Restoring Fellowship With God

Cleansing From Sin

Book of 1 John Chapter 1

Today as we begin a short study of three of the Books written by the Apostle John, we will see another eyewitness to many of the things of the Lord Jesus Christ.

We need also to mention that the Apostle John was writing to the church. In fact the entire Bible is written to the believer because without the Holy Spirit living inside you, you will never have a proper understanding of the Scriptures!

The Apostle John wants us to know the truth, and this was his greatest reason for writing and above all, these are the words of the Holy Spirit given to John.

John had a brother named James and with Peter it these three that witnessed the transfiguration of our Lord and the voice of God!

John was the only Apostle that lived to die of old age!

John wrote 5 books of the New Testament being, the Gospel of John, 1,2,and 3 John and the Book of the Revelation.

John addresses the spiritual beliefs of the believer.

John addresses all the Body of Christ.

John addresses sin in the church and false teachers.

John addresses our sinful world!

John addresses the Second Coming of Christ Jesus.

Let's listen to the words of the Apostle John, given to him by the Holy Spirit.

*****1Jn 1:1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life;

1Jn 1:2 (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life,

John simply says that which is from the beginning which is the Holy Ghost inspired Old Testament Scriptures, are the actual words from a Sovereign and Holy God.

Most all the Jews knew of the Old Testament Scriptures and the Apostles and yes even the early church was familiar with those Scriptures!

The difference being that to John, the Lord Jesus Christ was the complete fulfillment of those Scriptures,

Joh 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

Joh 1:2 The same was in the beginning with God.

Joh 1:3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.

John heard the actual words of Christ which never went against the Old Testament.

John saw the things that Jesus did with his own eyes.

John also witnessed things that he could not put into words.

John handled the nail scarred hands of Christ.

John handled the nail scarred feet of Jesus.

John may have even put his hand in the scarred side where that spear pierced the side of Jesus.

Notice John does not have a great introduction, John jumps right into the subject matter of this great book of the Bible.

God is not living off somewhere in outer space having forgotten His creation.

God is greatly concerned in the things of this earth.

God loves and cares for all His creation.

Remember God has not moved away from His creation, His creation has chosen to follow a false god!

The subject of this Book of 1 John is that the Son of God came to this earth to save all humanity!

We must clearly understand that the Messiah, the Son of God has always existed. He created all things. He walked in the cool of the day with Adam and Eve. He has always been living and He made Himself known by Jesus the Messiah, Jesus the Christ, or we simply say Jesus Christ!

Jesus is the exact express image of God the Father in all His ways!

Heb 1:1 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,

Heb 1:2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;

Heb 1:3 Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;

Jesus Christ did not have a beginning because He is the beginning. He has always been!

Moses knew this truth:

Psa 90:1 A Prayer of Moses the man of God. Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations.

Psa 90:2 Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God.

Jesus Christ proved He was God in many ways, yet so many reject His truth.

John, James, Peter, Paul, Mathew, Luke, Stephan, Barnabas, and so many others in the New Testament did not have a problem believing the Jesus is the Almighty God!

We are foolish not to believe the Apostles, and the other Gospel writers, who wrote by the power of the Holy Spirit!

Jesus is the "Word" because He is the fulfillment of all the Old Testament prophecies!

Jesus is the "Word of Life", because He has the message of eternal life!

Jesus revealed Himself to a lost and dying world, so His life could be shared with all who believed Him!

Jesus revealed Himself to us when He did not have to!

Jesus has given us all an opportunity to share in His life!

Jesus came to us in the only fashion that would be accepted in His goal for us.

Jesus, who is God, came to us in the form of man, His creation!

Jesus Christ came to His creation with a great purpose!

*****1Jn 1:3 That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.

1Jn 1:4 And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.

Jesus Christ came to this earth to restore our fellowship with our Creator!

This is the goal of our Father in Heaven that we have an up close and personal relationship with Him.

John is saying let me tell you about my Savior.

We must understand God is concerned about His creation. God cares for each of us!

God has not left us to fend for ourselves against the wiles of the devil and the dark powers of this world!

God promises that there is much more than death and the grave in our future!

God wants to adopt us into His family and with all adoptions there must be some qualifications met!

The Lord Jesus Christ opened the door into the throne room of God, and He is waiting to welcome us with open arms!

Jesus has made us acceptable to our Heavenly Father!

We can talk to Him at any time of the day and His ears are open to hear from us.

He walks with us everywhere we go to caution us and to make us aware of our surroundings.

We can cast all our cares upon Him for He cares for us.

We can ask Him for strength to conquer our trials and tribulations, and He will supply that strength.

We can live with peace in our heart because of Him.

We can depend upon Him for His righteousness because we just do not have any ourselves.

And we can know we have been delivered from sin and death, because He gives us eternal life!

We can know our Father, by His Son, through the Holy Spirit!

Jesus Christ came that our joy would also be full!

Not worldly joy but heavenly joy.

It is the joy of the Holy Spirit.

It is joy based upon the Lord Jesus Christ.

It is joy, that springs from faith in the work of Christ Jesus.

It is the joy in the knowledge of future rewards.

Joh 15:11 These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.

We know that the world is full of darkness:

Joh_8:12 Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

Joh_12:46 I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.

Jesus Christ who is the light of the world has come to take us out of this dark world!

Gen 1:3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.

You see there is no darkness in our Savior!

*****1Jn 1:5 This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

We know that all those called of God are to be His messengers so, what is the message they are to carry?

The Jesus Christ is the sinless Son of God who died to pay for our sin!

We must not ignore the message of God's salvation plan!

Heb 2:1 Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip.

Heb 2:2 For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward;

Heb 2:3 How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;

Heb 2:4 God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?

