Summary of Bible references on the Rapture

Protecting yourself from the Apostasy

17 But, dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold. 18 They said to you, “In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires.” 19 These are the people who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit.

The first sixteen verses hit the apostasy very hard, now Jude turns to the saints. The first thing he does is to tell them to remember the word of the apostles. This epistle has hit the Old Testament, both the history and the prophecy as well as the spiritual books from the saints that are not in the Old Testament and now he turns to the New Testament Apostles. All of these words can help you set your mind on the spirit. Every word of God is profitable for instruction. In particular the words of the apostles are the protection against apostasy. You can't remember them if you don't know them and you will not know them if you don't read them, study them, and meditate on them. The word of God is not according to natural wisdom. God's thoughts are not our thoughts. We need a renewed mind and we will only get that through the transformation of the Spirit. The cross of Christ is foolishness to the apostates but to us it is the wisdom of God. That is because we are saved through the cross and this indicates the apostates do not know God's salvation through the cross. Paul warned that grievous wolves would come in and not spare the flock. Wolves are not sheep. Paul also said that men would arise from among the church speaking perverse things to draw away disciples after them. There are Christian cults and they focus on members of Christ's body, they don't go after the unsaved. These cults are built around an exaggerated truth and they do not embrace the whole counsel of God. The epistle to the church in Ephesus in Revelation 2, representing the apostolic church, appears to have been faithful to Paul's admonition. They try those who claim to be apostles and are able to determine the false ones. However, they had left their first love. Doctrinally sound but without love, the first love that they had for the Lord. This is how the apostasy operates, get you unbalanced. Scoffers can be very insulting, if you descend to their level all of a sudden you find yourself having left your first love. When they walk according to their own lusts you can become quite offended, but be careful, remember the admonition "hate the sin, love the sinner". Our first love is the Lord who came to call all men to repentance. The Lord gave Himself that all men might be saved. So then how do we respond? First we listen to the Lord and learn from Him. Everything we endure He endured. Second we obey Him, we don't run after our own desires. The process of transformation involves the Lord revealing if we are otherwise minded in anything and the reality is we are otherwise minded in many things. Third, we need to be content with our station. You don't need a title, or a position to speak the word of God. All things that have come into being have come into being through the word of God. If you have that faith then the word you speak can be very powerful even if you are nothing and no one. Now, if you can follow with these steps you will enter into the spiritual warfare and will then learn we are a corporate body. If you are divided, separated out from the body you can become prey. I have seen 20 hyenas surround a full grown male lion and if it were not for other lions coming to his aid they would have killed him. Someone who is truly knit into the Body would not murmur against the brothers and sisters because they would realize they are often his salvation as they have his back. Then you see that the warfare is like an army, each person is fitly framed in the body, uniquely positioned to help in the warfare. Instead of complaining about your position you come to appreciate the role all of your brothers and sisters play. Only then can the church truly be the city of God. This is why Satan's strategy is to make factions, divide the body. A heresy is a school of thought, just like all the various denominations and cults. Each one has their own special teaching in order to divide the saints. These doctrines come from them following their natural wisdom rather than the wisdom which is from above. Now this will actually help you grow in grace. It may sound strange but remember Paul says to "give thanks for all things" and that includes these heresies. The way I understand this I like to illustrate with Michael Jordan. When he came into the NBA he was a very gifted scorer and dominated the league in scoring. As a result teams put their best defender on him, and since that didn't work they began to design their entire defense to stop him. The Pistons had something called "the Jordan rules". They were brutal, eventually the league changed many of the rules because of that, but this made Jordan a better player. Everyday he was being tutored by the very best in the NBA on how to play defense. After a little while he became one of the very best defenders in the league. To have a guy that was dominating on both ends of the court was very unique. But even so they were unable to beat the Pistons, forcing him and the whole team to hit the weight room. He had been quick and agile, but now he added strong as well. He could play against the LA Lakers and the NY Knicks. He could play fast paced game of the Lakers and the half court game of the Celtics. But he still needed to improve his game even more because teams double teamed him during the 4th quarter and he famously passed to Paxson in the fourth quarter because they were leaving him open and so after making himself a fully rounded player he learned to add assists to his arsenal and to trust his teammates. He didn't need the preeminence. When Phil Jackson became the coach he instituted a strategy that took the ball out of his hand and resulted in him scoring fewer points. However, it also made it very difficult for teams to double team Jordan without paying the price. This is how I understand Paul's word that it is necessary for there to be heresies so that those who are approved would be manifested. Think about the result. Several of the other players also became hall of fame players. Pippen had an extraordinary career, looking at his stats he was a truly all time great player. Would that have been the case without Jordan as a teammate? He still would have been great but maybe would not have ever won a championship. What about Rodman? His career had hit the rocks when the Bulls picked him up. I don't know if he would have been hall of fame if he hadn't gone to the Bulls. He was great with the Pistons but with the Bulls he was a champion and a hall of famer. The apostasy divides us, the Spirit knits us together. The apostasy is based on human intellect and thought, the Spirit lifts us to a higher plane. The apostasy is soulish, the true church is spiritual. To be soulish is to be self conscious, to be spiritual is to be God conscious. The apostasy is the natural man, the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. For example, a hologram is a technique where we can create a 3 dimensional image and put all the information on a 2 dimensional sheet. If you look at it with your natural eyes it is foggy, not clear. But if you illuminate it with lasers designed to see it then you will get this dramatic 3 dimensional image. In the same way the natural man can only create two dimensional images but if you are in the spirit you will be getting these three dimensional holograms. This is why those in the apostasy see the Bible as myths, old stories that are no longer relevant, etc. They are looking at the Bible with natural eyes and the Bible can only be seen properly with the Spirit. When you look at the Bible with the Spirit the image of Christ will be alive.

