Are You Ready?
The much
waited for return of our Lord Jesus Christ is finally at hand. The world has had many false wake up calls over time, but this one is for real. The
question is, are you ready for Him and for the
devastation that precedes His arrival?
In the
year 2000, we unveiled the prophecy of
Jesus
Christ knew that there would be little faith in the world when He returns, and
that is why He said that the world would be taken by surprise by the Great
Tribulation that precedes His arrival.
Mat 24:37 "But
as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.
"For as in the days before the flood,
Mat 24:38 they were eating and
drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the
ark,
Mat 24:39 "and
did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the
coming of the Son of Man be.”
There are
many people who do not wish to see Jesus Christ coming too soon, thinking that
a delay in His return would give them time to prepare for His arrival. But that is a false hope, for if they are not
ready to face Him now, there is little chance that they will ever be. All adult human beings are supposed to be
ready to face their Creator and their Saviour any time anywhere. The problem is,
Christian preachers themselves are postponing Jesus’ return to an indefinite
time, supposedly because many other prophecies are yet to be fulfilled. Well, having looked carefully at both
Scriptures and history, we can tell you that no prophecy is yet to be fulfilled
before the return of Jesus Christ, other than the worldwide Great
Tribulation. All prophecies about this
time, have been, or are in the process of being fulfilled.
There
has never been a more urgent and appropriate time to turn to God than it is
now. Turning to God in the midst of
widespread unbelief, gives you greater merit in heaven. That is why Jesus Christ said that:
Mat
The
whole world will soon bend their knees and bow their heads before the Almighty,
but most people will get little reward for doing so at the last minute, at
judgment time when they have no alternative.
Isa
45:22 "Look to Me, and be saved,
All you ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other.
Isa
45:23 I have sworn by Myself; The word
has gone out of My mouth in righteousness, And shall not return, That to Me
every knee shall bow, Every tongue shall take an oath.”
One must
be ready to face his Maker and answer for himself at all times. That is why
those who do not wish to see Jesus Christ now will end up paying with their
life.
The main
reason put forward by preachers who think that the return of Jesus Christ is
still a long way off is that according to them Antichrist must come and deceive
the world first. They do not know that
Antichrist has been in the world ever since the time of the Apostles. Here is
proof of it.
1 John
4:2 “By this you know the Spirit of God:
Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God,
1 John 4:3 and every spirit that
does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist,
which you have heard was coming, and is now
already in the world.”
2 John 1:7 “For many deceivers
have gone out into the world who do not confess Jesus Christ as coming in the
flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.”
Antichrist
was already in the world when Apostle John wrote those words. And who is an antichrist? Anyone who does not confess that Jesus Christ
is coming in the flesh. In other words,
anyone who does not acknowledge that Jesus Christ is living His life in us
through the Holy Spirit, the same Spirit that lived in Him when He was in the
world, is an antichrist.
There is
no need for another Antichrist to come into the world, because the world has
long been deceived by a great Antichrist.
People do not know who that is because he masquerades as a man of God
and an angel of light.
Satan
has been posing as an angel of light for a long time, and his servants as
ministers of righteousness for just as long. That is why Jesus Christ began and
ended His prophecy about the Great Tribulation that precedes His return with a
warning against ministers that preach falsehood, all while claiming to preach
the true Christ.
Mat 24:4 “And Jesus answered and
said to them: "Take heed that no one deceives you.
Mat 24:5 "For many will come
in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will deceive many.”
Mat 24:11 "Then many false
prophets will rise up and deceive many.
Mat 24:12 "And because
lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.
Mat 24:13 "But he who endures
to the end shall be saved.” "For
then there will be great tribulation,
Mat 24:21 such as has not been
since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be.
Mat 24:22 "And unless those days
were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect's sake those days
will be
Mat 24:23 shortened”. Then if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is
the Christ!' or 'There!' do not believe it.
Mat 24:24 "For false christs and false
prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible,
even the elect.
Mat 24:25 "See, I have told
you beforehand.”
Three
times Jesus Christ used the word ‘deceive’ in that chapter, every time
associating it with ministers who admit that He is the Christ, yet who deceive
their followers. How do they do that? By
preaching a false gospel in His name.
Notice what Apostle Paul said.
Gal 1:6 “I marvel that you are
turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a
different gospel,
Gal 1:7 which is not another; but
there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ.
Gal 1:8 But even if we, or an
angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to
you, let
Gal 1:9 him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again,
if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him
be accursed.”
Now if
they started deceiving the people whom the Apostles had converted even at that
time, how much worse do you think things might have gotten by now? The answer may come when you understand that
closely linked with the gospel of the Antichrist, is that of the ‘man of
sin’. He too is supposed to come and
conquer the world before the return of Jesus Christ. And guess what? He was in the world at the time of the
Apostles too.
2 Th 2:1
“Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our
gathering together to Him, we ask you,
2 Th 2:2
not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word
or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of
2 Th 2:3
Christ had come. Let no one
deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away
comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition,
2 Th 2:4
who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is
worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of
2 Th 2:5
God, showing himself that he is God.
Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these
things?”
Like the
Antichrist of Apostle John, the ‘man of sin’ of Apostle Paul was also in the
world at that time. That ‘man of sin’
was already sitting in the
The fact
that Apostle Paul was not able to reveal his identity at that time tells us
that he was a greatly feared man – one who could have caused much damage to
those who spoke evil of him. With the
passage of time this is exactly what the papacy has done to the true followers
of Jesus Christ. Countless people have been burned at stake for refusing to
accept the counterfeited religion of the ‘man of sin’. As Jesus said:
John 16:2 "They will put you
out of the synagogues [and churches]; yes, the time is coming that whoever
kills you will think that he offers God service.”
Now it
should come as no surprise that the Antichrist and the ‘man of sin’, which is
really one and the same, have been in the world from the beginning of Christianity,
because the Devil himself has been the ‘god of this age’ from the beginning of
the world.
2 Cor 4:3 “But even if our gospel
is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this
age has blinded,
2 Cor 4:4 who do not believe, lest
the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should
shine on them.”
It is an extraordinary fact that no other
powerful religious institution and position has been in the world at the time
of Jesus Christ that would still be in the world at the time of His return,
except the position of Pontifex Maximus – the papacy.
2 Th 2:8
“And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume
with the breath of His mouth and destroy with
2 Th 2:9
the brightness of Hid coming. The coming of the lawless one is according
to the working of Satan, with all power, signs,
Two
important prophecies come out of this passage.
First, that the lawless one will be revealed and destroyed at the coming
of the Lord Jesus Christ. The people of
God have known who that person is for a long time; only the world at large will
be surprised to discover his true identity at the last minute.
Second,
the ‘lawless one’ deceived those who did not receive the truth and had pleasure
in unrighteousness. And what happened to
them? God gave them strong delusion that
they should believe the lie. What lie? The false gospel of salvation! See TCH No
11 if you do not know the difference.
Apostle Paul used similar language in his letter to the Romans.
Like a
collective death wish, the entire world has been covered by the stench of
homosexuality. Those who ought to cry
aloud about it are just as likely to indulge in it themselves.
It is
unbelievable that such a small number of people would wield such a
disproportionate influence with world governing institutions. Two and three decades ago they used to claim
that upwards of ten percent of the population had homosexual orientation. But every study done since then has shown
that their number is no more than one to two percent. It only shows what a powerful spirit is
behind this abominable practice.
The
Bible says that religious leaders ought to be the repositories of scriptural
knowledge and upholders of the Law of God, but instead they have done their
best to steer people away from that Law under the pretence that churches must
keep up with the times.
Mal 2:7 "For the lips of a
priest should keep knowledge, And people should seek the law from his mouth;
For he is the
Mal 2:8 messenger of the LORD of
hosts. But you have departed from the
way; You have caused many to stumble at the law.
Mal 2:9 You have corrupted the
covenant of Levi,” Says the LORD of hoists.
"Therefore I also have made you contemptible and base before all
the people, because you have not kept My ways but have shown partiality in the
law."
1 Cor 2:6 “However, we speak
wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the
rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing.
