What if?!

My personal devotions, at this time, include reading through the Gospel according to Matthew. Yesterday, and again this morning, I have been looking at the final part of what is usually referred to as "The Sermon on the Mount" - words of the Lord Jesus as found in Matthew 5 - 7. It was verses 21-23 that, not for the first time, hit me. They read: “Not every one who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’  And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you evildoers.’”

These are, I would claim, some of the most frightening words in the whole of the Bible! Jesus is saying that it is possible for you, and for me, to live a religious life, with good works and prophetic words, and even miracles being performed - yet without Him having ever known us! As a result, we are cast out - instructed to depart from Him!

There is, of course, a direct link between these words and those immediately preceding them, in which Jesus warns against false prophets. These were people who had all of the correct language; who went about, apparently doing good; who could quote from the Scriptures; who may have been involved in, and even have held office in, the local church - but who were deceiving those who listened to them, because they did not have a true relationship with the Lord. Indeed, it is worse! James wrote: “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.” |(1:22). Yes, many of these false prophets are deceiving even themselves!

So how may we know that we are not among their number; that we are not going to hear those dreadful words spoken to us by the Lord Jesus? The answer is actually in that quotation from James. It's all to do with the Word, and our being faithful, and obedient, to it. One commentator writes: "A man who speaks the truth, but acts the lie, is also in a sense, a false prophet." The people to whom the Saviour utters those words are false because their lives have not been lived in harmony with what their lips spoke.

What does this mean, in practice, for you and for me? I would suggest that it means that I may be able to quote from the Bible; I may be involved in a local church fellowship - even in a position of leadership; I may do lots of 'good works' that encourage others to think well of me; I may preach, and cast out demons, and perform miracles; and yet not be obedient to the will, and Word, of God! It was so in earlier times. The prophet Amos has much to say to us today. Speaking the Word of YHWH to the Chosen People, he writes: “I hate, I despise your feasts, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies. Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and cereal offerings, I will not accept them, and the peace offerings of your fatted beasts I will not look upon. Take away from me the noise of your songs;  to the melody of your harps I will not listen.” (5:21-23). Those were strong words, and I believe that they apply to much of the contemporary church! Similar passages may be found in the writings of other prophets.

The test of true faith in the Lord Jesus, the Christ, is obedience to His will. It is not sufficient, for example, to make a decision entirely on my own, and then expect Father God to bless it. I must pray for the guidance that has already been promised, and then act in accordance with that guidance. How does that guidance come? In many different ways - through my reading of the Word; through prayer; through a message preached; through a trusted friend; etc. 

I must also be careful with whom I spend my time! I am not to totally divorce myself from "the world" (society that cares nothing for the things of God), but I must spend time with those who also love the Lord, and seek to do His will. I must be careful about the witness I give to others - my friends; my work colleagues; my neighbours; etc. I am the Lord's ambassador (II Cor.5:20) - representing Him to those who do not know Him. I am, as the old poem puts it, the only Bible that some folk will ever read! 

For a long time I have maintained that the Church, worldwide, needs more of the gift of spiritual discernment. However, those words of Jesus remind me that I need to be as discerning about myself as I may be about others! It was only a short time ago that the Jewish people celebrated Yom Kippur - the Day of Atonement. This comes ten days after Rosh Hashanah - the Jewish New Year. Those ten days - the Days of Awe - are a period of self-examination. I am convinced that, when Paul gave us the words often read when disciples of Jesus celebrate the Lord's Supper, with his exhortation: “... let a man examine himself ...” (I Cor. 11:28), he was not thinking of a cursory two-minute self-examination as the elements are being served, but of that "Days of Awe" examination to which he had submitted himself as an observant Jew.

Let Warren Wiersbe have the last word. In his commentary on these verses from Matthew he writes: "Those who have trusted Christ, and have proved their faith by obedience, will have nothing to fear. Their house is founded on the Rock, and it will stand. But those who have professed to trust Christ, yet who have not obeyed God's will, will be condemned." (my emphases).

Where do you stand, as you read this post? That is a question that I may only answer for me. You must answer for you. May it be that you will have confidence that you have that relationship with the Lord Jesus that is true life. If you do not, then the best time to put that right is now!

Seeing the signs!

It was not  a matter of national importance but, about a year ago, the Dartford Crossing over (and under!) the River Thames, closed its Toll Booths, and "went automatic"!  Now, vehicle registration numbers are scanned by special cameras, and payment is made online - with a heavy fine for failure to pay within the allotted time! 

Recently, a number of people have mentioned to us that they, or friends, have received notice of the fine - and that they had not realised that the system had changed, but thought that the tolls had simply been cancelled!

Yesterday,  my wife and I drove from Wishaw to Maidstone (Kent) to spend the evening with longstanding friends before boarding the ferry for France this afternoon.  The first mention of the new Dartford Crossing was a full 171 miles from the crossing.  Then, at 137 miles, there was a second warning of the tolls that have to be paid.  And so it went on.  I simply fail to understand how some people can claim that they didn't know!