Believers have the spirit. These ones may be on a very high plane naturally but they don't have the spirit, so they are not saved. They receive not the things of God for they are foolishness to them. Let's spend a 100 years to build a boat to save 8 people. Let's defeat this army with the jawbone of an ass. Or how about this one, some carpenter's son is crucified 1900 years ago and as a result the entire universe is redeemed.

Charge to the Believers

Jude 20 But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, 21 keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.

Building What? Building ourselves? This sounds a whole lot like Paul's word about "working out your own salvation with fear and trembling" and Paul's word about building with gold, silver and precious stones. It also sounds like the 9 steps given by Peter: giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; and to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; and to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. How do you build up your faith? Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God. Get into the word of God. This is our responsibility. There is no need to be complacent. Throw wood on the fire, fan it into flames, turn a little fire into a bonfire.

Praying we pray in the Holy spirit. These two go hand in hand. It is easy to spend all of our time doing one or the other, but you are supposed to do both. For example, there is a long list of people I would like to see come to a full repentance, but you just can't share any longer with them. So now I pray. OK, I can't share any more with you, but I can pray for you and I can do that everyday.

Keeping We are also charged to "keep yourselves in the Love of God". This means to keep us in the place where we can enjoy the Father's love. God will not stop loving us, the issue is are we in the place where we can enjoy that love. Jn 15:10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 1Jn 3:23 And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us.

Looking for This word is translated as both looking for and waiting for.

Are you listening?

There is a progression here from Faith to love to hope. Now let's consider this in light of this thread on Christmas. You can buy a gift or you can make one. You can act out of prayer before the Lord on what would be best or you can simply go to a store and say I have so much money to spend, that looks good. You can keep yourself in the love of God or like the prodigal son you can cash in your chips and go to the parties and waste your inheritance. You can spend the evening "looking for" and waiting for the blessed appearance of our savior or you can become a scoffer comparing the Lord's coming to the stories told to children about Santa.

Jude 22 Be merciful to those who doubt; 23 save others by snatching them from the fire; to others show mercy, mixed with fear—hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.

The exhortation is for us to grow and there needs to be a response from us to be a witness, that is our sacred duty. Jude tells us to have compassionate understanding on those who have sincere doubts. Just because someone doesn't believe your word does not make them an apostate, they can have sincere doubts. This is the last NT mention of being merciful. We are at the door of the Lord's coming back, at the very last moment there will still be those who doubt and need our mercy. The first mention of mercy is "blessed are the merciful for they shall receive mercy". The first mention of doubt in the NT was when Peter was sinking in the sea. Another way to look at what Jude is saying is "be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear".