1 Cor 2:7 But we speak the wisdom
of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for
our glory,
1 Cor 2:8 which none of the rulers
of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of
glory.
1 Cor 2:9 But as it is written:
"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."
People
have refused to hear our message because we did not come with polished publications
and great pomp and ceremony. They have
been led to believe that God’s messages come form well dressed, wealthy and
fashionable people. But what do the Scriptures say?
Mark 1:6 “Now John was clothed
with camel's hair and with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts
and wild honey.”
Mat 11:7 “As they departed, Jesus
began to say to the multitudes concerning John: "What did you go out into
the wilderness to
Mat 11:8 see? A reed shaken by the
wind?” But what did you go out to see? A
man clothed in soft garments? Indeed, those who wear soft clothing are in
kings' houses.
Mat 11:9 "But what did you go
out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet.
Mat
Mat
Those
who were to come in the spirit of Elijah before the return of Jesus Christ,
whose role was to witness the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all nations before the
end comes, were also ordinary people dressed in ‘sackcloth’ (Rev.11). Any wonder
that the world does not believe them and kills them. But would it do so if they were world renown
people, coming with great pomp and ceremony?
Can you see now how the world is deceived to the very core, and why it
is blind to its true condition?
James 2:5 “Listen, my beloved
brethren: Has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and
heirs of the kingdom
James 2:6 which He promised to
those who love Him? But you have
dishonoured the poor man. Do not the rich oppress you
James 2:7 and drag you into the
courts? Do they not blaspheme that noble
name by which you are called?
James 2:8 If you really fulfil the
royal law according to the Scripture, "You shall love your neighbour as
yourself," you do well;
James 2:9 but if you show
partiality, you commit sin, and are convicted by the law as transgressors.
What
does the “law of liberty” tell us? To
keep the Law of God, abhor sin. Tell that to the United Sates Supreme Court,
which in June 2003 equated freedom with homosexuality. Little do they realise that in so doing they
signed the death warrant for their own nation.
God does
not change (Mal.3:6). What was abominable in His
sight in ancient times is abominable to Him in modern times too, and always
shall be. That is why those who have not
learned the lesson of history, particularly that of
The
change that is about to hit this world is so great, so radically different from
anything that happened in the past, that most people find it hard to comprehend
the size and scope of it.
Mat 24:21 "For then there
will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the
world until
Mat 24:22 "tis time, no, nor
ever shall be. And unless those days
were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect's sake those days
will be shortened.”
For the
elect’s sake God will intervene and cut those days short, lest no flesh be left
alive. Unless you are among the elect of
God, you cannot make it into the Kingdom of God. You may survive the Great Tribulation and
live a little longer into the Millennial Kingdom, but that is hardly a
consolation for not being among the elect who will not only be spared the pains
of the Great Tribulation, but receive eternal life as well.
Rev 3:10 "Because you have
kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which
shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.”
Not
long ago the leader of the Crystal Cathedral in America told his immaculately
presented and attentive audience how he conducted his prayer before the
Almighty. What did he tell God when he
got on his knees? Nothing! And what did God answer him? Nothing!
He
seems to have done pretty well with his formula for prayer, but do you think a
poor man would get very far if he prayed that way? We do not know what Bible he is using for
inspiration, but we do know that our Bible says something very different about
prayer.
Mat 6:5
"And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they
love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that
they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their
Mat 6:6
reward. "But you, when you
pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father
who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you
openly.
Mat 6:7
"And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do.
For they think that they will be heard
Mat 6:8
for their many words.” Therefore
do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of
before you ask Him.”
Our
Father knows what our needs are before we ask Him, but He still wants us to
talk with Him as we would talk with our human parents. The wealthy of this world can afford to pray
whichever way they want, their prayer carries as much weight with God as a bird
feather.
Mat 19:23 “Then Jesus said to His disciples,
"Assuredly, I say to you that it is hard for a rich man to enter the
Mat 19:24 kingdom of heaven. "And again I say to you, it is easier
for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the
kingdom of God."
James 5:1
“Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming
upon you!
James 5:2
Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth-eaten.
James 5:3
Your gold and silver are corroded, and their corrosion will be a witness
against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have heaped up treasure in
the last days.
James 5:4
Indeed the wages of the labourers who mowed your fields, which you kept
back by fraud, cry out; and the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of
the Lord of Sabaoth.
James 5:5
You have lived on the earth in pleasure and luxury; you have fattened
your hearts as in a day of
James 5:6
slaughter. You have condemned,
you have murdered the just; he does not resist you.
James 5:7
Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how
the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it
until it receives the early and latter rain.”
James
5:8 You also be patient. Establish your
hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.”
Unless people do what Jesus
Christ and His Apostles said, they can pray standing on their head, it wouldn’t
make a difference. The man who prays in
silence before God came to Australia recently in an evangelistic campaign,
charging $25 for anyone who wanted to hear his precious pearls. Now $25 is a lot of money for a poor person,
but do you think he was concerned with the poor? One does not charge $25 if he wants to reach
the poor. But if he wants to ‘enlighten’
the wealthy, he can charge anything he wants, they
would all make good company in their “heaven”.
Now
do you know why Jesus Christ said that it is hard for a rich man to enter the
Kingdom of Heaven?
Mat 19:16 “Now behold, one came and said to Him,
"Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have
Mat 19:17 eternal life?" So He said to him, "Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. But
Mat 19:18 if you want to enter into life, keep
the commandments.” He said to Him,
"Which ones?" Jesus said, " 'You shall not murder,' 'You shall
not commit adultery,' 'You shall not steal,' 'You shall not bear false
witness,'
Mat 19:19 'Honour your father and your mother,'
and, 'You shall love your neighbour as yourself.'"
Mat 19:20 The young man said to Him, "All
these things I have kept from my youth. What do I still lack?"
Mat 19:21 Jesus said to him, "If you want
to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have
treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me."
Mat 19:22 But when the young man heard that
saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.”
The
heart of the young man could not let him follow Christ because he had great
possessions. Riches are a deadly snare
as far as salvation is concerned. Men
have a hard time parting with their possessions, and that is why it is easier
for a camel to go through the eye of a needle that for the rich to enter the
Kingdom of God. In other words it is
virtually impossible to save rich people.
And when Jesus Christ says something, you better believe that it is
true.
Now
isn’t it extraordinary that this world honours the very people who have the
least chance of being saved? They look at those who are well dressed,
influential and wealthy, who come with great pomp and ceremony, when these are the
least likely people to have an open line of communication with God and receive
His messages. Why do you think God gave
His great end time work to two poor people, ‘clothed in sackcloth’ (Rev. 11:3),
instead of to well off people?
Poor
people know their condition and pray to God in the right manner, with the right
heart, and the right attitude. God is
able to communicate with them, because they communicate with Him. But He cannot pass on His messages to people
that remain deaf-mute before Him?
Prayer
is an interactive process with our heavenly Father. It should contain an eulogy for His wondrous
creation, gratitude for His compassion, grace, and blessings, request for
forgiveness of our sins, and a petition to help us overcome the tests, trials and
tribulations that often come our way.
Our
requests to Him must be moderated by the knowledge that if we ask anything
amiss He does not respond to our prayer.
Our prayers must be in accordance with His will, and that is why it is
important to know what He expects of us in the first place. This is what James said about prayer:
Did
you notice? “The effective, fervent
prayer of a righteous man avails much.”
Prayer and faith go hand in hand.
For a prayer to be effective, it must be done in complete faith. But faith does not come overnight. “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the
word of God” (Rom 10:17). But if you
cannot find anyone who can inspire you to have faith, you can increase your own
faith by combining prayer, meditation, and study of the Word of God.
James
had a few more golden things to say about prayer too.
James 1:2
“My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials,
James 1:3
knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.
James 1:4
But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and
complete, lacking nothing.
James 1:5
If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all
liberally and without reproach, and it
James 1:6
will be given him. But let him
ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea
James 1:7
driven and tossed by the wind.
For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the
James 1:8
Lord; he is a double-minded man,
unstable in all his ways.
