Edition 60. 20th November 2010
In this edition:
●God's plan for the church.
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God's plan for the church:
This edition must be read with the previous edition "Satan's plan for the church.
In the last edition we looked at Satan's plan for the church revealed miraculously in many portions of the scriptures.
Now we come to God's plan for the church and it's no surprise that there are just as many amazing prophecies showing God's plan of victory for His church. But it will only be for a part of the church.
But first let's discuss briefly some foundational issues.
The true church of God can't be joined. No one ever has or ever will join it. You can only be born into it. The new birth may come in various ways, just like a natural birth, but the end result is recreation and regeneration. This means that your spirit is re-created, born anew and God Himself comes to live in you by His Spirit. The soul (mind) is renewed bit by bit, but there is no such thing in terms of spirit rebirth. It occurs at a point in time and place after a conscious decision.
The new birth will be evident by a new inner leading away from old things and into many new things. The main evidence of the new birth will be a new love for our Messiah and His word. You will be led from being a self-centred person to a God-centred and other people-centred person.
As soon as humanly possible after the new birth, you need to be baptised in water and then in the Spirit.
So the foundation pillars are: New birth, adult water baptism, and Spirit baptism. God builds upon this foundation using the tools of His word, the Bible and His word by the inner voice or leading. Study, prayer and fasting are foundational in our journey.
God leads us to know Him and to know His pure doctrine. We are born into God's family, the church. The original word for church is "ekklesia" meaning "called out ones." We are called out of the kingdom of this world and into His glorious kingdom. The more we discover the true God and His glory, the more we want to share Him. Until you know God deeply you will not find your place in the Kingdom and while this is so, you will always be uncomfortable, like a jigsaw piece out of place.
If you set out to seek the Lord without abandoning self-will, sin and the ways of the world, you will not find Him. You will find the imposter.
Truth is not correct doctrine. It is correct doctrine with the inward enlightenment of the Holy Spirit. Only the Holy Spirit can give true sight and lead you into all truth.
Gods building plan is exact, precise and with no variables. This can be demonstrated in the fact that everything that God commanded his servants to build was according to exact dimensions. From the Ark of Noah to the Ark of the covenant, to the Tabernacle of Moses and to the Temple in Jerusalem.
There are no churches in a city, only the church. No church leader has the authority to tell anyone that they are not part of their church. If you are born again you automatically belong to the church universal and the local church. God's requirement for all believers is for them to mature in the things of God, His way and that is through complete abandonment to Him. The mark of the modern church is shallowness and mixture of truth and error.
The seven letters to the churches in the Revelation are His assessment of the church. They were historic churches, but because this is a book of prophecy, these letters have a prophetic application as well.
Four of the churches are mixed with condemnation and commendation from God. One (Laodicea) is only condemned, while one (Philadelphia) is only commended. Both Philadelphia and Laodicea relate to end-time churches.
Let's now have a look at Philadelphia, which shows a powerful, victorious, and successful church.
The church at Philadelphia.
The original word Philadelphia means "brotherly love"
The letter to this church begins with our Lord identifying Himself as "He who is holy and true" (Revelation 3:7) This church is associated with holiness and truth. It goes on to say that "He has the key of David" In Isaiah 22:21 the key of David is identified as those "who are a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and the house of Judah." This is a clear indication that those in this church are Messianic believers who have a vision and passion for God's final work with Jerusalem and the Jews. This also represents the Davidic Messiah, referring to the Hebraic slant within the Messianic community. This is not those in replacement theology at all!
The key of David also relates to the fact that David was a man after God's heart. He had a heart sold out on the Lord even though he was not perfect.
The "key of David opens what no man can shut and shuts what no man can open". This speaks of Godly authority on the one hand and evangelism or missionary work on the other.
In history this church was being attacked by traditional Rabbinic Jews. This letter refers to these Jews as those "of the synagogue of Satan." The "door" referred to here is to this church and not to the Christ rejecting synagogue! The unsaved legalistic, Rabbinic Jews still come strongly against the Messianic Jews today just as they did in history. (See the video by Jacob Damkani, a friend of mine, in the videos section.) Verse 9 speaks of the fact that these unsaved Jews will eventually "bow down and worship before your feet and know that I have loved you." In the tribulation period untold masses of Jews will be saved.
