CHURCH OF TODAY LIFE IS A TEST (Ref Ja 1:12) The church of today speaks much about the love of Christ and what He can do for you. However, few speak of your love for Christ and that the evidence of your love for Christ is your obedience to His Word and commandments-ref Jn 14:15. Few preachers speak of surrendering everything to Christ. Few speak of totally giving up control of your life to Christ, denying yourself, and picking up your cross and following Him-ref Lk 9:23. Even repentance is seldom preached in many churches today. Some speak much of being healed by Christ. Some speak much of seed faith—which means giving your money to their ministry, which is not in God’s Word. They appear to be saying that if you do not give your money to their ministry, it is evidence you do not have faith. Such preaching is deceptive. Some even preach about giving by faith money you don’t have to their ministry. God forbid. Few preach the whole Gospel and preach it truthfully. Few tell you of the distractions you can expect to go through and the many kinds of tests and trials you can expect. Few tell you of the persecutions and sufferings ahead. Very few churches today tell you exactly how Satan works in your mind and emotions. Few will speak in-depth on Bible prophecy. The list could go on and on. Much of today’s church is described in the following. A church whose people desire to hear words that are pleasing to their itching ears-ref 2 Tim 4:3. A church which is wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked and does not know it. Today’s church is not clothed with white raiment. Today’s church cannot see or understand its true condition or understand God’s Word as it ought. Today’s church is admonished by God TO BUY OF ME GOLD TRIED IN THE FIRE. Those that God loves are being told they will be rebuked and chastened. They are being commanded to be zealous and repent. God is standing at your door, knocking. If you are able to hear Him, and if you will open your door, and if you will be zealous and repent, Jesus will come in. However, if you are so deceived that you think you are saved when you are not, then you will probably not believe Jesus is knocking on the door of your heart; therefore, you will not open the door, be zealous, repent, and overcome as Jesus overcame. Thus, you will stay in your deceived state, not understanding how deceived you really are in God’s eyes, and eventually you will certainly perish. You will never sit down with Christ in His throne-ref Rev 3:18-21. Not trusting in Jesus under difficult and sometimes almost impossible conditions, self-confidence, any form of pride, any lack of inner love for the brethren, and not being childlike to God’s correction from those He puts over you—are spiritual killers. Shrinking back from where God has called you to be, or shrinking back from the works God has called you to do—are also spiritual killers. Yes, Satan can be expected to put huge road blocks to hinder you, but you must overcome them. You must deny yourself and all things of this world and follow Jesus. If you let Satan’s huge road blocks slow you down, and especially if they stop you, you are in deep spiritual trouble and spiritual death may lie ahead. There will be times you will be called to take a leap of faith into the unknown. Peter did this regarding walking on the water. Every apostle that followed Jesus did this in following Jesus. Every born again Christian can be expected to have to do this at times. Those that fail this test usually begin to backslide. Wrong thinking fills their mind with thoughts from Satan, and they follow a wrong voice. What do you love most in this world? Is it some unsaved person, a relative, a dream or goal you have, a hobby, your job, some concern for someone or something? Do you love a possession or children more than you love Jesus? Is the obstacle you have called “uncertainty”—uncertainty of knowing where you will live, how you will survive, how you will get from here to there? Is your obstacle—how you will pay for this or that, or where your food will come from, or the clothes you wear? Is your lack of willingness to step out in faith hindering you? Is the idea that you might be called to live in a place you do not want to live hindering you? What obstacle is Satan using to hinder you or eventually kill you spiritually? As you hesitate to follow Jesus, as Thomas did, because of some obstacle or fear, can you hear Jesus telling you, O, YE OF LITTLE FAITH-Mt 6:30? Few people will really be honest with themselves when it comes to following Jesus totally. Do you not understand that little faith and doubting faith is not pleasing to God? Are you a person whose faith is such that you will not step out on the water, because you see the waves (or obstacles) more than you see Jesus? Few ministers or evangelists will tell you that percentage-wise only a few people are really saved. Few will tell you that the fruit of your attitude, the fruit of your works for Christ, and other such things are indicators that you are (or are not) walking with Christ. The Bible being preached in most churches today is far, far different than the Word that was taught by Jesus and the Apostles. Few churches tell you that if you are a friend of this world, you are an enemy of God-ref Ja 4:4. Few churches tell you to hate every false way-Ps 119:128. Few tell you that God is angry with the wicked everyday-Ps 7:11. Few tell you that if you follow Christ, you can expect to suffer persecutions, suffer many things, and might even suffer being put to death for obeying God’s Word. But then, this is the generation which loves to have Bible teaching that says what their itching ears want to hear. Few people want to hear the truth any more. Many are fearful and shrink back. The truth is—you can expect to suffer in many ways, if you follow Christ. You can expect to be hindered and distracted in many ways, as you follow Christ. Few