"WARNING: PERILOUS TIMES AHEAD!!"

“WARNING:  PERILOUS TIMES AHEAD!!”

 

 

Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure position.  But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  To Him be glory both now and forever! Amen.        2 Peter 3:17-18

 

This is the end of the Apostle Peter’s letter to Christians, in churches, in various areas of his ministry.  And it is very INFORMATIVE, ENLIGHTENING, THOUGHT-PROVOKING and for some of us very INSPIRING.  

 

In this letter, the Apostle Peter is issuing a call to Christians for SPIRITUAL GROWTH, in order for them to be able to fight apostasy as they anxiously await the return of the Lord Jesus Christ.  This was an impassioned plea for the Christians to GROW in their FAITH and to become MATURE in their Christian life.  He described the characteristics of MATURE Christian believers, and encouraged them to GROW in the KNOWLEDGE and GRACE of their FAITH.

 

The verses preceding our verses, today, describes some of what lies ahead in the last days.  Peter, tells us that there are some DANGEROUS or PERILOUS times ahead, there will be scoffers who will ridicule our FAITH, they are the ones who follow their own evil desires, but they forget the DESTRUCTION that lies ahead for them and those who follow their example.  In Noah’s day the world was destroyed by WATER.  In the LAST DAYS, the world will be destroyed by FIRE, it is now being kept for the Day of Judgment and destruction of the UNGODLY.

 

So the Apostle Peter WARNS the TRUE BELIEVERS that they should be on GUARD, and protect their FAITH. They should CONTINUALLY GROW and MATURE in their SPIRITUAL life.  READING and STUDYING the Word of the Living God.  GROWING in the KNOWLEDGE and GRACE of the Lord Jesus Christ, so that they will NOT be INFLUENCED by the error of the lawless, and risk falling from their SECURE position.  This does NOT mean that they could lose their SALVATION, but they would definitely lose their rewards and will be chastised for their disobedience.  Their SPIRTUAL GROWTH would truly suffer from such an act.  It is a lot like raising a child, when a child is BORN into a family, the parents realize that the child must grow and mature, when the child disobeys the parent, that parent doesn’t make the child leave the family, but they discipline the child and TEACH them to do the RIGHT THING.  So it is with our LOVING Heavenly Father and His Children.  He expects us to GROW in our FAITH and to develop a STRONG, INTIMATE relationship with Him, so we are not led astray by every wind of doctrine, but we have KNOWLEDGE of who we are and to whom we belong, and will FOLLOW our Lord and live in His ways. 

 

Have you come to God for the SALVATION of your soul?  Or are you walking in darkness, living like those who are following their own evil desires, those who are headed for DESTRUCTION.  Those who will spend an eternity in Hell, the place of ETERNAL torment, torture, pain, agony, heartache, and despair with NO WAY of escape.  God is giving you the opportunity NOW, to change your direction, by coming to Him with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART, CONFESSING, your sins to Him and asking Him for His FORGIVENESS, BELIEVING, with ALL your HEART, that Jesus died for YOU, and is ALIVE in Heaven, making intercession for you, before God, then ACCEPT His gift of SALVATION, and GROW in the KNOWLEDGE and GRACE of the Lord Jesus Christ.  Do it NOW, while you still can.  He’s waiting and coming SOON!!!

 

  

 

 

"The God-breathed Scriptures"

“The God-breathed Scriptures”

 

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.    2Timothy 3:16-17

 

These words that were penned by the Apostle Paul was to help his young disciple, Timothy in his ministry.  Paul was teaching Timothy about the importance of the God-breathed Word, or the Holy Scriptures, and the impact of OBEYING the teachings of the God-breathed Scriptures.

 

Paul says that ALL Scripture is given by God, and is USEFUL for TEACHING, instructing believers in God’s truths. Imparting knowledge to the believers about the God-given Scriptures.  Giving them instructions on the TRUE meaning of God’s Holy Word.

 

He also says that ALL God-breathed Scripture is USEFUL for REBUKING, letting those who are practicing sin, know what is WRONG in their lives. Showing it to them in the Word, with a LOVING, COMPASSIONATE HEART.

 

The God-breathed Scripture is also USEFUL for CORRECTING faults, by SHOWING the one erring, the ramifications of their thoughts, words, and actions, not only on themselves, but on others as well.  They provide guidance for CORRECTION in one’s life, and helps them make the changes needed to live as God wants them to live.