Singing a love song

Mercy mixed with fear -- one idea is you can see that this one is in danger of eternal damnation, another way to look at this is the way in which Lot was saved. Think about witnessing in the family -- interceding like Abraham. Another understanding is that pulling someone out of the fire could put you into a situation where you get pulled in rather than them getting pulled out. I don't think there is a right answer, I think we stay open to the Lord and He could use this word in many different ways. Another interpretation is don't be tempted to tone down the gospel. Yes we must be merciful but at the same time we need to be fearful of the Lord that we share the full counsel of God and provide a very clear warning concerning sin. We can see these various interpretations in the story of Christmas. Some embrace the practice thinking they could use it for the gospel and instead got pulled down. Some are warning of eternal damnation, idol worship, and the dangers. Others are tempted to temper their message, let's not offend anyone.

The assurance of our Savior

24 To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— 25 to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.

Know the one in whom we have put our trust. Finish the race strong! The Lord will be glorified. The reason Jude has shared this epistle is so that we would have great joy at the Lord's return. It is not good enough to believe in God, the Satanists do that, you have to believe in God our Savior. We do not get to verse 25 without the cross of Christ. Verse 25 reminds us of Hebrews 1:3. We can all see the hand of Paul in the book of Hebrews, I have wondered if James also worked on it, and now perhaps even Jude had a hand in it. What does verse 25 mean? It means that if we are raptured to the presence of the Lord our savior we will be dancing with great joy! The glory, the majesty, the power, the authority, it will be a fantastic wedding feast!

Make sure that Satan doesn't trick you into exchanging your inheritance for a bowl of soup and a lie.

https://rumble.com/v1nxb1k-fighting-against-the-government-and-global-cell-phones-10142022.html

Fighting Against the Government and Global Cell Phones 10/14/2022

The New Testament condemns sin

Romans 3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

Romans 3:25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;

Every single person who is saved was saved from sins. Whether you were a murderer, liar, thief, covetous, fornicator, or whatever, Jesus blood can wash away your sins if you receive the redeeming blood that was poured out on the cross by faith.

1Corinthians 6:9 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,

If you continue to live as a fornicator or idolater or adulterer after having your "salvation experience" know that you will not inherit the kingdom of God. There are no caveats about "saved fornicators" or "Idolaters who also believe in Jesus".

1Corinthians 6:10 Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.

The same is true of covetous, drunkards, revilers, extortioners. Michael Corleone can go into confession with the priest, confess all his sins, ask to be forgiven and then go out and continue to steal and extort, he is not saved from those sins.

Galatians 5:21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

Yes, the blood washes our conscience clean and we can stand before God. But if we continue to sin we are stained again and must repent. To repent does mean you feel bad about sinning, it means you make a 180 degree turn away from sinning. If your computer is causing you to sin, then throw it away. That would be evidence that you have repented of sinning. If your affiliation with gang members or drug addicts or fornicators is causing you to sin, then cut off those friendships. Move, get a new job, get new friends, these would all be evidence of someone who is truly repenting.

Ephesians 5:5 For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.

Some people teach that they can be an unclean person and saved at the same time. That is baloney.

Colossians 3:24 Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.

Are you serving the Lord Jesus Christ or mammon? The Lord knows who are his and who aren't. Saying some prayer twenty years ago is not "serving the Lord" in the present tense.

Hebrews 6:12 That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

Are you diligently pursuing the Lord, working to build up your faith and doing this work with patience? Or are you slothful? In other words, let's forget about the prayer you made 20 years ago and talk about your prayers in the last 24 hours.

Hebrews 12:15 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled; 16 Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright. 17 For ye know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears.

Do you have a root of bitterness growing up in you? Do you have unforgiveness? Do you continue to practice fornication? The word profane simply means you are common, you are not sanctified, you are not godly, no one can tell the difference between you and an unbeiever.

Revelation 21:7 He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.

Are you an overcomer? If not stop talking about being saved and instead focus on what it takes to become an overcomer. There is no middle ground, either you are an overcomer or you are being overcome.

Where is the US in the Bible?

I think that we see the US in several places and I have shared on this in detail in this blog as well as giving links that go into great detail on these points.

