quoted me as saying ‘I come not to bring peace but a sword’. This is clearly the opposite of everything I taught.”
2 Timothy 3:16 says ,”All scripture is God-breathed”, and 1 Thessalonians 2:13 says that preaching of the Bible should be received “not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is at work in you who believe” Jesus also said of the Old Testament scriptures that they are “the word of God” (Mk 7:13) that “cannot be broken” (John 10:35). The Course in Miracles refutes the inerrancy of the Bible largely because it does not support their teachings on so many things.
THE DOCTRINE OF GOD
A Course in Miracles teaches the idea of monism (or the belief that all is one), pantheism (the belief that God is in everything), and panentheism (the belief that all are a part of God).
A Course in Miracles, Vol. 2, p.92
“In my own mind, behind all my insane thoughts of separation…is the knowledge that all is one forever. I have not lost the knowledge of who I am because I have forgotten it. It has been kept for me in the Mind of God, Who has not left His thoughts. And I, who am among them, am one with them and one with Him.”
A Course in Miracles, vol. 2, p. 45
“God is in everything I see”
Vol. 1, Page 92
“God is still everywhere and in everything forever. And we are a part of Him”.
Vol. 1, p. 165
“Whenever you question your value, say: ‘God Himself is incomplete without me’”.
Vol. 1, p. 136
“The recognition of God is the recognition of yourself. There is no separation of God and His creation”.
The Bible is clear that God is distinct from His creation. John 4:24 tells us that God is spirit, but we are flesh. Psalms 50:21 tells us that God us unlike man ethically, “You thought I was altogether like you. But I will rebuke you”. God is righteous and holy (Lev. 11:44, 19:2; Isa 6:3) and He distinguishes sin from righteousness.
Isaiah 5:20 “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put karkness for light and light for darkness who put better for sweet and sweet for bitter.”
Romans 1 also makes it clear that God is distinct from His creation. He is the Creator and divine in nature while the creation is not.
Romans 1:20-24
“For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities – His eternal power and divine nature – have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles. Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator – who is forever praised.”
It is also wrong to think that sin has not created a separation between God and mankind. Isaiah 59:1-2 says “Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save. Nor his ear too dull to hear. But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.” This is why Christ was sent as a mediator and a ransom to set us free from the sins we have committed so that we can receive our promised inheritance (Hebrews 9:15).
THE NATURE AND DEITY OF JESUS CHRIST
A Course in Miracles teaches that Jesus and those who accept Him are equal.
A Course in Miracles, vol. 1, p. 5
“Equals should not be in awe of one another because awe implies inequality. It is therefore and inappropriate reaction to me. An elder brother is entitled to respect for his greater experience, and obedience for his greater wisdom…There is nothing about me that you cannot attain”.
Vol. 1, p. 70-71
“My mind will always be like yours, because we were created as equals. It was only my decision that gave me all power in heaven and earth. My only gift to you is to help you make the same decision”.
The Bible does not teach that we are equal with Christ; it teaches that Jesus is both God and man. As God, Jesus does not possess sinful desires, susceptibility to temptation, or mortality, which are all attributes of sinful man. Because Jesus is also God, He is not equal to us as we are not deity. In John 8:23 Jesus said, “You are of this world; I am not of this world.”
John 1:1-3 tells us that Jesus was God the Son, the eternal Word who created the universe. He took on mortal, human nature and came “in human likeness” (Philippians 2:7). At Christ’s resurrection Jesus retained His human nature and His divine nature as God, and His physical body was changed from mortal to immortal (1 Co. 15). While Jesus is God the Son who took on human form, we as human beings have only one nature, a human nature.
A Course in Miracles also teaches that Jesus should not be understood as a sacrificial lamb for our sins.
A Course in Miracles vol. 1, p. 33
“I have been correctly referred to as ‘the lamb of God who taketh away the sins of the world,’ but those who represent the lamb as blood-stained do not understand the meaning of the symbol. Correctly understood, it is a very simple symbol that speaks of my innocence…Innocence is incapable of sacrificing anything, because the innocent mind has everything and strives only to protect its wholeness”.