It as Jesus Christ Himself who first preached the message of salvation and it was carried on by the 12 chosen Apostles, when we include the Apostle Paul!

Jesus said if you have seen Me you have seen God!

God is Light!

Light is a sign of purity.

Light is a sign of truth.

The Light reveals the nature, the meaning, and the destiny of our world, and those who live on it!

The light of Jesus Christ allows all those in darkness to walk out of the darkness into the Light of the Lord!

In fact Jesus the Light, will one day eliminate all darkness on this earth and in heaven!

Rev 22:5 And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.

We just finished with the Book of 2 Peter where we learned how to identify that false teacher and we can see this again here in 1 John.

*****1Jn 1:6 If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:

We are all just sinners saved by the "Grace" of God.

As long as we are in the flesh we will stumble occasionally and fall.

If we ask the Lord to forgive us, He will forgive us.

But If we refuse to repent of our sin and continue to walk in that sin, then we are liars if we say we belong to the Lord!

Waking in darkness is walking without the Light of God!

The Lord Jesus is light. His light shines in us by the Holy Spirit who lives within us. The Holy Spirit will not allow us to walk in darkness if we belong to our Heavenly Father.

Joh 7:16 Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me.

Joh 7:17 If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.

If we continue to walk in darkness after we have claimed Jesus, then our heart was not true. It's just that simple.

Walking in darkness is the symbol of ignorance of the truth of God, walking in error of the truth of God, and remaining in our sinful ways!

Our outward profession of faith is contrary to our inward reality!

It takes faith and that faith from a true heart!

Joh 3:19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

Joh 3:20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.

Joh 3:21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.

If we have truly repented of our old ways, it will show in our new walk in life!

*****1Jn 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

What is the greatest misconception among all those that claim the Lord Jesus as their Savior? They believe they can have fellowship with God and still walk in sin and remain in darkness.

Walk the streets of America and most of them will claim fellowship with God but their ways say different.

Walk the halls of congress and many of them will claim fellowship with God but their votes say different.

Better still walk inside the congregation at church and you will see many who claim to know the truth but their actions outside the church say something different.

Jesus preached His message to the Jews who already worshiped God in their own way, yet they did not have the fellowship they thought they had, because they rejected the truth of the Scriptures. They rejected the Light sent down from Heaven to remove the darkness of Judaism. Not only Judaism but all known religions who remain in darkness.

Why is Jesus rejected? Because the world believes they can remain in darkness and have fellowship with God the Father, and it is impossible to do that!

That word walk means we must put forth some effort and it must be a continuous effort.

Luk_9:23 And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.

We cannot confess the Lord Jesus Christ unless we walk with Him every day of the remainder of our lives!

The world remains in the dark about God because they reject the Lord Jesus Christ. There is no fellowship with God without His Son!

There is no church fellowship without the Lord Jesus Christ.

How do I walk in the Light of Jesus Christ?

*I must walk in love!

Eph 5:1 Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children;

Eph 5:2 And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.

*I must walk in the Holy Spirit!

Gal 5:16 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.

*I must walk by faith!

2Co 5:7 (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)

*I must walk in newness of life!

Rom 6:4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

*My walk must match my talk!

Rom 13:13 Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying.

Rom 13:14 But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.

*I must walk worthy of the Lord!

Col 1:10 That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God;

*I must certainly walk in truth!

3Jn 1:4 I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.

Until we walk according to the truth of Jesus Christ how can we say we have a personal relationship with Him?

We are walking in our old sinful ways!

*****1Jn 1:8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

Even after we have given our hearts to the Lord, we are still only sinners saved by the "Grace" of God.

We will still make mistakes, we will still sin. So if we think we have already reached perfection in this life we are sadly mistaken, we are still sinners, but those sins should be out of ignorance and not intentional, as best we can to live according to the Word of God!

There is only one who lived His life pleasing to the Heavenly Father. We know sin is never pleasing to God the Father, so it was only His Son who has pleased Him!

Joh 8:29 And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him.

We are not only mistaken about our salvation we are misleading ourselves about the truth of our salvation.

In other words we do Satan's job for Him. Satan is the great "deceiver" and we will have deceived ourselves if we believe we will sin no more.

The Lord has already given us the answer to this problem!

*****1Jn 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

To be a Christian is a growing process and the Lord understands this. When we sin, and we will sin, then the sooner we get on our knees and ask for forgiveness the better off we will be.

We actually need to describe our sin to our Father in Heaven, so He will know that we know what we are asking Him to forgive us of!

This is how we grow we learn from our mistakes. Now we will still pay for those mistakes, but we will not lose our salvation as some teach.

Once the Lord is firmly in our hearts our salvation is eternal, but we still need a daily cleansing that comes from forgiveness!

Our God is righteous!

Our God is also faithful to keep the promises He makes and here it says He is faithful to forgive us.

Heb 10:23 Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)

Once we have been "justified" we cannot ever again be unjustified!

Rom 5:1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:

Rom 5:2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

Rom 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

Rom 8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.

We must clearly understand God does not make mistakes, but we still cannot say our walk with the Lord will be perfect!

*****1Jn 1:10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves. If we say we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar!

Rom 3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

Ecc 7:20 For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not.

The truth is, how could anyone say such a thing, yet there are those that do.

The word sinner is such a terrible word that most people object to being called sinners, but it is no less true!

We are all sinners and we will be as long as we are in these bodies of flesh!

There are just too many people who believe that they have been so religious all their lives, that God could not refuse to allow them in Heaven, and they are truly deceived about the truth of God.

Many are just religious perfectionists who believe they can achieve a perfect state without the Lord Jesus Christ, and this is impossible!

There are also those that believe they are just too good for God to reject them, but no one is good enough simply because we have no goodness because we have no righteousness.

