As we observe the rapid acceleration of events foreshadowing the coming Tribulation, it is becoming more clear that God is removing His restraint of evil. The spiritually discerning recognize this trend as evidence that the Bridegroom is preparing to come for His bride, the church very soon.
The key passage that tells us about God removing His restraint of evil as an indicator of Jesus coming soon is 2 Thessalonians 2:1-10. The Apostle Paul wrote his second letter to the Thessalonians because their persecution was so bad some of them were thinking the rapture of the church had occurred and they were left behind. Paul wrote to clarify why that was not the case thus helping us understand the proper order of events. This passage is among the most important establishing that the rapture must happen before the Tribulation.
The context of 2 Thessalonians 2:1-10 is established in the first verse by the reference to "our gathering together to Him." This has to talking about the rapture of the church. The second verse addresses the "day of Christ" which is another term for the Tribulation because it culminates in the revelation of Christ to the world. In verse three, Paul makes it clear that the Tribulation can not happen until the "falling away" happens first.
The original Greek word translated "falling away" in English is "apostasia" which sounds like our word apostasy meaning falling away from the faith. Scholars however have recognized that this word is another term for the rapture of the church because we will fall away from the earth when we meet the Lord in the air. However, many have dismissed this term as referring to the rapture of the church because it could also mean a falling away from the faith which is an end times trend supported in Scripture. Whether Paul was making reference to a great falling away of the faith or removal of the church at the rapture, the rapture is implied either way because the rapture results in zero believers on earth, a pretty thorough apostasy.
Also in verse three we find that the "man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition" following the "falling away." This is referring to the Antichrist who is also called "the lawless one" in verse eight. The Antichrist will be empowered by Satan to rule the world as an alternative human savior to Christ. It will not be clear who this coming world ruler will be until the church is removed at the rapture. So any effort by Christians to speculate on who the Antichrist will be is a futile activity.
2 Thessalonians 2:4 tells us what the Antichrist will do, representing himself as God in the temple. This is the "abomination of desolation" Jesus spoke of in Matthew 24:15. For the "abomination of desolation" to occur, there must be a temple in Israel. It is amazing that there is a growing desire for a Temple in Israel even though the population is thoroughly secular. The Jews want a temple as part of their national identity but it is clear that something significant must happen changing the political situation to allow it. The "abomination of desolation" is the event that makes the Jews realize the world leader is not their savior but a deceiver.
Verses six and seven tell us that God is restraining lawlessness keeping the Antichrist from coming to power while the church is on earth. The "mystery of lawlessness" refers to Satan and his minions conspiring to thwart God’s plans to call out a people for Himself. The Restrainer of lawlessness is personified referring to Him as "He." This can only be a reference to the evil restraining ministry of the Holy Spirit who indwells followers of Christ. The Restrainer will be taken out of the way when the church falls away from the earth at the rapture thus ending His restraint of lawlessness.
Verse eight reinforces the truth that the Antichrist will not come to power until the evil restraining ministry of the Holy Spirit ends. The Tribulation is when lawlessness is allowed to run its full course. The Antichrist will establish a totalitarian government that will enslave the world. He will start out representing himself as a friend to Israel but will seek to destroy them and all who will not swear allegiance to him. God will tolerate un-throttled evil for only a short period and will ultimately destroy the Antichrist when Jesus returns.
2 Thessalonians 2:9-10 tells us that the Antichrist coming to power will be accompanied with great signs and wonders to deceive people into following him. God will allow deceptive miracles to dupe all who do not have the spiritual discernment that only comes from a relationship with Christ (see 1 Corinthians 2:14 and Matthew 24:24).
Why God Allows Evil
The fact that God removes His restraint of lawlessness thus allowing a Tribulation shows that God has a purpose for evil. This is however the very thing that is often cited by atheists as justification for rejecting God... How could a good God allow evil? People who don't see their need for a Savior don’t understand the concept of sin. A just and holy God demands that there be consequences for usurping His authority. And in our fallen world, evil happens as a consequence of sin.
All people are made in God's image. One important aspect of being in the image of God is that we have freedom of choice. We have exercised our freedom to put ourselves before God and that sin has consequences. God loved us so much that He wanted us to experience the depth of relationship with Him that is only possible if we are free to accept or reject a relationship with Him. If there is to be true free will, God has to allow evil for a time.
However, God makes use of evil to help us. For example, He raised up the Babylonians to help Israel see their need to return to Him. He used the evil of Jesus dying on a cross to pay the penalty for our sins. And He uses evil in our lives to bring about a greater good, "we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose" (Romans 8:28, NKJV).
How the Holy Spirit Restrains Evil
God orchestrates events to bring about His plans (Isaiah 46:9-10). But God limits the reach of evil as He did with Satan who was given permission to touch the life of Job (Job 1:12). While all of earth’s rulers are under the influence of Satan, God influences their hearts so that His will be done as demonstrated with the Persian King Xerxes in Esther 6 and the Roman King Augustus prior to Jesus being born.
God works through His children whom the Holy Spirit indwells (1 John 4:15). The Holy Spirit helps us to discern evil and commands us to expose it per Ephesians 5:11. Indeed, there will be loss of reward if we fail to speak up when we see evil (Ezekiel 33:9). Jesus said His followers are salt and light in Matthew 5:13-14; acting as a preservative helping others know Jesus and shinning the light of truth about evil. Exposing evil does reduce it’s impact, "for everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed" (John 3:20).
The United States has been known as a Christian nation, indeed, the most preeminent Christian nation on earth. We were founded by Christians, made laws based on biblical values, and had the highest percentage of Christians. We have promoted liberty and crushed tyrants who enslaved their people. We acted as God’s agent to squelch the plans of those who sought to enslave Africans, the Nazis and their allies, and the Soviets. We have stood by and encouraged Israel along with the nations who would also befriend Israel. The U.S. has been a force for good in the world. But the U.S. acting as a force for good in the world is beginning to change as part of the restraining ministry of the Holy Spirit being removed...
The U.S. is now known as much for its export of entertainment filth as restraining evil in the world. We have legalized the murder of the unborn and have sought to end the Bible’s concept of marriage. We have institutionalized our national debt. We are abandoning our allies like Israel and embracing their enemies instead. There is a growing propensity to appease evildoers and yield our sovereignty to the world community of nations. Our rule of law is being replaced with rule of man and along with it, our freedoms of religion and speech are under assault. Truth and justice is being replaced with political correctness and social justice which is simply a ruler’s view of fairness. Our mainstream press no longer serves as a force which exposes evil, instead it has become a propaganda agency seeking to manipulate the population.
What God’s People Should Do About It
In the Parable of the Minas, Jesus told us to "do business until I come" (Luke 19:13). God has gifted us to serve His purpose to be salt and light in the world. He wants us to take full advantage of the resources and opportunities He gives us to be His representatives. When we apply the principles He has given us to our lives, we will experience the spiritual fruit of Galatians 5:22-23 and this will attract people to Jesus.
Part of being a good steward of what God has blessed us with is being a good citizen. That means we should participate in the political process in this country to slow the growth of evil here. Often this means making a choice of the lesser of two evils when we vote. However, we should recognize that evil will grow despite our best efforts to expose it because of the times in which we live.
