True Grace

All,

At dinner recently with family the topic of the teachings of Joseph Prince came up.  First of all, I know the initial knee-jerk response from some will be – ‘here goes Tom again, criticizing some preacher because he doesn’t measure up to Tom’s standard’.  I truly hope Christians move past these knee-jerk responses and learn to measure/weigh everything according to God’s Word alone – not any man’s standard.  If I or any preacher is pointing to Jesus (the Bible) alone, then what’s the problem? – unless somebody doesn’t like Jesus and His standards – which are actually quite high.  Scripture more than backs up the fact that many Christians today are teaching what is sometimes called ‘cheap grace’.  One guy defined it as:

“The preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline. Communion without confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ.”

The teachings of multitudes of ministries are now stating that ‘no perfect people are allowed’ in our church (Google that and see how many show up).  Many say ‘just come as you are’ but how very few correctly append to that ‘…but you can’t stay that way – you have to change’.  This is the message of the gospel – we have to change.  We just can’t cop out to some easy as pie, life is good, Jesus did it all for me on the cross type of existence – WE HAVE TO FIGHT A WARFARE TO BE MADE FREE!!!  Is it any wonder why He says in Isaiah 30 “That this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the LORD: Which say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits:” and in 2^nd Timothy 4 “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.”? 

In contrast, the Bible clearly teaches us in Titus 2:11-12, that God’s grace has appeared (in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ and through the five-fold ministry gifts that He gave us as defined in Ephesians 4:11-12) to bring us salvation and INSTRUCTING us to DENY ungodliness, to DENY carnal desires, to LIVE discreetly, to LIVE righteously, to LIVE godly – even in this wicked and perverted world.  This is how we can actually ‘do’ the Word of God and not just be ‘hearers’.  Hearers of the Word just HEAR that Jesus forgives us of our sins by His blood but DOERS actually APPLY the blood to their lives by OBEYING what He says in scripture – and changing nature.  Many say that there is no ‘work’ involved – that is a lie.  So the ‘excuses’ become such like – well David fornicated and he was a man after God’s own heart.  But David is not the standard.  Is David the author and finisher of your faith?  Elijah, wallowed in self-pity under a juniper tree – so does that mean it’s okay for us to do it?  Elijah is not the standard.  Is Elijah the author and finisher of your faith?  The church of Corinth was in the grasp of perversion – the church of Corinth is not the standard.  Peter denied Christ – Peter is not the standard.  Jesus is the standard and his friend John told us that we can walk even as He (Jesus) walked – and God is no liar!  They say that a sinner is a saint that falls down but scripture says that “Jesus is able to keep us from falling and to present us faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy” (Jude 24).

We have been so brainwashed/indoctrinated by the world’s Greco/Roman philosophies which teach us to elevate and exalt people based on numbers of followers, eloquence or charisma, or most of all – how much they ‘know’.  This is especially dangerous in Christianity because many, many preachers and teachers (both true and false), know a lot of scriptures and they know a lot about the Hebrew and the Greek translations so therefore we tend to gravitate toward what they are saying because of a blinded persuasiveness rather than the individuals searching the matter out for ourselves – and to use our own noggins and to actually THINK for ourselves – and most importantly – to consult the Word of God and the Holy Spirit and compare what is being said to HIM for verification!

Below is a link to a message titled ‘The True Grace of God’, and I do hope you will take the time to listen.  But why is it that so many times our first reactions to a gospel messenger that we have not heard before tend to be along the lines of things like this:

•          Who is this guy?
•          What church or denomination does he belong too?
•          How big is his church or congregation/how many followers are there/how many YouTube views does he have?
•          What is he: a Pastor, an Apostle, a Bishop, a Minister, an Elder, or just a Brother or a Sister – what’s his Title?  Aside: (Even though Jesus clearly teaches us to call no man father, master, teacher, Rabbi etc., we keep on keepin’ on, wanting to give a person preeminence, which falls right into the trap of that Greek mindset – to elevate a man – I don’t care what anyone says, it is a subtle part of the Nicolaitane doctrine.  The worse-case scenario is calling someone Reverend – Psalm 111:9 says: “He sent redemption unto his people: he hath commanded his covenant forever: holy and reverend is his name”.  That ought to end the entitlements right there eh?  Call me legalistic if you want to but don’t take my word for it – if you find out otherwise in the new covenant – please let me know – but it seems to me that our fore-fathers the apostles were on a first name basis with one another.  Please hear me - my aim is freedom from every demonic yoke – I want to be free – I want you to be free.  The spirit of the Lord is a liberator – and man, if religion hasn’t put on us the biggest yokes of all I don’t know what does)
•          Where did he go to school – i.e. how many Masonic ‘degrees’ does he have?
•          And probably the worst of all - who did he come up under? (TODO: insert puke face emoticon here).

I suppose the answer is in part because there are now so many voices in Christianity today and people are in a sense becoming weary (or leery) of just hearing another sermon without seeing demonstrated power!  That will be changing soon because if you can see how the moral decay and corruption of society, culture and world systems is on the rapid increase then know without a shadow of a doubt – that Almighty God will respond.  In the meantime, we are left with the quite simple fact that the Lord knows those that are His and His sheep know His voice.  All we can to is continue to tell it and pray for the ever present famine of hearing the Word of God to end so that souls can be snatched from the clutches of Satan.