Isa_64:6 But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

The only thing we have to offer God is a dirty rotten sinner in need of salvation and this is what God says so it must be true.

The sooner we agree with God and accept His plan of salvation the better off we will be.

When our name is written down in the Lamb's Book of Life, it can never be erased!

We cannot help but sin, but praise the Lord we have a Savior!

The Lord is soon coming, and we will be going home so let's make Him proud of His children!

Amen

Let's Pray!

Looking For the Return of Jesus

Looking For the Coming of Jesus

Book of 2 Peter 3:1-18

There are some doctrines of the Bible that are disputed by Bible scholars, but the return of Jesus Christ is not one of them.

The return of Jesus Christ is mentioned more than 300 times in the Scriptures.

There are even whole chapters devoted to the Second Coming of our Lord.

Jesus Christ Himself that He would return, and He will return the exact same way He left this world!

Act 1:6 When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?

Act 1:7 And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.

Act 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

Act 1:9 And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.

Act 1:10 And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel;

Act 1:11 Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.

You see this is what the Second Coming is all about, restoring again the kingdom of Israel.

The Church will already be in Heaven before this takes place!

So how does Peter describe these things?

*****2Pe 3:1 This second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you; in both which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance:

2Pe 3:2 That ye may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and Saviour:

2Pe 3:3 Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts,

2Pe 3:4 And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.

The return of Jesus Christ will be an actual physical event that takes place after the Holy Spirit has taken the Church to Heaven.

Remember the Holy Ghost could not come until Jesus returned to Heaven!

Joh_16:7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.

This thing works in reverse, the Lord will not return until the Comforter takes the Church home!

2Th_2:7 For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.

Before the Lord touches down upon this earth, He will meet His church in the clouds!

1Th 4:13 But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.

1Th 4:14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.

1Th 4:15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.

1Th 4:16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:

1Th 4:17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

1Th 4:18 Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

We of the Church can say that this will be the greatest day we have to look forward to, of course besides the day we invited the Lord into our hearts!

Peter says we need to remember these things!

We are called to be rememberers!

The Second Coming of Christ to this earth, is all about the Jews!

Isa 62:6 I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night: ye that make mention of the LORD, keep not silence,

Isa 62:7 And give him no rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth.

There are a lot of great things going on in Israel, but Jerusalem is not yet become the praise of this earth!

We must stir up our minds to the truth of God.

As I have gotten older it seems that my memory suffers in day to day things and this bothers me more than I ever realized.

We must stir up our minds to remember those things that are just too important to forget!

Our minds are so complicated that doctors have not yet been able to understand the workings of them.

The power of memory maybe the most amazing part of our mental equipment!

Our memory uses the power of recollection to recall things as far back as when we were toddlers and these things are precious.

Most everyone of us can recall that day we got saved and if not the exact day then the month. Something we will never forget.

Well there is something else that we need to implant in our memories.

The Lord Jesus is coming back first to get His Church and then to make a Second Appearance upon this earth!

We must be mindful of all the prophecies of the Old Testament because they are the voice of God!

When we see those words "thus saith the Lord" then our minds need to perk up and the doors of memory need to remain open because to read the prophets is to see the words of truth!

A man once asked, "what is truth"? Truth is the things that conform to reality. Things that have already been and things that will be.

The absolute truths are in the Words of God!

Joh 17:17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.

We cannot grow in the grace of God, if we do not grow in the knowledge of Jesus Christ and then keep these things in active memory!

Why are these things so important?

Because we are in the last days!

Scoffers are all those who mock the truth of God!

These are people who speak the loudest. They are so full of malice and pride, they have reached a point where they will not be silenced, and they will not even listen to anything described as the truth!

Rom 1:28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;

Rom 1:29 Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,

Rom 1:30 Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,

Rom 1:31 Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:

Rom 1:32 Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.

God knows those who will never turn from their wicked ways, but we do not!

We must understand the Christ Jesus demands our total dedication, the total commitment of our mind, and our life to His teachings.

We are to have no room in our minds to listen to scoffers or anyone else who denies the truth of our being!

Scoffers walk like they want to and do what they want to and will attempt to deny you your way of life.

They want the right to things they have not earned.

They want to right to live in any way they choose.

They want the right to dictate all these things to the world.

They say, "where is the promise of His coming"?

It has been about 1975 years since Jesus first walked upon this earth but without being date setters, it has not been 2000 years.

We will not know the day nor the time, but we should know that we are in the last days!

What did Jesus teach?

Mat 16:2 He answered and said unto them, When it is evening, ye say, It will be fair weather: for the sky is red.

Mat 16:3 And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowring. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?

This is what the Holy Spirit is teaching us. It does not matter how much time goes by, we must keep our minds wrapped around the truth of the Bible.

We are certainly in the last days because the scoffers are making their voice heard all around this world!

They are willingly ignorant of prophesies that have already been fulfilled, and the promises of God that have been completed!

*****2Pe 3:5 For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water:

2Pe 3:6 Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished:

For instance all this talk about climate change. We as Christians do not doubt that the climate is changing. We do disagree that man has a great influence on those changes.

Every day we see where cities and islands will soon be underwater when there are lands and cities and pyramids and roads and many great things that are under water now, that happened when there were no great power plants and no automobiles everywhere.

It is God who is in control of our climate and one of the best proofs is the fact that God flooded this whole earth in the days of Noah.

The proof exists yet all those clamoring about climate change ignore these truths because it does not fit into their agenda.

We should ask ourselves, just what do they want the world to do? Just what power over the climate can we use to stop what they say is in our future?

I have not seen much honest things that we can do as human beings to stop anything that is in the hands of God!

For sure we need to do a better job in taking care of our environment and in my opinion, it should start with cleaning up the trash that is everywhere!