1. I think that Ephraim can refer to the US (although in the OT it was obviously the Northern kingdom of Israel). Ephraim and Manasseh were the two sons of Joseph that received the double portion. His blessing appears to portray Joseph as being a scientist. We know that the top scientists were in Germany and then moved to the US. Manasseh was the elder but Israel blessed them and said the younger would be greater than the elder. The US was consecrated as a land for God and the US was called the "Christian nation". Also Israel and the US are closely allied just as the Northern Kingdom of Ephraim and the Southern kingdom of Judah were.

2. I think that Sodom and Gomorrah refers to the US, especially states like California. The number one state that Americans are leaving is California and I think that is similar to God sending angels to get Lot out of Sodom before they rained fire.

3. I have posted a links to a three part series that to my mind proves beyond any reasonable doubt that the US is the Great Babylon in Revelation 18. The Vatican is the "mystery" of Babylon the Great. But only the US has a dominant presence on all seven continents, only the US being destroyed in one hour would impact global trade the way it is described, only the US is the biggest consumer of all these things (Revelation 18 asks who will buy our stuff now) and recently there has been plenty of evidence of the worship of Moloch and Baal in the US. Only the US has made the world drink out of a golden cup (gold signifies the word of God, the US has distributed the Bible worldwide through the Gideon's, over 2 billion bibles, meanwhile the US uses that influence to force feed them Hollywood, Coca Cola and all the other things of Babylon).

4. I think the US is referred to as "the wings of the great eagle". Yes, other countries have an eagle as their representative, but if you put them all side by side only the US would be "the great eagle" and our "wings" referring to our airlines are clearly the most extensive compared to any other country with an Eagle as their national symbol.

5. Therefore I think the US is also referred to as"the wilderness".

Luke 23:24-38 The ruler of this world is losing all legitimacy

24 And Pilate gave sentence that it should be as they required. 25 And he released unto them him that for sedition and murder was cast into prison, whom they had desired; but he delivered Jesus to their will.

Let’s be clear, Jesus knew that if He was going to rescue us from the Satanic kingdom He would have to be delivered to their will. This impeachment trial that we are witnessing is also about sedition and murder. They are not impeaching someone in office, they are impeaching the citizens of the US and those who are truly guilty of sedition and murder (Antifa) they are letting go free. The deplorables are the ones standing with Jesus, whereas Antifa would be Barabbas. They are asking to crucify the deplorables while letting Antifa go free. At the end of this age we are seeing the church that is bone of the Lord's bone and flesh of His flesh standing, reflecting the glory of Jesus.

26 And as they led him away, they laid hold upon one Simon, a Cyrenian, coming out of the country, and on him they laid the cross, that he might bear it after Jesus. 27 And there followed him a great company of people, and of women, which also bewailed and lamented him.

It seems so confusing, there is a great company of people who are lamenting Jesus being condemned to death, yet the voices of those shouting to crucify Him prevailed? How did this happen? Ten people show up to a Biden rally and 1,000,000 show up to a Trump rally and all they could hear is those ten people? How does this work? First, put up a fence and barbed wire and keep the 1,000,000 far enough away that you can’t hear them. Then bring in some guy who is clearly ANTIFA but claiming to be a Trump supporter and bring in another guy who looks like Chubaca and make sure they are the only ones anyone can hear.

28 But Jesus turning unto them said, Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for me, but weep for yourselves, and for your children. 29 For, behold, the days are coming, in the which they shall say, Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that never bare, and the paps which never gave suck. 30 Then shall they begin to say to the mountains, Fall on us; and to the hills, Cover us. 31 For if they do these things in a green tree, what shall be done in the dry?

Look at how outrageous Herod, Pilate, the chief priests and the scribes behaved. Yet, the point is the horror will be much greater at the end of this age. For example, we have had many forest fires in the history of the US, but look at how horrifying they are when the forest is dried out. There has been drought, heat wave, and an infestation of bark beetles all that have caused the forest to dry out. As vehement as this fire was, it was all focused on one man, Jesus Christ. But at the end of the age it will be focused on the many, on the forest. They are choosing one who will suck all the life out of the forest so that when it does burn it is a raging inferno.

I think the most logical reason to vote for Biden was this hope that it would put an end to the rancour and division and we could go back to a more pleasant time of “Leave it to Beaver” and “The Andy Griffith Show”. That has obviously not happened and instead the forest fire is raging worse than ever. But what happens when all those standing on the front lines fighting the fire are taken away? There is going to be a great tribulation.