The Course denies I Peter 2:24 which reads, “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been set free.” The Course denies even the need for Christ’s sacrifice because they teach that people are already sinless and perfect beings. You have to wonder what planet these people have been living on. Examples of just such sin can be seen all around us. The Bible is very clear that we are reconciled to God through the death of his Son (Romans 5:10).
The Course distorts the Bible even further, however, by claiming that Jesus Christ wasn’t the Son of God, but rather we are the Son’s of God referred to in these scriptures.
A Course in Miracles, Vol. 1, p.2
“The Sonship is the sum of all that God created”.
Vol. 1, p.14
“In the creation, God extended Himself to His creations and imbued them with the same loving will to create. You…have also been created perfect. There is no emptiness in you.”
Vol. 2, pp. 353-354
“You are the holy Son of God Himself. And with this holy thought you learn as well that you have freed the world…All power is given you in Earth and Heaven. There is nothing that you cannot do.”
The Course requires the student to affirm, “Your Son…is but what I really am in truth. He is the Son You love above all things. He is my Self as You created me. It is not Christ that can be crucified.”
The Bible states clearly that Jesus is God’s only begotten Son (John 1:18; 3:16; 1 John 4:9) The term “only begotten Son” is never used to refer to believers in the New Testament, but only to Jesus. Jesus Christ is the only Son of God. However, the word sons (plural) and “children of God” are applied to Jesus’ followers several times in Romans, 1 John and elsewhere. Christians are not “sons of God” by nature but we become sons of God (Romans 8:15).
Galatians 4:4-7
“But when the tie had fully come, God sent his Son born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons. Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba”, Father. So you are no longer a slave but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir.”
Unlike Jesus, who is eternally the Son of God (Ps 2:7; Heb 1:2,4) we obtain a derivative relationship through faith: “You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus” (Gal 3:26).
Further discounting the sacrifice made my our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, A Course in Miracles teaches that Jesus is but a man who found Christ in other people and is no more the Christ than anyone else.
A Course in Miracles vol. 3, p. 83
“The name of Jesus is the name of one who was a man but saw the face of Christ in all his brothers and remembered God. So he became identified with Christ, a man no longer, but at one with God. The man was an illusion, for he seemed to be a separate being, walking by himself, within a body that appeared to hold his self from Self, as all illusions do.”
“Jesus remains a Savior because he was the false without accepting it as true. And Christ needed his form that He might appear to men and save them from their own illusions”.
Jesus, of course, never taught this. When Peter said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Mt 16:16), Jesus did not reply, “Yes, and so are you”. When the woman at the well said, “I know that Messiah is coming,” Jesus replied “I who speak to you am he”. He didn’t say, “We are each the Christ”. Furthermore, the word Christ cannot refer to all people everywhere. The Old Testament was very clear about who the Christ, or the Messiah, would be, where he would be born, when he would be born, and who he would descend from. (Mic 5:2; Dan 9:24-27; Mt 22:42)
The Course also teaches that the resurrection of Jesus should not be understood as a literal, physical return from the dead. According to the Course, the body does not exist and death does not exist. Thus, Jesus could not have been raised from the dead in any real sense.
A Course in Miracles, vol. 1, p. 87
“…the resurrection is the symbol of sharing because the reawakening of every Son of God is necessary to enable the Sonship to know its wholeness”
Vol. 3, p. 65
“The resurrection is a reawakening or rebirth: a change of mind about the meaning of the world.”
Vol. 1, p. 396
“A slain Christ has no meaning. But a risen Christ becomes the symbol of the Son of God’s forgiveness on himself; the sign he looks upon himself as healed and whole.”
The reality that Christ “died for our sins” and subsequently was raised on the third day is the heart of the gospel.
