Envious - of the prosperity of the wicked

We all, or rather most of us, get that feeling that the wicked are the only ones who seem to prosper. It's those who are corrupt who are rich and seem to lead happy lives, lives free from want. All seeming necessities of life are met without any worry. The lure towards corruption is strong because of this, and you know what, even those known to be close to God seem to feel this way too. Read the following-

Psa 73:1  A Psalm of Asaph. Truly God is good to Israel, even to such as are of a clean heart.
Psa 73:2  But as for me, my feet were almost gone; my steps had well nigh slipped.
Psa 73:3  For I was envious at the foolish, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

Sound familiar? Envious of the foolish seeing the prosperity of the wicked.

Psa 73:4  For there are no bands in their death: but their strength is firm.
Psa 73:5  They are not in trouble as other men; neither are they plagued like other men.
Psa 73:6  Therefore pride compasseth them about as a chain; violence covereth them as a garment.
Psa 73:7  Their eyes stand out with fatness: they have more than heart could wish.
Psa 73:8  They are corrupt, and speak wickedly concerning oppression: they speak loftily.
Psa 73:9  They set their mouth against the heavens, and their tongue walketh through the earth.
Psa 73:10  Therefore his people return hither: and waters of a full cup are wrung out to them.
Psa 73:11  And they say, How doth God know? and is there knowledge in the most High?
Psa 73:12  Behold, these are the ungodly, who prosper in the world; they increase in riches.

The ungodly who prosper in the world, they increase in riches.

Psa 73:13  Verily I have cleansed my heart in vain, and washed my hands in innocency.
Psa 73:14  For all the day long have I been plagued, and chastened every morning.
Psa 73:15  If I say, I will speak thus; behold, I should offend against the generation of thy children.
Psa 73:16  When I thought to know this, it was too painful for me

Psa 73:17  Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then understood I their end.

UNTIL I WENT INTO THE SANCTUARY OF GOD THEN UNDERSTOOD I THEIR END.

What happens in the sanctuary?  What dwells in the sanctuary? Why did going in to the sanctuary give understanding?

The entire plan of salvation is laid out in type in the sanctuary. The ark of the covenant with the ten moral laws was in the Most Holy Place. The sacrifice for sins, daily sacrifices being made, and a yearly day of cleansing of all sin. The sanctuary revealed God's way, life in Him, with His laws and the promises of a future with Him. The sanctuary revealed that there was a plan of salvation.  We read this-

(Talking of the city- the New Jerusalem brought down from heaven to earth after 1000 years of the saints living in heaven with Christ.)

Rev 21:22  And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.

The Lord God Almighty AND the Lamb are the temple.  

This is truth!

God gave His sanctuary to His people to teach them, and then God gave His Son as the ultimate Sacrifice, and it is to the Son we look to now for forgiveness not a sacrificed lamb in the temple. It is our Savior who LIVED the ten moral laws perfectly who is our example! 

Truly when we look into the Sanctuary we understand that only those who live for Christ and His righteousness, only those that live for heavenly treasures are truly rich.

*******

Psa 73:18  Surely thou didst set them in slippery places: thou castedst them down into destruction.
Psa 73:19  How are they brought into desolation, as in a moment! they are utterly consumed with terrors.
Psa 73:20  As a dream when one awaketh; so, O Lord, when thou awakest, thou shalt despise their image.
Psa 73:21  Thus my heart was grieved, and I was pricked in my reins.
Psa 73:22  So foolish was I, and ignorant: I was as a beast before thee.

We are foolish to think the wicked are truly prospering. They are NOT prospering in matters of eternity, in matters of everlasting life, in the matters of heaven. They are on the road to eternal death.  We shouldn't envy their prosperity now because their end is God-less.  They don't know God who alone is true life, true living, true love everlasting.

Psa 73:23  Nevertheless I am continually with thee: thou hast holden me by my right hand.
Psa 73:24  Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel, and afterward receive me to glory.
Psa 73:25  Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee.
Psa 73:26  My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever.

Praise God!  God must be our strength! Nothing else truly matters, not really. EVERYTHING is temporary to eternity in Christ Jesus our Lord! He alone is our prize, our hope, our riches, our glory, our thanksgiving, our life, our LOVE. All else is but distractions trying to keep us from Salvation in Christ, trying to keep our minds on our lives now and not letting us live for the future with Christ that we are promised.

Psa 73:27  For, lo, they that are far from thee shall perish: thou hast destroyed all them that go a whoring from thee.

The end of all who live for earthly treasures- be they many earthly treasures or a single one- will be destroyed, their hearts are NOT with God, they will perish.

Psa 73:28  But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works.

Our trust must be in the LORD GOD! We must draw near to GOD! We must declared HIS wonderful works, His works which matter more than any other.

Please LORD, help us to understand Your truth. Let us look into the sanctuary and understand the end of the wicked. 

Please help us not to envy those wickedly prospering- whether it's in health or material possessions, please let us realize that no matter what our lot in this life, YOU are our end! YOU are our EVERYTHING! Our glory! Our praise!

All in You LORD, all in YOU!

By Your grace, Your mercy, Your righteousness, Your LOVE! Always!

Image to the Beast Study Concluded

Mat 22:17  Tell us therefore, What thinkest thou? Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not?
Mat 22:18  But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites?
Mat 22:19  Shew me the tribute money. And they brought unto him a penny.
Mat 22:20  And he saith unto them, Whose is this image and superscription?
Mat 22:21  They say unto him, Caesar's. Then saith he unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's.

Yesterday I made mention of the separation of Church and State being a Christ given mandate.

Let's look at a few more verses than those above.

Mat_19:21  Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.

Mar_10:21  Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me.

Luk_12:33  Sell that ye have, and give alms; provide yourselves bags which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief approacheth, neither moth corrupteth.

Mar_13:9  But take heed to yourselves: for they shall deliver you up to councils; and in the synagogues ye shall be beaten: and ye shall be brought before rulers and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them.

