Psalms 57:1 ESV
“Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me,
for in you my soul takes refuge;
in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge,
till the storms of destruction pass by.”
What “storms of destruction” are we, as Christians, being
faced with today?
America’s Beginnings
In America and in the world at large we are under Christian
persecution, although the persecution in America may look somewhat different
than it may look in some other nations in the world. For the persecution here
is somewhat hidden, though not entirely. For it is more about weapons of
deception than it is about physical guns coming against us.
But this didn’t begin just recently, although it has
definitely worsened much in the past twenty years or so. It actually began with
the founding of our nation. For Christians in America have been sold a lie that
our nation is a Christian nation and that we are one nation under the one true
God – Father, Son (Jesus Christ), and Holy Spirit.
Many of our founding fathers were freemasons, and much of
our history is based in freemasonry, as are our national symbols and monuments,
which are also patterned after Greek, Roman and Egyptian gods and goddesses. So,
our national religion was not Christian, but a blend of Christian in with
freemasonry and foreign gods, which is syncretistic.
From the very founding of our nation, our nation was
designed to espouse universalism, which accepts all religions, as does
freemasonry, and which centers around doing “good deeds” and the idea that we
all believe in the same god. And we have come full circle back around to this
today.
American Church Today
Even though the
modern church teaches against works as part of their salvation, they will often
stress good works as a way to share the gospel with people, in place of
actually sharing the gospel with people. They will teach that we are to “be the
gospel” by doing good deeds.
And instead of Bible
teachers in the church teaching the Bible (the pure word of God), we more often
have facilitators and moderators who guide discussions which are preprogrammed
and given to the facilitators in some sort of book form (paper or digital)
which they are required to follow.
So, instead of the
enemy coming after us with physical guns and hunting us down physically so that
they can kill our bodies, the enemy is going after people’s minds, hearts, and
souls to rob them of the truth and to convince them of the lies so that they
can destroy them from within.
Deception is Subtle
For, slowly and subtly Satan has worked his way into the
gatherings of the church and into the hearts of the people and their leaders
(not all) and he has convinced them to accept a gospel of salvation that is in
opposition to the gospel that Jesus and Paul and the other apostles taught.
And he convinced the vast majority of today’s “Christians”
in America to accept a gospel which denies the Lordship of Christ over our
lives, and which rejects Jesus’ and the apostles’ teachings on repentance and
obedience to Christ and to his commands (New Covenant).
And he has convinced them to halt the working of God’s Holy
Spirit in people’s hearts and lives, and to rely on the teachings of human
beings, and to accept an adulterated gospel which permits its adherents to
continue living in sin without guilt while it teaches just being nice (pleasant
and agreeable) to people in place of sharing the gospel with them.
Are we to do good deeds? Yes! But they are the ones God
assigns, not the ones we decide to do. And they need to be in accord with the
teachings of Scripture, not in contrast with them. For if “good deeds” excludes
sharing the gospel so as not to offend people, that is not of God, but of man.
And if doing “good deeds” means us immersing ourselves in
our culture and becoming like and blending in with the world in order to
identify with the people of the world, then that is not of God, either. We don’t
become like the world to win the world, for then what we are winning them to?
Psalms 57:2-3 ESV
I cry out to God Most High,
to God who fulfills his purpose for me.
He will send from heaven and save me;
he will put to shame him who tramples on me. Selah
God will send out his steadfast love and his faithfulness!”
Those of us who have eyes to see the deception that now
exists within the church and within its teachings ought to be crying out to God
to fulfill his purpose for all of us. We ought to be praying for revival of the
church and for God to open people’s eyes to see the deception they are under.
We need to be praying to the Lord to expose these fruitless
deeds of darkness for what they are by exposing the lies and deceptions which
are coming from the mouths of liars and deceivers whose tongues are as sharp as
swords coming against us.
We need to be crying out to God for mercy because the enemy
is laying many traps to catch people in his lies, for it is working, and many
are being deceived, and many are rejecting the truth in favor of the lies,
because the lies soothe them in their sins.
For the lies tell them that they only have to say some magic
words after someone else or they have to just make a profession of faith in
Jesus Christ and that now heaven is guaranteed them when they die regardless of
how they live or what they do with Jesus.
But the truth teaches that we must die with Christ to sin
and live to him and to his righteousness, for this is why Jesus died, not just
to forgive us our sins and to promise us eternal life with God, but so that we
would be delivered from our slavery to sin and live holy lives, pleasing to
God.
The truth also teaches that if we do not die with Christ to
sin, we are not raised with him to new lives in him, and thus we are not saved
from our sins, and we don’t have eternal life with God. For, if we continue
living in sin, we will not inherit eternal life with God.
So, study the Scriptures in their context prayerfully,
seeking God’s face, and seeking the truth, for it is the truth, if you believe
it, which will free you from your bondage to sin and which will free you to
live godly and holy lives to the glory and praise of God, in the power of God’s
Spirit living within you.
[Lu 9:23-26; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-17; Eph 4:17-24; 1 Jn
1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6; Gal 5:16-21; Eph 5:3-6; 1 Co 6:9-10; Gal 6:7-8; Rom 2:6-8; 2
Co 5:10]
What
the Lord Says
An Original Work / February 24, 2014
Based
off Isaiah 43:1-44:5
This is what the Lord says to you:
Fear not, for I have chosen you.
I have summoned you by your name.
You are mine. I died, you to save.
When you go through your trials, so deep,
I will be with you; you will not sink.
You are so precious always to me.
Trust in your Lord, Savior and King.
This is what the Lord says to you:
He who gave salvation to you;
Who delivered you from your sin;
Takes your burdens now upon Him:
Forget the former things of your life.
Give of your heart not now up to strife.
See all the new things I have for you.
Walk in vict’ry. Trust in what’s true.
This is what the Lord says to you:
He who made you; who will help you:
Do not fear what humans may do.
Walk in freedom. Follow what’s true.
Drink of my Spirit given for you.
Trust in my mercy, for I love you.
I have a plan for all of your life.
Follow my ways. Do what is right.
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