Category: lost souls

False Prophets

Tuesday, June 21, 2016

“And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many” (Matthew 24:11 KJV).

While actually describing the future state of the world, today’s Scripture is easily seen today.

Recently, while visiting a local park, I encountered four cult members distributing free literature at a sidewalk booth. They undeniably call themselves “Christians.” While they were friendly people, and probably more generous and loving than the average Christian, their doctrine is so far removed from sound Bible teaching that they could not be rightly called and never be rightly called Christians. Having spoken with a friend who was saved out of that group, having read their literature, and having spoken with several of them over the years, I know their denominational hierarchy has them slaving away in doing good works in hopes of them entering God’s kingdom. You can be sure these four heard the Gospel of God’s Grace from me. What they do with God’s Son is on them now!

The Lord Jesus gave His Second Olivet Discourse in Matthew chapter 24—the context of today’s Scripture. His apostles wanted to know the characteristics of the end-times, events that would occur leading up to His return (Second Coming). He issued seven warnings not to be deceived (verses 4,5,11,23-26). The chief characteristic of the end-times is deception. In the words of Jesus Christ, “Many” deceivers deceiving “many.” Why?

People will be claiming to be “Christ,” God manifested in human flesh. There will be people professing to be “prophets,” God’s spokespeople to mankind. People will be performing miracles using Satan’s power, but claiming to be God’s miracle-workers. They will all pave the way for the Antichrist, the epitome of deception, the Man of Sin and the Son of Perdition (Damnation), the physical representation of Satan’s lie program. The world having been so deceived in the 2,000 years since Jesus spoke today’s Scripture, it is so easy to see just how easily the Antichrist will enter with little opposition. Having rejected the love of the truth, they can now enjoy “strong delusion [deception]” and “believe a lie” (2 Thessalonians 2:2-12).

Friends, let us stay with the Word of God rightly divided. ‘Tis the only way to avoid the deceivers!

Our special-edition Bible Q&A #275: “Was the Apostle Paul a false prophet?”

Your “Convenient Season” is Now!

Saturday, June 18, 2016

“And after certain days, when Felix came with his wife Drusilla, which was a Jewess, he sent for Paul, and heard him concerning the faith in Christ. And as he reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come, Felix trembled, and answered, Go thy way for this time; when I have a convenient season, I will call for thee” (Acts 24:24,25 KJV).

Friend, follow not foolish Felix’s faithless failure!

Paul, arrested in Jerusalem in Acts chapter 22, now stands trial in Caesarea before Judaean Governor Felix. While Paul is in custody, Felix treats him kindly (verse 23). After allowing Paul time to refresh himself with his friends, Scripture says Felix wanted to hear Paul “concerning the faith in Christ.” The faithful Apostle obliged.

Before Felix, Paul “reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come.” The Bible says Felix “trembled:” he knew he was a lost man and that he would give an account to God the righteous Judge one day. Felix, however, lost interest in hearing God’s Word. He told Paul to come back when he had a “more convenient season” to listen to the Apostle. To Satan’s delight, amidst various distractions, Felix postponed trusting Christ. He had “better” things to do than sit around listening to Paul talk about God’s Son. Rather than worry about judgment in Hell, he had set his eyes on “living the good life” on Earth.

In fact, to please the Jews, Felix kept Paul in custody for the next two years (verse 27). He frequently called Paul back into his presence, hoping one of Paul’s wealthy friends would bribe him to release Paul (verse 26). Unfortunately, Scripture never says Felix requested Paul bring him the Gospel again. As far as the Scriptural record is concerned, Felix came very close to God’s truth but died a lost man because he never found that “convenient season!”

Like Felix, there are many precious people today procrastinating about preparing for God’s judgment against their sin. Their eternal souls are hanging in the balance—may they tarry no longer! May they trust Jesus Christ as their personal Saviour now, His finished crosswork as sufficient payment for their sins. Remember, like Felix, they may never again have a “convenient season” like right now!

Sowing and Reaping

Wednesday, June 15, 2016

“Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not” (Galatians 6:7-9 KJV).

You will reap what you sow, more than you sow, and later than you sow.

