Archive for the 'Religion' Category

Part One – Introduction and Background
Part Two – Resurrection

This is Part Three – Life Everlasting.

In John 5:21-40, Christ preached this section exactly as it should be. Though combined for effect by our Lord, writing for instruction here and admitting much overlap and repetition in Christ’s discussion as presented, we’ll examine, in turn, the four topics shown in verses 21 through 40: resurrection, life everlasting, judgment, and the witnesses of this first-century judgment. It’s presented in six parts, none long, for ease of reading. Read the entire chapter first.

Lesson 3, Life Everlasting

Though God provides sustenance for your body as He chooses, the life He offers is by the Spirit of God. The idea that you can get to God through your occasional human efforts is imperial heresy promoted by the evil one and blasphemer, that false king who desires your mutual death with him in hell. You are not God, and neither is he; It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. Judgment is by Jesus Christ, “According to their deeds, accordingly he will repay, fury to his adversaries, recompence to his enemies; to the islands he will repay recompence.” – Isaiah 59:18. (Revelation 20:13).

Men everywhere are stubborn, obstinate, and hard-headed. There is an explosion in depravity. As it was, so is it today, “And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” – Genesis 6:5. Sin and evil thereby abounds in every quarter, depending upon the same vile system that not only condones but sanctions this evil, men still, strangely, consider themselves above it.

You need the functioning sense of what is holy, what is above, where the hope of a life with worth and purpose resides; that is, from the Almighty. All men’s minds are continually evil, but Jesus Christ is the life sanctified unto well doing in His name.

Jesus Christ is the way and truth of life (John 14:6) in verses 24 and 25. He did not end the covenant of the temple and leave the world yet without hope for the future. The day of salvation is at hand for you in the New Covenant now extended to all men. There is a new and better way in Christ Jesus.

By these next two verses in a row, Jesus emphatically declares the necessity of faith founded solely upon Him. Repent ye sinners. The magnitude and import of what’s about to be said can send you to Christ for the salvation of your eternal soul or damn you to hell. Pay close heed, give all attention, remove distractions from your mind, behold, hear Christ, and live!

“24 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. 25 Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.”

Jesus speaks of spiritual life by a new birth and life after resurrection to judgment. There may be opinions on this, but verse 40 makes clear you must come only unto Christ to have both, and there is not an either–or about it. Both are small things to God, for He spoke the worlds into being and breathed the breath of life into the soul of man, making you a living spirit. God divided the light from the darkness and will place you in the light of Christ, the torment of sin gone. Holy Father God is not uncharitable to those who truly submit to His divine revelation of salvation through faith in Christ upon hearing the Gospel.

Men must honor Christ as they do the Father (Verse 23, 1 John 2:22) because Christ is all things to the man in faith. He is the sacrifice for sin, payment to God for the hell due for your sins, and He is the Judge who can forgive all sin, bringing the lost man into the love of the great and eternal God; the Son quickeneth whom He will and won’t cast you out.

“All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.” – John 6:37.

“No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.” – John 6:44.

Holy Almighty God draws as many as He will to the Son. If your soul hears Christ, calling and drawing, giving you interest in things eternal and hope beyond this world, believe on the God of that calling who sent Jesus; be no more subject to the bondage of death. It’s Jesus who died to pay your sin debt on the cross and rose again as the intercessor, the One who can reconcile you to God.

Life and judgment are given to the Son of God; throw yourself upon the compassion of Christ for the lenity of salvation. Believe in Jesus Christ, for the man who does is no longer condemned but has everlasting life. Being passed from death unto life, no longer having the weight of hell but a light yoke of serving the God of goodwill toward men; death’s stranglehold loosed, and the calling of Christ placed on you, being born again into a new and eternal life. Be dead no more, but live ye unto Christ!

“I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:” – Jesus Christ.

Folks can tell you truth, but no man can understand it for you.

Part One – Introduction and Background

This is Part Two – Resurrection

In John 5:21-40, Christ preached this section exactly as it should be. Though combined for effect by our Lord, writing for instruction here and admitting much overlap and repetition in Christ’s discussion as presented, we’ll examine, in turn, the four topics shown in verses 21 through 40: resurrection, life everlasting, judgment, and the witnesses of this first-century judgment. It’s presented in six parts, none long, for ease of reading. Read the entire chapter first.