There is a coming event of cataclysmic proportions.  It is the Rapture of the Body of the Lord Jesus Christ, when He meets with His people "in the air" (I Thess.4:17).  It will be followed by a time of tribulation that will make the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki to which I referred yesterday seem like a playground scuffle!  That will last for seven years, at the end of which the Lord Jesus will return, with His bride (His disciples) to reign on earth for a thousand years.

My point is that no-one should be surprised by all of this.  He is constantly providing 'warning signs'.  The Bible is full of them -

• The return of Israel to their land (1948)
• Decline of morality
• Natural Disasters
• Wars and rumors of wars
• Increased Technology
• Global Government
• False Prophets and False teaching
• People will follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.
• Exponential global population growth
• Translation of the Gospel and preaching of the Gospel to the whole world. 

 
      The tragedy is not simply that so many seem to ignore the signs, but that the consequence of               doing so will be, not a monetary fine, but eternity cut off from the God Who longs to have them         with Him.

     Jesus said: "You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the        signs of the times." (Matt 16:3).

A matter of credentials

I was reading, last evening, of an official in a college who, for eleven years, impressed his colleagues as s highly qualified, and faithful, administrator.  He did his work so well that, when the opportunity for a promotion appeared, he was considered to be the favourite to be offered the position.

The, an unexpected background check was made on all employees.  To everyone's surprise, no documentation could be found for either the man's Master's degree, or his Doctorate.  He was called to a special meeting and, when advised of the problem, excused himself from the room in order, he informed the others, to get the transcripts.  He didn't return!

Just as this administrator in an educational facility was able to deceive his colleagues, so spiritual counterfeits are able to deceive their friends within the Body of Christ, the Church.  They arrive with cleverly-faked credentials of belief, and may remain undetected until the Final Judgment.  Of course, if the College authorities had made the relevant checks on the administrator before employing him, he would never have been employed.  Likewise, true disciples of Jesus need to follow the example of the Bereans (see Acts 17:10-11), and check all things by the written Word of God.   This is, sadly, a situation that I have experienced, recently, in a Fellowship with which I am involved.

We need the help of Father God in relating to those who may be counterfeits (see Matt.7:15).  However, we need also to know our own hearts so that we don't make false judgments about others!  We then need to be aleet as we wait for God to make the final judgment.

May He grant us the grace and the wisdom to be faithful, and wise.

Demons, delusion, and discernment.

Sometimes the subject of a post comes to me just as I read the newspapers; sometimes I realise that I haven't posted for a few days, and have to work at a post. This post is one that has been on my heart for some 36 hours - since I received a regular mailing that pointed me to a video by a New Zealand preacher named Andrew Strom (see below- it's in two parts).

It's many, many years since I first became involved in the Charismatic Movement. My early objections to it were based on what I considered to be an inappropriate use of some of the more spectacular gifts of God the Holy Spirit. However, I would have claimed that the Lord sorted all of that out for me and, eventually, I found myself in a leadership role in one of Scotland's larger Charismatic Fellowships. It would be churlish of me not to admit that, during my years in that Fellowship, I received much that truly blessed me. However, although it was not the ultimate reason for my leaving the Fellowship, I was concerned by some of the behaviour that was manifest by many of the members - including some of those who were with me in leadership - when the so-called 'Toronto Blessing' was believed to have arrived among us. I was concerned when a specific prophesy that was given, by a visiting speaker, failed to come to pass. I wasn't prepared, under the New Covenant, to approve his death - but I expected that at least the senior pastor would have publically acknowledged that the prophecy had been false, and accepted some of the responsibility for allowing it to have been made 'on his watch'!

All of this, and more, came back to me yesterday, when I watched these videos. I recalled that I, myself, had been 'affected' by some of the phenomena that I was now seeing others manifest. For years, I had been saying (and would continue to say) that there is a sad lack of the gift of discernment in the Body of Christ. That, I believe, is at least partly because, in some places, it is so far divorced from the Head - even the Lord Himself. In those cases where I was laughing uncontrollably; going into involuntary spasms; even encouraging others in those areas that I found to be acceptable; I confess that I allowed my own better judgement to be clouded - which may be why the Lord used something much more personal to sever my relationship with that Fellowship.

I believe that these videos, and the message that they give, may be very timely. I have had to renounce a number of things in my life and, although no longer participating in most of these activities (I am happy to raise my hands in worship to the Lord; to dance; and to pray, in my own devotions, in tongues), I confess that I was once involved, and renounce all that was not of God the Holy Spirit, but of a false spirit that had wormed its way into the chuurch - and that appears to be gaining an increasing influence in certain circles.

Do take the time to watch the videos.

"He who has an ear to hear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches" (Rev.2:7, inter al)