A documentary I recently watched featured the 1957 murder of two police officers. The killer escaped; the case went cold. Forty-six (!) years later, advancements in fingerprint-analysis computer software led to the criminal’s identification. The authorities tracked him down and knocked on his front door. Now 70 years old, he was a respected father, grandfather, and retired businessman. Imagine his shock when officers told him he was under arrest! While not remorseful, he confessed to the murders of “so long ago.”

Yet, there was another confirmation he was guilty. At his trial, officials asked him to remove his shirt. There was a bullet-wound scar on his back. It was where one of dying officers had shot him nearly 50 years earlier! He was convicted and sentenced to two consecutive life-terms. Over 80, he is still in prison today.

This astonishing case reminded me of today’s Scripture. While written to and about believers, it has a general application to non-Christians. Friend, whether you are saved or lost, if you live a life of sin, “be sure your sin will find you out” (Numbers 32:23). However, if you (if you are a Christian) have a Spirit-filled life, led by God’s Spirit, you will enjoy God’s life here on Earth (not just in eternity in Heaven).

You will not see immediate results. Sin will bring you temporary success; righteous living will bring you persecution. It may take 50 years for reality to hit, but, rest assured, your sowing to the flesh will cause defeat and misery. Likewise, your sowing to the Spirit will bring God’s life into your life. Do not return to the flesh-life! Remember, “And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” 🙂

A Plea from Hell

Sunday, June 12, 2016

“Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father’s house: For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them” (Luke 16:27-29 KJV).

We peek into the spirit world and hear the cries of the souls in hell!

Some of the Bible’s most graphic statements about hell are in the account of the rich man and Lazarus—Luke 16:19-31. The rich man is lifting up his eyes being in torments, and he sees Abraham afar off and Lazarus in Abraham’s bosom (verse 23). Lazarus is comforted and the rich man is tormented beyond comprehension (verse 24,25). The rich man begs for just one precious drop of water… a drop that he is still expecting some 20 centuries later!

Not long ago, I stood in an ancient cemetery, reading the names and dates on the graves. In one area, a wrought-iron fence sectioned off 56 tombstones. These were local Roman priests who had served and died—some over 150 years ago. As I stood over these plots, I remembered today’s Scripture and I imagined their cries: “Please tell them not to come here to this place of torment!” Indeed, as it has been rightly stated, the strongest spirit of evangelism is found in the flames of hell. It is one thing for a Christian to preach about hellfire he has never experienced and will never experience. It is quite another to be in hell and remember your family and friends on Earth are soon to meet you!

Beloved, with Bibles in every home, we in the United States of America have no excuse whatsoever. Having access to God’s written Word, millions still leave this world every year totally unprepared. While those in hell, like the rich man, have no desire to turn to God, if God allowed you to listen, you could hear the billions of souls crying out: “Testify unto them [preach Christ crucified!], lest they also come into this place of torment!”

That They Shall Not Take Shame

Saturday, June 11, 2016

“Prophesy ye not, say they to them that prophesy: they shall not prophesy to them, that they shall not take shame” (Micah 2:6 KJV).

Has human nature changed in 2,700 years? Nay!

Mom and I recently visited a sickly, elderly relative whose life-threatening ailment requires surgery. The lady confessed she was “scared.” She knows there is a great possibility that, because of her advanced age, she may not survive the operation. When Mom tried to share the Gospel of the Grace of God with her, she refused to hear it. She said she was born into her particular religion, and she would stay with it until she died. When I asked her, “But what if they [our ancestors] were wrong?,” she refused to talk about it anymore. Mom and I changed the subject. Today’s Scripture parallels what happened here.

With the fifth and final course of judgment coming upon wicked Israel, unbelieving Jews were forbidding God’s prophets from preaching His Word to them. They were not interested in hearing the God of creation. Writing contemporary with today’s Scripture, Isaiah penned in chapter 30: “[8] Now go, write it before them in a table, and note it in a book, that it may be for the time to come for ever and ever: [9] That this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the LORD: [10] Which say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits: [11] Get you out of the way, turn aside out of the path, cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us.”

Likewise, millions upon millions today tell Christians to stop preaching Jesus Christ. The sin nature operates in all peoples—as in ancient Israel so today. Eventually, God told His messengers to stay quiet (see the last part of today’s Scripture). The lost Jews refused to hear His truth. Now, His servants would say nothing. He would let the unbelievers reap the consequences of their evil. Beloved, may we react similarly when people persistently refuse our preaching of Jesus Christ… “that they shall not take shame!”

