Difference between revisions of "What We Are To Prepare For"

Latest revision as of 15:49, 5 November 2018

What We Are To Prepare For

I have written quite a bit about preparing for the coming catastrophic events in the United States. The only manner in which we can prepare spiritually for the days of moral and physical chaos is by learning to live by the Life of the Lord Jesus, looking to Him continually for every decision we make; for all aspects of our life, day and night. If we do this we will save ourselves and our loved ones no matter what comes to pass in America.

There is something else we are to prepare for. That is the Day of the Lord. Our Christian traditions hold that when Jesus comes we will be caught up to Heaven. There we will recline in peace and joy in our mansion. No preparation is needed for this catching up, we have been told.

This is not what the Bible teaches about the Day of the Lord.

The truth is, the war between good and evil has not been won as yet. The basis for victory in this war was accomplished on the cross of Calvary. The atonement made on the cross destroyed the authority of Satan to keep the world in his power. However, the removal of Satan and all of his influence in the creation has not as yet been accomplished, as we see what is taking place in the world, and in our own life as well.

Not only the people of the world, but the people of the Christian churches also, are bound with the love of the world, the lusts of the flesh, and the determination to live our own life without reference to the will of Christ. In actuality, the only lawful will in the universe is the will of God. But people from the beginning have sought to pursue their own life according to their own plans and desires.

Seventy "sevens" are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy. (Daniel 9:24)

Let's consider for a moment the verse above, because it is the opinion of numerous Christian people that we never will be rid of sin.

"To finish transgression." "To put an end to sin." "To atone for wickedness." "To bring in everlasting righteousness."

If you stop to think about it, of course this will come to pass. Is God, who made the universe, unable to bring in everlasting righteousness? I think it is Satan who has given us the impression that sin is inevitable and always will be true of us.

But that God will never be able to remove sin from people is not reasonable. God is able to remove the compulsion of sin from anyone at any time He chooses. Does God not have power over the demons? Can He not change the nature of any person and make him or her a new moral creation? Can the Potter make one vessel unto honor and another vessel unto dishonor? If this is not true, it indeed would be good we never had been born.

Why, then, does He not do this? He made an atonement for the sins of the whole world on the cross of Calvary!

He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world. (I John 2:2)

Why can't God do the same for the power of the sin that controls us?

He can. But God does not want a repetition of the disaster in the Garden of Eden. Remember, Adam and Eve were not created with a sinful nature.

What was needed in Eden to prevent the rebellious act? Two things. First, people trained in righteousness. Second, a government that would prevent sin from occurring.

So what is God doing now? He is ready to train people in righteousness, and to create a government, the Kingdom of God, that will permit only God's will to be done on the earth.

Now you can see why God does not reach down and remove the works of Satan from the earth with a single stroke. He is in the process of removing the works of Satan from the earth permanently by training people in righteous behavior and by creating the Kingdom of God.

Let's think now about how God is training people in righteous behavior, and by creating the Kingdom of God. Then we will understand how God can bring in everlasting righteousness.

At the present time, God's Spirit is moving among us who have ears to hear the Spirit. The Spirit is revealing to us our worldliness, the lusts and passions of our flesh and spirit, and our self-will. As He does, we are to confess the attitude or practice that has been pointed out. We are to confess to Christ the specific behavior clearly.

Then we are to name that area of our personality as sin, unworthy of the Kingdom of God.

Then we are to renounce that practice or attitude, declaring emphatically that we never, never again, by the help of the Lord, shall yield to that spiritual evil—not for eternity. This is an eternal judgment on Satan.

Our personality is not delivered from evil in a moment. The practice of confessing, denouncing, renouncing, and resisting sin must continue until it all has been removed. It is line upon line; command upon command; here a little and there a little. Piece by piece the graveclothes are removed from us. There is no hurry. We are undoing the damage wrought over thousand of years in the children of Adam and Eve.

Will this work of deliverance continue in the next world and be true of people in the spirit world? I feel certain that it shall. How else could the entire Bride of the Lamb come to unblemished perfection?

For this is the reason the gospel was preached even to those who are now dead, so that they might be judged according to men in regard to the body, but live according to God in regard to the spirit. (I Peter 4:6)

It is certain that Abraham and the other patriarchs and prophets are now born again. Since no person could be born again until Christ rose from the dead, the patriarchs must have received this experience while they were living in the spirit world.

We have to keep in mind that the Bride of the Lamb, the Body of Christ, is one organism, with most members in the spirit world at any given time. All are having the same redemptive experiences and pressing forward in Christ whether on earth or in the spirit world. How could it be otherwise? They without us cannot be made perfect!

According to my understanding it will require from now until the final resurrection for every person, the members of the Church and everyone else, to have an opportunity to renounce sin.

When the Spirit of God has finished this work of destroying sin and self-will, everlasting righteousness will be here.

Now for the second part—the presence of a government that will not tolerate sin and self will.

This is the Kingdom of God, of which Jesus spoke. We enter the Kingdom of God when we are born again, because Jesus Himself is the Kingdom of God. If we protect and nourish that which has been born in us, the day will come when the Father and the Son through the Spirit enter that which has been created in our personality. Now we will not sin or exhibit self-will because our nature has been changed. We are a new creation.

It then will be a delight to us to do God's will because His law is now in our mind and heart. We, the flesh, have become the Word of God. This is the new covenant.

So the two elements that would have prevented Adam and Eve from destroying Paradise have now been accomplished in us. We have been trained in righteousness by confessing and turning away from our sins. In addition, the Kingdom of God has been formed in us; first by the new birth, then by the maturing of Christ in us, finally by the coming of the Father and the Son to dwell in us forever.

The above is the essential part of our preparing for the future. We simply must learn to live by the Life of Jesus, as the Apostle Paul did. It is only as we live by His Life that we will save ourselves and our loved ones during the chaos that is ahead.

