Category: Uncategorized

Posted in prophecy, Uncategorized

Release from the ‘Tyranny of the Clock’

Posted on by elizabethprata

Missionary to Vanuatu in the late 1800s, John G. Paton, writing about the death of one of his first native converts in his book Thirty Years Among the South Sea Cannibals, said:

“While staying at Aneityum, I learned with as deep emotion as man ever felt for man, that noble old Abraham, the sharer of my Tannese trials, had during the interval peacefully fallen asleep in Jesus. He left for me his silver watch one which I had myself sent to the dear soul from Sydney, and which he greatly prized. In his dying hour he said, “Give it to Missi, my own Missi Paton; and tell him that I go to Jesus, where Time is dead.”

That converted cannibal had a real and profound grasp of his position in Christ. I have read many times that in heaven sin will be dead, tears will be dead, sorrow will be dead, but I never read anything put quite like that. In heaven, time is dead.

Graphics Fairy

What will it be like when we are never running late? When the good labors we perform stretch endlessly ahead in joy and interest but not in constriction of artificial hours or days? When we don’t have birthdays or appointments? When there is no catching up, falling behind, or getting ahead? Instead, all our tasks and meetings simply unfold perfectly and in a pace that is like the very river of life streaming from the Fount- constant and perfect?

God instituted seasonal time, and He instituted day and night. (Psalm 104:19, Genesis 1:14). He did this for the benefit of man, certainly not because God needed to mark time. He dwells in eternity where it is all time at once. The clock measures time precisely, in specific increments, and this mechanism more than any other has subdued man. The clock at once has inhibited man in his actions and catalyzed man in his actions. I’m late! I’m early! I’m behind! I’m on time- give me a gold star!

The clock segments the teacher’s day. It regulates the inmate’s day. It formulates the train conductor’s, the pilot’s, the bus driver’s day. The clock convicts the chronic tardiness of the employee. The clock dares. The clock monotonizes.

Anarchist George Woodcock wrote in The Tyranny of the Clock,

Socially the clock had a more radical influence than any other machine, in that it was the means by which the regularisation and regimentation of life necessary for an exploiting system of industry could best be attained. The clock provided the means by which time – a category so elusive that no philosophy has yet determined its nature – could be measured concretely in more tangible forms of space provided by the circumference of a clock dial. Time as duration became disregarded, and men began to talk and think always of ‘lengths’ of time, just as if they were talking of lengths of calico. And time, being now measurable in mathematical symbols, became regarded as a commodity that could be bought and sold in the same way as any other commodity.

Sadly he did not know that liberating man from the tyranny of the clock would only enslave him to another device, another machine, another apparatus, whatever it may be. God created time for our benefit and ever since He has been ordaining its orderly progression, despite man’s over-dependence on the clock.

But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. (2 Peter 3:8)

In heaven, time is dead. However without clocks the orderly progression of all things will continue, for God is God of heaven as He is of earth. Our liberation from the tyranny of the clock will free us in ways we can’t even imagine. The old cannibal and new man, Abraham of Vanuatu, knew. He went where time is dead and men are alive. Where there are no clocks but precision is more precise than it has ever been anywhere on earth.

making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. (Ephesians 1:10)

Posted in encouragement, Uncategorized

Do you need encouragement? Read missionary stories

Posted on by elizabethprata

A number of you have said on Facebook or have emailed me that the times are certainly troubling you, and your spirits have wilted in discouragement. I always respond that there are two sure-fire ways to stay encouraged. No, three!

1. Pray always. (1 Thessalonians 5:17). What Does it Mean to Pray Without Ceasing?
2. Stay in the word. Open your Bible and taste. Taste and see that the LORD is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him! (Psalm 34:8)

Those two disciplines keep your eyes on the Lord, which is both being obedient to Him and keeps us in His peace.

3. Listen to great sermons from credible Bible expositors. Hearing the word explained and participating in a joyful exposition is a wonderful way to stay encouraged. I recommend:

Or just tune in online to ReformationNetwork or Expositor.fm for continual, solid teaching and preaching.

I know there are many other preachers and teaches who edify you and me, for example, Alistair Begg, Art Azurdia, and of course my own pastor, who I also recommend, among many others.

I am adding a 4th mechanism to the list. I have been reading missionary biographies and I personally find them extremely encouraging! I hope you do too! For example, John G. Paton’s “Thirty Years Among the South Sea Cannibals” is a tremendous story that shows the difficulty of the spread of the Gospel (only 1 soil in four accepts it), the tribulations of missionaries, their total reliance on Jesus and how their faith increased because of it, their constant heavenward perspective, the beauty and celebration when a soul converts, and much more. Missionary stories humble me, make me grateful, and help me picture heaven

It is the Christ of the Bible which John G. Paton took with him to the New Hebrides Islands in 1858, to witness to the natives among the island group now known as Vanuatu. The book depicts Paton’s mission, a Scottish born man and called to minister to the cannibals of Tanna Island. Landing with his pregnant wife in 1858 he recounts the labors among “painted savages who were enveloped in the superstitions and cruelties of heathenism at its worst.” There’s joy when one native converted, weeping when there is betrayal by tomahawk or war club. Paton’s wife and child died, Paton himself was ill to near death many times from fevers and ague, and most other missionaries were killed outright. His life was threatened daily and the physical work of just staying alive was very trying. Yet Paton persisted lovingly in sharing Jesus’ Gospel with the natives, and also dispensed medicines and education.

Four years later, the natives loving Paton but hating “The Worship and his Jehovah,” caused Island-wide war to break out. He and two remaining missionaries were evacuated off the island. Paton spent some years in Australia and Scotland fundraising for the mission. He returned on the missionary ship Dayspring 4 years later.

There is much more. His personal story does have a happy conclusion. When he and his new wife returned, they re-settled on a different island, and over the course of many years successfully shared the Gospel and the natives were converted.