I for one, want to be free from any preconceived notions, or prejudices (pre-judgments)  about anyone.  It is true that you cannot judge a book by its cover – you have to open the book and start to read it.  The Holy Spirit has quickened the Word with safeguards that are build right into the scriptures which, when properly discerned (rightly divided), will reveal God’s nature (or character) and that nature will continue to transform us (as we continue to allow him to).  Therefore, when you see someone that has effeminate character traits (like Joseph Prince or T.D. Jakes or Paul Crouch or Marcus Lamb to name but a few), you will know that scripture says that the effeminate (and he must obviously be talking about men) cannot inherit the kingdom of God – so logically, if the effeminate cannot inherit the kingdom – how is it possible for the effeminate to represent the kingdom of God?  And if you can’t see the effeminacy in most Christian presentations then you probably stopped reading this already.  In Matthew 11:7-12, Jesus  pointed to the ones that were living large in king’s palaces wearing soft clothes or skinny jeans or Beatle haircuts or tattoos or body piercings – OK he didn’t specifically say skinny jeans, Beatle haircuts, tattoos or piercings, but these things are revealed by the SPIRIT and they do not have to be contained in the actual LETTER – they are simply NOT reflections of the NATURE of God!  So the thing is – warn the righteous, warn the wicked and pray for people to turn to the truth before it is too late.  When we are truly contrite and broken, then when or if we do sin, even in thought let alone deed, we will be quickly convicted by the Holy Ghost and as our hearts are not hardened we will then quickly repent.  One thing that I noticed in this True Grace message that I refer was that the speaker had others reading from scripture which made it hard to hear because the readers were not in close range of the microphone.  Of course, my initial knee-jerk (emphasis on the word ‘jerk’) response was – ‘why is this guy not reading it himself – doesn’t he know that it’s harder for us to hear?’  I discovered the Holy Spirit saying – pick up your Bible and read it for yourself!!!

I pray that we all can begin to walk according to the Spirit and not according to the flesh as in the past – let God be true and every man a liar.  It does not matter WHO brings the message – the question has to be asked: is it TRUE?  The only way for Christians to come to this place of unity – one faith, one mind, one accord – is for us to forsake everything in this life and be truly be repentant and contrite in order to truly be born again in Christ.  Proverbs 28:5 says that Evil men do not understand judgment – but those who seek the Lord understand all things.  We can marry that old testament verse to the new testament in 1^st Corinthians 2:14-16 which says that the natural man (the Evil man) does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him – and he cannot know them, because they spiritually discerned.  But he that is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is judged of no man (let God be true and every man a liar).  For who has known the mind of the Lord the he may instruct him? – but we have the mind of Christ.  At its core, cheap, false, vain and licentious grace teaches ‘you can’t judge’.  Do you not know that the saints shall judge the world?

Again I say what scripture says in plain language – how can two walk together unless they are agreed?  The only way for people to be ‘convinced’ of the absolute gospel truth is for them to be ‘convicted’ – that is the Holy Spirits objective – but only as the vessels are willing to yield to him.

The True Grace of God - Alan Martin

1^st Peter 5:12

Through Silvanus, our faithful brother (for so I regard him), I have written to you briefly, exhorting and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand firm in it!

Titus 2: 11-12

For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in this present evil age.

2^nd Corinthians 6:1

We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain.

Jude 4:

For certain men have crept in unnoticed (unaware, in a stealth manner), those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness (a license to sin) and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.

The Way of Salvation – Psalm 62

February 4th, 2012

“Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned:” – 1st Timothy 1:5

Let me first state emphatically, if you say you are a Christian, and you read this article and do not agree with it whole-heartedly, then you have been victimized by the very things described below and you will not be an overcomer at the end of your life or this age - whichever comes first.  Please read on and take serious heed knowing that what we are desperately in need of overcoming as described in our Bibles vividly in Genesis 3 and Genesis 6.

The goal of the gospel of Jesus Christ is for us to be transformed from a carnal, time and space focused and unclean soul into a spiritual, eternity focused and clean soul.

Jesus says “in your patience, take possession of your soul”.  Obviously, SOMETHING besides me must have possession of my soul.  Now if Jesus said that, then it is true and I personally do not think that a single living human other than him has been excluded from that state of being.  So every believer (small and great) must come to terms with what exactly has had possession of my soul.  This is better stated “who has had possession of my soul?”  The “who” that has had possession of my soul are demonic, unclean spirits that have been doing nothing but using us as vessels to express their lusts. Also, the higher the level of the demon spirit(s), the higher the level of worship that will be directed to the vessel carrying the demon(s). This is how Satan’s kingdom operates. At the end of this chain of bondage is the highest level fallen cherub, the ‘prince of the power of the air’, who has obscured from the worshipers the True and Living God – to whom alone the worship is due and should be directed to but instead Satan has funneled all of that worship to him via lies and deception, because we been enthralled with this temporal life. So it becomes false worship to a false god. What Christians must do then is to humble themselves down and submit to the true Lord Jesus Christ – the Word of God – in order to be made clean from these intruders.

Here in the last days, those that claim to follow Jesus Christ need to truly come to terms with the fact that we have been so duped in church life, that we really have to STOP and think about what we are doing, and what we have been feeding on. It’s time to deal with forces that have Christians bound and blocking the flow of the Holy Spirit. Let’s not find ourselves saying “you need to (fill in the blank)…No – first of all – “I” need to... “I” need to come out of the world and be converted. Let’s not find ourselves pointing out what’s wrong with others without having first gotten the mess out of our own souls.  This is not a presto-chango occurrence that happened when you confessed Christ or came down to an altar call in a church service.  This is a process that happens ONLY through a diligent and disciplined life style of identifying and denying the lust(s) of my flesh, the lust(s) of my eyes and the pride(s) of my life – this is how we get the power to cast out demons.  This is how we can become overcomers – sons of God – and then “…the prince of this world comes, and has NOTHING in me!”

Waiting on God – Possessing My Soul

“In your patience possess ye your souls” – Luke 21:9

Jesus says this in the midst of an end time discourse where he is telling us that as Christians we will be rejected and slain by religious hypocrites just as He was. Those of us that enter into this confrontation with the power of darkness will have to have possession of our souls else we will compromise and deny Him. So why does he mention patience in the same statement as possessing your soul? The process of possessing our soul primarily comprises of waiting on God as we go through the process of mortifying our members and dying to the things of this world. The end result will be a resurrected life that will become a living sacrifice. Probably the hardest thing about a Christian life these days is waiting on God.  Remember this: what is the primary characteristic of ‘waiting’?  Have you ever waited for a bus while running down the street?  Waiting means: to remain stationary in readiness or expectation.  I would add this as well – that for us as Christians by and large it also means “SIT DOWN AND SHUT UP – and soak Him in through his appointed messengers and the Holy Spirit in you – until we are endowed with POWER!!!”. 


