|
Unbanned Bible Publications |
|
Defending God’s Truth in Church Doctrine and Political History – Renette Vermeulen |
|
When Jesus addressed the social problems of this world, He taught His disciples to trust in the all-sufficiency of God, saying, “Do not worry, and say, What are we going to eat? Or, what are we going to drink? Or, what are we going to wear? For the [unbelievers] crave these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first of all His Kingdom and His righteousness, and then all these [necessary] things [named here] will be given to you.” (Mt. 6:31-34.) Jesus was not preaching irresponsibility or laziness, which are the pillars of communism/socialism. Although the Lord and His apostles taught a Gospel of grace, they never tolerated disobedience and laziness, slothful irresponsibility, evil manipulation, and sponging. To do an honest day’s work is a privilege, which glorifies God. In the beginning “God formed man of the dust of the ground… Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it.” – [Gen. 2:7,15.] Þ Adhering to His creation principles, Jesus said to the lazy servant, who hid the talent – (about 1,000 dollars) – which his Master had entrusted to him, “You wicked and lazy servant… [At least] you ought to have deposited My money with the bankers… [Spiritually interpreted: invested all My talents in worthwhile projects under My command.] Therefore take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents. For to everyone who has, [because he is a faithful, diligent steward,] more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, [because he is unfaithful, lazy, and fearful of risks that lead to production,] even what he has will be taken away. And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. [Hell.] There will be weeping and grinding of teeth.” - [Mt. 25:30.] In the account of the lazy servant, Jesus was not preaching a gospel of works or greed; He was focusing on the moral character of those who call upon His Name. Jesus was not preaching legalism; He was commanding obedience to His New Testament, Moral Law of Love/Agape. Being faithful in the things that God had entrusted to us proves our love for Him - obedience to the first and greatest of all commandments, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind.” The Matthew Henry’s Commentary explains, “In hell there are chains of darkness: (2 Pt. 2:4.) In the dark no man can work; a fit punishment for a slothful servant. It is outer darkness, out from the light of heaven, out from the [presence] of their Lord, into which the faithful servants were admitted; out from the marriage feast of the Lamb and His bride. It is not enough not to do hurt, but we must do good; must bring forth fruit, and thereby God is not profited but glorified: Jn. 15:8.” Þ “In the day of reckoning, faithful discharge of one’s responsibilities is required… Outward evidence demonstrates inner righteousness or unrighteousness.” [Spirit Filled Life Bible 1991.) That is why Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 4:12, 2 Ths. 37-13, and in 1 Timothy 5:8, “We [‘apostles’] labor, working with our own hands… You know how you ought to follow us… for we did not eat anyone’s bread free of charge, but worked with labor and toil night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you… For we commanded you this: If anyone will not work, neither should he eat… Do not grow weary in doing good. But if anyone does not obey our word, note that person and do not keep company with him… If anyone does not [or will not] provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, [because he is too lazy to work, a sponger, etcetera,] he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”
JESUS’ VIEW OF OPPRESSING GOVERNMENTS Jesus did not commission His disciples to ‘change’ or ‘save’ the political systems of the world. The Kingdom of Christ is an unseen, spiritual Kingdom inside all true believers, (Jn. 18:36; Luke 17:21-22 KJV.) Only at Jesus’ return on the clouds at the sound of the “seventh [and last] trumpet… the kingdoms of this world will become the kingdoms of our Lord…” Until then, God allows politicians, other religions, blaspheming church clergies, masonic preachers, and all other people to follow Satan by their own choice, (Jn. 1:12-13; Rev. 11:15; Jn. 5:18-19!) Still, God’s disciples are not helpless victims in this world. The true Gospel of Jesus Christ commands, “...Petitions, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings must be offered on behalf of all men. For kings and all who are in positions of authority or responsibility, that