The Scriptures speak clearly of the conflicts that are ahead of us as the climactic battles between good and evil occur.

First, there will be the testimony of the two witnesses. The two witnesses are Christ, and His victorious saints. Before the end of the Church Age is here, Christ in His saints will bear witness of the soon coming of the Kingdom of God to the earth. This witness will be given to all nations.

Another important event is that of the casting down of Satan and his angels to the earth. Michael and his angels are responsible for the removal of Satan from the heavens; but they can do this only as there are saints in the earth who overcome the Accuser by the blood of the Lamb; by the word of their testimony; and by loving not their life to the death.

I believe there is a relationship between our willingness to pursue the life of victory in Christ, and the strengthening of the hands of the angels of God.

A third important event is the birth of the sons of God, as described in the twelfth chapter of the Book of Revelation. It is time now for the Christian Church to enter the travail necessary to bring forth Christ in the saints. The sons who are brought forth will, with the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, govern the nations of the earth.

Those who overcome the Accuser and who govern the nations with Christ are a Firstfruits of the Christian Church. They have through Christ gained victory over all evil that has come against them. These are a beginning of those whom Christ has trained in righteousness.

Now we are ready for the Battle of Armageddon. Christ and His Firstfruits, those who have been trained in Heaven and those who yet are alive on the earth, will be raised from the dead, when He next appears, and clothed in immortal bodies. Then they will be caught up to where Christ and the white war stallions are waiting in the air above the earth.

The angels will blow the trumpets of God and the two armies, the saints and the warrior angels, will hurtle down to their staging area on the dried up bed of the Euphrates. These are the kings from the east.

The armies of Antichrist will be destroyed and the birds will eat their flesh. Antichrist and the False Prophet will be cast into the Lake of Fire. One angel will bind Satan and hurl him into the Bottomless Pit.

The evil powers who have ruled the earth have now been rendered powerless. But there remains on the earth the Antichrist institutions of world "civilization" as well as people with sinful natures.

Now it is time for Joel's army to invade every city that has been influenced by Antichrist. On and on they come. The land is as Eden before them and behind them a burning wilderness. They do not break ranks. The Lord is at the head of His army.

After the whole earth has been subdued, the Firstfruits will return to Jerusalem to await their orders from Christ. Christ will send out His kings to every part of the earth. The larger nations will be split up into smaller kingdoms, each of which will have its own king. Righteous behavior will be enforced with the scepter of iron righteousness, a scepter that has been formed in the victorious saints as they have overcome through Christ the evil that has come against them during their lifetime on the earth.

Next there will be a thousand years of a peace enforced by the saints and their angelic helpers. The knowledge of the Lord will cover the earth as the waters cover the sea. The world will be safe for little children and the fiercest of wild animals will be their tame pets.

But the conflict between good and evil has not as yet been finished. At the end of the thousand-year Kingdom Age, Satan will be released. He will lead the nations who have been patiently trained in righteousness during the Kingdom Age, against the camp of the saints. There will be no battle. God will wipe out the wicked forces, just as He always has been able to do.

Satan, the source of the tragedies on the earth, will be thrown into the Lake of Fire.

Those who teach that the wicked eventually will be saved should remember that when Satan was released after a thousand years of confinement, he immediately set about to destroy the work of Christ. So it would be true if God relented and permitted even one truly wicked person to enter the new world of righteousness.

Now that the rebellious have been burned up, and Satan has found his eternal home in the Lake of Fire, everyone, except the Firstfruits who were raised in the first resurrection, will stand before the Throne of Jesus Christ. Every individual will be judged fairly according to his or her works.

Those whose names were found in the Book of Life will be brought over to citizenship on the new earth. Those whose names were not found in the Book of Life will be thrown into the Lake of Fire to make their home with Satan.

Such is the end of the war between good and evil.

Since people and angels have wills of their own they always will be able to disobey Christ. There will be kings and judges in the new world of righteousness who will be alerted immediately if some person or angel is entertaining a thought of resistance to the will of the Lord Jesus Christ.

That individual will be approached by a saint, accompanied by warrior angels. The individual may be taken on a "field trip" to see the bodies of those who have rebelled against Christ.

"As the new heavens and the new earth that I make will endure before me," declares the LORD, "so will your name and descendants endure. From one New Moon to another and from one Sabbath to another, all mankind will come and bow down before me," says the LORD. "And they will go out and look upon the dead bodies of those who rebelled against me; their worm will not die, nor will their fire be quenched, and they will be loathsome to all mankind." (Isaiah 66:22-24)

If he or she is willing to repent sincerely, the person may be given another chance. But if pride and rebellion enter in, then the individual will be placed with Satan and all other rebels.

This concludes the war between good and evil. Thus the word shall come to pass:

Seventy "sevens" are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy. (Daniel 9:24)

What We Are to Prepare For

Moral and Physical Chaos in the United States and the World–Psalms 9:17 The Birth of the Sons of God–Revelation 12:5

Confessing and Turning from Our Sins and Self-will–I John 1:9

The Hurling of Satan and His Angels to the Earth–Revelation 12:9

The Judging of Those Who Are to Bear Witness–Revelation 11:1

The Power to Bear Witness of the Soon Coming of the Kingdom of God to the Earth–Revelation 11:3

The Withdrawing of the Anointing and the Overcoming of the Testimony–Revelation 11:7

Sodom; Egypt; Jerusalem–Revelation 11:8

The Revelation of Antichrist and the Great Tribulation–Daniel 9:27

Satan Makes War Against the Church–Revelation 12:17

Christ Appears and Gathers His Elect; the First Resurrection–Matthew 24:30; Revelation 20:4

