Charitable Tax Exemption - A Pact with The Devil

Is The Church's Good Works Good Enough?

A Pact with The Devil

andre@simplicityinthegospel.com

In the parable of the rich man found in (Mark 10:17-22), Jesus wanted to teach His disciples an important principle about good stewardship.

“Now as He was going out on the road, one came running, knelt before Him, and asked Him, “Good Teacher, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?” So, Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God.  You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery,’ ‘Do not murder,’ ‘Do not steal,’ ‘Do not bear false witness,’ ‘Do not defraud,’ ‘Honor your father and your mother.”

“And he answered and said to Him, “Teacher, all these things I have kept from my youth.”

This man was a Jew living under the Mosaic Law striving to live according to the 613 commandments... go figure. Observing the sacrificial ritual found in the book of Deuteronomy was essential to wash away their failure to follow these commandments.  It was (and still is) impossible to keep the law permanently. We will never be sinless, we can only strive to sin less. Therefore, to be in fellowship with God, the Leviticus priesthood sacrificial ritual was required to wash away (temporarily) the penalty of their sins. 

It is difficult for us to comprehend since the Church era is under grace, which by faith alone is the requirement for our sanctification, cleansing from our sins (once and for all) and inheriting eternal life through Jesus as our Redeemer. He fulfilled this sacrificial ritual on the cross (Heb 7:27, Heb 9:12, John 1:29, Acts 8:32).  No man can be a substitute to forgive our sins, Jesus alone can. Hence, as this rich man shows his act of obedience to the law since his youth, is the Church striving to obey Jesus’ instructions good enough?

Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “One thing you lack: Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me.”

But he was sad at this word, and went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.”

Jesus' lesson to the disciples is that He didn’t need this man's riches, therefore he instructed him to give them away to the poor. His obedience suffice. At that time, the presence of the Holy Spirit for understanding was not with the disciples. The young man was confused. He probably reasons that he could have been a good financial resource for spreading the gospel, he was rich. He could help in the funding of Jesus’ ministry. Jesus surprised him by telling him that He didn’t need the young man’s money and influence. Remember with wealth comes influence on the church’s committee and an opportunity to contribute to the church programs.  Is it not how wealthy Christians reason? Taken pride in supporting their churches. You see their donation memorial plaques displayed on the congregation’s wall for their generous contribution of time and money. They have their reward (Matt 6:2). Is it not in contrast with Jesus' instruction to His disciples found in (Matt 6:3), which is: “But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing?”

But there is more to learn from Jesus’ encounter with this rich man. Jesus' lesson applies to modern-day North American churches.

Aren’t the modern-day churches equivalent to the rich man statue? Doing good works yet not good enough according to Jesus?  Jesus is admonishing the Church to follow Him. Once again let’s read:

"Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “One thing you lack: Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me.” But he was sad at this word, and went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

Then Jesus looked around and said to His disciples, “How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!” And the disciples were astonished at His words. But Jesus answered again and said to them, “Children, how hard it is for those who trust in riches to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God,” Mark 10:17-25

Jesus didn’t rebuke this man because of his riches but loved him for his compassion toward others and obedience, (John 14:21). He recommended the young man give up everything he had and follow Him among His disciples. For this act of surrender, he would receive a reward in heaven. That was hard to swallow, a mouth full. The young man was fully dependent on his riches to go through life. The idea to give up all his belongings for treasures that he does not see and comprehend is an insecure investment. He didn’t fully grasp what these riches in heaven represent. He missed a great opportunity. What a contrast with Peter a fisherman who had nothing to lose. Peter immediately followed Jesus when commanded to.


We are called beyond being simple believers - our call is to be disciples.

What about the North American Church, (the United States and Canada)? Aren’t we not missing out on a great opportunity to invest in heaven and at the same time benefit from our investment now in our lifetime? Aren’t the churches holding on to dear wealth as much the rich man did – couldn’t imagine going through the ministry without it? What and where are we holding back, you ask?

The following comment is mostly oriented toward the Canadian churches; thus, its principle relates to the U.S. churches also.  Let me explain the consequences of holding on to dear wealth. Yes, the churches strive to live as a good Christian by keeping the commandments, ‘not committing adultery,’ ‘not murdering,’ ‘not stealing,’ ‘not bearing false witness,’ ‘not defrauding,’ ‘honouring father and mother,’ and accomplishing many good deeds such as giving and serving in the communities. But where the churches failed is toward our children. The churches failed to protect our Christian children from our school sex and religion curriculum that teaches sexual behaviour and religious belief that goes against our Christian values. How did this all happen? I believe we brought these conditions on our own for the sake of saving money on tax-exempts. The churches wrote a pact with Satan. The churches agreed in exchange for Tax exemption to waive their right to take part in any partisan political activity which involves direct or indirect support of or opposition to, any political party or candidate for public office? Under the devil pact, a church denomination can not single out the voting pattern on an issue of anyone elected representative or political? What does Jesus have to say about this pact?

“No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon,” Luke 16:13

“Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s,” Matt 22:21

Aren't our children worth much more than tax-exempt? Is it not time to get out of this curse that is destroying our Judeo-Christian culture in this once great nation? The churches have lost their salt flavours (purpose) and the light on the lampstand has diminished. It's time we get involved, don't you think?

Since Jesus loved the rich man, Jesus loved the churches. Can you not hear Jesus admonishing the Church with the same instruction He gives to the young man? “One thing you lack: Go your way, sell whatever you have (your Charitable Tax exemption) and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; come, take up the cross, and follow Me.”

Christians, are you not losing out on the reward reserved for you in heaven as being a disciple of Christ instead of merely being a believer? As it was for the young rich man, is it so hard for ministers, pastors and members to let go of the Tax-exemption status which restricts the church from being an active partisan in the political sphere? 

When a church is registered as a charity organization it becomes non-partisan politically and is obliged to play by the CRA rules.

 In other words, the churches are not allowed to influence the flocks in any way or form politically, can not campaign politically and can not preach behind the pulpit in favour of or against a political party, or party policy. And that my fellow Canadian Christians, is how the churches got snared keeping the Church from being a lamp, and salt. That is how Canadian Christians became doormats trampled underfoot by the federal and provincial governments. That is how we lost our parental sovereignty over our children. 



Please read the book entitled, “Canadian Christian Ministry 2018, The most lukewarm church in the whole western nation.” In that book, I give a detailed account of how and why the churches give up their ‘reason d’être’ for special social privilege.

Christian Christian Ministry 2018 - The Most Lukewarm Church of in the Whole Western Nations 

by Andre Delage 

Free on Scribd

When Does A Church Cease To Be A Church?

NEVER

Photograph: Ryan Mcvay/Getty Images

“And I also say to you that you are Peter, 
and on this rock (Jesus), I will build My church, 
and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it,” 
Matthew 16:18.

“The Church is not the one restraining the mystery of lawlessness. It is the works of the Holy Spirit through the Church, (2 Thessalonians 2:7)”

In this commentary, I will attempt to explain who is holding back the mystery of lawlessness mentioned in (2 Thessalonians 2:7). The Church or the Holy Spirit?

I believe that those who are part of the event called rapture are redeemed believers, who accepted the blood of Jesus and therefore are saved.  They received the gift of eternal life and are sealed by the presence of the Holy Spirit. Then why do so many assume that the rapture is limited only to the members of the Philadelphia Church? Only believers will be part of the rapture. Jesus’ Church consists of believers sealed with the Holy Spirit, (2 Corinthians 1:22, Ephesians 1:13, 4:30) in all seven Churches.

The mystery of lawlessness

Many teach that the Holy Spirit must first be removed before the Antichrist is revealed. Many come to conclude that the Church must be removed since the Holy Spirit abides in them. Is it so?

“For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only 'He' who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way,” 2 Thessalonians 2:7 NKJ.

Does ‘He’ refer to the Holy Spirit? Is the Holy Spirit restricted to abide only in the body of believers – the Church? The Holy Spirit is He not also omnipresent?

“Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence?” (Psalm 139:7). Can anyone hide himself in secret places, So I shall not see him?” says    the Lord; “Do I not fill heaven and earth?” says the Lord.” (Jeremiah 23:24)

The Holy Spirit is He not abiding in our presence?

