From 1 Peter 3:15-16, “…but in your hearts, honor Christ the Lord as Holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame.” (emphasis mine)
Next, 2 Timothy 3:16-17, “All scripture is breathed out by God, and is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.”
Add to this 2 Peter 1:20-21, “Knowing this first of all, no prophecy of scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”
In any message that I put my name to, I fully desire that my Bible references are accurate as I am definitely human, and have made typos in the past. My intent is to honestly and completely present the Word of the Lord as it has been given to me by Him.
Galatians 1:8-9 absolutely is on my mind with each and every message. “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again; if anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.”
Any time something is repeated in the bible, I take it as a sign that God definitely wants us to take notice of it.
You may have figured by now, I have received an email asking if I actually believe the Bible is the true word of God, and said I need to check “outside” resources. While I appreciate anyone taking the time to send me a message, any “outside” resources I use other than the Bible would be a credible Bible Dictionary or Concordance. My Father in heaven has provided me, and all of us, true translations which I trust completely. I have read the King James Version, New King James Version, The New American Standard Version, The New English Translation and the English Standard Version. Each has its own merits and qualities; and as of now, I prefer the English Standard Version (ESV) for my studies and references.
Also, I try to give messages in easy-to-understand terms, and keep away from “dollar” words when a “nickel” word would do. In 1 Corinthians 14:19, Paul said, “Nevertheless, in church, I would rather speak five words with my mind in order to instruct others, than ten thousand words in a tongue.” If people can’t understand the message, I might as well be speaking a foreign language.
A favorite trick of false prophets is to twist words, supposedly from the Bible, to get their audiences to believe their lies. In 1 John 4:1-3, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God; for many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God; every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God; and every spirit that does not confess Jesus, is not form God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming, and now is in the world already.”
This was just about 2,000 years ago, and the false prophets and antichrists have only increased since then. Today, they are just about everywhere, and in almost every evangelical organization. All is being prepared for the final Satan-indwelled antichrist that is soon to come. The only thing holding him back right now are all the Holy-Spirit indwelled believers as given in 2 Thessalonians 2:7.
It’s unfortunate that the true teaching from the Word of God is getting harder to find. Some “mega-church” so-called pastors have drifted away from teaching the Bible, and instead are giving messages that are designed to make someone “feel good.” Prosperity preaching; “No-Fault” messages; “All religions are the same” messages; Jesus isn’t actually the Son of God, but was just a good prophet; Hell isn’t forever, and so on and so forth. These false prophets have come to realize there’s fortunes to be made in these types of preaching, as it’s what many people want to hear.
To be clear, I firmly believe any regular church pastor needs to be compensated for His service to the Lord; however, some “religious” speakers have gone out of their way to become mega-rich while “adjusting” the Word to fill their bank accounts. They will be dealt with at the appropriate time (Revelation 20:11-15).
Meanwhile, I believe in such verses as John 10:30, “Jesus said the Father and I are One.” John 14:6, “Jesus said, I am the Way, the Truth and the Life; no one comes to the Father except by Me.” Acts 4:12; Romans 10:9-13; Romans 8:1; all the prophecies from Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Amos, Micah, Zechariah and all the rest. Why would I seek God’s word from some secular source? Also, anyone who is preaching that the Jews have somehow been replaced by Christians, is just wrong. Genesis 12:3 is a covenant that God gave Abraham that will never be broken. God will handle all of us in His Own Way.
The warnings of Revelation 22:18-19 are very real in my understanding. “I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book; if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues of this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of this book, God will take away his share of the Tree of Life, and in the Holy City, which are described in this book.”
John was talking mainly about the Book of Revelation, but the whole Bible is included in that message. Those “tweaking” the word of the Father will be shown this message forever!
Jesus will be returning soon as prophesied, to take all His believers Home, to keep us from the Wrath. The dead In Christ will rise first, and then those who are alive will be called up (1 Corinthians 15:51-53; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). God promised in numerous verses, He would not put those who have accepted Jesus, from the cross forward, through the terrible time of the Tribulation/Wrath. All prophecies, except for the Rapture and final 7-year Wrath, have been completed just as the Bible said they would be, and I don’t expect God to change His mind now.
His word is pure and Holy to me, and He cannot lie (Titus 1:2). I have confessed that I am a sinner (Romans 3:23), and have asked Jesus’ forgiveness. I believe He died on the cross to cover my sins, and rose that third day to conquer death and sin for me. I asked Him to come into my heart and be my Savior forever. I believe He sent the Holy Spirit to dwell within me. I believe I have a home with Him when I leave this earth, either by death or by the Rapture. Pretty Amazing, isn’t it!
Thing is, this can apply to all who will do the same. He’s My Jesus; but He can be Your Jesus too! God wants all to repent and turn their lives over to the Savior, and so far has been patient in giving us some time 2 Peter 3:9). However, that time of grace is drawing to an end, and soon, He will send Jesus to call up all believers to meet Him in the air to be removed from the Tribulation.
To reject Him would mean to be separated from Him forever, and I don’t even want to imagine that scenario. He will save all who call on Him. (Joel 2:32; Acts 2:21 and Romans 10:13 – remember what I said about repeats?) Call Him today while you still can. Tomorrow, or even tonight may be too late. He is never too busy to respond to anyone who truly wants to accept Jesus!
Shalom!