We are privileged to be able to serve the Lord in this time when so many are being convicted by the Holy Spirit that this world is not headed in a good direction. As we see the stage being set for the Tribulation, we should experience joy knowing that our redemption draws near. This joy is infectious and the Lord can use it to lead people to Him. It will not be long before we will all be united with Jesus. And then our joy will be complete.
Monday, January 25, 2016
Monday, January 18, 2016
The Looming Collapse
One doesn't have to be an economist to see that all is not well with the economy. The U.S. national debt is so high that no one believes it will ever be paid off and stock markets are volatile world-wide. The only thing keeping our debt from triggering a melt-down is that most other nations in the world are just as bad or worse in their GDP-to-debt ratios.
Government spending and increasing the money supply which is called "quantitative easing" are seen as the solution to bring us out of the world-wide recession that began in 2008. This has not been working despite the mainstream media narrative that all is well. No amount of statistical gymnastics can hide the fact that record numbers of Americans are unemployed or under-employed.
Quantitative easing has never really worked to end recessions. In times past, the government effectively printing money to increase the money supply appears to have worked because inflation caused the debt to be reduced. Inflation was a painful but effective tool in reducing the national debt because it also meant that people made more money as the demand for labor increased. But this time the demand for labor has not increased thus keeping wages depressed.
Among the theories given to explain why the demand for labor has not increased is that automation is now replacing jobs faster than new jobs can be created. This may indeed be a factor but a more significant impact is certainly due to the globalization of the world economy. Jobs that used to be done locally are now being outsourced to places were labor is cheaper.
The inflation that usually accompanies the government printing money has not materialized this time. We have had an increase in asset prices such as stocks and real estate but commodity prices led by the price of oil have been depressed. The biggest factor in the depression of commodity prices is due to wages not increasing and it is not possible for wages to increase if there is a reduced demand for labor.
There has never been a time in the history of the world when interest rates have been so low for so long. This is making it harder for governments to employ their quantitative easing strategy which they believe stimulates the economy. It is hard to reduce interest rates on government loans when you are already at zero percent.
When the government is effectively giving money away at zero percent interest, they can no longer just bail-out failed financial institutions. What the European Union is now looking at doing instead is a "bail-in." This is where some percentage of depositor savings is reduced similar to what happened in Cypress. All EU member states have been required to have bail-in legislation on their books beginning this year.
While the European Union will probably not execute their plans to confiscate depositor savings through a bail-in until the next major economic melt-down occurs, some banks there have already begun charging negative interest rates on savings. They are now effectively charging depositors to warehouse their money. This is intended to get depositors to take their money out of the bank and spend it in an effort to stimulate the economy.
Whether negative interest rates works to stimulate the economy or not, it will lead to governments implementing some sort of cashless system in order to have more control. Most transactions are already done digitally out of convenience. A cashless economy sets the stage for the time when all transactions can be micro-managed by the state which is necessary for the mark of the beast that will be implemented during the Tribulation (Revelation 13:16-18).
The European Union is the model for the world coming together as expressed in their motto, "united in diversity." What is being tried to stimulate the economy in Europe will eventually be done world wide. All that is required is a big enough economic crisis to cause governments to take action. And such action has generally resulted in them gaining more control over their people. When the problem becomes bigger than national governments can fix by printing more money or confiscating savings, there will be increasing demands for a bail-out by an even higher governmental entity, a more powerful global union of nations.
Every crisis is taking us closer to the global government the Bible says will be in place when the Lord returns. The stage-setting is picking up pace at such a rate that many have theorized there must be a conspiracy of the elite orchestrating developments in order to rule the world. Whether or not there is a human conspiracy at work in the world, there certainly is a spiritual one. God is removing His restraint of evil to prepare the world for the Tribulation when lawlessness will run its course. This is allowing Satan and his fallen-angel followers to have more influence over the nations of the world.
God is in control of the economy and allows it to flourish or fail in order to serve His purposes. The idea that mankind can control the economy is an illusion that will eventually become apparent to all. But until then, mankind's solution to fix the economy will be to double-down on the flawed policy to seek a bail-out from a higher governmental authority. This is the dynamic that will eventually give us a global government. This world will experience the ultimate in human control over mankind and Revelation 18 says it will fail spectacularly.
There have always been economic cycles and they are nothing to fear for those who are trusting in the Lord. God promised us in Genesis 8:22, "while the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, winter and summer, and day and night shall not cease" (NKJV). The best way to prepare for the coming economic melt-down is to apply the principles God has given us in His Word to be good stewards of His blessings. And this includes such things as getting out of debt and investing to lay up treasure in heaven.
The bail-out this world sorely needs is for Jesus to return. All the economic pain this world will experience in the next few years will bring mankind to the end of themselves and prepare society for rule by the Lord Himself. But followers of Christ during this Age of Grace will not have to go through the worst of the economic turmoil that will characterize the Tribulation. The best way for people to be prepared for the economic crash described in Revelation 18 is to allow Jesus to be their Savior and Lord now before the rapture of the church.
The economy of the Lord is far superior to that which mankind envisions. It is actually encouraging to see the end of mankind's economy foreshadowed when you know it only indicates the Kingdom of God on earth is very near. Come soon Lord Jesus!
Government spending and increasing the money supply which is called "quantitative easing" are seen as the solution to bring us out of the world-wide recession that began in 2008. This has not been working despite the mainstream media narrative that all is well. No amount of statistical gymnastics can hide the fact that record numbers of Americans are unemployed or under-employed.
Quantitative easing has never really worked to end recessions. In times past, the government effectively printing money to increase the money supply appears to have worked because inflation caused the debt to be reduced. Inflation was a painful but effective tool in reducing the national debt because it also meant that people made more money as the demand for labor increased. But this time the demand for labor has not increased thus keeping wages depressed.
Among the theories given to explain why the demand for labor has not increased is that automation is now replacing jobs faster than new jobs can be created. This may indeed be a factor but a more significant impact is certainly due to the globalization of the world economy. Jobs that used to be done locally are now being outsourced to places were labor is cheaper.
The inflation that usually accompanies the government printing money has not materialized this time. We have had an increase in asset prices such as stocks and real estate but commodity prices led by the price of oil have been depressed. The biggest factor in the depression of commodity prices is due to wages not increasing and it is not possible for wages to increase if there is a reduced demand for labor.
There has never been a time in the history of the world when interest rates have been so low for so long. This is making it harder for governments to employ their quantitative easing strategy which they believe stimulates the economy. It is hard to reduce interest rates on government loans when you are already at zero percent.
When the government is effectively giving money away at zero percent interest, they can no longer just bail-out failed financial institutions. What the European Union is now looking at doing instead is a "bail-in." This is where some percentage of depositor savings is reduced similar to what happened in Cypress. All EU member states have been required to have bail-in legislation on their books beginning this year.
While the European Union will probably not execute their plans to confiscate depositor savings through a bail-in until the next major economic melt-down occurs, some banks there have already begun charging negative interest rates on savings. They are now effectively charging depositors to warehouse their money. This is intended to get depositors to take their money out of the bank and spend it in an effort to stimulate the economy.
Whether negative interest rates works to stimulate the economy or not, it will lead to governments implementing some sort of cashless system in order to have more control. Most transactions are already done digitally out of convenience. A cashless economy sets the stage for the time when all transactions can be micro-managed by the state which is necessary for the mark of the beast that will be implemented during the Tribulation (Revelation 13:16-18).