1 Co 15:3-6
“For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance; that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures and that he appeared to Peter and then to the twelve. After that he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time,”
The physical nature of Jesus’ resurrection was part of the apostolic message. On the Day of Pentecost, Peter said that the messianic psalms of King David “spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to the grave, nor did his body see decay” (Acts 2:31)
When Christ appeared to “doubting Thomas” and the other apostles to show His pierced hands, feet, and side, it is clear that He was showing His physical body and that this was not a visionary experience.
Luke 24:38-39 “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in you mind? Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you see I have.”
THE DOCTRINE OF SIN
A Course in Miracles teaches that sin does not exist, and each person is perfectly guiltless and innocent. In other words no one is sinful in any way.
A Course in Miracles Vol. 1, p. 88
“No one is punished for sins, and the Sons of God are not sinners”
Vol. 1, p. 423
“The Holy Spirit will never teach you that you are sinful”
Vol. 1, p. 377
“When you are tempted to believe that sin is real, remember this: If sin is real, both God and you are not”
The Bible teaches that sin affects all people.
Ecc 7:20
“For there is not a just man on earth who does good and does not sin”
The Bible also addresses those who, like followers of the Course in Miracles, deny the reality of sin:
1 John 1:8 “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us”
It doesn’t get any plainer than that. Nowhere in the Bible are we told that sin is merely an illusion. We will all be held accountable to God (Romans 3:19).
In order to explain the obvious sin that surrounds each and every one of us in this world on a daily basis, the Course teaches that sin appears to exist, but this is a false illusion or an insane thought caused by the ego.
A Course in Miracles, Vol. 2, p. 409
“Sin is insanity. It is the means by which the mind is driven mad, and seeks to let illusions take the place of truth…And yet what sin perceives is but a childish game. The Son of God may play he has become a body, prey to evil and to guilt, with but a little life that ends in death. But all the while his Father shines on him…There is no sin”
Vol. 2, p. 327
“The betrayal of the Son of God lies only in illusions, and all his ‘sins’ are but his own imagining. His reality is forever sinless. He need not be forgiven but awakened. In his dreams he has betrayed himself, his brothers and his God. Yet what is done in dreams has not been really done”
The Bible does not teach that sin is an error to be corrected, or an illusion that does not exist. Rather, sin is a wrongful act and condition of mankind that requires repentance, remission, and forgiveness.
Hebrews 9:22
“Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness”
Hebrews 9:26
“now he [Jesus Christ] has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself.
The remedy for sin is not “waking up” as the Course teaches. Repentance and confession is the only remedy. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).
“He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy” (Pr 28:13)
THE DOCTRINE OF SALVATION
A Course in Miracles teaches that man’s original state is perfection. Salvation in the Course comes by undoing the misbelief that we are separated from God and are sinful beings. We simply arrive at a state of awareness that we are perfect.
A Course in Miracles Vol 1, p. 9
“The purpose of the Atonement is to restore everything to you; or rather, to restore it to your awareness.”
A Course in Miracles Vol. 1, p. 6
“I am in charge of the process of Atonement, which I undertook to begin. When you offer a miracle to any of my brothers, you do it to yourself and me. The reason you come before me is that I do not need miracles for my own Atonement, but I stand at the end in case you fail temporarily. My part in the Atonement is the canceling out of all errors that you could not otherwise correct. When you have been restored to the recognition of your original state, you naturally become part of the Atonement yourself”
In the New Testament, atonement, propitiation, and reconciliation are intertwined with the substitutionary death of Jesus Christ. In Christ we now receive “atonement” (Romans 5:11). Through the blood of Jesus we obtain “propitiation” (Romans 3:25). It is Jesus who is the atoning sacrifice for our sins (1 John 2:2; 4:10). Atonement does not open our eyes to our own perfection, but instead covers our sins before God. Only through the acceptance of the sacrifice Christ mad on the cross can we be saved.
It makes sense that the Course would completely ignore the sacrifice Christ made for our sins, since it teaches that God did not allow His Son to die on the cross for our salvation.