 

ALL the God-breathed Scripture is also USEFUL for TRAINING in RIGHTEOUSNESS.  It gives the NEW believer the TRAINING that is NEEDED to live a HOLY and RIGHTEOUS life.  It instructs them in the way they should go.  It equips them for their life journey and for their ETERNAL DESTINATION into the Kingdom of Heaven.

 

And ALL the God-breathed Scripture is also USEFUL to EQUIP the servant of God THOROUGHLY for EVERY good work.  For the one who provides SPIRITUAL LEADERSHIP to others, the God-breathed Scripture makes them CAPABLE, and PROFICIENT in meeting all the demands of their ministry.  Only through the READING and STUDYING of the Scriptures can this be accomplished.

 

The God-breathed Scripture is NOT ONLY USEFUL for all of the above, but it can also LEAD a POOR, LOST and DYING soul to a LOVING Father, who has provided a way for that POOR, LOST, and DYING soul to come to Him for their SALVATION.  The God-breathed Scripture, indicates that you must come to Him with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART, CONFESSING your sins to Him, asking Him for His FORGIVENESS, BELIEVING with ALL your HEART that Jesus died for YOU, and is ALIVE in Heaven, making intercession for you, before God, then ACCEPT His gift of SALVATION, and FOLLOW the God-breathed Scripture on your life journey to the Kingdom of Heaven, your NEW eternal home, and escape ALL the HORRORS of an eternity in Hell.  Do it NOW, while you still can.  He’s waiting and coming SOON!!!

 

 

"Winning the Approval of Mankind or of God Almighty?"

“Winning the Approval of Mankind or of God Almighty?”

 

 

Do you think I am trying to make people accept me?  No, God is the One I am trying to please.  Am I trying to please people?   If I still wanted to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.     Galatians 1:10

 

Many people go through life trying to PLEASE everybody.  One thing I have learned right from the start is that you CANNOT PLEASE everybody that may cross your path and enter into a segment of your life.  If you try to PLEASE EVERYONE you will soon find out that it is TRULY IMPOSSIBLE.  It will only cause you great distress.

 

The Apostle Paul, in his letter to the believers in Galatia, is telling them that IF they think he is trying to get people to ACCEPT him they are sadly MISTAKEN.   To Paul the ONLY ONE whom he was trying to PLEASE and ACCEPT him was the ALMIGHTY GOD.  He wasn’t concerned about winning the approval of mankind as much as, winning the approval of God, the ONLY ONE who REALLY MATTERS.  The ONLY ONE who we will give an account to at the end of time.  The ONE who will determine our destiny throughout eternity. 

 

The Apostle Paul, says that if he still wanted to PLEASE people, he would NOT be a servant of Christ.  There is NO WAY that you can PLEASE EVERYBODY and SERVE CHRIST.  He is RIGHTEOUS and HOLY, mankind is NOT, unless they have come to Him with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART, and have CONFESSED their sins to Him, SEEKING His FORGIVENESS, and BELIEVING with ALL their HEART that Jesus died for them, and is ALIVE in Heaven, making intercession for them, before God, then they ACCEPT His gift of SALVATION, and become a GOD PLEASER, and DON’T fret about being a PEOPLE PLEASER.  Do it NOW, while you still can.  He’s waiting and coming SOON!!!

"Do You LOVE Me?"

“Do You LOVE Me?”

 

 

When they finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John do you love Me more than these?”  He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”  Jesus said, “Feed My lambs.”

Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John do you love Me?”  He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”  Jesus said, “Take care of My sheep.”

A third time He said, “Simon son of John do you love Me?”  Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you Love Me?”  Peter said, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love You!”  He said to him, “Feed My sheep.”      John 21:15-17

 

This incident happened after Jesus’ resurrection, early one morning Jesus stood on the shore, of Galilee, but Peter and the other disciples didn’t recognize Him.  Until He told them to cast their net on the right side of the boat, and so they did, and they caught so many fish they could not pull the net back into the boat.  Then the Apostle John said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” 

 

When they got to shore, Jesus had cooked breakfast for them and when they had finished eating, He looked at Simon Peter and said, “Simon son of John do you love me more than these?”  Basically, what Jesus was saying to Simon Peter was:  Do YOU love me more than these other followers do?  At one point in time, Peter had avowed that he would NEVER fall away from the Lord, no matter what the other disciples did.   

 

His denial of the Lord Jesus must have been weighing heavily on Peter’s mind, to think that he had denied Him not once, but three times.  And NOW Jesus asked Peter: “Do you love me?” three times, and added to it, “Feed my sheep.” 