“For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that wait for him.” – Isaiah 64:4


“But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.” – 1^st Corinthians 2:9

If we really wait on/love Him then we will be obedient and do this.

Let’s look at a beautiful illustration of “in your patience possess ye your souls” found in Psalm 62. Here are 2 sets of 2 verses that show us a progression:

Verse 1.) Truly my soul waiteth (waits silently) upon God: from him cometh my salvation.

Verse 2.) He only is my rock and my salvation; he is my defense; I shall not be greatly moved (shaken).

Verse 5.) My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation (hope) is from him.

Verse 6.) He only is my rock and my salvation: he is my defense; I shall not be moved (shaken).

In verse 1 and 2 we hear the psalmist talking ABOUT his soul in the first person. We recognize that from God alone comes our salvation and we recognize that we must wait on Him for our deliverance. As we go through deliverance there will be moments of doubt and stumbling thus “I will not be greatly shaken”. He is saying we will waver some but not greatly…there will be times of tribulation.  I’m not talking about “persecution” type tribulation here but just trials and the testing of our faith – going through everyday life in this dark foreboding world. Now look at verses 5 and 6. Here the conversation changes from talking “about” my soul to actually talking TO my soul. This is where I am taking possession of my soul! I say – rather, I command – “My soul…continue to wait on God. Although I have taken possession of my soul I am still mindful that I must wait on Him. But now (verse 6) I will NOT BE MOVED.” We must command our souls to deaden the old man and excess lusts. This is why it is hard to fast and pray – because the old carnal man does not like doing the things that will kill him and birth a new spiritual man. When I possess my soul, I will not care about the persecution that will come from Satan’s kingdom and I will not be the least bit shaken. So while I am in the process of possessing my soul, I can be shaken but with the impartation of the divine nature of Jesus Christ comes the boldness and confidence (in HIM – not in myself) that will carry me through the persecution. It’s very interesting how verses 1 and 2 and verses 5 and 6 bookend verses 3 and 4.

Now look at what (actually “who”) is in between the waiting on God (verses 1 and 2) and the possessing of our souls (verses 5 and 6):

Verse 3.) How long will ye imagine mischief against a man? ye shall be slain all of you: as a bowing wall shall ye be, and as a tottering fence.

Verse 4.) They only consult to cast him down from his excellency: they delight in lies: they bless with their mouth, but they curse inwardly.

He is talking TO someone else in verse 3 and he’s talking ABOUT someone else in verse 4. It is the demons that have strongholds in our souls! While we are waiting on God and taking possession of our souls we are going to have to deal with these nephilim. These intruders and invaders of our souls have had us scattered our minds and actually mutated our very make up (DNA if you will). We must bind and curse these invaders and cast them out of our souls. This is what the power of the sacrificial blood of Jesus Christ does for us and for that we thank Him and praise Him and adore Him! By the blood of Jesus they shall be slain – ALL OF THEM! In reality, they are as a leaning unsupported wall and a wavering tottering fence. Their purpose is to counsel (devise) to dethrone the Most High God from His place of preeminence which should be our very souls as we are to be temples (carriers or vessels) of His Holy Spirit. These wicked ones delight in lies – they bless with their mouths but inwardly they are cursing us. Here is another aspect of waiting on God…we are bearing out the fruit of patience as we deal with other people that are carriers of these nephilim. We deal with them not only in our souls but face to face all the time…in our families, on our jobs and in our church groups. This is why discerning of spirits is important. Realize that we are all in need of deliverance and not everyone is at the same place but if we really do have a broken spirit and a contrite heart God will be faithful to complete His work. But remember that there are some that put on a good show or a good act (hence the word “hypocrite”). They talk really nice and the words that come out of their mouths sound real sweet but deep down they are cursing and despising the real sons and daughters of God. In the Old Testament the whole story about the Israelites taking possession of Canaan is a type of how we are to possess our souls. We have to fight these “giants” (nephilim) and there’s no going around them. Numbers 13:33 tells us that the ones that did not believe they could overcome (Joshua and Caleb where the only two that did believe) saw themselves as grasshoppers – and that’s how the giants saw them too. That’s not the reality though. Through their divination and mind control and keeping us embedded in fantasy and make believe (TV, news, sports, carnal religious activities  etc.), the nephilim are able to have us appear to ourselves as inadequate, unbelieving and as most Christians today commonly say (cursing themselves): “I’m just a sinner” (Psalm 62:4) – Please – we come in as filthy rags, sinners against our very Creator and Mighty God – but we can and should be more than conquerors...that will be the time of the full outpouring of the Holy Spirit.  The first thing Jesus did coming out of the wilderness being tested by Satan was a.) Come out in the POWER of the Spirit; and b.) COME AGAINST AND CAST OUT DEMONS.  The first thing He prophecies over us for when we are to go forth to the world and preach the gospel is: “these signs shall follow them that believe – In my name they shall CAST OUT DEMONS…” – Mark 16.  The first thing!!!  But this kind comes out only through much prayer and fasting (which results in Ephesians 6).

Read the remainder of Psalm 62 and you’ll see that verses 8-12 equate to this overcoming person now preaching the gospel – starting with “Trust in HIM you people…” and ending with “Also unto thee, O Lord, belongs mercy: for you render to every man according to his work.” (mercy and judgment!).

“He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he (Jesus) walked.” – 1st John 2:6 (may want to read that one agin, did he say walk as Jesus walked?)


“Now unto him (Jesus) that is able to keep you and me from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy,
To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.” – Jude 24-25 (did he say he was able to keep me from falling?)

