Category: Satan and Policy of Evil

Liberated to Serve

Monday, July 4, 2022

“For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another” (Galatians 5:13 KJV).

Today, as we in the United States celebrate the 246th anniversary of our nation’s independence, we invite our Christian brethren worldwide to rejoice with us concerning our freedom in Jesus Christ.

When we proclaim Romans 6:14—“Ye are not under the law, but under grace”—people tend to assume “loose living.” Does “grace living” really mean we can now live any way we want? Lest anyone be misled in that regard, God the Holy Spirit moved the Apostle Paul to write in the next verse, “What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid [May God never let that happen!]” (Romans 6:15). Grace living is not Law-keeping, but it certainly is not Law-breaking either.

God still cares how we live, albeit He is not operating the “weak and beggarly” system of “bondage” (Law) that He once did with Israel (Galatians 4:9). God proved to the entire world that since Israel could not keep His commandments perfectly, no other sons of Adam (the Gentiles) could either: “Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them [Israel] who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world [Gentiles] may become guilty before God” (Romans 3:19).

We sinners cannot keep the Law. However, God in His grace provided us a way to escape that condemnation by sending Jesus Christ to offer Himself on Calvary’s cruel cross to pay for our sins. By simple faith in Jesus Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection as the fully-satisfying payment for our sins, we can now be “made the righteousness of God in [Christ]” (2 Corinthians 5:21). We can be delivered from the penalty of sin (hell and the lake of fire) and the power of sin (flesh-walking).

Why are we Christians free? To selfishly live any way we want? NO! Today’s Scripture says we are liberated to now serve others, especially our Christian brethren, just as Jesus Christ selflessly served His Father and selflessly died on our behalf. That is grace living!!!!

Please see our 2011 Fourth of July Bible study “Proclaim Liberty Throughout All the Land,” which can be watched here or read here.

Rubbish!

Friday, July 1, 2022

“Therefore, behold, I am against the prophets, saith the LORD, that steal my words every one from his neighbour. Behold, I am against the prophets, saith the LORD, that use their tongues, and say, He saith. 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” (Jeremiah 23:30-32 KJV).

If Satan successfully appointed false prophets six centuries before Christ, are we so foolish as to believe no counterfeit spiritual messengers are with us now?

While scanning television channels, I recently saw the program of a notorious televangelist who has promoted religious scams for decades. The gimmick this self-proclaimed “prophet” was peddling this time—in the name of “Jesus,” of course!—was the testimony of a woman who had written in to report how his “prophecy” had come true. He had foretold “God” would give her two new cars—and she “miraculously” received a BMW and a Bentley! Then, he turned to the camera and declared with a chuckle, “Amen! If you want a Mercedes, God will give it!” No thinking person, someone using common sense, would ever believe such folly. While we cannot be sure if someone in his own “ministry” did not forge that letter by feigning to be a viewer, we can be certain emotionally-driven and desperate watchers send him “generous donations” with the hopes of receiving “God’s blessings.”

In today’s Scripture, individuals were “stealing” God’s words from their neighbors. How? They were promoting a false message but claiming “the LORD said it.” By having people focus on spiritual error, they were void of God’s power and light, thereby making their nation vulnerable to Satan’s destructive doctrine. While not written to or about us, there is great profit in the LORD’S words through Jeremiah. “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).

Bible Q&As #969 and #970: “What are ‘dregs?’” and “What is a “bolster?’”

They Hear Not

Tuesday, June 28, 2022

“And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead” (Luke 16:31 KJV).

Neither will they be persuaded….

Having died in his trespasses and sins, the rich man is suffering torment in the flames of Hell. Although deceased, he has retained his memories, recalling details of his former life on Earth: “Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father [Abraham], that thou wouldest send him [Lazarus] 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” (verses 27-29). Abraham, valuing the Bible, corrected the rich man. If they wanted to avoid Hellfire, those brethren did not need to hear from a resurrected Lazarus: rather, they should pay attention to and believe the Hebrew Scriptures, the Divine revelation they already possessed.

Nonetheless, the rich man disagrees: “And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent” (verse 30). Abraham rejoins with today’s Scripture: “And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.” No matter how spectacular a miracle of God is, if the observer has failed to believe the Biblical truth underlying the work, the miracle will be dismissed as non-miraculous. Why would these five brethren believe Lazarus’ preaching—even if he did come back from the dead to speak to them? Lazarus would simply repeat what the Hebrew Bible taught: in other words, it would be the same revelation they (like their rich brother) had previously rejected. The problem lies in the heart, not the evidence.