Act 4:26  The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ.
Act 4:27  For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together,
Act 4:28  For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done.

Act 14:4  But the multitude of the city was divided: and part held with the Jews, and part with the apostles.
Act 14:5  And when there was an assault made both of the Gentiles, and also of the Jews with their rulers, to use them despitefully, and to stone them,
Act 14:6  They were ware of it, and fled unto Lystra and Derbe, cities of Lycaonia, and unto the region that lieth round about

1Ti 3:1  This is a true saying, If a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work.
1Ti 3:2  A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach;
1Ti 3:3  Not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous;
1Ti 3:4  One that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity;
1Ti 3:5  (For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?)
1Ti 3:6  Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil.
1Ti 3:7  Moreover he must have a good report of them which are without; lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.
1Ti 3:8  Likewise must the deacons be grave, not doubletongued, not given to much wine, not greedy of filthy lucre;
1Ti 3:9  Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience.
1Ti 3:10  And let these also first be proved; then let them use the office of a deacon, being found blameless.
1Ti 3:11  Even so must their wives be grave, not slanderers, sober, faithful in all things.
1Ti 3:12  Let the deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well.
1Ti 3:13  For they that have used the office of a deacon well purchase to themselves a good degree, and great boldness in the faith which is in Christ Jesus.
1Ti 3:14  These things write I unto thee, hoping to come unto thee shortly:
1Ti 3:15  But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.
1Ti 3:16  And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.

*******

In all these verses there is never a mention of God's people forming their own political realm on earth. They may have formed churches- groups of believers who believed in Christ and desired to live for Christ spreading the good news of Salvation in Jesus Christ- but they did not start ANY sort of governing power over people in a political manner. None were appointed KING, not a single one!

The papacy has claimed Peter as the first pope(king-like figure, a leader, a head of the whole body of Christians), but NO where in the Bible are we given this papal power, this papal authority, and told it is a good thing, no where! Jesus was and always will be THE ROCK upon which the church is built, not any man. There were apostles - 12 of them, and Paul. There were disciples. There were those made Bishops, and those made Deacons, but no where is there a KING, a single leader above all the others. Christ, Himself said the greatest among the apostles would be the least, meaning their perception of having to have one greater than the other was distorted, and His church, His followers would NOT have such a thing, there would be NONE greater but all servants to Him, and Him alone. The preachers, the teachers, the bishops, the deacons all would be equal, the authority would be Christ's alone. The Holy Spirit led the new followers of Christ and many writings were made through the Holy Spirit, not to exalt one prolific writer above another.  The idea of a hierarchy where a man could EVER claim to have the authority of Christ on earth is preposterous!  There is only ONE CHRIST, and there are Christ followers.

Do you see what I'm getting at here?  The followers of Christ were not to go off and form their own kingdom, but rather minister to those in other kingdoms all the while pointing everyone to the kingdom of HEAVEN and ONLY the kingdom of HEAVEN. Earthly gain was to be completely shunned! Desire for earthly power and authority completely rejected all the while looking to Christ and His power, Christ and His authority! 

The Papacy did not do that. You can read their history, you can watch movies, shows, and even fictionalized has many elements of truth. You can read the non-fiction and see where they get their stories from. The corruption was not made up, the corruption existed and still does even though it is being covered in a blanket of humanity, a blanket of humility. Beneath that blanket, no matter how thick, no matter how many layers of bedding, lies a rotting corpse of a religious/political system, the Beast.

History proves it, prophecy proves it.

For people to think that today we need to bring religion into our politics, to force our religion or any religious beliefs upon another is wrong. Christ would NEVER force any of His beliefs upon anyone! To force someone to pray- WRONG! To force someone to acquiesce to others including them in their prayer- WRONG!  To pray and do so that nothing is forced, no one included that doesn't want to be included, this is good. You can go to your closet and pray for those who shun God, but you don't FORCE them to join you, or into being an unwilling participant. You never ever force.  If a prayer is said in a political assembly it should be done so that all who do not wish to take part are given an opportunity to leave, not forced to endure. The same with schools. Already I can hear outrage, because so many people believe taking prayer out of schools has brought God's wrath down upon them.  You can't force God on anyone in any way, Christ never would!  He didn't once force His prayers on others!  No, we are NOT to deny Christ, not ever! But we are not to force Christ, not ever! Those who believe forcing Christ onto people through mandated prayer and such, are not believing the same Christ I believe.  Does it sadden me to think how many instances there are where people want  anything to do with  Christianity taken off public /government owned lands? Yes. But to use that public land, where religion is supposed to be separated from government, to force our religious tokens upon others… no, Christ would not force them on anyone.  If they are lands that belong to Caesar, give them to Caesar all of that land every bit of it.

That brings me to this…

No matter where you are, no matter where you live, where you visit, where you go to school, where you work- you should have the freedom to live your religion.  To live as Christ would have you live. And we know, those of us who have read Christ's Word, we know that Christ would NOT make a spectacle of His belief, never. Jesus would preach, but He would leave off preaching when things grew tense, He did not incite riots. Yes, He raged in the temple against the moneychangers, but did He instruct His apostles to do the same? No. There were many times those spreading the gospel knew it was time to leave, not stay and face certain death.

If you feel compelled to pray- you can do so silently, or in hiding. If you feel compelled to preach- if your audience is receptive, you preach. You don't force people to listen. You can be a Christ follower rendering to God the things that are God's.  And also to be a Christ follower you must render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's. This was spoken by Christ, this was dictated by Christ! If we are His true followers we will listen to Him.

There are many people, many Christ followers all over the world that cannot be Christ followers openly.  They don't deny Christ when confronted, but they don't go out taunting their government officials with their Christianity.  They remain ever dutiful to their government as long as it doesn't ask of them anything contrary to the laws of Christ.

When this commandment was given--

Exo 20:3  Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

God meant it. 