The Battle of Armageddon–Revelation 19:11

Joel's Army Cleanses the Earth–Joel 2:3

The Thousand-year Kingdom Age–Isaiah 11:9

Satan Is Released from the Bottomless Pit–Revelation 20:7

The Final Judgment–Revelation 20:11

The New Heaven and Earth–Revelation 21:1

Sermons WOR

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-==Opening The Ancient Doors==
+==What We Are To Prepare For==
-<p>  Going from the twenty-third Psalm to the twenty-fourth Psalm is like moving from Jesus to Joshua. In the twenty-third Psalm, Christ is wearing His shepherd's hat. In the twenty-fourth Psalm, Christ is wearing His warrior's helmet. <br><br>
+  <p>I have written quite a bit about preparing for the coming catastrophic events in the United States. The only manner in which we can prepare spiritually for the days of moral and physical chaos is by learning to live by the Life of the Lord Jesus, looking to Him continually for every decision we make; for all aspects of our life, day and night. If we do this we will save ourselves and our loved ones no matter what comes to pass in America. <br><br>
-  My opinion is that the "ancient doors" are the hearts of human beings. Why are they ancient? Because they have not changed from the beginning of man on the earth. An additional thought is this: It is in the present hour that God is revealing His plan to live in us, to place His Throne in us. Since this opportunity is available to every one of God's elect both on earth and in the spirit world, some of the recipients have lived for thousands of years. <br><br>
+   There is something else we are to prepare for. That is the Day of the Lord. Our Christian traditions hold that when Jesus comes we will be caught up to Heaven. There we will recline in peace and joy in our mansion. No preparation is needed for this catching up, we have been told. <br><br>
-  From the beginning of the creation, people have attempted to conduct their own lives, using their own wisdom, experience and strength. It is only now, it seems, that we are understanding that man is not to live by bread alone but by every Word of God directed to him or her. <br><br>
+   This is not what the Bible teaches about the Day of the Lord. <br><br>
-  We all have a "throne room" in our personality. It was not built for us. When we sit on that throne without the Lord, our life cannot attain to the fullness of righteousness, love, joy, and peace no matter what we accomplish during our time on the earth. <br><br>
+   The truth is, the war between good and evil has not been won as yet. The basis for victory in this war was accomplished on the cross of Calvary. The atonement made on the cross destroyed the authority of Satan to keep the world in his power. However, the removal of Satan and all of his influence in the creation has not as yet been accomplished, as we see what is taking place in the world, and in our own life as well. <br><br>
-  <em>To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne. (Revelation 3:21) </em><br><br>
+   Not only the people of the world, but the people of the Christian churches also, are bound with the love of the world, the lusts of the flesh, and the determination to live our own life without reference to the will of Christ. In actuality, the only lawful will in the universe is the will of God. But people from the beginning have sought to pursue their own life according to their own plans and desires. <br><br>
-   The throne is the human heart. That is the proper throne of God and Christ. We are permitted to sit there with Them when we are willing to live by Their Life. <br><br>
-  It only is as Christ, and God in Him, occupy the throne of our personality that what we are meant to be unfolds from now throughout eternity. <br><br>
-  Recently I read the life of Lucy Maud Montgomery, the author of Anne of Green Gables. Such a marvelous work that has been a great blessing to millions of people. Yet, there was much sadness in Mrs. Montgomery's life, as has been true of other gifted people who have given us such pleasure. She was beset with depression. <br><br>
-  Perhaps it is in the present hour that it is becoming clear to us we are not to conduct our own life as we see fit. We are to look to Christ, night and day, for our thoughts, our words, and our actions. To live like this is not as impossible as it may seem to those who never have tried it. All that is required to live by the Life of Jesus, as the Apostle Paul did, is to ask God with utmost sincerity to cause us to live like this. <br><br>
-  For how long have human beings sought to live their own life, although perhaps obeying one religion or another. It is perfectly possible, and the norm, for religious people to adhere to the rules and practices of their religion without opening their life to God. <br><br>
-   Now we are perceiving that the only lasting good that religion can do is to bring us to the place where we give our life wholly to Christ; for He is the only Way to the Father. Until we are willing to live by the Life of Christ we never will experience the deepest longing of our heart. <br><br>
-   <em>The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; (Psalms 24:1) </em><br><br>
-"The earth"! To this point in time our salvation has been directed toward Heaven, we might say. It reminds me of the Jewish Calendar. The religious new year of the Jews begins with Passover. After six months, there is what we might refer to as a secular new year. It is the first day of this secular new year that is celebrated as New Year's Day, with the Blowing of Trumpets. <br><br>
-  Notice that there is a religious year, and then there is "the year of kings and contracts." <br><br>
-  So it is true that we have come to the time when our viewpoint is moving from Heaven to the earth. Previously we have thought that the goal of our salvation is that we might live in Heaven for eternity. We have built up a mythology about our life in Heaven, complete with mansions to live in. <br><br>
-  Now we understand Heaven is not our goal. The Kingdom of God is our goal. Our Lord told us to pay our first attention to seeking the Kingdom of God, not Heaven. <br><br>
-  Well then, what is the difference between Heaven and the Kingdom of God? Heaven is a place in the spirit world where the Heavenly Jerusalem is located, a city that one day will be installed on a high mountain of the new earth. <br><br>
-   The Kingdom of God is not a place. It is the rule of God through Christ, and then through those in whom Christ is living and is being obeyed totally and completely. Could a person be in Heaven and not be in the Kingdom of God? Absolutely. Could a person be on the earth and yet be in the Kingdom of God? Yes, if Christ is his or her Life. <br><br>
-  To enter the Kingdom of God we must be born again and then nourish our new inner man by keeping our attention on things above; by presenting our body a living sacrifice; by putting to death through the Spirit of God the acts of our sinful nature; by praying continually and spending some time each day meditating in the Bible. <br><br>