God destroyed all humans and land animals in the time of Noah for the same things that are going on right now in our world!

Mat 24:37 But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

Mat 24:38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,

Mat 24:39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah for the exact same things that are going on in America today!

Luk 17:28 Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded;

Luk 17:29 But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all.

Luk 17:30 Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed.

These are all signs of the Second Coming of the Lord, and we need to wrap our minds around the truth and reject these things going on in our world!

God is still in control of our world and maybe all these changes we see are just God preparing to send His Son one more time back to this planet!

*****2Pe 3:7 But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.

We need to wrap our minds around the fact that it is the Lord who sits at the right hand of God, the hand of power, and he has reserved the things necessary to burn this planet into non-existence.

Yes this earth will be restored as in the days of Adam because God made certain promises to the Jews and He will keep those promises but in the end there will be a totally new Earth and a totally New Heaven because those old places were places of sin and sin will not be allowed in God's new Creations.

Rev 21:5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.

Now we can accept the truth of God or we can reject the Word of God, but we cannot in any way change the plan of God.

God will rid this earth of ungodly men!

Ungodly meaning, wicked men who reject the truth of God!

Thank God for His patience because He really wants everyone to accept His truths and be saved from His coming wrath.

*****2Pe 3:8 But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

The truth is God does not depend on some clock to tell Him it is time to do something.

In fact God's plan is in place and nothing and no one can alter the time frame the Lord chooses to abide by!

We must consider that the Lord has allowed a time frame that everyone who will receive Him will get that opportunity.

The Lord knows those who will never receive Him.

What did God say to Abraham before the destruction of Sodom?

Gen 18:23 And Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked?

Gen 18:24 Peradventure there be fifty righteous within the city: wilt thou also destroy and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are therein?

Gen 18:25 That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be as the wicked, that be far from thee: Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?

Gen 18:26 And the LORD said, If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.

Gen 18:27 And Abraham answered and said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord, which am but dust and ashes:

Gen 18:28 Peradventure there shall lack five of the fifty righteous: wilt thou destroy all the city for lack of five? And he said, If I find there forty and five, I will not destroy it.

Gen 18:29 And he spake unto him yet again, and said, Peradventure there shall be forty found there. And he said, I will not do it for forty's sake.

Gen 18:30 And he said unto him, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak: Peradventure there shall thirty be found there. And he said, I will not do it, if I find thirty there.

Gen 18:31 And he said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord: Peradventure there shall be twenty found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for twenty's sake.

Gen 18:32 And he said, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak yet but this once: Peradventure ten shall be found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for ten's sake.

Gen 18:33 And the LORD went his way, as soon as he had left communing with Abraham: and Abraham returned unto his place.

We can be sure when the Lord returns to this earth, the church will have been taken to Heaven and all those left behind have rejected the truth of God!

This day may not be too far into the future.

Praise the Lord for His patience!

We need to ignore the mockers and realize the truth of what God says!

*****2Pe 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

2Pe 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.

Jesus made a promise that He will return in His person and He will keep that promise!

It does not matter how much time has passed God will do what God said He will do!

Time means nothing to God He dwells in eternity!

We must not be discouraged because of the time that has passed.

God does not want anyone to perish. God wants everyone to get the opportunity to meet our Savior!

The truth is, God is slow to give into the punishment He has also promised.

God's love will not allow Him to feel good about judgment, but judgment is a necessary thing or God would not be God.

He could not explain His actions to those of the day of Noah when they come before Him at the White Throne Judgment.

He could not explain His actions to those of the day of Sodom when they face Him at the White Throne Judgment.

Judgment must come because this is also a promise that cannot be broken.

God does not want any of His created beings cut off from Him, but this will be something they have chosen.

When you choose judgment rather than salvation, then it is judgment that you will receive.

God has promised to allow us to choose!

God wants us all to walk away from sin and walk in righteousness!

So the Lord will return.

The Lord will stop in the clouds and call out His Church:

1Th 4:16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:

1Th 4:17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

1Th 4:18 Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

1Co 15:51 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,

1Co 15:52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

1Co 15:53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.

1Co 15:54 So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.

1Co 15:55 O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?

It is only after this event will the Lord return to plant His feet on Gethsemane.

He has already announced His return so He will return unannounced just as that thief who comes to rob you comes without your knowledge!

The evil world that remains after the Church is in Heaven, will continue to go about its evil and immoral business until all of a sudden, they will realize the what God said was true and destruction and mayhem will be going on all around them!

1Th 5:2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.

1Th 5:3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. 1Th 5:4 But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.

Rev 3:3 Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.

You see it is because we know all these things, that we need to be busy reaching out to our family and friends and the lost!

*****2Pe 3:11 Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness,

2Pe 3:12 Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?

It is a fact that these words have more meaning today than they ever have. The world is hunting an excuse to all the catastrophes that are going on but are rejecting the true answer.

The lost world still believes that the stability of our world can be solved with science and technology yet there are no answers to what is going on now called climate change, except to blame man for bad practices.

There have been bad practices pushed by the lusts of wealth and that same lusts for wealth is the driving force behind what is called climate change.

In the end the guilty nations will be expected to pay for the damage they are accused of. My question is to whom will they pay? Surely not the UN.

The truth is our world is changing around us just like it always has, and we need to take notice because the Lord could return in the next moment.

What will those who are alive see then and who will they blame it on?

The heavens will be on fire!

The heavens will be dissolved!

All the elements that we see every day will melt in the extreme heat!

Who would want to be here to witness these things before their eternal death?

They will leave this inferno to go to and even hotter place called Hell, to even leave that place to go to an even hotter place called the Burning Lake of Fire.

Rev 20:11 And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.