we may pass a quiet and undisturbed life and [inwardly] a peaceable life in all godliness… For God desires that ALL men should be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth...” (1 Tim. 2:1-4; 1 Jn. 5:14!) This does not mean God will forcefully ‘save’ people because we pray for them! The true preaching and sincere prayers of genuine believers will be God’s instruments “to let His [spiritual] Kingdom come” in the minds and hearts of all men, who would choose to obey the Voice of the Holy Spirit, Who “came to convict everyone on earth of SIN, [the lost state without God,] RIGHTEOUSNESS, [Jesus the Only Savior,] and JUDGMENT, [should they refuse God’s grace in Christ,]” Mt. 18:188-20, “[Therefore,] teach all My disciples to observe everything I have commanded, and you will see, I will be with you always, even to the end of the world [through the Holy Spirit dwelling in you,]” (Jn. 16:8-11; Jn. 18:36! Mark 16:15-18; Heb. 4:16; 1 Cor. 3:16-17; Mt. 28:18-20!) As a result, real preachers will “...commit these [precious teachings of Jesus] to faithful believers who will be able to teach others also. Therefore, you must endure hardship as good [spiritual] soldiers of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in [the battle for the mind or thoughts and beliefs of men: 2 Corinthians 10:3-5; Romans 8:5-12,] entangles himself [in useless, physical battles to change the world. Instead, he strives] to please God, Who enlisted him in [spiritual] battle,” (2 Tim. 2:-4.) John 16:33 encourages God’s spiritual soldiers as follows, “[Jesus prophesied His suffering and everything pertaining to it] that in Him [true disciples] may have [inward] peace. In the world they will have tribulation, but can be of good cheer, for He overcame the world.” This does not mean we may allow everyone to plunder us as they choose. “If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live in peace with everyone,” (Rom. 12:18.) But as that is not always possible, God gave His believers numerous instructions in His Moral Law, which we can use to deal with unrepentant violence and destruction of all sorts: physical murderer, emotional murderer, adultery, slander, destructive governments, and so on, (Lu. 17:1-3; Mt. 18:15-20! 2 Tim. 3:1-7!) God will always be the Most High King and Judge of His universe. And sincere, genuinely born again believers are His stewards, ambassadors, spiritual kings and priests; the ones who are able to “restrain the evil, lawless one” by exercising their spiritual authority in preaching and in prayer, (1 Pt. 2:9-10; Jam. 4:7-10! 2 Ths. 2:7-8.) So, “it is not by might or [physical] power, [that My Kingdom comes,] but by My Spirit, says the Lord!” Sincere, Holy-Spirit inspired prayer is the highest form of battle — not in ‘warfare’ against the devil, as Jesus fully conquered EVERY principality and power at the cross — which is Jesus’ complete victory for us, (Col. 2:9-15.) “The Lord Jesus Christ is seated far above all rule and authority and power and dominion and every name that is named, not only in this age and in this world, but also in the age and the world which are to come,” (Eph 1:21! 1 Jn. 5:19; Rom. 13:1-2.) Yet, on a physical level, the Lord commanded His disciples to “be submissive to their [earthly] governments [in everything good and Godly, of course,] as there is no authority except [what God allows.] We know that for now, God allows humanity to choose their own ways. So, in the context of the New Testament Scripture, God does not call for murder and mayhem to supposedly ‘change’ this world. Yet, it is most important to understand that no human being is able to ‘save’ the world from the moral and physical decay, which we witness in our day. Everything that we treasure on this earth – wealth, acceptance, happiness, beauty – will burn up together with all the filth and sorrow, which politics and religion brought into this world, (2 Pet. 3:7-10; Rev. 19:20.) But be encouraged, sincere believers of the Lord Jesus Christ! God’s heaven is a reality. It is waiting for all those who are ready for Jesus’ return, either in death or at the sound of the seventh trumpet. John wrote, “Then He showed me the river whose waters give life… flowing from the throne of God... There will no longer exist anything that is foul, offensive, impure, hateful, or horrible. But the throne of God will be in it, and His servants will worship Him... There will be no more night… The gates will never be closed. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; death will be no more, neither will there be anguish nor grief nor pain…” (Rev. 21 & 22.)