-  To enter the Kingdom of God fully we must give ourselves totally to Christ. <br><br>
-  As we press into Christ at the present time we discover that He is speaking to us about the earth. While it is true that we presently are at the right hand of God in Christ, our destination is the earth. When Christ appears we shall appear with Him. <br><br>
-  The nations and the farthest reaches of the earth are the inheritance of Christ. They also are our inheritance. From now until the present earth and sky are destroyed and a new earth and sky take their place, there will be a battle between good and evil. The power of redemption will operate until all sin is removed from the creation of God and iron righteousness, fiery holiness, and stern obedience to God take the place of sin and self-will. <br><br>
    <em>Seventy "sevens" are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy. (Daniel 9:24) </em><br><br>
-"To put an end to sin." "To bring in everlasting righteousness." <br><br>
+  Let's consider for a moment the verse above, because it is the opinion of numerous Christian people that we never will be rid of sin. <br><br>
-   We now are at the beginning of the operation of redemption. Forgiveness was purchased on the cross of calvary. Now it is time for the total removal of the practice of sin. <br><br>
+"To finish transgression." "To put an end to sin." "To atone for wickedness." "To bring in everlasting righteousness." <br><br>
-  The Bible says that the earth is the Lord's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.. <br><br>
+   If you stop to think about it, of course this will come to pass. Is God, who made the universe, unable to bring in everlasting righteousness? I think it is Satan who has given us the impression that sin is inevitable and always will be true of us. <br><br>
-   We must admit that we have been taught that God's goal is to bring as many people to Heaven as possible and, I suppose, Satan then would inherit the earth. This is an incorrect viewpoint. God's goal is to fill as many people as possible with His Presence and will. The result of this will be that Satan, and all that is of Satan, will be removed from the physical creation and confined in the spirit prisons. <br><br>
+   But that God will never be able to remove sin from people is not reasonable. God is able to remove the compulsion of sin from anyone at any time He chooses. Does God not have power over the demons? Can He not change the nature of any person and make him or her a new moral creation? Can the Potter make one vessel unto honor and another vessel unto dishonor? If this is not true, it indeed would be good we never had been born. <br><br>
-   This is the coming of the Kingdom of God, the will of God, to the earth. This is what Jesus told us to seek. <br><br>
+   Why, then, does He not do this? He made an atonement for the sins of the whole world on the cross of Calvary! <br><br>
-   <em>For he founded it upon the seas and established it upon the waters. (Psalms 24:2) </em><br><br>
+   <em>He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world. (I John 2:2) </em><br><br>
-   God founded the earth, and everything in it, including the people, upon the seas. Thus the foundation is unstable. Abraham was looking for a city that has foundations. The foundations of the wall of the new Jerusalem are heavily ornamented with precious stones. <br><br>
+   Why can't God do the same for the power of the sin that controls us? <br><br>
-   The city that is coming is founded on Christ. Christ, and Christ alone, is the Rock, the only trustworthy, permanent foundation upon which we can build our life. It may take us a while to learn this, and some may never understand. But it is certain that anything not built on Christ will not last! <br><br>
+   He can. But God does not want a repetition of the disaster in the Garden of Eden. Remember, Adam and Eve were not created with a sinful nature. <br><br>
-  <em>Who may ascend the hill of the LORD? Who may stand in his holy place? (Psalms 24:3) </em><br><br>
+   What was needed in Eden to prevent the rebellious act? Two things. First, people trained in righteousness. Second, a government that would prevent sin from occurring. <br><br>
-  There only is one holy hill. It is Mount Zion. Mount Zion is Christ and all who belong to Christ. All other hills, all other religions, are imitations. <br><br>
+   So what is God doing now? He is ready to train people in righteousness, and to create a government, the Kingdom of God, that will permit only God's will to be done on the earth. <br><br>
-   <em>Why gaze in envy, O rugged mountains, at the mountain where God chooses to reign, where the LORD himself will dwell forever? (Psalms 68:16) </em><br><br>
+   Now you can see why God does not reach down and remove the works of Satan from the earth with a single stroke. He is in the process of removing the works of Satan from the earth permanently by training people in righteous behavior and by creating the Kingdom of God. <br><br>
-  It is fashionable today to say there are many ways that lead to God. This is a kind attitude to take, but it is false. It is impossible to come to God except through Jesus Christ. This is not the truth of a religion, it is a spiritual fact. <br><br>
+  Let's think now about how God is training people in righteous behavior, and by creating the Kingdom of God. Then we will understand how God can bring in everlasting righteousness. <br><br>
-  I invite anyone who is willing to do so to pray that if Jesus is alive, and is the one Way to the Father, to make Himself, that is, Jesus, known. I did this 67 years ago. I know now that Jesus Christ is alive and is who He says He is. <br><br>
+  At the present time, God's Spirit is moving among us who have ears to hear the Spirit. The Spirit is revealing to us our worldliness, the lusts and passions of our flesh and spirit, and our self-will. As He does, we are to confess the attitude or practice that has been pointed out. We are to confess to Christ the specific behavior clearly. <br><br>
-   Some time ago a college student asked me how he could know if there is a God? I said, "Ask Him. He is able to answer you, and will answer you if you are sincere." If you want to know if someone is in the next room, knock on the door. <br><br>
+   Then we are to name that area of our personality as sin, unworthy of the Kingdom of God. <br><br>
-  There are many interesting religions in the world, and each has devout practitioners. But when people are worshiping and obeying Jesus (and this certainly is not true of all who assemble in Christian churches), there is a sense of God's Presence that is not true of any other religion. <br><br>