Rev 20:12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

Rev 20:13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.

Rev 20:14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.

Rev 20:15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

Why do those who see the beginnings of these things think they can stop what God has said is going to happen.

The Lord is going to return to this earth!

What does that "Born Again child of God expect in his or her future?

*****2Pe 3:13 Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.

Why will the Church miss out on these things? Because God promised we would not see His wrath!

1Th_5:9 For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,

1Th_1:10 And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.

It is only those who reject the "Gospel of Jesus Christ" who will witness the wrath of God!

This is also a promise! Do not let those false teachers deceive you!

Eph_5:6 Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.

There will be and entirely New Heaven and an entirely New Earth and the most precious city will be an entirely New Jerusalem!

Rev 21:1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.

Rev 21:2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

Rev 21:3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.

These are the reasons we are foolish not to believe the absolute truth of God!

*****2Pe 3:14 Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.

Who are the beloved of God? All those who have accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as the Son of God!

1Jn_2:22 Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son.

We must diligently prepare for the coming of the Lord by being busy in the work the Lord has given us to do and this work will not prosper until we live a life of righteousness ourselves!

We are to be at peace with the promises of God!

We are to be without spot, which means we need to live cleans lives according to the Word of God.

We are to be blameless, which means we are to innocent of any wrongdoing, according to the Word of God! Also obeying the laws of man that do not conflict with the Word of God!

Eph 4:3 Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

Eph 1:7 In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;

Php 2:15 That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world;

Php 2:16 Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain.

We may suffer in this world because we have given our life to the Lord, but that suffering has an ending when the promises of God reach perfection!

*****2Pe 3:15 And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you;

2Pe 3:16 As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.

You see those that see the wrath of God and face Him at the White Throne of Judgment, will have reach that point because of their own actions.

The Lord came to save but it requires our faith in Him and the work He has done for our salvation!

Peter the Apostle to the Jews and Paul the Apostle to the Gentiles had the same exact message!

Heb_10:23 Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)

And our faith must show in the things the Lord has ask us all to do!

Jas_2:26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

These are all things that we should know if we have left the "milk" of the Word and are feasting on the "meat" of the Word of God!

*****2Pe 3:17 Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness.

2Pe 3:18 But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.

Again who are the beloved?

We see another warning of the false teachers that are filling the pulpits of today because we have no excuse not to know the truth of all these things today!

What is another part of our job until the Lord takes us home? We are to offer to all others the same "GRACE" the Lord has given to us and then we are all to grow in that grace!

We are to grow in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior! We do this in personal Bible Study with the Holy Spirit and then truthful Preaching and truthful Sunday Schools and in any other way we can gain the knowledge of the truth, remembering we are to ask God Himself when we need that little bit more of understanding!

Amen!

Let's pray!

Knowing the False Teacher in the Church

Identifying False Prophets

Book of 2 Peter 2:1-22

How many of us truly know how to recognize the false prophet? This means the false pastor, the false preacher, the false evangelist, the false bishop and any other false messenger, who are not called of God, but call themselves or allow some other group of men or women to call them.

God calls those who He chooses to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ (the Messiah)!

1Co 7:20 Let every man abide in the same calling wherein he was called.

Rom 10:15 And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!

1Co 1:17 For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect.

1Co 9:14 Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel.

2Co 4:5 For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake.

Who is that false preacher?

Let's listen to the called messenger of God, the Apostle Peter.

*****2Pe 2:1 But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.

We must remember Peter is writing to the Church. He is not talking about the world. Peter is saying these are men and women who are inside the Church!

Even Jesus warns of these people who are enemies of the Church.

Mat 7:22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?

Mat 7:23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

In fact, as we see, these are false people who have made their way into the pulpits of the Church. This is even a sign of the soon coming Rapture of the Church, before the Second Coming of Christ.

Mat 24:24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.

Mat 24:25 Behold, I have told you before.

It is the job of the Church to rid the Church of these evil people!

1Jn 4:1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.

1Jn 4:2 Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:

1Jn 4:3 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.

1Jn 4:4 Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.

1Jn 4:5 They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them.

In the Church, heresy is departing from doctrine of faith that is in the works of the Lord Jesus Christ!

Heresy is any departure from the truth of the revelation of God!

Joh 4:23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.

Joh 4:24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

Joh 8:32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

Joh 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Joh 17:17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.

Any departure from the truth of the Lord Jesus Christ and the truth of the Scriptures is "heresy", and those who do so must be removed from the church and it is the church body that has the responsibility to do so!

If you think that when you stand before the Lord Jesus Christ and this will not come up you are foolish, and there will be a terrible loss of rewards and if you stand before the Lord at the White Throne judgment you are fools if you try to use this as an excuse, that you were misled.

We all have the responsibility to study the Word of God to know that the men and in some case women (who already go against the Word of God) who are behind the pulpits, are preaching and teaching the truth.

Heresies are damnable, because it is only by the truth of the Lord Jesus Christ, that we can avoid eternal damnation!

Many listen to these preachers of damnation, out of ignorance to the Word of God!

*****2Pe 2:2 And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.

We must clearly understand that to go against the Word of God is sin and sin that is unrepented brings eternal damnation!

Anyone who teaches and encourages people to live an immoral and unrestrained sin is a false preacher or teacher who is certainly not looking out for your spiritual welfare, but are working for the devil!

They will teach that Jesus is not the true Messiah sent from God.

They will teach that there is no Triune God, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

They will teach that Jesus is certainly not any Lord and we have no Lord over our lives.

They will teach that there is no higher power and the best we can do is listen to the wisdom of the men from this world.

They will teach that there is no absolute truth and that we can live pretty much anyway we want to.

They teach lies that anyone with common sense can see straight through, but people just refuse to give up their sin and these liars just give them an excuse to do so!