No matter the strength of a person or the stability of their position in this life, they still can fall way from the Lord, but because of His GREAT MERCY and FORGIVING GRACE, they can be brought back into God’s good graces. 

 

Jesus didn’t ask Peter that question three times because He didn’t know if Peter really LOVED Him, but I believe He wanted Peter to KNOW his TRUE feelings for Jesus.  I think Peter had REMORSE for his denial of the Lord, and may have even been to the point of questioning his TRUE FEELINGS for the Lord.  And as Peter said, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you!”  I believe Jesus definitely knew Peter’s TRUE FEELINGS, and I believe that He wanted Peter to be assured of his TRUE FEELINGS, in order to answer His call to Peter to “Feed My Sheep!”  Peter’s call was to help spread the GOSPEL to a lost and dying world.  It was not to tend to a flock of sheep, but to bring SALVATION to a LOST and DYING PEOPLE. 

Is Jesus asking YOU the same question?  “Do YOU love Me?”  If your answer is “YES!” then open your HEART to Him, and let Him use YOU to further His Kingdom by bringing the SALVATION GOSPEL to a LOST and DYING world.

 

If you have NOT given your HEART and LIFE to Him, then you are a part of the LOST and DYING world, which is headed for an eternity in Hell.  However, Jesus is standing before you with open arms and saying to you:  “I Love you this MUCH!  Do you LOVE Me?”  He is offering you His gift of ETERNAL LIFE, all you have to do, is come to Him with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART, CONFESSING your sins to Him, and asking Him for His FORGIVENESS, BELIEVING with ALL your HEART, that Jesus died for YOU, and is ALIVE in Heaven, making intercession for you before God, then ACCEPT His gift of SALVATION, and help “FEED HIS SHEEP!”  Do it NOW, while you still can.  He’s waiting and coming SOON!!!

 

"Do YOU Know the Way?"

“Do YOU Know the Way?”

 

 

“And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with Me that you also may be where I am.  You know the way to the place where I am going.”

Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” 

Jesus answered, “I am the Way and the Truth and the Life.  No one comes to the Father except through me.”

John 14: 3-6

 

In verse three, Jesus is telling His disciples that He is going away, but He will return and will take them back with Him so that they may be where He is.  The preparation, which He mentioned, is NOT a building program in Heaven.  NOTICE:  In verse two, He states:  “My Father’s house HAS many rooms.”  NOT, WILL HAVE, but HAS.  Jesus was referring to His death and resurrection as the PREPARATION, because of the FACT that He is the WAY.  NO ONE comes to the Father, but by Him.  You can’t go to Heaven, unless you come THROUGH His BLOOD to the foot of the CROSS, CONFESSING your sins to Him, and ACCEPTING the fact that He was RESURRECTED and is ALIVE in Heaven. 

 

Notice also, that He says:  “You KNOW the way to the place where I am going.”  Jesus had taught this to His disciples many times, but until His death and resurrection, they were perplexed about what had to take place, for the SALVATION of mankind.  

 

Thomas, one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” Still perplexed about what Jesus way saying to them.  Then He replied, “I am the WAY and the TRUTH, and the LIFE.  NO ONE comes to the Father except through me.” 

 

I believe, at this point and time that statement may have added to their perplexity.  But when they had met with the Master, after His RESURRECTION, I think many of them began to grasp what He had been telling them all along, and at the coming of the Holy Spirit, upon them they began to see and KNOW the WAY.

 

Do you KNOW the way?  Or are you groping in darkness, LOST and SEARCHING for the Way.  You can KNOW the Way, and ESCAPE all the HORRORS of Hell, by coming to God, with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART, CONFESSING your sins to Him and asking Him for His FORGIVENESS, BELIEVING, with ALL your HEART, that Jesus died for YOU, and is ALIVE in Heaven, making intercession for you before God, then ACCEPT His gift of SALVATION, and KNOW the Way, the TRUTH and the LIFE.  Do it NOW, while you still can.  He’s waiting and COMING SOON!!!

 

 

"Don't Hide Your Lamp!"

“Don’t Hide Your Lamp!”

 

“No one lights a lamp and hides it in a clay jar or puts it under a bed.  Instead, they put it on a stand, so that those who come in can see the light.         Luke 8:16

 

Every TRUE BELIEVER is a LAMP that provides LIGHT in a DARK, EVIL world, a world of SIN and DEPRAVATION, a world that is cloaked in DARKNESS.  Those who are of the worldly nature, are blinded by the DARKNESS, and when they start SEEKING the LIGHT, they need to be able to see the LIGHT of a lamp that is NOT hidden in a clay jar or shoved under a bed. One that is put on a stand so ALL who come SEEKING may see the LIGHT, and come into the realm of its illumination.  And they should be able to find the TRUE LIGHT of the world, the Lord Jesus Christ.