“the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you,” John 14:17.

“According to the word that I covenanted with you when you came out of Egypt, so My Spirit remains among you; do not fear!” Haggai 2:5.

Most importantly, isn't the Holy Spirit required for believers to receive before entering the kingdom of God?

“Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God,” John 3:5.

The Holy Spirit isn't He protecting us from evil spirits?

“But the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and a distressing spirit from the Lord troubled him,” 1 Samuel 16:14.

“And the Lord will deliver me from every evil work and preserve me for His heavenly kingdom. To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen!” 2 Timothy 4:18

We see the works of the Holy Spirit all around us. He is the keeper of all life. He keeps nature in order. Remove the Holy Spirit and the law of physic cease to keep everything together.

“For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse,” Romans 1:20.

 “But the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same word, are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men,” 2 Peter 3:7.

Let us examine 2 Thessalonians 2:7 NKJ

“For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way.”

Why did Paul describe lawlessness as a mystery? He could have simply stated, “For the lawlessness is already at work.” Let us view it in a different version using the Easy-to-Read Version (ERV), this is a children's version:

“The secret power of evil is already working in the world now. But there is one who is stopping that secret power of evil. And he will continue to stop it until he is taken out of the way.”

Many interpret the ‘He’ as ‘the Holy Spirit in the Church’. So let us read 2 Thes 2:7 this way: “Only He, [the Church] who now restrains will do so until He, [the Church] is taken out of the way. Is it really the Church? Don’t you think that it is a bit pretentious on our part to think that the Church brought stability and security throughout all the churches' eras? From the Church's early beginning until this day, the Church has been persecuted. Please read: “The Frightening Rise Of Christian Persecution.” 

Did the Church stop any wars? Are we not living in the time of the gentile, and that it will be so until Jesus establishes His reign? We are described as having little strength, and that goes for all the Church eras through centuries. We are to be a light and the salt, by witnessing the gospel of the resurrection, and not for saving our country. The Holy Spirit, not the Church is restraining evil, the mystery of lawlessness.

The mystery of lawlessness is not the abomination of desolation spoken of in the Book of Daniel 12:11. “Mystery of lawlessness’, ‘The secret power of evil’, and ‘Mystery, Babylon The Great’, all refer to secret societies' plan for the New World in dis-Order, which consist of the Jesuit, the Illuminati, the Freemason, the Night of Columbus... and many more.  

“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places,” Ephesians 6:12.

Satan is their master and he is planning the destruction of mankind before Jesus returns to establish His Kingdom. There is no New World Order. What is coming soon is a world in disorder. Satan concluded that since He couldn’t have this kingdom, he might as well destroy all things and bring as many deceived victims with him to hell. Isn’t that what Hitler did? That is what I call a diabolical secret plan, the mystery of lawlessness. Please watch, “The New World Order- Secret Societies and Biblical Prophecy,”http://youtu.be/HL6v8nzFiUk

“For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way.”

As were the days of King David when he prayed for divine protection, the Holy Spirit is restraining the secret plan of Israel's enemies:

“Hide me from the secret plots of the wicked, from the rebellion of the workers of iniquity,” Psalm 64:2.

The Holy Spirit is presently protecting the nation of Israel from the secret counsel of his surrounding enemies, Psalm 83.

The Church is taught to pray for protection against evil, Matthew 6:13 “But deliver us from the evil one.”

And

“that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting,” Ephesians 4:14

The Holy Spirit is holding back the secret plot of the lawlessness and will do so until the Holy Spirit removes His restraining power upon them, not the Church. Fulfillments of God's prophetic plans are the Holy Spirit's domain. It is not the Church, which is restraining the mystery of lawlessness. It is the Holy Spirit's power over the mystery of lawlessness, the secret society's agenda.

The Rapture

The event called the rapture is imminent. Will all Christians be part of it and qualify?

If the Church consists of believers sealed with the Holy Spirit and the church of Laodicea is left behind, what criteria is therefore required to be part of the Rapture?

Is keeping His word and not denying His name, the only criteria required to be part of the rapture? In verse 10 of Rev. 3 shows that we are to keep His instruction to persevere.

“Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth,” Revelation 3:10.

Therefore, is “to persevere” the criteria? Is this command from Jesus required to be part of the rapture: Obedience and perseverance? Obedience to His command to persevere. To persevere in what? Is it to persevere in keeping His word and not to deny His name?

In Revelation 14:12 it is written, “Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus,”

This does sound like lots of work to qualify for the rapture. If it is so, no one qualified. We are all doomed. There are too many Christians as I am, who believe in the rapture and are just sitting around with their arms crossed and waiting. We conclude that since we are guaranteed to escape God’s judgement, then there is nothing to do but kill time. There are many who do not overcome personal sins and strive to become Holy as Jesus is Holy. Many do not bother to share the gospel of salvation with anyone. Many do not take care of the widows and the orphans. Many do not visit the sick and look after the homeless. Many do not take time to fellowship with God in prayers and bible study. Too many observed pagan holidays, Christmas, Halloween, and Easter and lie to their children. Many are not upset and outraged at the increase of sin and injustice in their neighbourhood and in the world. Many do not even show up to church service to mingle with Christians. We make an annual offering, which we conclude suffice to guarantee a burial plot in our denomination cemetery. By our conduct, you cannot tell the difference between us and the seculars. This does describe the Laodicean Church which I also am part of?

“Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus,” Revelation 14:12.

Yes, we are saved by grace and by faith alone and are sealed with the Holy Spirit. We do not receive salvation from bearing good fruit. Yet,  these Christians are part of the soon-coming event called the rapture? They all have the attribute of the Laodicean Church, lukewarm. Some teach that the Laodicean church will not be taken part of the rapture. Some profess that the Laodiceans are the New Age movement. I have a problem with that. Remember, the Church consists of believers. We are either saved or we are not saved. If not saved and just play Christian, they are not going to be part of the rapture.  

Some teach that all Christian believers are saved by grace only and will be kept from the hour of trial regardless of their lifestyle, regardless of their Christian inspiration, really? They believe that they will receive a reward in the form of crowns for their good works. I agree with the rewards, and they are right we are saved by grace so that we do not perish (go to hell) but instead receive the gift of eternal life. However, does this mean that they will avoid God’s judgement coming to the whole earth and will be part of the rapture? Yes.

If we are living in the era of the Laodicea Church which is considered the lukewarm Church, why would they not be viewed as Christians and therefore not be part of the rapture?

“And to the angel of the church of the Laodicea write:” Jesus is clear, the church consists of Christians defined as believers of Christ and followers of Christ. Hebrews 11:6, “for he who comes to God must believe that He is” and John 3:16.  Jesus could as easily address this matter, “and to the angels of believers of Laodicea write.”

Let us go through the message given to them using the Easy-to-Read Version (ERV).

Revelation 3:14-22

14 “Write this to the angel of the church in Laodicea:

“Here is a message from the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of all that God has made.

Reproach

15 “I know what you do. You are not hot or cold. I wish that you were hot or cold! 16 But you are only warm—not hot, not cold. So I am ready to spit you out of my mouth. 17 You say you are rich. You think you have become wealthy and don’t need anything. But you don’t know that you are really miserable, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked.

Recommendation

18 I advise you to buy gold from me—gold made pure in fire. Then you will be rich. I tell you this: Buy clothes that are white. Then you will be able to cover your shameful nakedness. I also tell you to buy medicine to put on your eyes. Then you will be able to see.

Consequences

19 “I correct and punish the people I love.

Take action

This shows that nothing is more important to you than living right. Change your hearts and lives.

Invitation

20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in and eat with you. And you will eat with me.

Reward Crown of Victory - Overcome

21 “I will let everyone who wins the victory sit with me on my throne. It was the same with me. I won the victory and sat down with my Father on his throne. 22 Everyone who hears this should listen to what the Spirit says to the churches.”

Nowhere does Jesus say that they will not be part of the rapture and nowhere does Jesus say that they will.

Is the condition to the Church of Philadelphia to escape the hour of trial, which shall come upon the whole world, must be obedience to His command to persevere, by being faithful to Jesus, keeping His word and not denying His name.