Don't Let Soon Become a Thing of the Past

January 3rd, 2012

Recently I sent out a few emails to people that I know personally or that have been in contact with our ministry at some point in the past.  Also on my email list are some ministers that are located all around the globe that have been a blessing to us in the past.  The purpose was to let people know about a fellowship meeting we are having this coming weekend (January 6-8, 2012 - titled A New Church Order).  Someone recently replied to me personally asking if I knew about how I had CC’d (carbon copied) everyone on one of those emails and that people then started to email one another with ‘reply all’.  As it turns out everyone’s email address was exposed (my terminology).  Let me tell you something – I had actually planned on doing a BCC (blind carbon copy), but I (without thinking) clicked the CC button when I added my contact list  – didn’t notice – clicked Send…and the result of my mistake was that a communication between people was stirred up and a few Christians stepped up to the plate to offer their financial assistance to some out of state folks that want to, but can’t afford the cost of coming to ATL.


We cannot afford to think that this (or any future gatherings) are just going to be ‘another church gathering’.  Every one of us knows that there is nothing good down here in the world which could possibly be worth holding on to and to that end, every one of us believing knows that at some point – God is going to move mightily.  We really have to let go of every preconceived notion about ‘church’ as we know it – even when we are still in the midst of even doing what seems to be ‘church’ as we know it.  What’s important is that we are being prepared for something NEW.  Nobody can possibly know what something NEW is going to be like because _________(fill in the blank).  However, I can tell you with 100% certainty that this weekend is going to be nothing less than at a minimal – an outpouring of God’s spiritual blessings on His people.  We are going to be so blessed with God’s favor this weekend because we are standing up to honor Him!  Who would want to miss that?  On the other hand, what I CANNOT tell you with 100% certainty is that God WILL pour out of His Spirit – the manifest presence of the Holy Spirit upon his people – which is indeed our expectation at some point in time.  I wish I could tell you that but I really don’t know…BUT what if he does do it now and you are not partaking?  What if this happens the week after and you are not a partaker – next month, next year?  This past weekend we had a preview of this as we gathered together in prayer and sharing and afterward there has been numerous testimonies of refreshing and being energized (how many times have you been energized after only 3 or 4 hours of sleep – that’s not possible is it?:)

Again, especially to those that are local to Atlanta, but this does apply to people outside of Atlanta as well:  It is time to be more inconvenienced.  I'm not speaking with pride here but many of us locally have been inconvenienced ourselves at least one day a week (albeit for only a few hours anyway) for years now.  And that in itself is just scratching the surface of being inconvenienced – so therefore it can’t be something to be proud of.  The gospel is not convenient or comfortable to the flesh.  The flesh does not like to be inconvenienced.  It's time to step further out of our comfort zones.  I’ll end this plea with this scripture (red letter’s included), that should instill the fear of the Lord that we absolutely and desperately need to walk this out to the end:

He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad – Matthew 12:30.

The context of that verse has the Lord telling us about binding the strong man and spoiling his goods – destroying the works of Satan in our lives and then being able to deliver the captives!  This is what it is all about – and we CANNOT be afraid of it and that is exactly what our main problem is – we’ve been afraid but we think we are not afraid.  It’s time for us to face and conquer that fear!  In that verse the Greek word for ‘gathers’ is sunago (4863) – it is a compound of 2 words – 1.) sun (union, association, companionship, possession, completeness), 2.) ago – to lead, to bring, to drive, to induce).  The Spirit of the Lord is absolutely leading us into this union – and it will be and must be coordinated and led in the natural realm by males.  I came up with my own little analogy :) – soon ago: he is coming soon, but if I don’t step up to the plate now I will be passed by (past – ago get it?) – i.e. ‘get thee behind me Satan’.

Dinner for 2 and a movie or a basketball game: $100 (probably more right?)…how many times have we dropped 100 bucks without even thinking about it.  There is not much time left to count the cost for real.

At least come and join us for a few hours on Sunday but this entire weekend is going to be an important time of fellowship – not just listening to preachers!

For those that do have a regular church fellowship (which is the absolute necessary iron sharpening iron), I encourage you to gird up for war and not to be complacent with sitting within the friendly confines of your meeting place week after week.  There are gates of hell that must be attacked by an offensive Body of Christ and it going to be brutal – we cannot emphasize enough the need to come together now so that we can be prepared to individually accost the powers of darkness in these last days.  This cannot be done with intellect and mental ascension – we must have the mind of Christ formed in us.  The appointed time is coming very soon and there is no Plan B for this.

Blessings to all of God’s children!

Tom Gaughan

Judgment Begins at God’s House

December 19th, 2011

It's important for us to realize that the 'judgment' spoken of here is not a judgement that has us looking at 'the body of Christ' (or others) but it is each individual first looking at themselves. Am I serving God or am I serving Baal. I must get the beam out of my own eyes so that I can see clearly to help others get their mind's clear as well - and to that end - judge a righteous judgement (that's what Jesus says). Even when Paul was chastising the 'foolish Galatians' for being under the influence of witchcraft he still calls them 'brethren'...

The following is a letter written by Derek Prince (date unknown)
 _____________________________________________________________________________
 
Dear Friend:

As American Christians, we are confronted by a grim, undeniable fact: our nation has come
under the judgment of God. For this there are many reasons, but they can be summed up in one
simple statement:
We have committed the sin for which Esau was rejected—we have despised our birthright (Heb. 12:15–17).

God judges us according to the measure of light we have received. Jesus told the Jews of His
day that their judgment would be much more severe than that of Sodom and Gomorrah, because
they had received a much greater revelation of the truth (Matthew 11:20–24).
The same applies to America in this century. No other nation has had the same access to the
Word of God that has been granted to the American people. Through culture and tradition,
through churches and evangelists, through radio and television, and through the printed word,
America has been blessed above all other nations with the knowledge of God’s truth. Our
judgment for rejecting it will be correspondingly severe.
Many Christians do not realize that God’s judgment does not begin with the people of the
world, but with the people of God. Peter told the Christians of his day, “For the time has come
for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of
those who do not obey the gospel of God?” (1 Peter 4:17). These words apply equally to the
church in America today.