No government can compel a person to serve them as if they were serving God. No government can take the place of God. People have been, and even now, are being tortured as they are told to renounce God, to renounce Jesus Christ and believe in Him no more.  This is WRONG.

Forcing anyone when it comes to God- either to give Him up or to take Him up- is WRONG.

And when a government creates laws forcing people to uphold any one person's religion, it is wrong. 

The nature of force when it comes to faith is impossible. You cannot force faith on anyone. You can try and that will create a lot of fake faith, but nothing more than that.

So to all who are crying out that God is being forced out of our country, remember this, our country's government was truly formed with God and all religion separated from all government.

THOMAS JEFFERSON -- Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legislative powers of government reach actions only, and not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should make "no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof," thus building a wall of separation between church and State. (Thomas Jefferson, Writings, Library of America, p. 510).

JAMES MADISON -- The civil Government, though bereft of everything like an associated hierarchy, possesses the requisite stability, and performs its functions with complete success, whilst the number, the industry, and morality of the priesthood, and the devotion of the people, have been manifestly increased by the total separation of the church from the State. (James Madison, letter to Robert Welsh, March 2, 1819)

Every new and successful example, therefore, of a perfect separation between the ecclesiastical and civil matters, is of importance; and I have no doubt that every new example will succeed, as every past one has done, in showing that religion and Government will both exist in greater purity the less they are mixed together. (James Madison, letter to Edward Livingston, July 10, 1822; emphasis supplied)

The First Amendment (Amendment I) to the United States Constitution prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, impeding the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering with the right to peaceably assemble or prohibiting the petitioning for a governmental redress of grievances. It was adopted on December 15, 1791, as one of the ten amendments that comprise the Bill of Rights.

Pasted from

Jefferson and the Bill of Rights

Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States, whose letter to the Danbury Baptists Association is often quoted in debates regarding the separation of church and state.
In English, the exact term is an offshoot of the phrase, "wall of separation between church and state", as written in Thomas Jefferson's letter to the Danbury Baptist Association in 1802. In that letter, referencing the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, Jefferson writes: "Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between Man & his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legitimate powers of government reach actions only, & not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should 'make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,' thus building a wall of separation between Church and State." Jefferson reflected his frequent speaking theme that the government is not to interfere with religion and vice versa.
The Bill of Rights was one of the earliest examples in the world of complete religious freedom (adopted in 1791, only preceded by the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen in 1789) but it was interpreted as establishing a separation of Church and State only after the letter of Jefferson (see section United States for more details). At the time of the passage of the Bill of Rights, many states acted in ways that would now be held unconstitutional, some of them with official state churches. All of the early official state churches were disestablished by 1833.

Pasted from

*******

Our government - lamblike with two horns- a separation of church and state.
The Beast government- a single horn possessing politics and religion- Pagan and Papal Rome.

The Image to the Beast form by the government that lays claim to a separation of church and state- is in the making and as our history can prove, there has ever been forces at work in an attempt to bring religion into politics. The forming, the making of this image of the beast government has been on going for some time. The deadly wound of the beast has been healed, all the world wonders after that beast. And there has been a winding, twisting, push towards and retreat from, an ebb and flow of the forces to bring religion into politics. They stay behind the scenes and then jump in front of them as they strive to be formed. We must watch and rather than cheer blindly as victories for religion in government matters are made, we must note that the image of the beast is such an animal.

Satan truly has pulled the wool over the eyes of millions, and yes, those who take a stance against religion in government will stick out as being ungodly by those who believe it must be a part of our government. It will be unpopular to claim to be a Christian, to belong to Christ, and yet also say that Christ should not be forced upon others, because those people for this mingling don't view their stance as force, but rather as a right of their freedom to practice their religion.

People should be allowed to believe in Christ Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

The Roman centurion- whose duty was to Caesar who fancied himself a god along with all the other Roman Gods- found Christ.

Act 10:21  Then Peter went down to the men which were sent unto him from Cornelius; and said, Behold, I am he whom ye seek: what is the cause wherefore ye are come?
Act 10:22  And they said, Cornelius the centurion, a just man, and one that feareth God, and of good report among all the nation of the Jews, was warned from God by an holy angel to send for thee into his house, and to hear words of thee.
Act 10:23  Then called he them in, and lodged them. And on the morrow Peter went away with them, and certain brethren from Joppa accompanied him.
Act 10:24  And the morrow after they entered into Caesarea. And Cornelius waited for them, and had called together his kinsmen and near friends.
Act 10:25  And as Peter was coming in, Cornelius met him, and fell down at his feet, and worshipped him.
Act 10:26  But Peter took him up, saying, Stand up; I myself also am a man.
Act 10:27  And as he talked with him, he went in, and found many that were come together.
Act 10:28  And he said unto them, Ye know how that it is an unlawful thing for a man that is a Jew to keep company, or come unto one of another nation; but God hath shewed me that I should not call any man common or unclean.
Act 10:29  Therefore came I unto you without gainsaying, as soon as I was sent for: I ask therefore for what intent ye have sent for me?
Act 10:30  And Cornelius said, Four days ago I was fasting until this hour; and at the ninth hour I prayed in my house, and, behold, a man stood before me in bright clothing,
Act 10:31  And said, Cornelius, thy prayer is heard, and thine alms are had in remembrance in the sight of God.
Act 10:32  Send therefore to Joppa, and call hither Simon, whose surname is Peter; he is lodged in the house of one Simon a tanner by the sea side: who, when he cometh, shall speak unto thee.
Act 10:33  Immediately therefore I sent to thee; and thou hast well done that thou art come. Now therefore are we all here present before God, to hear all things that are commanded thee of God.
Act 10:34  Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons:
Act 10:35  But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.
Act 10:36  The word which God sent unto the children of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ: (he is Lord of all:)
Act 10:37  That word, I say, ye know, which was published throughout all Judaea, and began from Galilee, after the baptism which John preached;
Act 10:38  How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.
Act 10:39  And we are witnesses of all things which he did both in the land of the Jews, and in Jerusalem; whom they slew and hanged on a tree:
Act 10:40  Him God raised up the third day, and shewed him openly;
Act 10:41  Not to all the people, but unto witnesses chosen before of God, even to us, who did eat and drink with him after he rose from the dead.
Act 10:42  And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead.
Act 10:43  To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.
Act 10:44  While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word.
Act 10:45  And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost.
Act 10:46  For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter,
Act 10:47  Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we?
Act 10:48  And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then prayed they him to tarry certain days.

