Cost of Discipleship Pt 29 - Continuing

Chapter 4- Discipleship and the Cross (continued)

First, before I jump back into the book I have to say in rereading the last message on this study of the book 'The Cost of Discipleship', this verse JUMPED out at me.

'Mar 8:33  But when he had turned about and looked on his disciples, he rebuked Peter, saying, Get thee behind me, Satan: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but the things that be of men. '

JESUS told one of His DISCIPLES, one of His CHOSEN - 'GET THEE BEHIND ME, SATAN.'

He called him SATAN.

If someone is being called Satan isn't that the worst thing you could EVER call someone? Seriously, doesn't Satan depict the worst of the worst ever, the father of all things evil. Being called Satan is calling someone the worst of the worst. You are calling that person evil through and through. You want NOTHING to do with evil if you want to do what is good, what is right, what is love, what is of God.

Get thee behind me Satan.

Imagine the SHOCK of being called Satan by the Lord Himself!

The Lord didn't leave Peter or any other to wonder why He'd just called Him Satan.  Jesus continued-- 'For thou savourest NOT the things that be of God, but the things that be of men.'

And this is really it isn't it? This is what we all war against- the things of this world, the things of men.

We are SATURATED with the things of men.

We surround ourselves with the things of men.

We tell ourselves we cannot live without the things of men.

We are among men, we are part of men, and we put more stock in the things of men, the things of our own making than we do about God's things.

Do you SAVOUR the things of God?

Mat 16:23  But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.

Who else did Jesus tell to get behind Him?

Luk 4:8  And Jesus answered and said unto him, Get thee behind me, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.

Satan himself.

Worshiping the Lord our God ONLY.

Savoring the things of God ONLY.

We cannot savor the things of man, because then we fall into the dangerous ground of worshiping man, not God.

What things do you worship?

What things occupy most of your time, most of your life, outside of the work you do to earn a living?

Do you let work become an obsession for you, worshiping it for the things of men it can buy for you?

We need to examine ourselves because we will hear the same words- 'Get thee behind me Satan' if we do NOT savor the things of GOD!

We'll continue with 'The Cost of Discipleship'  tomorrow. For a refresher I'm going to copy paste the last study on it we did on March 14.

Chapter 4- Discipleship and the Cross

Mar 8:31  And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and of the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.

Mar 8:32  And he spake that saying openly. And Peter took him, and began to rebuke him.

Mar 8:33  But when he had turned about and looked on his disciples, he rebuked Peter, saying, Get thee behind me, Satan: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but the things that be of men.

Mar 8:34  And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

Mar 8:35  For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it.

Mar 8:36  For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?

Mar 8:37  Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

Mar 8:38  Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.

Bonhoeffer- 'Jesus must therefore make it clear beyond all doubt that the "must" of suffering applies to his disciples no less than to himself. Just as Christ is Christ only in virtue of his suffering and rejection, so the disciple is a disciple only in so far as he shares his Lord's suffering and rejections and crucifixion. Discipleship means adherence to the person of Jesus, and therefor submission to the law of Christ which is the law of the cross.

Surprisingly enough, when Jesus begins to unfold this inescapable truth to his disciples, he once more sets them free to choose or reject him. "If any man would come after me," he says. For it is not a matter of course, not even among the disciples. Nobody can be forced, nobody can even be expected to come. He says rather "If any man" is prepared to spurn all other offers which come his way in order to follow him. Once again, everything is left for the individual to decide.'

My thoughts-  So why are we taught that to suffer is to be avoided at all costs? Why are we 'programmed' to believe suffering is something awful? We are taught this. As babies and little children we are being taught to shun all suffering. We are instead taught to indulge all our desires and whims so we don't even begin to take on the tiniest of sufferings.  It's not this way all over the world. There are 'third world' countries where people are raised in a culture of nothing but suffering and children learn very young that this is their lot in life and they learn to make the best of it all.