will tell you that this life is a test, and how you react to that test determines your eternity. Let us remember. There is a heaven, and there is a hell. The past, present, and future of this world are clearly laid out in God’s Word. You were born at a precise time and put here in a precise place by God to fulfill His purpose. God has provided the means for you to follow Him and also to inherit eternal life. The Bible says, referring to Satan, he “cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy”-ref Jn 10:10, and he “deceiveth the whole world”-ref Rev 12:9, exactly what he is doing. He was created to put obstacles in your path. He was created and given the power to influence your thinking in such a way that you will think that wrong is right, and right is wrong. No matter how intelligent you think you are, you are no match for Satan. Your only hope of defeating Satan is through obedience to God’s Word. Disobedience to God’s Word gives Satan permission to attack you in all sorts of deceptive ways. You are undergoing tests from God and temptations from Satan. Your heart will determine the outcome. And if you are one of the few that have a time-tested, spiritually-minded follower of Jesus to turn to for advice, it would be very unwise to ignore his advice from God’s Word. God’s Word clearly tells YOU—the following: 2 Tim 2:4-NO MAN THAT WARRETH ENTANGLETH HIMSELF WITH THE AFFAIRS OF THIS LIFE; THAT HE MAY PLEASE HIM WHO HATH CHOSEN HIM TO BE A SOLDIER. In other words—No person that has chosen to follow Jesus gets mixed up in the affairs of this life. Don’t get involved in other people’s situations. Don’t get involved in worldly matters. Don’t do it, and don’t make excuses that stem from your emotions to justify yourselves. For if you do, you are not pleasing God, and you are opening a door for Satan to set up an even bigger trap for you. 2 Tim 2:7,11,12-CONSIDER WHAT I SAY; AND THE LORD GIVE THEE UNDERSTANDING IN ALL THINGS. IT IS A FAITHFUL SAYING: FOR IF WE BE DEAD WITH HIM, WE SHALL ALSO LIVE WITH HIM: IF WE SUFFER, WE SHALL ALSO REIGN WITH HIM: IF WE DENY HIM, HE ALSO WILL DENY US. Many do deny Him through their wrong attitude, wrong thinking, and dead works. It is written: HIM ONLY SHALT THOU SERVE. It is written: HIM O N L Y SHALT THOU SERVE. Maybe Y O U didn’t hear that clearly. HIM ONLY SHALT THOU SERVE-Mt 4:10; Lk 4:8. 2 Tim 2:20,21-BUT IN A GREAT HOUSE THERE ARE NOT ONLY VESSELS OF GOLD AND OF SILVER, BUT ALSO OF WOOD AND OF EARTH; AND SOME TO HONOUR, AND SOME TO DISHONOUR. IF A MAN THEREFORE PURGE HIMSELF FROM THESE, HE SHALL BE A VESSEL UNTO HONOUR, SANCTIFIED, AND MEET FOR THE MASTERS USE, AND PREPARED UNTO EVERY GOOD WORK. Note the words: IF a man purge himself from these. In other words, if you are able to purge yourself or free yourself from this world and its obligations, if you are able to free yourself from the cobweb of worldly situations and obligations you have entangled yourself with—then, and only then—will you be a ready vessel for God to use. But this know, if you have become so entangled in this life and in all sorts of obligations, and if you do not purge yourself from these by repenting and trusting in Jesus to free you—you can expect to surely perish. Jesus does not ask you to serve Him now and then. He commands you to pick up your cross and follow Him completely, every day. You are commanded to deny yourself, to forsake all things and follow Jesus. All of your clever excuses now, will seem meaningless when you are screaming in hell fire. Fear God, depart from your ways, and follow Jesus. You are to trust Him in all matters. It is written, regarding those that are trapped in this world’s cobweb—they are actually opposing themselves. They are caught in THE SNARE OF THE DEVIL. He has taken them CAPTIVE…AT HIS WILL-ref 2 Tim 2:26. But know this—when Satan has taken a person captive at his will, he is so skillful that they seldom recognize this is what has happened to them. If you can understand this, then understand—Hell has billions of people right now that were deceived by the devil. They never realized that they would perish, until they died and found themselves in hell, with no hope for eternity. If you are reading or hearing this now, it is not too late, but tomorrow, it may be too late for you to forsake all. God’s Word indicates that when the Lord returns, if He finds you have prepared yourself and are serving Him, you will be rewarded. However, if He does not find you have prepared yourself and are not serving Him, but rather are making excuses, you can expect to be cut off. You will perish. Then THERE SHALL BE WEEPING AND GNASHING OF TEETH-ref Mt 24:46-51; Lk 12:43-47. As Peter walked away from his job, his obligations, his family, perhaps even his wife to serve the living God, you may need to do the same. As Matthew walked away from his tax collecting, his obligations, and whatever family he had to follow Jesus, you may need to do the same. From the moment you hear or read this message, you have no valid excuse. You may have some difficult decisions to make and very little time in which to make them. Your eternity may depend on what decision you make. If you think this is intended to scare you—you better believe it is. Heb 10:31-IT IS A FEARFUL THING TO FALL INTO THE HANDS OF THE LIVING GOD. Today’s church is lacking God’s Word. Today’s preachers use all sorts of worldly stories to illustrate what they want to say. They use worldly stories, stories about themselves, about people they know. It is not uncommon that many in the Christian congregations know far more about their preacher than they do about God. They know far more about their church’s activities than they know about Jesus’ activities. When most people are not in church, they speak little of God’s Word, but a great deal about the world and themselves.
Posted on: Sun, 09 Mar 2014 15:05:15 +0000
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