James 1:9
Let the lowly brother glory in his exaltation,
One
cannot talk about prayer without mentioning the Master of it – Jesus
Christ. This is what He told His
disciples.
Mat 6:5
"And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they
love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that
they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their
Mat 6:6
reward. "But you, when you
pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father
who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you
openly.
Mat 6:7
"And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do.
For they think that they will be heard
Mat 6:8
for their many words.
"Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you
have need of before you ask Him.
Mat 6:9
"In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be
Your name.
Mat 6:10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven.
Mat 6:11 Give us this day our daily bread.
Mat 6:12 And forgive us our debts, As we
forgive our debtors.
Mat 6:13 And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the
kingdom and the
Mat 6:14 power and the glory forever.
Amen. "For if you forgive men
their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
Mat 6:15 "But if you do not forgive men
their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”
Millions
of people recite this formula by heart without stoping for a minute to consider
what it really means. Each verset
contains a profound meaning, so speak it slowly, stop and think about every
word of it. Above all, remember the
verset that says, ‘forgive us our debts,
as we forgive our debtors’, and take note how Jesus Christ elaborated on
it. More often than not, people’s
prayers are ineffective because their heart is not right before God. As Apostle Paul said:
2 Cor 13:5
“Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves.
Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?; unless indeed you are
disqualified.”
Indeed,
Jesus Christ lives His life in his genuine followers, and answers their
prayer. This is what He told His
disciples just before He rose to heaven.
Then
Jesus Christ lifted up His eyes to heaven and gave His disciples a powerful
example of prayer and communication with His, and our, heavenly Father.
John 17:1
Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said:
"Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may
glorify You, "as You have given Him authority over all flesh,
John 17:2
that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him. "And this is eternal life,
John 17:3
that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You
have sent.
John 17:4
"I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which
You have given Me to do.
John 17:5
"And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the
glory which I had with You before the
John 17:6
world was.” "I have
manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world. They
were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word.
John 17:7
"Now they have known that all things which You have given Me are
from You.
John 17:8
"For I have given to them the words which You have given Me; and
they have received them, and have known surely that I came forth from You; and
they have believed that You sent Me.
John 17:9
"I pray for them. I do not pray for the world but for those whom
You have given Me, for they are Yours.
John 17:24
"Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me
where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You
loved Me before the foundation of the world.
Can
anyone add anything to that? Not us!
Marriage and
Divorce According To The Scriptures
It is an
extraordinary paradox that many fundamentalist churches that call themselves
Churches of God, openly advocate what
the Apostles of Jesus Christ have called ‘doctrines of demons’.
1 Tim 4:1 Now
the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith,
giving heed to deceiving spirits and
1 Tim 4:2
doctrines of demons, speaking lies
in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron,
1 Tim 4:3
forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from foods which God
created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the
truth.
1 Tim 4:4 For
every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be refused if it is received
with thanksgiving;
1 Tim 4:5 for
it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer.
1 Tim 4:6 If
you instruct the brethren in these things, you will be a good minister of Jesus
Christ, nourished in the words of faith and of the good doctrine which you have
carefully followed.
1 Tim 4:7 But
reject profane and old wives' fables, and exercise yourself toward godliness.
1 Tim 4:8 For
bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things,
having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come.
As you can see,
Apostle Paul placed this apostasy firmly in the end time. So if you want to know whether we are indeed
in the end time, go and find out whether anyone practices those doctrines of
demons. But if you want to take our word
for it, we can tell you that just about every fundamentalist church, and many
traditional ones, believe and practice these doctrines. There is virtually no
church that does not have unscriptural dietary restrictions on its members at
various times during the year. Remember,
if it is not in the Bible, or approved by God, it is not necessary, or
downright wrong and sinful. The strange
thing is that although many churches believe that we live in the end time, none
would admit that they practice ‘doctrines of demons’ even though they impose
dietary and marriage restrictions on their followers.
For decades, the
champion church of these ‘doctrines of demons’ has been the Worldwide Church of
God. That church, which had great
proselytising campaigns and influence last century, advocated even more
stringent dietary and marital restrictions than the Jews. They applied biblical injunctions, which they
did not understand, without any consideration for the harm and pain it caused
to those who were affected. Have a look
at the following examples and see what we mean.
Mat 19:3 “The
Pharisees also came to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, "Is it lawful
for a man to divorce his
Mat 19:4 wife
for just any reason?” And He answered
and said to them, "Have you not read that He who made
Mat 19:5 them
at the beginning 'made them male and female,’ and said, 'For this reason a man
shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall
become one flesh'?”
Mat 19:6
"So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God
has joined together, let not man separate."
The new ‘Pharisees’ used this passage to split
families and send people back to their former mates. When that was not possible, they left them in
the lurch, separated and heartbroken. No
one was allowed to remarry as long as the former partner was still alive,
regardless of whether he or she was available and a member of the church. It was a classical example of wisdom of the
world posing as the wisdom of God. Jesus
Christ had indeed said that, “what God has joined together, let not man
separate", but He also pointed out that there are times when that cannot
be avoided, and separation MUST occur.
Mat 19:7
“They said to Him, "Why then did Moses command to give a
certificate of divorce, and to put her away?"
Mat 19:8 He
said to them, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted
you to divorce your wives,
Mat 19:9 but
from the beginning it was not so.
"And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual
immorality, and marries another, commits adultery; and whoever marries her who
is divorced commits adultery."
Sexual immorality demands
divorce. But separating people who are
remarried and sending them back to former partners is committing another
abominable act in the sight of God.
Deu 24:1 "When a man takes a wife and marries
her, and it happens that she finds no favour in his eyes because he has found
some uncleanness in her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce, puts it in
her hand, and sends her out of his house,
Deu 24:2 "when she has departed from his house,
and goes and becomes another man's wife,
Deu 24:3 "if the latter husband detests her and writes
her a certificate of divorce, puts it in her hand, and sends her out of his
house, or if the latter husband dies who took her as his wife,
Deu 24:4 "then her former husband who divorced
her must not take her back to be his wife after she has been defiled; for that
is an abomination before the LORD, and you shall not bring sin on the land
which the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance.
So
strongly does God feel about this Law that He repeated it in Jeremiah.
Jer
3:1 "They say, 'If a man divorces
his wife, And she goes from him And becomes another man's, May he return to her
again?' Would not that land be greatly polluted? But you have played the harlot
with many lovers; Yet return to Me," says the LORD.”
It is abominable before the Lord, and pollutes the
land, to separate people and send them back to former partners. And if something is abominable before the
Lord you better not tamper with it, because the penalty for it is eternal
damnation.
And yet, many churches are still unashamedly practicing
these ‘doctrines of demons’.
They do not understand that the starting point for
the people of God is the moment of their conversion. Whoever you are married to at the moment of
your repentance, conversion and baptism, is your partner for life. But as Apostle Paul said, if one of the
partners departs and marries another, the other partner is not bound for life
to him or her. The remaining partner is
free to marry, but only a believing member.
The problem mainstream churches, such as the Catholic,
Orthodox, Anglican, and others, are having is that they do not have a break up
or converting point in the life of their members. Their members are made not by adult
conversion, but by birth. This has far
reaching implications. Consider the
plight of the priests who are accused of sexual
misconduct in their youth. They
could never say: I was guilty of youthful indiscretions like all human beings. But when I matured and saw the error of my
ways, I repented of it and converted to
God’s way of life. God forgave me, and
you ought to forgive me too. (Of course
this does not apply to criminal behaviour for which the common law must take
its course). But as it is, they have
two options: deny even the smallest infraction and hope for the best, or acknowledge
it and be considered incorrigible, and thus have their reputation and career
ruined. Not surprisingly, virtually all
of them choose the first option.
The head of the Catholic Church in Australia was
accused last year of having fondled a young boy forty-one years earlier while
they were both young and playing. On the
face of it, it appeared to be a rather trifling accusation, with little
consequence, except perhaps as a pointer towards possible homosexual
orientation. But because it was aired in public, the Primate had to either
admit it or deny it. As one might have
expected it, he denied it. The judging
magistrate then had to decide whom to believe: the accuser or the
defender. Since birds of a feather stick
together, he chose to ‘believe’ the defender.