Of all the sins that could be charged against the contemporary church, it is sufficient to
focus on two: materialism and compromise.
In Luke 17:26–30 Jesus predicted that the period before His return would be like the days of
Noah and Lot. He mentioned specifically eight activities characteristic of those days: eating,
drinking, marrying, giving in marriage, buying, selling, building, planting. Yet there is nothing
specifically sinful in any of these activities. What, then, was the problem?
The problem was materialism. The people of those days had become so engrossed in these
materialistic activities that they were unaware of the impending judgment of God on their
carnal lifestyle. When judgment came, they were totally unprepared.
The same is true today of most professing Christians in America. If the final judgments of
God should suddenly usher in the return of Christ, they would be totally unprepared.

Like materialism, the sin of compromise often goes unrecognized. About two years ago,
while praying, I had a mental picture of the interior of a typical church building with rows of
pews, a platform, a pulpit, a piano and so on. But the whole building was permeated with some
kind of fog. The outlines of objects could be discerned, but nothing was sharply defined. While
I was wondering what the fog represented, God gave me one clear word: compromise.
In the contemporary church, most of the main moral and doctrinal truths, so clearly
enunciated in the New Testament, have become blurred and ineffective. In 1 Corinthians 6:9–
10 Paul wrote: “Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor
effeminate men, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.” Yet the church today is full of people who commit
these sins, but remain totally unconcerned. In fact, they often boast of such sins.
A church member lay in a hospital, dying of AIDS, which he had contracted through
homosexuality. Then he received Christ and was given a New Testament. After reading some
way in the New Testament, he sent an urgent message to the person who had led him to Christ:
“Come and pray for me. I need deliverance. I never knew there was anything wrong with my lifestyle.”

About seven years ago, at the Christmas season, our staff had committed Ruth and me to
appear on two television presentations of PTL. Since we do not watch television, we had no
idea what to expect. I was supposed to be the “main speaker.” Out of the first hour, I was given
ten minutes, and out of the second hour, twenty minutes. Most of the time was given to appealing
for money and selling Tammy dolls. As far as I can recall, Ruth and I were the only people who even mentioned Jesus.
Shortly afterwards there was a public exposure of the scandals that have now become
notorious. But for me personally the most shocking thing was not any sexual or financial misdoing,
grievous as that was. What shocked me then, and still shocks me today, is the realization that
millions of Americans were being continually confronted with a totally false picture of
Christianity—one that had no room for the cross, with its demands for humility, for holiness
and for sacrificial living. How terrible to realize that people who have been seduced by such a
presentation may never hear the real truth of the gospel!

The PTL scandal is now history, but it has left us with a question we need to answer: was it
simply an isolated phenomenon, or was it a symptom of a disease that affects the Body of Christ
throughout America?
Yet within the church there is still a remnant of sincere, devoted followers of Jesus. If we are
among that number, how does God require us to respond to the present crises?
One clear answer is given in 2 Chronicles 7:14: “If My people who are called by My name
will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I
will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” The phrase, “My people
who are called by My name,” applies to all Christians who take the name of Christ upon
themselves.


For at least 30 years I have been teaching on this Scripture, but recently I was confronted by
a shocking realization! God’s people in our day have never fulfilled the first condition. We have
never truly humbled ourselves. Our pride—both religious and racial—remains as a barrier that
holds back the answer to our prayers for ourselves and for our nation.
Through the severe dealings of God in my own life, I have learned the most effective way for
us to humble ourselves. Very simply, it is by confessing our sins. If we regularly and sincerely
confess our sins to God, it is impossible to approach Him with an attitude of pride.
Furthermore, I have seen that God has only committed Himself to forgive the sins we confess.
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Unconfessed sins are unforgiven sins. Thus the barrier of pride
builds up a second barrier of unforgiven sin.

The Bible exhorts us to confess our sins not merely to God, but also to one another. “Confess
your sins to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed” (James 5:16).
Confessing our sins to God deals with vertical pride; confessing to one another deals with
horizontal pride. We can hardly maintain an attitude of pride towards someone to whom we
have just confessed our personal sins.
This applies especially to the relationship between husbands and wives. Those who regularly
confess their sins to one another are not kept apart by a barrier of pride.
Furthermore, confession of sin is an essential prerequisite to effective intercession. Daniel
was one of the most righteous characters in the Bible, but when he set out to intercede for his
people Israel, he began by acknowledging his own share in their sin (Daniel 9:3–13).
I believe that God is waiting for us as American Christians to humble ourselves before Him
and one another by confessing our sins. Only after we have done that, can we move on to claim
the healing of our land.

But I must add a word of warning. Do not begin to indulge in morbid introspection! The
Holy Spirit is “the finger of God” (Matthew 12:28; Luke 11:20). Ask God to place His finger on the
sins you need to confess. He will do it with unerring accuracy, probably bringing to light sins
which you never recognized!
I have confined this analysis to the situation in the United States. Much of what I have said,
however, applies to other nations who are heirs to the Judeo-Christian inheritance and to the
church worldwide. May God help each of us to accept our personal responsibility!

Yours in the Master’s service,

Derek Prince

Three Prayers to Live By

Ocotober 9, 2011

We (I) Repent!


Daniel 9: 4-17

I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed:

 “O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with all who love him and obey his commands, we have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws. We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our fathers, and to all the people of the land.

 “Lord, you are righteous, but this day we are covered with shame—the men of Judah and people of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far, in all the countries where you have scattered us because of our unfaithfulness to you. O LORD, we and our kings, our princes and our fathers are covered with shame because we have sinned against you. The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him; we have not obeyed the LORD our God or kept the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets. All Israel has transgressed your law and turned away, refusing to obey you.

   “Therefore the curses and sworn judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against you. You have fulfilled the words spoken against us and against our rulers by bringing upon us great disaster. Under the whole heaven nothing has ever been done like what has been done to Jerusalem. Just as it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come upon us, yet we have not sought the favor of the LORD our God by turning from our sins and giving attention to your truth. The LORD did not hesitate to bring the disaster upon us, for the LORD our God is righteous in everything he does; yet we have not obeyed him.