Lesson 2, Resurrection

The question will run throughout verses 21 through 29, with 39 and 40, which verses speak of the spiritual new birth for the believer and which of the resurrection of the body? Well, some are clear, some less so. We can infer from Christ’s introduction of the topic in verse 21 that He does speak of both.

“21 For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them; even so the Son quickeneth whom he will.”

The distinction is given in verse 21 for teaching His audience who know of the Old Testament instances of resurrection. But Jesus doesn’t stop there and says He will quicken whosoever He will (Romans 10:13) to a new birth by the Spirit. See John 11:25. You must be in Christ.

By the time He’s done, Christ makes no distinction; what is done, is done in Christ, and you can have all the hope of heaven in Him, “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ” – Philippians 1:6. By His grace, your faith in Jesus Christ is enough (Ephesians 2:8-9). He is able to keep you from falling and to present you faultless (Jude verse 24); we are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation (1 Peter 1:5).

There are several resurrections in the Bible. The first person raised from the dead in the Bible is the son of a widow in 1 Kings 17:17-22 as Elijah, the prophet of God, cries out to God for the boy’s soul to return to him. Jesus raises Lazarus (John 11:23-26), which is relevant here; Martha had learned well listening to the teachers at her local synagogue. And in case you haven’t heard, you’ll get to meet her one day, if you also believe as she did. The man who fell from a window is revived in the middle of Paul’s preaching (Acts 20:9-10). These are but a few examples. Certainly, the Pharisees would have known about the Window’s son; they believed in the resurrection; it was the sect of the Sadducees who did not (Acts 23:8).

Christ has already explained the spiritual new birth to Nicodemus, himself a Pharisee and on the ruling council (John 3:1-7). He is beginning to clarify the bodily resurrection and final judgment to His disciples and those standing by. We know both the new birth by the Spirit and bodily resurrections are facts of the eternal workings of God as He, through history, brings the final estate to fruition for His Church of faith.

Some today say the resurrection is past, though they can’t explain how they know or why we missed it. Paul dealt with this same thing, “Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some.” – 2 Timothy 2:18. Don’t let your faith be overthrown.

Discussing the bodily resurrection can be confusing when speaking with lost sinners; it’s not recommended as an evangelist’s tactic. And never discuss judgment, death, and hell for sin without also showing the hope of eternity through the spiritual new birth by grace through faith in Christ crucified and resurrected. Though the Sadducees disputed it, Jesus is speaking with people who were well taught since childhood about the resurrection.

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Part One – Introduction and Background

In John 5:21-40, Christ preached this section exactly as it should be. Though combined for effect by our Lord, writing for instruction here and admitting much overlap and repetition in Christ’s discussion as presented, we’ll examine, in turn, the four topics shown in verses 21 through 40: resurrection, life everlasting, judgment, and the witnesses of this first-century judgment. It’s presented in six parts, none long, for ease of reading. Read the entire chapter first.

Lesson 1, Introduction and Background

John 5:1-9. Jesus healed a man who had been lame for Thirty-Eight years by the pool of Bethesda. There, an angel would go in and trouble the water, permitting the first man after who entered the pool to be healed. These verses conclude, “8 Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk. 9 And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked: and on the same day was the sabbath.” – John 5:8-9

John 5:10-16. The Jews see the healed man carrying his bedroll and accuse him of violating the law by working on the Sabbath. The Jews discovered that Jesus had healed him and told him he could take up his bed. The section concludes, “And therefore did the Jews persecute Jesus, and sought to slay him, because he had done these things on the sabbath day.” – John 5:16

“17 But Jesus answered them, My Father worketh hitherto, and I work. 18 Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because he not only had broken the sabbath, but said also that God was his Father, making himself equal with God.” – John 5:17-18. See Philippians 2:6.

In Verse 17, Jesus begins a range of topics that runs through the end of the chapter. Having been presumably interrupted by the Jews in verse 18, He continues without disruption to the end. It’s not until verse 34 that we find Christ’s purpose in this discussion: that ye might be saved. Ever the evangelistic Christ of God, full of grace and truth, the Word made flesh dwelling among men, He offers salvation over and over again that they, and you, not perish but have life, and still, too many in that day and now will not obey the truth.