A Course in Miracles, vol. 1, p. 32
“If the crucifixion is seen from an upside-down point of view, it does appear as if God permitted and even encouraged one of His Sons to suffer because he was good…Yet the real Christian should pause and ask, ‘How could this be?’ Is it likely that God Himself would be capable of the kind of thinking which His Own words have clearly stated is unworthy of His Son?”
A Course in Miracles, vol. 1, p. 32
“Persecution frequently results in an attempt to justify the terrible misperception that God Himself persecuted His Own Son on behalf of salvation. The very words are meaningless…In milder forms a parent says, ‘This hurts me more than it hurts you’, and feels exonerated in beating a child. Can you believe our Father really thinks this way? It is so essential that all such thinking be dispelled that we must be sure that nothing of this kind remains in your mind. I was not ‘punished’ because you were bad. The wholly benign lesson the Atonement teaches is lost if it is tainted with this kind of distortion in any form”
It is clear in the New Testament that Jesus Christ died on the cross for the sins of mankind.
1 Peter 3:18 “For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit”.
The Old Testament also teaches that it was the will of God the Father to sacrifice Jesus Christ for us.
Isaiah 53:5 “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.”
The Course follows the thinking of Peter before the resurrection – a line of thinking he was clearly rebuked for.
Matthew 16:21-23
When Jesus told the disciples that He must go to Jerusalem and be killed, Peter said this must not happen. Jesus replied, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men”.
The Course contends that the reason for Christ’s crucifixion was to induce people to love one another.
A Course in Miracles, vol. 1, p.87
“The message of the crucifixion is perfectly clear: ‘Teach only love, for that is what you are’. If you interpret the crucifixion in any other way, you are using it as a weapon for assault rather than as the call for peace for which it was intended”.
The Bible addresses just such thinking this way:
1 Corinthians 1:18; 15:3-4
“For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God…For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.”
Continuing their teaching that there is no sin, the Course teaches that there is no Hell or eternal punishment.
A Course in Miracles, vol. 1, p. 281
“The Holy Spirit teaches thus: There is no hell. Hell is only what the ego has made of the present”
Scripture, however, teaches us that there will be eternal punishment for the wicked and the unrepentant.
Matthew 13:41-42
“The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of theath”.
Revelation 20:15
“If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire”.
On the subject of Christ’s return, the Course teaches that the Second Coming and final judgment are not meant to punish sinners, but to heal the mind, rectify mistakes, and dispel the illusions we have believed in.
A Course in Miracles vol. 1, pp. 29-30
“Judgment is not an attribute of God…The Last Judgment is generally thought of as a procedure undertaken by God. Actually, it will be undertaken by my brothers with my help. It is a final healing rather than a meting out of punishment, however much you may think that punishment is deserved.”
Vol. 2, p. 439
“Christ’s Second Coming, which is sure as God, is merely the correction of mistakes, and the return of sanity.”
Vol. 2, p. 445
“The Final Judgment on the world contains no condemnation. For it sees the world as totally forgiven, without sin and wholly purposeless.”
Judgment is a basic attribute of God.
Isaiah 30:18
“The Lord is a God of judgment”
Psalms 9:7-8 “He has established his throne for judgment. He will judge the world in righteousness; he will govern the peoples with justice.”
The Second Coming of Christ will be as literal and physical as His first coming was. “This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11). This is not simply the arrival of a spirit or a thought in our minds. When Christ returns He will bring God’s punishment on the wicked.
II Thessalonians 1:7-9
“…the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power.”
Jesus referred to this coming as the “day of Judgment”. (Mt 10:15; 11:22-24; 12:36)
These and many other scriptures show that the Course’s teaching that there is no sin, no judgment, and no Hell are completely unbiblical and must be rejected.
Here is a link to another article that is relevant
https://kimolsen.wordpress.com/2007/08/12/women-of-theosophy-a-course-in-miracles/
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