Thus the Primate was saved and reinstated to his position, and the
church was saved from another payout.
The problem with this Primate and his choice is that
even if God had forgiven him for his original error, which he could claim that
he made while young, green, and irresponsible, God would never forgiven him if
he lied about it now, because in so doing he portrayed an innocent man as liar,
and that is unforgivable. That is what
happens when churches misapply good Christian doctrines. Taking responsibility for one’s sins is
paramount in Christianity. But equally
paramount is the fact that errors once repented of before God, are forgiven and
forgotten. But that requires a repenting
and converting point in one’s adult life, a fact traditional churches deny
their members.
Infants and children can be Christened and blessed
by a priest or a minister of religion, just as Jesus Christ blessed the
children that were brought to Him. That
act however is designed to protect them from evil influences, not to erase
their sins and convert them to the true faith of Jesus Christ. Children are born without sin, but they are
still made of flesh and blood, and bound to fall under temptation when they
grow up and begin to struggle with the impulses of their carnal nature. Only one Man in the whole history of the
world has never sinned – Jesus Christ – and that happened because He had the
Holy Spirit from conception. Without the
Holy Spirit no one can withstand the wiles of the Devil. That is why an adult conversion, repentance
of sins, and baptism through complete immersion, without which no one can
receive the Holy Spirit, are so important.
Can you see now why priests and ministers of traditional churches, particularly
of the Catholic Church, are such easy pray to the Devil’s influence? Without the Holy Spirit they have little
chance of withstanding his evil devices.
In regard to the question of why God allows little
children to die young, over which so many people continue to fret and stumble,
this is what the Bible says.
1 Ki 14:5 “Now the LORD had said to Ahijah,
"Here is the wife of Jeroboam, coming to ask you something about her son,
for he is sick. Thus and thus you shall say to her; for it will be, when she
comes in, that she will pretend to be another woman."
1 Ki 14:6 And so it was, when Ahijah
heard the sound of her footsteps as she came through the door, he said,
"Come in, wife of Jeroboam. Why do you pretend to be another person? For I
have been sent to you with bad news.
1 Ki 14:9 "but you have done more evil than all
who were before you, for you have gone and made for yourself other gods and molded images to provoke Me to anger, and have cast Me
behind your back;
Combine that with the following Scripture, and you
can see that when children die in their infancy, rather than mourn, cry, be
angry and ask, why did God let little Johnny die, people should rather rejoice
just as God does.
Psa 116:15 “Precious in the sight of the LORD Is the
death of His saints.”
Little Johnny
will most certainly be in the Kingdom of God, whereas those left behind
will have a mammoth task to make it to that place, especially if they are
members of the mainstream churches that do not offer their members the chance
of repentance, conversion, baptism, and
washing of sins by the Holy Spirit. Once
people grow up and commit their first sin, they lose their innocence and can no
longer make it into the
What these churches do to their members,
particularly their priests and ministers, by their lack of proper doctrines, is
forcing them to lie about their past behaviour in order to save their skins in
this world.
It is the same story with their doctrines about
marriage. It is a well known fact that
the Catholic Church does not allow divorce even when both partners have
committed adultery. By forcing people to
stay together against their wish, even after adultery, the church commits a
great abomination before the Lord. Do
you happen to know whom the Bible refers to as the ‘abomination of
desolation’? You might want to consult The
Christian Herald No 3.
The following lengthy passage shows us in what
Spirit we must look at family, marriage and divorce.
1 Cor 7:1
“Now concerning the things of which you wrote to me: It is good for a
man not to touch a woman.
1 Cor 7:2
Nevertheless, because of sexual immorality, let each man have his own
wife, and let each woman have
1 Cor 7:3 her
own husband. Let the husband render to
his wife the affection due her, and likewise also the wife to
1 Cor 7:4 her
husband. The wife does not have
authority over her own body, but the husband does. And likewise
1 Cor 7:5 the
husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. Do not deprive one another except with
consent for a time, that you may give yourselves to fasting and prayer; and
come together again so that Satan does not tempt you
1 Cor 7:6
because of your lack of self- control.
But I say this as a concession, not as a commandment.
1 Cor 7:7 For
I wish that all men were even as I myself. But each one has his own gift from
God, one in this manner and another
1 Cor 7:8 in
that. But I say to the unmarried and to
the widows: It is good for them if they remain even as I am;
1 Cor 7:9 but
if they cannot exercise self-control, let them marry. For it is better to marry
than to burn with passion.
1 Cor 7:38 So
then he who gives her in marriage does well, but he who does not give her in
marriage does better.
1 Cor 7:39 A
wife is bound by law as long as her husband lives; but if her husband dies, she
is at liberty to be married to whom she wishes, only in the Lord.
As you can see, this rule applies not only to
marriage, but to whatever condition one is found in at the moment of his or her
call and conversion. Now there is one
statement made by Jesus Christ that has caused much anguish to theologians and
philosophers. It is a statement that is
connected with marriage and divorce, although it does not appear to be so at
first sight.
Mat 20:16 "So the last will
be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few chosen."
This statement was
repeated for emphasis, lest people think that it might have been made by
oversight.
Mat 22:14 "For many
are called, but few are chosen."
Now why would theologians and philosophers stumble
over these words? Because they go
contrary to the commonly believed notion that all human beings are equal before
God. They are equal as far as their
judgment is concerned, everyone answering for his deeds, but not equal as fas
as their gifts and abilities are concerned.
What these statements are telling us is that there are three kinds of
people in the world. First there is the
great mass of people from whom God calls people to repentance. Then there are the called out ones with whom
God works in order to bring them to perfection.
And finally, there are the chosen ones, the people who have overcome
their trials and are given a place in the Kingdom of God.
Can you see now why all leftist utopias have
failed? They assume that all people are
equal, and given half a chance they could be programmed to work for the common
good and live selflessly in harmony forever more. But humans are not equal. No matter how much you program them, they
would never have the same goals in life.
Some are simply not capable of altruistic feelings. They are self-centred by nature, and totally
unfeeling towards others. Unfortunately,
because they have few scruples in stepping on the toes of others to push their
agenda, they are the more likely ones to raise up to the top. That is why this society appears to be up
side down sometimes. But before you despair, remember this:
Rev 13:10 “He
who leads into captivity shall go into captivity; he who kills with the sword
must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the
saints.”
Mal 4:2 But
to you who fear My name The Sun of Righteousness shall arise With healing in
His wings; And you shall go out And
Mal 4:3 grow
fat like stall-fed calves. You shall
trample the wicked, For they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet On the
day that I do this," Says the LORD of hosts.
Now coming back to the topic of marriage, people who
get married in this world, whose marriage breaks up before they convert to
God’s way of life, belong to the first category. They belong to the great mass of people for
whom the Law of God has little relevance, and for whom God responds in kind
with little consideration.
Those who respond to the call of God, repent and
begin the road of spiritual growth, become part of the second group. That is the moment that counts with God as
far as their marital condition is concerned.
As Apostle Paul said: “Let each
one remain with God in
that state in which he was called. Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek to be loosed.
Are you loosed from a wife? Do not seek a wife. But even if you do marry, you
have not sinned; and if a virgin marries, she has not sinned. Nevertheless such
will have trouble in the flesh, but I would spare you.”
It is a grievous sin to split families that have
converted to God’s way of life and send them back to former unconverted
spouses. Or if their former partner is
no longer available to force them to remain celibate until that spouse dies.
The Worldwide Church of God
has been enforcing this policy mercilessly for decades, and even now some of
its siblings, and quite a large number of other churches, are still doing
it. They will have much to answer
before God and before the people whom they have caused so much grief and
misery.
IN THE
MULTITUDE OF COUNSELLORS
THERE ISN’T ALWAYS
SAFETY
When we pointed
out that virtually the whole of Christianity has fallen away from the truth of
God, an American professor of theology quoted the following Scripture as
assurance that he was safe where he was.