If a celebrity were to trust Jesus Christ as his or her personal Saviour, colleagues would be just as eager to believe that testimony as they would be enthusiastic to trust the Scriptures undergirding that witness. Even if lost people could return from Hell and warn their family members on Earth, there would still be unbelief (the same rejection of the Scriptural truths that advise about that awful place of eternal judgment).

NOTE: Dear saints, I commemorate 16 years of writing ministry today!

Those Who Want to Hear

Monday, June 27, 2022

“Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them” (Matthew 13:13-15 KJV).

Do we want to hear and believe the truth? Or, are we like these from Christ’s earthly ministry?

Over 250 years ago, a hardened Bible-hater went to see—but not hear—a famous preacher addressing a large crowd outdoors. The unbeliever climbed a tree to have a good view of the service. Placing his fingers into both ears, he started watching the minister. Suddenly, a fly landed on the skeptic’s nose. Though he repeatedly shook his head to drive away the fly, the pest refused to leave him alone. At the precise moment he removed his finger from his ear to brush the fly away, he heard the preacher citing Matthew 11:15: “He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.” The minister bellowed the pitiful fact that so many souls continually refuse to listen to and believe the Gospel. Moments later, the Bible-hater heard about Jesus Christ’s finished crosswork at Calvary, and trusted it for salvation from his sins!

It is commonly asked, “What will happen to those who have not heard about Jesus?” A more thought-provoking inquiry is, “What will happen to those who do not want to hear about Jesus?” Excuses aside, we do not know what they know or do not know, or what they have heard or have not heard—but we do know what we know and we do know what we have heard. Friends, may we be satisfied with being concerned with our responsibility of faith, and be willing to let the Lord take care of those others. Remember, no matter what, all are “without excuse” (Romans 1:20).

Our latest Bible Q&A: “Can you explain ‘of late’ in John 11:8?”

Frozen in Death #5

Saturday, June 18, 2022

“For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water” (Jeremiah 2:13 KJV).

What priceless lesson can we learn from today’s Scripture?

Read Matthew 21:18-22 and Mark 11:12-14,20-26. On the Monday before His Thursday crucifixion, Christ Jesus was near Jerusalem when He encountered a fig tree “and found nothing thereon, but leaves only” (Matthew 21:19; Mark 11:13). Here was Israel’s religious system symbolized—advertising its superficial “greeneries” (alleged “life”) but, upon closer examination, utterly fruitless inside (spiritually dead and therefore useless to God)! In fact, this narrative of the fig tree is presented in conjunction with the Lord purging the polluted Jerusalem Temple of Satan’s emissaries (see Matthew 21:12-17 and Mark 11:15-19). You can also compare it to The Parable of the Barren Fig Tree in Luke 13:6-9, Christ seeking fruit (faith and good works) in national Israel but finding none during His three-year earthly ministry.

Let us ponder another illustration. Imagine a dead tree with bare branches, with neither leaves nor fruit. We can glue green leaves to it, and hang ripe fruit from it—but that nice external appearance does not detract from the fact that tree is lifeless. Religion is dead, so it cannot produce the life of God. Think of yet another analogy. We can take a dirty, dead battery and clean it with soap and water—but it is still powerless. Religion has no power, so it cannot produce the works of God.

Victorious Christian living occurs when we are “strengthened with might by [God’s] Spirit in the inner man; that Christ may dwell in [our] hearts by faith…” (Ephesians 3:16,17). If we are alive in Jesus Christ, it is His life, and He will produce fruit: “Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God” (Philippians 1:11). “Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart” (Ephesians 6:6). We learn and believe the principles of grace outlined in Romans through Philemon, thereby eschewing spiritual hypocrisy, duplicity, and immobility!

Superfluous #5

Monday, June 13, 2022

“For as touching the ministering to the saints, it is superfluous for me to write to you: For I know the forwardness of your mind, for which I boast of you to them of Macedonia, that Achaia was ready a year ago; and your zeal hath provoked very many” (2 Corinthians 9:1,2 KJV).

What does “superfluous” mean?