Jesus taught the disciples that he would suffer, he would be rebuked, he would be put to death and the reaction… Peter began to rebuke Jesus.  The disciples could not imagine their beloved Messiah being caused to suffer, being rebuked, being rejected and ultimately being put to death!  No way! They didn’t want that to happen! But Jesus turned around and REBUKED Peter- calling Peter, Satan.  Telling Peter that he didn't want the things of God, but the things of men.  Isn't that the case for ALL of us?! Jesus continued and told them - 'Whosoever will come AFTER me- le him DENY HIMSELF, take up his CROSS, and FOLLOW me.  Whosoever will SAVE his life SHALL LOSE IT; but whosoever shall LOSE his life for my sake and the gospel's the same shall SAVE it. For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the WHOLE WORLD, and lose his own soul?'

What do we make of this? Seriously, what do we make of those words of our SAVIOR'S?

Are we, like Peter wanting to tell Jesus He is wrong? Do we want to tell Jesus, NO, You shouldn't suffer Jesus, and NO, we shouldn't suffer either, Jesus. No one should suffer, and surely no one who believes you, no one who follows you the Messiah, should be put to death!

IF we act like Peter, if we believe like Peter, then we are acting under the power of SATAN! And Jesus will say to us, just like He said to Peter, 'Get thee behind me, Satan.' 

We can follow the corrupt ways of mankind and especially of the materialistic views of our day and age and we will be disciples of Satan. Or we can follow Christ, but we have to DENY ourselves, we have to PICK UP our CROSS!

We aren't forced, never forced, we must choose our path. We must choose who we will follow.

If we imagine that we can get by in this world without following either God or Satan, think again. When you choose to look to yourself you are not looking to your Creator and most certainly not your Savior.  And when we do not look to God there is only one other place to look- Satan.  Satan loves when you choose to follow your own path because he know that by your rejecting God you are accepting him.

More tomorrow by the GRACE of GOD! Please LORD, help us to LEARN the truth of DISCIPLESHIP and in learning, believe and follow as YOU want us to follow YOU.

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All by the love of our SAVIOR.

Signs Pt 25 Be Ready

Mat 24:40  Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.

Mat 24:41  Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left.

Mat 24:42  Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.

Mat 24:43  But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.

Mat 24:44  Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.

Mat 24:45  Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season?

Mat 24:46  Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.

Mat 24:47  Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods.

Mat 24:48  But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming;

Mat 24:49  And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken;

Mat 24:50  The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of,

Mat 24:51  And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Mar 13:34  For the Son of man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house, and gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch.

Mar 13:35  Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning:

Mar 13:36  Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping.

Mar 13:37  And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.

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Those two verses there in Matthew 24:40,41 are what an entire group of people, probably in the millions, base their belief on what they call the Rapture. Jesus is giving parables of the SUDDEN, UNEXPECTEDNESS that His return will be. He is saying that when He returns to call those that are HIS to meet Him in the air, that yes, many will go but many more will not go, but NO WHERE does it tell us that this is all done in secret, and people aren't going to know why, and people are going to be given a second chance, NO WHERE!  When Christ returns He is taking ALL those that are His, even those who died and have been sleeping death's sleep for thousands of years.  He is going to take the dead that are His and the living that are His, the rest will NEVER BE HIS!  NEVER!  There isn't going to be any more time for people to repent. Christ returns when it is ALL done, every case is decided. Our time to REPENT is NOW! We can't wait a single second and imagine that we have another second. A brain aneurysm takes only a moment to kill someone, and none of us know if we even have another second. We have to accept Christ NOW, not believe we have time enough later to repent. When Christ tells us one will be taken and another left, He means it.  He never says He'll come back later for those He left the first time, NEVER. That is a made up DECEPTIVE theory that Satan has cultivated to capture many, many people who STOP looking for the truth in God's word. So many never even search for the truth themselves but rather take the word of others. NEVER TAKE MY WORD FOR ANYTHING SCRIPTURAL! Look it up for yourselves PLEASE!

Mat 24:42  Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.

WATCH.

Mat 24:43  But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.

Mat 24:44  Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.

Mar 13:34  For the Son of man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house, and gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch.

Mar 13:35  Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning:

Mar 13:36  Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping.

Mar 13:37  And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.

If you KNOW you might be robbed- you watch!

If you know you might be robbed and take no precautions, you will be robbed.

We have to be READY ALWAYS.

Our Bible tells us- 'Therefore be ye also READY.  FOR IN SUCH AN HOUR AS YE THINK NOT THE SON OF MAN COMETH.'