+   Then we are to renounce that practice or attitude, declaring emphatically that we never, never again, by the help of the Lord, shall yield to that spiritual evil—not for eternity. This is an eternal judgment on Satan. <br><br>
-   Try it out for yourself. I am not suggesting you leave your religion. I am inviting you to ask Jesus to reveal Himself to you. If you are honest, He will do just that, just as He did for me so many years ago. <br><br>
+   Our personality is not delivered from evil in a moment. The practice of confessing, denouncing, renouncing, and resisting sin must continue until it all has been removed. It is line upon line; command upon command; here a little and there a little. Piece by piece the graveclothes are removed from us. There is no hurry. We are undoing the damage wrought over thousand of years in the children of Adam and Eve. <br><br>
-  Now we have a question: "Who may ascend the hill of the Lord and stand in His holy place?" <br><br>
+   Will this work of deliverance continue in the next world and be true of people in the spirit world? I feel certain that it shall. How else could the entire Bride of the Lamb come to unblemished perfection? <br><br>
-  <em>He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false. (Psalms 24:4) </em><br><br>
+   <em>For this is the reason the gospel was preached even to those who are now dead, so that they might be judged according to men in regard to the body, but live according to God in regard to the spirit. (I Peter 4:6) </em><br><br>
-"Clean hands" refers to righteous, holy behavior. A "pure heart" means that the person's motivations and intentions are sincere and trustworthy, integrity of motive. "Does not lift up his soul to an idol" signifies that there is no person, thing, or situation that the individual adores more than God. <br><br>
+   It is certain that Abraham and the other patriarchs and prophets are now born again. Since no person could be born again until Christ rose from the dead, the patriarchs must have received this experience while they were living in the spirit world. <br><br>
-"Swear by what is false" speaks of building our life on what is not true. It is a fact that the world (Antichrist) spirit is one massive lie. The American culture is built on money, and much that takes place is a lie. <br><br>
+   We have to keep in mind that the Bride of the Lamb, the Body of Christ, is one organism, with most members in the spirit world at any given time. All are having the same redemptive experiences and pressing forward in Christ whether on earth or in the spirit world. How could it be otherwise? They without us cannot be made perfect! <br><br>
-  Right here we have to make a decision. The current theology in America tells us that believing in Christ brings a "grace" to us that no longer requires that we are upright and truthful. All we do is believe. A righteous, truthful personality is not necessary if we wish to stand in God's holy place, it is claimed. <br><br>
+   According to my understanding it will require from now until the final resurrection for every person, the members of the Church and everyone else, to have an opportunity to renounce sin. <br><br>
-  Or, we can take the position that God has not changed His requirements: We must be a truthful person of integrity of character if we are to stand in God's holy place and ascend Mount Zion. <br><br>
+   When the Spirit of God has finished this work of destroying sin and self-will, everlasting righteousness will be here. <br><br>
-   Which of these two theological positions is true and which is false? <br><br>
+   Now for the second part—the presence of a government that will not tolerate sin and self will. <br><br>
-  I know that one time the Lord said to me that liars will not eat at His table. Was that really Jesus who said that to me? I am convinced it indeed was, and it makes sense to me. <br><br>
+   This is the Kingdom of God, of which Jesus spoke. We enter the Kingdom of God when we are born again, because Jesus Himself is the Kingdom of God. If we protect and nourish that which has been born in us, the day will come when the Father and the Son through the Spirit enter that which has been created in our personality. Now we will not sin or exhibit self-will because our nature has been changed. We are a new creation. <br><br>
-   So we are at a crossroads in America. Either the lawless-grace message is of God, or Christ has not changed and still requires clean hands and a pure heart if we are to ascend the hill of the Lord. <br><br>
+   It then will be a delight to us to do God's will because His law is now in our mind and heart. We, the flesh, have become the Word of God. This is the new covenant. <br><br>
-  I believe we are in sore need of a reformation of Christian thinking in America. How could we ever have believed that an unholy, unrighteous individual ever could stand in God's holy place by claiming to believe in Jesus! <br><br>
+   So the two elements that would have prevented Adam and Eve from destroying Paradise have now been accomplished in us. We have been trained in righteousness by confessing and turning away from our sins. In addition, the Kingdom of God has been formed in us; first by the new birth, then by the maturing of Christ in us, finally by the coming of the Father and the Son to dwell in us forever. <br><br>
-  Believe what about Jesus? That He is God's Son and died for our sins? <br><br>
+   The above is the essential part of our preparing for the future. We simply must learn to live by the Life of Jesus, as the Apostle Paul did. It is only as we live by His Life that we will save ourselves and our loved ones during the chaos that is ahead. <br><br>
-  The demons know that and tremble. <br><br>
+   The Scriptures speak clearly of the conflicts that are ahead of us as the climactic battles between good and evil occur. <br><br>
-  That He is coming again to exercise Divine judgment upon all who disobey God? <br><br>
+   First, there will be the testimony of the two witnesses. The two witnesses are Christ, and His victorious saints. Before the end of the Church Age is here, Christ in His saints will bear witness of the soon coming of the Kingdom of God to the earth. This witness will be given to all nations. <br><br>
-  The demons know that and tremble. <br><br>
+   Another important event is that of the casting down of Satan and his angels to the earth. Michael and his angels are responsible for the removal of Satan from the heavens; but they can do this only as there are saints in the earth who overcome the Accuser by the blood of the Lamb; by the word of their testimony; and by loving not their life to the death. <br><br>
-   So what belief is it that enables us to continue yielding to our sinful nature and remain standing in the holy place? <br><br>
+   I believe there is a relationship between our willingness to pursue the life of victory in Christ, and the strengthening of the hands of the angels of God. <br><br>
