Category: reproof

In Every Thing Give Thanks

Thursday, November 26, 2015

“In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you” (1 Thessalonians 5:18 KJV).

Dear saints, take a moment this Thanksgiving to learn a valuable lesson from the Holy Scriptures!

God wants “all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:3,4). To be “saved” here means you have been rescued from the penalty of sin (hell and the lake of fire), and that you have a home in heaven, because you have trusted the death, shed blood, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ as sufficient payment for your sins. To “come unto the knowledge of the truth” is when a person who has trusted Christ, begins to understand why God saved him or her, and how God will use him or her for His glory. Although soul salvation is instantaneous, spiritual maturity is a life-long process (that is especially true regarding handling difficulties, the grace way!).

It is human nature to avoid difficulties and stress, to flee them, rather than confront them. This self-preservation is advantageous, particularly in “life or death” situations. However, running from troubling circumstances is not the way God has designed our life in Christ to function. Today’s Scripture says, “In every thing give thanks,” not “For every thing give thanks.” We do not thank God for our troubles; we thank God while we are enduring those troubles. This is tough, I know, but it takes time for us to learn it. Even the Apostle Paul had to learn this.

“Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me” (Philippians 4:11-13).

Be thankful in every thing. God’s grace is sufficient for you, dear saint, in all of life’s circumstances. When you learn this, you are “[coming] unto the knowledge of the truth.”

*Excerpted from our Thanksgiving 2012 Bible study with the same name. That study can be read here or watched here.

You may also see, “What are our spiritual blessings in Christ?”

Follow Father’s Folly Versus Follow Father’s Faith

Saturday, November 7, 2015

“And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up” (Deuteronomy 6:6,7 KJV).

May we save our future generations from apostasy!

Recently, I watched an online video, the only interview of a notorious American serial killer later murdered in prison. Psychologists and psychiatrists alike were baffled. Why did this young man commit nearly 20 extremely graphic mutilations and murders? Beloved, we need not several years of psychology training to figure it out. It is called sin! He simply acted naturally, and his particular sin was murder (for others, it is lying, stealing, pride, et cetera).

The saddest part of the interview was when the father told the reporter he often wondered what he could have done to prevent his son’s horrific behavior. (Today’s Scripture?!) Then, the father admitted that he was not there for his son growing up. He did not teach him any values or morals. His poor son had no spiritual leader growing up. Think. Twenty people—and 20 families—suffered the consequences!

We can see why God through Moses warned Israel in today’s Scripture not to forget to teach the Ten Commandments to their children. Those laws, given in the previous chapter, were the foundation of the Jewish religion. Israel had just spent 40 years breaking them in the wilderness wanderings. Now, 120-year-old Moses is cautioning these new generations of Jews not to forsake JEHOVAH’S Word to them. He advises them to diligently teach those divine words to their children. That was their salvation from Satan’s deception.

It is sad, but many fathers today are not teaching their children God’s Word to us. And we wonder why society is falling apart? Our salvation from sin and Satan’s deception is found in Paul’s epistles, Romans through Philemon. Men, I exhort you to remember and fulfill your role as spiritual leaders in your households. You can pass on an eternal heritage—the Message of God’s Grace and the Epistles of the Grace Life! Let it be “father’s faith” rather than “father’s folly!” 🙂

They Steal the LORD’S Words!

Friday, November 6, 2015

“Therefore, behold, I am against the prophets, saith the LORD, that steal my words every one from his neighbour” (Jeremiah 23:30 KJV).

Was the LORD speaking to 99.999 percent of the “priests,” “preachers,” and “prophets” in Christendom today?

