It has historically and recently rather successfully, been a mission of lucifer to impersonate God,(Lk4:7) do we think our greatest enemies in this modern world call themselves satanists? Or even atheists or other religious titles? No, our greatest enemies call themselves Christians! We spend too much of our time fighting against people who openly curse our God and spend too little time fighting against people who secretly curse our God. Do we not have faith that God can open our eyes and show us who the wolves in sheep's clothing truly are?
They are our greatest enemy for they create so many millions of false converts that it is difficult to number and these poor sheep, once indoctrinated, are often harder to convince of the true gospel than unbelievers! They 'buy a ticket' to a better life here on earth because that's all they ever went to church for, and when a born again Christian tries to witness to them, of course they don't want to listen!
What a travesty the body of the Most High God of Israel has become! Leaders puffing themselves up and proclaiming how the Grace of God can do such wondrous things in the lives of his children, whilst all but removing the paramount message of repentance! Well, how are they going to increase their flock (and line their pockets) if they offend their sin loving congregations?(Jn:19) Many Pastors continue to use the God given gifts of the Holy Spirit to prophesy, interpret and praise the Almighty on a Sunday morning, but commit all manner of debauchery on a Friday and Saturday night, why not let grace abound? God forbid, that's why!
Oh they're not ignorant of whom they truly serve, they run and chase after the lusts of the flesh, making the Lamb of God, who saved them all that time ago a liar, all the while nailing him again and again to the cross; doing satans bidding and suckering countless numbers of Gods little children into joining them in hell. And what do the true saints do in retaliation? Stay in the church and pretend it's not happening, or else leave the church and try to find a 'better' one!
Our battle is in the spirit my Brethren, or have we forgotten, let us intercede and petition that the Lord loose his terrible anger upon those who pervert his gifts of Grace!(Ps 66:3) We can no longer sit on the sidelines and pretend it's enough to work out our own salvation. Do we not think Jesus is able to help us on our own journey toward the promised land whilst we intercede on his brides behalf? We ought to know that we not only store up treasures in heaven when we help our fellow members in Christ, but we also release more grace for ourselves in doing so. Or do we not realise that the more we do Gods will on earth, the more he will do for us?(Ps 126:5)
Take up your God given Shield and Bucklers oh peculiar generation,(1Pe 2:9) hold on to the sword of truth and wrestle with the principalities and powers which take his glorious church hostage; never forgetting that when the last trump has sounded and we have been gathered together, our Lord will ask of us quite simply...what works have we done as branches of his vine, in his stead, in this fallen world.
May the Lord God Almighty have mercy on his children and vengence on his enemies.
Yes my brother, a call to prayer in these latter days of societies quickly downward spiraling decline humanly, morally and spiritually...is not only paramount, but may well be one of the few weapons God's chosen will be left equipped to use:prayingm:!!
May the will and way of God indwell within us who believe, to then be shared with others as we prepare for His return!! Praise The Lord!
I'm a Navy brat. For much of my childhood, I lived in a different house, for every year that I had lived. My parents would drop me off at Sunday school, at the closest Protestant Sunday school, for each of my homes. My parents didn't attend church. When my dad got out of the Navy, we settled back in my home town. There again, my parents sent us to the nearest Protestant Sunday school. That one was Baptist. There I learned more about God than in all the previous years combined. The other churches really didn't get into the Bible; but many of them said that if I didn't believe what they believed; that I was going straight to Hell.
That statement might have held water, if they all believed the same thing. What I saw in the Baptist church didn't always follow what I read in the Bible. The Bible says that there would there would be those who came after Yahshua, who would perform even greater miracles than he. I asked myself, "where are the miracles.
My mother was the most honest person I've ever met. I caught her in only three lies in my life. The first lie that I caught her in regarded the Tooth Fairy. The second Lie Regarded the Easter Bunny. The third lie regarded Santa Clause. I understood at the time that she lied to me; because she loved me.
In response to all of these factors, my logical side kicked in. I suspected that God was just another lie that parents tell their children out of love...you know....to teach them moral values.
I was about to abandon God as just another loving lie.
Fortunately, God blessed me with an abundance of logic. I realized that the reason why I was confused about the existence of God; was because I had been listening to men. I decided that instead of listening to men; that I should give God one more chance. Let God be true, and all men liars.
I decided to sit down and read the Bible as it was written. I decided to put everything that everyone had ever told me about God, out of my head. I started at the beginning in Genesis. And read straight through. It was somewhere in the new testament that a miracle happened. I remember the words knock and the door will be opened. Ask and you will receive. God made himself known to me. I didn't need men, or even the Bible, to tell me God exists. I knew.
I stopped going to church; but I didn't stop studying.
Years later I started going church hopping, looking for a church that conformed to scripture. I failed again and again. In one of the churches, I told myself, " if Yahshua were here; he'd be cracking a whip.
A few years back I walked into a very special church. The Pastor used to be Catholic. He saw that something was wrong; so he sought truth. He became a Baptist Pastor. He found more problems. He went to the church much like Martin Luther. Point by point, he said "here is what we are doing, here is what the Bible says, here is what we are doing, here is what the Bible says" They said, but we've always done it that way. My Pastor said, this is what the Bible says; how do you reconcile that with what you've been doing?"
The conversation ended when my Pastor was threatened with physical violence. He left and started his own church.
I've caught him in several mis-teachings. I called him on it in open forum. He's a very humble man. He told me that I was right. He said that what I pointed out to him, is what the Bible says; and that we have to go with what the Bible says.
Why am I writhing all of this?
I felt that it was important to lay the groundwork for clear perspective.
Recently I have come to a better understanding of the truth. I took it to my Pastor and his wife, in private. I was armed with scripture. I met fierce resistance. I asked for reconciliation. I got none.
Then, during a following Bible study, they and some elders, prepared to teach the opposite of what the some thirty scriptures I had presented in private, made clear. That was immediately followed by the Pastors sermon, which did the same.
A very unusual sequence of events then swiftly led me to another church that meets on the Sabbath. There, I couldn't hold back the tears of joy, as I had heard the truth, that I have been studying for some thirty years. I have a new home in this new church.
I've been praying about how to handle my Sunday church. My Sunday Pastor is a truth seeker. He's a dear friend. He's part of my life. He's almost like a blood brother to me.
If your brother is in darkness, and can't find his way; do you leave him behind?
If you preach and you are not received; do you turn and wipe the dust from your feet?
Firstly, the Holy Spirit will guide our actions in each circumstance, it is clear that there is no one correct answer. But even if we are lead away to shake the dust off our feet; there is no reason to stop praying for God to be the shepherd in the life of the lost sheep. Actually this is likely to be more effectual than any amount of discourse anyway, for we know that faith even as a mustard seed will move mountains.
I am lead by the Spirit of God in me and by his Word, if I follow a pastor I may be deceived. I firmly believe that divergences in what different churches teach come via a spirit of dissension from the enemy. There is only one Holy Spirit just as there is only one true Church, if two members of the same body disagree one or both must not be right with God, this is clear. This is why we must first seek God in all that we do and say, for only wickedness comes from the heart of a man who is not of Christ. We must in all humility seek not that which will glorify us, not that which will puff us up, not that which will set us above those around us; but that which God reveals to us, for he has prepared those deep things for us which ear has not heard nor eye seen.