Here are a few sweet excerpts. Paton’s relationship with his father is beautiful.

that blessed custom of Family Prayer, morning and evening, which my father practised probably with out one single avoidable omission till he lay on his death bed, seventy -seven years of age; when, ever to the last day of his life, a portion of Scripture was read, and his voice was heard softly joining in the Psalm, and his lips breathed the morning and evening Prayer, falling in sweet benediction on the heads of all his children, far away many of them over all the earth, but all meeting him there at the Throne of Grace.

The first of many war scenes, early in the book:

Party after party of armed men going and coming in a state of great excitement, we were informed that war was on foot; but our Aneityumese Teachers were told to assure us that the Harbor people would only act on the defensive, and that no one would molest us at our work. One day two hostile tribes met near our Station ; high words arose, and old feuds were revived. The Inland people withdrew; but the Harbor people, false to their promises, flew to arms and rushed past us in pursuit of their enemies. The discharge of muskets in the adjoining bush, and the horrid yells of the savages, soon informed us that they were engaged in deadly fights. Excitement and terror were on every countenance ; armed men rushed about in every direction, with feathers in their twisted hair, with faces painted red, black, and white, and some, one cheek black, the other red, others, the brow white, the chin blue in fact, any color and on any part, the more grotesque and savage-looking, the higher the art! Some of the women ran with their children to places of safety; but even then we saw other girls and women, on the shore close by, chewing sugar-cane and chaffering and laughing, as if their fathers and brothers had been, engaged in a country dance, instead of a bloody conflict.

The beginning of the end, war breaks out and Paton fled, spending the night high in a tree above marauding cannibals.

Being entirely at the mercy of such doubtful and vacillating friends, I, though perplexed, felt it best to obey. I climbed into the tree, and was left there alone in the bush. The hours I spent there live all before me as if it were but of yesterday. I heard the frequent discharging of muskets, and the yells of the savages. Yet I sat there among the branches, as safe in the arms of Jesus. Never, in all my sorrows, did my Lord draw nearer to me, and speak more soothingly in my soul, than when the moonlight flickered among these chestnut leaves, and the night air played on my throbbing brow, as I told all my heart to Jesus. Alone, yet not alone! If it be to glorify my God, I will not grudge to spend many nights alone in such a tree, to feel again my Saviour’s spiritual presence, to enjoy His consoling fellowship. If thus thrown back upon your own soul, alone, all, all alone, in the mid night, in the bush, in the very embrace of death itself, have you a Friend that will not fail you then?

I also recommend “Gladys Aylward: The Little Woman“. (1930-1947) I loved this book!!!

With no mission board to support or guide her, and less than ten dollars in her pocket, Gladys Aylward left her home in England to answer God’s call to take the message of the gospel to China. With the Sino-Japanese War waging around her, she struggled to bring the basics of life and the fullness of God to orphaned children. Time after time, God triumphed over impossible situations, and drew people to Himself. The Little Woman tells the story of one woman’s determination to serve God at any cost. With God all things are possible! Gladys lived from (1902-1970).

Through Gates of Splendor Kindle Edition by Elisabeth Elliot, 1956

Through Gates of Splendor is the true story of five young missionaries who were savagely killed while trying to establish communication with the Auca Indians of Ecuador. The story is told through the eyes of Elisabeth Elliot, the wife of one of the young men who was killed.

Find some other missionary stories, there are many lists out there of “10 Missionaries every Christian ought to know” and so on. Annie Jenkins Sallee, Lottie Moon, and many other women and men have gone forth. The more modern stories can be heard or read fromDispatches from the Front: Stories of Gospel Advance in the World’s Difficult Places. I am sure that their stories will inspire you and encourage you. We all need some encouragement in these days. I can’t wait to meet Paton, Nate Saint, Lottie Moon, Gladys, and all the rest in heaven!!

You Will Be Eaten by Cannibals! Lessons from the Life of John G. Paton
Courage in the Cause of Missions

Posted in discernment, Uncategorized

Pope Francis believes that the Reformation is over, he’s almost ready to sign public document stating so

Posted on by elizabethprata

THIS is the Christ we love and THIS is the Christ that is preached. Please take two minutes to listen. It’s the backdrop and context for this essay. It’s important.

https://player.vimeo.com/video/158579537?color=a2752e&title=0&byline=0&portrait=0
Shepherds’ Conference Summit on Christology from Grace Community Church on Vimeo.

Since the beginning, satan sends his representatives to pollute and destroy. He began with a serpent and continued with wolves and blossomed his lies into every religion in the world that is not the true faith of the worship of the true Jesus Christ.

Resisting and pointing out idolaters, blasphemers, and wolves has been the business of the Christian since Peter’s day, right through until the moment almost 500 years ago when in Wittenburg Germany, Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door at Castle Church, criticizing various elements of the Catholic dogma as having no foundation in the Bible.

“Pope Francis is convinced that the Reformation is already over”. Source

The attempt to reform the Catholic Church from within proved futile. It ended with a massive split, a gulf between the true Christianity and the false Catholic church. This event is known as The Reformation.

And there the gulf stayed for 450 years. The Protesters became a denomination known as Protestant, and the Catholic stayed Catholic. The gulf seemed fixed and immovable until within the last 40-45 years. John MacArthur noted bridges being built back to Rome in 1973.

More lately, disparate whispers emerged from wide-spread places in Christendom. Masked and wolfish “evangelical” eyes turned toward Rome in increasing volume and quantity. Some evangelicals pilgrimaged there, to kiss the hand that lit the match that burned brethren in former eras. Judases, all.