32 And there were also two other, malefactors, led with him to be put to death.

John Sullivan and “Chubaca” have also been caught up in this mess.

33 And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the other on the left. 34 Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots.

This is who they are crucifying the one who would have saved them, the one who sees the coming destruction and even in this moment is warning people. Today how many people could say this, “forgive them for they know not what they do”. There is a lot of screaming back and forth that people “don’t know what they are doing” but you don’t hear any forgiving, only condemning.

Notice how this account is different from both Matthew and Mark. There is no “why have you forsaken me?” that you see in Mark. This event is different for different people. For those who are raptured at the beginning of the Great tribulation their word is to “forgive all those who didn’t know what they were doing”. For those who are not raptured but are left behind their word is “why hast thou forsaken me?” In either case the good news is that you can be one with the Lord and He will be your savior. If you are not one with the Lord you are not going to be able to say “Father forgive them for they know not what they are doing”. And if you don’t know what you are doing and are left behind you can ask the Lord why and He will answer that prayer.

35 And the people stood beholding. And the rulers also with them derided him, saying, He saved others; let him save himself, if he be Christ, the chosen of God. 36 And the soldiers also mocked him, coming to him, and offering him vinegar, 37 And saying, If thou be the king of the Jews, save thyself.

Instead of forgiveness all you hear is insults. There were many saying this word, thinking that somehow Trump was going to save himself on January 20th. We were told that this is why they needed 25,000 troops.

38 And a superscription also was written over him in letters of Greek, and Latin, and Hebrew, This Is The King Of The Jews.

The entire world is watching what is going on. The rulers are not only losing all legitimacy in the US but also in the world.

Luke 23:39-56 The ruler of this world is about to be cast out

39 And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us.

Jesus didn’t need to be saved, we did. This is what He was doing, He was saving us.

40 But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? 41 And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss.

How is it that he is able to see this and Herod, Pilate and the chief priests weren’t? I applaud him, he is admitting that entering the capitol building and whatever he did there was wrong. Be warned, you can believe in the Lord but follow according to your own idea rather than according to His speaking.

42 And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. 43 And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with me in paradise. 44 And it was about the sixth hour, and there was a darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour.

That is pretty weird. We saw some people on the West coast at mid day and the sun was darkened due to the fires. They described it as “apocalyptic”. A solar eclipse only lasts for a minute or so, this was three hours. The sun being darkened for three hours is not a solar eclipse with the moon, something else must be blocking the sun.

45 And the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was rent in the midst.

This age began with the veil of the temple being rent. It signifies the flesh being rent so that the way to the Holy of Holies would be opened to us. This is what the Lord had to go through in order to open the way for us to meet with God. Jesus is the way, no man cometh to the Father but by Him. We have also learned that the ark of the covenant was hidden beneath where Jesus was crucified. This earthquake caused a fissure to go down from the cross to where the ark was and blood dripped from the cross onto the mercy seat.

46 And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost.

It seems trivial to me to hear anyone claiming that they are in the right and that others have wronged them after watching the way in which Jesus was crucified.

47 Now when the centurion saw what was done, he glorified God, saying, Certainly this was a righteous man. 48 And all the people that came together to that sight, beholding the things which were done, smote their breasts, and returned.

Jesus didn’t just rend the veil to the temple, it is as though all of flesh was torn in two. You have those who are vehemently railing against him on one side, and those who smite their breast in lament on the other. One thief is mocking, the other is believing. Pilate is doing whatever the loudest people in the mob shout, whereas the centurion can see this was a righteous man.

49 And all his acquaintance, and the women that followed him from Galilee, stood afar off, beholding these things. 50 And, behold, there was a man named Joseph, a counsellor; and he was a good man, and a just: 51 (The same had not consented to the counsel and deed of them) ; he was of Arimathaea, a city of the Jews: who also himself waited for the kingdom of God.

So although the chief priests and scribes really bear a lot of judgement here, not all do. There are still good men and just men who were counselors of the people.