Speaking with a lady browsing through Christian books in a store, I asked her, “What is the Gospel by which we are saved today?” She stared at me quietly. I told her the Bible says, “Christ died for our sins, He was buried, and He rose again the third day” (1 Corinthians 15:3,4). We trust that and that alone and we will have eternal life in heaven forever. I could tell that was brand-new to her. Then, she explained she attended services at a local megachurch!! She really enjoyed how they were studying a “Christian bestseller” book in Sunday School. See, at that church, they do not study the Bible; they study books about the Bible. At that church they hear Christian phrases and Bible terms, but they never hear a Gospel message. Awful!

When we think of people dying and going to hell, murderers, whoremongers, thieves, rapists, and gangsters come to mind. Beloved, plenty of people are dead in their sins and going to hell, sitting in churches worldwide! That is nothing new. Our “Old Testament” Scriptures abound with apostasy because Israel’s religious and political leaders had so corrupted God’s people with nonsensical, false teaching. God expressly declared in today’s Scripture, “They steal my words every one from his neighbour!” The reprimand continues throughout the chapter: “[31] Behold, I am against the prophets, saith the LORD, that use their tongues, and say, He saith. [32] Behold, I am against them that prophesy false dreams, saith the LORD, and do tell them, and cause my people to err by their lies, and by their lightness; yet I sent them not, nor commanded them: therefore they shall not profit this people at all, saith the LORD.”

One day, friends, God will manifest the charlatans for all the world to see. Before they are banished to eternal hellfire, their folly will be exposed. Until then, God Almighty has given us His Book, our Holy King James Bible, that we may identify them and their worthless teaching and avoid them!

Arrayed in Hypocrisy

Saturday, October 31, 2015

“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity” (Matthew 23:27,28 KJV).

“Looks can be deceiving” is not only true during Halloweentime, but confirmed year-round within Christendom.

Today is Halloween, when children dress up and feign themselves to be creatures they are not. Likewise, many church leaders today wear “Christian” garbs, but their ministries do not bring the Lord Jesus Christ glory and honor. They promote their denomination, and seek to perpetuate it, rather than serve and exalt the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ. The Bible manifests these who appear to be good, as “wolves in sheep’s clothing.”

In today’s Scripture, Jesus Christ exposed Israel’s corrupt religious leaders who misled the nation in His day. In His Parable of the Tares, Matthew 13:24-30,37-43, Christ explained how just as He had sown good seed (wheat, believing Jews) in Israel, Satan had also sown tares/weeds (unbelieving Jews). Tares resemble wheat; unbelieving Jews resemble believing Jews. The unbelieving Pharisees and scribes, for instance, looked like God’s people (believing Israel). Judas Iscariot was another example of Satan’s tares—the apostles never realized who Judas really was until it was too late!

But Satan’s counterfeit believers are not confined to Israel’s program. Today, within local assemblies of the Body of Christ, there are people feigning themselves to be Christians: “For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works” (2 Corinthians 11:13-15).

Beloved, beware of the church leaders who are arrayed in hypocrisy, “and avoid them” (Romans 16:17b). If their teaching does not agree with the rightly divided King James Bible, you have no business as a child of God to be listening to them.

*This is excerpted from a larger Bible study with the same name. The Bible study can be read here or watched here.

Our latest Bible Q&A: “Are Galatians 1:18-19 and Acts 9:26-28 contradictions?”

You may also see our special study, “Should Christians celebrate Halloween?”

Satan and Dispensationalism #25

Friday, October 30, 2015

“Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God; Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints:” (Colossians 1:25,26 KJV).

Dispensational Bible Study enables us to see and appreciate the final revelation from God. Satan is thus utterly embarrassed!

It is written down forever in the eternal Word of God. Looks were indeed deceiving at Calvary. Satan, appearing victorious, actually participated in his own defeat! Beloved, the preaching of the cross is that God outsmarted Satan. Jesus Christ’s shed blood can deliver sinners—even wretched, uncircumcised Gentiles such as ourselves—from Satan’s domain!

“[12] Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: [13] Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: [14] In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins” (Colossians 1:12-14).