-  We are in deception in America, and I don't know if we ever will be able to come to the truth of the Bible. Will God in His mercy open our eyes? Or are we going to have to suffer greatly before we will repent of our love of money, perverse sexual behavior, love of ease and pleasure, and addiction to entertainment? <br><br>
+   A third important event is the birth of the sons of God, as described in the twelfth chapter of the Book of Revelation. It is time now for the Christian Church to enter the travail necessary to bring forth Christ in the saints. The sons who are brought forth will, with the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, govern the nations of the earth. <br><br>
-  Each one of us can press into Christ right now and by so doing save ourselves and our loved ones from the sins of our culture. <br><br>
+   Those who overcome the Accuser and who govern the nations with Christ are a Firstfruits of the Christian Church. They have through Christ gained victory over all evil that has come against them. These are a beginning of those whom Christ has trained in righteousness. <br><br>
-  <em>He will receive blessing from the LORD and vindication from God his Savior. (Psalms 24:5) </em><br><br>
+   Now we are ready for the Battle of Armageddon. Christ and His Firstfruits, those who have been trained in Heaven and those who yet are alive on the earth, will be raised from the dead, when He next appears, and clothed in immortal bodies. Then they will be caught up to where Christ and the white war stallions are waiting in the air above the earth. <br><br>
-   Do we truly believe that we can keep yielding to our sinful nature and be blessed of the Lord by claiming we believe in Christ? Will God vindicate us if we keep on sinning? Is this what the lawless-grace message is teaching us? <br><br>
+   The angels will blow the trumpets of God and the two armies, the saints and the warrior angels, will hurtle down to their staging area on the dried up bed of the Euphrates. These are the kings from the east. <br><br>
-  In the Book of Colossians, Paul mentioned that we are going to appear with Christ when He comes. <br><br>
+   The armies of Antichrist will be destroyed and the birds will eat their flesh. Antichrist and the False Prophet will be cast into the Lake of Fire. One angel will bind Satan and hurl him into the Bottomless Pit. <br><br>
-  And then Paul added: <br><br>
+   The evil powers who have ruled the earth have now been rendered powerless. But there remains on the earth the Antichrist institutions of world "civilization" as well as people with sinful natures. <br><br>
-   <em>Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. (Colossians 3:5,6) </em><br><br>
+   Now it is time for Joel's army to invade every city that has been influenced by Antichrist. On and on they come. The land is as Eden before them and behind them a burning wilderness. They do not break ranks. The Lord is at the head of His army. <br><br>
-  Have we not been greatly deceived, we who are trusting in lawless-grace to keep us in good standing with the Lord? Either contemporary preaching is correct, or Paul is correct. Which preachers do you think have heard from God? <br><br>
+   After the whole earth has been subdued, the Firstfruits will return to Jerusalem to await their orders from Christ. Christ will send out His kings to every part of the earth. The larger nations will be split up into smaller kingdoms, each of which will have its own king. Righteous behavior will be enforced with the scepter of iron righteousness, a scepter that has been formed in the victorious saints as they have overcome through Christ the evil that has come against them during their lifetime on the earth. <br><br>
-  <em>Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek your face, O God of Jacob. Selah. (Psalms 24:6) </em><br><br>
+   Next there will be a thousand years of a peace enforced by the saints and their angelic helpers. The knowledge of the Lord will cover the earth as the waters cover the sea. The world will be safe for little children and the fiercest of wild animals will be their tame pets. <br><br>
-   It seems to me that current "ticket" doctrine produces a static Christian experience. When we "accept Christ" we have our ticket to Heaven. There does not seem to be an emphasis on seeking God. However, the true Christian discipleship includes seeking the face of Christ night and day. We continually are to be seeking the face of Him who "hides Himself." <br><br>
+   But the conflict between good and evil has not as yet been finished. At the end of the thousand-year Kingdom Age, Satan will be released. He will lead the nations who have been patiently trained in righteousness during the Kingdom Age, against the camp of the saints. There will be no battle. God will wipe out the wicked forces, just as He always has been able to do. <br><br>
-   Since we always are making mistakes, getting off the track, blundering along, we absolutely must seek God with all our heart at all times. Not to do so is to end up in a spiritual wasteland, although we have "accepted Christ." <br><br>
+   Satan, the source of the tragedies on the earth, will be thrown into the Lake of Fire. <br><br>
-   <em>Lift up your heads, O you gates; be lifted up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. (Psalm 24:7) </em><br><br>
+   Those who teach that the wicked eventually will be saved should remember that when Satan was released after a thousand years of confinement, he immediately set about to destroy the work of Christ. So it would be true if God relented and permitted even one truly wicked person to enter the new world of righteousness. <br><br>
-   The above reminds us of "Behold, I stand at the door and knock," doesn't it? <br><br>
+   Now that the rebellious have been burned up, and Satan has found his eternal home in the Lake of Fire, everyone, except the Firstfruits who were raised in the first resurrection, will stand before the Throne of Jesus Christ. Every individual will be judged fairly according to his or her works. <br><br>
-   We indeed have come to a great moment in the plan of redemption. This forward step is prefigured in the seven celebrations of Israel. We have been at the fourth step, Pentecost, for a century. Now it is time to advance to the spiritual fulfillment of the final three feasts. They are the Blowing of Trumpets; the Day of Atonement; and Tabernacles. <br><br>
+   Those whose names were found in the Book of Life will be brought over to citizenship on the new earth. Those whose names were not found in the Book of Life will be thrown into the Lake of Fire to make their home with Satan. <br><br>
-   The Blowing of Trumpets, announcing the new secular year is fulfilled in us when the Holy Spirit announces the coming of the King to us to begin the construction of the Kingdom of God. <br><br>
