Category: lost souls

The Unknown God Made Known #1

Monday, November 2, 2015

“O righteous Father, the world hath not known thee: but I have known thee, and these have known that thou hast sent me” (John 17:25 KJV).

“He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not” (John 1:10).

Yea, the world is not Christian-friendly. Here, in the United States, once known for its “Christian” values, people are becoming increasingly hostile and hateful toward biblical Christianity. Christians in other countries have it worse.

Lost people have no relationship with “righteous” (holy) Father God. As unredeemed sinners, alienated from God’s life (Ephesians 4:17-19), they cannot know Him on the personal, intimate level we Christians do. His ideas, His deeds, and His words are meaningless to them. When Christ spoke His Father’s words, most common Jews disregarded. Yet, there was a believing remnant—the “little flock” (Luke 12:32). Those few Messianic Jews, they knew Father God sent Jesus to them. They believed His words. Through Christ’s words, Israel’s little flock enjoyed the same fellowship with Father God as Jesus Christ Himself.

As the Apostle John wrote firsthand in 1 John 1:1-3: “[1] That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; [2] (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;) [3] That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.”

Today’s evil world system operated during our Lord’s earthly ministry. Lost people hated Him because they hated His Heavenly Father. Likewise, lost people dislike us. Christian friend, never take it personally. What really bothers them is the Father God who lives in us. The words we speak, the ideas we believe, and the works we do, they reflect our Father’s Word working in and through us. They do not know Him, but through the Message of Grace we preach, they can know Him! May we make Him known to them!

Satan and Dispensationalism #24

Thursday, October 29, 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!

Lucifer was (still is as Satan) the wisest creature. However, that which is created can never be greater than its creator. God knows Satan’s thoughts, but Satan knows not God’s thoughts. While the triune Godhead revealed Their will for the earth and Israel, They kept something secret. Satan was intelligent, but not omniscient (all-knowing); some things were completely unknown to him. The triune Godhead skillfully let Satan participate in Calvary’s crosswork. After Calvary, the Godhead revealed Their original purpose in Calvary.

Had Satan really known what God would do through Christ’s finished crosswork, Satan would have done everything he could to prevent Calvary. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians chapter 2: “[6] Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought: [7] But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: [8] Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.”

Colossians 2:14,15: “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.”

Through Christ’s shed blood, all sinners can now be reconciled to God. In the future, Israel’s New Covenant can be established, to save her from her sins and make her God’s earthly kingdom of priests. Moreover, the direct divine revelation given to Paul is that Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection is how (now, in our Dispensation of Grace) all people—Jew or Gentile—can by faith join the Church the Body of Christ and form God’s heavenly kingdom.

Satan and Dispensationalism #21

Monday, October 26, 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!

One of the most tragic situations in ministry is when “Christian-church-going” people have absolutely no idea what the Gospel is. Upon asking them, they silently and strangely gaze. They could not quote the Gospel of Grace if their lives depended on it. In fact, their eternal souls depend on it and they still do not have a clear understanding of it! After God has already revealed in His Word what the Gospel of Grace is, the millions upon millions who read the Bible and still never get it. Unable to tell us the central tenet of Christianity, they still say, “Oh, yes, I am a Christian!” (?)

There was a time where Calvary’s finished crosswork was unknown. The Gospel by which we are saved today, was once a secret, only known to God Himself. No man knew of it. Then, God began to speak about it in greater detail as the centuries passed. Calvary is spoken of in the Old Testament (Psalm 22; Isaiah chapter 53), but in veiled language, unclear and enigmatic. Jesus Christ knew Calvary was coming. He spoke of it to the Jews (Matthew 16:21; Luke 18:31-34; John 2:18-22). Still, He never preached Calvary as good news, and certainly not for the whole world to hear. Calvary was bad news, for Israel would—and did—reject and deliver Him to a cruel death. In the early Acts, Peter and the 11 referred to Calvary, but they preached it as a dastardly deed. Sinful Israel had murdered her King, but He had resurrected, was exalted at the Father’s right hand, and was coming back to judge them in wrath (Acts 2:22-40)!

Then, God finally disclosed the last part of His Word to man. With the Apostle Paul’s ministry, God revealed the full impact of Calvary, and it embarrassed Satan beyond comprehension!

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 #5

Friday, October 9, 2015

“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).

Dispensational Bible study is the key to believing a clear Gospel message and understanding the Bible canon, so Satan seeks to hide or corrupt it, that he may keep the masses in his snare!

