Rest in the Truth of Our Savior

 Rest in the Lord

Book of Psalms Chapter 37

Last week we studied a Psalm of David he wrote while in his twenties.

This week we study a Psalm of David written while he was in his sixties approaching the end of his life.

He had been through many wars.

He had experienced the results of his sin with Bathsheba who was now his wife and the mother of Solomon.

At this time David was doing a lot of meditating on rest much like all of us that have reached these same years in our own lifetime.

That word "rest" has more than one meaning.

Most people look at "rest" as to stop doing any work at all. Our bodies are at rest when they cease to move.

What did the Lord Jesus say about rest?

Mat 11:28  Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 

Mat 11:29  Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 

Mat 11:30  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. 

Our Lord Jesus says, "if we will submit to His teaching, we will find true rest".

It takes far less labor to work in the toils of righteousness than it takes to live a sinful unrighteous life.

We could say our nation is at rest because we are not at war with any other nation but I do not feel at rest because of all the things happening in our world.

I think our leaders could do more to protect us from the turmoil that is certainly coming to our nation because of the lack of true leadership in the government that is now in place.

Jehovah told Israel that they could find rest when they reached the promised land.

Deu 12:9  For ye are not as yet come to the rest and to the inheritance, which the LORD your God giveth you. 

Deu 12:10  But when ye go over Jordan, and dwell in the land which the LORD your God giveth you to inherit, and when he giveth you rest from all your enemies round about, so that ye dwell in safety; 

We know that this rest did not come until the time of King Solomon the son of David and it did not last long and Israel is not at rest even today.

There is another place where it says that Israel had rest for eighty years but even this is not a long time.

It is nothing like the rest that is promised to the Body of Christ when we reach Heaven, the true Promised Land.

This is the place where we can find rest for our souls.

Heb_4:9  There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.

Rev 7:14  And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 

Rev 7:15  Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. 

Rev 7:16  They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. 

Rev 7:17  For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.

These things sound like rest to me. 

Even though the burdens of righteousness are not as heavy as the burdens of being in sin, there is true rest coming to us when we get to Heaven.

Let us begin our lesson today:

*****Psa 37:1  A Psalm of David. Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. 

Psa 37:2  For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb. 

Many a Christian today suffers while the wicked seem to prosper as they live in sin.

Our lesson today has some answers to this question of; "why do bad things happen to good people while the bad people seem to prosper".

David wrote this Psalm when he was living in his later years after seeing many things throughout his life.

Last week's lesson David was a young man probably in his twenties.

Today David was in his late sixties when he wrote this Psalm.

David had been King of Israel for more than thirty years and had witnessed many things in his lifetime.

Most of us, who have called upon the name of Christ, realize that our lives were in turmoil until we placed our trust in our Savior.

One of the things we have realized is that we cannot overlook the presence of evildoers in our world.

They are bent upon our destruction.

Even in the United States that we love, Christians are now considered to be as bad as terrorists.

We will have to deal with the personal wrongs committed against us by ungodly people!

The Holy Spirit says, "fret not thyself because of evil doers".

We must not wear ourselves out because of these things. Their day of grief is certainly coming.

To fret also means, besides stop worrying, we should not be murmuring or complaining to God or to each other about these things.

To fret is an inward ailment that affects our bodies and our souls.

The Lord tells us to not get upset because of these wicked people.

We must not let our emotions get the best of us.

We will become angry at the injustice of their successes.

The Holy Spirit reminds us that they will not endure and Judgment Day was coming to them.

As far as King David, he had realized that all his old enemies were now gone or dead and it was he who was prosperous as King of Israel they who suffered.

Mighty things happen in our lives when we trust in the Lord.

*****Psa 37:3  Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed. 

The most crucial decision we can make in our lifetime is to trust in the Lord and do good.

Our faith in the Lord can cure any ailment!

Our faith in the Lord has placed us on the winning side.

When we yield to fear we cannot do good, and when we put our effort into doing good, we will not yield to fear.