Most recently, we read in last July’s Catholic Herald that the Pope personally considers the Reformation to be over and is likely about to sign a public document stating so. He has believed this ever since the Lutherans signed the 1999 declaration making clear they no longer disagree over justification by faith. Pope Francis has been pursuing a reversal of the Reformation and reunion with other Protestants ever since. To that end, he has been successful. Now, news emerges of a document that declares the Vatican’s opinion that the Reformation is over. This document, which is not widely known, is called “Declaration of Faith in Unity for Mission.” All it needs is Francis’ signature.

Can Francis overcome decades of antagonism between Catholics and Evangelicals?

Somewhere in Pope Francis’s office is a document that could alter the course of Christian history. It declares an end to hostilities between Catholics and Evangelicals and says the two traditions are now “united in mission because we are declaring the same Gospel”. The Holy Father is thinking of signing the text in 2017, the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, alongside Evangelical leaders representing roughly one in four Christians in the world today.

If you want to know what will make the biggest stride toward the Great Apostasy and who will form the bulk of the greatest false religion on earth, just picture 1.2 billion Catholics with half a billion Pentecostals and Charismatics, along with millions of liberal Evangelicals led by the likes of Rick Warren, Kenneth Copeland and James Robison, Beth Moore, Ann Voskamp, and Rachel Held Evans- all uniting under a false Jesus and declaring a false gospel.

Is the Jesus you’re worshiping “this same Jesus”
of Acts 1:11?The Catholic Herald article I quoted above gives quick recent history of the reversal of the Reformation from Pope Francis’ perspective. I recommend reading it. Though many in America have been perplexed by Protestant leaders’ rapid softening toward Rome, from Pope Francis’ perspective it is no surprise, because he is the one behind it.

For example, in 2014 several “evangelical leaders” which included Kenneth Copeland, James Robison (Beth Moore’s mentor) and Geoff Tunnicliffe, along with Bishop Tony Palmer and Pope Francis, met for three hours in the Vatican, decided to agree on their faiths, and drafted a declaration stating so. This is the “Declaration of Faith in Unity for Mission.” The declaration has three parts:

1. the Nicean-Constantinople Creed, which Catholics and evangelicals share;
2. the core of the Catholic-Lutheran declaration of 1999 making clear there is no disagreement over justification by faith;
3. a section asserting that Catholics and evangelicals are now “united in mission because we are declaring the same Gospel,” (according to Gloria.TV, in an article titled Reformation Anniversary: Dialogue Paper Between the Vatican and Evangelicals?)

It’s that third section that is the most astounding. Catholics and Protestants agree that they are declaring the same Gospel? This is huge. Such a declaration, if signed by leaders of both faiths, would effectively be declaring the Reformation is over –  AND that it was a mistake.

The Catholic Herald again, on how Pope Francis closed the seemingly immovable gulf between the faiths-

When Francis wanted to reach out to Evangelicals after he was elected Pope, he didn’t do the obvious things. He didn’t ask the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity to organise a conference or seek advice from the group Evangelicals and Catholics Together in America – arguably the most advanced such dialogue in the world. Instead, he rang his old friend. During a leisurely meeting at the Vatican, [Tony] Palmer recorded a video of the Pontiff on his iPhone.

Designated an “Apostolic Representative for Christian Unity” by Francis, Palmer took the film to a ministers’ conference in Texas organised by prosperity gospel preacher Kenneth Copeland. Palmer introduced the film with what must count as one of the great Christian orations of the 21st century. “Brothers and sisters, Luther’s protest is over,” he said. He told the audibly stunned audience that he was speaking to them “in the spirit of Elijah”, who prepared the way for something much greater than himself.

Francis then proclaimed that “the miracle of unity has begun”. The audience greeted the video with whooping, laughter and a babble of tongues. Copeland summoned Palmer back on stage to record a reply on his iPhone. The video ended with all the ministers – some of whom may have believed the Pope was a false teacher just minutes earlier – raising their hands and addressing Francis in unison with the cry: “Be blessed!”

Still shots from that national meeting below:

“The Spirit of Elijah is the spirit of reconciliation.” Bishop Palmer,
introducing the Pope’s video message. Source.
They’re already united: in satan.
Yes, but which God?
After the message finished, Copeland led American evangelicals
in a prayer to bless the Pope

Now, with the 500th anniversary of the start of the Reformation looming in October 2017, great strides have been made in destroying the visible faith by a satanic reunification and total reversal of the most important religious movement on earth since the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Will Pope Francis publicly sign the ‘Reformation is over’ document? The Catholic Herald thinks so.

Francis hasn’t given any public sign of whether he will sign the declaration. But he has taken steps that seem to prepare the ground for it.

Meanwhile on our own shores, this disappointing ChurchLeaders.com article breathlessly gurgles an undiscerning excitement that Pope Francis will attend the Washington DC Together2016 event this weekend, by video message-

Having the Pope is certainly a bold move on the part of the evangelical leaders of Together 2016, yet one that makes a clear move toward the unity of all Christians in America. (Source)

The author of that article breathlessly continued to state that the whole Pope-Evangelical thing is “pretty cool”.

In one sense, the “leaders” who have been promoting this hellish union with Rome, such as Rick Warren, SBC’s Russell Moore and Ronnie Floyd, Joel Osteen, James Robison, Kenneth Copeland, Ravi Zacharias (is there any ecumenical gatheiring he won’t attend?), Michael W. Smith, Mark Batterson among others, (and most of tho men I just listed will be attending the ecumenical event this weekend), are already united with Rome.

There are only two faiths. The faith with satan at the head and the universal Christian church of saints, led by Jesus Christ. There IS a gulf fixed between the two, and anyone partnering with Rome to declare that they share the same Gospel is not of the faith of Jesus Christ. It’s one, or the other.