Satan has a twofold plan concerning the Gospel of Grace. Basically, he mixes it with other gospel messages from other Bible dispensations. This is useful to keep lost people lost and Christians confused. Consider the Galatians in today’s Scripture. Take 30 minutes today and read the entire epistle to the Galatians. These Christians had let someone deceive them using the Law of Moses. The Galatians had accepted at least one false teacher. That false teacher had not thrown away the Bible—he had merely thrown away Paul’s writings! The false teacher was using Moses—Scripture! Scripture! Scripture!—to mislead Christians.

Prior to penning today’s Scripture, Paul wrote verses 6 and 7: “[6] I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: [7] Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.” Thousands of “Christian” groups today are “perverting” the grace of Christ. They are preaching a works-religion message, the same damnable “gospel” that Paul condemned. Like the false teachers in Galatia, they mix law and grace, making the message sound true. The Galatians were duped into thinking they had to work in religion to please God, when God had already accepted them in Jesus Christ because of His work at Calvary. “O foolish Galatians,” Paul lamented in chapter 3. “O foolish Christendom!,” we lament today.

If someone is not using the Bible rightly divided, he or she cannot preach Paul’s pure Gospel. If he or she does not acknowledge Romans through Philemon as God’s Word to us today, we should separate from that person, just as Paul urged the Galatians. Let us not be foolish!

Our latest Bible Q&A: “What about Romans 10:9-10?”

Satan and Dispensationalism #3

Wednesday, October 7, 2015

“But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them” (2 Corinthians 4:3,4 KJV).

Dispensational Bible study is the key to believing a clear Gospel message and understanding the Bible canon, so Satan seeks to hide or corrupt it, that he may keep the masses in his snare!

Recently, my 10-year-old niece told me of a somewhat troubling conversation she had with her teacher, an employee of a private “Christian” school. My niece knows the Gospel of the Grace of God by heart. Unlike many preachers, she can quote it with ease, “Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins, He was buried, and He rose again the third day. 1 Corinthians 15:3-4.” When she asked her teacher, “What is the Gospel of the Grace of God?,” the teacher admitted she had no idea!!

It is sad to say, but I am afraid that the Gospel is hidden from lost people and a lot of “Christians” today as well! There are 40,000 different “Christian” denominations all preaching different Gospel messages. The dominant crowds are preaching: “Get water baptized and keep the commandments!,” “Ask Jesus into your heart!,” “Make Jesus Lord of your life!,” “Confess your sins and ask God to save you!,” “You must be born again!,” or “Repent and say the sinner’s prayer!”

The way Satan keeps lost people lost is to use Israel’s law-performance system (works-religion). Yes, he uses the Bible to deceive. Not only are these lost people blinded by sin, they are misguided when it comes to properly interpreting the Bible. They grab John 3:3, Acts 2:38, Romans 10:9-10, Mark 1:15, Matthew 19:17, James 2:24, Revelation 3:20, or Mark 16:16, as though these are verses written to and about our salvation. They are not!

If lost people want a clear dissertation of the Gospel of the Grace of God, they should read the first five chapters of the book of Romans. No clearer Gospel tract has ever been written to Gentiles in our Dispensation of Grace!

Satan and Dispensationalism #2

Tuesday, October 6, 2015

“…God our Saviour; Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:3,4 KJV).

Dispensational Bible study is the key to believing a clear Gospel message and understanding the Bible canon, so Satan seeks to hide or corrupt it, that he may keep the masses in his snare!

Friend, have you ever wondered about God’s will for your life? Now that you have read today’s Scripture, you need not search any longer. It discloses God’s will for non-Christians and Christians. The God of the Bible has done everything needed to save mankind from his sins. Why? He is “not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). The God of the Bible became the God-Man, Jesus Christ, to shed His rich, royal blood to atone for every person’s sins. “Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time” (1 Timothy 2:6). He wants all people to be saved, that they not go to hell! Lost people need to trust Jesus Christ’s finished crosswork alone, that they go to heaven!

Verse 7 continues, “Whereunto I am ordained a preacher, and an apostle, (I speak the truth in Christ, and lie not;) a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and verity.” When was the “due time” for Jesus Christ’s crosswork to be “testified” as available to all people? It was Paul’s apostleship, Acts chapter 9 onward! This is the dispensational aspect of God’s will, the “coming unto the knowledge of the truth” that God wants for Christians. He wants them to recognize the special ministry and message the risen, ascended, and glorified Lord Jesus Christ gave Saul of Tarsus, the Apostle Paul. In Paul’s epistles, we find a clear Gospel message and the doctrine needed for a functional Christian life.

Satan obviously does not want God’s will fulfilled. So, his religious system confuses the various Gospel messages and divine instructions given throughout the Bible. This makes it nearly impossible for any lost person to become a Christian, and nearly impossible for a Christian to become a mature believer. Such people under his control are usually very resistant to hearing God’s truth!

Our latest Bible Q&A: “How long should I keep witnessing to the same person?”