 “Now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of Egypt with a mighty hand and who made for yourself a name that endures to this day, we have sinned, we have done wrong. O Lord, in keeping with all your righteous acts, turn away your anger and your wrath from Jerusalem, your city, your holy hill. Our sins and the iniquities of our fathers have made Jerusalem and your people an object of scorn to all those around us.

 “Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, O Lord, look with favor on your desolate sanctuary. Give ear, O God, and hear; open your eyes and see the desolation of the city that bears your Name. We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy.  O Lord, listen! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, hear and act! For your sake, O my God, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your Name.”

Thank You Father for Bringing Forth Your Son to Save Us!

1st Samuel 2: 1-10

Then Hannah prayed and said:

   “My heart rejoices in the LORD;  in the LORD my horn is lifted high. My mouth boasts over my enemies,  for I delight in your deliverance.

  “There is no one holy like the LORD;  there is no one besides you;  there is no Rock like our God.

  “Do not keep talking so proudly or let your mouth speak such arrogance, for the LORD is a God who knows, and by him deeds are weighed.

  “The bows of the warriors are broken, but those who stumbled are armed with strength. Those who were full hire themselves out for food, but those who were hungry hunger no more. She who was barren has borne seven children, but she who has had many sons pines away.

  “The LORD brings death and makes alive; he brings down to the grave and raises up. The LORD sends poverty and wealth; he humbles and he exalts. He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap; he seats them with princes and has them inherit a throne of honor.

   “For the foundations of the earth are the LORD’s; upon them he has set the world.  He will guard the feet of his saints, but the wicked will be silenced in darkness.

   “It is not by strength that one prevails; those who oppose the LORD will be shattered. He will thunder against them from heaven; the LORD will judge the ends of the earth.

   “He will give strength to his king and exalt the horn of his anointed.”

Thank You Jesus for Delivering Us From Our Enemies and Giving Us Victory!

2nd Samuel

 David sang to the LORD the words of this song when the LORD delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul.

He said:

“The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,
   my shield and the horn of my salvation.He is my stronghold, my refuge and my savior—
   from violent men you save me. I call to the LORD, who is worthy of praise, and I am saved from my enemies.

“The waves of death swirled about me; the torrents of destruction overwhelmed me.
 The cords of the grave coiled around me; the snares of death confronted me. In my distress I called to the LORD;  I called out to my God. From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came to his ears.

“The earth trembled and quaked, the foundations of the heavens shook; they trembled because he was angry. Smoke rose from his nostrils; consuming fire came from his mouth, burning coals blazed out of it.
 He parted the heavens and came down; dark clouds were under his feet. He mounted the cherubim and flew; he soared on the wings of the wind. He made darkness his canopy around him—the dark rain clouds of the sky. Out of the brightness of his presence bolts of lightning blazed forth. The LORD thundered from heaven; the voice of the Most High resounded. He shot arrows and scattered the enemies, bolts of lightning and routed them. The valleys of the sea were exposed and the foundations of the earth laid bare
at the rebuke of the LORD, at the blast of breath from his nostrils.

“He reached down from on high and took hold of me; he drew me out of deep waters. He rescued me from my powerful enemy,  from my foes, who were too strong for me. They confronted me in the day of my disaster, but the LORD was my support. He brought me out into a spacious place; he rescued me because he delighted in me.

“The LORD has dealt with me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands he has rewarded me. For I have kept the ways of the LORD; I have not done evil by turning from my God.
 All his laws are before me; I have not turned away from his decrees.
 I have been blameless before him and have kept myself from sin. The LORD has rewarded me according to my righteousness, according to my cleanness in his sight.

“To the faithful you show yourself faithful, to the blameless you show yourself blameless, to the pure you show yourself pure, but to the crooked you show yourself shrewd. You save the humble, but your eyes are on the haughty to bring them low. You are my lamp, O LORD; the LORD turns my darkness into light.
 With your help I can advance against a troop; with my God I can scale a wall.

“As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the LORD is flawless. He is a shield for all who take refuge in him. For who is God besides the LORD? And who is the Rock except our God? It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect. He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; he enables me to stand on the heights. He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze. You give me your shield of victory; you stoop down to make me great. You broaden the path beneath me, so that my ankles do not turn.

“I pursued my enemies and crushed them; I did not turn back till they were destroyed. I crushed them completely, and they could not rise; they fell beneath my feet. You armed me with strength for battle; you made my adversaries bow at my feet. You made my enemies turn their backs in flight, and I destroyed my foes. They cried for help, but there was no one to save them—to the LORD, but he did not answer. I beat them as fine as the dust of the earth; I pounded and trampled them like mud in the streets.

“You have delivered me from the attacks of my people; you have preserved me as the head of nations. People I did not know are subject to me, and foreigners come cringing to me; as soon as they hear me, they obey me. They all lose heart; they come trembling from their strongholds.

“The LORD lives! Praise be to my Rock!  Exalted be God, the Rock, my Savior! He is the God who avenges me, who puts the nations under me, who sets me free from my enemies.You exalted me above my foes; from violent men you rescued me. Therefore I will praise you, O LORD, among the nations; I will sing praises to your name. He gives his king great victories; he shows unfailing kindness to his anointed, to David and his descendants forever.”

I Will Shake All Things

Monday, September 19th, 2011

The following message preached by Derek Prince some years ago is extremely relevant and important for today and contains prophetic words that have truly come to pass in recent months.  At this writing tomorrow is September 20th, 2011 which is the first official day of the lifting of the ban on homosexuals in the US military services.  This is truly the beginning of the end.  Only a rock solid relationship with our heavenly Father through Jesus Christ will keep us from being shaken when God does shake the heavens and the earth at the end of this age.

Psalm 94:12-13

“Blessed is the man whom thou chastenest, O LORD, and teachest him out of thy law;

That thou mayest give him rest from the days of adversity, until the pit be digged for the wicked.”

Hebrews 12:25-29

“See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven:

Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven.

And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.

Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:           

For our God is a consuming fire.”