Proverbs 11:14. “Where there is no
counsel, the people fall; But in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.”
Well, we do not
know what they discuss in their councils, but obviously not the work of Elijah
whom the Bible says must come before the return of Jesus Christ and restore all
things all by himself. Where are the
church councils at that time, and why don’t they help Elijah carry out his
duty? More importantly, why would there
be a need to restore anything of they preached the right Gospel in the
churches?
Mat 17:10 “And His disciples asked Him, saying,
"Why then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?"
Mat 17:11 “Jesus answered and said to them,
"Indeed, Elijah is coming first and will restore all things.”
And what about the other major biblical figures of the end time – the two witnesses of God spoken of in the book of Revelation. Why are they wretchedly clothed in ‘sackcloth’, why are they hated by everyone who dwells on the earth, and why are they killed in the end? Where are the church councils during those days?
Rev
11:3 "And I will give power to my
two witnesses, and they will prophesy one thousand two hundred and sixty days,
clothed
in sackcloth."
Rev 11:7 When
they finish their testimony, the beast that ascends out of the bottomless pit
will make war against them,
Rev 11:8
overcome them, and kill them.
And their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which
spiritually is called
How is it that those councils do not see the connection between these two prophecies and the end time mission spoken of by Jesus Christ when the words ‘witnesses’ and ‘witness’ connects the two statement?
Mat 24:14 "And this gospel of the kingdom will be
preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end
will come.”
Not only are the
church councils not doing their job and coming to the help of Elijah and the
two witnesses, but they hate the very people they ought to love. Now consider Jesus’ message to the Church of Laodicea.
At a time when
Jesus Christ stands at the door ready to come in, when poor people are doing
the work of God, taking His message to the world all on their own, the Laodicea Church of God, the very last church that should be
busy with the work of God and be ready to receive its Saviour, is basking in
the belief that its members are “rich, wealthy, and have need of nothing”.
Safety in a
multitude of counsellors? Yes, but not
in spiritual matters, because salvation is a personal not a collective
quest. That is why those who think that
they are saved because they belong to large congregations, or are safe because
a multitude of counsellors is leading them and telling them so, might have some
big surprises coming their way.
In the whole
history of the world, there isn’t a single example in which God passed His
messages to the world through a multitude of counsellors. With the exception of the Apostles in the
earlier stages of their work, always lonely people did the work of God, and
always they were persecuted. If
anything, when religious councils were involved they came together for evil not
for good. Need we go any further than
the Sanhedrin council that condemned Jesus Christ to death? Or the council of young people around king
Rehoboam, whose advise led to the division of
Israel? If Solomon had lived a little
later, or knew what his son would do, he might have written
The most important
prophecies about the Church of God for the end time is that it would fall
asleep or fall away and not be prepared for the return of Jesus Christ.
Mat 25:1
"Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who
took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.
Mat 25:2
"Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish.
Mat 25:3
"Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them,
Mat 25:4
"but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.
Mat 25:5
"But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and
slept.
Mat 25:6 "And at midnight a cry was heard:
'Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!'
Mat 25:7 "Then all those virgins arose and
trimmed their lamps.
Mat 25:8
"And the foolish said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for
our lamps are going out.'
Mat 25:9
"But the wise answered, saying, 'No, lest there should not be
enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for
yourselves.'
Mat 25:10
"And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who
were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.
Mat 25:11
"Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, 'Lord, Lord, open
to us!'
Mat 25:12
"But he answered and said, 'Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know
you.'
Mat 25:13
"Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in
which the Son of Man is coming.”
2 Th 2:1 “Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our
Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you,
2 Th 2:2 not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled,
either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of
2 Th 2:3 Christ had come. Let no one deceive you by any means; for that
Day will not come unless the falling away comes first,
2 Th 2:4 and the man of sin is revealed, the son of
perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that
is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that
he is God.
2 Th 2:5 Do you not remember that when I was still
with you I told you these things?”
The question is, which is the Church of God that has fallen asleep or
fallen away right now? Is it the Catholic, the Orthodox, the Protestant, or any
of the fundamentalist or charismatic denominations?
If any of them is
a genuine Church of God, it must explain how these prophecies apply to it. If all of them are Churches of God, all of
them collectively must allow for the possibility that they may have fallen
asleep or fallen away.
At one time, I was
invited to attend an evangelical revivalist meeting. At the end of the ‘show’, in lack of a better
word, I asked the main preacher how he explained the prophecies about Elijah
and the two witnesses. He said that when
that time comes, he will worry about it then.
It was inconceivable for him that we might be living in those times, or
that these prophecies might be fulfilled right now.
The problem with
people who have fallen asleep or fallen away is that they do not know their
condition. They fail to understand that
when a wicked spirit takes over their minds, their thought processes change
without them being aware of it, and they see things with entirely different
eyes. Sin no longer appears to be such
an evil thing.
Prov 30:20 “This is the way of an adulterous woman: She
eats and wipes her mouth, And says, "I have done no
wickedness."
But what did Jesus
Christ say?
Mat 12:35 "A good man out of the good
treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil
treasure
Mat 12:36 brings forth evil things. "But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will
give account of it in
Mat 12:37 the day of judgment. "For by your words you will be
justified, and by your words you will be condemned."
Now why is it that
in spite of all the signs of our time people refuse to contemplate that the
world has fallen asleep or fallen away so far from God that it has brought
itself to the very brink of catastrophe?
Is it because we have given this warning so may times that people think
we have cried wolf once too many? Would
it have been better if God had spoken just once and then zap – crashed everyone
who did not take that warning seriously and repented of their sins?
When we embarked
on this road some fourteen years ago we knew that our work would be of limited
duration, but did not know how long it would be before the world plunged itself
into the Great Tribulation, except that it would not be too long.
Now how long is
too long in historic or in God’s, terms?
Considering that recorded history is telling us that humanity has stood
on this planet for a mere six thousand years, what would be the appropriate
time to warn people about the end of this age?
I suppose it depends on what purpose that would serve. If it just to just let people know that teir end is near and they must put their house in order, a
few days or a few weeks might be enough.
But if it is to give them enough time to repent, change their ways and
qualify for the Kingdom of God, the longer the better. The problem is, human nature being as it is,
if the warning is too short, they either panic or refuse to believe that such
an event could be possible in their life time.
If it is too long, they forget about it and put it out of their minds
altogether. Either way, one cannot win
with human beings.
The point is, God
has not created humanity and placed it on this planet in order to catch it in
its sins and punish it for it. He has
given it ample time to reform itself and be saved, even though this has often
worked to the detriment of His messengers.
Remember what happened to the prophet Jeremiah?
Jer 20:7 “O
LORD, You induced me, and I was persuaded; You are stronger than I, and have prevailed.
I am in derision daily;
Jer 20:8
Everyone mocks me. For when I
spoke, I cried out; I shouted, "Violence and plunder!" Because the
word of the LORD
Jer 20:9 was
made to me A reproach and a derision daily.
Then I said, "I will not make mention of Him, Nor speak anymore in
His name." But His word was in my heart like a burning fire Shut up in my
bones; I was weary of holding it back, And I could not.
Unless people see
results right away, they misinterpret the message. They were angry with Jeremiah when his
prophecies did not occur right away.
They accused him of being a false prophet and threw him in a muddy
dungeon where he nearly died. But before
long, his prophecies did come true. They
were taken into captivity where they all ended up their days.
When we began this
work, we had no councillors to rely upon, and spent virtually every spare
moment of our life in prayer, meditation, worship, and study of the Word of
God. We communicated with God, and He
communicated with us.
There was nothing
special about us, except that we believed God and His Word, as did Jesus Christ
and His Apostles. You too can do that
and ensure your salvation, but you cannot afford to waste any time for the Day
of the Lord is truly at hand.
Exposing Falsehood Is NOT Judging
People
When you begin a work of the Gospel like this one,
you know that you will receive both favourable and negative comments. We have been happy to receive both kinds, and
are grateful to all people who have taken time to comment on our writings,
knowing that while the first found spiritual comfort in them, the second made
us think deeper on the topics they took issue with. We know that as long as we are in this ‘tent’
we are bound to make mistakes. Anyone
who shuts his ears to advise or criticism, has already put one foot in the
grave. As the Scriptures say:
Prov 26:12 “Do you see a man wise in his own eyes? There
is more hope for a fool than for him.”