We’ll look at this section of Scripture, seeing several aspects of Christ’s teaching, making some contextual notes, and further application. The section includes a critical salvation message about everlasting life blended, rightly, into a discussion of the final resurrection and judgment being brought to fruition by the power of God (Verses 21-29).

Christ pivots in verses 30 and 31 from judgment to the many proofs that He is the Christ of God, showing that, indeed, all these things must come to pass. Verse 40 is a key summation before the last several verses to which we’ll only refer but not examine in detail. Verses 39 and 40 are the impetus for this writing.

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Background.

Without teaching the covenant nature of God in American churches, a critical aspect of Biblical understanding goes missing. God makes covenants with men and nations; the Church of Jesus Christ is worse off for neglecting this teaching.

Judicial terminology and word pictures are used throughout the Scriptures, including the New Testament. God presents His word this way in general because He makes contracts. Like it or not, your salvation is one such covenant; you must serve Him to bring Him glory, becoming His bride.

Neither is the legal sense of the term witness to be overlooked. In this covenant you made with Christ, you are a witness of Christ before sinners (Acts 1:8), as a legal matter in the courts of heaven, that those at enmity with God may face trial for their crimes (sin) against Him. Primarily, just as Christ did, we offer to show all men sin and hell that they would believe in Christ crucified, repent, and be saved by God’s grace through faith in Christ’s atonement.

Witness as a legal term derives from the law of God “One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth: at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall the matter be established.” – Deuteronomy 19:15. The concept is brought into the New Covenant by way of similar application, establishing evidentiary proof of sin, conversion, and good works toward God. See 2 Corinthians 13:1.

In John Chapter Five, Christ establishes several witnesses as though a courtroom scene is taking place. Remember that the Pharisees are lawyers and scholars of the Old Testament law; they were being warned because they knew these things.

There are many witnesses of Jesus Christ even today. Still, there are indeed three who witness of Christ: our word, the witness of the apostles, prophets, and disciples, including every book in the canon, which is the word of God, and the power of conviction by the witness of the Holy Spirit upon the heart of the lost sinner who hears from God as we share Scripture, tell our own story, and show them about Christ crucified. Though we pray for later realization of their offense against the Almighty, if the hearer rejects this threefold witness, they are condemned to eternal death (John 3:18). A very similar situation is presented in John Chapter Five for us today.

In this chapter, Jesus relies on the witness of others. Today’s modern Pharisees are also a pack of lawyers using lawfare for their gain to manipulate and ensnare men, as it was two thousand years ago.

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Red State.

Nic Robertson, live from a town that was attacked by Hamas. “There were so many murdered members of this Kibbutz. Men, women, children, hand bound, shot, executed, heads cut”. pic.twitter.com/HhSfvrsHYS

— נריה קראוס Neria Kraus (@NeriaKraus) October 10, 2023

You know who else murders babies by cutting their heads off?  Abortionists.  Every day in America.

And in both America and Israel abortion is still legal and accessible.

Where is the outrage?

Don’t make Christ wrench your soul away. With seriousness of mind and patience of heart, you ought to practice death each day and record it so. Crucify yourself daily and more so as we see the day approaching, always seeking the putting off of this tabernacle that on the final day appointed you simply as possible step out of your body to Christ who does take your soul straight to Him. We ought to meet Christ in the air, caught up to heaven. Pray with gravity that your spirit in Christ should reign in your mind, fearing not the death of the body that will come but seeking things above for the day of complete translation into grace ever more; be drawn unto the presence of things unimaginable, to terrible to speak of on earth, called directly before the throne of the Almighty. Put away all corruption, vice upon vice.

The disconnect between modern church teaching and the saints of old is that today, they teach a willful weakness because they do not demand the men of the church be holy. Christian discipline is thus the spiritual war we are to fight to purify the soul, killing the control the flesh has, arresting our minds to take complete governance of the attributes we must allow Christ to use in piety for waring in His Kingdom. This will make you a hard man, not a soft man. It will make you a roaring lion and menace to the kingdoms of the earth and their phony fallen devil.

