Dear Friends,
We live in an age of DECEPTION—in
politics, in the media, in healthcare, in business, and in religion.
And these are the times Jesus
prophesied would immediately precede his return to earth.
That's the subject of today's
newsletter.
Be aware and be PREPARED!
And be blessed.
Best regards,
BRM
THE DAY CHRIST RETURNS
In
this world of instant access to unlimited knowledge, via the Internet and
social media, there is so much uncertainty in the body of Christ as to
precisely WHEN Christ will return? Of late, false prophets, false teachers and
false pastors have added to the confusion. Therefore, those among us
who don't rightly divide the word of truth, may well lose their
salvation.
"STUDY
to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed,
RIGHTLY DIVIDING the WORD of TRUTH. 16But shun profane and vain
babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness. 17And
their word will eat as doth a canker: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus; 18Who
concerning the truth have erred, saying that the RESURRECTION is PAST ALREADY;
and overthrow the faith of some. 19Nevertheless the foundation
of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his.
And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity." 2
Timothy 2:15-19
Don't be deceived by the multitude of
religious liars
There, the
apostle Paul told his disciple Timothy that Hymenaeus and Philetus
overthrew the faith of some Christians by claiming that the
"resurrection" had already PASSED. Ironically, almost 2,000 years
later, millions of Christians have been deceived into believing that they will
be "resurrected" before the tribulation begins. And tragically, when
they're caught in the midst of it, it will overthrow their faith too. In
Matthew 24, Christ's disciples asked him how they would know when he returns,
and the first thing he said was:
"...Take
heed that no man DECEIVE you." Matthew 24:4
Today
deception is everywhere among professing Christians. And when Jesus doesn't
rapture his church—before the tribulation—as we've been told,
multitudes of Christians will depart from the faith.
"And
because iniquity shall abound, the love of MANY SHALL WAX COLD. 13But
he that shall ENDURE unto the END, the same shall be saved.” Matthew
24:12-13
Notice what
Jesus said there in verse 13, "But he that shall ENDURE unto
the END, the same shall be SAVED." Christians are going to have to
ENDURE the tribulation, and the accompanying persecution, before the END
finally comes. That's NOT what most of us have been taught by our false
teachers, including Tim LeHaye, the author of the extremely popular "LEFT
BEHIND" series of books and videos. In "LEFT BEHIND," LeHaye
openly declares that Christians will NOT have to endure the tribulation, but
they will all be "raptured" out of here BEFORE the tribulation
begins. That's an attractive prospect, but it's NOT the TRUTH that Jesus
taught. It's a LIE from the pits of hell, and the word of God proves it.
Jesus said:
"... he that shall ENDURE unto the END, the same shall be
SAVED," Matthew 24:13. And the catching away of the church is at the very
END of the end of the Great Tribulation. That's when the church of Jesus Christ
will be "caught up" to meet the Lord in the air: 1 Thessalonians
4:17.
The resurrection takes place when
Christ returns
The gospel
of the Kingdom of God, which Jesus preached, is faithfully recorded in Matthew,
Mark, Luke and John. And three of those four gospels document what Jesus told
them about the timing of his return at the end of the world. These passages are
in Matthew 24, Mark 13 and Luke 21. And when Jesus was sitting near the temple,
Peter, James and John asked him this specific question:
"And as
he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying,
Tell us, WHEN shall these things be? and what shall be the
SIGN of thy COMING, and of the END OF THE WORLD?" Matthew 24:3
That verse
in Matthew 24 appears to indicate two separate events—Christ's
"coming," and later on, the "end of the world." However, if
we examine the other two accounts of Christ's answer to this question, in Mark
and Luke, we see clearly that these two things are combined in one
event—Christ's return.
"Tell
us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign
when all these things shall be fulfilled?" Mark 13:4
"And
they asked him, saying, Master, but when shall these things be? and what
sign will there be when these things shall come to pass?"
Luke 21:7
The "saints" will be
gathered at the LAST DAY
And so, from
reading Matthew 24, Mark 13 and Luke 21 we see Jesus detailing the
"signs" leading up to his triumphant second coming: that fateful DAY
at the END of the Great Tribulation.
"For as
the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall
also the COMING of the Son of man be. 28For wheresoever the
carcase is [the bodies are], there will the eagles be gathered together. 29Immediately AFTER the
TRIBULATION of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon
shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers
of the heavens shall be shaken: 30And THEN shall appear the
sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth
mourn, and they shall SEE the Son of man COMING in the clouds
of heaven with power and great glory. 31And he shall send his
angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall GATHER TOGETHER his
ELECT from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other." Matthew
24:27-31
These events
in verses 27 to 31 occur on the very same DAY. It's the very day that the
wicked will first be destroyed, and then, God's elect—his
faithful Christians—will be caught up to be with the Lord in the air. That is
confirmed in these four verses in John 6.