I got news for you. If you belong to the Lord, you will give up all your petty sins or you are not His child!

These people speak evil of God and they teach those who are listening to them to do the same.

The Apostle Paul wrote to the early church:

Act 20:29 For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.

Act 20:30 Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.

These people only use the church to fill their pocketbooks and their bellies!

*****2Pe 2:3 And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not.

When we look up that word covetousness in the Strong's Dictionary of Greek and Hebrew words, we find the word "Avarice"

Avarice means the act of extortion, fraudulent, covetous, means to take someone elses money.

Avarice means seeking worldly wealth by any means possible, barely legal by loopholes and especially illegal or fraudulently.

We already known that wealth in itself is not a sin though the Bible does say Christians who have wealth were given that wealth to help the Church deliver the "Gospel of Jesus Christ" and also help the poor in the Church.

It is that craving for wealth that is such a sin!

The world operates under the rule of those who crave wealth and obtain it with any means possible!

It is that putting in place a means to extort that wealth from innocent victims that is such a terrible sin.

In fact it is that love of wealth that is obtained in this fashion that is sin!

1Ti_6:10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

God condemns this sin!

Isa 56:11 Yea, they are greedy dogs which can never have enough, and they are shepherds that cannot understand: they all look to their own way, every one for his gain, from his quarter.

Jer 5:25 Your iniquities have turned away these things, and your sins have withholden good things from you.

Jer 5:26 For among my people are found wicked men: they lay wait, as he that setteth snares; they set a trap, they catch men.

Jer 5:27 As a cage is full of birds, so are their houses full of deceit: therefore they are become great, and waxen rich.

Mic 3:11 The heads thereof judge for reward, and the priests thereof teach for hire, and the prophets thereof divine for money: yet will they lean upon the LORD, and say, Is not the LORD among us? none evil can come upon us.

Tit 1:10 For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision:

Tit 1:11 Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre's sake.

These are just a handful of Scriptures warning the Church of false preachers and teachers.

This is exactly what the Apostle Peter is doing here. He is not only warning the Church, he is also teaching us how to know a false teacher when we see one, even knowing that they are deceivers who see Christians as easy pickings and an easy way to make great wealth.

They mold their words together to make them sound like what God has said.

They use artificial acts of kindness to lure their congregation.

They use fictitious results to entice the poor and the unhealthy into their audiences.

They devise their plans well to get maximum wealth from a people who are trusting in Jehovah God!

God has designed the Church to receive tithes and offerings and our wealth little or much, and it is never to be given to charlatans who care nothing for the things of God!

The truth is false teachers and false preachers will be judged and destroyed.

We may ask ourselves, why do some seem to keep going and keep amassing wealth, but we must leave these things in God's hands.

They are already judged, and they will see damnation!

In fact it is the greed of gain that dominates all our world today!

You cannot pay for a higher knowledge than the Word of God given to all freely!

You cannot pay for a higher holiness than the salvation plan of God also given to each believer freely, without cost!

They would cease to exist if the Church would listen to what the Lord does teach us!

1Ti 6:5 Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself.

Tit 1:10 For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision:

Tit 1:11 Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre's sake.

God will exterminate these false, so-called men of God and it will be a terrible thing!

*****2Pe 2:4 For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment;

Judgment is coming to all to reject the truth of God but even more so to those who would distort the Word of God for their own profit!

Destruction is not now in this world compared to the destruction that is forthcoming from our Holy God!

Before the time of Adam and Eve there was the rebellion in Heaven and Lucifer and a third of the angels in Heaven.

Eze 28:16 By the multitude of thy merchandise they have filled the midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned: therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God: and I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.

Eze 28:17 Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee.

Rev 12:3 And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.

Rev 12:4 And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born.

We know that Lucifer, now called Satan, the Devil, the Deceiver, and other names is used of God to cause temptation along with a few of those angels now called demons, but the worst of those angels are already locked away in the depths of hell.

Jud 1:6 And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day.

There is no escape for those who sin!

For Lucifer and those angels that rebelled with him there will never be an opportunity for forgiveness and even Heaven will be made new because there will not even be a trace of sin in the New Heaven that is to be our home.

Rev_21:1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.

These same angels will be placed into the burning lake of fire along with Lucifer!

Another example given to us is the destruction of the old world.

*****2Pe 2:5 And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly;

It amazes me that the climate alarmist speak of so many cities and coastlines that will be underwater by the time of 2030, yet artifact after artifact are discovered under our oceans almost daily.

There are always things going on in nature that we will never understand because we are not intended to understand.

Those could afford to have always built too close to shorelines.

There are roads, cities, foundations, pyramids and many other things from the past that are found under our oceans that were once on dry land when there were no automobiles.

When there were no power plants.

When there were no industries.

When there were no causes for greenhouse gases but nature itself and of course the animals who God chose to exist with us.

In the day of Noah, it was God who flooded this earth not because of greenhouse gases but because of sin.

Judgment is coming to all who reject the Lord Jesus Christ!

*****2Pe 2:6 And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly;

2Pe 2:7 And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked:

2Pe 2:8 (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;)

We are foolish not to realize the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah!

These same sins are running rampant in our societies of today.

Sin can bring down the most magnificent cities of today just as it did in the days of Abraham.

Not one of these cities did escape and if you study the Bible there were five of those cities destroyed along with Sodom and Gomorrah.

Gen 19:25 And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground.

There is not one society of mankind that can hinder the judgment of God!

There is not one evil that can escape the destruction of God!

Only Lot and his two daughters escaped from Sodom.

Lot had been justified when He was with Abraham and this should be a lesson to us that Lot did not lose his salvation, but his godly testimony was ruined for the rest of his days. He had become useless in the work of God and became a drunk who was used of his two daughters whose lives were lives of confusion that brought to them damnation.

This is exactly what a false teacher will cause. Confusion that leads to damnation!

When you fall away from the truth of God after your salvation it can bring ruin to your entire family!

There is no one who rejects the truth of God who will not see damnation and at the same time, God will fulfill His promise to deliver everyone who has claimed the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Savior.

*****2Pe 2:9 The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished:

We live in a world that has no respect for the knowledge of God and false teachers and false preachers take advantage of our laziness in the Scriptures.

The Bible was not just written for the preacher to study and give us his thoughts.

The Bible was written so we can learn and see for ourselves what God has actually said!

The true teacher and preacher will help us to understand what God has written!

God knows how to deliver us from all things, but we must pay attention to what He says and not what man says.

God also knows how to rid this world of the unjust. Those who have not been "justified" by the truth of God!

God does not cause our suffering.

God does not tempt us in any way.

God does allow us to go through some of these things to make us stronger!

God knows how to deliver us out of the conflicts of this life.

We must remember most of our problems come because we have given in to temptation!

Some of our problems come because of Christian persecution!

The remainder of our problems are the same problems that everyone else has in this life!

God explains to us everything pertaining to life! Where life began and where life will end and then God teaches us how to avoid the pitfalls of life.

God knows how to meet the needs of His people.

There is much difference in the "unjust" and those who have been "justified" (the just)!

*****2Pe 2:10 But chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government. Presumptuous are they, selfwilled, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities.

So what do these false teachers and false preachers do? How can we know them besides the things that they teach?

They walk after the flesh! They walk just like those of the world!

The flesh in itself is not evil, it is what we do in that flesh is evil!

We are spirit and we are flesh.

The spirit will seek spiritual things and lead us to the Holy Spirit who will lead us the Lord.

The flesh will seek food, recognition, love, companionship, and the necessities of life and these are normal desires that we all have.

False teachers walk in the lusts of the flesh, which is covetousness, an evil desire for all things of the flesh, especially monetary things!

False teachers teach to satisfy the flesh and their message is to gain recognition and livelihood and that message will change according to their own best interest!

Just like the lost, because they are lost, they want to do things their own way!

They neglect the Lordship of Christ!

They neglect the truth of God!

*****2Pe 2:11 Whereas angels, which are greater in power and might, bring not railing accusation against them before the Lord.

False teachers despise authority especially the authority of God!

They stress rights.

They stress freedom.

They stress liberty.

They stress the right to live in any way you want to.

The evidence of this truth can be seen in most every denomination today, who are led by false teachers!

These false teachers will question spiritual things.

They will have nothing good to say about the things of Heaven.

They will question the work of the angels even their existence.

They will question all the spiritual world.

They will doubt that there is a spiritual world that going on around us.

They openly reject that there is a Devil!

In doing so they are calling the Lord a liar.

Col 2:8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.

Col 2:9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.

Col 2:10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:

Col 2:11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:

Col 2:12 Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.

Col 2:13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;

Col 2:14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;

Col 2:15 And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.

What does God actually think of false preachers and false teachers?

*****2Pe 2:12 But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption;

2Pe 2:13 And shall receive the reward of unrighteousness, as they that count it pleasure to riot in the day time. Spots they are and blemishes, sporting themselves with their own deceivings while they feast with you;

2Pe 2:14 Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls: an heart they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed children:

2Pe 2:15 Which have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness;

2Pe 2:16 But was rebuked for his iniquity: the dumb ass speaking with man's voice forbad the madness of the prophet.

It is easy to see God does not think anything good about these foolish men and women.

We must keep in mind Peter is writing to the saints of God! "to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ" 2Peter 1:1

When we look out across a field at magnificent bulls of the herd, we see brute beast who do not have a clue to the meaning of life and certainly not eternal life. Who are raised to be destroyed for their meat.

Much, Much, different from that under-shepherd who are guardians of God's flock.

These brute beasts only speak evil of the things of God they have no understanding and they never will, because they do not have the Holy Spirit living within them!

They will perish in their own corruption.

You know there could still be at least one more great awakening for the Church of God, where the truth of God will come back to the top.

Let's pray for this to happen!

But these will receive their reward!

What do we see of false teachers who are reaping great monetary things from God's people?

They openly show their wealth. Their jet plains. Their lifestyle. Making friends with the unbelievers of this world while rejecting the standards God has set for His people.

They share in the social affairs of the world still rejecting the Lordship of Christ.

They make great prayers without mentioning the Lord.

They in fact blemish all the things of the Lord Jesus Christ.

God has only one request for His people!

Rom 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

Rom 12:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

They are not pure in their relationship with the Lord because they have gone to bed with the world.

We need only look at the major denominations of the Church to see that these things are true!

They cannot cease from sin.

They do not condemn abortion, but they endorse it.

They do not condemn the sexual relations of two men.

They do not condemn the sexual relations of two women.

They do not condemn all sexual relations outside the marriage.

In fact they do not condemn sin at all, because they have not repented themselves and their names are not written down in the Lamb's Book of Life and they have condemned all relationships with the Lord Jesus Christ.

They have cursed the next generation of the Church (our children) because they do not teach the truth of the Scriptures.

I should say "all the truth" because they do teach just enough of twisted truth to keep you giving to them!

They then turn right around and accept the teachings of the world.

They condemn our Creator and the teachings of the Book of Genesis!

In the Bible, we see Balaam did have some knowledge of God, but at the same time he thought he could stand up to God and talk God into going against His own Words.

Balaam could not curse Israe, but he did give King Balak a plan that would cause Israel to stumble when he sent all numbers of women into the camps of Israel where fornication occurred.