The European Union is the model for the world coming together as expressed in their motto, "united in diversity." What is being tried to stimulate the economy in Europe will eventually be done world wide. All that is required is a big enough economic crisis to cause governments to take action. And such action has generally resulted in them gaining more control over their people. When the problem becomes bigger than national governments can fix by printing more money or confiscating savings, there will be increasing demands for a bail-out by an even higher governmental entity, a more powerful global union of nations.
Every crisis is taking us closer to the global government the Bible says will be in place when the Lord returns. The stage-setting is picking up pace at such a rate that many have theorized there must be a conspiracy of the elite orchestrating developments in order to rule the world. Whether or not there is a human conspiracy at work in the world, there certainly is a spiritual one. God is removing His restraint of evil to prepare the world for the Tribulation when lawlessness will run its course. This is allowing Satan and his fallen-angel followers to have more influence over the nations of the world.
God is in control of the economy and allows it to flourish or fail in order to serve His purposes. The idea that mankind can control the economy is an illusion that will eventually become apparent to all. But until then, mankind's solution to fix the economy will be to double-down on the flawed policy to seek a bail-out from a higher governmental authority. This is the dynamic that will eventually give us a global government. This world will experience the ultimate in human control over mankind and Revelation 18 says it will fail spectacularly.
There have always been economic cycles and they are nothing to fear for those who are trusting in the Lord. God promised us in Genesis 8:22, "while the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, winter and summer, and day and night shall not cease" (NKJV). The best way to prepare for the coming economic melt-down is to apply the principles God has given us in His Word to be good stewards of His blessings. And this includes such things as getting out of debt and investing to lay up treasure in heaven.
The bail-out this world sorely needs is for Jesus to return. All the economic pain this world will experience in the next few years will bring mankind to the end of themselves and prepare society for rule by the Lord Himself. But followers of Christ during this Age of Grace will not have to go through the worst of the economic turmoil that will characterize the Tribulation. The best way for people to be prepared for the economic crash described in Revelation 18 is to allow Jesus to be their Savior and Lord now before the rapture of the church.
The economy of the Lord is far superior to that which mankind envisions. It is actually encouraging to see the end of mankind's economy foreshadowed when you know it only indicates the Kingdom of God on earth is very near. Come soon Lord Jesus!
Monday, January 11, 2016
Society's Phobias
One attribute of the ungodly is that they are generally guilty of the very thing of which they accuse others. This characteristic is most apparent in the use of the term Islamophobia. Those who want to confront Islam and hold Muslims accountable for inspiring terrorists are called Islamophobic as if they are the ones with the irrational fear. But what is really more fearful, dealing with the root cause of a problem or trying to appease evil doers in the hope that they will change their ways?
Those who seek to shut down the voices of people speaking the truth about Islam by calling them Islamophobic say they don't want to incite a backlash against Muslims. But this only masks their own fear that the terrorism will get worse if the Muslim religion is publicly criticized. Despite the growth of Islamic terrorism, there has been no significant backlash against Muslims. Most people understand that the vast majority of Islamists are cultural Muslims who are just trying to get by in this world and have no desire to get too serious about following the literal tenets of their religion.
The ideologues accusing others of being Islamophobic are generally the same ones calling those wanting to preserve traditional marriage of being homophobic. Followers of Christ don't fear being among sinners because we too still struggle with our old sin nature and while we are forgiven and thus no longer of the world, we are still in the world to make disciples of all the nations. The ungodly accusers of homophobia fear God's Law and seek to squelch followers of Christ because they fear anything that reminds them of God's Law.
Intelligent conversation about immigration is shut down by calling those who oppose open borders of being xenophobic. Followers of Christ don't fear being among people from other places who are not like us. Indeed, we welcome this because it makes it easer to reach the nations for Christ when they come to us. But we do fear the loss of what makes this country attractive to people of the world when we throw out our due process of law. One of the things that made America great was having a tradition of following the law which was developed with appropriate Constitutional checks and balances. Increasingly, our rule of law is being replaced by rule of man which changes with the wind. Those yelling xenophobia are fearful that conservatives will dampen their globalist aspirations which calls for collective human achievement, the same spirit behind the Tower of Babel.
The common thread in accusing others of some sort of phobia is political correctness which is all about not offending people. Now this sounds good because no one wants to be offensive to others. But the spirit behind political correctness is to further a narrative that can only be sustained when the truth is suppressed. So accusing the opposition of being insensitive shuts down the conversation. The ungodly fear the truth and cannot allow a free exchange of ideas because the truth has an uncanny way of making itself known. Among the birth-pang signs Jesus gave us indicating His soon return was this: "many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another" (Matthew 24:10, NKJV). Certainly political correctness institutionalizes people being offended and this tactic is growing in power as a tool of the ungodly.
Fear is generally growing in the world as God removes His restraint of evil which foreshadows the Tribulation (2 Timothy 3:13, 2 Thessalonians 2:7). There is a growing sense that something is very wrong in this world even among the biblical illiterate. Peace between the nations is elusive and there is nuclear proliferation occurring in the most irrational of regimes. The economy has multiple indicators of serious sickness despite the media narrative that all is well. The ruling elite try to channel the growing fear into other areas such as a fear of guns and global warming in order to further their globalist agenda. The persistence of the globalist visionaries set the stage for the Tribulation and thus will make steady progress to have their day because there will be a ruler where, "authority was given him over every tribe, tongue, and nation" (Revelation 13:7).
The soon coming Tribulation is when fear will reach its peak, "there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; men’s hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken" (Luke 21:25-26). It will be hard to deny that supernatural events are occurring during the Tribulation. These prophetic developments will be very fearful as people who have taken the mark of the beast realize they have committed themselves to the wrong side. And that will be most of the people in the world during the Tribulation.
While fear is often irrational and immobilizing, it can be helpful if it is channeled in the right direction. "Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell" (Matthew 10:28). The healthiest fear is the fear of God. It is a good thing when our fear leads us to the Savior for deliverance. "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" (Proverbs 9:10).
While fear is useful in driving us to Christ, it dissipates once He breathes life into our human spirits and we begin trusting Jesus as our Savior. "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind" (1 Timothy 1:7). The presence of the Holy Spirit who indwells all believers gives us courage in the face of an increasingly fearful world. And God can use that to attract people to Christ. A great way to lead people to Jesus is to help them see why we do not fear the trajectory of this world.
"Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go" (Joshua 1:9).
Those who seek to shut down the voices of people speaking the truth about Islam by calling them Islamophobic say they don't want to incite a backlash against Muslims. But this only masks their own fear that the terrorism will get worse if the Muslim religion is publicly criticized. Despite the growth of Islamic terrorism, there has been no significant backlash against Muslims. Most people understand that the vast majority of Islamists are cultural Muslims who are just trying to get by in this world and have no desire to get too serious about following the literal tenets of their religion.
The ideologues accusing others of being Islamophobic are generally the same ones calling those wanting to preserve traditional marriage of being homophobic. Followers of Christ don't fear being among sinners because we too still struggle with our old sin nature and while we are forgiven and thus no longer of the world, we are still in the world to make disciples of all the nations. The ungodly accusers of homophobia fear God's Law and seek to squelch followers of Christ because they fear anything that reminds them of God's Law.