We have been dealing with important matters that
affected people’s lives, and since we are not infallible we have tried hard to
make sure we understood the Scriptures properly before we expanded on them to
others. But just as the Apostles discovered in their time, it is not possible
to please everyone no matter how hard you tried. Some people are hating the Scriptures, others
are twisting them, others have put our writings to their use, but like the
Apostles, we rejoice that the Gospel is being preached, regardless of by whom
or for what purpose.
2 Pet 3:16 speaking in them of these things, in which
are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to
their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures.
As it happens, those who have shown displeasure at
our writings have not impressed us with their knowledge of the Scriptures, or
with their ability to follow through and substantiate their arguments. Almost without exception, when people felt
uncomfortable with our writings, they threw at us the age old accusation that
we were judging them contrary to teachings of Jesus Christ, even though we did
not even know who they were.
Mat 7:2 "For with what judgment you judge, you
will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.
Mat 7:3 "And why do you look at the speck in
your brother's eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?
Mat 7:4 "Or how can you say to your brother,
'Let me remove the speck from your eye'; and look, a plank is in your own eye?
Mat 7:5 "Hypocrite! First remove the plank from
your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your
brother's eye.”
Well, if they think that this is the case, we would
be only too happy to have someone pull the plank from our eyes so that we can
remove the speck from theirs, but unfortunately we found that when it comes to
the real message of the Scriptures they appear to be completely blind. They fail to understand that the following
Scriptures apply to the Christian ‘Pharisees’ of today too, not only to the
Jewish Pharisees of old.
Mat 15:12 “Then His
disciples came and said to Him, "Do You know that the Pharisees were
offended when they heard this saying?"
Mat 15:13 But He answered
and said, "Every plant which My heavenly Father has not planted will be
uprooted.
Mat 15:14 "Let them
alone. They are blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind leads the blind,
both will fall into a ditch."
It is not often that we have named people in our
writings. We have done so only after we
became convinced that it would be for the common good, in order to protect
others from their teachings, but also in the hope that they might repent of
their errors and turn to God, our guiding principle always coming from the
Scriptures.
Even the Apostles
corrected each other publicly when some did not behave properly, and did not
mind. And who was the one who made one
of the biggest mistakes? None other than
the very chief of the Apostles.
And what did Peter
do when he was confronted in front of the whole congregation? Did he remind Paul who was chief among them
and knew better? Or that his error was
like having a speck in his eyes, when Paul himself was having a plank in his
own? No, Peter loved him, and praised
him for his work. Apostle Paul was far
from perfect, having persecuted the Church of God in the past, so Peter could
have come back with some pretty grievous accusations against him if he wanted
to, but he did not do so. One, because
you do not bring back the errors for which people have repented, and two,
because Peter knew that he was at fault and needed to repent of it.
Making errors in
the process of salvation is not a major problem as long as the correction, from
whatever source it comes, is received in a spirit of meekness and
repentance. God specifically contrasted
His condition with that of human beings, by pointing out the need for humans to
always repent.
Apostle Peter
mentioned the fact that some people twist the Scriptures to their own
destruction. Now if someone is in that
position shouldn’t he be told about it while he can still repent of it? The Scriptures make it clear that if we see
someone committing sin, especially if he appears to be unaware of it, and we do
not tell him about it, we become guilty of his sin.
Ezek 2:1 “And
He said to me, "Son of man, stand on your feet, and I will speak to
you."
Ezek 2:2 Then
the Spirit entered me when He spoke to me, and set me on my feet; and I heard
Him who spoke to me.
Ezek 2:5 Lord
GOD.' "As for them, whether they
hear or whether they refuse; for they are a rebellious house; yet they will know
that a prophet has been among them.
Ezek 2:6
"And you, son of man, do not be afraid of them nor be afraid of
their words, though briers and thorns are with you and you dwell among
scorpions; do not be afraid of their words or dismayed by their looks, though
they are a rebellious house.
Ezek 2:7
"You shall speak My words to them, whether they hear or whether
they refuse, for they are rebellious.
Ezek 2:8
"But you, son of man, hear what I say to you. Do not be rebellious
like that rebellious house; open your mouth and eat
Ezek 2:9 what
I give you." Now when I looked,
there was a hand stretched out to me; and behold, a scroll of a book was in it.
Ezek 3:9
"Like adamant stone, harder than flint, I have made your forehead;
do not be afraid of them, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they are a
rebellious house."
Some people have
taken to preaching that those who do not convert to true Christianity now,
would be given a second chance after resurrection, when supposedly they are
brought back up to life to start all over again, until they too repent and are
given a place in the eternal Kingdom of God.
Nothing could further from the truth.
This is your one and only chance to work out your salvation. If you do
not prepare for the Kingdom of God now, if you mess your life now, you will
never have another chance.
We appear before
the judgment seat of Christ after one life, not after two or more. That is why the doctrine of reincarnation is
such a dangerous one too. For it implies
that even if people mess up their life now, they can always come back to repair
the damage they have done to themselves in this life. Once again, nothing could be further from the
truth. God does not have to, nor is He
going to, wait around until people make up their mind whether they want to be
saved or not.
He says: I have
given you the chance and opportunity to save yourselves now, in this life, so
don’t waste it. Moreover, the people who
do not care about salvation now, more often than not are the very ones that cause problems for
those that do. That is another reason
for not giving them another chance, and that is why they will be resurrected
for punishment not for salvation.
People in the West
must also understand that the road to salvation is more than just going to
church on weekends and hoping for the best.
Salvation is an active process that requires bringing under control the
pulls of human nature, and achieving peace of mind and union with God and with
Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit.
Indeed, all those who do not bring their bodies
under subjection now, will be disqualified.
You cannot achieve union with the Father and with
Jesus Christ if your carnal nature rules over you.
Rom 8:5 “For
those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the
flesh, but those who live according to
Rom 8:6 the
Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For
to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and
peace.
Rom 8:7
Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to
the law of God, nor indeed can be.”
Apostle Paul went on to plead with his disciples to present
their bodies as a ‘living sacrifice’ to God.
Rom 12:1 “I
beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your
bodies a living sacrifice, holy,
Rom 12:2
acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be
transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good
and acceptable and perfect will of God.”
Now compare that
with the philosophy that is prevalent in the world at present. Any notion that there is something better and
infinitely more pleasant and enduring to hope for is anathema to this “me”
generation. They have given themselves
over to full indulgence of their senses here and now, and heaven help those who
stand in their way. But then, what did
the Apostles say about this generation?
2 Tim 3:1
“But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come:
2 Tim 3:2 For
men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud,
blasphemers, disobedient to
2 Tim 3:3
parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without
self-control, brutal, despisers of
2 Tim 3:4
good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than
lovers of God,
2 Tim 3:5
having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people
turn away!”
One cannot please
God and the world at the same time.
Apostle Paul again:
Rom 8:8 “So
then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God. But you are not in the flesh but in the
Spirit
Rom 8:9 , if
indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit
of Christ, he is not His.
Apostle John put
it just as strongly.
Indeed, the reward
for bringing the flesh under subjection, and loving God rather than the world,
is eternal life and inexpressive pleasures in the eternal Kingdom of God. As Jesus Christ also said:
Are the pleasures
of this world worth anything if one loses his eternal life for them? All the glamour, wealth, status, glory and
joys that men crave in this world amount to nothing if in the end “he who loves
his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for
eternal life.” Those who think that
these are mere idle words are gravely mistaken.
Salvation is
achieved by overcoming on two levels. At
the physical level, one must keep under control the pulls of human nature, and
at the spiritual level, one must ensure that he believes and follows the right
Christian doctrines and practices.
Therefore exposing
falsehood is NOT judging people, it is trying to save them by showing them a
better way, because, “there is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is
the way of death.” (Prov.