Perhaps the most exciting thing about this church is the amazing and powerful promise from God in verse 10 that they "will be kept from the hour of tribulation that comes upon the whole world to test them."
The hour of trial is a reference to the seven year tribulation period that will come upon the whole world.
The original word used for "keep from the hour" is the Greek word 'ek' which means; "clean out away from". This church will not go through the tribulation.
Interestingly the Bible says in verse 12 of these people "He that overcomes, I will make a pillar in the temple of My God..." and here in the picture below, we see the remains of the original church at Philadelphia (in Turkey) and what remains is two enormous strong pillars
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In verse 11 and 12 the believers within this church are rewarded with a crown and three names are written on them: "I will write on Him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God the new Jerusalem and I will write on Him My new name." In the Old Testament, the Lord told the priests to pronounce a specific series of blessings on the Israel, which concluded with this thought: Numbers 6:27 "So they shall put My name on the children of Israel and I will bless them."
Again we see that this church is associated with Israel and the Jews. In other words this church has a Messianic slant.
The message to the church of Philadelphia in the Revelation is powerful indeed. It has absolutely no similarity at all to the churches of Thyatira and Laodicea, which fit the orthodox churches and denominational churches. See previous edition.
The churches around the world that can be identified within this Philadelphian letter are the ones who follow God's plan. This is the true "glorious church" It is distinctly different in many respects from the others.
With so much division, controversy, confusion, deception and error in the church today, isn't it just so good to see that God has a plan of victory cutting through all the confusion for those that chose to go His way. He knew it would be this way as revealed in the seven letters.
The Abrahamic expression of faith:
This is Gods will and plan for true believers.
In a nutshell the Abrahamic expression is simply- to the Jew and Gentile. Abraham was the father of many nations and the father of the linage Isaac-Jacob- Israel- the Jews. This expression is not to the Jew and it is not to the Gentile. It is to both rightly applied and expressed. The Messianic movement today is God's final work. It is still in its infancy, so it has adjustments to make alone the way. Some go overboard and into excess with things relating to the Jew. These are people with the disease called Israelitis. Others believers centre only on the Gentile expression.
That said the true Messianic, Abrahamic expression will always have a Hebraic character to it. It will have none of the occult-founded traditions of the church within it.
The Abrahamic expression of faith will have nothing within it that is foreign to the Jew or that would be a stumbling block for them coming to faith in Messiah, besides the Messiah Himself. Our Messiah is the stumbling block for the Jews as revealed in the Bible, but this is temporary. The church has created and placed many other stumbling blocks in the way of the Jew.
The big thing is that the flavour and character of the church in all its ways needs to be welcoming and inviting to the to the Jew. Our Lord returns in relation to the salvation of the Jews.
The Abrahamic expression of faith does not only affirm what is true, it rejects what is false.
The Bible declares that when the "times of the Gentiles are fulfilled, then all Israel will be saved, then the Second Coming comes about and completes the picture. (Luke 21:24)
(See edition 47 "What is a Messianic believer" for more.)
The Hebraic character of the true church:
●This has nothing at all to do with coming under the law. Judaising the Gentiles was the controversy of Act 15, Galatians and a few others. This was essentially the erroneous belief that Gentiles had to obey the law of Moses, become circumcised and the like to be saved. Galatians 2:14-16 "...Why do you compel Gentiles to live as Jews?...knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ..." Salvation is by faith alone, but there is also no justification for turning the church into what it has become.
●On the same line of thought I am in no way suggesting that only Messianic believers are saved. The murderer on the cross next to Yeshua / Jesus, was promised salvation by our Lord on his simple one sentence expression of faith. Revelation 2:24 speaking of the church at Thyatira, which is a clear reference to the Catholic church says this: "As many as do not have this doctrine and who have not known the depths of Satan, I will put on you no other burden. Hold fast what you have till I come." This verse indicates that even these individuals within the Catholic church will be saved. But note the condition.