There is no more significant threat than the Christian who has so thoroughly expunged all vice and lasciviousness, in control of his desires, that he becomes as a living image of Christ, a little Christ, Christian indeed, dividing souls asunder at the speaking of the word of God, denouncing sin, confounding putridly wicked men bound to hell, demanding virtue at every turn with Christ risen in his heart to take the Kingdom of heaven by force that Christ be seated on the throne of his family, church, town, and country. Jesus always did the will of His Father, and whosoever does the will of the Father, that man is Christ’s brother, a son of God.

Today’s churches make men weaklings and cowards, compliant in sin, comfortable, and unrepentant. What is the man who claims Christ but is unashamed at his inability to subjugate himself? If the Christian man cannot conquer himself, he will not have the dominion God would offer, and he will control nothing whatsoever. Ruled by women and children, too scared to answer any man, too frightened to rebuke and humiliate evil spirits in men, constantly shoved around by the system of Babylon, living in dismay and wonder at the power of the Beast who serves the devil. Those in the wonder of the Beast, in awe of his power, in fear of war with him are not Christian (Revelation 13:4)!

Why are Christians as chaff before the wind when it should be Christ’s enemies that are on the run? Who is your king? It’s war, the spoils of which are life, liberty, light, and the adoption of high and holy heaven having inheritance with Christ to those that are His. Or outer darkness now soon followed by the lake of fire; which shall it be?

“Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.” – Romans 8:37

What are these things referred to in the verse? Being killed all the day long for the name of Christ, like lambs to the slaughter, put to the sword, perils, nakedness, famine, persecution, tribulation. But the churches today would have you in silence about our Christ, going along with the world system, being obedient to evil princes ruled by dark spirits. These churches and the people in them are phony; they are not disciples of Christ Jesus, purpose-built for assaulting the gates of hell that our great King may reign in righteousness on earth as it is in heaven.

Christ made teachers, evangelists, witnesses, and preachers. If you can find a man to help teach you in this today, lay hold on him and be made the Son of God the angels of heaven desire to see; otherwise, you will have to do it on your own. Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness; we are all, at the very least, a witness for Jesus Christ. Fill yourself so thoroughly with the word of God that you begin to think like God, and then your actions will very soon follow, perceiving which way in service the Father would have you to go.

A Christian Soldier must purge himself of all that is dishonorable to be made a fit vessel, sanctified, and meet for the Master’s use (2 Timothy 2:21). We must not do even as our Lord says of the Pharisees who are called a whited sepulcher and beautified on the outside yet full of dead men’s bones and uncleanness (Matthew 23:27), and of a cup clean on the outside yet filthy ravening wickedness remains on the inside (Luke 11:39). “For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.” – Matthew 5:20

Your sins of the heart will leak out; they always do when you have not the mind of Christ in you. Jesus speaking, “And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man.” – Mark 7:20. Sin begins in the desires of a man; the devil cannot tempt to that which you are not already prone!

James 1:15 relates, “Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.” Lust means any desire that is in the man but is conceived, birthed, and acted upon when he is tempted and drawn away from the purity that is in Christ. For the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23)!

A Christian man must first conquer himself above anything, or he will never attain the duty of priest or king that God has ordained for him to serve therein. Christians say they’ll fight for a place in the world but haven’t even put down their own childish pleasures of offense to God; they remain unprofitable to the Kingdom. No soldier can war for the King who has not first attained to battlefield discipline readiness over his mind, habits, family, his people, and the local church. Indeed, everything God has blessed to the soldier’s charge must be put in subjection to the high calling of Christ Jesus.

Why do they bother teaching about the armor of God in churches today (Ephesians 6:11)? Being a victim of the devil and making war on the kingdom of Death and Hell for King Jesus is not the same thing. I’ve got as much work to do in these regards as any man, but be ye well warned; God doesn’t compare us one to the other but demands that we be sanctified for His glory, bringing all honor upon the name of Christ. May the love and mercy of God be with you all.

An imprecatory prayer of the Christian Soldier here seems fitting.