That God would take Jews and Gentiles who would simply trust His Son’s finished crosswork, and form one new man, the Church the Body of Christ—completely unheard of in the Old Testament! Even Satan could not and did not figure it out. It was not revealed to Satan, his fallen angels, God’s elect angels, and man until God saved miserable Saul of Tarsus and commissioned him as the Apostle Paul. As God’s apostle of the Gentiles, Paul had a special role. He was given the privilege to finish God’s Word (today’s Scripture).

Through the Pauline epistles, Romans through Philemon, God has made known unto us “the mystery of his will” (Ephesians 1:9). God had a secret will, friends. Now that God has revealed His secret through Paul’s writings, Satan has an active campaign to keep it hidden. Dispensational Bible Study is watered down, slandered, and ignored by the religious crowd and the modern English versions, that Satan not be exposed as foolish. Let us not be foolish. Lest we miss God’s latest (and final) revelation, may we recognize and hold fast to by faith the Dispensation of Grace given to us by Jesus Christ through the Apostle Paul.

-FINIS!- 🙂

Satan and Dispensationalism #20

Sunday, October 25, 2015

“For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward:” (Ephesians 3:1,2 KJV).

Satan knows that Dispensational Bible Study is the key to understanding God’s Word. Thus, he denies it and corrupts it every chance he gets!

Unfortunately, my beloved brethren, until the Lord returns, the book of Acts will always be a battleground of confusion and nonsense. Some hold to one extreme, clinging to Acts chapter 2 as the beginning of our program. Others hang on the other extreme, adhering to Acts chapter 28 as the beginning of our program. One does not go far enough, the other goes too far. Neither is a dispensational boundary. We need not be confused by either tradition of men.

Paul is our “pattern” concerning salvation unto eternal life (1 Timothy 1:13-16). The Gospel that saved him is the Gospel of Grace that saves us in the Dispensation of Grace. There was always only one gospel in Paul’s ministry. That gospel was available to all men, the whole world, during the Paul’s Acts ministry (Acts 13:46-48; Acts 17:30; Romans 1:5,14; Romans 16:26; 2 Corinthians 5:19). That “all-men message” is true even today, after Acts. Paul’s epistles cover one dispensation and one program, not two dispensations and not two programs. Paul’s epistles in no way depend on Israel’s covenants, either during Acts or after Acts.

Israel had no special status during Paul’s Acts ministry (Romans 11:11-14; Galatians 1:15; 1 Thessalonians 2:14-16—all written during Acts). The only advantage a lost Jew had was joining the Body of Christ via Paul’s Gospel. Israel still lacks any special status before God. The middle wall of partition—no distinction between Jew and Gentile—was abolished long before Acts ended. Paul’s earliest epistle, written during Acts, says there is no difference between “circumcision” (Jew) and “uncircumcision” (Gentile) in the Body of Christ (Galatians 5:6; Galatians 6:15). That is true even today, after Acts.

Our dispensational boundary, the Dispensation of Grace, is found in Acts chapter 9, when the Church the Body of Christ began, and when the Gospel of the Grace of God began. We need not complicate God’s Word, beloved!

NOTES: My dear friend, if you are struggling to understand Paul’s “Acts” ministry, please see our study here. Struggle no more!

Also, within the next two days, as our special-edition Bible Q&A #200, due to repeated requests, we will be releasing a massive Bible study project. It is a 60-page full-length study, a 25-page abbreviated study, and five one-hour teaching videos. This project will address the corrupted system within the Grace Movement known as “Acts 9/28 Hybrid Theology.” Please stay tuned.

Satan and Dispensationalism #19

Saturday, October 24, 2015

“For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward:” (Ephesians 3:1,2 KJV).

Satan knows that Dispensational Bible Study is the key to understanding God’s Word. Thus, he denies it and corrupts it every chance he gets!