Intelligent conversation about immigration is shut down by calling those who oppose open borders of being xenophobic. Followers of Christ don't fear being among people from other places who are not like us. Indeed, we welcome this because it makes it easer to reach the nations for Christ when they come to us. But we do fear the loss of what makes this country attractive to people of the world when we throw out our due process of law. One of the things that made America great was having a tradition of following the law which was developed with appropriate Constitutional checks and balances. Increasingly, our rule of law is being replaced by rule of man which changes with the wind. Those yelling xenophobia are fearful that conservatives will dampen their globalist aspirations which calls for collective human achievement, the same spirit behind the Tower of Babel.
The common thread in accusing others of some sort of phobia is political correctness which is all about not offending people. Now this sounds good because no one wants to be offensive to others. But the spirit behind political correctness is to further a narrative that can only be sustained when the truth is suppressed. So accusing the opposition of being insensitive shuts down the conversation. The ungodly fear the truth and cannot allow a free exchange of ideas because the truth has an uncanny way of making itself known. Among the birth-pang signs Jesus gave us indicating His soon return was this: "many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another" (Matthew 24:10, NKJV). Certainly political correctness institutionalizes people being offended and this tactic is growing in power as a tool of the ungodly.
Fear is generally growing in the world as God removes His restraint of evil which foreshadows the Tribulation (2 Timothy 3:13, 2 Thessalonians 2:7). There is a growing sense that something is very wrong in this world even among the biblical illiterate. Peace between the nations is elusive and there is nuclear proliferation occurring in the most irrational of regimes. The economy has multiple indicators of serious sickness despite the media narrative that all is well. The ruling elite try to channel the growing fear into other areas such as a fear of guns and global warming in order to further their globalist agenda. The persistence of the globalist visionaries set the stage for the Tribulation and thus will make steady progress to have their day because there will be a ruler where, "authority was given him over every tribe, tongue, and nation" (Revelation 13:7).
The soon coming Tribulation is when fear will reach its peak, "there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; men’s hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken" (Luke 21:25-26). It will be hard to deny that supernatural events are occurring during the Tribulation. These prophetic developments will be very fearful as people who have taken the mark of the beast realize they have committed themselves to the wrong side. And that will be most of the people in the world during the Tribulation.
While fear is often irrational and immobilizing, it can be helpful if it is channeled in the right direction. "Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell" (Matthew 10:28). The healthiest fear is the fear of God. It is a good thing when our fear leads us to the Savior for deliverance. "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" (Proverbs 9:10).
While fear is useful in driving us to Christ, it dissipates once He breathes life into our human spirits and we begin trusting Jesus as our Savior. "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind" (1 Timothy 1:7). The presence of the Holy Spirit who indwells all believers gives us courage in the face of an increasingly fearful world. And God can use that to attract people to Christ. A great way to lead people to Jesus is to help them see why we do not fear the trajectory of this world.
"Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go" (Joshua 1:9).
Monday, January 4, 2016
Globalism versus Nationalism
Among the many spiritual battles impacting this physical world is the conflict between globalism and nationalism which reveals our closeness to the end of the Age. While the influence of globalism has been an obvious trend for many years, the progress of those with a global vision has been accelerating and thus promises to make even more significant advances in the coming year. All this sets the stage for the global government of the Antichrist when "authority will be given him over every tribe, tongue, and nation" (Revelation 13:7, NKJV).
The drive toward more centralized global authority is relentless and there are some very logical reasons why globalization makes sense. Globalization offers economic benefits such as increasing global trade and investment which expands prosperity. And there is a vision for peace between the nations that should be achievable if the world could just work together more. Of course it would take a powerful global authority to make that happen.
The world's ruling elite are becoming more united in their vision of a global government as the solution for what ails mankind. And as humanists generally deny but wholeheartedly practice, the end justifies the means. They have fabricated a climate change crisis to force the world to work together and have more control over the population. There is nothing like a good crisis to make changes that move us closer to more global governmental power. The intense political correctness associated with the climate change "settled science" reveals that powerful spiritual forces are behind it.
The ugly downside to globalization is the idea that more centralized authority is a good thing. It appeals to a humanist worldview that believes we can solve any problem mankind faces through collective human effort apart from God. This spirit of independence from God is idolatry and was the very same attitude that was prevalent at the Tower of Babel when God scattered the people by confusing their language (Genesis 11).
While progressive humanist visionaries believe more centralized authority makes government more efficient, the exact opposite is actually realized. The failure of powerful centralized governments is an obvious lesson of history. That is why we have the cliche truism that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Yet the world's humanists persist in thinking they are more "evolved" and thus smarter than all who have gone before them really believing they are the ones who can make centralized government work better.
It should be obvious that in this fallen world, more localized government works better than a centralized authority. A smaller, more distributed government that is closer to the people it serves is better able to respond to the needs of the people. There are geographic, demographic, and cultural differences between groups of people that gives them different needs. Centralized authorities can't even see these needs much less think imposing a solution that works in one place will have universal success.
Among the things that have made the United States exceptional has been our Constitution that provided for a division of centralized powers with checks and balances on authority. And there was the principle of states rights that distributed governmental power more locally. The trend however has been to give more power to the Federal Government and even the checks and balances have been breaking down giving the president more authority than allowed for by the Constitution. This yielding of authority foreshadows the spirit that will bring the Antichrist to power; "these are of one mind, and they will give their power and authority to the beast" (Revelation 17:13).
Change is in the air in the United States. Gone is the Constitutional idea that the government exists to serve the people. Instead, the people exist to serve the collective. As the growing spirit of Antichrist causes local governments to yield their authority to higher governmental authorities, so too are the people willing to yield their freedoms in return for more security. These are the times that Scripture tells us about; "For when they say, 'Peace and safety!' then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman" (1 Thessalonians 5:3).
The spirit of Antichrist spurring on the growing globalization is at its core rebellion against the order God has established. This spirit is what is behind the move to open the borders to unfettered immigration. If the world is to come together as one global family, there can be no national borders. God is in control and He established national boundaries for a reason. "He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings" (Acts 17:26).
The growing desire for people in the world to yield their God-given freedoms and authority is irrational and reveals that spiritual warfare has to be at work. God is giving mankind over to a debased mind so that evil can run it's natural course. "The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying, 'Let us break Their bonds in pieces and cast away Their cords from us'" (Psalm 2:2-3).
The trajectory of this world is distressing to those who bother to consider the ramifications of the dramatic changes that are afoot. Rather than wasting time trying to fight against these changes, followers of Christ will honor God more by helping people disturbed by the world's trends to see that God's Word offers comfort to mankind in these times. The path of this world was foretold from ancient times and is necessary for God to prepare the world for Jesus Christ to be the ultimate central ruling authority that mankind longs for.
All indications are that this world doesn't have long to wait for the Millennial Kingdom. The stage is rapidly being set for the terrible time of the Tribulation that precedes the return of Christ. But as individuals in this Age of Grace, we don't have to wait for Jesus to return to experience His peace in our lives right now. All who yield their lives to Jesus recognizing Him as Savior and Lord will experience an abundant life in the here and now. And we also have the Blessed Hope of being translated into our glorified, eternal bodies when God concludes the current Age of Grace prior to the Tribulation. Even so, come soon Lord Jesus!
The drive toward more centralized global authority is relentless and there are some very logical reasons why globalization makes sense. Globalization offers economic benefits such as increasing global trade and investment which expands prosperity. And there is a vision for peace between the nations that should be achievable if the world could just work together more. Of course it would take a powerful global authority to make that happen.