●I am in no way deciding who is saved or not. My aim is to present the truth and to warn of error. Salvation is up to our Lord alone.
Today the church has a Hellenistic flavour which has filtered in. This has been mixed with Roman, Babylonian and Egyptian occult practises that the Catholic church has refined and adopted.
Revelation 17:1-6 Is a clear reference to the Catholic church and the abominations it has introduced to the church. It is called a "great harlot, arrayed in purple and scarlet and adorned with gold and precious stones". She is called "Mystery Babylon the Great the mother of harlots and the abominations of the earth". She is said to be "drunk on the blood of the saints and with the blood of the martyrs."
The true church is reflected here:
Revelation 14:12 "Here is the patience of the saints, here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus."
Our faith includes keeping the word of God, which must include rejecting the word of the imposter. When we return to the true undefiled word of God we will stand out from the traditional masses, who blindly follow their poisonous traditions without question. The truth will always have a Hebraic character.
The Sabbath:
It is a fallacy that we are to keep nine of the ten commandments. Where does it say that we are released for Sabbath observance? Jesus fulfilled the law, not did away with it. If stealing or murder is not a good idea because it's part of God's law, the who gave permission to remove the Sabbath? Yes the Sabbath does not need to be kept in a ritualistic manner full of don'ts, but it is a day to be "remembered" and kept "holy" .
The early church did meet on a Sunday, but they also kept the Saturday Sabbath. You can have meetings any day you like, but there is no precedent for changing or ignoring the Sabbath.
Both Jews and Gentiles were praised by God for keeping the Sabbath and the prophets predicted a time when the Gentiles would keep the Sabbath! (Isaiah 66:23; Ezekiel 44:24; 46:3-4)
Sabbath observance and identification (not legalistically) will mark and separate believers from those who blindly follow the satanic traditions of the world without question. Ezekiel 20:12 "Moreover I gave them My Sabbaths, to be a sign (mark) between Me and them and that they might know that I am the Lord who sanctifies them."
There are currently huge numbers of Christians returning to Sabbath observance. It's an unstoppable work of God.
The seven festivals of the Lord:
1 Corinthians 5:8 " Let us keep the feast, not with the old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth." This is a clear instruction to keep the feats, but to do so in a new way. The "unleavened bread of sincerity and truth" means in holiness and with a sincere heart after the Lord. This would involve having no identification with Easter, eggs, rabbits, Santa, Christmas, Christmas trees and all such occult practices (See the previous edition for more)
Colossians 2:16 "Therefore do not let not anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a new moon celebration or a Sabbath day." This simply means that we are not to come under legalism in doing these things. It does not say we are not to practise them!
2Peter 1:12 "Be established in the present truth" The present truth is a reference to the New Testament epistles. Of course we need to know the Old Testament, and much in it is perfectly relevant, but we need to be "established "or centred in the New. At Pentecost much changed.
Traditional Christians who won't give up worshipping the devil (Christmas, Easter etc) in the not too distant future will forsake occult traditions and engage in the practise of the Feasts of the Lord! My question is if this will be the case then, why not now? Zechariah 14:16 "It shall come to pass that everyone who is left of all those who came against Jerusalem, shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles."
We as believers should have no part in the pagan traditions of the church. We should participate and identify with the seven feasts of the Lord.
Separation is not a politically correct word. I think you know what I think of political correctness! Separation is what is needed big time in these days! Separating yourself in pride is wrong, but being separate from the ways of the world unto God and His ways, will endear you to Him. Yes you may stand out from the crowd, but it's good to remember that the crowd is on the road to a Christ-less eternity!
I know many who have changed their ways and are now following the Lord in this new way. They all say that it is thrilling and liberating.
Gods plan in church government:
The previous edition is titled "Satan's plan for the church." God's plan is pretty much the exact opposite. Let's have a look at some points:
When you build a new house on the spot where an old exists, you need to break the old one down to build the new. Jeremiah 1:10 "See I have set you over the nations and kingdoms to root out and to pull down, to destroy and throw down, to build and to plant." This can be applied to the fact that the church needs to built on a clear foundation with all the evil traditions and practices of the "nations and kingdoms" of the world pulled down and destroyed.