Haggai 2:6-7

“For thus saith the LORD of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land;

And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the LORD of hosts.”

Do you believe in the judgment of God?

John 16:8-11

And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:

Of sin, because they believe not on me;

Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more;

Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.

Sin: All unrighteousness is sin

Q: What is crooked? 

A: Anything that departs from that which is straight.

None of us can escape God’s judgement.

Two different judgements

1. Judgement of condemnation  (sinners)
2. Judgement of reward (saints)

The same person who is the savior is also the judge and His name is Jesus.  The apostles when preaching to the Gentiles always presented Jesus as both savior and judge:

Acts 10:42-43

“And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead.

To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.”

In fact God is first mentioned as judge – then savior.

Acts 17:30-31

“And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:

Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.”

Jesus is equally efficient, thorough and faithful as a judge and a as savior.  As a savior he omits nothing.  As a judge he omits nothing.

We can see how the modern day ‘church’ has not carried forth with the true doctrine of our Lord and apostle(s) when we look at the golden calves (high places) that were put in Bethel and Dan by Jeroboam (1^st Kings 12 and 2^nd Kings 10:29).  Today’s Christianity has been blinded by pride and idolatry in that they have done a two-fold disservice by disallowing BOTH the power of God as Savior, which is represented by ‘Beth-el’ – which means House of God (see 2^nd Samuel 22:3 and Psalms 62:7) and God as Judge, represented by Dan – which means ‘Judge’. 

2 Samuel 22:3

The God of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour; thou savest me from violence.

Psalms 62:7

In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God

The Parable of the Pounds

Luke 19:11-27

“And as they heard these things, he added and spake a parable, because he was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately appear.

He said therefore, A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return.

And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come.

But his citizens hated him, and sent a message after him, saying, We will not have this man to reign over us.

And it came to pass, that when he was returned, having received the kingdom, then he commanded these servants to be called unto him, to whom he had given the money, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading.

Then came the first, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained ten pounds.

And he said unto him, Well, thou good servant: because thou hast been faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten cities.

And the second came, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained five pounds.

And he said likewise to him, Be thou also over five cities.

And another came, saying, Lord, behold, here is thy pound, which I have kept laid up in a napkin:

For I feared thee, because thou art an austere man: thou takest up that thou layedst not down, and reapest that thou didst not sow.

And he saith unto him, Out of thine own mouth will I judge thee, thou wicked servant. Thou knewest that I was an austere man, taking up that I laid not down, and reaping that I did not sow:

Wherefore then gavest not thou my money into the bank, that at my coming I might have required mine own with usury?

And he said unto them that stood by, Take from him the pound, and give it to him that hath ten pounds.

(And they said unto him, Lord, he hath ten pounds.)

For I say unto you, That unto every one which hath shall be given; and from him that hath not, even that he hath shall be taken away from him.

But those mine enemies, which would not that I should reign over them, bring hither, and slay them before me.”

God expects a return on his investment.  To be a lazy Christian is to be a wicked servant.

Judgment at the End of the Age

Nothing that can be shaken will not be unshaken.

Luke 6:47-49

“Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like:

He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock.

But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great.”

Both houses were subjected to the storm.  Just because we are ‘believers’ does not mean that things are always going to be rosy – in fact it will be the opposite. 

Q: What is the evidence of the baptism of the Holy Spirit?

A: Trouble

Building on the rock is simple – hearing and doing of the teaching of Jesus Christ!

The problem is not to tell people something that they do not know – but to remind them of what they do know but don’t want to remember.  Many of us can testify to this by having loved ones that were on the right way but have been swerved off course by doctrines of demons.

What are some of the things that CAN be shaken?

Individual lives will be shaken

·         Sickness/disease, poverty, broken marriages

o   Not that these things can’t happen to true believers but we will be given the strength to endure

Every house divided against itself will be shaken (Matthew 12:25)

·         No unity, love and peace (in the faith)

·         Un-parented children

o   Not really such a thing as a juvenile delinquent but more so delinquent parents

o   A police force can maintain order when the majority of the population is under proper order (not rebellious).  But when the majority is under a spirit of rebellion it will not be controlled.

o   At 24:50 in this video a prophetic statement is made pointing to the recent riots in London that were primary orchestrated by young people – even pre-teens were looting and causing destruction.  The police had their hands tied due to the numbers of rioters in the streets and were for the most part neutralized.

o   The root of this problem is due to parents lack of proper training and discipline

Any institution not found on the teaching of Jesus will be shaken

·         Banks

o   At the time of this video (I’m guessing late 80’s early 90’s) the US had recently been through the Savings and Loan scandal which caused an upheaval (or downheaval) in the US economy.  This shifting caused a personal debt of $500 per citizen to be incurred.  Allegedly, the current day 2011 incurred per person debt is approximated $47,000

·          Businesses

·         Governments

o   Back then, the old Soviet Union and East Germany

o   Today – name a country

·         Religions

o   Many, many Christian churches will be shaken

Material structures (buildings) will be shaken

Question to Remember: What is the one thing that God HATES the most?

Isaiah 2:12-19

“For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low:

And upon all the cedars of Lebanon, that are high and lifted up, and upon all the oaks of Bashan,

And upon all the high mountains, and upon all the hills that are lifted up,

And upon every high tower, and upon every fenced wall,

And upon all the ships of Tarshish, and upon all pleasant pictures.

And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low: and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day.

And the idols he shall utterly abolish.”

Isaiah 30:25

“And there shall be upon every high mountain, and upon every high hill, rivers and streams of waters in the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall.”

The WHOLE Earth will be shaken

Revelation 6:12-14

“And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood;

And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind.

And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.”

The Heavenly bodies will be shaken

Matthew 24:29

“Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:”

Nobody outside of Christ will not be affected

Isaiah 24:1-6

“Behold, the LORD maketh the earth empty, and maketh it waste, and turneth it upside down, and scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof.

And it shall be, as with the people, so with the priest; as with the servant, so with his master; as with the maid, so with her mistress; as with the buyer, so with the seller; as with the lender, so with the borrower; as with the taker of usury, so with the giver of usury to him.