Read today’s Scripture with its context: “[1] For as touching the ministering to the saints, it is superfluous for me to write to you: [2] For I know the forwardness of your mind, for which I boast of you to them of Macedonia, that Achaia was ready a year ago; and your zeal hath provoked very many. [3] Yet have I sent the brethren, lest our boasting of you should be in vain in this behalf; that, as I said, ye may be ready: [4] Lest haply if they of Macedonia come with me, and find you unprepared, we (that we say not, ye) should be ashamed in this same confident boasting. [5] Therefore I thought it necessary to exhort the brethren, that they would go before unto you, and make up beforehand your bounty, whereof ye had notice before, that the same might be ready, as a matter of bounty, and not as of covetousness.”

Paul knew how “forward” or zealous the Corinthians were in their giving (verse 2, today’s Scripture). This Greek word is also translated “willingness” or “readiness” (Acts 17:11; 2 Corinthians 8:11,12,19). He had even alerted the Macedonian believers (northern Greece) how these Achaian believers (southern Greece, including Corinth)—as much as a year prior—had been enthusiastic in giving of their resources to support God’s people (Israel’s believing remnant). That news encouraged other saints to make donations too.

It was thus “superfluous” or redundant for Paul to write to the Corinthians about giving (they were already well informed about the situation). Yet, just in case any Macedonians would visit Corinth, and Corinth be not ready, Paul sent the Corinthians this second epistle (and brethren, including Titus; 2 Corinthians 8:16-18,22-24) with guidelines for giving. Unless the Holy Spirit led Paul to pen 2 Corinthians, with chapters 8–10 in place, we would be without principles for giving under grace. Saints, let us be thankful for those “superfluous” words.

Superfluous #4

Sunday, June 12, 2022

“For as touching the ministering to the saints, it is superfluous for me to write to you: For I know the forwardness of your mind, for which I boast of you to them of Macedonia, that Achaia was ready a year ago; and your zeal hath provoked very many” (2 Corinthians 9:1,2 KJV).

What does “superfluous” mean?

Since the Lord’s introduction of the mystery program (the Apostle Paul’s ministry and message) delayed the conclusion of the prophetic program, it was only natural for Paul’s Gentile converts to then contribute financially to the welfare of Israel’s believing remnant already formed during the prophetic program. If Israel’s God was now the God of non-Jewish heathen—the fruit of Paul’s ministry—then these Gentile saints (the Church the Body of Christ) should support believing Israel (the Little Flock).

Romans 15:27 again: “It hath pleased them [Paul’s saints] verily; and their [Israel’s] debtors they [Paul’s saints] are. For if the Gentiles [Paul’s saints] have been made partakers of their [Israel’s] spiritual things, their [Paul’s saints] duty is also to minister unto them [Israel] in carnal [material, physical] things.” Hence, the Apostles James and Cephas (Peter) and John, leaders of the Jerusalem Church, prompted Paul and Barnabas to “remember the poor” (Galatians 2:10; the Acts chapter 15 conference). Contrary to popular belief, the “poor” here are not underprivileged people in general: they are the poverty-stricken Little Flock of the Acts period!

In today’s Scripture, the issue is members of the Church the Body of Christ (Paul’s ministry) giving financial aid to Israel’s “saints” or believing remnant (under the leadership of Peter and the 11 Apostles). As Paul established and visited local grace churches, he took up collections of money and goods to bring to “the poor saints which are at Jerusalem” (Romans 15:26; also, remember 1 Corinthians 16:1-3). By the time of today’s Scripture (2 Corinthians), the Corinthian saints (in 1 Corinthians) had already been made aware of the plight of the Jewish believers in Christ in Jerusalem and Judaea; the Corinthians needed no instructions about giving, so it was “superfluous” for Paul to write to them on the subject.

However, the Holy Spirit through Paul taught them again about giving under grace anyway….

Superfluous #3

Saturday, June 11, 2022

“For as touching the ministering to the saints, it is superfluous for me to write to you: For I know the forwardness of your mind, for which I boast of you to them of Macedonia, that Achaia was ready a year ago; and your zeal hath provoked very many” (2 Corinthians 9:1,2 KJV).

What does “superfluous” mean?

To prepare them for the Antichrist’s satanic religious-economic system (Revelation 13:15-18), Christ directed His disciples to relinquish and sell their material goods (Matthew 19:21-30; Mark 10:21-31; Luke 18:22-30). Guarding against Satan’s distractions, they were not to be attached to this world’s riches (Matthew 6:19-34; Luke 12:13-34). In Acts 2:44,45 and Acts 4:32-37, Israel’s believing remnant obeyed Christ: they literally sold their personal possessions and lived off a common fund.

