With this months newsletter being the last one I
shall be writing within the 20th century, my mind is
racing back over this century, and also at the same
time, envisioning the events that may lay just ahead,
prophetically speaking, in the next century.
The 20th century has witnessed two world wars, it
saw the advent of nuclear weapons, it has seen the
miraculous rebirth of the state of Israel, and it has
also seen the church experience extreme fluctuations
in its earthly ride amongst the nations.
As a Christian, looking forward into the upcoming
century, I can't help but sense deep down inside, a
spiritual sensitivity that suggests to me that the Lord
is soon to come, and that the completion of history
is not only imminent, but at hand, at the very door.
Many Christians today enjoy a deep soul-stirring
excitement about the prospect of the long anticipated
second coming of Jesus Christ. But, then again many
do not seem the least bit fired up about that being
an imminent event.
I get many questions from readers and enthusiasts
of Bible prophecy regarding events during the great
Tribulation, and events leading directly into it, but I
find that many people seem to be unaware of some
of the signs of the times which would prevail right
inside of the church itself, prior to the Tribulation.
These ominous signs began with the very birth of
the church 2000 years ago, but their subtle, gradual
leavening within the church has produced a prevalent
spirit of complacency and apathy among its numbers
especially in our 20th century; which has witnessed a
culminating consequence of doctrinal compromises.
This culminating condition in the last days church
is known in the Bible as the "Great Falling Away."
This condition was prophesied to exist within the
universal church just prior to the Day of the Lord.
In fact, this condition may be said to be of a necessity
for the logistical underpinning of the Man of Sin, or
Antichrist.
So then, while Biblically discerning Christians can
watch all the unfolding seasonal signs of end times
prophecy concerning Israel, they should also be more
acutely aware of signs within world churchdom itself,
signals which correspond with the conspiracy of the
"mystery of iniquity".
So then, while Biblically discerning Christians can
watch all the unfolding seasonal signs of end times
prophecy concerning Israel, they should also be more
acutely aware of signs within world churchdom itself,
signals which correspond with the conspiracy of the
ages old "mystery of iniquity".
The mystery of iniquity has a long history. It was
fathered by Satan himself. It is a supernatural spirit
of evil scheming, perpetuated by the think tankers of
Hell, seeking to undermine the working of the great
mystery of God's wonderful Grace!
It has long given up on conquering the church of
Jesus, and subsequently, has thus sought to infiltrate
the church by joining it, and seeking to conform it
over into another entity, under another Christ.
The Christian must therefore be constantly alert to
the unceasing attack of the demonic horde from hell
upon the church. Remember, Jesus said; the gates of
Hell would never prevail over his church. Although
the church will never be stolen or defeated, the fact
remains that Satan will subtly obstruct its mission.
In reality, the fact of the matter is that the very
church itself has exhibited symptoms of many signs of
the last days even before the miraculous birth of the
nation of Israel began a countdown to the end.
In his letter to the assembly of Jesus followers in
the city of Thessalonica, Paul alluded to just such a
condition that would permeate many of the churches
during the last days.
II Thessalonians 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means:
for that day shall not come except there come a Falling Away
first; and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition.
So, very clearly then, we have definite advice that
something shall have needed to take place within the
church world itself before the Antichrist can appear.
So, what is a "Falling Away"? What does it mean?
Since it comes first, before all of the other things with
regards to the man of sin, the rapture, the timing of
great Tribulation; we should know more about it; as
it stands to reason that we should experience it.
According to scripture, there shall be unmistakable
and progressive signs within the church before that
event known as the Rapture takes place, although the
final condition of the last days world church will not
reach the Apostate condition until after the genuine
church has been caught away to be with the Lord.
A Falling Away, is defined as a deviation from, or
the forsaking of an authentically established position.
How is it that the founder of the church ( Jesus )
has come at this point to be in a position altogether
outside of the church, knocking on its door, seeking
admission, rather than on the inside where he began?
Revelation 4:18 I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in
the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou
mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not
appear; and annoint thine eyes with eye-salve, that thou mayest
see.
This verse indicates that this particular church has
never even experienced spiritual rebirth through Jesus
death, burial, and resurrection to start with. Implied
by the accusation of being naked, is the idea that it
appears exposed to every old wind of philosophy, due
to its spiritual lack of doctrinal covering. Therefore it
is blind, and in need of healing before the sense of
spiritual sight can even be functional within it.
This church typifies the Great Falling Away, which
has become so prevalent among churches during the
20th century, simultaneously with Israel's rebirth.
Today, there is a very deep concern within sincere
Christiandom sensing a lacking of that abundant life
that Jesus offers to all that follow him. That spirit
of life abundant needs constant feeding, therefore the
neglect and absence of teaching, hearing, preaching,
sharing, understanding, and defending the unchanging
and absolute eternal truths of God's Holy Word will
lead to a church environment of lukewarmness.
Jesus attempts to introduce himself to the church
at Laodicea under the name being Faithful and True
is really an effort by him to establish the foundation
of faithfulness and truth inside of that church.
The spiritual disparity between churches today is a
direct product of the good seed falling on unsuitable
soil. Jesus alluded to this disparity in his parables of
the sowing of the fields.
The stony ground, thorns, and tares growing along
side of the wheat all point to an unreceptive mind;
and a lack of rootedness in the words of life.
In essence there are two patterns of believers in
the church. One is characterized as hearing the word
but not discerning the word, being more preoccupied
with the things of this world. The other pattern for
hearers of the word is that it is received in all good
faith, digested for consumption, producing abundantly
the water of spiritual life springing up from inside.
Today’s falling away church has failed to consume
the True Word, and stifles those believers who have
truly absorbed the Holy Spirit fueled endowment of
spiritual wisdom and insight. Thus, generation after
generation of church members come and go without
any concept of the fervent power and sustenance of
the Abundant Christian life obtained from feeding on
the meatiness of the Holy Bible!
The church in this prevailing condition ultimately
shall find itself swept along into the Apostate church
establishment of the post-rapture era, completely and
totally susceptible to the Grand Delusion perpetrated
by the Antichrist himself.
The present church age shall indeed end in apostasy
rather than ending with the church conquering the
whole world. The apostasy has already taken its firm
stranglehold in the church by successfully leading the
church away from doctrinal and moral standards that
were once the fixed, unchangeable anchors of Biblical
absolutes.
Apostasy has always been categorized as a departure
from faith in God's revealed word, and also a sound
understanding of that word, whether written or spoken.
The church, which for so long was kept pure, by
the Satanically inspired battles of persecution, has in
our 20th century found a comradery with this world,
and become indoctrinated with this worlds ideology,
both doctrinally and spiritually; and the result is that
it has no desire to be separated from this world.
Someone has stated that the first casualty in the
art of warfare is the truth. Indeed, it is the case, as
Satan began immediately to cast aspersions upon the
word of God, and he has ever since kept attacking
the divinely inspired record. The purpose of course is
to divert people away from the truth.
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