Is overcoming the world, and its secular ways, the criteria for the church of Laodicea to be allowed to sit with Jesus on His throne? Jesus overcomes the world, and so is every believer.

“These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world,” John 16:33.

“For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” 1 John 5:4-5

The letters are not about Salvation

Jesus is talking about works, not salvation. Both churches will take part in the rapture. All believers are taken away. Only unbelievers are left behind. Now, why would theologians teach that the Church of Laodicea won’t make it? Do they imply that the Church would lose the presence of the Holy Spirit sealed in them? This is called by some denominations, 'back-sliding', Lordship Salvation. That my friend would make God a liar, which He is not.

“And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. I and My Father are one,” John 10:28-30.

Some say that going through the great tribulation is God’s correction toward the Church,

19 “I correct and punish the people I love.

All God’s children are corrected at any given time. I can attest to that.

“9 For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, you are God’s building. 10 According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise masterbuilder I have laid the foundation, and another builds on it. But let each one take heed how he builds on it. 11 For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, 13 each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. 14 If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.

16 Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? 17 If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are,” 1 Corinthians 3:9-17.

“God will destroy him,” doesn’t mean that he/she will lose his/her salvation. It means that God will call him/her early, “he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved.”

And:

"These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world." John 16:33

We all go through life facing problems like all other previous church’s eras. Now we can see clearly that there is no difference between the Philadelphia Church and the Laodicean Church, the foundation is the same. The foundation is the gospel of salvation – Christ resurrected, therefore once saved always saved. What is built on it will be tested? What is built on it is your good or bad works. It is not to attain salvation but to obtain rewards. Is it works accomplished by your motivation vs. works stirred up by the Holy Spirit? Have you been obedient to the Holy Spirit?

Verse 14 “If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward.” coincide with Rev 3: 21 “I will let everyone who wins the victory sit with me on my throne.

Whether Philadelphia or Laodicea Church, it makes no difference, both go through fire, which is God’s correction and all make it to the kingdom in heaven even with nothing, If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire. We have an old saying; ‘he made it by the skin of it teeth.’

The Church consists of believers, that received salvation through Jesus Son of God. Therefore in the two letters to the church of Philadelphia and the church of Laodicea, Jesus is not talking about keeping our salvation, but rather to keep doing good works. I agree... the Church of Laodicea had a problem producing good works.

Some scholars omit to explain the words ‘I also’ in Revelation 3:10

“Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.”

It means that in addition to all other previous churches, the church of Philadelphia will also be part of the rapture. All eras of the church will be taken part in the rapture, dead or alive at the time of the rapture. 

“For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep (past church era). For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain(Philadelphians and Laodiceans) shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord,” 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17.

Therefore, who is left behind? We find the answer in Luke 13:23-30 when Jesus shut the door to unbelievers.

23 Then one said to Him, “Lord, are there few who are saved?”

And He said to them, 24 “Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able. 25 When once the Master of the house has risen up and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open for us,’ and He will answer and say to you, ‘I do not know you, where you are from,’ 26 then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets.’ 27 But He will say, ‘I tell you I do not know you, where you are from. Depart from Me, all you workers of iniquity.’ 28 There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and yourselves thrust out. 29 They will come from the east and the west, from the north and the south, and sit down in the kingdom of God. 30 And indeed there are last who will be first, and there are first who will be last.”

Who are those who are left behind? They are unbelievers, not the Church! Remember, the Church consists of believers.

“ 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 they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us,” 1 John 2:19.

“And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many,” Matthew 24:4-5.

And

“For many deceivers have gone out into the world who do not confess Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist,” 2 John 1:7.

Please read my commentary title, “John 6:66 – The Unbelievers”

They are those who live as Christians but never confess that Jesus of Nazareth is Christ Son of God, therefore not saved. They are of those who received and teach a different gospel, “Receive Jesus in your heart and everything will be alright”

We are either saved or not saved, children of God or children of disobedience, we are either sealed with the Holy Spirit or not, but I can guarantee you this that once saved always saved and we will be taken part of the soon coming event called the rapture.

When is the rapture? There are so many signs to watch for. There is a lot of good commentary on that subject. It is not a “time” event. I will give you one verse only:

"For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in," Romans 11:25.

This explains that Israel still has a commission to fulfill. This will happen only after the Church is taken away. The Church will be taken away when specific numbers of believers have been reached. Only God knows that number. Therefore, keep sharing the gospel. You never know, it could be that the person you are sharing the gospel with might be the last one.

Left Behind

To those who are left behind, they will go through the worst time of evil ever in the history of mankind. There is still hope to be part of the kingdom in heaven. The same condition applied to them as it applied to all believers throughout centuries. They must believe and be sealed with the Holy Spirit. I believe that this verse is oriented to those left behind:

“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world,” 1 John 4:1-3.

And

“Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God,” John 3:5.

All believers of the past Church era are gone, all seven Church eras. However, those who go through the 7 years of God's wrath must be sealed with the Holy Spirit, and this is coming out of the month of our Lord Jesus.

“Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God,” John 3:5.

Anyone who believes in the gospel of the resurrection will also receive the Holy Spirit to guarantee his or her citizenship in heaven. It will not be the Church's era anymore. It will be Israel’s era to profess the gospel to the whole world.

“For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way.” 2 Thessalonians 2:7

The Church is not the one restraining the mystery of lawlessness, the secret society's agenda. It is the work of the Holy Spirit.

Massage to those left behind.  

You were not left behind because your works were rejected, or because you were not good enough but because of your unbelief. Now, there are only two things left to do to receive salvation; believe Jesus is your Lord and God, and reject the mark of the beast.

To the Church:

Our attitude as we wait for Our Lord Jesus should be with anticipation and appalled by all the injustice and the hurt that is taking place in the entire world.

Psalm 10:1-3

“Why do You stand afar off, O Lord?

Why do You hide in times of trouble?

The wicked in his pride persecutes the poor;

Let them be caught in the plots which they have devised.

For the wicked boasts of his heart’s desire;

He blesses the greedy and renounces the Lord”

Ezekiel 9:4

“and the Lord said to him, “Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and cry over all the abominations that are done within it.”

2 Peter 2:7-8

“and delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked 8 (for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds)”

Malachi 3:16

“Then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another,

And the Lord listened and heard them;

So a book of remembrance was written before Him

For those who fear the Lord

And who meditate on His name.”

Psalm 119:136

“Rivers of water run down from my eyes,

Because men do not keep Your law.”

Psalm 119:158

“I see the treacherous, and am disgusted,

Because they do not keep Your word.”

1 John 2:15-16

“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world.”

Rev. David Wilkerson - When Jesus Shuts The Door http://youtu.be/r9JywTliIVA

The Greatest Words in All of Scripture (Paul Washer)

http://youtu.be/9W2fuFWUIL0

Pray, Thy Kingdom Come... soon, please hurry.

c u @ d rapture all you saints

abdelage@outlook.com

Christianity is like the menu of an Ice Cream Parlour

Why Jesus’ Church Divided? 

"O come, Desire of nations, bind all people in one heart and mind; O bid our sad divisions cease, and be for us the Prince of Peace."  O Come, O Come Emmanuel 

 Introduction

Why is Jesus’ Church divided?  That is a good question that so many ask and wonder about.  Division among Christian communities causes skepticism and contempt in our society toward Christians.  We are accused of being hypocrites and with good reason.

Jesus stated in Matt 16:18 “And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock, I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it”.  This means that His church will always exist for centuries until His return.  Why so many different denominations?

Let us investigate

If a person were to accept Jesus as the Son of God, as a new believer, which denomination should he/she go to?  Billy Graham made crusades inviting people to the Lord.  Most of them left stadiums on their own, alone without a shepherd. Where would they go?  The church, which is meant to be so simple, is today made so complex.  For a new believer, recognizing the true church is like looking for a needle in a haystack without knowing what a needle looks like… looking for the truth without knowing what the truth is.  Even some old churchgoers cannot recognize which haystack he/she belongs to for the same reason that they have forgotten what the truth is.  It is a contrast to Christians who are being persecuted in some countries, which have few Bibles, no ministries, and assemble in secret.  There exists only one truth, one church.  Yet, they are willing to lose his/her lives over his/her beliefs?  Would we be prepared to die for our beliefs?  Would we be willing to die for what our denomination stands for?  I invite you to read my commentary title, “The Church of Philadelphia "The Faithful Church": Are we as faithful as we are to be?”