Be READY. 

We MUST be prepared at all times!

Every day our Savior is ONE DAY closer to coming again!

Every day we have to be ready for Him to return. There should be NOTHING left undone in our preparation, not a single thing for a single moment. If there is, we are not preparing, we are not ready.

Our trust has to be fully placed in the righteousness of our SAVIOR.

If we are waiting for someone to pat us on the back and tell us we're ready now, we'll be waiting forever. If we are waiting for perfection in ourselves, we'll never be ready because we'll be tempted to use that as an excuse. We'll tell ourselves it's too hard, or we'll tell ourselves God understands. We will say a lot of things to ourselves but the bottom line is we HAVE to be ready and that means we are eagerly awaiting our Lord's return. We are waiting, watching, praying always!

Signs Pt 24- Stand before the Son of man

Mat 24:37  But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

Mat 24:38  For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,

Mat 24:39  And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

Mar 13:33  Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is.

Luk 21:34  And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares.

Luk 21:35  For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth.

Luk 21:36  Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.

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We've talked about this so much, but it NEEDS constant discussion, constant study, constant  prayer!

Jesus says-  Watch and pray always!

We watch and pray why?  So we MAY BE ACCOUNTED WORTHY TO ESCAPE ALL THESE THINGS THAT SHALL COME TO PASS, AND TO STAND BEFORE THE SON OF MAN!

Isn't that where we NEED and WANT to stand?  Before our SAVIOR.

We have to TAKE HEED.

We have to WATCH.

We have to PRAY.

We have to realize that the aspect of BELIEF in the very REAL return of our SAVIOR will be practically gone entirely.

It will be considered a fable, a fantasy, a delusion that various cults and churches have, but nothing with any shred of reality to it.

OR and this is a HUGE OR…

Or the return of our Savior will be based upon LIES not truth.

Lies about how our Savior will return.  It's NOT a simple matter of His returning and that's that.  HOW does He return?

It's VERY, VERY VISIBLE and not to just a few, not to just the elect.

Rev 1:7  Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.

How many eyes?

Seriously, how many?

EVERY EYE!

This isn't Christ coming as a babe growing into adulthood, taking on His AMAZING, INCOMPREHENSIBLE task of SAVIOR.  This is our SAVIOR coming as our CONQUERING KING! He's is coming to call us HOME with HIM!

2Th_2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming

Destroyed with the BRIGHTNESS of HIS COMING.

Mat_24:27  For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

LIGHTNING!

This is NOT a hidden return!

1Th 4:16  For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:

1Th 4:17  Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

1Th 4:18  Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

The Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a SHOUT!

And at that SHOUT what happens?

The DEAD IN CHRIST RISE from their graves! Then at that shout WE which are alive and remain will be caught up with them in the clouds to MEET THE LORD IN THE AIR! And PRAISE GOD, all GLORY TO GOD, so shall we EVER BE WITH THE LORD!

I don't know about you, but I know I want to be with the LORD FOREVER!

I don't want to get caught up in the false theories that are running rampant about how our Savior will return. I don't want to get caught up in NOT believing it will happen. I don't want to get caught up in being a scoffer! I want the TRUTH and ONLY THE TRUTH!

Mat 24:37  But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

Mat 24:38  For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,

Mat 24:39  And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

Mar 13:33  Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is.

Luk 21:34  And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares.

Luk 21:35  For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth.

Luk 21:36  Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.

In Noah's day they did NOT believe.

In Noah's day they were NOT looking for a flood.
In Noah's day they did NOT care.

In Noah's day they WERE self indulgent in EVERY WAY.

In Noah's day they were DESTROYED! ALL of them were destroyed!

The unbelievers will not be watching and praying for the Lord's return.

The unbelievers in the truth will be eager to snatch up any theory they can that allows them to indulge in their own selfishness.

The unbelievers will be caught in the snare that was perfectly VISIBLE, a snare that they choose to ignore!

2Co 4:4  In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

The minds are NOT blinded without consent. Satan is ever ready to blind all and will not miss a single opportunity to do so.

People hear the truth and because it brings light to the dark things in their lives they grow uncomfortable and as that uncomfortable feeling hits they shrink back and when they shrink back Satan is right there ready to ease blinder upon their eyes, telling them they don't have to follow ALL the truth. He tells them they can pick and choose the truth they want to follow, but he LIES.

