Edition 211. June 11^th 2014

Getting ready for eternity

Getting ready for eternity.

Introduction:

There are a number of previous editions with similar titles. This is mostly new material, and is the first in a two-part series. This is the warm up! The next edition will be on how to know the difference between the end time church destined for hell and the Church destined for heaven!  Don’t miss the next edition!!

In getting ready for eternity we must realise that we only have one shot at it. Once we fly over the line, that’s it – all is said and done! The opportunities are all now and none of us knows the exact moment it will be all over.

In this edition I want to look at a few little-known but basic requirements as we head for eternity.

The rapture will be the greatest event ever and the most shocking and tragic for billions.

Most people do not prepare for what is an absolute certainty – eternity!

How to study your Bible:

You can’t study the Bible without the guidance of the Spirit (see Jud 18 below). If you do, you will mess it up and create division! Here is the classic example: The Bible says that God requires unity of doctrine in the church (1 Corinthians 1:10). But the church has created about 30,000 “Christian” denominations (divisions), all using the same Bible!

2 Corinthians 3:6 “...The letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.”

Jude 18 “There will be mockers in the last days who will walk according to their own lusts. These are sensual persons, who cause division, not having the Spirit.”

You can give yourself to your local minister and his divisiveness  -  or give yourself to the opinions of the church fathers and the divisions created by them, or give yourself to the Holy Spirit and become a Berean! (One who studies to see if these things be true.)

John 6:63 “...The words that I speak to you are spirit and life.”

Note that truth and error are spirits. Most cults and sects are built on the Bible. But it is always of the spirit of error.

John 16:13 “When He the Spirit of truth has (fully) come, He will guide you into all truth...and show you things to come.”

So, in these verses we see that the letter of the word without the spirit causes division and death, while the Spirit-led word brings unity and life.

The founding church fathers are highly elevated and respected amongst many, especially the Catholics and the denominational churches. Without exception they rejected and re-interpreted the meaning of the baptism of the Spirit. Here are two of them:

Ireneaus 200AD  Bishop of Lyons. He was considered one of the significant church fathers. He was the father of a number of heresies including the belief that “Jesus died as a ransom paid to Satan. He believed that “Jesus lived to be an old man.” He believed in salvation by works. Most importantly he and all the church fathers were vicious anti-Semites.

Hippoclytes 235 AD Bishop of Rome. He was a highly venerated church father and founder of numerous heresies including a belief in two gods as well as Helios the sun god. He was an anti-Semite.

The rest of them all have similar stories of error and divisions.

Study of the Bible is a waste of time if it is the study of a book. You may as well study Shakespeare. Bible study is the wrong term. It should be studying or getting to know the word, nature and character of the living God. Bible study is the study of a living breathing, active Person.

Bible study must draw us into the very presence of God. It must make Him alive in our hearts and it does just that if we have the author in our hearts to teach us.

Study of the Bible in and through the Spirit of God will have Godly results. It will develop in you the fear of God. It will give you Godly understanding and wisdom. The fruits of the Spirit will become evident in your life.

Can the word of God and the word of the world coexist? The source of both gives the answer. These spirits have been at war forever and will continue to be at war. Just look at the fruits of each.

You can be led by the Spirit and word into God’s world, or led by the world’s word into its world. With one comes foolishness from God’s perspective, and the other wisdom from God’s position. With one comes sight and the other, blindness. With one comes restraint and the other licence and participation. The world loves its own. They are of the same spirit.

The cost of not following our Messiah His way is momentous.

The importance of prophecy:

Ecclesiastes 8:5 “A wise man’s heart discerns both time and judgement.”

Bible prophecy reveals the sovereignty of God and elevates Him above all other gods. It also tests the veracity of the Bible. It sheds light on God’s path on which we must walk. Prophecy secures us in God and arms us against the devil and all false prophets.

8400 verses or 27% of the Bible are prophetic.

Have a look at the following verses on Bible prophecy and let them speak to you.

Luke 24:25 “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken.”

1 Peter 1:10 “Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you.”

Isaiah 45:21 “...Who has declared this from ancient times? Who has told it from that time? Have not I the Lord?”

Prophecy causes us to walk in holiness, bringing hope, enlightenment and encouragement and built -up faith leading to ultimate glorious victory. Knowledge, understanding and wisdom of prophecy feed us with the deep things of God and show the demise of the world and its god.

Those with knowledge of Bible prophecy have a very important role to play in these days. Part of this is contained in this far-reaching verse:

1 Chronicles 12:32 “...Of the children of Israel who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do...”

Bible prophecy is one of the most powerful tools of evangelism especially now that we are in the era of much fulfilment.