Another Major End-Time Prophecy
Unveiled
There is hardly a major prophecy in the Bible that we have not looked at
and revealed in the pages of this magazine.
But just when we though that we were finished with them, at least for
the time being, to our great surprise, in came another one rushing in. Our surprise came from the fact that we have
discussed this prophecy before, and thought that we have solved it, but now we
find that we were wrong, and must admit our mistake.
Making mistakes is not a major problem in the Bible, but failing to admit
them when one’s eyes are opened to them becomes a sin. Our mistake came from
the fact that we allowed ourselves to be influenced by other people. Almost without exception, whenever we relied
on other people we ended up correcting ourselves. Have a look at the following Scriptures.
It is a general belief among biblical scholars that the
army of two hundred million coming from the East on the river Euphrates, would
be made up of an alliance of ten nations that includes Russia, China and Iran
among others. We have a number of publications in our hands that say so. Well, we swallowed their pill, and were wrong
like everybody else.
- First, because
there is no association between the river Euphrates and this alliance.
- Second, because if
you come against
- Third, because if
you were to take an army even half that size from
- And fourth,
prophecy says that the ten-nation alliance led by ‘the prince of Rosh’ will
come against
Ezek 38:4 "I will turn you
around, put hooks into your jaws, and lead you out, with all your army, horses,
and horsemen, all splendidly clothed, a great company with bucklers and
shields, all of them handling swords.
Ezek 38:7 "Prepare yourself
and be ready, you and all your companies that are gathered about you; and be a
Ezek 38:10 "'Thus says the
Lord GOD: "On that day it shall come to pass that thoughts will arise in
your
Ezek 38:11 mind, and you will make
an evil plan: "You will say, 'I will go up against a land of unwalled villages; I will go to a peaceful people, who
dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor
gates';
Ezek 38:12 "to take plunder
and to take booty, to stretch out your hand against the waste places that are
again inhabited, and against a
people gathered from the nations, who
have acquired livestock and goods, who dwell in
Ezek 38:22 "And I will bring
him to judgment with pestilence and bloodshed; I will rain down on him, on his
troops, and on the many peoples who are with him, flooding rain, great
hailstones, fire, and brimstone.
Ezek 38:23 "Thus I will
magnify Myself and sanctify Myself, and I will be known in the eyes of many
nations. Then they shall know that I am the LORD."'
Ezek 39:1 "And you, son of
man, prophesy against Gog, and say, 'Thus says the
Lord GOD: "Behold, I am against you, O Gog, the
prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal; "and I will turn you around and lead you
on,
Ezek 39:6 "And I will send
fire on Magog, and on those who live in security in
the coastlands. Then they shall know that I am the LORD.
Ezek 39:14 am glorified,"
says the Lord GOD. "They will set
apart men regularly employed, with the help of a search party, to pass through
the land and bury those bodies remaining on the ground, in order to cleanse it.
At the end of seven months they will make a search.
Ezek 39:15 "The search party
will pass through the land; and when anyone sees a man's bone, he shall set up
a marker by it, till the buriers have buried it in the Valley of Hamon Gog.
Ezek 39:16 "The name of the
city will also be Hamonah. Thus they shall cleanse
the land."'
Ezek 39:17 "And as for you,
son of man, thus says the Lord GOD, 'Speak to every sort of bird and to every
beast of the field: "Assemble yourselves and come; Gather together from
all sides to My sacrificial meal Which I am sacrificing for you, A great
sacrificial meal on the mountains of Israel, That you may eat flesh and drink
blood.
Ezek 39:18 You shall eat the flesh
of the mighty, Drink the blood of the princes of the earth, Of rams and
Ezek 39:21 "I will set My
glory among the nations; all the nations shall see My judgment which I have
executed, and My hand which I have laid on them.
Ezek 39:25 '"Therefore thus
says the Lord GOD: 'Now I will bring back the captives of Jacob, and have mercy
Ezek 39:28 hallowed in them in the
sight of many nations, 'then they shall know that I am the LORD their God, who
sent them into captivity among the nations, but also brought them back to their
land, and left none of them
God has not yet been hallowed in
Exo
Exo
9:14 him, 'Thus says the LORD God of the
Hebrews: "Let My people go, that they may serve Me, for at this time I
will send all My plagues to your very heart, and on your servants and on your people,
that you may know that there is none like Me in all the earth.
Exo
Exo
Prophecies do not normally come in
one long story like the one above in Ezekiel.
In most cases you have to go back and forth through the Bible to put
them together in their proper setting in order to get to their full
meaning. This one however is pretty
clear. The only thing left for us is to
determine its timing. But the first
question that needs to be answered is, if this end-time alliance comes against
Prov 25:2 “It is the glory of God to
conceal a matter, But the glory of kings is to search out a matter.”
Deu 29:29 "The secret things
belong to the LORD our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us
and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.”
Isa
28:9 "Whom will he teach knowledge?
And whom will he make to understand the message? Those just
Isa 28:10 weaned from milk? Those
just drawn from the breasts? For precept
must be upon precept, precept upon precept, Line upon line, line upon line,
Here a little, there a little."
Isa 28:13 But the word of the LORD
was to them, "Precept upon precept, precept upon precept, Line upon line,
line upon line, Here a little, there a little," That they might go and
fall backward, and be broken And snared and caught.”
God takes pride in concealing
prophetic things, and men cover themselves in glory discovering them. However, those who take on this task should
always remember that in the final analysis it is still God who reveals His
secrets to His true servants anyway.
So who forms the army of two
hundred million that comes from the East on the
If you count all people upwards of
twenty years from those countries, you can easily reach that figure. And if you
add the other countries that provided token or logistic support,
Now there is something else to
this prophecy. When we published the
first edition of The Christian Herald in 1990, on the brink of the first
Gulf War, we said that that war would lead to the Great Tribulation. When that war ended and no worldwide tribulation
ensued, our nemesis rejoiced and we were left with egg on our faces.
Like Jeremiah, we decided that we
were not going to speak in the name of God again.
Jer 20:7 O LORD, You induced me, and I was persuaded;
You are stronger than I, and have prevailed. I am in derision
Jer 20:8 daily; Everyone mocks me. For when I spoke, I cried out; I shouted,
"Violence and plunder!" Because the word of the LORD was made to me A
reproach and a derision daily.
Jer 20:9 Then I said, "I will not make mention of
Him, Nor speak anymore in His name." But His word was in my heart like a
burning fire Shut up in my bones; I was weary of holding it back, And I could
not.
Two years passed before we
produced another edition of The Christian Herald. As with Jeremiah, the Word of God was
burning in our hearts too and we had no choice but to keep trudging on
regardless. But then, just as with
Jeremiah, in the end we were proven right too.
The first Gulf War never ended.
It was not even a truce, for the
And yet, there is still more to
this prophecy. The Bible speaks of three
wicked spirits associated with the army of two hundred million that comes up on
the
Rev
16:15 "Behold,
I am coming as a thief. Blessed is he who watches, and keeps his garments, lest
he walk naked and they see his shame."
Of course, these spirits represent
human beings, but who might they be?
Well, who were the three leaders that fought to create the ‘coalition of
the willing’, and are now seeking to create a coalition against North Korea,
Iran and Syria – the allies of ‘Rosh’, Meshech,
Tubal, God and Magog?
The three Maggies of the English speaking world! If you do now know who they are, we are just
not going to tell you. What we are going
to do though, is draw your attention to verse 15, which makes it clear that the
prophecy about the river
The Heritage Of The Hebrews
The Jews have suffered enough during their long and
troubled history, without anyone adding to their woes in our time. However,
watching what is happening in the
One day you feel for the innocent Jews who are blown
apart unexpectedly by Palestinian suicide bombers, and the next you feel for
the grieving parents who after losing their son must also watch their abode
being destroyed by avenging Israelis.
This is the price people pay for living in a time
warp, which is what both Palestinians and Israelis do at present. They both
hold on to beliefs and practices that have long passed their use by date. It
should be obvious to all by now, that eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth
results in two blind and toothless cripples.
This is not to speak of a head for a head, which would be a more
appropriate description of what really is happening in that land these
days.