But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.
Whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.

A Roman- a gentile- called to believe.

As stated earlier, a government may try to force a person not to believe, but in truth they cannot take away belief. However, belief can be surrendered, belief can be denied. Satan would have us all deny Christ. Satan would have all try to FORCE Christ on others knowing the Christ they force is NOT the true Christ who would never be forced upon another.

I believe this concludes our study on the Image of the Beast. We know it is in the making, we know that once it is finally finished (completely made) that our probation is up, the time for us to have made a decision for Christ is over. We know that the image must reflect the true beast. We've been warned. We must watch and pray! Watch and pray always!

May God bless us as we seek ONLY HIS TRUTH and no others! May our eyes forever be opened to discerning all truth, in discerning all prophecies as they unfold nearing completion so that the warning is shouted loud and clear.  Please LORD save us! We believe Lord, help thou our unbelief!

All in YOUR LOVE, YOUR RIGHTEOUSNESS, YOUR MERCY, YOUR GRACE!

Amen.

The image of the beast is....

Continuing with our Image to the beast study.

Facts:

The Beast- is a political/religious entity. 

Therefore the beast's image must be the same.

The Image- is a political/religious entity.

As stated already in this study, the neither the beast, nor its image are literally beasts, but rather prophetic beasts.

Dan 7:2  Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea.
Dan 7:3  And four great beasts

Dan 7:17  These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth.

Do you see... the beasts are NOT BEASTS as in animalistic creatures. We are dealing with prophecy, not literal, but prophetic language. (((Once more I urge you to go back to my previous prophecy studies to get the full picture if you don't have it already. June 11, 2011 the prophecies of Daniel and Revelation studies I did start on that date and continue on.))))

If the Image of the beast will be a political/relgious entity we must look at our political/religious goings on. We must try to comprehend whether or not there are things there that are beast like, and guess what, there are.

The separation of church and state...

We put on our facebook pages any number of pictures stating this nation was founded under God and the Christian religion, and in doing so we neglect history entirely. 

It seems to us unGodly & unChristian to not want prayer in our schools, to not want prayer in our military, to not want religion in our government.  The truth of the matter is as simple as this--

Mat 22:17  Tell us therefore, What thinkest thou? Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not?
Mat 22:18  But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites?
Mat 22:19  Shew me the tribute money. And they brought unto him a penny.
Mat 22:20  And he saith unto them, Whose is this image and superscription?
Mat_22:21  They say unto him, Caesar's. Then saith he unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's.

Render to the political the things that are political and to God the things that are God's. Caesar was not God's.  Caesar was of the pagan persuasion

'Caesar Augustus worshiped the pagan Roman gods, but even worse, he allowed himself to be worshiped as a living god.'

http://christianity.about.com/od/newtestamentpeople/a/JZ-Caesar-Augustus.htm

When our Savior said to render to Caesar the things that were Caesar's, He was holding up a penny with Caesar's inscription upon it. That belonged to Caesar. Things political- Caesar's.  Things Godly- God's.

The two are separated. Jesus did NOT instruct His apostles to set up a new government on earth.  Jesus did NOT come to be made a physical king and ruler over things of this earth! Jesus did NOT promote earthly rulership, but rather heavenly rulership. Our focus is to be on things heavenly while living here and loving others as God loves them, being kind in all ways.

You've heard of religious communes, in truth our Savior wants our lives to be lived in that manner- where we are all loving as God is loving, forgiving, sharing what we have...

Now before you jump down my throat and call me a socialist, no, I'm not a socialist. I'm a Christ follower.  And Christ teaches us to be loving to all, to share what we have, to be givers not takers, to do well and treat others well.  Christ also said there will be poor always-

Mat_26:11  For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not always.

In a socialist society the goal is for all to be equal, right? For all to share in everything equally according to everyone their own needs.

This sounds idealistic because inevitably time and time again this sort of society has led to corrupt government ruling, still with a class system in place- the rich are very rich and few, while the poor are very poor and in great numbers sharing in their poverty.

Christ knew that there would be poor always. Christ knew that there would be political systems in place and that they would require of their people their due. Christ did not say to NOT give the government what belongs to the government.  Christ was saying that all things of this earth are meaningless and only heavenly treasures have any real value. So, giving to the government anything it requires of us as long as it is not our faith in God, is what we are required to do. Nothing of earth's treasures has any eternal value, not gold, not silver, not clothes, nothing.

As that old saying goes- 'You go to the grave with nothing.' And, 'You can't take anything with you.'  There hasn't been a single dead person who has been able to take their earthly treasures to any sort of new life. Even those who believe in the lie that you go on to live immediately after death (something Christ, Himself did not do), will admit that no dead person has been able to take a single possession with them anywhere after they've died. Sure they could be buried with a possession, but if you dig up that grave the possession would still be there if it hasn't rotted away to nothing.

The point to all this is that separating politics from religion IS BIBLICAL and IS ENDORSED by JESUS!

So, while people fight to bring religion into our government, in truth aren't we really fighting FOR an image to the beast who is the epitome of such an existence - religion and politics meshed together.

Satan wants us to be appalled at how much people have fought to take religion out of government facilities, and he's succeeded, I'm guilty of it myself- God forgive me- I was blind.

Slowly Satan slipped in the mingling of the two - religion in politics and he did so just so he could orchestrate such outrage when it would be removed, only in order to... what? Possibly bring it back in force? To have an outcry raised so loud that to keep it out would wreck havoc on society.