Is it easy following our Savior?

NO!

It's the hardest thing anyone will ever do.

People have the entire host of Satan's fallen angels on his side to bring down upon anyone who dares to follow all of Christ's truth.

Mat 7:13  Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:

Mat 7:14  Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

Please LORD help us all to FIND the narrow way, the strait gate, the way of LIFE all in YOU by YOUR righteousness! All through Your LOVE! ALWAYS!

Signs Pt 23- Heaven and earth shall pass away, but NOT Christ's words!

Mat 24:32  Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh:

Mat 24:33  So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.

Mat 24:34  Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.

Mat 24:35  Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.

Mat 24:36  But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.

Mar 13:28  Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When her branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is near:

Mar 13:29  So ye in like manner, when ye shall see these things come to pass, know that it is nigh, even at the doors.

Mar 13:30  Verily I say unto you, that this generation shall not pass, till all these things be done.

Mar 13:31  Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.

Mar 13:32  But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father.

Luk 21:29  And he spake to them a parable; Behold the fig tree, and all the trees;

Luk 21:30  When they now shoot forth, ye see and know of your own selves that summer is now nigh at hand.

Luk 21:31  So likewise ye, when ye see these things come to pass, know ye that the kingdom of God is nigh at hand.

Luk 21:32  Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled.

Luk 21:33  Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.

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And the cry goes out that many generations have read these same signs and their generations have passed away, over and over again, two thousand years of generations.  So how do we know? How do we believe this is for OUR generation?

Let me ask this…  how do we NOT believe?

2Pe 3:3  Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts,

2Pe 3:4  And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.

In the last days- scoffers!  Are you a scoffer? Do you know a scoffer? They are everywhere denying that Christ is coming, denying in Christ's divinity, denying God, trampling on God.

These scoffers in the last days will be walking after their own lusts.

They will be saying- where is the promise of His coming?

They will be saying - since the fathers have died everything is the same as from the very beginning of creation.

Now let me ask you this… did Jesus come? Do you believe in Jesus? I do.  I believe that Jesus came as the Messiah, as God with us, as our Savior. Yet there are those who do not believe this at all. 

D.L. Moody had this to say-

'The world waited for the first coming of the Lord, waited for 4,000 years, and then He

came. He was here only thirty-three years, and then He went away. But He left us a promise that He would come again; and, as the world watched and waited for His first coming and did not watch in vain, so now, to them who wait for His appearing, shall He appear a second time unto salvation. Now, let the question go round, “Am I ready to meet the Lord if

He comes tonight?”'

--

McCheyne, the Scottish preacher, once said to some friends, “Do you think Christ will come

tonight?”

One after another they said, “I think not.”

When all had given this answer, he solemnly repeated this text: “The Son of man cometh at an hour when ye think not." Luke 12:40

THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST

D. L. Moody

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The world waited 4000 years for Jesus! How many generations waited for the promised Messiah, a lot. And how many believed Jesus was the Messiah when He did arrive after 4000 years?  Not many, not compared to the multitude. He was rejected, He wasn't their idea of a Messiah, He didn't come as they envisioned, forget Scripture, He just wasn't the type of Messiah they could allow themselves to bow down to.

How many people now, after almost 2000 years are truly waiting for the Messiah to return?

How many Christians live in expectation of the Son of God returning?  Are we supposed to say that our fathers waited and look they're sleeping in the grave now, so what good did it do them to wait, Jesus did not return for them and they were waiting and waiting all their lives. Why should I live in that sort of expectation only to have those around me turn around and say she waited in vain and now she's considered a fool for her waiting, it warranted her nothing.  How many have grandparents, and great grandparents who lived with the expectation of Jesus returning? How many in your own family have a history of waiting only to be left sleeping in the grave?

Truthfully, not a single one of those who go to the grave having spent their entire life waiting for the second coming of the Messiah would say it was waiting in vain. They know that no one knows when He will return but the Father God. They know that living with the hope only deepened their relationship with Christ. And they know that after all, death is only a sleep and the next thing they'll know when they are awakened from that death sleep is their Savior calling them from their graves to meet Him in the air- all because they DID live and DID die with the expectation of His return.