Leadership:
Leadership in the church is male. Some are thinking "I can't believe he just said that!" Well, I did and here is the reason: The word's 'rabbi' and 'pastor' in their original languages have a gender association to them. They are male words. It's the same as the words mister or miss. They have a gender connotation. On top of this there is no precedent in the scriptures for a female rabbi or pastor. There are references in the Bible to female evangelists or a prophetess, but not pastor.
Today most of the church is powerless to identify and deal with the Jezebel spirit within the church. The Jezebel spirit relates to the usurping of male authority. It is often accompanied by the Ahab spirit, which relates to the submissive male.
Leadership is appointed by God and not some democratic church governing body.
Leaders will not use control measures or insist on being separated above the laity in title or dress.
Leaders will themselves be crucified people, delivering the message of the cross. The leader who does not know suffering for doing right is not fit to lead.
The kingdom of God exists only where the pure, true authority of God is exercised. The leader will be God's ambassador representing truth and God Himself.
No church leader that knows God can ever be sectarian, denominational or compromised with Rome!
The primary duty of the church is to be a bastion of truth...to guard and protect it. Whenever the children of Israel departed from truth, the devil charged in. The same was true with the defeat of the early church and the same is true now.
God's leaders will never say things like "doctrine doesn't matter, it's just your heart that matters". That is dangerous hogwash.
Eternal victory, the glorious church:
The Bible gives us astounding insights into the future glory that is laid up for His servants.
Let's have a look at a few of them:
The marriage supper of the Lamb is one the beautiful images of the future for God's church. Only His family will be present. Revelation 19:5-21 describes this fantastic event. Verse 7-8 "Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory for the marriage of the Lamb has come and to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints".
The glorious church Ephesians 5:27 Speaks of the fact that our Lord will "present to Himself a glorious church not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it will holy and without blemish."
Gold, silver, precious stones, or wood, hay, and stubble...pick your choice! The issue is that what you end up with will be your eternal lot! The Bible views fire hitting a pile of all these things. Only the gold, silver, and stones survive while the rest goes up in a puff of smoke. This is the view, in type, of our eternal reward state. What we did in response to God's plan for our lives will have eternal ramifications!
1 Corinthians 3:12-15 "If anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stone, wood, hay, straw, each ones work will become manifest; for the Day will declare it, for it will be revealed by fire and the fire will test each one's work. If anyone's work endures he will be rewarded, but if anyone's work is burned up he will suffer loss, but he himself will be saved as through fire."
God's plan for the true believer is not to give him a better life. It is to liquidate him, and then raise him up to a new life on the far side of the cross. The cross was a once- for- all work achieved by our suffering Messiah, but there is an ongoing work and application of the cross on a daily basis into our lives that is part of God's plan. It is the ongoing work of the cross that separates the old and unclean for the new and holy.
God's plan is pure and holy. Holiness for the believer is one of the keys to the presence of God in our lives. As we grow in holiness so we see and understand God more and more. He draws us into His secret place of glory. As this occurs, so the things of the world become dim.
Hebrews 6:1 "...Let us go to perfection, not laying again the foundation..."
Psalm 25:14 "The secret of the Lord is with those who fear Him, and He will show them His covenant."
Psalm 31:20 "You shall hide them in the secret place of your presence..."
Psalm 46:10 "Be still and know that I am God". This simple little verse is the reason why very few people in this day will "know God" The world today is the exact opposite of stillness in all its ways! Outward silence and stillness leads to inner clam.
Hosea 2:14 "I will lead her into solitude and there speak to her heart."
Summary:
The Bible speaks a lot about the "many" and the "few". Unfortunately it is always the many who go the way of the world and the few who go the way of our Lord. Thankfully there will be a large number in pursuit of God and His ways, but there will also be a bigger number who will go the way of the world.
In the face of increasingly "perilous times" God has His kids growing in glory as they go His way and follow His plan. What an incredible almost unimaginable shock it will be for many when they stand before God in judgement and find out that He had a wonderful plan for them all along and they ignored it, following Satan's plan! Imagine the horror that many church leaders will experience when they find out that their church is not in God's plan!