The world's ruling elite are becoming more united in their vision of a global government as the solution for what ails mankind. And as humanists generally deny but wholeheartedly practice, the end justifies the means. They have fabricated a climate change crisis to force the world to work together and have more control over the population. There is nothing like a good crisis to make changes that move us closer to more global governmental power. The intense political correctness associated with the climate change "settled science" reveals that powerful spiritual forces are behind it.
The ugly downside to globalization is the idea that more centralized authority is a good thing. It appeals to a humanist worldview that believes we can solve any problem mankind faces through collective human effort apart from God. This spirit of independence from God is idolatry and was the very same attitude that was prevalent at the Tower of Babel when God scattered the people by confusing their language (Genesis 11).
While progressive humanist visionaries believe more centralized authority makes government more efficient, the exact opposite is actually realized. The failure of powerful centralized governments is an obvious lesson of history. That is why we have the cliche truism that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Yet the world's humanists persist in thinking they are more "evolved" and thus smarter than all who have gone before them really believing they are the ones who can make centralized government work better.
It should be obvious that in this fallen world, more localized government works better than a centralized authority. A smaller, more distributed government that is closer to the people it serves is better able to respond to the needs of the people. There are geographic, demographic, and cultural differences between groups of people that gives them different needs. Centralized authorities can't even see these needs much less think imposing a solution that works in one place will have universal success.
Among the things that have made the United States exceptional has been our Constitution that provided for a division of centralized powers with checks and balances on authority. And there was the principle of states rights that distributed governmental power more locally. The trend however has been to give more power to the Federal Government and even the checks and balances have been breaking down giving the president more authority than allowed for by the Constitution. This yielding of authority foreshadows the spirit that will bring the Antichrist to power; "these are of one mind, and they will give their power and authority to the beast" (Revelation 17:13).
Change is in the air in the United States. Gone is the Constitutional idea that the government exists to serve the people. Instead, the people exist to serve the collective. As the growing spirit of Antichrist causes local governments to yield their authority to higher governmental authorities, so too are the people willing to yield their freedoms in return for more security. These are the times that Scripture tells us about; "For when they say, 'Peace and safety!' then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman" (1 Thessalonians 5:3).
The spirit of Antichrist spurring on the growing globalization is at its core rebellion against the order God has established. This spirit is what is behind the move to open the borders to unfettered immigration. If the world is to come together as one global family, there can be no national borders. God is in control and He established national boundaries for a reason. "He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings" (Acts 17:26).
The growing desire for people in the world to yield their God-given freedoms and authority is irrational and reveals that spiritual warfare has to be at work. God is giving mankind over to a debased mind so that evil can run it's natural course. "The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying, 'Let us break Their bonds in pieces and cast away Their cords from us'" (Psalm 2:2-3).
The trajectory of this world is distressing to those who bother to consider the ramifications of the dramatic changes that are afoot. Rather than wasting time trying to fight against these changes, followers of Christ will honor God more by helping people disturbed by the world's trends to see that God's Word offers comfort to mankind in these times. The path of this world was foretold from ancient times and is necessary for God to prepare the world for Jesus Christ to be the ultimate central ruling authority that mankind longs for.
All indications are that this world doesn't have long to wait for the Millennial Kingdom. The stage is rapidly being set for the terrible time of the Tribulation that precedes the return of Christ. But as individuals in this Age of Grace, we don't have to wait for Jesus to return to experience His peace in our lives right now. All who yield their lives to Jesus recognizing Him as Savior and Lord will experience an abundant life in the here and now. And we also have the Blessed Hope of being translated into our glorified, eternal bodies when God concludes the current Age of Grace prior to the Tribulation. Even so, come soon Lord Jesus!
Monday, December 28, 2015
Doom and Gloom
It is easy to think 2016 may be the year the Bridegroom comes for His Bride based on the growing birth pangs we have seen in just the past year alone. It is becoming more obvious that the pace of prophetically significant developments are picking up. There is not a week that goes by that something happens which further sets the stage for the Tribulation which has to be preceded by the Rapture of the Church.
It is however easy to miss some of the most significant prophetic developments because few are reported by the mainstream medial in America. People of this country who do not rely on a broader scope of news sources that the Internet makes possible have bought into the pabulum that all is well and the future is bright. But the future is only bright for those who know Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord. All others are allowing themselves to be deceived by the spiritual powers and principalities that rule this world behind the scenes.
Humanists seeing their deliverance in collective human effort have to convince themselves that the path this world is on is headed in the right direction because it is too uncomfortable for them to believe otherwise. Indeed, those who are honest with themselves looking at the trajectory of this world are the most likely to turn to Jesus Christ for salvation. Only the Bible offers the true hope of personal deliverance this world seeks after along with the truth about where this world is headed. Biblical truth resonates with all who respond to the Holy Spirit's call to allow Jesus Christ into their lives.
Lovers of the world condemn Bible-believing followers of Jesus eagerly anticipating our Lord's return as having a pessimistic view of the future. They reveal their worldliness in such a perspective. Yes, we see this world headed for a terrible time that the Bible tells us about. Yes, many will die during this pouring out of God's wrath. But the good news is that all those who follow Jesus during this Age will not be going through the Tribulation. Our Blessed Hope is in Jesus Christ who will resurrect us and take us out of this world to be with Him (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, 1 Corinthians 15:51-53). Resurrected believers spending eternity with Christ will not miss out on a thing this world has to offer. There is nothing more optimistic than that.
Those accusing Bible prophecy watchers of being pessimistic don't have the eternal perspective and biblical worldview that comes from having a personal relationship with the Savior. It is a worldly perspective to believe that physical death is the worst thing that can happen to a person. The worst thing that can happen to a person is spiritual death which comes from not knowing Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord during one's mortal life. Despite the Tribulation being a terrible time that is characterized by death per Revelation 6:8 and 9:18, there will be a great multitude who will recognize prophetic fulfillment and turn to Jesus Christ for salvation (Revelation 7:9-17).
Those souls who come to faith in Christ during the Tribulation will thank God for that terrible time because our Lord will use it to help them see their need for Jesus. The only pessimism in the Tribulation is the dramatic end of the humanist doctrine that we can save ourselves apart from God. The Bible says that mankind's efforts in pursuit of man's false salvation-by-works ideology will fail miserably. Anyone who sees that as pessimism does not understand the wonderful provision God made for mankind when Jesus Christ paid the penalty for our sin on the cross. And Jesus rose from the dead as the firstfruits of the resurrection which we now eagerly anticipate.
The optimism followers of Jesus have during this Age of Grace is that we will escape the pouring out of God's wrath on the earth that will occur during the Tribulation. So as we see developments taking us ever closer to the Tribulation period, we know that our resurrection is even nearer... "Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near" (Luke 21:28, NKJV).
Our optimism is in anticipating not just our own redemption but that of the world. This world can only be fixed by the Prince of Peace and He has promised to do just that as part of His ruling physically on earth during the Millennial Kingdom. We do not have to wait for the Eternal State for peace to flood the earth, Jesus will accomplish that during His Millennial Reign.
The deception of the world is great and growing. This is not a time to allow oneself to be swept away in the Spirit of Antichrist that is waxing stronger every day. There is no better time in history to devote ourselves to growing closer to Jesus, be watching for Him, and obey His admonition to, "do business till I come" (Luke 19:13).