The beast truly is a religious/political system.
The image must be the same, a religious/political system.

We cannot ignore these truths, remember how we've already studied and it is only once that image is fully formed that people will have (NOTE THE PAST TENSE) people will have already decided for or against God?  It's while the image is being formed that we are in the decision process, the choosing process. Will we worship the image of the beast, will we receive the mark of the beast, or will we choose Christ and worship only Our God and His Son Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit- three separate Gods in one agreement?

Just as we are watching the signs and we know that 'HE' has not yet planted the palaces of his tabernacles between the seas and holy mountain- Daniel 11:45, we are noting how it is growing closer and closer.

And just as that prophecy is on its way to being fulfilled, so to is the Image of the Beast prophecy on its way to being fulfilled.

Can we know the date of their fulfillment? No. No more than we can have a date of Christ's Return. We are given signs and we are told to WATCH for those signs and we are told to PRAY.

No excuses.

None of us will have a single excuse for not being prepared, for not having oil in our lamps and extra oil with us, ready for the Bridegroom to come for us. You can try to manufacture all the excuses you want to, but none will hold up to the truth.

If you're looking for an excuse to give God so He pardons your unwillingness to truly give your heart and life to Him, your unwillingness to love Him, you won't find one, not at that stage of earth's prophetic timeline.

Decisions need to be made.

Many face death's sleep before this time, and that has put an end to their decision making. Others will be alive and faced with the decision, but it's not going to come as a notice in the mail asking you to check this box if you want to worship the beast image, or check this other box if you want to worship God. You aren't going to get a popup on your computer screen saying, DECISION TIME- MAKE A CHOICE TODAY, TOMORROW IS TOO LATE.  What you might hear is a voice right now, a whisper, a thought whisper by the Holy Spirit telling you to choose now, right now because you aren't promised tomorrow or even a minute from now.

Once we choose then our lives will reflect that choice- are we living for God or Satan? Our actions, the fruit we produce will tell. Is Christ our all in all? Do we live for Him, knowing when we sin it is HIM we are hurting, HIM we are sinning against? Do we seek His forgiveness for our weakness, and consecrate ourselves to His keeping, to His forgiveness, His righteousness?

By God's grace! By God's love!


'Image Speaks as a Dragon-

In Facts of Faith, Christian Edwardson makes this comment on Rev. 13:11:   The prophet continues: "He spake as a dragon." . . . A nation speaks through its laws. This prophetic statement, therefore, reveals that a great change in policy is to come over our beloved country. The "dragon" is a symbol of pagan Rome, that persecuted the early Christians during the first three centuries.'

Rev 13:11  And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.
Rev 13:12  And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
Rev 13:13  And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,
Rev 13:14  And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.
Rev 13:15  And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.

A political system speaks through its laws, through its beliefs.

*******

The dark night of papal supremacy (Rev. 13:12, Dan. 11:45, Isa. 2:2-3,) and oppression of all who resist the Roman Catholic dictatorship (Rev. 13:15-17,) followed by the personal appearance of the power behind the papal throne (Rev. 13:2b & 4a;) Isa. 14:12-14; Rev. 17:3b & 8,) is looming, but it will come to an end in judgment from the throne of God (Rev. 16,) and the glorious appearing of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will follow swiftly (Rev. 19:11-21.)

http://www.adventistlaymen.com/Documents/FROM_MORAL_MAJORITY_TO_TEA_PARTY.html (((Recommended reading))))

Papal supremacy -

Rev 13:12  And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.

Dan 11:45  And he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him.

Isa 2:2  And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD'S house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
Isa 2:3  And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
(Further Isa 2:6 declares 'many people' are not God's people)


Oppression of all who resist the Roman Catholic dictatorship-

Rev 13:15  And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.
Rev 13:16  And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:
Rev 13:17  And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.

followed by the personal appearance of the power behind the papal throne (Rev. 13:2b & 4a;) Isa. 14:12-14; Rev. 17:3b & 8,) is looming,

Rev 13:2  ...and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.
Rev 13:4  And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast

Isa 14:12  How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!
Isa 14:13  For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:
Isa 14:14  I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.

Rev 17:3  ... and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.

Rev 17:8  The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.

But it will come to an end in judgment from the throne of God (Rev. 16,)

Rev 16:1  And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth.
Rev 16:2  And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them which worshipped his image.
Rev 16:3  And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea; and it became as the blood of a dead man: and every living soul died in the sea.
Rev 16:4  And the third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of waters; and they became blood.
Rev 16:5  And I heard the angel of the waters say, Thou art righteous, O Lord, which art, and wast, and shalt be, because thou hast judged thus.
Rev 16:6  For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy.
Rev 16:7  And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.
Rev 16:8  And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire.
Rev 16:9  And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory.
Rev 16:10  And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues for pain,
Rev 16:11  And blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds.
Rev 16:12  And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared.
Rev 16:13  And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.
Rev 16:14  For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.
Rev 16:15  Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.
Rev 16:16  And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.
Rev 16:17  And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done.
Rev 16:18  And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great.
Rev 16:19  And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath.
Rev 16:20  And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.
Rev 16:21  And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great.

And the glorious appearing of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will follow swiftly (Rev. 19:11-21.)

Rev 19:11  And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.
Rev 19:12  His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.
Rev 19:13  And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.
Rev 19:14  And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.
Rev 19:15  And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.
Rev 19:16  And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.
Rev 19:17  And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God;
Rev 19:18  That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great.
Rev 19:19  And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army.
Rev 19:20  And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.
Rev 19:21  And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh.


By the grace and mercy of our LORD JESUS CHRIST, may we be HIS when He comes! May we be under His all powerful protection as the end times come upon us and we CHOOSE to worship HIM not the beast power! Please, Lord, let us be YOURS now and forever!  Amen.

Image to the Beast - Study Continued

Continuing from yesterday-  The Image to the Beast.