Working for God will keep our minds occupied.

The Holy Spirit teaches us:

Php_4:8  Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Again for the Jews they could dwell in the land God had promised to them.

For the Body of Christ it is Heaven that has been promised to us.

We are only strangers and pilgrims on the land called earth.

Everything we invest our time and our money in will fade away but the blessings we receive from the Lord are everlasting.

As we grow in our faith, we will find that there is immense pleasure in serving our Lord and Savior.

*****Psa 37:4  Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. 

We just cannot allow this world we live in to rob us of the joys of serving the Lord Jesus Christ.

It is a fact that the more faith we have in the Lord the more blessings we can earn here upon this earth but even more of the treasures of Heaven.

Joy is mentioned as part of the fruit of the Holy Spirit.

Gal_5:22  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,

Gal 5:23  Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. 

Eph_5:9  (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;)

For the Body of Christ it is simple. If we have the Holy Spirit living within us then we are to follow in His ways and not our own ways.

We can see how those that are determined to go their own ways are destroying our nation today.

Gal 5:25  If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. 

If we delight ourselves in the Lord, He promises to answer our prayers.

For those who cannot ever seem to get a prayer answered, this is a very important part of this lesson today.

It takes a full commitment to the Lord to get our prayers answered.

*****Psa 37:5  Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.

Psa 37:6  And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday.

To commit to the Lord is to place our lives in His hands and get busy serving Him.

This means all our cares, all our necessities, all our business, and all our wants, are we to give to the Lord so He can manage our lives according to the Word of God.

When we are facing severe trials, many of us falsely conclude that God is judging us just as we read in the Book of Job but this is not true.

A child of God has already been judged and determined to be a child of God.

If we commit ourselves to the Lord, He will answer our prayers and when the world attacks us, He will vindicate us.

As things get worse for the Christian, the best thing we can do is to remain close to God and continue to serve Him.

The fight with wickedness belongs to the Lord.

We are to be obedient Christians and stand our ground upon the truth of the Word of God

Our time upon this earth is growing short.

What did the Holy Spirit tell Timothy?

2Ti 3:12  Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.

2Ti_3:13  But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.

Then Paul told Timothy to just continue serving the Lord.

We must simply understand that everything happening in our world is going on according to the plan of

God but we should remember that God is not the cause of these evil things but He does allow these things happen according to His plan.

No one can stop God's plan and no one can change God's plan!

These things of God will become as visible to mankind as the light of the sun at noonday.

Righteousness will win in the end!

The truth of God will become so clearly seen it will make the Atheists cry, but they still will not come to the Lord, but will hate Him even more.

For God will send to them a loss of memory and they will rebel against each other.

It will be the same for all false religions.

Rom 1:18  For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; 

Rom 1:19  Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. 

Rom 1:20  For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: 

Rom 1:21  Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 

Nothing changes for the Christian as we are to patiently wait upon the Lord and rest in the truth of the Word of God.

*****Psa 37:7  Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass. 

We are never to complain about the way the Lord deals with this ungodly world, even though some of our family members are in that group.

We can teach them the plan of salvation, but they have to make their own minds up about salvation.

The Body of Christ is to quietly submit to the entire will of God and patiently wait upon His help.

To rest in the Lord is to place ourselves into the hands of God and be useful.

Remember that there is no one who can remove us from the hand of God and God will never cast us away.

Isa 30:15  For thus saith the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel; In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength: and ye would not. 

Israel would not do this and it cost them dearly, but the Body of Christ must not be like Israel.

Our strength comes by being obedient to this passage as our time grows short.

It does not matter as we see the rich get richer.

It does matter that our confidence remains in the truth of the Word of God!

Ecc 5:8  If thou seest the oppression of the poor, and violent perverting of judgment and justice in a province, marvel not at the matter: for he that is higher than the highest regardeth; and there be higher than they. 

It is hard to see the corruption going on in our own nation and the only tools we have are our prayers and our vote. 