If we take the time to search the Internet, we will find that there are 100s of denominations all claiming to be Christians.  If so, why are we divided, after all, Jesus commanded Christians to love one another, not just tolerate one another?  Jesus explained that 

“Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against himself will not stand”, He concluded with this strong assertion, “He who is not with me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad” Matt 12: 25, 30. 

So why are Christians divided into so many denominations?

To explain this phenomenon I chose this analogy; “Christianity is like the menu of an Ice Cream Parlour”. 

The cone itself will represent Jesus our Christ; since 

“He is the stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone”, Matt 21:42; (therefore Jesus is the foundation)  

The ice cream will be His Word, His commandments; 

“Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My Word, you are My disciples indeed” John 8:31. 

“He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me.  And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him, John 14:21.

The flavors represent the preference of each individual Christian; the flavors are the features that make denominations distinct or apart from one another.  Therefore, Christianity is like the menu of an ice cream parlor that offers a wide variety of flavors from plain vanilla flavors to exotic tropical fruit flavors.  These flavors represent the people’s ideal setting for their church in their community.  That is one of the two reasons for the church, the body of Jesus…, which was meant to be so simple, has become so complex to identify.  What I will be focusing on in this commentary is…the flavors.  The other reason is the cone…the body of Jesus …It looks like the body of Jesus but is a counterfeit cone that does not taste like one.  This other reason will be investigated in Part 2 of another commentary titled "Counterfeit Gospel - Could you recognize it?"

Let us start with The Flavours

The menu listed for Christian preferences consists of a wide range of gospel music types, church service format, choice of activities, choice of social mission statement, choice of building structure and design, location, and many more reasons to satisfy all tastes. These varieties of flavors are not of bad taste.  It demonstrates that we exhibit cultural and traditional differences in worshiping The Lord.  Jesus declared, “I am the vine you are the branches”.  Therefore, Christians are not necessarily divided, but distinct.  That is OK, as long as…keep on reading.

From society's perspective, it may be seen as hypocrisy since there are some within the Christian communities who claim that their flavors are the only flavorful ones. Some get tired of the assembly flavors such as the doctrines, the constitution, and their policies, therefore deciding to start a new group.  (1 Timothy 1:4, 1 Timothy 6:4, 2 Timothy 2:23, Titus 3:9).  It does display too much attention on the flavors and not enough on the cone and the ice cream.  “ For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires…" flavors"… because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables,” (2 Tim 4:3-4).  That is a whole lot of unnecessary flavors.  You will notice that in that verse, the members are the ones who chose the teachers.  They do not change the truth; they just turn their ears away from it.  There are many sincere pastors and ministers, who are believers of God’s Word, who desired to serve Jesus, yet are held hostage by the flavors of their church community.  If you are one of them, hear what the Lord has to tell you, “Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love.”  Rev 2:4, and “Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die, for I have not found your works perfect before God.  Remember therefore how you have received and heard; hold fast and repent.” Rev 3:2-3a.

I know of a church building that is shared by the United Church and the Anglican Church.  Their pews are made so that the backrest can swivel to face from one end (the United Church) pulpit to the other end (the Anglican Church) pulpit.  Is that the solution?

If Jesus was present, where do you think He would be standing?  In my opinion, Jesus would be standing in the center of the building with the pews surrounding Him.   





Some denominations focus so much on their flavors that they act as an ice cream parlor.  The flavors are for sale.  They are the ones who are so afraid of losing their church building that all their time and energy is spent on fundraising.  Excessive charges are imposed on pastoral services.  The church has become a business and bureaucratic.  Then there are to the other extreme, the mega churches with revenues that are in the millions, offering for sale their wide variety of books, tapes that are meant to teach Christian living, and accessories such as pieces of jewelry. "These false teachers only want your money. So they will use you by telling you things that are not biblical sound. But the judgment against these false teachers has been ready for a long time. And they will not escape God who will destroy them," (2 Peter 2:3 ERV). What does Jesus think about them?  “Take these things away!  Do not make My Father’s house a house of merchandise,” (John 2:16).  “My house shall be called a house of prayer, but you have made it a ‘den of thieves,” (Matt 21:13).   It is so sad.  Consequently, those afraid of losing their churches will find their door closed one day.  If they would only apply Matthew 6:33, what a difference it would make.  And concerning the mega-church marketing strategy to sell their water down the gospel and God’s Words, they should keep in mind that the gospel had been given freely, (Matt 10:8; 2 Cor 11:7;  2 Thess 3:8;  Rev 22:17).  The gospel and the gift of the Holy Spirit are not for sale, Acts 8:19-21.

Ron Graham at raptureready.com in his commentary title “Tradition” expresses his view of the present condition of many churches this way:

“In many respects, the assembling together has become a huge social club designed to entertain the club members.  This membership atmosphere which has become the norm in many congregations, and which is now seen in the eyes of many as the Laodicean Church, might well be the church’s Waterloo.  These folks could well be the ones who will turn against and bring down the organized Christian Church in the last days.  Believers might have to give up their coffee shops, bookstores, bowling alleys, movie theaters, and all the rest of the unbiblical amenities that have infiltrated our worship halls.”

Ron Graham observed the impact on Christian’s spiritual growth.  He put it across this way:

“Church tradition has come a long way in the last 2,000 years.  Most of what is done these days behind the doors of Christian Churches is not so much biblical as traditional.  Simply put, years of man’s doctrines have crept into our Christian Churches.  Even though we practice something every week doesn’t mean it is necessarily biblical.  And you’ll never really achieve any real understanding of your Bibles by simply sitting through three songs and a thirty-minute message by a pastor on Sunday mornings.”

When we steer away from Jesus and His truth…the cone and the ice cream and focus too much on personal preference …the flavors…rather than meeting the spiritual growth of the assembly, as is stated in Eph 4:11-16, it becomes obvious that the denomination or individuals become dead in Jesus’ Works.  Matthew 5:13 explains this clearly; “You are the salt of the earth…  in the pure taste of ice cream…but if the salt loses its flavor (saltness), …by adding flavors… how shall it be seasoned?  It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.  You are the light of the world.  A city that is set on the hill cannot be hidden.  Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket,… or mix it with flavors…but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven”.  According to Jesus' statement, a Christian should be very easy to recognize.  Instead, it has become difficult.  Why?  In my opinion, with all these flavors, most Christians had forgotten its root.  It is all about Luke 4:18-19, God’s Word, and God’s Works.  It is not about the flavors (preference) but rather the cone and the ice cream, Jesus and His Word. 

Looking at how we should use our freedom in Chris

Many comments, “Why then did Jesus allow His Church to wander away into so many different groups, allowing so many different flavors?  After all, is it not His responsibility to direct His Church?  He is the head isn’t He?”  Many have forgotten that the greatest gifts ever given before salvation are the gift of existence (life) and the gift to choose.  Humanity has free choice.  Can we not observe the result of ‘free choice’?  The world is in disarray.  To whose moral standard should God use to intervene in the affair of man, yours?  We either chose to follow the directive of Jesus or ours.  The same is true within the Body of Christ; by the grace of God, members of all denominations have that freedom of choice. 

Jesus predicted that this would happen.  He foresees the days when some of the members of any denomination would not let Him lead the body.  Many would focus more on the flavors rather than His Words for instruction.  So many do not study the bible for direction and bible prophecy to prepare us for the lawlessness that is on the increase, and so many are vulnerable to deception, (Eph 4:14).  So many just do not care to know the truth.  Anyone, taking the time to study the Kingdom parables would realize that the church from the beginning started to transform itself into a bureaucratic organization, as is spoken in (Acts 20:28-30).  It would lose the purpose of it existence.  It would become self-serving rather than focusing on the spiritual growth of the assembly, Eph 4:11-16.  It either became a one-man/woman ministry or a board of members viewing its followers as spectators rather them being an assembly of participants in exhibiting the power of the Holy Spirit. 