It is however easy to miss some of the most significant prophetic developments because few are reported by the mainstream medial in America. People of this country who do not rely on a broader scope of news sources that the Internet makes possible have bought into the pabulum that all is well and the future is bright. But the future is only bright for those who know Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord. All others are allowing themselves to be deceived by the spiritual powers and principalities that rule this world behind the scenes.
Humanists seeing their deliverance in collective human effort have to convince themselves that the path this world is on is headed in the right direction because it is too uncomfortable for them to believe otherwise. Indeed, those who are honest with themselves looking at the trajectory of this world are the most likely to turn to Jesus Christ for salvation. Only the Bible offers the true hope of personal deliverance this world seeks after along with the truth about where this world is headed. Biblical truth resonates with all who respond to the Holy Spirit's call to allow Jesus Christ into their lives.
Lovers of the world condemn Bible-believing followers of Jesus eagerly anticipating our Lord's return as having a pessimistic view of the future. They reveal their worldliness in such a perspective. Yes, we see this world headed for a terrible time that the Bible tells us about. Yes, many will die during this pouring out of God's wrath. But the good news is that all those who follow Jesus during this Age will not be going through the Tribulation. Our Blessed Hope is in Jesus Christ who will resurrect us and take us out of this world to be with Him (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, 1 Corinthians 15:51-53). Resurrected believers spending eternity with Christ will not miss out on a thing this world has to offer. There is nothing more optimistic than that.
Those accusing Bible prophecy watchers of being pessimistic don't have the eternal perspective and biblical worldview that comes from having a personal relationship with the Savior. It is a worldly perspective to believe that physical death is the worst thing that can happen to a person. The worst thing that can happen to a person is spiritual death which comes from not knowing Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord during one's mortal life. Despite the Tribulation being a terrible time that is characterized by death per Revelation 6:8 and 9:18, there will be a great multitude who will recognize prophetic fulfillment and turn to Jesus Christ for salvation (Revelation 7:9-17).
Those souls who come to faith in Christ during the Tribulation will thank God for that terrible time because our Lord will use it to help them see their need for Jesus. The only pessimism in the Tribulation is the dramatic end of the humanist doctrine that we can save ourselves apart from God. The Bible says that mankind's efforts in pursuit of man's false salvation-by-works ideology will fail miserably. Anyone who sees that as pessimism does not understand the wonderful provision God made for mankind when Jesus Christ paid the penalty for our sin on the cross. And Jesus rose from the dead as the firstfruits of the resurrection which we now eagerly anticipate.
The optimism followers of Jesus have during this Age of Grace is that we will escape the pouring out of God's wrath on the earth that will occur during the Tribulation. So as we see developments taking us ever closer to the Tribulation period, we know that our resurrection is even nearer... "Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near" (Luke 21:28, NKJV).
Our optimism is in anticipating not just our own redemption but that of the world. This world can only be fixed by the Prince of Peace and He has promised to do just that as part of His ruling physically on earth during the Millennial Kingdom. We do not have to wait for the Eternal State for peace to flood the earth, Jesus will accomplish that during His Millennial Reign.
The deception of the world is great and growing. This is not a time to allow oneself to be swept away in the Spirit of Antichrist that is waxing stronger every day. There is no better time in history to devote ourselves to growing closer to Jesus, be watching for Him, and obey His admonition to, "do business till I come" (Luke 19:13).
Monday, December 21, 2015
Love for the World
It continues to amaze me that not all who profess to follow Jesus Christ are excited about His soon return. The top reasons I have found for my fellow Christians being cold toward Bible prophecy can be summarized as love for the world. This appears to especially be a problem for the church in America because of our prosperity. But this problem is not just limited to the United States, it is also an issue in Europe and generally worldwide wherever Western Civilization has touched.
America's prosperity has lured us into idolatry. Collectively, we no longer believe we have been blessed by God to serve His purpose; instead, the conventional wisdom is that we have reached our comfortable position in life through strictly human achievement. There is a general attitude today that we have gotten this far without God, so then there is no problem we can't fix given enough time, funding, and focused human will. This attitude is much the same as it was at the tower of Babel: "Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for ourselves" (Genesis 11:4, NKJV). Babylon is famous for collective human achievement attempting to usurp the role of God.
Now you'd think we wouldn't have an idolatry problem in the Body of Christ, but the Idol of Human Prosperity has a big foothold in the American Church. Jesus rebuked the Church of Laodicea for their being lukewarm toward Him and thinking their worldly wealth equated to spiritual wealth (Revelation 3:14-22). Our prosperity has led American Christians to no longer be on fire for Jesus because we don't depend on Him for our daily needs. We may live in the final Laodicean phase of the Church Age but this doesn't mean we have to succumb to being Laodicean believers ourselves.
Loving the world is a characteristic of not being a child of God. "Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him" (1 John 2:15). In context, "the world" here refers to the system created by society to manage the world. The world system people have collectively created is one that appeals to our natural selfish human nature. If we allow our selfish human nature to be the guide for our lives, we will find ourselves on a path away from God. Our selfish human nature seeks the pleasures of this world, that which is attractive, and that which makes us feel good about ourselves; "For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world" (1 John 2:16).
The three basic sins mentioned in 1 John 2:16 represent all the things that lead us from God. These appeals of the world were the very ones Satan leveraged to tempt Eve in the Garden of Eden and Jesus during His 40-day fast (Genesis 3:6 and Matthew 4:1-11). Society's godless world system is driven by seeking the pleasurable, the attractive, and whatever makes us feel good. God is the Creator of pleasure, attractiveness and all things good. But it is sin to seek these blessings through strictly human efforts while not regarding them as gifts from God to be enjoyed within His constraints and in His timing.
Society's humanist, world-loving mind-set has crept into the church today causing us to be lukewarm toward Christ. Many in the church now take a liberal view of Scripture no longer seeing the Bible as the inerrant, inspired Word of God but just the story of man's search for God. Thus there is less desire to spend time personally studying God's Word. Why waste time reading the Bible if it is just words of men that are subject to interpretation? Why bother to personally study the Bible if it has to be interpreted for you by scholarly theologians to tell us what God really meant by what He said? And why take any of this too seriously since we can't really know if Bible interpreters are just making things up?
If the Bible is not the inspired Word of God then people are free to pick and choose whatever doctrines of men they like. And these dogmas change with the mores of society, causing people to be "carried about with every wind of doctrine" (Ephesians 4:14). The only way to avoid being blown about by society's changing winds of doctrine is to be well grounded in God's Word. And it is not possible to be well grounded in God's Word unless you have a correct view of the Bible as being inspired by God (2 Timothy 3:16).
Another way followers of Christ have allowed love for the world to creep into the church is to embrace the world's concept of evolution which attempts to explain how the creation could come to be without a Creator. Darwinian Evolution is only a theory with no proof but the world has elevated it to the level of scientific truth. If you don't embrace Darwinian Evolution as being the absolute "settled" truth, you are considered by society to be an unscientific hayseed. Nobody wants to be rejected by their peers so this has given rise to followers of Christ figuring out how to fit evolution into their theology.
The idea that God used an evolutionary process to bring about the creation is called Theistic evolution and to believe it requires you to take a pretty liberal view of Scripture. And it joins with the world in rejecting all the scientific evidence that supports the literal Genesis account of creation. Theistic evolution can be considered to be within the pale of orthodoxy because it technically has nothing to do with a person's salvation. But theistic evolution does represent a gross compromise with the world that has contributed to the lukewarmness toward Christ that characterizes this Laodicean Age.