Obeying the Word of God must still be our goal remembering that our prayers are the greatest tool we have.

Come voting time we are to vote according to the truth of the Word of God, but it is God who will put our next president in place for His own reasons and our job remains for us to be obedient to all the Word of God.

1) We must trust in the Lord.

2) We must delight in the Lord.

3) We must commit ourselves to the Lord.

4)We must focus on the Lord and His faithfulness rather than upon the ways of this wicked world.

God has already judged them and they will find out that Hell is a real place.

We may get disheartened in what we see of the wicked side of our world while many of us struggle every day, but this is not the attitude God wants from His people and we must be obedient to the Lord.

*****Psa 37:8  Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil. 

Psa 37:9  For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the LORD, they shall inherit the earth.

Discontent is not only foolish but it can be dangerous because it could lead us to deny God's providence.

We see many so-called Christians today who have joined the evildoers because they are not content with the Word of God and the actions of God.

If we dwell upon the prosperity of evildoers, we are apt to envy them and envy leads to strife, division, and hatred.

Jas 3:16  For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work. 

It is foolish to rage against the ungodly whom we see prosper, since they will certainly be cut off eventually.

I can tell you that it makes me mad every time I see where a super-rich person gives billions to charity, when that charity supports wickedness, when if it were given to a wise church and maybe souls could be saved.

They would be better off if they gave that money to pay down our national debt rather than just throw it away to support apostasy.

We can see that we are taught to live in inner peace even though we see all this wickedness in our nation and in this world.

The truth is that God will deal with the wicked and God will take care of His children.

Mat 6:33  But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. 

Mat 6:34  Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. 

Jesus says we have more important things to concentrate on than the wickedness of this world.

*****Psa 37:10  For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be.

We should ask ourselves why in the world would we be envious of wicked and evil people.

We must never allow the prosperity of the wicked prevent us from living a higher standard established by Jesus Christ Himself.

What is the truth of each Christian?

*****Psa 37:23  The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and he delighteth in his way.

Psa 37:24  Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the LORD upholdeth him with his hand. 

God blesses the righteous, He does not bless the wicked!

God has put every good person in a particular course of life and we must travel that course with the wisdom from Heaven.

If we remember those first baby steps when our children began to walk, we should understand the walk of a baby Christian.

One step in the wrong direction can cause them to fall.

It is the same for the baby Christian.

It is not long before a small child can walk with confidence.

That babe in Christ can soon walk in confidence when they walk in the wisdom from Heaven.

God orders and establishes the details of everyone of His children.

Pro 16:9  A man's heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps. 

We live in a world that is getting more dangerous every day.

We must be aware of these things but we are not to be too concerned about these things.

As Christians we may not always have what we want but we find out that we have enough when we trust in the Lord.

*****Psa 37:25  I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread. 

Most all of us can relate to this verse because we have seen many things as we have aged.

It is true that we have never seen the righteous deserted by God.

God will never forsake His children!

I see a lot of people standing on the side of the road begging but in many cases today this is a business operated to make money and it has caused harm to some that were really in need.

I not seen where any of these were Christians because a true Church will help the needy in that Church.

Because God is merciful then we are to be merciful if we want to be like Him.

*****Psa 37:26  He is ever merciful, and lendeth; and his seed is blessed. 

As Christians we are not to hoard anything that the Lord has loaned to us.

Everything we have was given to us by the Lord and we are to share some of these things with others if there is a need.

By helping others we bring God's blessings not only upon ourselves but also our children who follow in our footsteps.

The truth is it is better to be righteous than to have any of the world's possessions.

*****Psa 37:27  Depart from evil, and do good; and dwell for evermore. 

Psa 37:28  For the LORD loveth judgment, and forsaketh not his saints; they are preserved for ever: but the seed of the wicked shall be cut off. 

The greatest blessing we can get after our salvation is that we will live forever in a place so wonderful that we do not have the words to describe it.

This is the promise we receive from the almighty living God.