What is the image? Who is the image? Does the image already exist? Will the making of the image take time? What happens once the image is made?  

The image is and image of what, who? Rev. 13:11-15

And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.

And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.

 And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,

And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.

And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.

*******

The image once finished will be given life by it's creator. Once that image is given life it will speak. Once the image speaks it will demand that all who do not worship it be killed.

The beast who comes up out of the earth having two horns like a lamb, he tells those on the earth to make this image to the beast, the beast which had a wound by a sword and did live.

Rev 19:20  And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.

The beast, the false prophet- miracle working to DECEIVE those that RECEIVED the mark of the beast,  and them that worshipped his IMAGE.

The questions are-

What is the image? The answer, well we have to know what the beast is so we know what its image is.

Do you remember this?

Gen 1:27  So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

We know that mankind was made in God's image. So we know that God is like us, and yet, we know that we fell away from God we corrupted ourselves and tarnished our image. We were MADE in God's image- but we did not remain with God- so to say we are still as we were created to be might not be true. And yet, God took on flesh, our corrupted flesh. God took on our corrupted likeness. God became what we had turned ourselves into, and yet He did not sin, not once proving that it is not impossible for this flesh through HIM to keep from sinning.  Even though we - through sin - corrupted the image we were created with, we have been redeemed.

Now when we talk about an image being made of a beast we know that just as we were created in God's image this image is created in the beast image.   

So we have to conclude that we must know the BEAST.  If we know the beast then we can know its image, right?  

Can others know God by our image?

Joh 14:19  Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also.

Joh 14:20  At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.

Joh 14:21  He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.

Joh 15:4  Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.

Joh 14:20  At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.

Joh 14:21  He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.

It is possible, yes? We look upon each other and have a general idea about what we are, but we don't know, truly know each other by just looking. A murderer can masquerade as a loving person.  Evil can hide behind a smile and we never know.   

Our image is more than how we look though, isn't it?  Our image is what we are.  Tarnishing someone's image is making them appear bad in some way, right? It's smearing their name, it's making them look bad, ruining their reputation.  Having a good image, is appearing as a good, kind, generous, loving person.

Now, back to the beast.

The beast is without any doubt whatsoever Papal Rome after it's fall in 1798, and after it's wound is fully healed, something that has been accomplished. Papal Rome, a religious political power.  At one time Papal Rome was a very dominating power, it was stripped of it's dominating power in 1798 by Napoleon. Then in 1929 -

'The agreements included a political treaty which created the state of the Vatican City and guaranteed full and independent sovereignty to the Holy See. The Pope was pledged to perpetual neutrality in international relations and to abstention from mediation in a controversy unless specifically requested by all parties. In the first article of the treaty, Italy reaffirmed the principle established in the 4 March 1848 Statute of the Kingdom of Italy, that "the Catholic, Apostolic and Roman Religion is the only religion of the State". The attached financial agreement was accepted as settlement of all the claims of the Holy See against Italy arising from the loss of temporal power in 1870.'  (Wikipeida- Lateran Treaty)

And since then -

'The Holy See—as distinguished from the city-state of the Vatican City—has long been recognised as a subject of international law and as an active participant in international relations. It remains such, and indeed one observer has said that its interaction with the world has, in the period since World War II, been at the highest point it has ever had.[

Pasted from <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreign_relations_of_the_Holy_See> '

Click on that link above and go read just how involved the Holy See is in world affairs.   There is way too much for me to put in this article.  

Rev_13:3  And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.

Rev_13:12  And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.

Deadly wound.

That beast's deadly wound was HEALED.  And all the world is wondering after that beast.

Today, right now, October 17, 2013, the Holy See, Papal Rome, is very popular. Yes, there have been scandals throughout the years but right now with the new Pope- Francis- people are pleased with the Vatican more than they have been in many years.

The wound healed.

We have to know this beast - and its power.  The image of this beast, what this beast represents will be made here, right here in the United States.

The Pope has a unique position in the Vatican. He has Cardinals, Bishops, Priests and such all beneath him in power and yet he does little without their counsel.  It's a system - political and religious.  Here in the U.S we have a system political and intent to keep religion separate from the politics. Yet, all the while we have said that the two must be separate the confusion arises when it is realized that religion is a PART of a person if they truly have religion at all. To take religion out of all politics would necessitate all politicians have no religion- and that is a depriving them the right to have a religion- isn't it?  How can the people be represented if their belief systems are not represented? What Christian wants an atheist representing them in politics?  Everything is intertwine d. Our political system is corrupt we all know this, and people seem to be at the mercy of the system.

Do we have an image to the beast in the making?

Has our system taken, or is it taking steps to become a power controlling religion and politics? To worship the image after it has been created is to die eternally. We truly need to know what this image is, how far have we gone towards it's creation, and whether or not we will be compelled to worship it.

No signs are going to be held up, no engraving is going to be made, no tweet, no newsflash, none of that will made telling us it is here. Signs are given to us to watch for. Instructions are given to us.

We are told that it will be an image of a beast we can know everything about.

Truly, we do have to study the beast in order to recognize the image.

Are we doing that?

More tomorrow...by the grace of our LORD JESUS CHRIST!

Some might think this is all unimportant nonsense, but why then did our Lord give this to us? Why? If we aren't to understand, then why?  Our Lord is returning and I want to be HIS when He returns. I don't want to be deceived. I don't want to worship a beast, I don't want to receive the mark of the beast! I want to be among the very elect! I want to belong to Jesus! Please Lord, bless us as we study, as we seek Your truth, Your love! Let the Holy Spirit guide us! All in YOU!

Every Word that Proceeds Out of the Mouth of God - Prophecies Included

Connected to the end of the world is the knowledge that there are prophecies we've been given, and we've been given them so that we may know what to expect. We talked about signs yesterday and such, and we can tell from a moral standpoint that the end of this world surely must come soon, very soon. From a prophetic standpoint we have been give various prophecies some that span thousands of years, 2300 years and on. And that 2300 year prophecy has been studied in detail in my past prophecy studies. PLEASE I urge you to go back to June 11, and onwards and read the prophecy studies to get the in-depth study needed.  These prophecies that have been given to us were given for a reason.