Lambert Dolphin in his commentary title; “Description Of The Spiritual Gifts” explains:

“These are supernatural enablements … (Spiritual gifts) …so that we may serve God more effectively in the world and in the church.  Every Christian has at least one spiritual gift; many are given more than one gift.  All Christians are called to the work of the ministry and distinctions between "clergy" and "laity" are foreign to the New Testament.  Both spiritual gifts and natural talents must be employed in the power of the Holy Spirit and not in the self-energy of the flesh in order to please God and bring positive results.”

Study the parables of “the tare, the mustard seed, and the leaven.”  Jesus' parables were not meant to be a warning but rather a prediction that division would happen.  He gave instructions to those who love His Word, the pure taste of ice cream.  We are not meant to root out the tare among the wheat but rather to leave them to Jesus’ angels to sickle them apart from the wheat at the end of the age, as explained in Matt 13:30.  These parables are prophecies.  Those prophecies came to pass.  What Jesus is teaching to each individual is this; Let us concentrate to do our part in representing Him by being part of His Works.  That is the meaning of being the salt and the lamp.  Moreover, we are to leave distractions such as the tare, the birds in the mustard tree, and the leaven to Jesus. 

The letters written to the seven churches in the province of Asia found in the book of Revelation reveal that Jesus knew of the Church’s transformation through the centuries to come.  Those seven churches really did exist at the time the letters were written.  Their struggle to stay true to the Word was an everyday challenge.  The advice given by Jesus to each of the churches was to guarantee His Church's continual existence through centuries to come, (see Rev 1:19).  All of today’s denominations and individual Christians do possess one or more of these churches' characteristics.  Do you have an ear?  Are these letters not meant to be read to the churches?  They were meant to anyone who has an ear to hear, “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches”, Rev 2:7, 11, 17, 29, Rev 3:6, 13, 22.  For that reason, read them to yourself aloud. 

All seven churches in The Book of Revelation are part of the body of Jesus, His Church.  One out of the seven churches received no reprimand but instead praise.  Rev 3:7,  “And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write, ‘These things says He who is holy, He who is true, “He who has the key of David, He who opens and no one shuts and shuts and no one opens”: “I know your works.  See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it; for you have a little strength, have kept my word and have not denied my name," My Word, and have not denied My name.”

Could we recognize this church today?  Whoever they are or which denominations they could be, who have kept His Word, and who have not denied His name…the cone and the ice cream.  His Word is His commandments.  Therefore, we need to know and understand, what are His commandments?  Is Jesus talking about the Old Testament commandment?  

Not likely.  After all, there are close to 613 of them.  The Jewish population after the return of their captivity from Babylon tried to keep every one of them and more in the fear that God would send them into another captivity if not kept.  To the Pharisees and Sadducees keeping the commandments became their lifestyle to the extreme.  Do we understand now Jesus' frustration toward them including the priesthood?  There was too much emphasis on the keeping of the law and not enough on human needs, (Is 58).  They went from one extreme, “by not observing His commandments before their captivity in Babylon” to the other extreme “by being overzealous in keeping the laws”.  Read the Book to the Hebrews, it is instructions given to the Christian Jews to let go of the Old Covenant and to enter into a New Covenant.  I encourage you to listen to this excellent study in MP3 format by Jack Kelly titled; A study of the Letter to the Hebrews.  The New Covenant ‘made simple’ was a fearful decision for them to observe.  They were fearful to displease God, fearful of returning to captivity.  It is ironic, because their fear of returning to captivity leads them to be scattered worldwide, (Luke 19:43-44).  “If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for peace!  But now they are hidden from your eyes,” Luke 19:42.  “The things that make for peace” is part of the New Covenant with Jesus.  

As Christians, are we not behaving the same way?  Before our salvation, we were condemned, fearful of God's judgment.  After our salvation, some are still fearful of God's judgment and continue to live by some Old Covenant law: working so hard to be accepted by God.  That is an undesired added flavor.  It is distracting us from focusing on God’s Work.  So let us focus on His grace and His mercy and accept salvation as the most underserved of all…. praise the Lord. We have the "Freedom To Be Authentic, Spontaneous & Extravagant".

 Eph 2:8-9, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast”.  Titus 3:4, “But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit”. 

So, what are the commandments Jesus was talking about?  What are the commandments of the new covenant?  (Matthew 28:18-20); And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.  Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.  Amen.”  Therefore, what are we to teach, and what are the things we must observe that Jesus commanded?

We see here the great commission of the Church (individual responsibility) to make disciples, preaching, “Jesus resurrected” as a witness 1 Peter 1:3, John 11:25, Acts 4:2.  That is the purpose and the outcome for each individual by being the salt of the earth, a lamp.  As a witness, we are to testify what Jesus had done for us (John 3:16), and made available to all.  We are to show mercy and grace to all in as much Jesus gave to humanity, Luke 6:31, Luke 10:37.  We tend to take for granted the gesture of mercy and grace from Jesus and the Father.  Mercy, meaning we do not get what we deserved (death, Luke 13:3, forever separated from God), and grace, meaning we receive the thing we do not deserve (life, forever be with God, and to reign with Him for eternity, John 5:24).

The New Covenant commandments are summed up in three aspects; Belief, trust, and love. 

These are what we are to teach and things we must observe in which Jesus commanded.

1. Believe

Believe that Jesus is the Son of God, Matt 16:16, the One that God had sent so that whoever believes in Him may receive the gift of eternal life, John 3:16.  “Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life.  He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live””, John 11:25.  Salvation is an event, not a process.  All it takes is to believe.  I am a firm advocate that once saved always save, Hebrews 13:5.  Jesus died for all sins, past, present, and future. 

Once we made that choice to believe in Jesus as the Son of God and accepted him in our hearts, we are forever His.  If we believe that we are saved because we belong to a congregation, or by our good deeds, we are deceiving ourselves.  It is through Jesus obeying the will of the Father that we are redeemed and given eternal life, nothing else, John 6:38-40.  We are not saved by our conduct or our work.  We are saved by believing only.  I encourage you to read this excellent commentary by Jack Kelly's title, “OSAS, The Whole Story" Once Saved Always Saved.  Sin will never separate us from God…. our guilt and shame will.  Just do not do what Adam did, run away, and hide.  Run toward the cross.  God is merciful; His Son Jesus is sitting beside Him as a beacon of the price Jesus paid for our sins.  We are His children; therefore, He acts as a good father even better than our earthly parents.  He is rebuking us to teach us not to condemn us.  Got that?

2.     Trust

Trust.  This is part of a process called sanctification, “to set apart for special use or purpose”.  It is a lifelong process of learning to trust God to do His work in us.  It is called “Walking with God”.  The factor that helps us to achieve this is by understanding that God knows our destiny, 1 Tim 6:15, 1 Cor 4:8. 

He knows what is important to us, Matt 6:32, therefore, let us trust Him with all our needs, Pr 3:5-6.  You may not be aware of, or perhaps you were taking God’s mercy for granted but showing a lack of trust toward God is an act of sin against Him.

From Apostasy Now (author unknown)

“And Job Said:

Job 3:25-26 “ For the thing which I greatly feared is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come unto me. 26 I was not in safety, neither had I rest, neither was I quiet, yet trouble came”.

Note verse 26.....Job accounted his basic insecurity and watchfulness as a hedge of protection against such tragedies. These were the things he greatly feared. Job accounted his TACIT CONFESSION that these things would or might come as a form of righteousness...he expected that by admission to his LIABILITY to such things, he was exonerated of the sin of presumption. Job was afraid that if he INSISTED THAT GOD would preserve him, that THIS would be THE sin that brought on the things he greatly feared. As it turns out, it was not his presumption on God's protection, but his DOUBT OF IT that invited and warranted these tragedies.

After a full life of health and prosperity, Job greatly fears that such tragedies are not far behind. He expected them. Do you?

Many years of walking with God, and many years of blessing, are not enough to convince Job that he is SAFE with his God.”