The problem with being lukewarm toward Christ is that one has to wonder if they are truly a child of God or if they are just deceiving themselves. Cultural Christians can talk the talk and walk the walk but don't necessarily have a personal relationship with the Savior. Jesus said He would spew lukewarm Christians out of His mouth in Revelation 3:16. He also said that many who did great things even in His name would find themselves banished from heaven because, "I never knew you" (Matthew 7:21-23). If you are truly seeking a personal relationship with the Savior, it is hard to be lukewarm toward Him.
A key indicator of Christians loving the world is Amillennialism. The idea that the Kingdom of God will only be a spiritual kingdom until the Eternal State is ushered in requires the same spiritualized, liberal view of Scripture that is necessary to embrace Theistic Evolution. The two false doctrines go hand-in-hand and are characteristic of the lukewarm church of this Laodicean Age. It is hard for Christians who take a liberal view of Scripture to get excited about the return of Jesus. If it took millions of years for Jesus to come the first time, it will probably be millions of years before He returns. "Scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts, and saying, 'Where is the promise of His coming?'" (2 Peter 3:3-4).
We are told in 1 John 2:17 why we shouldn't love the world system men are building: this world along with even the passion for it is passing away. Despite the prevailing humanist optimism, people inherently know there is something very broken with this world. No matter what we do, we still have poverty, despair and war in this world. While most still think we can fix these problems through even more collective effort, we have been trying this and things are getting worse rather than better. Those who put their hope in more and more powerful human governments will have their own crisis of faith because the Bible says these efforts will fail.
We can already see the stage being set for the spectacular failure of collective human effort. For example, we have been financing our prosperity by immorally building up debt. National and personal debt is a problem worldwide that has reached monumental proportions. Our collective conscience telling us it is wrong to live beyond our means has been seared. Debt always leads to bondage (Proverbs 22:7) and there will be consequences whether it is individual or national debt. It is increasingly obvious that there is an economic crash coming that will be so bad the world will demand a global government to fix it.
The only true fix for what ails this world is Jesus Christ; He will make a difference collectively to the world when He returns to establish His Millennial Kingdom. But He makes a difference to individuals in the here and now when we allow Him to be in our life as Savior and Lord. And pursuing that relationship enables us to overcome the sin of this Laodicean Age to be resurrected as part of the Bride of Christ when He comes for us prior to the Tribulation that will prepare the world for the Millennial Kingdom.
The good news is that, "he who does the will of God abides forever" (1 John 2:17). The will of God is to trust in Jesus Christ for your salvation (John 6:40). Don't allow yourself to be distracted by allures of creation that would cause you to miss out on a personal relationship with the Creator.
America's prosperity has lured us into idolatry. Collectively, we no longer believe we have been blessed by God to serve His purpose; instead, the conventional wisdom is that we have reached our comfortable position in life through strictly human achievement. There is a general attitude today that we have gotten this far without God, so then there is no problem we can't fix given enough time, funding, and focused human will. This attitude is much the same as it was at the tower of Babel: "Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for ourselves" (Genesis 11:4, NKJV). Babylon is famous for collective human achievement attempting to usurp the role of God.
Now you'd think we wouldn't have an idolatry problem in the Body of Christ, but the Idol of Human Prosperity has a big foothold in the American Church. Jesus rebuked the Church of Laodicea for their being lukewarm toward Him and thinking their worldly wealth equated to spiritual wealth (Revelation 3:14-22). Our prosperity has led American Christians to no longer be on fire for Jesus because we don't depend on Him for our daily needs. We may live in the final Laodicean phase of the Church Age but this doesn't mean we have to succumb to being Laodicean believers ourselves.
Loving the world is a characteristic of not being a child of God. "Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him" (1 John 2:15). In context, "the world" here refers to the system created by society to manage the world. The world system people have collectively created is one that appeals to our natural selfish human nature. If we allow our selfish human nature to be the guide for our lives, we will find ourselves on a path away from God. Our selfish human nature seeks the pleasures of this world, that which is attractive, and that which makes us feel good about ourselves; "For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world" (1 John 2:16).
The three basic sins mentioned in 1 John 2:16 represent all the things that lead us from God. These appeals of the world were the very ones Satan leveraged to tempt Eve in the Garden of Eden and Jesus during His 40-day fast (Genesis 3:6 and Matthew 4:1-11). Society's godless world system is driven by seeking the pleasurable, the attractive, and whatever makes us feel good. God is the Creator of pleasure, attractiveness and all things good. But it is sin to seek these blessings through strictly human efforts while not regarding them as gifts from God to be enjoyed within His constraints and in His timing.
Society's humanist, world-loving mind-set has crept into the church today causing us to be lukewarm toward Christ. Many in the church now take a liberal view of Scripture no longer seeing the Bible as the inerrant, inspired Word of God but just the story of man's search for God. Thus there is less desire to spend time personally studying God's Word. Why waste time reading the Bible if it is just words of men that are subject to interpretation? Why bother to personally study the Bible if it has to be interpreted for you by scholarly theologians to tell us what God really meant by what He said? And why take any of this too seriously since we can't really know if Bible interpreters are just making things up?
If the Bible is not the inspired Word of God then people are free to pick and choose whatever doctrines of men they like. And these dogmas change with the mores of society, causing people to be "carried about with every wind of doctrine" (Ephesians 4:14). The only way to avoid being blown about by society's changing winds of doctrine is to be well grounded in God's Word. And it is not possible to be well grounded in God's Word unless you have a correct view of the Bible as being inspired by God (2 Timothy 3:16).
Another way followers of Christ have allowed love for the world to creep into the church is to embrace the world's concept of evolution which attempts to explain how the creation could come to be without a Creator. Darwinian Evolution is only a theory with no proof but the world has elevated it to the level of scientific truth. If you don't embrace Darwinian Evolution as being the absolute "settled" truth, you are considered by society to be an unscientific hayseed. Nobody wants to be rejected by their peers so this has given rise to followers of Christ figuring out how to fit evolution into their theology.
The idea that God used an evolutionary process to bring about the creation is called Theistic evolution and to believe it requires you to take a pretty liberal view of Scripture. And it joins with the world in rejecting all the scientific evidence that supports the literal Genesis account of creation. Theistic evolution can be considered to be within the pale of orthodoxy because it technically has nothing to do with a person's salvation. But theistic evolution does represent a gross compromise with the world that has contributed to the lukewarmness toward Christ that characterizes this Laodicean Age.
The problem with being lukewarm toward Christ is that one has to wonder if they are truly a child of God or if they are just deceiving themselves. Cultural Christians can talk the talk and walk the walk but don't necessarily have a personal relationship with the Savior. Jesus said He would spew lukewarm Christians out of His mouth in Revelation 3:16. He also said that many who did great things even in His name would find themselves banished from heaven because, "I never knew you" (Matthew 7:21-23). If you are truly seeking a personal relationship with the Savior, it is hard to be lukewarm toward Him.