Just as D.L. Moody wrote above- you can go around and ask people right this day if they believe Christ will come that day, and most are going to say no.

You'd be tempted to say no as well more than likely because you might be waiting for specific things to take place first and they haven't happened as you are expecting them. But are we supposed to get caught up in that sort of thinking? Didn't the Jewish hierarchy in Jesus' time on earth have set expectations as to how the Messiah was to appear, and weren't they very, very wrong resulting in their house being left to them desolate?

Prophecy that hasn't happened yet is something we cannot allow ourselves to speculate so much so on that we miss everything else.  We have so many prophecies that have come to pass that there is NO doubt of the Bible's validity. History has proven prophecies true time after time, the rest that we can't comprehend fulfilled just yet will come to pass, we must pray that we comprehend when that happens especially us or those who will live in the times of the end where they HAVE no choice but to live during the fulfillment of the last days.  Is it any wonder that Jesus told us to WATCH and PRAY.

Luk 21:29  And he spake to them a parable; Behold the fig tree, and all the trees;

Luk 21:30  When they now shoot forth, ye see and know of your own selves that summer is now nigh at hand.

Luk 21:31  So likewise ye, when ye see these things come to pass, know ye that the kingdom of God is nigh at hand.

Luk 21:32  Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled.

Luk 21:33  Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.

Truth.  We all know by various signs in nature that summer is coming and one of those signs is the leaves returning on trees that lost them during the autumn.  Right now outside my living room window there is a Frangipani Tree just getting its first leaves and I know that means that the weather is getting warmer, it's time for the leaves to return and by summer's beginning there should be beautiful yellow flowers all over the tree. I know this because it's factual, it's the course of nature, it's inevitable barring anything unforeseen, like someone chopping the tree down.  It will come to pass, I will see those beautiful flowers soon.

Jesus said when these things come to pass- all the signs He's given- then we will know that the kingdom of God is nigh at hand.  Jesus will be coming soon.  He didn't say we know that Jesus will be there immediately, but we KNOW that He is coming soon! And the generation that is living when the last of all the prophecies is fulfilled, the last of the signs has been seen, WILL witness the glorious return of our SAVIOR!   So sure is this prophecy that heaven and earth could pass away but NOT this prophecy of Jesus.  You don't get more surety than this, you just don't!

Scoffers.

Those who aren't watching, and THINK NOT that Jesus is coming.

These are characteristic of the last days and just because they may have been characteristic for thousands of years, doesn't make them any less truthful.

We stop looking for our Savior's return at our own peril.

We scoff at our Savior ever returning at our own peril.

We MUST live with GREAT EXPECTATION OF OUR SAVIOR'S RETURN! It must be REAL to us, for it to be anything but real to us will have us sleeping without any oil in our lamps and when He does return we will be among those who will not be ready and we will not be called into the marriage supper of the Lamb.

Rev_19:9  And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.

Please LORD, please don't let us be caught unaware, don't let us become scoffers, don't let us sleep without the extra oil for our lamps, please LORD we need to be ready for You when You return, we LONG to be ready for You, YOUR BRIDE PREPARED!

All by YOUR GRACE and MERCY PRECIOUS LORD!

Signs Pt 22 - Angels gathering us to meet our Lord in the air!

Mat 24:31  And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

Mar 13:27  And then shall he send his angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven.

Luk 21:28  And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.

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North, South, East, and West- the directions of the four winds.

Dan_11:4  And when he shall stand up, his kingdom shall be broken, and shall be divided toward the four winds of heaven; and not to his posterity, nor according to his dominion which he ruled: for his kingdom shall be plucked up, even for others beside those.

Divided towards the four winds.  This came to pass. Alexander the Great's conqueror from Greece, died and his kingdom did not go to any of his bloodline but rather to four generals who divided that kingdom into four. 

Our Savior's elect will be gathered from the North, the South, the East, and the West, from all over the entire world. The angels will gather those blessed to be counted among God's elect. The angels will gather them and they will RISE from earth to heaven.

1Th_4:17  Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

Caught up together with Jesus in the clouds!

Meeting the Lord in the air, never to leave the Lord again!