How many of us walk through life doubting God deep down in our minds.  We want to believe, nevertheless ‘the want to be’ is not faith, is not trusting.  Why?  Our mind is full of myths and false teaching.  We never challenge what we believe.  Take for example the theory of evolution.  There are many Christians who embrace such teaching as a possibility…maybe it did take 400 billion years for God to creates the earth and the universe and everything that lives on it…  maybe Jesus was just a man with great humanity values…maybe there is more than one way to an afterlife higher existence… maybe it is by buying a lottery ticket that God will provide for me.   What causes doubts?    Like Sarah, Abraham's wife, we do not wait, we just go ahead take action and assume that it is God’s will.  What causes us to sin?  Is 42:8, 48:11.

Please understand this, evolution is a process as for creation is by the word of God spoken.  In Heb 11:3 it is recorded that it is through faith that we understand that the worlds were framed, put together by the word of God: so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear. Please read Apostasy Now (author unknown)

“Job's righteousness was a real faith in a living God who could be prevailed upon to come to his rescue. Job had that faith that has been the same since the beginning of time:

Hebrews 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Romans 4:19-22 And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about a hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sarah's womb: 20 He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; 21 And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. 22 And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.

Abraham was accounted righteous BECAUSE HE BELIEVED A PROMISE. We are nowhere told that Abraham was accounted righteous because he believed a commandment or a threat of punishment: but because he BELIEVED A PROMISE from God!”

Did not God promise to take care of us?  A promise made is a promise kept.  How many make God a liar?  You wouldn’t dare accuse God of being a liar of course but you might justify your doubts, right?…as I am not good enough, God is not pleased with me, I have a secret sin that I kept avoiding discussing with God…etc.

From Apostasy Now (author unknown)

“True faith is not easy to attain to, because it requires a conscience that is void of offense. A conscience void of offense is not a rash presumption that God "has no objections to anything in me because Christ has died for me". A conscience void of offense comes from facing the facts about yourself; facing the truth of the Word of God, and living up to the light we already have. The Bible plainly says that an uncondemned heart gets WHATEVER IT ASKS FOR. (1 John 3:19-22)

The fact is.....that our heart may not ask for what our mouth asks for: a man asks for healing - but in his heart, he knows he shouldn't have it - he knows that his sickness is his just deserts. He knows that it would be UNRIGHTEOUS of God to give him what he is asking for; he does not really expect to get what he is asking for; he doesn't REALLY want what he is asking for despite his profession to the contrary. GET RIGHT, AND BE BLESSED.”

It is important to acknowledge our sins and doubt.  Ask for forgiveness for our lack of trust.  We do not lose our salvation; we are temporarily on hold from His fellowship and from receiving His favors.  This is “one” of the many other reasons why God does not answer prayers.  This is the way God rebukes us and gets our attention.  As Jesus explained to Peter, only the feet need to be washed, not the whole body.  Jesus took care of the body by washing it with His blood.  We only need to take care of our feet, John 13:10.  God is quick to forgive and to restore our fellowship with Him, 1 John 1:9. 

Look at the life of Enoch.  Enoch lived for 365 years and walked with God (trusting God) for 300 years.  It took 65 years for Enoch to learn to trust God, (Genesis 5:21-23).  I wonder sometimes how he faced life before the flood.  I read that it was as bad as it is today, (Luke 17:26, 2 Peter 2:5).  How long will it take us to learn that lesson?  How long will it take you to take Jesus at His Word?  Frankly, I would be afraid to go through life today without Jesus.  The Israelites were 40 years in the desert, and sent in captivity for 70 years in Babylon, and yet as of today, Israel as a nation has not learned to trust God when He declares that Jesus was His Son, (Matthew 3:17, Matthew 17:5).  Israel is still God’s people, (Zec 2:8, Ezekiel 37:11-12).  Hard to believe…. this only proves how secure is our salvation.  More may be found on this subject of trusting God by reading my commentary on the subject titled “Economic Crisis: As Christians, what are we to do?  Answer: "REST"” 

Trust is the element that many Christians fail to apply in their life with Jesus.  Most live a defeated life; appear worrying, and sad, and show a life of sacrifice instead of a life full of the abundance of joy as it was intended, “I have come that they may have life and have it abundantly”, John 10:10.  They either had bad teachers or just did not learn.  Too many are among thorns as I was:  “Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the Word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the Word, and he becomes unfruitful”, Matt 13:22.  Failing to trust does not take away our salvation.  

It just makes life miserable and unfruitful.  The sooner we learn to trust God the better so that we can go on and do what Jesus set us apart for and purpose.  To trust is a decision.  To please God is to trust Him.  To trust God is to please God.  We have heard of the saying; “God helps those who help themselves”, surprise…that is not in the bible.  God helps those who depend and hope entirely on Him.

Blessed is the man…/woman… who trusts in the LORD,

      And whose hope is the LORD. 

       For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters,

      Which spreads out its roots by the river,

      And will not fear when heat comes;

      But its leaf will be green,

      And will not be anxious in the year of drought,

      Nor will cease from yielding fruit.  Jer 17:7-8

On a personal note.  I accepted Jesus in my early 20’s.  For a major part of my life, I have lived the experience of not trusting God.  Through the experience of two failed marriages, I became bitter and ran farther away from God.  I married again.  I invested in the establishment of a vineyard with the goal of turning it into a Winery retail store.  We ended up with incredible debt and on top of that, my wife's health was deteriorating.  Nothing seems to go right.  No matter what I did, my vines gave no fruit or hardly.  My mind was full of fear and doubt.  I prayed and studied the bible.  “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and it righteousness” was my motto.  Yet, my life did not improve. 

I finally realized that I was putting all my attention on “Seeking ye first the kingdom of God, and very little on “His righteousness”.  I was putting too much attention on studying bible prophecy and not enough on applying God’s Word in my life.  There was a sin that I kept ignoring and justifying, considering it non-important.  That is where I was wrong.  God as a loving Father considered it serious enough to bring it to my attention.

Then there is a matter of trusting God.  Proverb 3: 5-6, I kept reading “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him,  And He shall direct your paths”…..until it finally clicked.  It is a commandment, not a suggestion to trust.  I finally realized what pleases God the most is a trusting heart.  I made the decision to trust the Lord.  I stood up at an assembly and declared my commitment to trust in the Lord.  I read the same verse by adding “I”.  “I will trust in the Lord with all my heart, and I will lean not in my own understanding; in all my ways I will acknowledge Him, and He will direct my paths.”

 

We moved to my wife's hometown, in Newfoundland over 1000 miles away from our children and grandchildren.  My wife's health got worse.  Her employer filed bankruptcy protection…we hit bottom.  I kept the decision to trust Him no matter what….  We showed to God our trust in Him by contributing to our local churches.  I continually praised Jesus in my mind whenever doubt and fear entered my mind.  Our life suddenly made a 180-degree change.  Our debts were consolidated.  My wife received a medical leave of absence.  The blessing we received was unexplainable.  God is great.  God is wonderful.  God is merciful, and I mean it. 

Lately, with all this proof of His blessing in our lives, I failed again to trust the Lord and allowed insecurity and doubt to enter my mind and the consequence was that I upset the one I love, my wife.  I asked God for forgiveness and He was quick to forgive.  My wife also forgave me.  She showed a good example of what forgiveness is all about.  I am now more committed to trusting the Lord.  Now I say, “I trust the Lord with all my heart and I lean not in my own understanding; in all my ways I acknowledge Him, and He directs my path.  Jesus is not reigning to get even with us when we fail to trust Him.  He reigns to teach. 

I learned the importance of praising the Lord: Romans 15:11, “and again, Praise the LORD, all you Gentiles! Laud Him, all you peoples!”  I learned that trust and praise go hand in hand, Ephesians 1:12, “that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory”.

It is all about making the decision to trust.  STOP SINNING AND TRUST.  Romans 6

3.     Love

Love.  Paul couldn’t emphasize more on this subject,  “And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love.  But the greatest of these is love”, 1 Corinthians 13:13.  Read all of John’s three letters.  It is summed up in this; 1 John 5:3: “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments.  And His commandments are not burdensome”, and in 1 John 4:21: “And this commandment we have from Him: that he who loves God must love his brother also”. 