We have tried hard to explain to both peoples that
only an open and thorough examination of themselves and their beliefs, in light
of overall historical and spiritual developments, can get them out of
troubles. We have asked them to take
another look at the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ, not at what historically
has come down to us as Christianity, and admit that His Gospel far from being
contrary to their revealed religion, it complements, enhances, and places it in
a proper contemporary context. We
emphasize the word ‘revealed’ because like Christianity and other religions,
both Judaism and Islam have suffered at the hands of false teachers in the
meantime.
Having studied all three religions, and opening my
heart to them at close quarters, I find it compellingly obvious that they are
like three main fingers of one hand, one of them standing higher than the
others but resting on them. This is not to diminish the value and importance of
any religion, only to point out that after complementing each other they must
grow together to a higher plateau – the true Christianity of Jesus Christ.
It may
surprise people to know this, but Christianity has legacies from both Hebrew
and Canaanite peoples. Unfortunately not
all of it has been positive.
During
my studies of religions at the university some two and a half decades ago, the
Jewish scholar who lectured us in Judaism was always trying to channel our
tutorial discussions towards questioning biblical events such as the Exodus,
slavery in
The
latest television documentaries from the
This is
a major problem with the Jews. For much as we admire their tenacity in the face
of adversity, and contribution to world heritage in many fields, they seem to
have a major flaw in that when they set their minds on something nothing stands
in their way, not even truth, and, if it were for them, not even God.
They
have run roughshod on their own religion, which instead of being a beacon to
the world, as it was meant to be until Christ, Judaism, together with Islam,
have become the most despised religions in the world. That is not what God
intended for either of them. You may not agree with another religion, you may
not like its customs, but in an interdependent world you accommodate it.
Despise comes only when the basic norms of civilisation, which incorporate
God’s divine laws, are breached. This is what is happening in both religions at
present.
One
might be excused for thinking that Jewish scholarship these days equates with
licence to invent the past. As for
Islamic scholarship, I can tell you about some great thinkers in the past, but
I can’t think of any today. Whenever
anyone gets notoriety these days it is for crude invectives against Judaism or
Christianity.
We will
come to the Canaanite legacy to Christianity in a moment, but first let us have
a look at a few aspects of Judaism as they relate to Christianity. There is a
passage in the book of Revelation that is revealing indeed.
Rev 3:7 "And to the angel of
the church in Philadelphia write, 'These things says He who is holy, He who is
true, "He who has the key of David, He who opens and no one shuts, and
shuts and no one opens":
Rev 3:8 "I know your works. See,
I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it; for you have a
little
Rev 3:9 strength, have kept My
word, and have not denied My name.
"Indeed I will make those of the synagogue of Satan, who say they
are Jews and are not, but lie; indeed I will make them come and worship before
your
The
reference to king David and the people who falsely claimed to be Jews is
fitting, in that in addition to denying their Egyptian sojourn and Exodus,
Jewish scholars are also trying to get rid of David and his kingdom from their
history books too. Why? Because in order
to sink their roots deeply in
Jewish
archaeologists assure us that there is no evidence that David’s kingdom ever
existed. The Bible is no proof for them
anymore. Now it is a well-known fact what modern
historians have done to history. They
have ignored important historical documents and created a new history of the
world, particularly of the Middle Eastern and Mediterranean basin, based mainly
on potsherds. Almost in every case they
have moved history back in time by centuries and millennia so as to conform to
the fallacy of evolution. The case of David and his kingdom however, is the
only one that we know of in which they have moved history forward by at least two
centuries. We do not know why they did that, for there is no logic in it, but
we do know that they are looking for David’s kingdom in the wrong place and the
wrong time.
A few
years ago, they finally found a potsherd piece that bore the inscription: King
David. It caused quite a stir. They did not know what to do with it or
whether it was genuine. First, because
it came from north Israel, where king David was not supposed to have been
(that’s how well they know the history of David’s kingdom), and second because
it did not come from the eighth century B.C. when they think David’s kingdom
existed if at all.
Christian
historians however are not very far behind their Jewish counterparts when it
comes to reshaping history, especially that of true Christianity. We’ve all seen what they did to the story of
the Dead Sea Scrolls (See The Christian Herald No 9).
Now in
wanting to be like the Canaanite people, the Jews have forgotten what the fate
of the Canaanites was supposed to be. For just like the Jews, the Canaanites
have positive and negative sides to their story. Here, in a nutshell, is ancient Jewish
history vis-a-vis that of their Middle Eastern neighbours.
Deu
7:1 "When the LORD your God brings
you into the land which you go to possess, and has cast out many nations before
you, the Hittites and the Girgashites and the
Amorites and the
Canaanites and the Perizzites
and the Hivites and the Jebusites,
seven nations greater and mightier than you,
Deu
7:2 "and when the LORD your God
delivers them over to you, you shall conquer them and utterly destroy them. You
shall make no covenant with them nor show mercy to them. "Nor shall you make marriages with
them.
Deu
7:3 You shall not give your daughter to
their son, nor take their daughter for your son.
Deu
7:4 "For they will turn your sons
away from following Me, to serve other gods; so the anger of the LORD will be
aroused against you and destroy you suddenly”.
Deu
Deu
Deu
Deu
Note carefully how far God said that He would extend
the land of the Israelite people: from
the
Judg 2:19 And it came to pass, when the judge was dead, that
they reverted and behaved more corruptly than their fathers, by following other
gods, to serve them and bow down to them.
They did not cease from their own doings nor from their stubborn way.”
Judg 3:2 Israel by them, that is,
all who had not known any of the wars in Canaan (this was only so that the
generations of the children of Israel might be taught to know war, at least
those who had not formerly known it),
Judg 3:7 their gods. So the children of Israel did evil in the
sight of the LORD. They forgot the LORD their God, and served the
Judg 3:8 Baals
and Asherahs.
Therefore the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and He sold them
into the hand of Cushan-Rishathaim king of
Mesopotamia.”
Neh
9:13 "You came down also on Mount
Sinai, And spoke with them from heaven, And gave them just ordinances and true
Neh
9:16 "But they and our fathers
acted proudly, Hardened their necks, And did not heed Your commandments.
Neh
9:30 Yet for many years You had patience
with them, And testified against them by Your Spirit in Your prophets. Yet they
would not listen; Therefore You gave them into the hand of the peoples of the
lands.
There is
not much one can, or should, add to this rendition of Jewish history directly
from the Bible. The Jews have forgotten
that their inheritance of the Middle Eastern area does not come by virtue of
human roots, but by divine decree. God
gave it to them because the previous inhabitants defiled the land with all
sorts of abominable sins.
Lev 18:24 “'Do not defile
yourselves with any of these things; for by all these the nations are defiled,
which I am casting out before you.
Deu
30:1 "Now it shall come to pass,
when all these things come upon you, the blessing and the curse which I have
set before you, and you call them to mind among all the nations where the LORD
your God drives you,
Deu
30:2 "and you return to the LORD
your God and obey His voice, according to all that I command you today, you and
your
Deu
30:3 children, with all your heart and
with all your soul, "that the LORD
your God will bring you back from captivity, and have compassion on you, and
gather you again from all the nations where the LORD your God has scattered
you.
Deu
30:4 "If any of you are driven out
to the farthest parts under heaven, from there the LORD your God will gather
you, and
Deu
30:5 from there He will bring you. "Then the LORD your God will bring you
to the land which your fathers possessed, and you shall possess it. He will
prosper you and multiply you more than your fathers.
Deu
30:6 "And the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, to love the LORD your God with all
your heart and with all your soul, that you may live.
Deu
30:7 "Also the LORD your God will
put all these curses on your enemies and on those who hate you, who persecuted
you.
Deu
30:8 "And you will again obey the
voice of the LORD and do all His commandments which I command you today.”
The
reason the Lord God has not yet circumcised their heart and put their curses on
their enemies is because they have not yet committed themselves to obeying His
Commandments and judgments. They continue to seek their own righteousness,
instead of the righteousness of God, and so they keep paying a penalty for
it. As Apostles Paul wrote: