Wordle art
Paris under red alert, train derailment. What’s up with all the train derailments?
July 12: Paris France
French Official: 7 Dead In Paris Train Derailment
July 12 Seattle, Washington, USA
Train derails in Oregon; leak called not hazardous
July 6: Lac-Megantic, Quebec, Canada
Canada train disaster: Blast missing ‘probably dead’
Oil train derails and explodes in Quebec, leveling part of town
May 28, Baltimore MD
A rollback truck and train collided in Rosedale on May 28, causing a derailment and thunderous explosion felt miles away.
May 17: Connecticut USA
The derailment and crash of a Metro-North commuter train injured 76 people.
The question was asked on June 19 by CBS New York:
Why So Many Derailments In The Tri-State Area Lately? Expert Weighs In
““A lot of the railcars are old. A lot of the track system is old. A lot of the communication to the signals are older than we would like,” Paaswell said. “The cure to that is more money.””
Old. Worn out. The earth is dying, you know.
These tragedies are going to happen more frequently as the infrastructure ages and money is short. We have seen bridge collapses, bus accidents, train accidents and recently, a plane accident.
The point is:
1. Expect more tragedies in increasing number and frequency.
2. Please pray for First Responders. They truly are on the front lines, and with incessant budget cuts, towns and cities are strapped. More people are doing more with less. These people who respond are real people, viewing increasingly large and incomprehensible tragedies. The explosion in Quebec was horrific. It leveled a lot of the town, 2000 people had to be evacuated, the fires burned for days. I can’t imagine the trauma to a person who has to see these things, pry charred wood up from homes in looking for bones and bodies.
These are real men and women who serve an increasingly dying world. It’s hard. They need prayer.
Another Jesus: an example of defective Christology
The truth is that there is “this same Jesus” (Acts 1:11) and there is “another Jesus”. (2 Cor 11:4).
I’ve explained before that there are a great many people who claim Jesus who are not saved. This is because they claim another Jesus, not this same Jesus as revealed in the bible.
We read the bible and we read its theology, its history, its poetry…and then we go on with our day, never making a practical application from what we just read as to our church’s theology, our personal history, our poetic hymnody and music. But we must make practical application. Jesus is too important and false doctrine and false teachers who bring these teachings are too destructive.
So what is meant by ‘another Jesus’ as stated in 2 Corinthians 11? Satan is very seductive. John MacArthur explains ‘another Jesus’ in his sermon on the Corinthians verse, titled “Christian Loyalty, Part 2“
“They identified somehow with Jesus, the name Jesus, but it was a different Jesus. … They had somehow invented another Jesus. You have to listen so carefully because Satan is so seductive. They talk about Jesus. They love Jesus. Jesus is the Savior. But it’s not the true Jesus.”
HOW is it not the true Jesus? Look how hard it is sometimes to unearth the seeming follower’s different Jesus — MacArthur continued:
“I said to the Mormon man that I met with, I said, “I want you to tell me who Jesus is.”You love Jesus.” “They said yes.
“You believe Jesus is your Savior.” Yes.
“You believe Jesus died on the cross.” Yes.
“You believe He died a substitute for your sins on the cross?” Yes.
“You believe that salvation comes by faith in the death of Jesus on the cross?” Yes.
“You believe that’s gracious of God to give you that?” Yes.
“You believe Jesus bore your sin in His own body on the cross?” Yes.
I said, “That’s…that’s true, that’s all accurate.”
“You sing praises to Jesus, you long to serve Him, you love Him?” They said yes.
I said, “Who is Jesus?”
“They said Jesus is the created spirit child of God.”
I said, “That’s another Jesus, that’s not the Jesus that we preach.”
Let’s go to the scene in Matthew 16:13-18a. It is very important in considering one’s Christology. It all boils down to the question: “Who is Christ?”
“Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church…”
Jesus did not congratulate the ones who said, ‘You are John the Baptist’, saying, ‘Yup! Pretty close! Come on up and stand with me on the Rock.’ He didn’t affirm the ones who said He was Elijah, inviting them to come on in. He didn’t bless the ones who said ‘You are Jeremiah or a prophet.’ He said that the one who said He is ‘the Christ, the Son of the living God’ is blessed. Note, “THE Christ. The one and only. Belief is a bull’s eye and a bull’s eye only. If you’re off on who Christ is, you’re off on everything.
Finally, He told Peter that Peter understood this fact because the Spirit had revealed it to him.
If you know who Christ is, THE Christ, you have the Spirit, because only the Spirit reveals these things. If you claim another Christ, you do not have the Spirit.
Paul said in 2 Corinthians 11:4 that
“For if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it readily enough.”
–Note Paul said ‘if someone comes…’ but remember that Teachers, Pastors, and Disciples AKA Believers are sent. (Matthew 28:19). Believers are sent in Christ’s authority but the false professors come in their own authority.
–Note Paul said ‘proclaims another Jesus’- indicating it was already happening in 60 AD, an no less from the people that Paul, a first generation witness to the risen Christ, had personally taught!
–Note Paul said they will proclaim this other Jesus ‘by another spirit’, not the Holy Spirit.
Christianity has standards for including believers into it. Non-believers and in some cases even non-members of a particular church may NOT partake of The Lord’s Supper at Communion. (1 Corinthians 11:27-29; 1 Corinthians 10:16). Only believers may be baptized. (Romans 6:3-4). Christianity has commands and is exclusive, separate, and distinctive. Jesus said that His sword of truth is so precise it will divide son from father, mother from daughter. (Matthew 10:34-36). We should not accept anyone and everyone as a brother in the faith simply on the basis their surface proclamation of Jesus. Paul was chiding the Corinthians over that. ‘You accept a different gospel readily enough’.
When Paul arrived at Jerusalem and said “I’m a member of the body of believers in Jesus Christ” the local body didn’t accept him at first. They were afraid of him, even though Paul had been preaching Christ for three years by the time he got to Jerusalem. (Acts 9:26). After all, Saul/Paul had been the chief persecutor and torturer of believers. They had a right to be afraid. But isn’t a false believer who brings a different Jesus just as destructive? Yet we overlook their kind of killing belief, and accept them without a second glance. For many undiscerning people, they utter the holy name of Jesus as simply a magic password. Too many believers have thrown out the “listen carefully” warning. This evidences their lack of discernment.
How is your Christology? Who is Christ? That is the question. Is Jesus God? Was He born of a virgin? Was He both fully man and fully God? Was He sinless? Is He the Word, revealing Himself in the bible? Did He die on the cross as the substitute for our sins, and was resurrected on the Third Day? Is He judge? Is he holy? And so on. Who IS Christ?
The church has watered down theology today because they have accepted many in their midst who have an outwardly pious and sincere belief in another Jesus.
Because of this watering down, the essential doctrines of our faith are under attack. Many people think you can disbelieve in one or more of them and still be in the faith. Not so. There are essential beliefs, and they are absolute. Where Jesus said a belief was essential, it is essential. For some of these, He even included a penalty for NOT believing.
Jesus is going to return and show Himself as Who He really is. His robes will be stained with blood, He will speak a word and millions will be slain at Armageddon, He will judge the living and the dead. JUDGE them, calling them account for their lives- the distinguishing benchmark being whether they believed in this same Jesus, or not. If they did not, they will be sent to hell for all of their conscious tormenting eternity.
Be distinguished from the world NOW, believe on the Christ of the bible. Study Him carefully, diligently, from His word (not visions and dreams and impressions and purpose-driven, motivational books.) Because belief in Him (this same Jesus) is the standard by which your eternity will be divided- heaven or hell, narrow road or broad, there is no other subject to which a person ought to devote himself with more fire or zeal or attention. If you claim Jesus, make sure you claim THE Jesus, and not another.
“and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people.” (Matthew 24:11)
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Further Reading:
When Someone Claims to be a Christian but…is Not a Christian
The London Baptist Confession of Faith (1689)
Movie "Sharknado": Enough Said!
Last night the SyFy Channel (should be ScFi) presented the long awaited, eagerly anticipated, major motion picture “Sharknado”.
The fin-fest swept the ratings, (if not the reviews), went down in history as all the best time B-movie camp, perhaps even knocking out the long revered Attack of the 50 Foot Woman and Plan 9 From Outer Space from their lofty pinnacles. It excited a feeding frenzy on Twitter.
Dread Central reviewed the movie in all due B-movie reverence: “The only thing I’m certain of is that The Asylum, Syfy, and all other b-filmmakers might as well retire the shark genre after this because I don’t know where you can go from here or how you can possibly top it.”
CNN weighed in this morning, demonstrating its journalistically lightning quick reflexes in picking up the pulse of the people:
Oh no, it’s “Sharknado” and it’s ravaging Twitter
“The title says it all. It’s the story of a menacing storm that spews hungry man eaters on Southern California. It’s perfect fodder for the Twitterverse, where hashtag #Sharknado was a top trending topic early Friday. Judging from the crack, one-line reviews, the online commentary may be better than the movie itself.”
That’s true- I love reading the online commentary to my favorite shows such as MasterChef or Food Network Star, where the witty commentary from fellow Twitter birds is often much more entertaining than the show itself, or at least, adds zip to the proceedings. It is our very own 21st century MST2K.
Watching all things Sharknado climb the trend list, I saw that soon enough, #Sharknado was hovering at number two. How long would it take to bump #MyGodIs from the top spot?
I captured a few of the Sharknado comments I thought were funniest:
If Criterion doesn’t purchase the rights to #Sharknado, I just don’t understand the arts anymore. Will Antonin
If the first floor of the house is flooded with sharks, I’m pretty sure the car won’t start. Just sayin’. #SharkNado Derek Hunter
This movie is better than Obamacare. #Sharknado Dana Loesch
Pretty sure a life insurance claim reading “He was eaten by a shark in my living room” won’t pay out without a serious challenge. #SharkNado Derek Hunter
Sweet relief for John Heard in #SharkNado – early death, check cleared. Derek Hunter
#Sharknado is the “Citizen Kane” of sharks in a tornado movies. Ben Shapiro
Disaster Relief Services in California are pitiful. I think that’s what #Sharknado is really teaching us. Classic Frat Bros
So, the shark is climbing a rope? #Sharknado Anthony Cumia
The effects in #sharknado were done using iMovie, then importing into one of those iPhone apps that let you add splashes & gunfire. Danny Sullivan
The made for TV film #SharkNado is trending in case you’re wondering why the terrorists don’t like us. SCO
And then two of my favorite weather guys joined the snark-fest, Shawn Reynolds of Weather Center Live tweeted,
I really wish there were a SharkCon. Shawn Reynolds
And Jim Cantore of Weather Channel said,
All I wanna know is why wasn’t I asked to be the forecaster for #SHARKNADO ?!!!! Jim Cantore
Everyone loves camp and everyone loves people with a good sense of humor.
Cinema Crazed.wordpress concluded their review of Sharknado thus:
I look forward to “Squidnami” and “Piranhavolcano.”
I made an assumption that the movie would be a blood-filled gross-fest and so, I didn’t watch it. I thought a long time about the premise for the movie and the fact that people had to pitch this, get funding for this, and find actors willing to play in this. For a while the twitter trend list showed John Heard on it, likely because he is a credible actor and many people wondered why he would play a part in this worst-of-the-worst movies. He has to pay bills too, I guess.
People seem to have a ghoulish fascination with tragedy, blood-N-gore entertainment, (Roman Colosseum anyone?) and of course the apocalypse. Movies on that topic are coming out faster than sharks from a tornado.
I had a ghoulish fascination with the ghoulish fascination. Is this what we do with our time now? Either watch terrible movies or snark about them? Or both at the same time…?
Sharknado is so last night. Now trending this morning on Twitter, movie “Pacific Rim”, “As a war between humankind and monstrous sea creatures wages on, a former pilot and a trainee are paired up to drive a seemingly obsolete special weapon in a desperate effort to save the world from the apocalypse.”
And the beat goes on.
TV Show Review: ‘Moone Boy’ and ‘Orange is the New Black’
The new wave of television watching is actually through the computer. Netflix and Hulu are competing for your money and time and attention. They are creating programming, buying programming and going outside the US borders in search of programming. To that last item, Hulu & Netflix this week rolled out new shows that are making a big deal out of.
Netflix has Orange is the New Black. The synopsis goes: “From the creator of “Weeds” comes a heartbreaking and hilarious new series set in a women’s prison. Piper Chapman’s wild past comes back to haunt her, resulting in her arrest and detention in a federal penitentiary. To pay her debt to society, Piper trades her comfortable New York life for an orange prison jumpsuit and finds unexpected conflict and camaraderie amidst an eccentric group of inmates.”
OK, sounds like it could be good. Martha Stewart in jail, with wacky inmates… I’ll bite.
Seven seconds and one sentence into the first episode the viewer sees a closeup of two naked woman in a shower kissing, and nothing is left to the imagination. There was no warning. Lord, blot out my eyes.
So then I went to Hulu. Hulu is gaga over Moone Boy.
NY Times explains “‘Moone Boy’ Joins the Hulu Stable of Imported Television.” Monarch of the Glen was good. I love Doc Martin. Could be good…
Irish comedy set in the 1980s? Great! Who didn’t like The Commitments? It’s Wonder Years meets Harvey? Better! It’s a show about a family? Wonderful!! The show centers on the young boy! Super! I bit.
One episode is about 21 minutes long. In that 21 minutes I learned that girls run the world, dads are ineffectual, parents hate their kids, life is a hopeless round of family and work, bullies are left to their own devices, but can be bought if you let them touch your sister’s breasts…
Sigh.
The search continues.
"Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God": Not so seeker friendly
The following excerpt is Point #4 from the famous sermon by Jonathan Edwards, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.” Jonathan Edwards was a part of the First Great Awakening. He lived between 1703-1758 and delivered this sermon at the height of the Awakening in New England, in Enfield, Connecticut, July 8, 1741- 272 years ago this week!
As Wikipedia summarizes the sermon, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” is a typical sermon of the Great Awakening, emphasizing the belief that Hell is a real place. Edwards hoped that the imagery and message of his sermon would awaken his audience to the horrific reality that awaited them should they continue without Christ. The underlying point is that God has given humanity a chance to rectify their sins. Edwards says that it is the will of God that keeps wicked men from the depths of Hell. This act of restraint has given humanity a chance to mend their ways and return to Christ.”
Below is the interior of the Rocky Hill Meetinghouse, Salisbury, Mass. built in 1785. It’s typical of the New England meetinghouses of Edwards’ day. It’s called Meetinghouse because the building was used for church services AND government activities. This one was unheated until 1830.
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| Source |
They were leaping out of their pews… “Parishioners personalized their pews by adding footstools, cushions, foot stoves, or arm rests. The pew seats are hinged, possibly to allow women more space for their full skirts while standing.” (source)
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| Numbered box pews were sold to parishioners. The remainder of the seating was unreserved.(src) |
An oft-overlooked fact is that as Edwards preaches hell and gets to point four, he tells the congregation that of the danger of hell, he is speaking to them. Not everyone in a church is saved, as Edwards says,
“There is reason to think, that there are many in this congregation now hearing this discourse, that will actually be the subjects of this very misery to all eternity.”
It doesn’t matter how moral you are or how sober you are, if not saved by faith in Jesus, their place wrathful torment will be their state forevermore. (Matthew 7:22-23).
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| John Wesley preaching during 1st Great Awakening |
Here’s Edwards:
“It is everlasting wrath. It would be dreadful to suffer this fierceness and wrath of Almighty God one moment; but you must suffer it to all eternity. There will be no end to this exquisite horrible misery. When you look forward, you shall see a long for ever, a boundless duration before you, which will swallow up your thoughts, and amaze your soul; and you will absolutely despair of ever having any deliverance, any end, any mitigation, any rest at all. You will know certainly that you must wear out long ages, millions of millions of ages, in wrestling and conflicting with this almighty merciless vengeance; and then when you have so done, when so many ages have actually been spent by you in this manner, you will know that all is but a point to what remains. So that your punishment will indeed be infinite. Oh, who can express what the state of a soul in such circumstances is! All that we can possibly say about it, gives but a very feeble, faint representation of it; it is inexpressible and inconceivable: For “who knows the power of God’s anger?”
“How dreadful is the state of those that are daily and hourly in the danger of this great wrath and infinite misery! But this is the dismal case of every soul in this congregation that has not been born again, however moral and strict, sober and religious, they may otherwise be. Oh that you would consider it, whether you be young or old! There is reason to think, that there are many in this congregation now hearing this discourse, that will actually be the subjects of this very misery to all eternity. We know not who they are, or in what seats they sit, or what thoughts they now have. It may be they are now at ease, and hear all these things without much disturbance, and are now flattering themselves that they are not the persons, promising themselves that they shall escape. If we knew that there was one person, and but one, in the whole congregation, that was to be the subject of this misery, what an awful thing would it be to think of! If we knew who it was, what an awful sight would it be to see such a person! How might all the rest of the congregation lift up a lamentable and bitter cry over him! But, alas! instead of one, how many is it likely will remember this discourse in hell?”
He ended this way:
“Therefore, let every one that is out of Christ, now awake and fly from the wrath to come. The wrath of Almighty God is now undoubtedly hanging over a great part of this congregation. Let every one fly out of Sodom: “Haste and escape for your lives, look not behind you, escape to the mountain, lest you be consumed.””
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Not so seeker friendly, is it? The reaction of the congregation was astounding. Reverend Stephen Williams was minister at Longmeadow Mass. He recorded the reaction in detail later that night in his diary. This is Pastor Williams’ description of the congregation’s reaction at Enfield to Edwards’ sermon, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,”
“Before the sermon was done there was a great moaning and crying out throughout the whole house, “What shall I do to be saved?! Oh, I am going to Hell! Oh, what shall I do for Christ?!” etc. etc. So that the minister was obliged to desist. Shrieks and cries were piercing and amazing. After some time of waiting, the congregation were still so that a prayer was made, and after that we descended from the pulpit and discoursed with the people, some in one place and some in another, and–amazing and astonishing!–the power of God was seen, and several souls were hopefully wrought upon that night, and oh, the pleasantness of their countenances that received comfort.”
Lest one believe that Jonathan Edwards was dour and sad, here is the text of his sermon, Heaven, A World Of Love
“…But heaven is his dwelling-place above all other places in the universe; and all those places in which he was said to dwell of old, were but types of this. Heaven is a part of creation that God has built for this end, to be the place of his glorious presence, and it is his abode forever; and here will he dwell, and gloriously manifest himself to all eternity. And this renders heaven a world of love; for God is the fountain of love, as the sun is the fountain of light. And therefore the glorious presence of God in heaven, fills heaven with love, as the sun, placed in the midst of the visible heavens in a clear day, fills the world with light. The apostle tells us that “God is love;” and therefore, seeing he is an infinite being, it follows that he is an infinite fountain of love. Seeing he is an all-sufficient being, it follows that he is a full and over-flowing, and inexhaustible fountain of love.”
Yes indeed! His love reigns.
Every person born has an automatic citizenship in hell the world of wrath. You can transfer that citizenship to heaven, the world of love, by repenting of your sins and calling on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and so be saved from the world of despair.
Open Letter to Rachel Held Evans
Note: I posted this on Mrs Evans’s website, Facebook and Twitter stream, which were the methods she stated people can contact her.
Dear Mrs Evans,
I am the Elizabeth Prata of the blog “The End Time” who wrote about you this week and to whom you responded. I am writing in heartfelt concern and in Christian tender pleading.
I am a 53 year old woman, born and bred in New England and transplanted to Georgia later in life. My salvation in Jesus Christ came later in life also. By this short biography perhaps you can accept this missive as an elder woman teaching a younger as in Titus 2:4.
I can see that you are a bright, accomplished, intelligent woman yourself, as much as we can discern these things via the computer screen and internet.
The Holy Spirit has laid you on my heart and it is on that basis I write to you. If we were standing face to face, you would see that my hands are extended and my eyes are full of tears.
On Twitter you shared with me that you long for the truth. It is because of that longing which you expressed that I write to share the truth with you.
The truth is that there is “this same Jesus” (Acts 1:11) and there is “another Jesus”. (2 Cor 11:4). This same Jesus of the Old Testament and the New is going to return to judge the living and the dead. He will line up the sheep and the goats and He will tell them to account for their lives.
Some in the goats line will be shocked they are not in the sheep line. “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).
This is a serious passage of scripture and it behooves every person who claims Jesus to examine themselves frequently to ensure they are not among the ones who have claimed a different Jesus. (2 Corinthians 13:5).
“I marvel that you are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ to another gospel:” (Galatians 1:6)
Do you claim a different Gospel? I think so, if I may say so tenderly. In your book, Evolving in Monkey Town you wrote,
“I’m an evolutionist because I believe that the best way to reclaim the gospel in times of change is not to cling more tightly to our convictions but to hold them with an open hand.”
To claim ‘this same Jesus” is to claim the same Jesus who was with God when the world was made. (Acts 17:24). To claim this same Jesus is to claim that He is the Word and He speaks truth. (John 1:1, John 14:6). To claim this same Jesus is to claim the Jesus who said ‘Let there be man, Adam, and it is good’. (Genesis 1:26, 27, 31).
If you believe in evolution you claim a different Jesus.
As for ‘changing our convictions to meld’ with the times, I ask you, how often? Did the Chinese of the year 200AD need to change what they believe, or the Icelanders of the year 1500, or the Bolivians of 1999 or the Rachel Held Evans’s of 2013? When does one change? How often? Every millennium? Every year? Every week? Change to which culture? Or do we claim this same Jesus who said to us via His Spirit, cling to what is Good! (Romans 12:9, 1 Thess 5:21). And we know that the only Good is the Father! (Matthew 19:17). And we know that the Father revealed Himself in the Word by His Son! (Hebrews 1:1-2)
We do not need to “reclaim the Gospel” because the Gospel never went anywhere. The Gospel are words unto life, and has the power of God behind it. This is the Gospel of Jesus you go away from when you say we need to loosen our convictions, despite the Word who is Jesus telling us to cling to them:
“Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:1-4)
I want to ask you and then pray that the Spirit convicts you, to examine yourself to see that, if Jesus were to return in the next few moments, would you be in the group that says “Lord, Lord, did we not…?” I believe you are in that group. I mourn for you, in seeing the fruits from your different gospel, and beg you to come to Jesus, and believe the Bible as He has given it to us. For what a person thinks of the Bible reveals what they believe about Him. He IS the Word (John 1:1)
You said you seek the truth. The truth is that Jesus said via His word “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” (Mark 1:15).
Do you believe it is impossible for you to have fallen under the sway of a false notion of a different Gospel, and further, that there is no need to examine yourself? If so then THAT is arrogance. Do you believe that one must change and adapt their convictions in order to stay current with man’s culture on this world which is run by satan? If so then you believe in a different gospel that does not save!
“In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” (2 Corinthians 4:4)
Please, Mrs Evans, for the sake of your eternal soul, heed these things. Fall to the cross and plead for forgiveness and ask for grace and mercy. The glory of the universe is that this same Jesus who will come one day to judge the living and the dead, this same Jesus, if you repent, will claim you for His daughter. He will send mercy-
For he says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” (Romans 9:15.)
I pray He says to you, Rachel, “I will have mercy.”
In His name,
Elizabeth Prata
July 10, 2013
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Further reading
Another Jesus: an example of defective Christology
Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”: Not so seeker friendly
Can we ever know doctrine for certain?
The power and comfort of the name of Jesus
Why I get so upset at false teachers and false teaching, why I focus on the end time
Someone asked me this week why I focus on the end time. I answered that the end time is the time between Jesus’ ascension and His return, the Age of Grace. I focus on encouragement, discernment and the end time. With Jesus’s return as backdrop, I employ Spiritual gifts to exhort for a higher standard of witness and adherence to doctrine.
The point is, He could return at any time, and those left behind will face Tribulation such as no man has ever seen, no nor will ever again. (Matthew 24:21). This haunts me.
Alternately, lost people could die at any moment, their end time coming instantly and unexpectedly, and the spiritual things they put off will be forever sealed off to them. Their lost state will be the state they remain in for all eternity. This haunts me. Why wouldn’t a person want to continually remind people that this Age will not last forever and the Day prophesied will arrive?
Worse, there are many people who believe they are Christians and are going to heaven. They professed Jesus. They worked in His name. They sang hymns and proclaimed Him and prophesied (preached) in His name. But they fooled themselves. They weren’t saved.
“I Never Knew You: “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.” (Mathew 7:21-23)
This haunts me greatly.
The Lord sends His Spirit to deliver gifts to believers as He sees fit. (1 Corinthians 12:4). For me, he saw fit to give faith, prophecy, teaching and discernment. I’m extra-sensitive to false doctrines and teaching. I have a super-sensitivity to those who come under its sway. It is like I can see them falling off the cliff as they apostatize. I can see it. It is like this picture, which I haven’t been able to get off my mind since I came across it.
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| Art by Borislav Sajtinac |
I hate false doctrine. I hate with with a holy, righteous passion. False doctrine is from hell. It kills. It destroys. It is a blasphemy against the precious person of Jesus, Savior and King. I hate it every day. I hate it because it sends people to hell. I hate it worst of all when it is tolerated in a false church, making false converts who bring up second generation daughters of hell twice as worse as them. (Matthew 23:15, Revelation 2:22-23).
When we are glorified and the time comes for Jesus to line up the goats, and the dramatic scene from Matthew plays out, I will hear so many cry out, “Lord, Lord…” Many people will be shocked that they are in the goats line and not the narrow road to heaven following the sheep to eternal glory and rest. They’ll try to convince the Lord to let them in. But He will say “Depart from me, I never knew you…”.
If the moment when Jesus cried out to the “Father, Father, why have You forsaken me?” is the loneliest moment in the universe for all time…then the moment when the Lord tells those who cry and plead, “Depart from Me, I never knew you” has to be the most devastating.
I will be grateful that by then I’ll be glorified and completely in tune with the mind of Christ and understanding His holiness and justice, otherwise I would explode from grief. As it is at that moment I know I’ll praise Him.
For now on earth in the flesh, I feel grief. Exploding with grief that false teachers entice false converts to believe false doctrines, and they are all on the broad road. I want to cry out, shake them, “No, NO! Come back!” I feel their apostasy acutely. I feel it and I see it. It’s not just an intellectual exercise with me but a heart ministry.
Won’t it be great to be able to discuss true doctrine in the age of eternity.
“Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.” (Matthew 24:35)
“For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.” (Hab 2:14)
“They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.” (Isaiah 11:9)
For a prophetic-doctrine lady like me this will be heaven! And if anyone has any questions, they can walk up to Jesus and ask Him! Looking forward to being free from satan’s lies is right up there in my list of ‘things that will be great about heaven.’
“and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. ” (Revelation 20:10)
Good. Torment the bugger.
Back here on earth in this time of grace mixed with apostasy, so many are going away from us. John told us that would happen.
“They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.” (1 John 2:19).
I praise the Lord for telling us ahead of time. It doesn’t make it any easier when I spot one who is going, though. It’s worse when they reject advances and sharing of truth. How devastating knowing that moment is fast approaching for millions who thought they were saved but were not, and will be rejected by Christ. They thought they had accepted Him but they had not! O, false doctrine, you deceiver! There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
“While the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Matthew 8:12)
“behold, my servants shall sing for gladness of heart, but you shall cry out for pain of heart and shall wail for breaking of spirit.” (Isaiah 65:14)
I know that the ones who will be rejected by Christ are not victims. It was because they chose to follow their lusts that they fell into the snare. (2 Timothy 4:3). Still, I feel for them, now and in their moment of shocking eternal condemnation.
People, examine yourselves to make sure of your 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 Corinthians 13:5)
Examine Yourselves Whether You Be in the Faith, Part 1
Examine Yourselves Whether You Be in the Faith, Part 2
Examine Yourself
How do we examine ourselves to see if we are in the faith?
What Kind of a Christian Are You?
The power and comfort of the name of Jesus
This is about what the Lord does in times of apostasy and it is about why He does it.
There are false teachers out there, and they are not coming in singly anymore, but brazenly, in packs.
They are corrupting the precious faith, and with curling lips and sharp teeth, they are dragging off many an unwary person. For those of us who warn and cry out, seeing these captured ones fail to heed and become devoured prey is heartbreaking- and that word doesn’t even cover the spiritual sadness at knowing there are so many who fell, are falling and will fall to satan’s wiles.
However, despite there being so many false teachers we praise the Lord because He does not leave us without good teachers! He is always raising up someone to teach, preach, and exhort! God continues to call preachers and teachers and the Holy Spirit still empowers preachers and teachers to speak the Word to the sheep.
Look at the time of Isaiah. In 739 BC, King Uzziah died after having been King for 52 years. Isaiah was called to preach that same year. The LORD gave him a unique opportunity at the time of his call- a vision of Himself in the Holy Temple! Isaiah was devastated at this, seeing the glory of the LORD and his own sinfulness. But it’s an astoundingly tender moment, the angel cleansed Isaiah’s lips and he was pronounced clean, his sins atoned for. (Isaiah 6:6-7).
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| Tiepolo: The Prophet Isaiah |
The LORD then gave Isaiah his commission; preach doom to the people. Preach their abandonment. Preach their judgment. Preach ruin.
Isaiah asked how long he was to do this. The LORD answered, “Until cities lie waste without inhabitant, and houses without people, and the land is a desolate waste.” (Isaiah 6:11) In other words, until the end, until you die, for all your long life. Not so seeker friendly, is it?
However, the LORD left Isaiah with some hope, despite the difficulty of what He was called to do. God said a tenth would still remain in the Land.
God showed Isaiah what He was going to do amongst these people:
“Go, and say to this people:
“‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand;
keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’
Make the heart of this people dull,
and their ears heavy,
and blind their eyes;
lest they see with their eyes,
and hear with their ears,
and understand with their hearts,
and turn and be healed.” (Isaiah 6:9-10)
Matthew Henry’s commentary says of verse 9, “Many hear the sound of God’s word, but do not feel the power of it. God sometimes, in righteous judgment, gives men up to blindness of mind, because they will not receive the truth in the love of it.”
This is called the wrath of abandonment. John MacArthur preached on this same notion, (here, here, and most recently, here) as seen not only in Isaiah 6 but in the NT book of Romans 1. At a certain point, God gives a nation or a vast populace over to their blindness and stubbornness.
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| Art by Borislav Sajtinac |
Though seasons come and go where it seems the great amount of people believe and live according to His Word, there are also seasons of time that come where it seems that the great amount of the people do not believe in Jesus nor live His word. Those times are now. It is my opinion, that it is the last cycle of apostasy directly before the time leading to the Great Apostasy. (2Thessalonians 2:3). It’s hard.
Matthew Henry’s commentary reassures us over the wrath of abandonment, “Christians need not fear this awful doom, which is a spiritual judgment on those who will still hold fast their sins.”
But it’s no harder for us than it was for the first century Christians who lived in a time where everyone was apostate, being the only Christians on earth!
During this time of apostasy it stands to reason that some apostates will be teachers. Yes, there are many bad teachers. But God has raised up good teachers, as shown in the example of Isaiah himself. Even in a time of wrath and abandonment, He sent an anointed one to preach to the people, and in today’s time He has done the same. He raises up good teachers to edify us or in some cases, remind us of the wrath of God. Either way, God is faithful.
There are many reasons for this, but here is one reason God raises up good teachers even in a time of abandonment.
I find it in Ezekiel. In Ezekiel 2-3 God is raising up Ezekiel and calling him top prophesy. However the task would be hard, as it was for Isaiah. God told Ezekiel in Ezekiel 3:7,
“But the house of Israel will not be willing to listen to you, for they are not willing to listen to me: because all the house of Israel have a hard forehead and a stubborn heart.”
So why does God go through all that if He knows they will not listen, or even as in Isaiah, He has already turned them over to blindness and dullness?
“And whether they hear or refuse to hear (for they are a rebellious house) they will know that a prophet has been among them.” (Ezekiel 2:5)
On the Day, no one will be able to say ‘But, but, You didn’t tell us!’ They will know that He sent a prophet to be among them.
Even more glorious,
HE DOES THIS FOR THE SAKE OF HIS NAME!
As God said in Ezekiel 2, whether they hear or refuse to hear, they will know a prophet has been among them. You see, He not only sends prophets and teachers for our edification, but He does so on account of His OWN Holy name- so that they will be without excuse. He magnifies His holy name by being the living embodiment of faithfulness, holiness, and justice.
Read Acts and be stunned and overwhelmed by the number of times they mention THE NAME. Why? Because the overwhelming theme running through the entire book becomes clear when reading, it is all about THE NAME. Thirty times I read a verse where it was all about His name- the name, in His name, for the name; in verse 19:13 they even tried to co-opt His name. The acts of the apostles were to spread the good news that salvation is now here under the name of Jesus. Everything they said, did, and accomplished was for that purpose and empowered by that name.
In Acts 4:17 the aggravated Sanhedrin asked Peter and John about a man they’d healed. They asked, “By what power or what name did you do this?”
No matter that we are in apostate times and growing worse each day. Take heart! He raises up men to preach His word! Even in the Tribulation when He has removed the Holy Spirit from His restraining ministry, He will send 144,000 to preach the word, (Revelation 7:1-4, Revelation 14:1-5) and He will send His angels to preach the Gospel to the whole world (Revelation 14:6). This is for the sake of His name.
What a comfort to know that He magnifies His own name. He is faithful to Himself and therefore will never falter. He will never fail.
Look at the fruit He bears for His name:
“After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice:
“Salvation belongs to our God,
who sits on the throne,
and to the Lamb.” (Revelation 7:9-10)
The LORD is mighty and He raises up men to speak His truths, He sends His spirit to regenerate new believers, He magnifies His holy name from heaven and throughout the earth. And we are a part of that. (Ephesians 1:4). We have His name, being adopted into the family of God.
“Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name.” (1 Peter 4:16)
Did you know that on the television show on cable channel A&E called Duck Dynasty, the family prays at the end of each episode over the family supper table. They also mention God in some in the middle of some of the shows, too. When it comes time for the prayer at the end, they begin the prayer to Heavenly Father of Good Father or just Father. They pray in Jesus name at the end, or they mention Jesus. Father and God are rarely edited out. Jesus is always edited out. Only two times did you hear the name of Jesus on the show. God is a powerful name and so is Father but it is the name of JESUS that sends the non-believer into a frenzy. Friends, mention the name of Jesus whenever you can.
So never fear. He raises up good men to preach, This magnifies His name. If we are in His name, we can magnify Him. “According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death.”
He will not abandon us because He will not abandon His name. Magnify Him, trust Him, honor Him. His name, Jesus. THE NAME. There is no other.
“And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”” (Acts 4:12)
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Can we ever know doctrine for certain?
“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.” (Matthew 7:15-20)
I’ve often written about this passage, showing the process of recognition via the example Jesus gave. In other words, emphasizing the fruit. In this essay I want to focus on one simple thing.
The word will.
In today’s mushy, emergent, false humility-filled, intolerant of certainty world, people say you cannot know doctrine for certain, and to attempt to do so is arrogance. It’s popular to say that “Truth for me means…but I can’t be sure…I’m open to other interpretations…”
It is extremely unpopular to be dogmatic today. Yet if we cannot know good doctrine with any certainty, then that means we can’t know bad doctrine for certain, either. What they are basically saying is that it is never possible to know if a doctrine is false. This is very convenient for the false teachers out there because this would mean that they can never be identified.
But this is not what the bible says.
The verses above tell us that false prophets will come. False prophets (false teachers) bring false teachings. We know that. The word in the verse for false prophet is “pseudoprophētōn” and you notice the ‘pseudo’ right away. The definition of the word is “a false prophet; one who in God’s name teaches what is false.”
So watch out, they will come.
But have no fear, because … and here is the good news … you WILL recognize them. The verse states that plainly. It then sums up with its re-statement that you will recognize them. Jesus is assuring us that we will recognize the ones who come bringing false teachings and if they bring a false teaching then they are false themselves.
It doesn’t say, “You may recognize them.” It doesn’t say “Sometimes, in the right light, you could recognize them.” It doesn’t say “On a good day, it’s possible to recognize them.” It says, “You will recognize them.”
How do we recognize them? By their fruits- their teachings.
No wonder the emergent crowd so longs to bring disrepute to the certainty of understanding what is false and who is false! If all doctrine is potentially valid, then the ones bringing them are also valid, and should be listened to. This gives satan a toehold in your mind to widen that crack of doubt, plant false seeds, and confuse you. When Satan asked Eve, “Hath God said?” in Genesis 3:1, instead of being dogmatic and responding, “Yes, God hath said…” she answered with a confused doctrine that she had added to. Satan ran with that and persuaded her to bite the fruit. The rest is our sad history.
By saying we will recognize them, I don’t think it means that every believer will recognize every false teacher instantly at all times. We are a body. That means we are organic and mutually working together for the glory of God within the scope of each of our gifts the Spirit dispensed.
“Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ.” (1 Corinthians 12:12)
Some were given discerning of spirits, others the gift of helps. Where those with discernment cry out that a wolf has infiltrated, others busy helping perk up and take heed. Where those with the gift of helps can earlier identify one who needs support, those who are watching for wolves may be slower to spot the need. We work together for His good and glory through the dispensing of the gifts.
Being dogmatic can be good and it can be bad. By dogmatic, I mean having studied, prayed, and come to a certain knowledge of a certain doctrine. We can never be casually dogmatic, or unintelligently dogmatic. Ever. But a person can be certain of right doctrine and can know when a doctrine is false for sure, too.
I’ll use the doctrine of hell. I mentioned in an earlier post that very early on in my walk I studied all the different interpretations of hell. Some people who teach from the bible, say that we go to hell for a period of time and after a length of punishment, are annihilated, never to exist again and released from their torment. Others who teach from the bible say that unbelievers go to hell and remain there forever enduring the wrath of God. Both use the bible but both cannot be right. One of these stances is contrary to the other.
The bible does not offer confusion nor does it contradict itself. In this way, I know that one of those doctrinal stances is wrong. I prayed for wisdom and studied further and it was a short while after that where I understood that hell is eternal conscious punishment. (Revelation 14:11). Therefore I no longer need to entertain the thought that annihilation is a possibility. I don’t need to be “open.” I know it to be false, because eternal punishment is true. I’m closed on the topic. The bible is black and white like that.
However being dogmatic about your uncertainty is dishonoring to Jesus, because you have entertained a false doctrine and haven’t sought to reconcile them via the Spirit, prayer, and study. Mrs Rachel Held Evans wrote of her ‘evolution’ away from the traditional doctrines of the bible in her book, “Evolving in Monkey Town.” The book describes that she learned “in order for her faith to survive in a postmodern context, it must adapt to change and evolve.” Her evolution was unfortunately away from the traditional biblical doctrines of young earth, eternal hell, and so on. Mrs Evans said to me today that “My point is that Christians disagree on the clarity of the issues you bring up. I think Fudge makes a good case…” She was referring to a well-known theologian Dr. Edward Fudge who teaches an annihilation view on hell.
Of course they make a good case. If they made a bad case we wouldn’t have any discord, but be of one mind and on the same page. Additionally, just the fact that disagreement exists does not mean that all viewpoints are valid nor are they true. It also doesn’t mean we stop seeking clarity, thinking, well, if so many disagree, then there must not be one truth about this.” No, never let it be so!
When teachers use the bible to make a good case but that case is at odds with another good case, stop, study, and pray. It is up to us to recognize that pre-tribulation rapture, mid-tribulation rapture and post-tribulation rapture cannot ALL be true. Traditional view of the Trinity and Modalism both cannot be true. If one refutes the other, it is up to us to seek wisdom from the Holy Spirit. He will guide me into truth. That I don’t seek clarity isn’t even under contention, though some fail at that first step. Once the Spirit delivers the answer, I am grateful and can then ponder the doctrine, think of all the verses that go with it, and better get to know Who my Savior is.
If you allow yourself to exist in a perpetual state of doctrinal confusion, then you will always be confused about who Christ is.
John 8:44 says that satan is the author of lies. As God is not the author of confusion (1 Corinthians 14:33) then satan IS the author of confusion and discord. Just because there are lies does not mean we cannot know the truth. Being careful to handle the word rightly, (2 Timothy 2:15) asking for wisdom (James 1:5) and discernment, and through the Holy Spirit, we can have comfort in knowing His truth.
You will recognize them. You will.
“But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy.” (James 3:17 NASB).