Not ONE single person will be able to say truthfully to the Lord in the day of His return that they weren't given an opportunity to know, to be prepared for His second coming, to be ready for the end of the world.  He laid it all out in His word, it's all there for our studying, for our knowledge. The Holy Spirit will open our understanding, He will give us the spiritual sight that we so desperately need.

The image of the beast-  not a horror movie on television- but a reality.  The image WILL EXIST. I'm not going to say, DOES EXIST because if the things I've read are true, and I have no reason to doubt that they are, then once the image is fully realized that is when the power comes that will cause ALL to worship the image of the beast and receive a mark. All but the very elect will be deceived.

Mat_24:24  For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.

The elect are already firmly established in Christ and His truth. The elect know already and are prepared. The elect have studied the prophecies given to them and they know what to expect. The elect have surrendered themselves to Christ fully. The elect will KNOW what that image of the beast is and they will NOT worship that image beast and they will NOT receive the mark of the beast.

How many people are alive today in the United States who have no idea that they will be making a choice for or against the beast powers, and that choice will decide their eternal fate?

God says-

Deu_8:3 And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live.

Mat_4:4  But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

Man is to live by… EVERY WORD THAT PROCEEDS OUT OF THE MOUTH OF GOD!

We have NO excuse! Mankind has NO EXCUSE not to be prepare!  We are to LIVE by God's word! There is no excuse for us NOT to know the word of God! None!  To say that God has made it all too hard is a LIE! As usual we just want to get a free pass, to slip on in, to take that broad easy road without any sort of work. And there I go, mentioning the word work.  It's so incredibly sad that Satan has been able to distort our Lord's truth by making people believe that they are not to work at all towards their relationship with Christ.  That if they say they believe in Christ as their Savior, asking for forgiveness, repenting, then that's it their part is done.  It's a lie! We are to LIVE in CHRIST, Christ is to live in us! We are to deny ourselves, we are to pick up our crosses, we are told faith without works is dead, we are told to run the race… there are so many places in God's word that tell us we are to LIVE an active FAITH that incorporates our entire lives. We are to STUDY to show ourselves approved.  We are to LIVE by EVERY WORD that God speaks.  If we stop our relationship with Christ at the point of accepting His grace, then we're not living in Christ!  Satan would love to have us believe that we don't have to do anything at all, that we do NOT have to live by God's words even though our Savior Himself told Satan that man is to live by every word coming from the mouth of God.

Part of every word coming out of the mouth of God is the prophecy of the end of the world, the prophecy of the beast, and his image, and his mark.  To push away the prophecies as unimportant words that have come out of the mouth of God is contrary to the very word of God we are to love and live by.

More tomorrow by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ!

All in HIS LOVE!

The End of the World Pt 2 - The love of CHRIST

The End of the World-

It is a REALITY.  Scoff if you want to, but it's Biblical truth. If you believe in God, if you believe in the Bible, if you believe in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior then you know beyond any doubt the end of the world is going to happen without any doubt whatsoever.

Jesus said so.

Continue with our study let's read further about what God's word tells us about the nearness of Christ's return, because the is when the world end, when Christ returns.

2Ti 3:1  This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.
2Ti 3:2  For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,
2Ti 3:3  Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,
2Ti 3:4  Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;
2Ti 3:5  Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.

Throughout history we've lived in a lot of vicious times, where man has tortured man just for sport. Barbarians times, times that we can point to and say that something like that would NEVER occur in our day. However, from what I can tell, this particular sign- 'disobedient to parents' holds a special interest for me. Because even in the age of barbarians children were still expect to respect and obey their parents, yes? There has never been an age throughout history where it was common for children to be disobedient to their parents. Now, it's happened, but I'm talking about an acceptable practice, not the "NORMAL" growing up rebellion that is quickly put in check by a disciplining parent.  Today it is COMMON for children to disobey parents and the commonality of it has this world filled with children who think absolutely nothing, no remorse whatsoever, for their disobedience. In our society there is an epidemic of disobedience more so than in any other generation- this is truth.

You can read the rest of those signs-

Lovers of self.
Covetous.
Boasters.
Proud.
Blasphemers.
Unthankful.
Unholy.
No natural affection.
Trucebreakers.
False accusers.
Incontinent.
Fierce.
Despisers of those that are good.
Traitors.
Heady.
Highminded.
Lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God.
Having a form of godliness but denying the power of God.

-and it's clear that today's normal, average person has several of these traits and they think those traits are good things, nothing to be despised.

Mat 24:12  And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.

Love- true love (and I'm not talking the mushy emotional sort) but true love for others in a selfless way is more of a rarity than a commonality in our world. This world is filled with self-lovers who have no love for others and only love for themselves.  Tell me I'm wrong if you can, convince me I'm wrong. Convince me God's word is wrong, try anyway, but it's not wrong, He is never wrong. People might argue they love easily enough, but the truth is, their version of love, their belief of what love is, is something totally perverted from love, real love, selfless love.

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.
2Pe 3:5  For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water

Sound familiar? Where is the promise of his coming? Why hasn't Jesus come back yet? Things haven't changed and never will. These are the things people tell themselves and believe. More and more people have lost faith in the Word of God, in the promise of Jesus Christ. It's easier on the conscious, easier on the sin loving soul to believe that there is no accountability for the actions one commits.  To deny Christ's return means denying the day of reckoning, it means not having to care about judgment, or punishment. Easier to just believe things will always be the way they are, no boat rocking.

We must comprehend that Christ will return, it's a FACT.
This truth is more sure than all other promises we've ever heard, yet people side step it and pretend it's a huge lie, a stupid fable, anything but real.