The Lord loves justice and He will see that those who abuse His children will be punished.

In fact this verse says that the children of the wicked will be cut off.

It is far better to be walking with Jesus Christ than to be walking in step with the world.

God will never abandon those who walk with His Son!

Nothing in this world can over power the Almighty God!

All those who reject the Lord Jesus Christ have no protection and will certainly perish in God's judgment.

The children of God will be enjoying the inheritance that God has prepared for them.

*****Psa 37:29  The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell therein for ever.

We can rest assured in the truth of the Word of God.

When we love the Word of God and hide it in our hearts, we will find the strength to resist the strong pull of our flesh to turn to worldly things.

In fact we will find out that our own flesh is the greatest enemy we have to face throughout our lifetime.

We cannot be perfect as long as we are in this body of flesh but we can live a life of righteousness if we depend upon the Lord to walk with us all our days.

Amen

The Sweet Psalmist of Israel

 Seek the Lord

Book of Psalms Chapter 34

In Psalms 34 we have another psalm of David. We know that David wrote more of the Psalms than any other writer, keeping in mind that all Scripture is given to us by the Holy Spirit.

This psalm is another psalm that David wrote while he was fleeing from King Saul who was trying to kill David because Jehovah had selected David to be the next King of Israel.

We should understand that when the word "bless" is spoken in reference to the Lord's blessing to His people, it means the bestowing His loving kindness, His grace, His favor, and His mercy.

When the word "bless" is spoken in respect to our blessing the Lord, then it is much different.

We should ask ourselves how we can bless the God of all creation.

We must understand that all blessings are in the Lord Jesus Christ!

When Jesus Christ is not in your heart you cannot be a true blessing to anyone!

Jesus Christ is our blessedness!

We have nothing worthwhile to offer anyone if we cannot offer them an opportunity to meet Jesus Christ!

It is not enough to see the hand of Jesus Christ as He touches our lives with His mercy and His "grace", but Jesus Christ must be seen as that blessing sent from God!

Psa 31:7  I will be glad and rejoice in thy mercy: for thou hast considered my trouble; thou hast known my soul in adversities; 

Psa 31:8  And hast not shut me up into the hand of the enemy: thou hast set my feet in a large room. 

David was a man of war all his days even though his heart belonged to Jehovah.

With his reputation it was hard for David to be a witness for the truth about Jehovah.

This is one of the reasons David was not allowed to build the first Temple and his son Solomon had to build it.

The one thing David had that most of us do not have was a talent to sing and make and play instruments of music and write songs.

The Lord Jesus Christ is certainly worthy of our praise just as Jehovah was in the time of David.

I believe David understood these things which is why he could write so many of the Psalms.

Let us begin:

Psa 34:1  A Psalm of David, when he changed his behaviour before Abimelech; who drove him away, and he departed. I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.

If you know the story of David then you have read of the day, he had foolishly showed himself mad in consequence of what he had heard the servants of Abimelech say. 

We will notice that Achish and Abimelech are one and the same king of the Philistines.

We should also note that this place called Gath was the home of Goliath and the family of Goliath and David was foolish to ask for help in this place.

When David realized this, he began to act like he had gone mad and Achish sent him away unharmed rather than kill him.

1Sa 21:13  And he changed his behaviour before them, and feigned himself mad in their hands, and scrabbled on the doors of the gate, and let his spittle fall down upon his beard. 

1Sa 21:14  Then said Achish unto his servants, Lo, ye see the man is mad: wherefore then have ye brought him to me? 

1Sa 21:15  Have I need of mad men, that ye have brought this fellow to play the mad man in my presence? shall this fellow come into my house? 

It was not this king of the Philistines that David needed it was Jehovah God whom David needed.

God had already done many important things for David therefore David declared that he would bless the name of the Lord all his days.

We are a blessing to the Lord when we worship Him with all our heart.

We cannot leave the Lord out of our lives and expect to have joy in this corrupt world.