A key indicator of Christians loving the world is Amillennialism. The idea that the Kingdom of God will only be a spiritual kingdom until the Eternal State is ushered in requires the same spiritualized, liberal view of Scripture that is necessary to embrace Theistic Evolution. The two false doctrines go hand-in-hand and are characteristic of the lukewarm church of this Laodicean Age. It is hard for Christians who take a liberal view of Scripture to get excited about the return of Jesus. If it took millions of years for Jesus to come the first time, it will probably be millions of years before He returns. "Scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts, and saying, 'Where is the promise of His coming?'" (2 Peter 3:3-4).
We are told in 1 John 2:17 why we shouldn't love the world system men are building: this world along with even the passion for it is passing away. Despite the prevailing humanist optimism, people inherently know there is something very broken with this world. No matter what we do, we still have poverty, despair and war in this world. While most still think we can fix these problems through even more collective effort, we have been trying this and things are getting worse rather than better. Those who put their hope in more and more powerful human governments will have their own crisis of faith because the Bible says these efforts will fail.
We can already see the stage being set for the spectacular failure of collective human effort. For example, we have been financing our prosperity by immorally building up debt. National and personal debt is a problem worldwide that has reached monumental proportions. Our collective conscience telling us it is wrong to live beyond our means has been seared. Debt always leads to bondage (Proverbs 22:7) and there will be consequences whether it is individual or national debt. It is increasingly obvious that there is an economic crash coming that will be so bad the world will demand a global government to fix it.
The only true fix for what ails this world is Jesus Christ; He will make a difference collectively to the world when He returns to establish His Millennial Kingdom. But He makes a difference to individuals in the here and now when we allow Him to be in our life as Savior and Lord. And pursuing that relationship enables us to overcome the sin of this Laodicean Age to be resurrected as part of the Bride of Christ when He comes for us prior to the Tribulation that will prepare the world for the Millennial Kingdom.
The good news is that, "he who does the will of God abides forever" (1 John 2:17). The will of God is to trust in Jesus Christ for your salvation (John 6:40). Don't allow yourself to be distracted by allures of creation that would cause you to miss out on a personal relationship with the Creator.
Monday, December 14, 2015
Beastly Infrastructure
With all the things going on in the emerging political season and growing turmoil between nations in the world, it is easy to miss individual developments ratcheting up authoritarian control. For example, China is preparing to institute a "citizenship score" that will be used to determine how qualified a person is to receive government benefits. This citizenship score will go well beyond a credit rating to look at electronic purchasing data, social networks, and other digital sources to measure political compliance.
China has had a problem with the freeing potential of the Internet and has struggled with how to maintain control over their people when they have easy access to ideas and information that conflicts with what they want their people to know. Now it looks like they have figured out how to use data mined from the Internet to force the behaviors they desire. The Chinese government has managed to leverage the Internet to make it part of the ultimate tool of social control.
Leftist in America have long been enamored with the success of China which is rapidly becoming an economic superpower despite their centrally controlled socialist form of government. Many in this country point to China as justification for more centrally controlled social programs here. What America's socialists don't realize is that China's success has come from their government allowing their people to be more like the United States with free market capitalism and private ownership of property. But American-style freedom is really but an illusion in China with significant centralized control still maintained by the government as this plan for a citizenship score demonstrates.
China's new citizenship scoring system will not just look at a person's digital footprint directly but will rate people using the activities of their associates and family members. This brings to mind what Jesus said things would be like for His followers during the Tribulation: "You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, relatives and friends; and they will put some of you to death. And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake" (Luke 21:16-17, NKJV). China's citizenship scoring system will turn everyone into a spy for the government in order to keep their friends and family from adversely impacting their score.
While the Antichrist has not yet come to power, the spirit of Antichrist is preceding him and growing. Something like China's citizenship scoring system will likely be used by the government of the Antichrist to force people to comply with his will. I can just see the Leftist in this country salivating over such a system that takes political correctness to a new level. All we need is a good crisis to implement it... The more impotent our government can be to stem the tide of Islamic terrorism, the more likely the American people will be willing to give up more of their freedom to implement China-style central social controls here. Of course these new powers of the government will not be used just against terrorism, it will morph into a system to squelch any political opposition to the ruling elite.
People don't realize that the freedoms we have enjoyed in America are unique in human history. As our Declaration of Independence states, our human rights are a blessing from God. Throughout history human rulers have defied God to deny people their God-given rights in order to control them. As the United States has collectively turned our backs on God, we will wake up some day to find that God has allowed our freedom to be taken from us. If the people in this country better valued their freedom and understood how true freedom is acquired, we'd have a great revival here. "Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, 'If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free... Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed" (John 8:31, 32, 36).
Our proximity to the Tribulation means that freedom will continue to wane for mankind. As we see the stage being set for our freedoms to be removed in this country, we can only long for the Day Jesus returns for us. When we are resurrected, we will be truly free. And we can also look forward to the Millennial Kingdom when all people on earth will enjoy even more freedom than has been experienced on earth since the Garden of Eden. Come soon Lord Jesus, this world sorely needs You!
China has had a problem with the freeing potential of the Internet and has struggled with how to maintain control over their people when they have easy access to ideas and information that conflicts with what they want their people to know. Now it looks like they have figured out how to use data mined from the Internet to force the behaviors they desire. The Chinese government has managed to leverage the Internet to make it part of the ultimate tool of social control.
Leftist in America have long been enamored with the success of China which is rapidly becoming an economic superpower despite their centrally controlled socialist form of government. Many in this country point to China as justification for more centrally controlled social programs here. What America's socialists don't realize is that China's success has come from their government allowing their people to be more like the United States with free market capitalism and private ownership of property. But American-style freedom is really but an illusion in China with significant centralized control still maintained by the government as this plan for a citizenship score demonstrates.
China's new citizenship scoring system will not just look at a person's digital footprint directly but will rate people using the activities of their associates and family members. This brings to mind what Jesus said things would be like for His followers during the Tribulation: "You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, relatives and friends; and they will put some of you to death. And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake" (Luke 21:16-17, NKJV). China's citizenship scoring system will turn everyone into a spy for the government in order to keep their friends and family from adversely impacting their score.
While the Antichrist has not yet come to power, the spirit of Antichrist is preceding him and growing. Something like China's citizenship scoring system will likely be used by the government of the Antichrist to force people to comply with his will. I can just see the Leftist in this country salivating over such a system that takes political correctness to a new level. All we need is a good crisis to implement it... The more impotent our government can be to stem the tide of Islamic terrorism, the more likely the American people will be willing to give up more of their freedom to implement China-style central social controls here. Of course these new powers of the government will not be used just against terrorism, it will morph into a system to squelch any political opposition to the ruling elite.
People don't realize that the freedoms we have enjoyed in America are unique in human history. As our Declaration of Independence states, our human rights are a blessing from God. Throughout history human rulers have defied God to deny people their God-given rights in order to control them. As the United States has collectively turned our backs on God, we will wake up some day to find that God has allowed our freedom to be taken from us. If the people in this country better valued their freedom and understood how true freedom is acquired, we'd have a great revival here. "Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, 'If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free... Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed" (John 8:31, 32, 36).
Our proximity to the Tribulation means that freedom will continue to wane for mankind. As we see the stage being set for our freedoms to be removed in this country, we can only long for the Day Jesus returns for us. When we are resurrected, we will be truly free. And we can also look forward to the Millennial Kingdom when all people on earth will enjoy even more freedom than has been experienced on earth since the Garden of Eden. Come soon Lord Jesus, this world sorely needs You!
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