Our Savior will not descend to earth when He comes for His people.  This is a mistake so many are making. People all over are waiting for a Messiah on earth to lead them to heaven.  People all over are waiting for a secret rapture and a subsequent period of probation for those who don't make it the first time.   These are LIES.  Lies perpetuated by the GREATEST DECIEVER EVER!  I can say that with the greatest conviction, the greatest confidence because I know what the Bible says and the Bible does NOT contradict itself!

How can I read in more than one place in the Bible that at Christ's second coming we will rise to meet Him in the air, that we will be gathered by angels and taken into the air to meet Him, and then turn around and believe that I will be rendered invisible and snatched away, that I will see Jesus returned walking upon the air calling us to Him? How can I believe this stuff?

The Bible says this-

1Co 15:49  And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.

1Co 15:50  Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.

1Co 15:51  Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,

1Co 15:52  In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

1Co 15:53  For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.

1Co 15:54  So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.

Bear the image of the heavenly- an IMAGE of the heavenly.  That is NOT invisibility, invisibility has no image at all- it's unseen. We know our Savior has an image, He returned after His resurrection and Thomas touched Him.

Joh 20:24  But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came.

Joh 20:25  The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.

Joh 20:26  And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you.

Joh 20:27  Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.

Joh 20:28  And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God.

Joh 20:29  Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.

You do not SEE and you do not TOUCH an invisible person.

We will be changed- taking on the form of INCORRUPTION- no longer subject to decay and death, our flesh will be changed but not rendered invisible.  We will have an image.

So how can people take on these beliefs that are NOT Biblical?!

How can people believe that when they die they go straight to heaven?  What need would their be for the dead to rise when Christ comes if they are already with Him? It makes NO sense at all whatsoever. But people are going to cling to the lies, the deception because they don't want to believe the truth. They don't want to believe the truth because the truth is something very few will find and live!  Not my words, Jesus' words!

Mat_7:14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

So cling to what the majority believes and believe yourself saved while ignoring all the truth being given by GOD, and stay lost in your deception.

Or stop clinging to the lies! Stop holding fast to the deception!  Our LORD is returning! All by HIS grace and HIS mercy, through HIS righteousness, HIS Forgiveness, HIS amazing love we will be among those who are gathered by the angels and taken to meet HIM in the air!

Please LORD this is our desire, this is our need, this is our HOPE life with YOU in a world that makes sense, all in YOUR LOVE!

Signs Pt 21 Our Lord's Return

Mat 24:30  And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

Mar 13:26  And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory.

Luk 21:27  And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.

Remember this--

Act_1:11  Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.

As Jesus left, He will return.

He will come in clouds.

1Th 4:16  For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:

1Th 4:17  Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

1Th 4:18  Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

This is an image we should ALL be familiar with in our imaginations.  This is the picture of our Lord's return.

We are given SIGNS and told what to watch for.

We are given SIGNS and we cannot ignore them.

We are told about the manner of our LORD'S return for a reason.

Son of man coming in the clouds with GREAT POWER and GLORY.

Why are all the tribes of the earth mourning?

Clarke's Commentary has this to say-

'Then shall appear the sign of the Son of man - The plain meaning of this is, that the destruction of Jerusalem will be such a remarkable instance of Divine vengeance, such a signal manifestation of Christ’s power and glory, that all the Jewish tribes shall mourn, and many will, in consequence of this manifestation of God, be led to acknowledge Christ and his religion. By της γης, of the land, in the text, is evidently meant here, as in several other places, the land of Judea and its tribes, either its then inhabitants, or the Jewish people wherever found.'

These 'tribes'- the people that make up these tribes- are mourning because they KNOW what the coming of the LORD means for them!

I'm just thinking here, but if this verse is pointing specifically to the 'tribes' of the land of Judea- the Jewish people- whether those actually there or all over the world and they are mourning could it be because they've NEVER accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior? They'll realize too late that the coming of the Messiah that God said would come had come, that they as a corporate entity had Him killed. Not only killed, they went on to continue their rejection of ALL the Biblical truth that would allow them to repent and still be SAVED. They stoned Stephen, rejecting the message that had been preached to them for 3 and 1/2 years.  They sealed their fate that day and yet they've been living as tares among wheat for thousands of years. As a corporate body they will be destroyed when our Savior returns. All those who have rejected the truth and every chance they've had to know the truth will be destroyed. NO innocents will be destroyed, not one! Only the guilty will be destroyed.  The mourning will be the knowing it's too late! How awful for those who will recognize their fate before Christ returns.  We must pray we are NOT among them! We don't want to miss the signs, ignore the truth, we can't, we must live for our HEAVENLY HOME with our SAVIOR! Our treasures MUST be in heaven, not here, not now!