This next part is for ladies. Sisters, we have been warning you about the dangers of many of these liberal/mystical/ecumenical “teachers” for a long time, many of whom are participating in the upcoming Together2016 event this weekend. These are women such as Lindsey Nobles, Jennie Allen, (IF:gathering,) Christine Caine, (Propel Women, A21 campaign), Ann Voskamp (Romantic Panentheist and Mystical Romanticist).

Again and again not to partake of the evil fruit these women produce. That these Pope-friendly women are partnering at an ecumenical event, buying into the Pope’s unification agenda, is to turn their backs on millions of martyrs who cried out to the Lord for mercy on their tormenters. It’s to ignore the dark history where the shining Gospel was twisted, perverted, and suppressed- usually at the end of a sword. It should be the clarion signal that these women have nothing to offer you, nothing, not even one single tiny seemingly insignificant scripture quote you repeat on Facebook. Do not follow these women.

Catholic Philly reports that Lead organizer of Together 2016 and founder of PULSE, a youth campus ministry, Nick Hall, had a two-hour meeting with the pope on June 9. Hall told CNS he spoke to the pope about the event and spent time in prayer with him. Together2016 is at root, a Popish event, a ploy with an antichrist agenda. Don’t buy it and avoid every single person associated with it.

Christianity is therefore the absolute religion, the only, essential, true religion. It tolerates no other religions as of almost equal worth and worthiness alongside itself. It is, according to its nature, intolerant, even as the truth at all times is and must be intolerant with respect to the untruth. It will not be satisfied with being the first of the religions, but it claims to be the only, true, full religion, which has absorbed and fulfilled all that is true and good in other religions. Christ is not a man alongside of others, but He is the Son of Man, who be the resurrection was declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the Spirit of Holiness, and received from the Father a name above every name, so that in that name every knee should bow and every tongue confess, that He is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Herman Bavinck, The Sacrifice of Praise, p. 67

The closing of the gap between (falsely) professing Protestant and Catholic is rapidly upon us. Yet the true Protestant is still protesting. We are still declaring the faith in THIS SAME JESUS (Acts 1:11) who ministered and came to seek and save the lost. True Protestants know that our salvation is-

  • by faith alone. Sola Fide,
  • by Scripture alone. Sola Scriptura,
  • through Christ alone. Solus Christus,
  • by grace alone. Sola Gratia,

and that the glory is

  • glory to God alone. Soli Deo Gloria.
Posted in discernment, Uncategorized

Update on Kings Kaleidoscope: Their use of the F-word in the new album

Posted on by elizabethprata

On July 2 I’d mentioned in the occasional Potpourri essay that I post, I’ve been enjoying a Christian band called Kings Kaleidoscope. I’d written,

For those of you, like me, who despair of ever finding current music that’s doctrinal and treats Biblical subjects appropriately, here is a new musical group I can recommend. Kings Kaleidoscope is a faith-based alternative band based in Seattle, Washington. As their Wiki says, they style themselves as a band “sporting a variety of influences from math rock and hip-hop to the dense sound of Canadian indie outfit Broken Social Scene”. They have released 8 EPs since 2011. You can find them on all the usual places such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and also Spotify, iTunes, SoundCloud, Pandora, etc. My favorite songs are Grace Alone, and their How Deep cover. The album graphics are terrific, too.

I can’t recommend them any more. In their new album released July 1, they used the F-word several times in their song “A Prayer”.

Their decision to use the most base vulgarity has split their fans, and has sparked debate and arguments from Youtube to Reddit. The immature defend the band’s use of profanity, saying the song in context ‘speaks to them’ and that ‘they can relate.’

However the more biblical fans rejoin that Ephesians 4:29 commands us,

Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.

It’s hard to defend the F-word as a word that gives grace. In addition, Matthew 15:18 says,

But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person.

Who can stand to listen to profanity of this sort in the same song that lauds Jesus? Who can sing along to such a song? Who wants to expose the younger children in the car or in the room who will hear it? Who would ever want to sing this song in church or at a church-oriented event? Why do they think this is OK?

In researching the band for the previous blog essay, I had seen that the band was formed in 2010 by singer/songwriter Chad Gardner, in a Mars Hill Church plant on the campus of the University of Washington, where Gardner was a worship leader. Uh-oh. Bells went off but I’d hoped for the best. Their music up to now has been stunning and doctrinal.

However, the Young, Restless, Reformed movement shepherded by immature hipster bad boy pastors has had a devastating influence on not just the congregations within its walls, but all modes of church culture, and the generations that have come after. Music has suffered, too. It’s a shame that Kings Kaleidoscope made the decision that they did. One would not expect to see the following warning on a Christian band’s page:

Here is an article about it:

The Use of the “F” Word Has Raised Concerns Over Kings Kaleidoscope’s New Album

We just want purity, holiness, and something, anything, to enjoy that’s undefiled in this polluted world. Kings Kaleidoscope, you disappoint.

———————————————–
Further Reading

Beer, Bohemianism, and True Christian Liberty

‘Gimmicks over gospel’: Group draws flak for using tattoos, booze to raise funds for planting new church

Perry Noble and Highway to Hell

Posted in discernment, Uncategorized

The number of true Christians seems to be small among a swollen Church, therefore, examine yourself

Posted on by elizabethprata

We love God because, “God does not do many things that he can, but he does all things that he will.” (George Swinnock).

One of the things He can do is wipe out humanity. He was grieved with us in Genesis before the flood. But He did not erase us from the earth. He CAN do it. He did not. He preserved a remnant, Noah and his family. He always preserved a remnant of His people the Jews.

It is promised, “A remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God.” (Isaiah 10:21). There was a remnant returning from the Babylonian captivity. A remnant of 7000 was preserved when Elijah killed the false prophets of Baal when he thought he was the only one left.

But I want to bring another thought to your mind. Christians are a remnant too. We know the multitudes which are His bride will be singing praises to Him after the Rapture. We read passages like this “And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!” (Rev 5:13) and think, ‘Wow!’ Lots of Christians!’ While it is so in heaven, the number on earth is not as large as we think.

The odds are not good for making into Christianity. We know that the road is narrow and FEW FIND IT. (Mt 7:14). The road to destruction is broad and MANY FOLLOW IT. (Mt 7:13). We know that Jesus said,

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’” (Matthew 7:21-23)

Are you getting the picture? Many/Few. It is a theme. How many righteous did Abraham ask the LORD to find in Sodom? “He answered, “For the sake of ten, I will not destroy it.” (Gen 18:32b). But it ended up there were less than ten. So four cities were destroyed that day: Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim. And of the four that were found to be righteous, Lot, Mrs Lot, and the two daughters, one of the four was revealed to be a false righteous and was turned into a pillar of salt.

There seems to be a lot of us but we can’t accept just any old profession of faith. Many faithless have grown up among us, the Judas’ and Demas’ among us are alive and well.

Christians on earth are a remnant. I say ‘on earth’ because if we add the multitudes of aborted babies, infant and child deaths throughout the ages, this swells it be number in heaven considerably! But on earth, perhaps not so many true Christians.

My reason for bringing this up is that my heart and life’s blood beats in yearning that every person who believes himself to be a Christian examine him or herself to see if you are in the faith!

Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test! (2 Cor 13:5)

Here is an essay that helps you test yourself and see if you bear the distinguishing marks of being a Christian.

“Examine Yourself”

Of those that fail to meet the test, there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers, and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear. (Mt 13:41-43)

I want to sing with you in heaven, and I do not want to see you thrown into outer darkness, weeping and gnashing your teeth, screaming, LORD, LORD did I not do many mighty works in your name? And He will say to you, I never knew you, depart from me you evildoers!

Are you in the remnant??? Praise Jesus if you are. Let His light of glory shine in you and through you. Let us give it all back to Him in thanks for salvation which He delivers through grace plus nothing. No works of ours, mighty or mild, will earn us heaven. But believe on the Son whom the Father sent, and ye shall be saved.

Posted in discernment, Uncategorized

Founder Perry Noble fired from NewSpring Church

Posted on by elizabethprata

Perry Noble, the 20-year veteran of his own church plant, and senior pastor of largest church in South Carolina, was fired on July 1, and the news was released to the congregation in a statement today.

At the 9:15 am service at the main campus of NewSpring Church in Anderson SC, this morning executive pastor Shane Duffy read the prepared statement outlining the fact of the firing and the reasons therefor.

1. Perry’s posture towards marriage,
2. Increased reliance on alcohol,
3. Other behaviors,
4. Refusal to correct

The issues were apparently a problem over many months, and the elders had met with Noble to address them several times, as per the process outlined in Matthew 18. The issues were “ongoing” and of “continual concern.” However, Noble “chose not to address these ongoing issues and didn’t take the necessary steps toward correcting them…”

The firing was laid under the verses in 1 Timothy 3 regarding qualifications as pastor/overseer. Duffy said that though there are many who are curious as to details, no further details would be forthcoming as they would not be helpful to the Noble family or the church.

God outlined standards for Christians in holy living. He laid out standards for behavior for men, women, families, youths, and children. He also laid out standards for pastors, and these are qualifications for the job. 1 Timothy 3 begins with a warning- it’s not going to be easy.

The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task.

The original Greek word in the verse for ‘noble’ is kalos and it’s defined in Strong’s this way:

beautiful, as an outward sign of the inward good, noble, honorable character; good, worthy, honorable, noble, and seen to be so.

Because the office of overseer is mightily associated with Jesus’ name and care of His sheep, who He loves, the standards clearly state that the pastor must be “above reproach.” (1 Tim 3:2). Many people in today’s liberal and forgiving Christianity claim that no one is above reproach and no one is perfect, wrongly overlooking that portion of the verse’s command. However the standards for pastors do not command the man to be perfect, but to be:

  • the husband of one wife,
  • sober-minded,
  • self-controlled,
  • respectable,
  • hospitable,
  • able to teach,
  • not a drunkard,
  • not violent but gentle,
  • not quarrelsome,
  • not a lover of money.
  • He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church?
  • He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil.
  • Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil.

A man who is all of those things is above reproach. No it’s not easy but it is achievable, as witnessed by the thousands and millions of congregants all across the world who see their own pastors meet these qualifications daily.

Though the news about this unfortunate debacle has focused on the alcohol problem Noble apparently has been having, I would like to point out that the first issue the Executive Pastor mentioned was “his posture toward his marriage”.

I would also like to remind the reader that Noble failed to correct or even take steps to work on these problems, belying an unrepentant heart, no matter what Noble put in his own statement and will say in the future. Perhaps he thought he was too big to fire.

I’d like to further point out that though it is good that the elders took the Bible’s moral qualifications seriously, for too long they ignored the Bible’s doctrinal commands for pastors to “be able to teach” and to teach what accords with sound doctrine (Titus 2:1).

Noble has not taught sound doctrine for a while. For example he has been giving sermons based on personal revelations, he opened the Easter service several years ago with the demonic song from AC/DC Highway to Hell, he’s been mentoring and promoting Steven Furtick, a known idolater and blasphemer, and displaying other troubling doctrinal errors.

Perhaps most troublesome is Noble’s refusal to submit himself to his peers and elders who were trying to help him correct his behavior. Rebelling against authority indicates a sinful heart and an impenitent attitude. This was seen even as long ago as 2009 when Noble was called out for the Easter Service Highway to Hell service, and Noble said not only was he not sorry but he would do it again, and better. Sadly these kind of behaviors were seen in other fallen mega-church pastors such as Tullian Tchividjian, Mark Driscoll, and Bob Coy.

Paul goes on in his letter to Titus about why it’s important to be a noble overseer.

Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, dignity, 8and sound speech that cannot be condemned, so that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us. (Titus 2: 7-8)

And there is the rub. Overseers who fail the biblical pastoral qualifications doctrinally and/or morally, bring reproach into Jesus and give the devil opportunity to malign the faith. This is big. While I never enjoy seeing a man lose his job, and I hate that Noble and his family are in pain, I rejoice that he is removed, for the sake of the spotless name of Jesus. Jesus as the head of the church must always be lifted up as the leader and commander, the author and finisher of the faith. He leads this church. While He has given us some latitude, He does have qualifications for pastors because they are His representatives. It is not harsh to say a pastor must be removed who fails the standards. We do this every day without a second thought in secular jobs in every realm. It is good that Noble was fired.

Doctrinal error is usually the first indicator of inward sin. A man can hide his drinking from his congregation, and apparently Noble did. A pastor’s attitude toward his marriage can be a secret, and for Noble it was, for a while. But when a pastor preaches unsound doctrine, it’s a signal that something is very wrong. That’s why though firing Perry Noble for moral reasons is scriptural (1 Timothy 3:2-3), but I wish churches would take doctrinal error as seriously (Titus 1:9). In fact, Noble should have been removed a long time ago.

In any case, this is a lesson to pray for your pastors. This is a warning to be in the Word so that if something is amiss from the pulpit you will know it. By all means, remember that no one is immune from sin and pastors are often the first target.

So the one who thinks he is standing firm should be careful not to fall. (1 Corinthians 10:12)

Posted in encouragement, Uncategorized

The Purple of Modesty

Posted on by elizabethprata
beach gear
beach gear. source pixabay, free to use

We’re in the middle of summer here in the northern hemisphere, it’s hot. Women wear clothes that are lighter, shorter, less. What of modesty?

As I go along in sanctification I’m struck by hems. Hems of shorts and skirts and necklines of shirts- the difference between a Christian woman’s and an unsaved woman’s. I’m offended by cleavage and too much leg. And men- are your skinny jeans too tight?

This is an age-old problem. Men and women were always ready to display their bodily wares, so as to entice. But the true woman clothes herself in dignity, not lasciviousness.
Continue reading “The Purple of Modesty” →

Posted in encouragement, Uncategorized

The tendency to want to usurp God, and how to stop doing it

Posted on by elizabethprata

and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. (1 John 4:3)

There are only two kinds of people. There are those with the Holy Spirit in them, given because in God’s grace, someone whom the Spirit had drawn to Jesus repented of their sins and confessed Jesus is Lord.

All other people who have not confessed Jesus as Lord are operating under the lordship of satan, with the antichrist spirit in them. Satan said he wants to be like the Most High, usurp Him from His throne and sit there instead. (Isaiah 14:13-15). All people under satan living in their flesh want to do the same.

final
Top, Gerard Julien Getty Images. Bottom, Michaelangelo,Sistine Chapel

Continue reading “The tendency to want to usurp God, and how to stop doing it” →

Posted in encouragement, Uncategorized

In the aftermath of tragedy, we must be about the Father’s business

Posted on by elizabethprata
No, we are not good.

We awaken to this today:

How can this happen, people wonder. It happens because of sin. Man is born a sinner, and it is only God’s common grace that retrains a man from murdering every day. However, God’s restraining grace is lifted as He abandons a nation. I wrote about that yesterday.

So, man turns to false religion to help him restrain the evil in him. But this does not work, either. The harder man tries, the more he fails.

“False religion cannot restrain sin in the heart, although it can mask it with self-righteousness.” Principles of God’s Judgment

When an individual or a nation resists the Law, the conscience, and common grace in creation long enough, God gives them over to the lusts of their heart.

“God will abandon sinners to their own choices and the consequences of those choices. And just what is this abandoning act on God’s part, it is the removal of restraining grace. It is when God lets go and turns a society over to its own sinful freedoms and the results of those freedoms. No Scripture more directly confronts this abandonment and its consequences than Romans 1 does.” When God Abandons a Nation

In Romans 1:18-32,

Three times you have the statement, “God gave them over.” This term paradidomiin the Greek can have a judicial sense. It can be used of a judgment made on a criminal who was then handed over for punishment. Each of these phrases expresses the fact that the wrath of God has acted judicially to sentence sinners. It is God officially giving them over. It is God letting them go to the uninterrupted cause and effect their sinful choices produce. When this judgment falls, there is a depriving of restraining grace and sin runs rampant through a society. When God Abandons a Nation

And false religion includes the atheist and agnostic, the ‘no-choice’ person, because those are just religion of self. This is why we need Jesus, all people do. The sin of man is inherent in his heart and only Him from above who is without stain can resolve our sin problem. All men need the Gospel.

The Gospel is not “having purpose in your life”. It is not “accepting Jesus” or praying a prayer. The Gospel which everyone needs is good news, as Ligonier explains:

“The gospel is called the ‘good news’ because it addresses the most serious problem that you and I have as human beings, and that problem is simply this: God is holy and He is just, and I’m not. And at the end of my life, I’m going to stand before a just and holy God, and I’ll be judged. And I’ll be judged either on the basis of my own righteousness–or lack of it–or the righteousness of another. The good news of the gospel is that Jesus lived a life of perfect righteousness, of perfect obedience to God, not for His own well being but for His people. He has done for me what I couldn’t possibly do for myself. But not only has He lived that life of perfect obedience, He offered Himself as a perfect sacrifice to satisfy the justice and the righteousness of God.”

“The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” (Mark 1:15)

The sad truth is, that as we awaken to news of a cold-blooded massacre in Dallas where snipers shot 11 police officers, some at point blank range, man is not good. This is not an anomaly. The man who shot the elementary students at Sandy Hook, the man who shot the movie-goers in the theater in Colorado, the who shot the homosexual club-goers in Orlando … THIS is man. Continue reading “In the aftermath of tragedy, we must be about the Father’s business” →

Posted in prophecy, Uncategorized

Is America under judgment?

Posted on by elizabethprata
Seven years ago I wrote in an email,

Obama is in Cairo today and he gave his friendly speech to the Muslim people. The unprecedented excitement prior to Obama’s arrival reached a fever pitch when shops began selling pendants labeled “Obama – new Tutankhamen of the world.“

Other news articles go on to decry how inappropriate it is to call a US President a messiah or king. However, any Christian who knows their bible knows that King Tut was a Pharaoh, and Pharaoh was one of the most evil rulers in the Old Testament! (Book of Exodus)

President Obama claims he is a Christian, yet he has reneged on his campaign promises. He says he is a Christian yet his Notre Dame speech on abortion was positively chilling. He says he is a Christian yet he promotes the gay lifestyle and all its attendant perversities: did you know that Obama proclaimed June Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender month? No…Obama is looking more like Pharaoh all the time.

In the bible, God judged Pharaoh harshly because of Pharaoh’s insistence in doing things his way instead of God’s way, and that after seeing the proof of God’s miraculous judgments throughout the land. I do not know what God will do, of course, but I do know America is ripe for judgment. I think it is highly interesting that the Egyptian people are calling Obama a Pharaoh. And as a real Christian, the last person I’d want to be compared to is Pharaoh.”

“America seems ripe for judgment”… The discerners of the church body have been saying ‘judgment in America’ for a while. I know I have since 2007-2008. In 2010 I’d written that America seemed to have passed the “point of no return. Before the Economic Crash of 2008, all had been going along like it had been in this country. America was strong and mighty and seemingly invincible. Warning that judgment was coming soon was met with strange looks and shaking of heads. No brimstone was falling, after all. Just because we don’t see brimstone falling from the sky does not mean we as a nation are not experiencing judgment.

Many people think of judgment as the kind that occurred at Sodom and Gomorrah: brimstone from the sky and obliteration of the entire city. (Genesis 19:24). And that IS one kind of judgment.

Bible Fact: There are 13 mentions of brimstone (sulfur) in the Bible. Six mentions are in the Old Testament. Seven mentions are in the New Testament. Of the 7 mentions of brimstone in the NT, six are in Revelation.

The wrath of God is not one-dimensional. There are in fact many different kinds of wrath that God displays. Hosea 5:12 says “He is as a moth to Ephraim or or dry rot to Judah”, working silently and invisibly. In his 2012 sermon “When God Abandons a Nation“, John MacArthur outlined five distinct kinds of wrath the Lord has displayed throughout the Bible.

1. Eternal wrath: that is the punishing eternal, judgment God brings upon sinners in their death.
2. Eschatalogical wrath: God’s stored-up anger unleashed at the end of this present age upon the world, promised by Old Testament saints, outlined at length in Jesus’ Olivet Discourse, and seen unfolding through Revelation.
3. Cataclysmic wrath: These are tsunamis, hurricanes, earthquakes, etc., the result of sin and the curse upon the world.
4. Consequential wrath: this is a person receiving the just due for their actions while on earth, the sowing and reaping.
5. Abandonment: This is the wrath seen in Romans 1:18-32. MacArthur preached, “God will abandon sinners to their own choices and the consequences of those choices. And just what is this abandoning act on God’s part, it is the removal of restraining grace. It is when God lets go and turns a society over to its own sinful freedoms and the results of those freedoms. No Scripture more directly confronts this abandonment and its consequences than Romans 1 does.”

A Hillary Clinton presidency would be a Jezebel judgment in my opinion.

MacArthur said in that 2012 sermon that “It’s pretty convincing that God has abandoned our nation.” God has done so in the past to other nations, many times. InHosea 4:17 it is recorded that God said, “Ephraim is joined unto idols, let him alone.” America isn’t special that we should not expect the same treatment as other rebellious nations when we abandon Him.

In Acts 14:16, the Apostle Paul said, “In the generations gone by, He…God…permitted all the nations to go their own way.” This is the story of history. All the nations of history go their own way. So like the nations of old, like the nations past, we follow the same cycle of having the truth, rejecting the truth and being abandoned by God. ~MacArthur

Can you think of a worse wrath than for God to leave you alone? Whether He is abandoning you as an individual or as a nation, it is a deeply disturbing thought. In Romans 1:18-32,

Three times you have the statement, “God gave them over.” This term paradidomiin the Greek can have a judicial sense. It can be used of a judgment made on a criminal who was then handed over for punishment. Each of these phrases expresses the fact that the wrath of God has acted judicially to sentence sinners. It is God officially giving them over. It is God letting them go to the uninterrupted cause and effect their sinful choices produce. When this judgment falls, there is a depriving of restraining grace and sin runs rampant through a society. (Source)

I’ve been thinking about the real possibility of a woman for president. I am working through the Bible to determine what its stance is on women in political leadership. Queen Esther was a queen, but she didn’t lead and had no influence. Queen Jezebel led, and she did have influence- evil influence. In this life, we have seen successful women leaders in Queen Elizabeth 1, Golda Meir, Margaret Thatcher… Since God ordains leaders for His purposes, He allowed those female leaders to serve His inscrutable purposes by leading for a time. Yet in the Bible we read in Isaiah 3:12 that it is a national shame for a woman to lead, My people—infants are their oppressors, and women rule over them. Barak begged Deborah to accompany him on the military campaign and she said OK but it will be a shame to the men. (Judges 4:9).

I see the political pundits saying that a Trump presidency would be a judgment upon America, but what about a Hillary presidency, a female president? That would also be a judgment, I believe. A Jezebel judgment.

Do the people of a nation under the wrath of abandonment know it is happening when it is happening? Non-believers don’t of course, and even most believers don’t. But the Prophets certainly did, and it was a deep lament to them.

Cut off your hair and throw it away; take up a lament on the barren heights, for the LORD has rejected and abandoned this generation that is under his wrath. (Jeremiah 7:29)

I’ve sensed for a while that America was under judgment, as I mentioned at the start. So have a lot of other people. Some who have a pulpit occasionally use it to calm their flocks and re-orient them to a biblical perspective.

To that end, at specific points in his 47-year pastorate at Grace Community Church, John MacArthur would do this. My opinion is that he is a man like the men of Issachar, as 1 Chronicles 12:32 describes, “men who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do;” and as Treasury of Scripture describes, “intelligent men, who understood the signs of the times, well versed in political affairs, and knew what was proper to be done in all the exigencies of human life”.

These culturally-focused sermons have struck a chord with me at the few times he used the pulpit this way. They have helped me make sense of what is happening around me in terms of God’s sovereignty and His ordained plan. There is a lot to think about with this Fall’s Presidential election. Phil Johnson has been vocal about the two main party candidates. As recently as this week he said on Facebook that Donald Trump is an inveterate narcissist and a shameless adulterer, and the other candidate, Hillary Clinton, is a pathological liar with a Jezebel complex, and that both are blatant antichrists and utter moral reprobates. Wow.

With just under 4 months to go, any Christian with a pulse must be thinking hard about our election quandary and the future of our nation. My friend Landon Chapman said, quoting Jerry Bridges:

Historically, God has not spared the righteous when He judges a nation (though He is well able to do so if He chooses, see Exodus 9: 5-7). – Jerry Bridges

A sobering thought. Even though brimstone is not falling, if the moths have been at work and for example, if we are attacked by an eager enemy, the righteous die under the bombs and fallout just as much as the unrighteous. So I list these helpful, biblically re-orienting sermons so that perhaps if you listen, you might yourself become re-oriented to God’s word and take hope in our future and live in peaceably in His joy. Abandonment leaves a vacuum, and we already see the enemy horde from the spiritual realms advancing with maniacal glee to take up ramparts.

Iowa: Push to apply transgender laws to churches
California: A state bill intended to restrict Christian colleges and schools from discriminating on the grounds of sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression.

The above two bills are serious and if passed, impacts could be widespread with a cascading negative effect on all American churches and Christian colleges. It’s coming. Therefore, I offer these cultural/biblical sermons for your consideration. They have all helped me, some more than once. I hope they help you as well.

And so, we are under His wrath. That brings the question…is there any hope? Is there any hope for this country, for any society in this condition? Well, I will take you to a passage of Scripture that gives us hope. Turn in your Bible to the Psalms, and I want you to look at this, Psalm 81…Psalm 81 because this cycle is a constantly visible cycle in history, going on all the time. It has happened before in Israel. It is happening even now in Israel. Many generations of the Jewish people, God’s chosen people for a future redemption, many generations have gone through this cycle, rejecting the true God, rationalizing about their condition, inventing complex religion, descending. Is there any hope for them in the future? Is there any hope for the western world? For any nation in the world? For us?

This is not about politics, although there are things we could talk about. You’re not voting for a pastor, you’re not voting for a spiritual leader, you’re voting for someone who has some sense of morality. Since the Bible says that the role of government is to punish evil doers and protect the good, you better have somebody in power who understands what is good and what is evil.

2012: Homosexuality and the Campaign for Immorality

One of the parties, the Democratic Party, has now made Romans 1, the sins of Romans 1, their agenda. What God condemns, they affirm. What God punishes, they exalt. Shocking, really. The Democratic Party has become the anti-God party, the sin-promoting party.

2015: We Will Not Bow

A lot is happening at a very rapid rate. And with all the discussion that’s been going on, I’ve been kind of eager to get to you, and maybe help to give you a perspective. … This nation, at its highest level, has taken a position against God. Such blasphemous rebellion is energized—it is energized by the corruption of the collection of sinful hearts, which make up this nation or any nation. There’s no question about that.

My friend Greg Flowers summarized the next two sermons this way: “Pastor John emphasized the nation’s need to respect the law of God to prevent its own destruction, and declared God’s standards as the only standards by which a nation is measured. While acknowledging Christians’ inability to bring an entire nation to worship at the Master’s feet, MacArthur stressed the fundamental need to see the one true God elevated above all other gods.”

2016: Who is God’s Candidate? Part 1

My good friend Iain Murray said this: “A secular state is a lie. Government is a divine institution. The powers that be are ordained of God.” America likes to talk about the separation of church and state. Of course, our constitution doesn’t say that. But the separation of church and state, which is now the new perspective that dominates everything is essentially paving the way for the death of a society.

2016: Who is God’s Candidate? Part 2

The truth of the matter is God has requirements for all rulers, all those who have authority over people, and it’s laid out in Scripture. … I told you that all people in all nations were created in the image of God for His glory, so no one is exempt – no person is exempt, no family is exempt, no society is exempt, no nation is exempt, no race is exempt, no ethnic group is exempt from being responsible to acknowledge God and glorify Him. All people who are created, were created in the image of God for His glory.

The day is sobering and the times are troubling. We all strive to display the joy of Christ in our daily life, to persevere in and aura of hope and peace. We know to be gentle and humble, and to love our friend, neighbor and enemy. But there is no doubt that the times demand of us a careful attention to the Bible and its paths, more than ever in fact. We don’t like to be downers but we also don’t ignore the fact that we are living in difficult times that are on the precipice of being massively more difficult soon. We know that God created each person on earth specifically and for a specific purpose in their era. If I am here now, for just such a time as this, what can I do to both advance the kingdom like I’m supposed to, and also prepare for the times ahead? We must do our diligence to lift Jesus’ name to the highest with all our strength, soul, mind, and heart.

The wrath of abandonment