Pauline dispensationalism is the method whereby we determine God’s will for us today. The books of Romans through Philemon, the 13 epistles of the Apostle Paul, are our primary instructions books for Christian living. We consult them first because they are God’s Word to and about us. Paul is “the apostle of the Gentiles” (Romans 11:13), the Lord Jesus Christ’s spokesman to us. Whatever Paul’s epistles are silent about, we consult the rest of the Bible. Never do we throw away any of the 66 Bible books. We simply recognize their place in the program of God, and how those non-Pauline books do not describe God’s current operations.

There is the temptation to take Pauline dispensationalism to the extreme and thus destroy it. Because people needlessly struggle with Paul’s “Acts” ministry, wondering why he did all those “Jewish” things, they erroneously conclude that his “Acts” ministry must have been a continuation of Israel’s program and covenants. Hence, they say Paul’s epistles written during Acts—Romans, 1 & 2 Corinthians, Galatians, and 1 & 2 Thessalonians—have no relevance to us. Some “grace” people encourage us to toss those six epistles out entirely! (Heresy!) They say Paul quit working in Israel’s program when Acts ended, and that only his seven post-Acts (prison) epistles apply to us—Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 & 2 Timothy, Titus, and Philemon. (Heresy!)

Paul’s “Acts” epistles and his “prison” epistles are not two dispensations—one dispensation not for us and one dispensation for us. They are one dispensation, and that dispensation is given to us through Paul, for Paul wrote them all (today’s Scripture). The “Acts” epistles are the basic doctrines of the Dispensation of Grace while the “prison” epistles are the more advanced doctrines of the Dispensation of Grace. Again, we need to quit the nonsense and stop complicating God’s Word. Satan does that enough in denominational circles!

Satan and Dispensationalism #18

Friday, October 23, 2015

“For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward:” (Ephesians 3:1,2 KJV).

Satan knows that Dispensational Bible Study is the key to understanding God’s Word. Thus, he denies it and corrupts it every chance he gets!

As aforementioned, Acts is historical not doctrinal. In it, Luke documented Israel’s persistent rejection of God’s Word, how God was just (right) in setting her aside. During the first seven chapters, Israel largely ignored the preaching of Peter and the 11 apostles. From Acts chapter 9 onward (the beginning of Paul’s ministry onward), Israel again largely ignored God’s Word. She persecuted Paul as she had mistreated Peter and the 11.

During Acts, Paul wrote: “…the Jews: Who both killed the Lord Jesus, and their own prophets, and have persecuted us; and they please not God, and are contrary to all men: Forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles that they might be saved, to fill up their sins alway: for the wrath is [present tense] come upon them to the uttermost” (1 Thessalonians 2:14-16). God’s wrath had fallen on Israel. She had no special spiritual status anymore. These angry, unbelieving Jews persecuted Paul for preaching that he, not they, was reaching all—not some—Gentiles for JEHOVAH! Israel fell during Acts, not at the end of or after Acts. Romans 11:11-13,28—also written during Acts—makes this abundantly clear.

Until they learned of that new divine revelation, Israel’s 12 apostles faithfully continued their ministry they had received from Jesus Christ. In Acts chapter 15, Paul taught them about the new program (mystery), the new message (Gospel of Grace), and the new agency (Body of Christ). Thereafter, Israel’s little flock was sealed off to new members. Its members eventually died off. Israel’s apostles released themselves from their commission to preach to lost Jews and Gentiles (Matthew 28:19,20; Acts 1:8). Collectively, lost people were “heathen”—equally hell-bound. Peter and the 10 agreed that these “heathen” were Paul and Barnabas’ responsibility to convert into the Body of Christ (Galatians 2:6-9). The Body of Christ, which had started with Paul in Acts chapter 9, then gained preeminence.

Satan and Dispensationalism #17

Thursday, October 22, 2015

“For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward:” (Ephesians 3:1,2 KJV).

Satan knows that Dispensational Bible Study is the key to understanding God’s Word. Thus, he denies it and corrupts it every chance he gets!