1Th 5:1  But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you.
1Th 5:2  For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.
1Th 5:3  For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.
1Th 5:4  But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.
1Th 5:5  Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.
1Th 5:6  Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.
1Th 5:7  For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night.
1Th 5:8  But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.

That is a passage of scripture I'm going to ask you to read again, better yet, I'm going to take it verse by verse.

1Th 5:1  But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you.
1Th 5:2  For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.

We know, we are told, that the day of the Lord will come as a thief.  Meaning….

You won't expect it! You aren't told when a thief will rob you. We aren't given the date of our Savior's return, just the signs that it is approaching.  When you live an in area where thieves frequent you might be inclined to put bars on your windows and deadlocks on your doors. You'd prepare for the likelihood of being robbed even if you didn't know when it might happen. You'd expect to possibly be robbed. We know that Christ will come again and we must prepare for that return.

1Th 5:3  For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.

Satan doesn't want us to be ready, he wants us to believe that we are safe and sound without preparing.  A woman carrying a baby knows she will deliver that child, she expects it but if things go without complication she will not know the exact moment that labor will start.  But she will know that once it begins there is no turning back, she will continue to labor painfully until that child is birthed.  Recently I heard a story about a young mother pleading with a caregiver during her labor to make it stop, to somehow get that baby out and make it all go away. Of course the caregiver told her that there was no stopping it and no making it stop.

Our Savior will return and all those not prepared are going to be destroyed. Sudden destruction will come upon the unprepared.

1Th 5:4  But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.
1Th 5:5  Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.

We are warned, we are told, we know! We don't have to be among those who are unsuspecting of a thief. We are children of the light, children of Christ! We are of the day, not hidden in darkness, slinking about in the shadow, hiding from the light, keeping ourselves from knowledge.

1Th 5:6  Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.
1Th 5:7  For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night.
1Th 5:8  But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.

We can't sleep.
We must watch.
We must be sober.

We must put on the breastplate of FAITH and LOVE.
We must put on the HELMET.
We must have the HOPE of SALVATION.

Ask yourself, please… do you have the breastplate, do you have the helmet?

Do you have Faith and love, do you have the hope of salvation?

All by the grace of God we can have these! All by the grace of our Lord we can have faith, love and hope- salvation in CHRIST our LORD!  We can be ready for His return!  We must be ready for His return! The end of the world is approaching, Christ is coming, we will must be prepared! We must note all the signs we can and never stop watching for them not until our Savior appears in the sky with His angels and calls us to come live with Him forever!

All by HIS GRACE!

All by HIS LOVE!

All by His MERCY!

In His RIGHTEOUSNESS!

The End of the World Pt 1- (Plus a note of the deepest gratitude to our God)

The End of the World


Mat 24:3  And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?

Why would the disciples ask that question if it was something ludicrous to believe?  Why would they ask Jesus , Son of God, what the sign of the end of the world was? 2000 years ago and they were talking about the end of the world. Does each successive generation contemplate this event? Surely there has never been a time in all of history after the fall of mankind, when mankind hadn't thought about this world ending. The idea that some day we will get it right, when we haven't been able to get it right in 6000 years is so preposterous it's laughable. This world does not have a fix. There is no fixing this world. There needs to be a new world where this old one with all its sin stains and sin scars, it's open bleeding, pus oozing sores, will be done away with. There will remain nothing of sin from  this sin spoiled world, nothing.  There needs to be an end to the old and a new, a brand new world, put in its place. We've all had things that have become too worn, too tattered, too torn to replace. We've owned favorite things, cherished things that have had to be thrown away, tossed in the fire, destroyed much to our dismay. We understand when something is beyond repair. This world is beyond repair. It must be made new. The disciples of Jesus knew that the end of the world must come to pass. They asked Jesus for a sign concerning it. Of course they asked so many different questions at once, that Jesus in answer made the whole thing a bit cryptic but that isn't surprising, not when Jesus taught in a lot of parables so that only the discerning, only those who truly love Him and desire truth would be able to comprehend the truth of His words. The Holy Spirit teaching Jesus said this:

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

Why do you suppose Jesus said His Father only? Why do you suppose Jesus said His Father decided not to make the date known? Simply because those alive 2000 years ago might have thought, 'Wor, thousands of years from now…  And either they'd be slack in their desire to see Jesus at the end of the world, or maybe they'd despair that it was so far away. Each generation believe it could be near, but there are additional signs given so throughout the many generations people would be able to realize that the end was drawing ever closer. 

Jesus said -

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.

*******
We have to realize at some point in time the last days will happen.

Jas 5:3  Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days.

This tells us just having important earthly treasures are- meaning- they are NOT important at all! Eternal life is the important thing not any treasure we con find on earth.

*******

Jas 5:4  Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth.
Jas 5:5  Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton; ye have nourished your hearts, as in a day of slaughter.
Jas 5:6  Ye have condemned and killed the just; and he doth not resist you.
Jas 5:7  Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.
Jas 5:8  Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.

Be patient!

There would obviously come a time where people would be tempted to grow impatient, so we are told pointedly to be patient!!!

*******

Luk 21:11  And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.

We must note the signs given to us. We must pay attention. It does us no good to ignore things.
There are great signs, not tiny signs, not signs that would be barely noticeable. God wants all of us to be ready. God wants all of us to be waiting for Him at the end of the world. God wants all of us to live with the hope of eternal life through Jesus Christ our Savior beating loudly in our hearts. 

More tomorrow on this study by the grace and mercy, the love the amazing love of GOD!

God has revealed His love to us in so many ways.
The miracle of birth.
The miracle of new life is something that goes so far beyond our comprehension.
God knows us from the womb!
God protects us from the womb!

We are God's from the womb!
We are His servants, His creations!

Please Lord, accept the thanks and praise we can give to You, it is so tiny compared to the great and wondrous things You do for us everyday! We are unworthy, YOU ALONE are worthy! 

Thank you!  Thank you for the miracle of life within my new great nephew, Elias!

All praise, glory, and honor to YOU, only YOU!