It does not say ‘should try, tolerate or worship apart’, Gal 5:14, 1 Tim1:5.  Mercy and grace we want, but how quick are we to do to others as Jesus did to us?  We may want to take the time to read the parable of the unforgiving servant Matt 18:23-35.  We are to show love in the form of mercy and grace not only toward a few and then ask for but as an act of compassion without his/her asking, Luke 23:34.  To dispute over preferences, that appear to be common sense for some is not sinful, but is a good opportunity to show mercy and grace.  For someone to prefer different flavors than ours, which is important to us, is also a good opportunity to show mercy and grace. 

The New Covenant is based on love.  God’s love toward us and love between each other; 1 John 2:7-11, Matthew 22:34-40.  “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another,” John 13:34.  “By this, all will know that you are My disciples if you have love for one another,” John 13:35.  “ALL” means the whole of society will know that we are God’s disciples if we love one another.  Do we understand now, why division hinders God’s Works?  “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against himself will not stand”.  Take a good look inside many churches.  There are many empty pews and some who attend are too busy to live with all these added flavors and avoid living with love.  The churches are brought to desolation.  In my opinion, this is the one major cause for the prophetic event called the “falling away”, 2 Thess 2:3.  Jesus concluded with this strong assertion, “He who is not with me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad” Matt 12: 30.  Let me put it this way; he who is not with Jesus by practicing love in the form of mercy and grace within the church communities is against Jesus, he who does not practice love, does not gather with Jesus but scatters abroad, breaks up the church or keeps people away.  Let us start practicing loving people in the church.  We may find it easier to love those within the world. 

It is very sad.  The loyal aging attendees are the ones who suffer the most.  They remember the time when the church was alive and the pews were full.  Sunday was an all-day family gathering from church to home.  The family would share meals, sing songs, and share their life experiences.  Now it is only memories.  The church is empty, and they return to an empty home.  Sad…very sad.

Ray C.  Stedman commentary on the Parable of the Leaven titled "The Case of the Sneaky Housewife" wrote:

“That is what is often lacking in the church today.  We have taken away the koinonia, the commonness of the body of Christ.  We have lost that to a great extent in the church in general.  But we have held onto the kerygma, the preaching, the proclamation.  We expect to convince everybody by an intellectual presentation of truth.  But the reason why the evangelical church of our day is rejected and set aside in so many quarters is that people who come to it are disappointed because they hear great Words but they don't see great lives; they don't see warmth, they don't see love and acceptance, they don't see understanding and forgiveness.  What they too often run into is strife and bickering and fighting and quarreling and unforgiveness, jealousy and bitterness, grudges and splits and feuds and divisions, hostility and anger, worry and anxiety.  They listen to the preaching of these great Words that the church has to say and then they look at our lives to see how it works.  And what they see convinces them that the Words are not true.  What they see is exactly what they find in their own lives and homes.”  

So they say to us, "What are you Christians talking about?  What's the difference?  What do you Christians have that we don't have---without the inconvenience of having to go through all the rites you go through.  What is so great about this message?  Why doesn't it do something for you?  Why should we believe it and go to all the trouble of becoming a Christian when we can live the same way ourselves?  We don't need the church or the Bible to teach us how to fight.  We don't need the gospel to help us to be angry and resentful and bitter and divided against each other.  We can do all that without it." And so there is an immediate loss of attention to the message that we are proclaiming because there is no evidence of the witness of communion.  What is missing is the oneness, the precious fellowship together of the people of God living the life of God.

Hypocrisy is what we display in society.  The society is right to accuse Christians of being hypocrites.  What is so ironic is that many Christians do not want to face this truth…they prefer to be in denial and view themselves as victims of Christians persecution.  We are rightly being judged by society and we do not listen.

Ray C.  Stedman continued with this strong accusation toward today’s churches: 

“What is the result of all this leaven that has come in?  Well, we can see it abounding on every side, can't we?  People come to church.  They listen, they sing a hymn, they stand at the right time, they bow their heads at the right angle, they close the book together, they sit down.  They go through the motions, but there is no exchange of life.  There is no oneness, no sense of openness, no acceptance, no forgiveness.  And homes, which are supposedly Christian, are often filled with strife and bickering and fighting, even physical attack.  These things are the result of the leaven which has permeated and pervaded the body of Christ.”

Ray Stedman then explains the cause and the solution:

“If the leaders of the church through the centuries had faithfully stuck with the Scripture…‘ the cone and the ice cream’… and had taught it as it is, these unhappy developments would have been prevented.  But everywhere I go as a pastor today, speaking to groups of other pastors, I find out that this is the great weakness -- pastors are not teaching the Bible.  They are not instructing their people from the Word of God and teaching what it actually says about how they are to live together.  They aren't saying a Word about that.  They are discussing remote doctrinal questions and giving their opinions on the social and political issues of the day…the flavours… instead of instructing in what the Bible is really aimed at -- the very personal lives of individuals and their relationships one with another.  If the leadership of the church were carefully going over the Scriptures together with people, unfolding the Word of God, the whole effect of leaven would be greatly minimized within the body of Christ.”

How sad to see what all these undesired flavours do.  It has destroyed the purpose of the Body of Christ. 

Lambert Dolphin's commentary title “The Church at the End of the Age” points out:

“The church described as the body of Christ, with Christ the head of the Body (Ephesians 4, 1 Cor 12-14) is a reminder that the true church is a living organism, not an organization.  We need one another and depend on one another as the various organs and systems of the human body are interdependent.  Each member of the church reports directly to the Head, there is no hierarchical leadership in the church.  All members have spiritual gifts and all are called to the ministry.  "If one member suffers, all suffer, if one rejoices all rejoice."

Lambert Dolphin again in his commentary title, “Keeping Ready for the Return of the Lord” explained;

“One of the haunting problems in the church today is its identity crisis.  In many places, it seems to have lost the sense of what it was intended to be.  Instead of a body, with each one "members one of another" and ministering to one another in love and concern, it has become an organization operating various programs.  Paul wrote to the Galatians, "Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ" (Galatians 6:2).  But today's Christians often touch each others' lives on only the most superficial basis, and do not want to hear another's problems because they "don't want to get involved.”      

Further, in his commentary Lambert Dolphin clarify the intent of the church:

“Being ready means loving, trusting, and waiting for Jesus Christ, of course.  The faithful servant is faithful because he is expecting his Lord's return.  But it also has to do with faithful service, that is, continuing to carry out what Jesus has left us in this world to do.  We find the same idea in two of the three parables in chapter 25.  In one parable faithfulness is demonstrated by the wise use of the talents Christ has given (Matt.  25:14-30).  In the other it is seen in selfless service to those who are hungry or thirsty or have other pressing needs (Matt.  25:31-46).”

To live in the spirit of the church of Philadelphia we are to keep His Word, and not deny His name.  It is accomplished by believing, trusting, and loving.  The pure taste of ice cream should take precedence over all other flavors.  That is the simplicity of the church.  That is ‘in a nutshell’ the signification of the talents in the Parable of the Talents in Matt 25:14; the talents are His love.  “For to everyone who has…love… more will be given, and he will have abundance, but from him who does not have…love… even what he has will be taken away.” 

Love in its true form of grace and mercy is what we have received to invest.  The

Parable of the Creditor and The Two Debtors in Luke 7:41-43 explain in plain words what the servant in the Parable of the Talent received.  Let's read Luke 7:41-43

“There was a certain creditor who had two debtors.  One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.  And when they had nothing with which to repay, he freely forgave them both.  Tell Me, therefore, which of them will love him more?”

Simon answered and said, “I suppose the one whom he forgave more.” …mercy and grace…

And He said to him, “You have rightly judged.”

The one that owned the most is the one that sins the most.  It is the one that suffers most of the consequences of his/her sins…the family broke up, loss of a job due to dysfunctional behavior caused by sins, ravaged by health problems due to promiscuous sex, and left alone.  He/she is the one most grateful for receiving forgiveness and acceptance in God’s family compared to those who have little consequences for their sins.  These are the ones that are rejected and set apart by some traditional denominations…they do not fit their mold.