“Plead my cause, O LORD, with them that strive with me: fight against them that fight against me. 2 Take hold of shield and buckler, and stand up for mine help. 3 Draw out also the spear, and stop the way against them that persecute me: say unto my soul, I am thy salvation. 4 Let them be confounded and put to shame that seek after my soul: let them be turned back and brought to confusion that devise my hurt. 5 Let them be as chaff before the wind: and let the angel of the LORD chase them. 6 Let their way be dark and slippery: and let the angel of the LORD persecute them. 7 For without cause have they hid for me their net in a pit, which without cause they have digged for my soul. 8 Let destruction come upon him at unawares; and let his net that he hath hid catch himself: into that very destruction let him fall. 9 And my soul shall be joyful in the LORD: it shall rejoice in his salvation.” – Psalm 35:1-9

Be sanctified by Christ that you might sanctify all that is put before you.

“Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.” – 1 Timothy 6:12

Found at Postmillennial Worldview from One More Hope. The latter I know nothing about, but Postmillennial Worldview is well worth a stop each week. I don’t know anything about Pastor Sumpter or his ministry.

Idahoan Pastor Toby J. Sumpter recently tweeted what he deems is the newly edited version of the Great Commission for modern evangelicals:

“A moderate amount of power has been given to Me — mostly in Heaven and a little on earth, therefore try your best to make disciples, maybe a few from every nation? — baptize them and teach them only your favorite parts of the New Testament.”

The quote makes some chuckle, but to a large part of the evangelical world it is a sad, but true reality: Welcome to the great omission! In 2018 Barna Group [1], a Christian research organization, released the results of a study conducted on pastors, churchgoers, and U.S. adults which demonstrated that 51% of those surveyed did not know what the Great Commission was! If 51% of the surveyors had never even heard of the Great Commission (this included pastors mind you), I wonder out of those who have heard of the Great Commission, how many actually understand and are actively obeying this great command?

The survey and quote demonstrate a catastrophic failure of the Church to understand what she is for and why on Earth (literally) are we here. It’s like we have embarked upon a ship not knowing where we are going, why we are getting on a ship, or what the purpose of the trip is. I once heard Pastor Jeff Durbin say that “culture is the report card of the Church” and if that’s the case we are failing tremendously. The Church’s disobedience to know, comprehend, and obey the Great Commission is the direct result of the darkness and sin encroaching upon the bride of Christ. Think about it, God’s solution to save, redeem, and restore the world from its cursed state (Gen. 3:15), is the Great Commission implemented and obeyed. It is not plan A or B or C, it is THE plan and for too long we have engaged in the great omission. It’s time for the bride of Christ to repent of her disobedience and be awakened to the inheritance that already belongs to her (Ps. 2:7-8), purchased by Christ’s blood-bought payment for the world (Matt. 28:18-20;Jn. 3:16-17; 19:30).

Amen.

Let us compare and contrast Pastor Sumpter’s satirical formulation of the Great Commission with the actual passage from Matthew 28:18-20. First he says: “A moderate amount of power has been given to Me — mostly in Heaven and a little on earth”. Now it’s probable that most Christians would not actually profess this with their mouths, yet we do confess it by the way we live. The misconception comes when trying to understand the idea of Christ’s Lordship. Scripture says:

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” Jesus having all authority in heaven and on earth often means to Christians that He is supreme Lord in the heavenlies, in some other dimension way-out “there”. He is Lord over all of the angels, over all of the deceased saints that are now in heaven, or Lord over the Church, but when it comes to His full authority, kingship, power, and sovereignty over all his earthly creation, we have a hard time not limiting His authority because we are under the guise that “this world is not our home”, we’re just “passing through” and that the earthly world actually belongs to Satan. Yet Jesus is saying the exact opposite! At his ascension, Jesus was attending his coronation session. The Father gave Him all authority and made a regal pronouncement to the world, to every individual, every family, every city, every nation, every president, every political authority, every business, every educational system, that everything must be submitted under the Lordship of Christ because He has been crowned as King over all kings and Lord over all lords (Rev. 1:5). Universal dominion belongs to Christ (Ps. 2, 72; Matt. 28:18-20; Eph. 1:18-22; Col. 1:15-20). This scene is the capstone moment of God’s great story of covenantal and redemptive work throughout the world. Therefore, Christians are commanded to press the Crown rights of King Jesus in every area of life and thought. Hallelujah, truly “all authority” has (past-tense) been given to the King.