 

Can you imagine, if EVERY TRUE BELIEVER would allow their LAMP-LIGHT to shine bright, how it would illumine the SINFUL, DARKNESS of this LOST and DYING world.  How it would SHINE so those who are living in the DARKNESS, might come into the LIGHT and be SAVED from an ETERNITY in a place of perpetual torment, torture, agony, pain, heartache and despair, the place that is known as Hell? 

 

We who are TRUE BELIEVERS MUST let our LAMP-LIGHT shine BRIGHT, we MUST NOT try to HIDE its illumination, but we MUST let it be a BEACON of SALVATION for this LOST and DYING world.  Have you placed your LAMP on a stand in order for its illumination to reach those who are groping in DARKNESS, SEEKING the Light of the World, who can take away their blindness and bring them the GLORIOUS, ETERNAL LIGHT of SALVATION?  Then they too, can be a LAMP that is placed on a stand to help dispel the DARKNESS of this DARK, SINFUL, world. 

 

If you have NOT given your HEART and LIFE to God, then you are living in the DARKNESS, and heading to that place called Hell.  However, God is NOW giving you the opportunity to come out of the DARKNESS, and into the realm of LIGHT, with the HOPE of an ETERNITY in Heaven.  You do that by coming to Him with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART, CONFESSING your sins to Him, and asking Him for His FORGIVENESS, BELIEVING, with ALL your HEART, that Jesus died for YOU, and is ALIVE in Heaven, making intercession for you, before God, then ACCEPT His gift of SALVATION, and become a LAMP that is put on a stand so its LIGHT might reach a LOST and DYING world.  SHINE FOR JESUS!  Do it NOW, while you still can.  He’s waiting and coming SOON!!!

 

"Hope"

“Hope”

 

 

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.      Romans 15:13

 

Hope, a feeling that what is wanted will happen, or the thing that one has a hope for.  These are some definitions of the word ‘HOPE’ from Webster’s Dictionary. 

 

In the Holman Bible Dictionary it says that ‘hope’ is:  Trustful expectation, particularly with reference to the fulfillment of God’s promises.  Biblical hope is the anticipation of a favorable outcome under God’s guidance.  More specifically, hope is the confidence that what God has done for us in the past guarantees our participation in what God will do in the future.  This is a contrast to the world’s definition found in Webster’s Dictionary.

 

1Timothy 4:10, says:  “This is why we work and struggle:  We hope in the Living God who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe.”  In other words: We have a TRUSTFUL expectation in the Living God who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who BELIEVE. 

 

In 1Peter 1:21, the Apostle Peter reminds his readers:  “Through Christ you believe in God, who raised Christ from the dead and gave Him glory.  So your faith and your hope are in God.”   So our FAITH and TRUSTFUL EXPECTATION, (hope) is in God. 

 

In Colossians 1:27, the Apostle Paul states:  “God decided to let His people know this rich and glorious secret which He has for all people.  This secret is Christ Himself, who is in you.  He is our ONLY hope for glory.” 

 

So now we have stated that our HOPE is in God and in Christ.  Paul reminds his readers, in 2Corinthians 5:19 that: “God was in Christ, making peace between the world and Himself.  In Christ, God did not hold the world guilty of its sins.  And He gave us this message of peace.” So since we have HOPE in the Father, we have HOPE in the Son, because of the UNITY between the two, these two are really ONE.  As the saying goes, “you can’t have one without the other!”

So may the God of TRUSTFUL EXPECTATION fill you with all JOY and PEACE as you TRUST Him to fulfill His promises and may you overflow with TRUSTFUL EXPECTATION, which is provided to EVERY TRUE BELIEVER, by the power of the Holy Spirit.

 

If you have NOT given your HEART and LIFE to God, then you cannot experience the TRUSTFUL EXPECTATION of Almighty God or the God of HOPE, unless, you come to Him with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART, CONFESSING your sins to Him, and asking Him for His FORGIVENESS, BELIEVING, with ALL your HEART that Jesus died for YOU, and is ALIVE in Heaven, making intercession for you, before God, then ACCEPT His gift of SALVATION, and  have HOPE in the Father and the Son, and receive the HOPE of Heaven.  Do it NOW, while you still can.  He’s waiting and coming SOON!!!