Prophecy acts as a warning light, alerting us to the signs of the times and the time of the signs!  It gives us hope, faith and eliminates worldly fear and increases in us the fear of God.

Right now, Bible prophecy is saying that we have very little time left to get our lives in order!

●I know a number of individuals that constantly blurt out the same thing. “No one knows the day,” they say. Little do they know that what they are really saying is, therefore don’t bother with 27% of the Bible!

Let’s briefly look at the stupidity of this.

Firstly the Bible does not say, “no one knows the time”. It says, “no one knows the day or hour.” The latter being a very small, precise point in time. We are commanded to know the time in many places.

“No one knows the day and hour;” Strong’s concordance uses the word “eido” for “know”. It is used only in the past tense. In other words no one has known (at that time). It does not rule out a future “knowing.” In fact it is inconceivable that our Lord does not know the day and hour of His coming now.

There is one individual whom I know, that has as his main thesis for avoiding eschatology, directed against me, “what if you are wrong?” Again his question has far deeper consequences. He isn’t concerned about me, but essentially in finding excuses to avoid the single most important part of the scriptures in this day. But more than that, his main thing is so that he can rest in “all things continuing as they have been.”

Interestingly his talk is always worldly. It’s not sin, just the boring things of worldliness.

The importance of order:

For us to get ready for eternity, we must have God’s promises to Israel correctly in place in our minds and hearts! It’s all part of the package.

God works in order as He always has done, and now that order is under great attack.

Esther 4:14 “For if you remain silent at this time; deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for a time such as this?”

Isaiah 62:1 “For Zion’s sake I will not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until her righteousness goes forth like brightness and her salvation as a lamp that burns.”

Psalm 125:3 “The sceptre of wickedness will not rest on the land allotted to the righteous.”

Being tied to God’s order and plans is highly rewarding, both now and into eternity. But more than that, succumbing to Satan’s plans of peace for the Middle East may just lead you to hell. It is a rising fence of division and separation and will soon become much more so.

It is so stupid and short-sighted to think that God’s promises to His people will not come to pass exactly as He has said!

Churches of hatred:

There is a very interesting book available: “Damned through the church”, by John Warwick Montgomery (1970). The title says it all!

Many churches hate you.

Judgement is love! Prophecy includes much judgement! Have you wondered why the Bible says of parents that do not discipline their children, that they hate their kids? In fact another verse says that you are preparing your children for hell if you do not discipline them.

Discipline is a form of judgment in action; it creates borders and barriers. If you grow up without absolutes and borders and barriers of morality etc, you will end in hell. That is the way of hell. So love includes the teaching and preaching of discipline and judgement!

Today the church is undergoing a new reformation which seeks to bring peace to the world. Rick Warren now has a multi-faith peace plan to bring 1 billion people into this global new-religious world. A one- world religion of utopia on earth with all faiths becoming one is the goal.

Modern Christianity is on the wide road of tolerance and relevance, leading to great deception. In fact the deception will soon be so powerful billions will fall for it. (See next edition.)

Bad eschatology gives rise to bad doctrine in a much wider sense, and wrong living. The church that you want to avoid is the church that does not preach or teach on eschatology and coming judgement.

The aim is not to reach your dreams. The aim is to deny yourself, take up your cross, and die to self, the world and the demonic . Your dreams will now be righteous and pure and of the living God.

People think that their dreams and wants are always legitimate.

Christians will run in the billions to join the new Inter- Faith peace train. They will be running headlong into the everlasting arms of Satan. It is prophesied! It is and will happen!

Deuteronomy 27:18 “Cursed be he who makes the blind to wander out of the way of God.  And all the people shall say Amen!”  

Many are beyond help. They are blind! Do you think that’s not so? Well God blinded Israel for the pride of their unbelief, after calling them and giving them so much more than others! Today we have the same situation in many churches. God sent them “strong delusion”, because of their pride and arrogance, which has blinded them. They are un-teachable and beyond help.

Those looking for the by -products of Christianity are the false believers; they are just like Christmas-Christians seeing what Santa has brought them, or like Easter Christians chasing chocolate eggs, thinking that these are valuable rewards of Christianity!

Many have a footnote Jesus, my sponsor, my very own baby Jesus, my Santa- god! Humility, brokenness, repentance, sacrifice are foreign concepts in the modern church. Modern preachers starve some of their truth-seeking congregations to death, while feeding the frauds with just what they want.