Read the rest here.

It’s one thing to send the tweet and write this article; it’s another to teach anyone who would listen about the foundations of not just why we tell folks about Christ but how to deliver a clear and straightforward salvation testimony. If you read the whole article and come away thinking, it doesn’t tell how to prepare and do it, you’ve found the real problem.

The Great Commission isn’t only about teaching those who wander into your church building, but as Mark relates the words of Christ, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” (Prepare: here, here, here, here, and doing it here.) Christ made His men into teachers, evangelists, witnesses, and preachers. Todays leaders make their men comfortable by tickling their itching ears.

I wonder how many doors Pastor Sumpter’s church knocked on this summer and how many of his men stand on public streets with their Bible offering to show lost sinners what Jesus was doing two thousand years ago and why they need Him this very moment. I hope for their zeal and my total embarrassment that their works put me to shame for even asking.

The trenches are where Christian Soldiers win the war, one soul at a time. Personal witnessing is as much about seeking the lost as it is about asking those who claim Christ if they’ve told somebody how they got saved and how Christ can save them also. Challenging milk-takers to grow by publicly sharing their testimony with lost sinners is a key beginning of growth in the believer. Every Christian must tell lost souls how to be saved; that’s the power of the multiplier, as the Holy Spirit works through us.

The Gospel of Christ doesn’t need a bunch of fancy university degrees; it needs sergeants, soldiers, and grunts who know how to fight and win. Professional Christianity has wrecked the Church in the West. Take your fancy titles and throw them in the trash, grab your Holy Bible, and go show folks how to be saved from the book of Romans, compelling them to come into the wedding supper of the Lamb.

This is an interesting deconstruction of the violent extremism that pervades transgender depravity, and it also attacks Red Flag laws soundly. It is well-researched with some data and footnoted, but it’s not too long.

Genital mutilation is labeled “gender-affirming care,” while the mainstream media constantly reminds attempts to frame anti-trans legislation as a matter of “survival.” From self-harm to self-deception, the transgender community is plagued by depravity and violence. Yet every step of the way, the Biden administration has sought to hamper any laws that would curb this violence.¹ For the federal government, downplaying the violence of transgenderism is just as crucial as skewing statistics on firearm deaths. Creating the illusion that transgenderism and violence are separate issues is a task that never ends, resulting in confusion and false impressions. After all, without mountains of rhetoric and manufactured evidence, the average person would be inclined to assume transgenderism is a “red flag” for gun ownership.

[…]

Even though the studies are scarce, the association between transgenderism and violent offenses is inescapable. To those who have already made this connection, the shooting at Covenant School was a tragedy, not a surprise.

[…]

For the average Christian, attending these churches in good conscience is impossible. How can you sit in a pew and listen to a pastor who would immediately use your death for their own liberal activism? For the majority of Christians, their own death would be used to support the policies they opposed while alive.

The author and I have a shared interest in Christ and firearms. He’s kind enough to speak with me on social media, though his intellect is well above mine. He’s a good man; read the rest it’s worth your time.

Proverbs 6.

I found this message to be instructive. It’s great to know that God hates, but few discuss the particulars of what He hates, why, and how important it is to avoid these things as a faithful Christian. The mentioned particulars about the causes of division and strife within a local body of believers are pertinent. Protect your flock; the video explains how. It’s worth watching to be on guard, and if it’s you causing problems, knock it off! It gets a little long, but he has a local flock to lead. Make the application to yourself and your congregation. If you click off after an hour, the final point is that those weak in the faith for refusing to study, serve, and grow are susceptible to being offended or run out of church.

Colossians 2:1-15

“6 As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: 7 Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. 8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. 9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. 10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power” – Colossians 2:6-10

Longing for the day of Jesus Christ and the restitution of all things; sometimes, the Christian walk is lonely. We question if others understand the full import of what occurred two thousand years ago and how Christ works through the ages and in our time. There certainly is a light, airy, creamy, and soft strain of Christianity today, but I’m beginning to get the sense that Christians are having enough of Weimar 2.0. The Holy Bible provides every solution to men regardless of their times or station.