I can tell you from the experience of missing the worship services I have missed these past few weeks, that there is only misery out in this world and joy comes only by the Lord Jesus Christ.

*****Psa 34:2  My soul shall make her boast in the LORD: the humble shall hear thereof, and be glad. 

To be honest, how many of us understood about our soul until we met Jesus?

David began to realize that is praise and worship of the Lord would be noticed by those around him.

When David pick up his harp and began to praise and worship Jehovah there were many ears that heard his singing.

Just as we can find comfort in these same Psalms today, those that traveled with David could find comfort in his singing.

Remember those who were with David were those who were the outcasts of society.

Jer 9:24  But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the LORD which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the LORD. 

There is nothing in this world that we owe our allegiance to other than our Savior!

Psa 5:11  But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee. 

Psa 5:12  For thou, LORD, wilt bless the righteous; with favour wilt thou compass him as with a shield.

It is far easier to lead someone to the Lord if you are joyful in your salvation.

It is easy to bless the Lord when everything is going our way.

We can also be a blessing to the Lord when we explain to Him all our troubles and have faith that He will solve those issues for us.

Faith is the key to our relationship with our Heavenly Father!

David was on the run from a government who was trying to kill him, but he knew that he must be a blessing to the Lord during those times also.

No matter what we are going through, it is not time to quit on God!

We do this if we have moved away from the Lord because we will have quenched the Holy Spirit who lives within us.

1Th 5:15  See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men. 

1Th 5:16  Rejoice evermore. 

1Th 5:17  Pray without ceasing. 

1Th 5:18  In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. 

1Th 5:19  Quench not the Spirit.

Even on a difficult day we are never alone if we are a "Born Again" child of God!

Eph 5:20  Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; 

We are never to feel hopeless because we are never hopeless if we belong to Jesus Christ!

We are to be an encouragement to those around us at all times because we all need encouragement from time to time.

A joyful believer is a powerful tool in the hands of God!

A believer who is going through terrible things is also a powerful tool if they still show faith in the Living God.

*****Psa 34:3  O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together. 

We may not be able to lead everyone we meet to the Lord so that they can be saved, but we can surely invite them to our place of worship so they will see others who worship the Lord and are a blessing to Him.

When we "magnify" the Lord we proclaim His greatness.

There are times we are to be alone when we bless the Lord and there is nothing wrong with this.

The Lord tells us to get in our closet so we can meet face to face with Him.

The truth is that God's praises just sound best when those praises are in concert with others!

We should understand that David was no longer welcome to worship in the Tabernacle.

If David wanted to worship in concert with others, then he would have to be the example in the Cave at Adullam with many who did not know the Lord but there were probably some that did.

When David picked up his harp and bellowed out these Psalms that we have today, there were many others in that cave with him who could relate to his sorrows and learn the truth of Jehovah.

Most of these men were outlaws for one reason or another.

We must understand that the Lord wants us to gather in His name and worship Him in a congregation.

Heb_10:25  Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

Those who do not see the "Day of the Lord" approaching are not concerned with our world today but those who do know that now is not the time to give up on the Lord should gather more often and not less often.

David was burdened down with all his fears because he had not given those fears to the Lord, but when he did, David found his Deliverer.

The same Deliverer we have today.

*****Psa 34:4  I sought the LORD, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears. 

Just what is fear?

The Bible says that there is only one creature that was made that had no fear.

Job 41:33  Upon earth there is not his like, who is made without fear.

This verse is speaking of the Leviathan.

All others are afraid of something in this world from time to time.

David admits to his fears.

Our fears come from a conscious sense that we are sinners.

We should understand that David had already faced a lion and defeated it.

David had already faced a bear and defeated it.

David had already faced Goliath and defeated him.

David had done these things before the age of twenty.

At this time David was fleeing for life from an unstable king and a government trying to destroy him because it did not want David to be king.

This sounds familiar to what we are seeing today in our own nation and our own government.