Today’s believer is comfortable, complacent and consumed by the beauty of evil, blind to the host of devils and demons in and around them.

The application of fear:

The greatest blockage to growth is pride. It will keep you ignorant, blind and deceived and keep the door open for more of the same.

Do you know the terror of the Lord? (2 Corinthians 5:11)

►Here is a compilation I’ve drawn from the Bible. The fear of the Lord is: ●Clean, ●against evil, ●the beginning of knowledge and wisdom, ●strong confidence, ●our duty, ●merciful, ●a fountain of life, ●reveals God’s secrets, ●brings revelation, ●purifies, ●delivers from being wise in our own eyes, ●brings blessing, ●endures forever – and much more.

Cultivating the fear of the Lord is the way to safety and endurance and liberty in God.

Most of my adult life I have been closely associated with wilderness, environment and endangered species. As an artist, photographer and journalist, I’ve been very fortunate to spend much time in the wilds, sometimes on my own.

On many occasions I’ve gone off on foot. In areas where the wildlife is known to be without big game, I’ve felt safe. Sometimes I’ve been on foot in areas with plenty of big game including lions. I’ve encountered some on foot. Do you know what feelings are generated? Have a guess. On one occasion I could smell the lions they were so close, but I couldn’t see them in the thick bush. Fear is the emotion!

A world with lions wondering around keeps you on edge and gives you a healthy fear. A world with no lions keeps you complacent.

Sorry for the analogy, but for me it fits perfectly! A church that knows both the Lamb and Lion is a good place to be!

Most churches today have no lions anywhere near.

Imagine the horror of running into a Lamb and discovering that you’ve run into a great big Lion and you’re on foot! We should have that fear in us.

The fear of the Lord is necessary; it is good and is desperately needed today. It is widely rejected today by stupid people in the church.

No one knows God, who does not know the fear of God.

The salvation of the soul:

In order to ready ourselves for eternity we must realise that the work we must do is primarily in the area of the soul, as the spirit was saved and the body will be saved in spectacular transformation.

How true it is that without the active work of the cross and the guidance of the Holy Spirit, intellect not only is undependable but also extremely dangerous, because it often confuses the issue of right and wrong.

Self is a powerful seducer. The un-crucified self appears good. It presumes human innate, indwelling goodness.

Please read the following verses. They relate to the salvation of the soul and true discipleship:

1 Corinthians 1:18 “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.”

 Philippians 3:10 “That I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death.”

John 8:31 If you continue (Lit=Hold fast to, endure, remain) in My word, then are you My disciples indeed.”

Luke 14:27 “Whoever does not take up his cross and follow Me, cannot be My disciple.”

Matthew 16:24-26 “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his soul?”

John 6:66 “From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.” The reason was the “hard sayings” mentioned in verse 60.

The great tragedy:

Many will fall away because they won’t deny self. Rather, they will exalt self and when the pressure is on, they will be pushed aside by God.

Many will fall away, because they have fallen for the disguised evil one. In the tribulation period we see many who will know that these severe judgements are coming from the living God, and yet they turn against God with vengeance! Instead of repenting, these people accuse God instead of the Accuser!

►Isn’t it incredible that the world loves the one that hates them and hates the One who loves them! We can understand that to a degree because Satan comes in camouflage and disguise. But our Lord’s love is unveiled and revealed for all to see.

Most people in the world have no idea what love is and what it means. They talk of love and say we must all love everyone. Yet they hate the Prince of Love, and love the prince of hatred and darkness.

Imagine getting to the end of your life and finding out that not one word you ever spoke has any value except to the world and its god!

Full satisfaction spoils you for the world. In His presence material things lose their value and attraction. Being full of God leaves little place for anything else. Filled with God’s presence one walks on the edge of the world!

What you must do:

●Be warned – you and I do not have much time left. You need to be radical in your belief and heart. You must separate yourself from all that is of the spirit of the world, the flesh and the demonic. You must be odd and different. Don’t go and live in a cave physically, but do live in a cave spiritually. Remember that the right way is always the narrow way.

These are the most dangerous times the world has seen.

Draw near to our Lord and He will draw near to you.

Finally:

Sin grows in darkness, while holiness grows in the Light of God.

I took this picture at a most spectacular and beautiful place called Kubu Island in Botswana. It is an island of rock and Baobab tress in the midst of a barren salt desert so big you can see it from space. If you want to see a collection of other pictures of the amazing place click Here.

Job 14:7 “Then shall the trees of the forest sing for joy before the Lord, for He comes to judge the earth.”

Shalom and grow in grace!