Of course, our dispensation introduced in Acts chapter 9 postponed the prophetic program, so the Antichrist is still future and their common fund went bankrupt. In Acts 11:27-30, a “dearth” or famine struck Judaea (the neighborhood of Jerusalem), further compounding the Little Flock’s dire financial straits: “Then the disciples, every man according to his ability, determined to send relief unto the brethren which dwelt in Judaea: Which also they did, and sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Saul [another name for the Apostle Paul].” Hence, in some of Paul’s “Acts” epistles, we read such verses as the following.

“But now I go unto Jerusalem to minister unto the saints. For it hath pleased them of Macedonia and Achaia to make a certain contribution for the poor saints which are at Jerusalem. It hath pleased them verily; and their debtors they are. For if the Gentiles have been made partakers of their spiritual things, their duty is also to minister unto them in carnal things” (Romans 15:25-27). “Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye. Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come. And when I come, whomsoever ye shall approve by your letters, them will I send to bring your liberality [kind donations] unto Jerusalem” (1 Corinthians 16:1-3).

Here is “the ministering to the saints” of today’s Scripture….

One Letter Makes All the Difference

Wednesday, June 8, 2022

“For the time past of our life may suffice us to have wrought the will of the Gentiles, when we walked in lasciviousness, lusts, excess of wine, revellings, banquetings, and abominable idolatries: Wherein they think it strange that ye run not with them to the same excess of riot, speaking evil of you: Who shall give account to him that is ready to judge the quick and the dead” (1 Peter 4:3-5 KJV).

While two letters distinguish “believer” from “unbeliever,” there is (in another sense) only one letter that makes all the difference between them.

The Apostle Peter, writing to the believing remnant within his Jewish nation, reminds them of their old lifestyle and identity. Having “lived it up” in sin as lost or unsaved souls, they have since trusted Jesus Christ as their personal Saviour. Essentially, the Holy Spirit instructed them in today’s Scripture (paraphrased): “You have had your fill of evil, living like the pagan Gentiles, walking in looseness and carnality, evil desires, drunkenness, partying and socializing with the alcoholic idolaters, gluttonous feasts, and terrible or disgusting occasions of worshipping and serving the creature more than the Creator. Now that you have come to faith in Christ, it is high time you live according to the will of God!”

Verses 1 and 2: “Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin; That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God.” Yes, their unsaved family and friends will view them as “weird” or “crazy” for abandoning their old lifestyle and conduct (today’s Scripture)—but God will think it proper, and these saints with their renewed mind will see it suitable too (1 John 2:15-17). Dear Christian friends, our Apostle Paul concurs in Romans 13:11-14!

Therefore, a new Christian told her unsaved friend who could not understand how her lifestyle had changed so radically: “Just one letter of the alphabet makes all the difference between us now. You love the world and I love the Word!” 🙂

Downward, Not Upward!

Tuesday, May 31, 2022

“For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things” (Romans 1:20-23 KJV).

Are we ascending the evolutionary ladder? No, and our experience shows us today’s Scripture is as true as ever.

Younger generations have been—and are still being—indoctrinated with the idea that mankind is becoming more “enlightened” as the years pass. We are allegedly moving away from the “primitive ignorance” of our ancestors to an increasingly “refined” outlook that will result in a perfect society. Humanism, also called “secular humanism,” is the belief that man’s thoughts and efforts are superior to the will of any “god,” and utopia will transpire only when we put forth the effort.

Supposedly, all we need to do is control our sin, and the world will become a happy, peaceful place. Post-Millennialists, for example, assume they can bring in God’s kingdom on Earth—and do it without God too! Confiscate all weapons, and war will cease. Pass enough legislation, and criminals will behave. Experiment adequately, and we will eliminate all disease. “We do not need any god! We can be good on our own! We can solve our problems without any ‘higher power!’” This is self-deception. Some 6,000 years of human history reveal we have yet to “be good”—and none of us can truthfully say we can manage sin individually, let alone address the world’s sins collectively. How can we ever admit this, though? In denial, we just strive a bit harder as we plead for another chance.

If ever our species was languishing in spiritual darkness, it is today, so, Saints, let us get out there and impart “the light of the glorious gospel of Christ” so it can “shine unto them” (2 Corinthians 4:3,4)! There is no victory over sin if there is no life of Jesus Christ.

*Dear readers, only by God’s grace, we now close 11 full years of daily studies here at “333 Words of Grace!”

Our two latest Bible Q&As: “What are ‘collops?’” and “What is a ‘servitor?’”