52 This man went unto Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus. 53 And he took it down, and wrapped it in linen, and laid it in a sepulchre that was hewn in stone, wherein never man before was laid. 54 And that day was the preparation, and the sabbath drew on. 55 And the women also, which came with him from Galilee, followed after, and beheld the sepulchre, and how his body was laid. 56 And they returned, and prepared spices and ointments; and rested the sabbath day according to the commandment.

Once again we can see this is the thing, Jesus is Lord. That is what this age is about. That is why the Satanic kingdom has become so riled up and vehement. The ruler of this world is about to be cast out. You get to choose which one you want, there is still time, but the opportunity to choose will soon be over.

The US constitution says that it is government by the people, the people are Lord. You cannot be Lord until you have gone through this experience like steel being tempered.

Here comes the third temple

Another example of the Apostasy

The Bible clearly tells us to be baptized. But the apostasy wants to do away with that word, some people don't want to get dunked.

Acts 2:38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

According to you there is no need to repent and be baptized for the remission of sins because Jesus death already paid the price for sins. Jesus blood will cleanse you from all your sins, but you have to repent and you also need to be baptized. Our baptism is likened to Noah's ark going through the flood. According to Genesis 6:14 the ark was pitched within and without with pitch. When you are baptized your are being dipped within and without into the triune God. When the flood came if you were not in the ark you were destroyed. Yes the judgement came because

5 And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

You don't have to be an adulterer, simply have your mind set on adultery day and night.

Matthew 5:28 But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.

You will be judged for your thoughts. Are you playing Grand Theft Auto all day, well then your thoughts are on stealing and violence all day. Are you watching pornography, then your have committed fornication and adultery in your heart.

Acts 2:41 Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.

How do we know if you have received the gospel? You were baptized. That is what it means to receive the work that Jesus did. You obey His command and the first command is to be baptized.

Acts 8:36 And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized?

This case demonstrates that baptism was a critical component of receiving the work that Jesus did on the cross.

Romans 6:3 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?

If you have not been baptized into Jesus Christ you have not been baptized into His death, your flesh is still ruling and reigning. You can cleanse your sins in the blood but to solve the problem you need to put to death your members and that involves obeying Jesus and that starts with being immersed into the triune God.

Romans 6:4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

We are supposed to walk in newness of life. That only happens if we are immersed into Jesus death, burial and resurrection. That only happens if you obey the Lord and walk by faith to obey His commands.

1Corinthians 12:13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.

You must be baptized to enter into the body of Christ, and to drink of the one Spirit. Salvation doesn't just mean that 20 years ago you had your sins forgiven, it means that you walk in newness of life, that you are in the Body of Christ, that you drink of one Spirit.

Galatians 3:27 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

This is what it means to be a Christian, when people see you they see you wearing Christ. You have to put on clothes daily. This is not a once for all thing.

1Peter 3:21 The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ:

Baptism is a figure, and it saves us. It is not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, it is you responding to the Lord's work of redemption out of good conscience, saying that Jesus is Lord because you believe He rose from the dead.

John 10:28

John 10:28 has 3 conditions:

27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: 28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.

1. You must hear the Lord's voice

2. The Lord must know you

3. You must follow the Lord.

Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. We have to hear the word of God so that it becomes faith in us. Second, we must have a relationship with the Lord. There are people who will think they are saved but the Lord will say "I never knew you". The Lord also says this to the foolish virgins who don't have oil in their lamp. When you spend time with the Lord every day He will not be able to say He doesn't know you and your vessel will be filled with oil. Finally, you must follow the Lord. That means take up your cross and follow Him. It means when He says "go and do likewise" about the story of the Good samaritan that you go and do likewise.

Only after those three conditions are met does it say "and I give unto them eternal life"

Idols (1)

Romans 2:22 thou that abhorrest idols, dost thou rob temples?

The church has robbed pagan practices from temples. The Christmas tree was robbed from an idol temple. The Germans used it in the worship to Odin and the Babylonians used it in their worship to Baal.

1Corinthians 5:10 not at all meaning with the fornicators of this world, or with the covetous and extortioners, or with idolaters; for then must ye needs go out of the world: 11 but as it is, I wrote unto you not to keep company, if any man that is named a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such a one no, not to eat.