Rev 2:14 But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication.

Balaam was so caught up in his deceit that even the jackass he was riding was far smarter than he was in the things of the Lord!

Num 22:28 And the LORD opened the mouth of the ass, and she said unto Balaam, What have I done unto thee, that thou hast smitten me these three times?

Num 22:29 And Balaam said unto the ass, Because thou hast mocked me: I would there were a sword in mine hand, for now would I kill thee.

Num 22:30 And the ass said unto Balaam, Am not I thine ass, upon which thou hast ridden ever since I was thine unto this day? was I ever wont to do so unto thee? And he said, Nay.

Num 22:31 Then the LORD opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel of the LORD standing in the way, and his sword drawn in his hand: and he bowed down his head, and fell flat on his face.

Num 22:32 And the angel of the LORD said unto him, Wherefore hast thou smitten thine ass these three times? behold, I went out to withstand thee, because thy way is perverse before me:

Balaam was no more than a false teacher for hire just like those false teachers of today!

The Lord is not thorough in His condemnation of false teachers.

*****2Pe 2:17 These are wells without water, clouds that are carried with a tempest; to whom the mist of darkness is reserved for ever.

2Pe 2:18 For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error.

Water is the most necessary ingredient for all living beings, along with the air we breathe!

The fruitfulness of any land depends on the quantity and the quality of water that is available.

This is the reason that God has placed more water on this earth than there is dry land.

Water brings life!

A false teacher cannot bring life!

They are only empty wells that look refreshing from a distance, but only contain no water or poisoned water that is undrinkable.

We see great clouds sometimes that are pushed by the winds in which we see the opportunity of life-giving rain to nourish our lands, but some just blow on by having released none of moisture that is in them.

They looked like a great promise of life, but in the end, they kept it to themselves.

A false teacher may seem to carry the Words of Life, but in the end, they carry only death!

They may be great speakers, but their words are empty!

Their allure appeals to the lusts of our flesh, but they offer nothing for the soul, but the promise of God's judgment!

They lure the "Babe in Christ" and those who refuse to study the Word of God themselves, with great promises of truth that are only lies that destroy families, that destroy nations and then bring eternal death and they do these things intentionally.

In trials it would be called premeditation and they are true murderers who will answer to the Almighty God and they will be destroyed themselves!

If we are not rooted and grounded in the Word of God ourselves, we can fall into the traps of false teachers who are only seeking earthly wealth but bring only death to themselves and those who listen to their message!

They make great promises!

*****2Pe 2:19 While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage.

The Lord Jesus Christ has released us from the bondage of sin, but these false teachers who make that same promises only involve those who listen to them in corruption and again make them servants of lies.

This is the one great goal of Satan.

Satan cannot touch the saint of God, but he will enlist false teachers who make the promise of life that is in actuality the promise of death or in the least, useless in the plan of God!

Their lie is that we are all entitled to a life of freedom, but that freedom is a life of selfishness.

A life of greed, a life of desire, a life of lust.

Freedom to seek their own pleasures anywhere they can find them.

It is in our sinful nature to desire more and more and the false teacher will expound on these things and we can notice that the pews are full of those who fall into this trap of the devil.

The message of God is real! If we are overcome by lies that lead to sin, then we have again become servants of sin and no longer the servants of God!

What is the truth?

*****2Pe 2:20 For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning.

We can see that we have a strong warning from the Lord. Again the Holy Ghost is writing to the church!

"Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ":

Any false teacher who once knew the Lord and has returned to the world, his fate will be much worse than if he had never begun a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.

If we base our lives on the message of these false men and women, we will not be any better off than them!

We must understand we live in a polluted world and I am not talking about the filth of polluting nature. I am speaking of a world polluted with sin.

Pollutions in this Scripture speaks of immorality. We live in a nation that at this time is polluted with immorality!

It is immoral pollutions right now that come from indulging in the sinful pleasures of this world, which are not pleasures at all, but just rejection of the truth of God.

We cannot allow ourselves to be drawn back into the foolishness of this world and this is what will happen if we allow false teachers to get a foothold in our church!

It is only by the laws of God and the knowledge of God that we can escape these things.

God would not tell us these things if they were not true!

*****2Pe 2:21 For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them.

2Pe 2:22 But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.

If a dog returning to its vomit is not repulsive to us, then think in the mind of Christ of that one who said they loved Him, but have now rejected Him and returned to their sinful life.

What about the old hog that won a prize at the fair, but at its first opportunity will rush back to that mire to wallow in its own filth.

These things should sink in, because the Holy Ghost is warning us, the church, the saints of God.

God will deal with those false teachers and it will be extremely harsh, but here God is warning the Church the backbone of Christianity.

It is easy to fall back into sin!

It is more difficult to recover each time you allow this to happen!

God used that word entangled for a reason, because sin has its traps and snares, the more we struggle in these things the more we become in bondage again to sin!

Sin has always been terrible, but we are foolish if we cannot see that sin in this world is growing tremendously and we may not recover if we sink back into this sinful world today!

The world is full of moral corruption. To escape this corrupt world is of the greatest importance!

To fall back into the traps of sin can be devastating!

Our only escape is the knowledge of Jesus Christ and accepting His Word as the truth!

What did Jesus say?

Mat 12:44 Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished.

Mat 12:45 Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation.

We will never be able to clean ourselves up!

We must be washed in the blood of Jesus Christ.

We must be washed by the Holy Spirit and this washing begins when we are washed in the Word of God!

1Co_6:11 And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.

After we are washed, we must to our very best to remain clean!

If we depend on the Word of God, then we must beware of those who distort the Word of God.

Not only by wicked men and women but also by those who continuously bring forth distorted Bibles.

Amen.

Let's Pray!