As ye therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, continue in the faith. Were you saved by fear, trembling over the abyss of eternal damnation, or in sheer relief at the reprieve from God for your sins of transgression, or were one thousand tons of conviction by the Holy Spirit lifted from you? Did you see afar off the wreckage of humanity and despair of your own making in the senselessness of sin, turning your hope to God in faith?

But wherever the Lord found you, stand right there; having believed in your heart, this is your testimony that no man can take, so therein walk in the mercy of God forever more, growing in the faith and knowledge of our Lord, yet, never allow it be said about you in heaven as it was of Ephesus that you didn’t hold fast to your first love (Revelation 2:4). Often call to mind where you could have been yet Christ forbid your eternal damnation.

Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith of Jesus our King. Christ is the Root of Jesse (Romans 15:12, Isaiah 11:1-5) from which the mustard tree of the Kingdom (Luke 13:18-19), though seemingly for now badly battered by storms, and being trimmed for soon resurgence of new growth (amen). The Kingdom of God regardless of the headlines remains on the march Souls being won, the conquering of the Gospel landing on fearful and frightened ears, weeping and repentance toward God still exists.

Some never get roots down into the fertile soil of the faith (Matthew 13:20-21). One must pray, and that fervently and without ceasing being instant in prayer with a mind and heart always toward that heavenly Jerusalem. And no wonder they are never built upon Him; not reading the word and studying, hiding Scripture in their heart that they might not sin against God but are tossed with every wave to and fro blown by every wind they are never settled in the true faith chasing after every strange doctrine and some new way forsaking Christ who is the only way. Never being taught the simple yet profound elements of the core faith or worse, never seeking to learn to themselves from Scripture what is our New Covenant in Christ Jesus. Therefore, they never abound with praise and worship and tears of thanksgiving for the gift that is in Christ. As the prophet relays God’s words, “I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.” – Isaiah 43:25.

Knowing the depth of the mercy God has shown in this gift, the remission of sins, the Father, for His own sake, has awakened your heart to the glorious gospel while billions remain in darkness. God could have never considered you or handed you down to the New Order global depopulation death cult. God could have ignored you on your way to the hell you undoubtedly deserve, and even if you had cried out for mercy, said No, I will not hear your plea; I will judge you according to my wrath. Do you understand the gift of salvation, that for His own desire in the depths of His unknowable purposes made you His people? Why will you not do, well, everything and anything whatsoever that the Holy Bible tells which God has ordained for you to walk therein? Why do you yet refuse Him?

“Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.” Verse seven is a prayer verse for the Christian man, a warrior for God, and a soldier in Christ’s army that he be trained for the battle. Here’s some instruction: be wise and hear. This is “prayer in the Scripture” to beseech God upon His mercy that He affirms the Root of Jesse who is Christ, in your heart, and to build you up in Him, that you be proved in the faith, on sure and firm ground, being taught by Christ who is the master and wise craftsman of His Church, that you might praise God continually with fear and thanksgiving always for allowing you to serve Him!

Give yourself to God for His service, get up off your knees, crack open His holy word, and be made a disciple of Christ, abandoning your fears to do only the will of Him that let you into the light, and love, and truth of the Kingdom of God. He did all these things for Himself, for His own good pleasure; you are not your own but bought with a price! Follow Jesus Christ!

Christianity isn’t about satisfying the desires of your own soul but about serving Christ, from which comes the ultimate satisfaction, a soul fulfilled knowing you’ve been a good and profitable servant. Why do you not fight for the name of Christ that it be ever on all men’s lips everywhere?

But what of your eternal soul? Are you converted? Jesus Christ died in payment for your transgressions, rising in power; He will, by faith, rebirth your sin-stained soul into the glorious Kingdom of God; believe and call upon Jesus Christ that God would not remember your sins; Christ can justify you. God saves souls for His own sake; declare your desire to serve Him, the King, eternal, immortal, invisible, the blessed and only Potentate. Amen.

Both the lost and those who’ve wandered away are returning to our roots, who is Christ. The Root is the sure foundation, the Rock, our Christ, in whom those under the new birth are built up, established in the faith on the cornerstone, constructed by the master builders of our faith (1 Corinthians 3:10), the chief of our salvation has given the perfect gift from the Father of Lights above with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning (James 1:17). Thanksgiving in darkness and hardship is a sweet odor of prayer before the immutable throne in heaven. The West has lost its way for the failure to abound with thanksgiving.

“Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.” This was a significant problem in the first century as the Greek philosophy and hapless pursuit of ever more new knowledge of the world pervaded most of the Roman Empire. Some things never change, “and there is no new thing under the sun.” There was a god for every possibility, even an unknown god for when they did not know what to do. But this, our God by faith in Jesus Christ, is not strange (Acts 17:21-25).

And today, many denominations and sects have left Christ to chase after the vanity of the world. They started with eisegesis in the realm of study and now apply it in remaking a false church chasing after sinners not to convert them but to be converted by them in a false love of inclusiveness. But, child of God, look up; many are turning around; His true Church is deeply dismayed, the Spirit in them searching each other out for who is of the Root, undoubtedly in the Kingdom.

The rudiments and traditions of your fathers matter not one whit without the Spirit of God that brings the knowledge of sin, faith, and salvation in the continuance of edifying the brethren. Traditions are good but turn to vanity without Christ as the cause and then soon degrade into mindless doing. The day of Thanksgiving in America, a fall harvest family feast, is the perfect example. Millions gather to overeat while ignoring old family grudges, having no idea to whom they should be thankful or why they bother. And in the churches, rely solely on Jesus and fight for Christ’s Kingdom among the heathen and let not the darkness take us. Don’t let the vain things of outward appearance in religion allow the brethren to be crushed under the closing sin on all sides.

People are asking the right questions: how can I show Christ to my lost friends and those around me? How can I tear down the idols, destroy their altars, break their images, and cut down their groves to reestablish faith in our God upon the land again? How can I save my people? Some say, as our verses warn somewhat against, return to the traditions of men, not all of which are bad, but none shall save. Some say the rudiments of the world, the baser things shall help, but our God, in the blessings of His provision, says none but Christ!

Why Jesus Christ? “For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.” Jesus thought it not robbery to be equal with God (Philippians 2:6). What is the Holy Trinity but the fullness of the Godhead: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; these three are one (In Matthew 3:16-17 we see the Son of God baptized, the Holy Ghost descend upon Him, and the Father’s declaration; all three persons of the Godhead separate and distinct. But see where they are One in 1 John 5:7). In Christ dwells the fullness of God, Christ declaring many times I and my Father are one. That’s why it’s only Jesus Christ; He’s God the Son, the only way, in whom you must be completed by faith, for He is the head of all things, declaring the end from the beginning, Alpha and Omega (Isaiah 46:10, Revelation 1:8) having defeated the kings, principalities, spiritual realms and earthly masters (Colossians 2:15), Christ has conquered hell, and the last domain which is death, all things are subject to Him. Everything has its season (Ecclesiastes 3), but not Christ; eternal, risen to offer of life everlasting, seated in just rule upon the right hand of Power for those that are His in trust.

“19 Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; 20 And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: 21 Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.” – Acts 2:19-21

He’s coming back, and what will He find you doing? Even so, in heaven, what will be your testimony? Many will say it appears to be the end, however, Jesus has said, But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, but the Father (Mark 13:32-33), which art in heaven. Many acknowledge the sin and judgment of God upon us, but this is not a reason to give up but to fight for our King, occupying, taking ground, converting the nations to Christ until the restitution of all things; “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.” Nothing in heaven disobeys Holy God, for there is no sin in heaven; therefore, we, brothers, ought to bring the earth under subjection, as it is in heaven.

“9 Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities. 10 Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. 11 Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. 12 Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit. 13 Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee.” – Psalm 51:9-13

Then can you teach the transgressors! Return to God and Christ; it’s time to get serious about who and what God is, what we owe Christ for His sacrifice, and the civilization He blessed us to have. Then, we will teach the transgressors God’s ways! We have not held the domain He gave nor the dominion over His creation that is ours as His priests and kings to bring Him glory. Might is only practical if used rightly to preserve the holy and upright, to reject sins and wickedness (Romans 13:3). Our children’s future depends upon the God of their fathers. If their god be of death and hell, how shall the one true God, ruling and reigning Jesus Christ, save our generations? Return to God and Christ; be renewed!

“I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee.” – Isaiah 44:22