We would not think of David as a man full of fears, yet he professed he had more than one fear to the Lord.

If we belong to the Lord there is nothing in this world that we should fear!

Rom 8:15  For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. 

If we have these fears then we certainly need to talk to the Lord.

*****Psa 34:5  They looked unto him, and were lightened: and their faces were not ashamed. 

Psa 34:6  This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles. 

The very first thing we must do, is to take our eyes off the fears of this world and look to Jesus.

The Lord Jesus said: 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.

David began to realize that he was not in a hopeless situation when he put his faith in Jehovah.

Eyes that were darkened with doom did suddenly sparkle with new courage, hope, and joy.

It is called seeing the Light of Jesus.

Those in that cave with David could also see these things in David. 

Our life and our actions are our greatest witness to the life of a Christian.

David had never known the shame of defeat and he would not feel that shame as long as he depended upon God.

Today, when we depend upon the Lord Jesus Christ to lead us, He will always lead us to victory.

The Lord Jesus will never lead us to a defeated life.

1Co_15:57  But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

There are only two things that can happen when we call upon the Lord in our fears.

1) He will just remove that obstacle in our path.

2) He will go with us every step of the way. We never have to face our fears alone!

David wanted those with him to know that there was no mistake to who deserved the credit for our victories.

We do not have it in us to be victorious over the things of this world!

Victory can only come if we cry out to the Lord and place our faith in Him!

It is only by the faithfulness and the power of the Almighty God that we can have victory and live in victory throughout eternity.

We are all poor unless we know the riches of a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.

All those in that cave with David could relate to the things David was singing about.

What is the truth?

*****Psa 34:7  The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them. 

All throughout the Old Testament we read about the "Angel of the Lord". In fact, fifty-six times we can see this exact phrase.

This angel of the Lord is that being who appears as Jehovah's representative in His dealing with mankind until the time of Jesus Christ.

What was the job of this angel? He protects all those who have a reverent fear of Jehovah God.

He is like an army encamping around each believer.

He was in fact the Captain of the angelic host.

Jos 5:13  And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there stood a man over against him with his sword drawn in his hand: and Joshua went unto him, and said unto him, Art thou for us, or for our adversaries? 

Jos 5:14  And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the LORD am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my lord unto his servant? 

Jos 5:15  And the captain of the LORD'S host said unto Joshua, Loose thy shoe from off thy foot; for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Joshua did so.

This Captain of the LORD's host can be no other than the Lord Jesus Christ because no angel will allow us to worship them but Lucifer and this is not Lucifer. There is not one thing holy about Lucifer!

We know that the omnipotent Son of God can immediately and single-handedly overcome all our enemies.

The truth is that our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ does supernaturally protect all those who have that reverent fear of Him.

There is an angel near us at all times!

The Lord is always willing and able to help us!

Psa 9:10  And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek thee. 

*****Psa 34:8  O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him. 

What is the first step to a blessing from God? Simply trust in Him.

There is no other way of really knowing how good, Good is!

It is like the Word of God. We are not to sample part of the Word of God and just keep the part we like.

We cannot just sample God's goodness!

In reality we are to take every action necessary to receive all that God promises to all those who trust Him.

To trust the Lord is to accept all of Him. 

To reject any part of the Lord is to accept none of Him.

When we study the Word of God, we will see that God is truly good!

To trust is to run to the Lord for the protection that can come from nowhere else.

What is the next step to a blessing from God?

*****Psa 34:9  O fear the LORD, ye his saints: for there is no want to them that fear him. 

We must have a reverent fear of God but we must also have a godly fear. 

After all He is all powerful and it is only, He who can supply our wants.

We must have a sense of gratitude for what the Lord has already done for us.

When we accept the salvation gift from the Lord, we must know that we are just getting started in a life that is close to God.

The Apostle Paul wrote:

Php_3:13  Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,

There is nothing in our past life that is worth clinging too.