The Messianic movement, embracing the Abrahamic expression of faith with Hebraic influence, always has been and still is God's plan for the church.
Of course true believers of other persuasions are saved, as salvation is by faith alone, but they are on a dangerous journey now.
Do you want to have God's best for you now and into eternity? Do you, dear reader, want to press on into deeper realms of glory? Do you want to know Him more deeply and be known by Him? You were created for just this purpose, don't let it slip by.
Only the true pure church with a kingdom vision, following God's plan is unshakeable.
Hebrews 12:25-29 "See that you do not refuse Him who speaks, for if they did not escape, who refused Him who spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven, whose voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised saying, yet once more I shake not only the earth but heaven also. Now this "Yet once more" indicates the removal of the things that are being shaken, that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace with reverence and fear. For our God is a consuming fire."
Proverbs 28:14 "Blessed (and joyful) is the man who fears always." It is through fearing God always in an attitude of humility and reverence that we become equipped to progress onwards to perfection in the beauty of holiness.
God's plan is holy and for us requires holiness. He demands holiness. It is beautiful...supremely beauty!
Isaiah 57:15 "For thus says the High and Lofty One who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy, I dwell in the high and holy place with him who has a contrite and humble spirit. To revive the spirit of the humble and to revive the heart of the contrite ones." Holiness and humility are twins. Pride denies God's holiness and says effectively that you are the big deal!
1 Peter 1:15 "Be holy for I am holy." If God demands something He makes provision for it, but it's not automatic, it must be sought. His provision is in His word. Holiness corresponds to natural beauty.
Psalm 93:5 "Your testimonies are very sure; holiness adorns your house o Lord forever."
Psalm 96:9 " O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness! Tremble before Him all the earth."
Psalm110:3 "Your people shall be volunteers in the day of Your power; In the beauty of holiness from the womb of the morning. You have the dew of Your youth."
Our human minds can't even begin to imagine the eternal glory that is laid up for us.(2 Corinthians 4:17) Isn't that just amazing!
God gives us glimpses of the future, it is dramatic, terrifying and frightening for many and full of wonder, majesty and glory for all those that are His.
Deuteronomy 30:19 "I call heaven and earth as a witness against you that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing therefore chose life."
Psalm 140:13 "Surely the righteous shall give thanks to your name. The upright shall dwell in Your presence."
Jeremiah 29:13-14 "And you will seek Me and find Me when you seek for Me with all of your heart. I will be found by you says the Lord and bring you back from your captivity..."
Job 11:6 "O that He would show me the secrets of wisdom..."
1 Corinthians 2:7-16 "We speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the of the ages for our glory...Eye has not seen nor ear heard nor have entered into the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for those who love Him. God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches the deep things of God."
Heaven or hell:
Hi Mom...long time no see. As you died many years ago, I proclaimed that we would meet again! I vividly recall driving away from the hospital and seeing multiple cloud formations that looked just like a city in the sky. As I got home I opened my Bible and the page that fell open was all about the New Jerusalem. You spent your life as a dedicated believer in our Messiah. You taught in a Hebrew nursery school and in a Sunday school. You laid an excellent foundation for yourself and for us kids. You had an amazing love for the Jews for which you were greatly respected in the community You led the way in the Abrahamic expression of faith. Thank you mom!
My first girlfriend, the Jewish kid from across the road, my mom taught you in nursery school. You were well taught in all things Jewish. Later you did come to believe in Messiah, but what has happened since? You've lost your way! The idols of this world have led you astray. My friend, our Lord still holds out His nail scarred hands to you with the offer of mercy. Will you return to Him? I loved you a lot, still do as a special friend, but our great Messiah loves you so much more than you can ever imagine. Heaven or hell is set before you...please make the right choice!
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The is a painting by Rembrandt representing the fury of Moses after being given the ten commandments by God. He returned from the mountain only to discover that the people had retreated into idol worship. The story is no different today. God has give us a lot more than the ten commandments and the world largely ignores it all. But they do worship the devil alright.
Kind regards and many blessings...Shalom and grow in grace!
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