+   Such is the end of the war between good and evil. <br><br>
-  The Day of Atonement is the reconciling of us to God and He to us. Line upon line, command upon command, the Holy Spirit shows us the sins and self-will in our adamic nature. We must confess and turn away from the darkness that has been pointed out to us, as the Lord assists us. <br><br>
+   Since people and angels have wills of their own they always will be able to disobey Christ. There will be kings and judges in the new world of righteousness who will be alerted immediately if some person or angel is entertaining a thought of resistance to the will of the Lord Jesus Christ. <br><br>
-   We are not reconciled to God in a moment. The program of atonement lasts throughout our lifetime and, I have no doubt, after we pass into the spirit world. It is an eternal judgment on the sin and self-will that are in us. <br><br>
+  That individual will be approached by a saint, accompanied by warrior angels. The individual may be taken on a "field trip" to see the bodies of those who have rebelled against Christ. <br><br>
-   I myself began this program in around 1950. Here it is 2012, and occasionally some area of darkness is uncovered. I have learned through long experience to immediately deal with the darkness, confessing it to the Lord, denouncing it as evil, and renouncing it, determining right then that, with Jesus' help, such behavior or attitude will never again be true of me—no, not for eternity! <br><br>
+  <em>"As the new heavens and the new earth that I make will endure before me," declares the LORD, "so will your name and descendants endure. From one New Moon to another and from one Sabbath to another, all mankind will come and bow down before me," says the LORD. "And they will go out and look upon the dead bodies of those who rebelled against me; their worm will not die, nor will their fire be quenched, and they will be loathsome to all mankind." (Isaiah 66:22-24) </em><br><br>
-  We are not possessed with endless sin and self-will. The work of atonement may take a while, but eventually it will be finished. We will be free from all the compulsions of our sinful nature. Whew! <br><br>
+   If he or she is willing to repent sincerely, the person may be given another chance. But if pride and rebellion enter in, then the individual will be placed with Satan and all other rebels. <br><br>
-   You can think of this process as our entering our land of promise. City by city falls before us as the Lord leads. We do not do, as did faithless Israel, make some progress, and then quit the battle because it is rigorous. We persevere until every enemy, from the kings to the smallest demon, has been driven out and we can find rest in our inheritance. <br><br>
+   This concludes the war between good and evil. Thus the word shall come to pass: <br><br>
-   It may be noted that not only do we find rest in God, God also finds rest in us. In fact, the whole purpose of the plan of redemption is that God might have a resting place. God does not find rest in us when there is sin and self-seeking in our personality. <br><br>
+   <em>Seventy "sevens" are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy. (Daniel 9:24) </em><br><br>
-   <em>Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. Where is the house you will build for me? Where will my resting place be? (Isaiah 66:1) </em><br><br>
+   What We Are to Prepare For <br><br>
-  The "house" that we build for God is our own personality, in which our redeemed body plays an important role. In fact, the purpose of the gifts and ministries given to the Body of Christ is to build the eternal Tabernacle of God, which comes down to earth as the new Jerusalem. This is Mount Zion. <br><br>
+   Moral and Physical Chaos in the United States and the World–Psalms 9:17
-   The 68th Psalm talks about Mount Zion and the gifts and ministries given to the members of the Body of Christ. Then about the purpose the Holy Spirit has in mind in giving these gifts: <br><br>
+  The Birth of the Sons of God–Revelation 12:5 <br><br>
-   <em>Thou hast ascended on high, Thou hast led in procession a body of captives, Thou hast received gifts consisting of men, yea even the rebellious, that Yah Elohim might settle down to rest. (Psalms 68:18—Rotherham) </em><br><br>
+   Confessing and Turning from Our Sins and Self-will–I John 1:9 <br><br>
-   Can you see why the Day of Atonement must come before the spiritual fulfillment of the celebration of Tabernacles? "Tabernacles" is the coming of the Father and the Son to make Their eternal home, Their rest in us. The spiritual fulfillment of the Day of Atonement obviously must come first. The "rest" in us that God is seeking can be made ready only as our sin and self-will have been confessed and renounced. <br><br>
+   The Hurling of Satan and His Angels to the Earth–Revelation 12:9 <br><br>
-   We can understand from all this that the day in which we are living indeed is momentous. All that has gone before in the history of the world has been for the purpose of creating a dwelling place for God, beginning with the Firstfruits of His Church, then spreading to the remainder of the Church, and finally to every saved person who is qualified to be a citizen of the new world of righteousness. <br><br>
+   The Judging of Those Who Are to Bear Witness–Revelation 11:1 <br><br>
-   Who is it that is asking that we lift up the gates of our personality that He may enter us? It is the King of Glory. But exactly who is the King of Glory? He is the Lord Jesus Christ, and God in Him. <br><br>
+   The Power to Bear Witness of the Soon Coming of the Kingdom of God to the Earth–Revelation 11:3 <br><br>
-  <em>Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty, the LORD mighty in battle. (Psalms 24:8) </em><br><br>
+   The Withdrawing of the Anointing and the Overcoming of the Testimony–Revelation 11:7 <br><br>
-   Right here is the issue. For two thousand years the Lord Jesus has been our Shepherd. He is the One who seeks out the lamb who is in danger. He is gentle and meek, and loves little children. <br><br>
+   Sodom; Egypt; Jerusalem–Revelation 11:8 <br><br>
-   Now He is changing from a shepherd to a warrior. May I add that when Christ is our shepherd He is all shepherd. But when He is God's warrior He is all warrior. He is not half-shepherd and half-warrior. <br><br>
+   The Revelation of Antichrist and the Great Tribulation–Daniel 9:27 <br><br>
-  The demons understand this only too well and tremble at the thought! <br><br>
+   Satan Makes War Against the Church–Revelation 12:17 <br><br>
-   We are at the beginning of the war between good and evil. The evil has been entrenched in the creation from the days of Adam and Eve. The Good has been biding His time. <br><br>
+   Christ Appears and Gathers His Elect; the First Resurrection–Matthew 24:30; Revelation 20:4 <br><br>