Israel had a small believing remnant during the opening chapters of Acts. The 12 apostles’ preaching was largely ignored: most Jews persisted in unbelief and rebellion. Lost Israel was hopeless! God’s all-consuming wrath was about to fall on Israel when they blasphemed the Holy Spirit in Acts chapter 7.

But, God in His grace suspended Israel’s prophetic program. Consequently, He was able to create a whole new arrangement of how to deal with lost Israel and lost Gentiles. That dispensational change—“the Dispensation of the Grace of God” (today’s Scripture)—occurred especially to save and use Saul of Tarsus, the most defiant sinner at the time, and make his salvation our “pattern” (1 Timothy 1:13-16). Once Saul was saved in Acts chapter 9, he literally became the epitome of God’s grace. The same grace that saved him, he was now to preach as a new Gospel message. It was Jesus Christ’s finished crosswork as sufficient payment for all people’s sins (1 Corinthians 15:3-4; 2 Corinthians 5:14-21). Salvation would reach Gentiles through Paul’s ministry, without Israel (Romans 11:11-13). Also, Paul’s Gospel meant all those lost Jews like Saul had one last chance to escape God’s impending wrath.

From Acts chapters 7 through 15, Israel’s apostles were mostly unaware of any dispensational change. Peter got a glimpse in Acts chapter 10 when dealing with Gentile Cornelius, but he and the other apostles did not fully comprehend it until they met with Paul and Barnabas (chapter 15). Paul’s account of that Jerusalem Council is Galatians chapter 2. Galatians says Israel’s apostles finally discovered the radical dispensational change. See, the dispensational change did not come in late Acts or post Acts. Paul learned about it from Jesus Christ in Acts chapter 9, and Israel’s apostles learned it about 20 years later in chapter 15. Paul taught them, all about that delay in prophecy. Let us heed Paul’s testimony and not get confused ourselves!

Satan and Dispensationalism #16

Wednesday, October 21, 2015

“For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward:” (Ephesians 3:1,2 KJV).

Satan knows that Dispensational Bible Study is the key to understanding God’s Word. Thus, he denies it and corrupts it every chance he gets!

While Acts is certainly not easy reading, theology has complicated it. Historical rather than doctrinal, “The Acts of the Apostles,” simply documents Israel’s overwhelmingly negative response to God’s Word preached by the Apostles.

In Luke 13:6-9, Jesus spoke a parable. Please read it in your own time. We can only interpret it here. Father God planted a fig tree (Mosaic Law) in His vineyard (Israel’s land). For three years, Christ’s earthly ministry, God sought any righteousness in Israel. But, no spiritual fruit was there! The Law could only identify and condemn sinners—it had no power to make them right before God. Father God was ready to destroy Israel’s religious life. Jesus intervened, “Father, give them one more year before You cut it down.”

Confirming the parable, Israel ignored Jesus Christ’s earthly ministry, and demanded His crucifixion. But, Jesus intervened at Calvary, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34). So, Father God gave Israel a one-year opportunity to repent, to think differently, and turn from their vain works-religion. That one year was Acts chapters 1-7. The 12 apostles preached their hearts out, desperately trying to convert stubborn Israel. It was useless. Finally, in Acts chapter 7, Stephen, filled with the Holy Ghost, accused Israel of persistent unbelief and rebellion. He was stoned to death! Jesus Christ was arising in the third heaven, to return in wrath and destroy those apostates (Acts 7:55,56; Psalm 110:1)! Israel had blasphemed the Holy Ghost, and could not be forgiven (Matthew 12:31,32). She had nowhere to go now but hell!

Leading Israel’s rebellion against Jesus Christ was Saul of Tarsus, one of Stephen’s challengers. Saul would become the Apostle Paul. The only way to save such a wicked man as Saul was for God to radically depart from Israel’s program and covenants. The Dispensation of Grace came to save Saul first (1 Timothy 1:12-16)!