"39And
this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given
me I should lose nothing, but should RAISE IT UP AGAIN at THE LAST DAY.
40And this is the will of him that sent
me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have
EVERLASTING LIFE: and I will raise him up AT THE LAST DAY.
44No man can come to me, except the
Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up AT THE LAST
DAY.
54Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh
my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up AT THE LAST DAY."
John 6:39, 40, 44 and 54
If Jesus
says something ONCE we should accept it as the absolute TRUTH. But if he says
the same thing four times in the same chapter, the Lord is trying to make a
point. The "saints" are going to be RAISED UP at the LAST DAY: not
before. How Tim LeHaye, and countless other "deceivers," overlooked
this TRUTH, only God knows.
The wicked are gathered FIRST and
cast into a furnace of fire
In the
parable of the wheat and the tares, Jesus taught clearly that on the DAY he
returns, he will instruct his angels to gather FIRST the WICKED, and
after that, they will gather his "ELECT."
"Another
parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a
man which sowed good seed in his field: 25But while men slept,
his enemy came and sowed TARES among the WHEAT, and went his way. 26But
when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares
also. 27So the servants of the householder came and said unto
him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it
tares? 28He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The
servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? 29But
he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with
them.. 30Let both grow together until the HARVEST: and
in the time of HARVEST I will say to the reapers, GATHER YE together FIRST the
TARES, and bind them in bundles to BURN THEM: but gather the wheat [righteous]
into my barn." Matthew 13:24-30
Later in
this chapter, Jesus identifies the "tares" as those saints, in the
Kingdom of God, who "OFFEND" and do "INIQUITY." On the DAY
he returns, they will be the first to be cast into a "furnace of
fire."
"Then
Jesus sent the multitude away, and went into the house: and his disciples came
unto him, saying, Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field. 37He
answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of
man; 38The field is the world; the good seed are the children
of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; 39The
enemy that sowed them is the devil; the HARVEST is the END OF
THE WORLD; and the reapers are the angels. 40As therefore the
tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this
world. 41The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they
shall gather out of his KINGDOM all things
that OFFEND, and them which do INIQUITY; 42And
shall cast them into a FURNACE OF FIRE: there shall be wailing and gnashing of
teeth. 43Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the
kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear." Matthew
13:36-43
Notice there
in verse 39, Jesus said that the "HARVEST is the END of the WORLD:"
and the end of the world follows the Great Tribulation.
Only God's faithful servants will be
delivered when Christ returns
Jesus warned
us that when he returns he will come like a "thief in the night" for
all Christians who do not know their Bible, and are not fully prepared. May
that not include you and I.
"And
take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with
surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that
DAY come upon you UNAWARES." Luke 21:34
"Watch
therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. 43But
know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief
would come, he would have WATCHED, and would not have suffered his house to be
broken up. 44Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as
ye think not the Son of man COMETH." Matthew 24:43-44
"For,
behold, THE DAY cometh, that shall BURN as an OVEN; and all the proud, yea, and
all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and THE DAY that cometh shall BURN THEM
UP, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. 2But
unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in
his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall. 3And
ye shall tread down the WICKED; for they shall be ASHES UNDER
THE SOLES OF YOUR FEET in THE DAY that I shall do this,
saith the LORD of hosts.” Malachi 4:1-3
Beloved, the worst is yet to come—be
PREPARED!
Beloved,
there are some unbelievably hard times that are just ahead of us. Therefore, we
need to be seeking the Lord as never before, reading the Bible more diligently,
and watching and praying for all saints, and for those who have a heart to
serve the living God. May we not be among those last days Christians, who
Isaiah prophesied of, those who will perish because they were deceived by their
false teachers; the "treacherous dealers."
"From
the uttermost part of the earth have we heard songs, even glory
to the righteous. But I said, My leanness, my leanness, woe unto me! the
TREACHEROUS DEALERS have dealt treacherously; yea, the treacherous dealers have
dealt very treacherously. 17Fear, and the pit, and the
snare, are upon thee, O inhabitant of the earth." Isaiah
24:16-17
"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."
Luke 21:36
When God's
two witnesses soon stand up in Jerusalem, commencing their 1,260 days of
prophesying, the world's sinners will be tormented. And just as it was in
Egypt, when Moses and Aaron delivered God's ultimatum to Pharaoh, "Let
my people go," so too it will be at the end of days. When the two
witnesses bring the plagues of Egypt upon the entire world, Christians will
become the most hated people on earth.
"And ye
shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that ENDURETH
to the END shall be SAVED." Matthew 10:22
But, thank
God, Jesus will return in fiery judgment putting an end to man's rulership of
the earth, and commence his first 1,000-year reign in Mount Zion. Praise God!
"For
the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the
archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise
first: 17Then we which are ALIVE and REMAIN
shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the
air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. 18Wherefore comfort
one another with these words." 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18
SOURCES:
The Authorized King James Bible
Sursa: Pett Rusu
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