THE PARADOXICAL GOSPELS THAT ECUMENICAL LEADERS TEACH The following is an excellent example of forked-tongue, Kingdom-Now teaching. Franky Schaeffer wrote in ‘Bad News for Modern Man,’ “Infant Doe of Bloomington, Indiana, died because he had the misfortune to be born into a brutal nation of activist barbarians and passive believers. Born with Down’s syndrome and esophageal atresia, he was a helpless infant ripe for the taking – taken by judges, doctors, lawyers, and parents infected with the acrid and ungenerous spirit of late-twentieth-century America. The killing of Infant Doe caused even a nation, drenched with the blood of the innocent, to gasp – if only for a short moment – with horror. “Surgery to repair the atresia, which prevents normal feeding, is almost always successful. Infant Doe’s parents, however, following the logical conclusion of the Wade pro-abortion mentality, decided to refuse to allow the attending physician to perform this simple surgery. The Juvenile Court sustained this refusal, killing by starvation one of the most helpless and innocent victims of its society… Abortionists, [doctors and medical staff who swore to uphold life,] inject poisonous saline solutions and prepares buckets to receive the fetal garbage, arranging suction apparatuses and curettes, and whisper soft words about six-month-old “nonviable fertilized eggs.” Parents may, according to the Court, help their daughter decide to have an abortion. However, if they refuse, a judge may step in and override their discretion. ‘“The Court deems “best” for the daughter…’ “Evangelicals are a lot like jellyfish. They float with the tides… They seem much more interested in finding excuses for NOT involving themselves in the society around them than for looking for ways to better our world. [It’s not they can “better the world.” It’s all about obeying God’s Moral Law of Agape: ‘love in deed and truth to glorify Him by serving mankind.’] They compromise dire need in the name of ‘spirituality’ or ‘Christian living.’ The clear, loud call for accommodation comes wrapped in the name of the Gospel of Niceness. Sin is the source of all human problems and a call for repentance is rarely made. [Church leaders] admit that problems like abortion are complex with room for differences of opinion. Why this nonsense about “complex issues”? Slavery is not a complex issue. Gassing Jews was not a complex issue. Nor is pornography and abortion…” Þ Franky nearly moved me to join the rioting mobs; protesting against such unutterable atrocities, shaking billboards and shouting Scriptures, “Thou willt not murder! Thou willt not commit adultery! Thou willt not…” Then, on page 165, Franky took me completely by surprise. He wrote, “Biblical faith depicts persons as stewards of life, heirs who are responsible for the care of God’s world… [HOW TRUE!] Tragically, many women become pregnant as a result of rape or incest. All too frequently, contraceptives fail… There is no point in the course of pregnancy when the moral issue of abortion is insignificant. The decision to terminate a pregnancy may be an affirmation of one’s covenant responsibility to accept the limits of human resources. Because we understand the morality of abortion to be a question of stewardship of life, the responsible decision to choose abortion may arise from analysis of the projected resources for care giving in a specific situation. Abortion can therefore be considered a responsible choice within a Christian ethical framework when serious genetic problems arise or when the resources are not adequate to care for a child appropriately… We must trust in God’s Spirit to guide us in our decision… Abortions later in pregnancy are an option, particularly in the case of women of menopausal age… The church has the responsibility to help make acceptable alternatives available to persons struggling with an unwanted pregnancy if they are to exercise their freedom responsibly…” ►► This is a classic example of the paradoxical gospels that religious leaders teach. Leaders who do not adhere to God’s contextual Word, His Truth. As soon as humanism – human philosophy and mind-sets – enter the scene, even real believers can lose track of God’s holy commandments, which can only exist in a truly Spirit-led, Bible-based life! Such humanist philosophies stamp out God’s instruction to “test and prove everything, to see if it is of God.” – 1 Ths. 5:21; 2 Cor. 13:5. Blindly, millions of Christians who call themselves ‘believers’ follow the blind. Þ I condemn no one, as no one can say how we will react when faced with the indescribable dilemma of rape, resulting in pregnancy, etcetera. Most importantly, ‘if we confess our sin, God is faithful to forgive us and cleanse us of all unrighteousness.’ I do, however, condemn Frank’s view that we may ‘exercise our freedom’ to slaughter innocent babies because of ‘inadequate resources,’ or when ‘contraceptives fail’ – and especially in later pregnancy! God never gave us freedom apart from that which He declares in His whole, contextual Word. Believers should be the willing ‘slaves of Christ’ (1 Cor. 7:22.) True, God did make us custodians of His planet. But God did not give us authority over the life and death of human beings – apart from that which the civil government is supposed to execute as ‘a servant of God,’ to protect their other law-abiding citizens against dangerous criminals such as rapists, child-molesters, murderers, and armed robbers, (Rom. 13:3-8.) God assured us in Genesis 9: 5-6, “For [the lifeblood of the innocent] I will require an accounting; from every beast and from man, from every man who spills another’s blood… for in the image of God He made man.” God said in Jeremiah 1:5, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew and approved of you, and before you were born I separated and set you apart, consecrating you...” And in Job 31:15, “Did not He, Who made me in the womb, make my servant? And did not One fashion us both in the womb?” Þ I know of someone who was dumped on the stairs of an orphanage when she was 7 days old. Today, she is one of God’s rays of light in this dark world – a social worker, a sincere believer – and she honestly declares that she has no desire to meet her biological parents. She was cared for in the orphanage, she says, and by the grace of God, her caretakers taught her to know her real Father! The One Who will never ‘leave her, nor forsake her,’ nor reject her, (Heb. 13:5-6.)