For more info, see our related archived Bible Q&A: “Why did Jesus forbid others from preaching that He was Christ?”

Well-Versed But Accursed!

Friday, June 10, 2016

“But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed” (Galatians 1:8,9 KJV).

Well-versed but still “accursed!”

Recently, two members of a local church (cult) visited my house to spread their denominational literature. Always interested in learning more about the people to whom I minister, I eagerly took their pamphlet and discussed some of it with them. They had their “bible,” and I had my King James Bible. I delayed these individuals for 30 minutes, preventing them from reaching some of my neighbors. One church member was more resistant; the other listened intently.

When I asked them what their Gospel message was, they replied, “We preach God’s kingdom is coming on the earth.” I replied, “I noticed that you did not say ‘Jesus Christ’s finished crosswork.’ That is the Gospel of Christianity, but it is not forefront in your thinking. The Bible says that if you do not preach Paul’s Gospel, I should have nothing to do with you.” I was politely showing them that they were not Christians at all. Yes, they used some Bible terms, but their “Gospel” was a lie. While they came not knowing the Gospel of the Grace of God, rest assured they left here in quite a hurry after hearing it with shocking clarity!

The Apostle Paul said that the Gospel he preached was: “Christ died for our sins, He was buried, and He rose again the third day” (1 Corinthians 15:1-4). Through Paul, the Holy Spirit, in today’s Scripture, condemned any “Gospel-preacher”—even an angel—if he or she did not preach Jesus Christ’s finished crosswork as sufficient payment for our sins. The group I encountered, they are condemned of God. They are not Christians, they never were. Unless they believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and stop relying on their “good works,” they are sure to go to the same hell as the heathen who never picked up a Bible at all!

For more information, see our latest Bible Q&A: “Is Galatians 1:6-7 contradictory?”

Never in Bondage?

Wednesday, June 8, 2016

“They answered him, We be Abraham’s seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?” (John 8:33 KJV).

Is that so?

If you listen to today’s popular “Christian” preaching, you get the impression that people are not really all that bad. They have “some good in all of them.” Thus, so many actually believe they will make it into heaven eventually. They just keep “making an effort” so “God will give them ‘points’ for trying” (as a religious friend told me). Many see no need for the Gospel of Jesus Christ because they do not fully appreciate the fact that they are lost and going to hell!

Jeremiah 17:9 says about our human heart: “…deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked.” Our heart will cause us to believe any lie and we will not know any better. Just look at the Jews’ response in today’s Scripture. They told Jesus they had never been in bondage to any man before. Of course, they overlooked the Roman soldiers walking by! (Rome was currently ruling over Israel.) Not to mention Egyptians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Medes, Persians, and Greeks had ruled Israel centuries prior!

The Jews were too prideful to admit that pagan dirty “dogs” (Gentiles) were dominating them. Since they could not learn a physical lesson, they completely missed the spiritual one. They were too prideful to admit their sin. Jesus was talking about Him being able to free them from the bondage of sin (verse 34), but they were thinking in terms of the natural world (physical freedom, which they said they did not need because they were supposedly no one’s slaves).

I will never forget an almost 90-year-old religious relative who, while I was sharing the Gospel with her, told me that she had “never sinned” in her whole life! (That dear lady has since left this world… I can only wonder where her soul is today!) Perhaps as many as 100,000 precious souls wake up in hell every single day. They thought they were never in “bondage” to sin; now, they are in “bondage” to hell forever! Brethren, reach them by God’s grace while you still can!

Our latest Bible Q&A: “Did Jonah live in the whale’s belly?”

Grace and Peace

Friday, June 3, 2016

“To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation” (2 Corinthians 5:19 KJV).

Jesus Christ is the Saviour, not the Judge, today.

Recently, a Christian brother told me God was keeping certain leaders in power here in America to “judge us.” That is, God was using evil politicians to punish the wicked United States. He pointed out God judged Israel for sins in the “Old Testament.” America’s current difficulties, the brother claimed, are the divine wrath disobedient Israel endured. Today’s Scripture, a verse of tremendous dispensational significance, teaches something entirely different.