It is not possible to avoid all Christmas trees and other items of pagan worship. We live in the world and are surrounded by this. You don’t need to leave a store because they have a Christmas tree or leave your company party because they have a Christmas tree. No, if someone claims to be a brother or sister and is a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard or an extortioner. These are all serious issues. This does not mean that a fornicator cannot get saved, they can. The charge is not whether or not someone has sinned and repented of that sin, the charge is about someone who thinks they can openly live in sin while also claiming to be a Christian. Everyone is probably familiar with the Pedophile priests in the Catholic church, that represents about 5% of the priests. However, 50% of priests engage in consensual sex with adults. They are fornicators. The only reason the Pedophile priests were able to flourish in the Catholic church was because of the fornicating priests. If they exposed these 5% they in turn might expose the 50%. This is why Paul says to be very strict. Then what happens to those people who know about the Priests who are fornicators? No wonder they see the Church as a bunch of self righteous hypocrites condemning others for the things that they themselves do.

1Corinthians 8:8 Now concerning things sacrificed to idols: We know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffeth up, but love edifieth.

We need to come to this topic with love and with the intention of building one another up. Idol worship involves making a sacrifice to an idol. Some will claim that all the Christmas decorations are just that, decorations. The same thing with the Easter celebration, just fun and games. I would ask if you are “making a sacrifice to that idol”? Simply a question to take to the Lord.

4 Concerning therefore the eating of things sacrificed to idols, we know that no idol is anything in the world, and that there is no God but one. 5 For though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or on earth; as there are gods many, and lords many; 6 yet to us there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we unto him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and we through him.

It is impossible to be in this world and not be surrounded by idols. You will go to a restaurant, you will go to a store, your company, even the things people wear. We do not have to walk around like some looney tunes every time we see an idol. These things are meaningless. As a teacher we are required to decorate our rooms for holidays. I would never put up a Christmas tree nor would I mention Santa Claus in my decorations. However, another teacher might, I just ignore that. It is nothing.

7 Howbeit there is not in all men that knowledge: but some, being used until now to the idol, eat as of a thing sacrificed to an idol; and their conscience being weak is defiled. 8 But food will not commend us to God: neither, if we eat not, are we the worse; nor, if we eat, are we the better. 9 But take heed lest by any means this liberty of yours become a stumblingblock to the weak. 10 For if a man see thee who hast knowledge sitting at meat in an idol’s temple, will not his conscience, if he is weak, be emboldened to eat things sacrificed to idols? 11 For through thy knowledge he that is weak perisheth, the brother for whose sake Christ died. 12 And thus, sinning against the brethren, and wounding their conscience when it is weak, ye sin against Christ. 13 Wherefore, if meat causeth my brother to stumble, I will eat no flesh for evermore, that I cause not my brother to stumble.

These verses are completely misquoted by many Christians. If you go to a restaurant that has a little idol up that is an offering to their God, typical in Asian restaurants, that is eating meat in an idol temple. This does not mean you went to a Buddhist temple for lunch. In the US this could also refer to going to a football game or a baseball game. Now there are many people who get invited to these games for work or some other reason. You don’t have to respond “O no, I am a Christian, I would never go to that idol temple”. However, there are others who have season tickets, they fill up their home with all kinds of junk celebrating their favorite team or player. Buying those things is what is known as “sacrificing to an idol”. So if a brother or sister is offended that you are going to the game you simply say fine, if this stumbles you I won’t go ever again. That is evidence that you are not worshiping this thing as an idol because you are happy to cut it completely out of your life for the sake of your brother’s conscience. However, many Christians apply this to their home. That does not make sense. If a believer sees that your home is set up as an idol temple you can’t make some claim that this means nothing to you. You have already sacrificed to this idol.

Luke 21:36 Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.

Pray for others to be saved.

Pray for God's will to be done.

Pray for the kingdom to be established on earth.

Pray that God would be glorified in all that is going on.

Pray that you would be able to continue to worship and praise him.

Pray for your needs to be met.

Pray that your sins would be forgiven.

Pray that there is no root of bitterness or unforgiveness in you.

Pray for the Lord's leading, a light shining on the path.

Pray that we would be delivered from evil.

Do not be deceived -- Jesus is the only way

8 And he said, Take heed that ye be not deceived: for many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and the time draweth near: go ye not therefore after them.

These deceptions attack the idea that Jesus is the only way. They can't stand the uniqueness of Jesus.

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