Please Lord! We long to see you coming in the clouds, we long to be among those called to meet you in the air on that glorious day!

In YOUR LOVE ALWAYS by YOUR GRACE and MERCY, YOUR RIGHTEOUSNESS!

Signs Pt 20 - Signs in the heavens

Mat 24:29  Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven,

and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:

Mar 13:24  But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light,

Mar 13:25  And the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken.

Luk 21:25  And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring;

Luk 21:26  Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.

Signs.

Gen_1:14  And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years

Signs in the sun, the moon, the stars-  the lights that are in the firmament of the heaven.

We've seen signs in the sun, moon, and stars, and we cannot discount these signs.

The scientists of our world love to explain away any sign.  Yet even as they explain it away with natural phenomena, don't they realize who controls the natural phenomena?  They explain that away as well.

Jesus went about casting out evil spirits- spirits that would TALK to Him as separate entities, and our scientists today would simply say that those people had multiple personalities. We read our Bibles and we are told that Jesus was tempted in the wilderness by Satan himself, and the scientist would simply say- He was hallucinating.  The Bible tells us that there is a great controversy between Christ and Satan, between Love and evil- and scientist simply say that those figures are just made up people  that don't really exist. 

Do you believe in God?

If you believe in God then you have to believe in all He says in His Word.

People can explain away anything they'd like to explain away, it's easy to do and they do it all the time.

I believe in God. I believe in His word. I believe in what He tells me.  The sun, moon, and stars are to be used as signs.

We've had signs- The Great Dark Day, Moon as Blood- May 19, 1780. The Star Shower of November 13, 1833.  And yes, scientist can explain them away- smoke and not unique.  That doesn't matter not a single bit because GOD uses all things for His design.  The smoke, the rare natural occurrence, all wrought by GOD!

What are these signs designed for?  Gullible people?  Gullible for what purpose? Salvation?

Seriously- if you believe in God, in salvation, you are hurting NO ONE at all. You are choosing to believe in LOVE, true LOVE.

The signs God gives to us in the sun, moon, and stars are ALL designed to open our eyes! To wake us up!  To make us look!  To shake us out of our stupor! WAKE UP!  He wants us to WATCH and PRAY!

In Luke we read even more--

Luk 21:25...upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring;

Luk 21:26  Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.

Distress of nations with perplexity- sea and waves roaring.

Let's read an excerpt-

'"The Distress of Nations" -- Verses 24 and 25 of Luke 21 are closely associated together. The KJV tends to obscure this close relationship. In both verses, the English words, "Gentiles" and "nations" are translated from the SAME Greek word. Using the word - nations - in each instance, these verses would read - "And Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the nations (eqnwn), until the times of the nations (eqnwn) be fulfilled. And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars, and upon earth distress of nations (eqnwn), with perplexity." In other words, the ending of "the times of the Gentiles," or nations is closely associated with "the distress of nations, with perplexity."

The Greek word for "DISTRESS" is Vunoch which means "imprisoned, in the narrows, or straits." The added phrase - "with perplexity" (en aporia) conveys the picture of nations unable to meet the demands placed upon them financially, or the inability to solve the monetary stress. (See The Vocabulary of the Greek New Testament by Moulton & Milligan, both articles, aporew & aporia)

It is an interesting fact that the same year which marked the closing period of the times of the Gentiles - 1967 - is also the year which marked the beginning of the financial woes of the nations. In a Special Issue (July 4, 1974) of Myers' Finance & Energy, C. V. Myers wrote: [Gordon Tether in the London Financial Times (June 28, 1974) noted Myers as being "the well-known Canadian financial expert."] - It has now been established over the course of the last seven years - since 1967 - that there is nothing in this world the international monetary authorities can do to stem the advance of gold, or to stem the collapse of inflation - or to avoid the enormous deflation - the global liquidity crunch - and the resulting depressions. Don't doubt this. The monetary morons have demonstrated it to you time and again. Fail! Fail! Fail!