Paul is “the apostle of the Gentiles [all nations]” (Romans 11:13). As God’s spokesman to all nations, Paul was led on 13 occasions to write, “Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 1:7; 1 Corinthians 1:3; 2 Corinthians 1:2; Galatians 1:3; Ephesians 1:2; Philippians 1:2; Colossians 1:2; 1 Thessalonians 1:1; 2 Thessalonians 1:2; 1 Timothy 1:2; 2 Timothy 1:2; Titus 1:4; Philemon 3). Each of Paul’s epistles greets the world with “grace and peace” (opposite “wrath and war”). Again, today’s Scripture: “God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them.” Because of Calvary, God is not angry at nations today. He is being kind to them!

Concerning “the Dispensation of the Grace of God” (Ephesians 3:2), God’s attitude toward all nations is “grace and peace.” There is no Law system operating today as in Israel’s program. Israel’s Law system was simply to prove that God would have to save mankind according to His grace, not man’s religious efforts. Now, He is manifesting His grace (unmerited favor) to mankind in a very special way today—the soul salvation found in Jesus Christ’s shed blood. In the Dispensation of Grace, God is freely and unconditionally offering the nations salvation through Jesus Christ. God is longsuffering, and has been for 2,000 years, for the people of the world to respond in faith. Once they trust His Son, He permanently reconciles with them individually.

As bad as it may seem in the United States or anywhere else, Earth is not facing God’s wrath… yet!

The Greatest War Hero

Monday, May 30, 2016

“For God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8 KJV).

In the United States, today is Memorial Day, when we remember those who sacrificed their time and lives to provide our physical freedom. Likewise, as Christians, we have spiritual freedom, which was more costly. Someone had to die to give us the eternal life we now enjoy….

Scripture describes a spiritual warfare between good and evil, God’s truth program versus Satan’s lie program: “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles [schemes] of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places” (Ephesians 6:11,12; see also verses 13-20).

Satan distracts mankind from God’s pure Word, the Bible, keeping unbelievers lost (dead in their sins), and preventing unbelievers and Christians from knowing God’s will. The devil draws them away (seduces them) from God’s Word by using religious tradition and human “wisdom” (1 Timothy 4:1-3; cf. 2 Corinthians 10:3-5; Galatians 3:1-3).

God loves us, so at Calvary’s cross, Christ fought for us sinners, died in battle (today’s Scripture), shed His divine sinless blood, and eternally rescued us from Satan and sin: “Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; and having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it” (Colossians 2:14,15).

Hebrews 9:12 says Jesus Christ has “obtained eternal redemption for us.”

If we have trusted Jesus Christ alone as our personal Saviour, God “hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son” (Colossians 1:13). Now, God can use us for His glory for all eternity.

Beloved, let us rejoice in our victory over sin, death, and hell that Jesus Christ secured for us by going to Calvary’s rugged cross! Jesus Christ is now alive forevermore—He is our Hero, the Greatest Hero!

*Adapted from a larger Bible study “The Greatest Hero,” which can be read here or watched here.

Known of God #7

Saturday, May 28, 2016

“Howbeit then, when ye knew not God, ye did service unto them which by nature are no gods. But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage?” (Galatians 4:8,9 KJV).

Not only do we in Christ know God. More importantly, God knows us!

There was a time—“time past”—when the idolaters of Galatia, nonmembers of Israel, did not know the one true God personally and intimately (Ephesians 2:11,12; cf. Romans 9:4,5). However, Paul wrote to the Galatians that that time had passed. Mankind was now living in “but now.”

Ephesians chapter 2 declares: “[13] But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ… [18] For through him [Jesus Christ] we both [Jew and Gentile] have access by one Spirit unto the Father. [19] Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; [20] And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; [21] In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: [22] In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.”

Through Paul’s Gospel—Christ’s finished crosswork as sufficient payment for our sins (1 Corinthians 15:3,4)—we Gentiles have “access” to Father God. Furthermore, when we believe that Gospel of God’s Grace, He comes to live inside of us personally via the Holy Spirit. In His Word rightly divided, He has made known unto us His will. We need not revert to our former ways of spiritual ignorance. No need to return to works-religion (as the Galatians were doing in today’s Scripture—using the Mosaic Law). Works-religion will only hinder God’s relationship with us, and ours with Him. He has already given us His grace, His Son, and His fellowship. We need give Him nothing but our trust.

The God of creation will be known of us, and, most importantly, we will be known of Him! 🙂