GOOD WORKS WILL NOT SAVE US Franky Schaeffer continued in ‘Bad News for Modern Man,’ “In 1982 a ‘yellow-rain’ attack was launched from a Vietnamese airplane on Ban Nam Jao, Nam Ngao, Pa Mon, and Non Chan. Authorities later obtained samples of infected soil and vegetation, blood from victims and the autopsy photographs of scarred and burned victims of chemical attacks, which remind one of Hiroshima. At least 15,000 Hmong have been killed in these attacks. But the West is silent… Believers naively think that they can retreat (note all the retreat seminars and Christian retreats) into a zone of social and political impotence and irresponsibility. Can we really afford to sit back and do nothing?” I say, as with all the other holocausts that shook planet earth, one can instinctively cry out, “No! Of course not! We stand guilty before God if we turn a blind eye and keep silent about such atrocities!” But while Franky speaks truth about this, one should always approach humanitarian issues with caution. Of course, believers should do good works. James wrote in 2:14-17, “What is the use for anyone to profess to have faith if he has no good works to show for it? Can such faith save his soul…?” In effect, James said that good works do not save us, but good works prove our faith, our sincerity; our born again, Godly character. Therefore, we must do our best, (in the leading and power of the Holy Spirit, and according to the full context of the Word,) to be God’s instruments in this world. Mere instruments, through which the Holy Spirit manifests Jesus’ Spiritual Kingdom of Light, Love, and Truth in this deteriorating dimension. As such, we have to stand in the power of the Spirit, speak out in Scriptural truth and Godly agape-love as far as we can, and care for the needs of others - especially the real needs of sincere believers in Christ, as the Holy Spirit leads us, (Rom. 8:28.) Þ Still, we can never allow Satan to move our priorities from the Spiritual Kingdom of God to the physical kingdoms of this dimension, for that is converting to a useless humanist gospel which attempts to ‘save’ this decaying world by ‘ridding’ it of social dilemmas, to ‘change’ it into a ‘good world.’ We need to preach the true Gospel of Christ to save souls spiritually from this world, but the world itself can never be saved or improved in its fallen, sinful state. It is destined for the fire, (2 Pet. 3:7.) Thus, John wrote in 1 John 2:15-17: “Do not love or cherish [or focus on] the world or the things that are in the world. If anyone loves the [sinful] world, love for the Father is not in him… The world passes away, and with it the forbidden cravings of it; but he who does the will of God and carries out His purposes in his life remains forever.” Þ While we must ‘love our neighbors as ourselves’ and always do good in the leading of the Holy Spirit, we cannot ‘love’ anyone into the Kingdom of God. We are not saviors; there is Only One Savior, and His Name is the Lord Jesus Christ. Without proclaiming His real, contextual Gospel of eternal salvation to the lost and dying world, no one will ever be saved, (Acts 4:12; 1 Tim. 2:5.) And so, Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 13:1-5, “Though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, [Christ Himself, as revealed in the Truth of His Word,] it profits me nothing…” IS ‘CHRIST THE HEAD OF THE CHURCH’ AND ‘THE BODY OF CHRIST HIS CHURCH MEMBERS?’ Read all about the destruction of communism and socialism in the world Jewish Holocaust — truth, of fiction? British Communist Concentration Camps of the Boer War EVERYTHING IS COMPLETELY FREE, JUST AS JESUS COMMANDED!
Þ Beware the Christian Chameleon Þ Ecumenist Danger (Or Masonic/Roman Catholic Denominational Union) In The Churches Þ The pope preaches socialism and the mark of the beast to businessmen
Þ Does God Allow Believers to Defend themselves against Murder, Land-grabbing, etc.? Þ Whites Dispossessed and Cruelly Murdered: What is Really Happening in South Africa (2018?) |