-   This war is fierce beyond all comprehension. It is "no holds barred." Satan will employ every device in his arsenal to tear down every believer that he thinks is a danger to him. This is no place for foolish, half-hearted, casual Christians, of which we have an abundance in the United States. <br><br>
+   The Battle of Armageddon–Revelation 19:11 <br><br>
-   There is a remnant today. They are overcoming the Accuser by the blood of the Lamb; by the word of their testimony; and by loving not their life to the death. They are totally committed to Christ. They are learning to live by His Life. They follow Him wherever He goes. They obey Him at all times in the smallest details of their existence. <br><br>
+   Joel's Army Cleanses the Earth–Joel 2:3 <br><br>
-   There are such Christians today. I do not say there are many. But there are some; and you can be one if that is your desire. Count the cost. It will cost you everything. Then count the cost of not being one of the Lord's Firstfruits who attains to the first resurrection. <br><br>
+   The Thousand-year Kingdom Age–Isaiah 11:9 <br><br>
-   Audrey and I watched a television episode the other day. A lady was in the process of giving birth. She was screaming. The baby was partly out. The nurse was saying, "Push. Push. Push." <br><br>
+   Satan Is Released from the Bottomless Pit–Revelation 20:7 <br><br>
-  Then the lady stopped screaming and said, "I've changed my mind." <br><br>
+   The Final Judgment–Revelation 20:11 <br><br>
-   When you are in the midst of being redeemed from sin and self-will, and you find the process demanding, do not change your mind. Remember Jesus said that a woman travailing in birth has pain. But when the baby is delivered she remembers the pain no longer but has joy that a man has been born into the world. <br><br>
+  The New Heaven and Earth–Revelation 21:1 </p>
-   Don't quit in the middle of the process. The "baby" finally will be born and you will not remember the pain any longer. "Christ" will have been born into the world. <br><br>
-   <em>Lift up your heads, O you gates; lift them up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. (Psalms 24:9) </em><br><br>
-  Jesus is standing today at the door of your heart. He is knocking. He never will open the door. You and I have to open the door. <br><br>
-   <em>Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne. (Revelation 3:20,21) </em><br><br>
-   The redactors of the text have separated these two verses, not realizing they compose one thought. <br><br>
-   Notice that the above promise is to the Laodicean Church, the church that appears at the close of the Church Age. It is the church of the rights of people. It is the church of those who are lukewarm, who think they have need of nothing. This is what we see in America today, isn't it? <br><br>
-"If anyone hears my voice." Notice the promise is to the individual. This is true also of "him who overcomes." Christ does not speak to the whole Church but to individuals. <br><br>
-"I will come in and eat with him and he with me." Christ eats from our obedience and worship. We eat from His body and blood. It is by eating His body and blood that we learn to live by His Life. <br><br>
-   The sixth chapter of the Gospel of John tells us of the importance of the body and blood of Christ. They are our resurrection Life. It is the body and blood of the Lamb of God that will draw us up to Him when He appears in the sky. <br><br>
-   Whoever lives by the body and blood of Christ lives by Him as He lives by the Father. <br><br>
-   Whenever we come to a choice between two alternatives, one we are pretty sure is of God, and the other is a burning desire of our fallen nature, and we choose the alternative that we believe is of God, we are fed in the spirit world with the body and blood of Christ. <br><br>
-   Every time we choose to do God's will rather than obey our sinful nature, we are fed in the spirit world with the body and blood of Christ. This is how we learn to live by His Life instead of our own. <br><br>
-   It is he who overcomes sin and self-will who is given to eat from the Tree of Life, the Tree of Life being the Lord Jesus Christ. Eventually we ourselves become trees of life planted by the River of Life. Through us eternal life will come to the dead sea of mankind. <br><br>
-   All that we truly desire is found in the body and blood of the Lamb of God. <br><br>
-   As we keep overcoming and keep eating the flesh of Christ and drinking His blood, we become qualified to sit with Christ on the throne of our own life, just as Christ, having overcome, is seated with His Father on the Father's Throne. <br><br>
-   The Father's Throne is the heart of the victorious saint. Christ sits with the Father on that Throne. When we live in victory we sit with the Father and the Son on the throne of our own personality. Can you think of anything better than that? <br><br>
-   <em>Jesus replied, "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him." (John 14:23) </em><br><br>
-   The above is the spiritual fulfillment of the feast of Tabernacles. It is the "rest of God," spoken of in the fourth chapter of the Book of Hebrews. <br><br>
-   <em>Who is he, this King of glory? The LORD Almighty—he is the King of glory. Selah </em> (Psalms 24:10) <br><br>
-   The purpose of our salvation is to provide an eternal throne, a home, a resting place for the Lord Almighty. He is the King. Our task is to work with Him as He brings all the creation, including ourselves, under the rule of His iron scepter of righteousness. <br><br>
-   The world fights onward, hoping one day to find peace and contentment. It never shall find peace and contentment apart from the Lord Jesus Christ. <br><br>
-   Religion fights onward, hoping to please God by building His Kingdom without waiting to hear from Jesus what He wants done. <br><br>
-   The true saint fights onward, seeking through Christ to overcome all that would hinder the accomplishing of the will of God in his own life. <br><br>
-   All of life, it seems, is a battle. The fighting never seems to end. But it shall end some day. God knows exactly what He is doing. Christ listens to His Father and obeys Him implicitly. <br><br>
-   All each one of us is required to do is to wait patiently on Christ and obey Him at all times, in all situations. If we do that, then, when God has put all of Christ's enemies under His feet, we shall share with Him all that God has given to Him. <br><br>
-   Have peace. No one can harm you if you do what is good. You will save yourself and your loved ones if you walk humbly with your hand in the hand of God. No matter how tumultuous the future becomes in America, just remember that God still is in control. <br><br>
-   <em>If you make the Most High your dwelling—even the LORD, who is my refuge—then no harm will befall you, no disaster will come near your tent. (Psalms 91:9,10) </em></p>
 [[Sermons WOR]]