Now let us put ‘grace and mercy’ in perspective in the Parable of the Talents Matt 25:14-16

“For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them.  And to one he gave five talents…(five hundred denarii) the one that received most forgiveness “mercy and grace”… to another two…(fifty denarii)  “mercy and grace”… and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey.

Now according to these two parables, servants will have a greater return on the goods…forgiveness ‘mercy, and grace’…they received?  Which one would actively forgive, showing mercy and grace to others?  The answer is, “the one that loves him more for receiving an abundance of His mercy and grace”, the one that appreciates more the gift of forgiveness.  That is according to his/her own ability to do the same.  Ability to do what?  It is in the ability to love as Jesus loved us…the ability to love Jesus by obeying His commandment to love, to do the same…got it?

This is how we obtain a return on the goods that we have received; Corinthians 4:7-15

In v15, we see the return on our investment, “For all things are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through the many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God”.  How do we spread grace?  The message from the parable of the Good Samaritan is all about what we are to do with our talents  (love…grace and mercy).  “Then Jesus said to him, Go and do likewise” Luke 10:37.  Love is what we receive in goods.  For what purpose, “that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body” 2 Cor 4:10. 

Some have defined talents as God’s Words with good reason….  however, within the context of the New Covenant, love (koinonia) is more likely to be the right description of the symbol of talents. 

Micah 6:6-8 illustrates precisely, what Our Lord required from us, that is to love mercy over flavors:

“With what shall I come before the LORD,

And bow myself before the High God?

Shall I come before Him with burnt offerings,

With calves a year old?…Sunday after service barbecue…

Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams,

Ten thousand rivers of oil?…fundraising….

Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression,…donations…

The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?…service to the community…

He has shown you, O man, what is good;

And what does the LORD require of you

But to do justly, To love mercy,

And to walk humbly with your God

The Philadelphia church and the Thessalonians church had this in common.  They did not need to be taught.  To the Thessalonians church, Paul wrote:

“But concerning brotherly love you have no need that I should write to you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love one another; and indeed you do so toward all the brethren who are in all Macedonia.  But we urge you, brethren, that you increase more and more; 1 Thess 4: 9-10.  To the Philadelphia church, Jesus stated:  “I know your works.  See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it; for you have a little strength, have kept My Word, and have not denied My name, Revelation 3:8.  Paul understood the importance of living in love with each other, “But we urge you, brethren, that you increase more and more”. 

We are to spread mercy and grace to all.  That is what sets Christians apart from this world.

Love in the form of mercy and grace is what we lose if not invested, separated from God forever.  “And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness.  There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”  Matt 25:30.  The unfaithful servant was a hypocrite and a pretentious Christian.  He/she was a tare.  He/she did not accept Jesus' love in the form of grace and mercy, he/she buried it and, therefore never had the desire nor the intention to do the same to others.  They look and act like a gentile under the guise of Christianity but they are not saved.  They fail to apply love…mercy, and grace.  So again, what are we to do with the tares in the church communities”?  Nothing.  It is not our business.  It is not for us to go on a witch-hunt to disclose them.  It is Jesus' business.  He only knows the heart.  Our business is to love in the form of grace and mercy.  We never know, we might even influence a tare to accept Jesus’ love.

Paul cautions the Corinthians to be aware of what is added to the cone and to the ice cream, 1 Corinthians 3:10b-15;

“But let each one take heed how he builds on it.  For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.  Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw…all different kinds of flavors… each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is.  If anyone’s work, which he has built on, it endures, he will receive a reward.  If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.” 

It is interesting to see that the result after being tested over what was built on Jesus is to receive a reward.  Salvation is not a reward.  We already acquired salvation through believing.  The reward is for those who had increased their talents even to a minimum.  To the ones who did not bury it. 

The fire that will test our love for Jesus and others is in our everyday life challenges.  How do we react toward diversities?  Do we still trust God?  How do we react toward someone who deliberately makes our life miserable?  Do we still act in love…mercy and grace?  Do we forgive especially those in the family of God, our brothers and sisters in all denominations?  So, let us be conscious of what we put on the ice cream cone.  Our flavors hinder God’s works and hinder our understanding of His Word.  We live by His Word by being pure salt and a true lamp. 

Philippians 1:27 "Only let your conduct be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of your affairs, that you stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel.”  It is our conduct, by trusting Jesus and loving each other that makes an impact in society.  Here is a revelation for some; it is not a wide range of church activities that draw people to Jesus.  It is not preaching moral values or the 10 commandments or of all the do’s and don’ts that draw people to God e.g. on how to keep the Sabbath, not to play cards, not to drink wine, not to wear make-up, these are personal flavors….  God’s kindness, grace, and mercy are what draw people to Him.

Acts 2:46; “So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart.”  With one accord by loving each other.

2 Corinthians 1:12; “For our boasting is this: the testimony of our conscience that we conducted ourselves in the world in simplicity and godly sincerity, not with fleshly wisdom but by the grace of God, and more abundantly toward you”.  Conducting ourselves in society in love, in grace, and in mercy.

In conclusion:

As I mentioned in my introduction, there are many silent Christians, who are not part of any assemblies, and who do not know where to go to share their faith and love for Jesus.  “And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd,” John 10:16.  I believe that there are silent Christians left alone without a shepherd to teach them and direct them in there new life with Jesus.  I am convinced that there are many who silently accept Jesus in their hearts and yet just do not know to which church to turn.  I believe that there are many Christians who are tired of being part of a denomination that puts too much emphasis on the flavors and they are crying out to be part of a real family surrounded with love. 

This is a message to the true Christians, who live in the spirit of the Philadelphia church, who have kept His Word and have not denied His name.  Let your lamp shine in these last hours before our Lord returns so that whoever believes in the Lord may find their way to true fellowship with the body of Christ “The Church”. 

To all new believers who are looking for a Christian church that is as true as the original apostolic church; look for one that has fewer flavors on its menu.  The body of Jesus consists of people who have chosen to have a personal everyday relationship with God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  They live by trusting in the Lord.  They grow in and practice righteousness, 1 John 2:29.  They practice love,1 John 3:11.

They are ordinary simple people who are exemplary walking in the spirit of the Philadelphia church: Jesus’ Church.  Pray that God the Father would bring into your life, such people.  I did.  One of them died recently at 83 years of age.  She was not loud to attract attention but quiet.  She probably did not think that someone would notice.  Ecclesiastes 9:17.  She believed, she trusted, and she loved it.

Pray with me for the unity of the Body of Christ, all the communities, and individuals who live according to the spirit of the Philadelphia church.  Let us be united; let us practice mercy, grace, and kindness toward each other even toward the tares…they are the ones that need it the most for no one taught them.  Let us “LOVE ONE ANOTHER”. 

Last Words

I know who I am because Jesus tells me so.  I am first and foremost a son of God, Gal 3:26; my citizenship is in heaven, Phil 3:20; I am neither Jew nor Greek, neither slave nor free, neither male nor female; for we are all one in Christ Jesus, Gal 3:28, neither circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all, Col 3:11; I am not of Paul, or I am not of Apollos, or I am not of Cephas, I am not of Christ, 1 Cor1:12-13; I will reign with Jesus, 2 Tim 2:12; I am a holy brethren, and partakers of the heavenly calling, Heb 3:1; I am free, John 8:32, Rom 6:22; hence, I know who I am and I know where I belong …in the body of Christ.  I do not belong on a menu of an ice cream parlour.  Thank you, Father, thank you, Jesus, thank you Holy Spirit.

“Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and our God and Father, who has loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good hope by grace, comfort your hearts and establish you in every good word and work”, …(not flavors)…2 Thess 2:16-17.

What Church Service Should Be

What the Church should be?  One day, the Church will be forced to go back to its original format, at home and in hiding.  

Permissions: It is FREE to be used in any shape or form for the purpose of reaching all Christians for the unification of the Body of Christ.  All rights reserved to Jesus our Lord and King.

Contact: Andre Delage, at simplicityinthegospel@gmail.com
Web: simplicityinthegospel.com