The land shall be utterly emptied, and utterly spoiled: for the LORD hath spoken this word.

The earth mourneth and fadeth away, the world languisheth and fadeth away, the haughty people of the earth do languish.

The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof; because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant.

Therefore hath the curse devoured the earth, and they that dwell therein are desolate: therefore the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men left.”

Three reasons why this happens (verse 5) – Charges Against Humanity:

1.       Transgressed the law

a.       Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man – Genesis 9:6.

b.      An eternal edict set by God

2.       Changed the ordinance

a.       Changing the pattern of living that God has instituted for us – The Family

                                                               i.      Women’s liberation movement

                                                             ii.      Homosexual marriages

3.       Broken the everlasting covenant

a.       The covenant God has made with men and women through Jesus Christ

Isaiah 24:17-23

“Fear, and the pit, and the snare, are upon thee, O inhabitant of the earth.

And it shall come to pass, that he who fleeth from the noise of the fear shall fall into the pit; and he that cometh up out of the midst of the pit shall be taken in the snare: for the windows from on high are open, and the foundations of the earth do shake.

The earth is utterly broken down, the earth is clean dissolved, the earth is moved exceedingly.

The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall be removed like a cottage; and the transgression thereof shall be heavy upon it; and it shall fall, and not rise again.

And it shall come to pass in that day, that the LORD shall punish the host of the high ones that are on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth.

And they shall be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and shall be shut up in the prison, and after many days shall they be visited.

Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed, when the LORD of hosts shall reign in mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, and before his ancients gloriously.”

This is not a negative message being preached!  This is what is going to happen!

Revelation 6:14-17

“And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.

And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;

And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:

For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?”

Answer to Remember: PRIDE (See Question to Remember above).

Q: What is the root cause of His wrath?

A: The degeneration of human character, which is rooted in pride/idolatry.

Definition of carnality: anytime we being to think and act and live as if this world is our home, and we have something permanent here (Hebrews 13:14).

Thank you Lord for being patient with us.

2^nd Timothy 3:1-5

“This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.

For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,

Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,

Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;

Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.”

Corruption is irreversible.  The only solution is a new creation – a new birth.

Deliverance is for the desperate!

Secret undermining force to this corruption is the occult (witchcraft/sorcery) which emanates from false religion

2^nd Timothy 3:8

“Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith.”

2^nd Timothy 3:13

“But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.”

Seducers = Enchanters

2^nd Timothy 3:16-17

“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:

That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.”

The answer to this corruption and satanic working is: PREACH THE WORD!!!

2^nd Timothy 4:1-2

“I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom;

Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.”

Matthew 24:14

“And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.”

Methuselah

June 5th, 2011

God always sends PLENTY of warning to all people before judgment comes. We have it for ourselves in the form of the Old Testament prophets and in the sayings of Jesus and his disciples in the New Testament. A beautiful type of this, His mercy and grace, is shown in Methuselah prior to the days of Noah and the flood. It is widely known that Methuselah is recorded in the Bible as the oldest living person ever – living to the ripe old age of 969. What’s in a name you ask?

Methuselah (Mthuwshelach) comes from two Hebrew words:

The first word:

math (Strong’s 4962), which basically means “an adult (as of full length);”. The word is from mathay (Strong’s 4970) meaning: to extend, extent (of time), when

The second word:

shelach (Strong’s 7973) meaning “a missile of attack, i.e. spear; also (figuratively) a shoot of growth; i.e. branch:--dart, plant, put off, sword, weapon.” The root of the word is shalach (Strong’s 7971) which means: to send away, for, or out (in a great variety of applications):-- any wise, appoint, bring (on the way), cast (away, out), conduct, earnestly, forsake, give (up), grow long, lay, leave, let depart (down, go, loose), push away, put (away, forth, in, out), reach forth, send (away, forth, out), set, shoot (forth, out), sow, spread, stretch forth (out).

So this guy’s name essentially says: “When I am dead, God’s judgment will come!”

We can prove from the Bible, by the time lines of Adam’s lineage, that this is true.

Enoch (the seventh from Adam) is 65 years old when his son Methuselah is born (Genesis 5:21). Methuselah is 187 years old when his son Lamech is born (Genesis 5:25). Methuselah dies when he is 969 years old (Genesis 5:27). Lamech is 182 years old (Methuselah is now 369) when his son Noah is born (Genesis 5:28). Then the Bible says that Noah was 500 years old when he had his sons Shem, Ham and Japheth (Genesis 5:32). This puts Methuselah at 869 years old. At this point, Genesis 5, the chapter on Adam’s pre-flood lineage ends and we begin the ill-fated Genesis chapter 6. At the beginning of chapter 6 we learn about how the host of heaven (God’s angelic created beings), crossed the boundaries of created life types (angelic, human and animal) and made physical, sexual contact with humans and animals. This was no doubt occurring throughout the verses of chapter 5 but God’s grace was upon the part of the lineage from Enoch down through Noah (four generations). Obviously, this also pertained to the animal domain as well because later we see that Noah was told to bring both “clean” and “unclean” animals into the ark (Genesis 7:2). In Genesis 6:10, in the midst of the description of the reprobation of mankind and God’s instructions to Noah, he repeats the fact that Noah begat his three sons (Genesis 6:10). Then we read in Genesis 7:6: “And Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters was upon the earth.” This puts Methuselah at 969 years old and DEAD – because we know that 1.) He dies and 2.) He was not on the ark. This also tells us that the ark was being prepared for roughly 100 years.

So we can picture this Methuselah walking around the earth all those long years, bearing a name that cries out: “When I am dead, God’s judgment will come!”. Also, factor in Noah preaching this for nearly 100 years, preaching which contained the testimony of prophecy that was handed down from Enoch. Still, only eight people made it on that ark. This has given me pause to be re-convicted about what it means to ‘die daily in Christ’ (1^st Corinthians 15:31). I have not been dying daily enough lately. I pray for us all to take on the name Methuselah.