For seven years things have gone from bad to worse; the US$ has been devalued; inflation has undermined world confidence in money; and now the bankruptcies come.(pp. 2-3)

Again in 1975, Myers wrote: -- From all that I have observed of international [monetary] conferences since 1967 I do not believe that any conference is going to come up with any workable answer. It seems that the situation will just continue to deteriorate.

Only six months ago we heard every monetary authority in the world shouting, "either we lick inflation or we are doomed. This is the battle of the century." President Ford said, we have a war, and we intend to fight this war against inflation. The way he is fighting the war against inflation is to add a $70 to $100 billion deficit to the U.S. budget. What happened to all the dire predictions of the result of inflation?

All brains are stunned. They see no answer - so now they begin to think no answer is necessary. Or at least they have decided there is no use thinking about it at all. Therefore, I can only see as the end product, as I have repeatedly said in these letters - and especially after attending the big world meetings of IMF - the answer is a total collapse.

Either the countries will have to go back to a system which will stabilize the money, such as gold - or the social order, not only of the United States, but of all the industrial world, will disintegrate, and from the enormous confusion new governments will arise after much suffering and

p 8 -- bloodshed, starvation and horror. Those governments would be dictatorships.

Recently D'Estaing observed: "The world is unhappy. It is unhappy because it doesn't know where it is going, and because it senses that if it knew, it would discover that it was heading for disaster. ... The crisis the world knows today will be a long one. It is not a passing difficulty. It is actually the recognition of permanent change." (Ibid., March 11, 1975, pp. 1-2)

In the May 24, 1976 issue of his financial letter, Myers again cites the year 1967 as the base year for the beginning of the monetary perplexities which have gripped the nations since then. He wrote - "An enormous war has been going on between the forces of paper and the forces of gold since 1967 when SDR's were first proposed." Then he lists a "score card" in the battle between gold and the paper, Special Drawing Rights:

(1)   The IMF recommendation of Special Drawing Rights in 1967.

(2)   The IMF official acceptance of SDR's, 1969, and the creation of 9.5 billion SDR's during 1970, 1971, and 1972.

(3)   Nixon's break with gold, August, 1971, and the end of the world monetary system devised at Bretton Woods.

(4)   The IMF decision to sell 25 million ounces of gold at 16 auctions over the next two years - thus depleting the international money system of important gold reserves. (p. 1; see Exhibit #4)

In a letter dated, April 23, 1976, Myers noted - "Gold is to money what DEITY is to religion. Without a deity the moral code disappears. Without gold the morality of money disappears: Morality because money loses its store of value, and the man who sweated and worked has lost the fruits of his labor, and that is immoral." In Newsweek (June 19, 1978, p. 21) in an article on the tax revolt, the writer noted "Since 1967, the value of the dollar has declined 47.6 percent, and the average American working family is now barely better off in real dollars than it was a decade ago." The connection between the sign Jesus gave to mark the conclusion of the times of the Gentiles or nations, and the beginning of the "distress of nations" is inescapable. The fact that we are living in this very time should cause us to do some very serious thinking.  --  

This excerpt was taken from the following--

THE HOUR AND THE END

An in-Depth study of Luke 21:24, a prophecy of Jesus Christ about Jerusalem, connected with events just prior to His Second Coming

M-1  $4.00

Pasted from <http://www.alfiowa.com/> ' 

*******

Luk 21:26  Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.

Truth.

Recently we've had A LOT of reaffirmation of the nearness of our Savior's return.

We've had more and more natural disasters, we've had meteorites falling to earth, we've had an economy tank here in the U.S. and worldwide, and truly we are living in the times of FEARFUL living.

We are studying the SIGNS and we are doing this so we will NOT be caught unaware!

Please LORD, help us to keep our eyes opened allowing the Holy Spirit to guide us in all ways! Let us see the signs and hold FAST to YOU remaining safe and secure in YOUR LOVE, knowing that no matter what comes upon the earth that we are not to be afraid in YOU!