We have seen in this lesson that these words of David, applied to David and all of Israel, but they also apply to every Christian today.

Salvation and life eternal are the greatest gifts that the Lord can offer to us, but these thing are just the beginning of the blessings that the Lord promises to all those who trust Him.

Faith is still the key to our life long relationship with our Heavenly Father through the Lord Jesus Christ!

*****Psa 34:10  The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger: but they that seek the LORD shall not want any good thing. 

The mother and father of that cub did provide all things necessary for the early life of that lion cub.

Those cubs will reach a point when those parents will quit providing for that cub and they will have to provide for themselves and many days they will go hungry until they become proficient to provide for themselves.

Even the strongest lion will suffer and want for a time and maybe many times.

This is true for all the animal world, but this is not true for all of us who seek to get closer to the Lord.

This is a powerful statement. “they that seek the Lord shall not want for any good thing."

1) God does not provide bad things. Those come from Satan.

2) Those that seek the Lord shall not want for any good thing. Those good things that the Lord has approved as good for us.

When we see the word Lord in all capital letters we know this is YAHWEH, Jehovah the absolute God of all creation.

Exo 3:13  And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? 

Exo 3:14  And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. 

Exo 3:15  And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations. 

As David found the right place in the cave of Adullam, he would sing these Psalms with all his heart and all those near to him would listen for they were as near death as was David.

Just as they found the words of these Psalms to be comforting, so can we here today.

If we truly wish to taste the goodness of the Lord ourselves then we must trust Him including all the words He has given to us.

It is the atoning blood of Jesus Christ that will keep us from seeing the wrath of this powerful, Almighty God.

It is this same Lord who will carry us through the storms of this life we live today.

We must also understand that we have greater needs than food, shelter, and clothing.

Only the Lord knows our needs and our deepest needs are spiritual.

When we have the gift of salvation provided for us by the Lord Jesus Christ, we also have a relationship with God the Father and when we have God, we have all we need.

2Co_3:5  Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God;

David became the most beloved King of Israel and David's rag tag bunch of outlaws became a mighty army because of the sweet Psalmist of Israel.

2Sa_23:1  Now these be the last words of David. David the son of Jesse said, and the man who was raised up on high, the anointed of the God of Jacob, and the sweet psalmist of Israel, said,

It will remain the same for the Church today if we continue to seek the Lord Jesus Christ!

Amen

God' Guidance for His Church

 Guidance for Church Life

Book of 2 Thessalonians Chapter 3

In the end Paul knew that the prayers from each church were more important than all other things.

It is the same today. Prayer is the power behind the Church!

Prayer is very different from preaching, and yet a moment’s reflection will show how they work together. 

Prayer speaks to God for man; preaching speaks to man for God. 

Prayer seeks to bring God to man; preaching aims to bring man to God. 

Prayer moves God towards man; preaching persuades man to seek after God. 

Prayer makes known unto God man’s request; preaching reveals to man God’s mind and will. 

Preaching casts in the seed; prayer brings the rain and the sunshine.

Preaching deposits the leaven; prayer secures the hand which adds to it working. 

Preaching utters the good tidings; prayer carries the sound to the ear and makes that all sensitive. 

Preaching is doing the practical work which man can do; prayer asks for what God only can do, and for that which is necessary to the success of that which the man can do. 

Now the Apostle Paul switches to a subject that we all already know, "work and employment".

Preacher Sam says it all the time, the Holy Spirit was not just given to us for our enjoyment but was given to us more importantly for our employment!

*****2Th 3:5  And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ. 

2Th 3:6  Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye "withdraw" yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition which he received of us. 

It is extremely hard to be patient in this wicked world we live in, but the Lord Jesus Christ directs each of us to be patient while we wait upon His return.

It helps us to stay away from unbelievers unless we are witnessing to them.

Here we see it is very important to get away from so-called brothers and sisters in Christ who walk against the truth of the Word of God.

We also see in this verse that God commands us to stay away from those who refuse to work and provide for themselves.

As our lesson states, we are to withdraw our fellowship and remove them from church membership.

If you have worked for any amount of time, you have seen workers who slack off and do as little as possible.

These are the same ones who work only when they see the boss coming.

There are also far too many today who just refuse to work and want someone, even the church to provide for them.

Why are there so many recalls in every industry today? Why? Because the work forces of America do not have pride in their work.

They are just in it for the money.

Now I certainly believe in a fair wage and there are many who are just not paid enough, but there are many who depend on the unions to cause an increase in wages when they maybe taking that company into closing the doors.

The Bible commands us to walk away from such people who walk disorderly, that is who do not work.

In the early days of the church, the Thessalonians became so excited about the return of the Lord Jesus Christ they began to sacrifice all their possessions to meet the needs of the Church people but they went too far.

They ignored the Word of God that only God knows when He will return to this earth.

They even began to project the dates of the Lord's return.

Some even quit their jobs to have more time to witness for the Lord.

When these things did not take place as they thought, they depended upon the Church to support them.

These things caused many problems for this new church.

The Bible teaches each of us to live our lives as if we will live long lives.

In fact, God promises us long lives!

Eph 6:1  Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right. 

Eph 6:2  Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise;) 

Eph 6:3  That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth. 

Deu 4:40  Thou shalt keep therefore his statutes, and his commandments, which I command thee this day, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days upon the earth, which the LORD thy God giveth thee, for ever. 

We are to be the example to the world as the very best workmen possible in everything we do but especially in the work the Lord has given us to do.

Not working is disorderly behavior and the church is not to support such people.

Obviously, there will be times when a member in good standing may need the help of the church, this is not what the Word of God is referring to, but we are not to support those outside the Church who refuse to work.

We are to stay away from the idle worker which is the meaning of the word withdraw as used in this passage.

The Apostle Paul was their example of a hard worker to support himself without church support.

The Church is not to be identified with members to come only for church support.

We are not to run the risk of being associated with idle workers. This will give us a bad testimony as we witness for Jesus Christ!

*****2Th 3:7  For yourselves know how ye ought to follow us: for we behaved not ourselves disorderly among you; 

2Th 3:8  Neither did we eat any man's bread for nought; but wrought with labour and travail night and day, that we might not be chargeable to any of you: 

2Th 3:9  Not because we have not power, but to make ourselves an ensample unto you to follow us.

2Th 3:10  For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat. 

2Th 3:11  For we hear that there are some which walk among you disorderly, working not at all, but are busybodies.

According to the Word of God we are to be industrious beings and not lazy Christians.

The Bible commands us to do good for all people, but we are not to support those who refuse to support themselves.

A slothful person will be a slothful Christian!

Laziness can be looked upon as sin!

There is absolutely no excuse for a Christian to be a lazy employee, it is a command of God that we not be lazy!

Even the Lord Jesus Christ had a reputation as a carpenter. This would not have been said of Him if it were not true!

We can believe that Jesus was the best carpenter in Nazareth.

We know the Apostle Paul was a tent maker and we can believe he was a good tent maker making quality tents.

According to the Word of God, when we refuse to work, we lose our right to eat.

In other words we become so useless to society that society would be better off without us.

This message does not go over well today, but it is still the truth of God!

Those who refuse to work tend to get into everybody else business and not their own.

One of the greatest gifts God gave to humans is our minds.

The mind is always active, even in our sleep.

It is either thinking positive thoughts or negative, evil thoughts.

It is true that the idle mind is the Devil's playground!

This is why so many lazy people are always getting into trouble!

The world has pity upon such people when the world should insist that they work or starve.

Sounds harsh but still the truth of God.

We must not forget that Paul is speaking to the Church, in fact to a church that started out on the right tract.

They just got confused about the return of Jesus Christ.

It is a sin to poke our noses into the affairs of others unless they have asked for our help.

It is a sin to gossip.

It is a sin to spread rumors.

It is a sin to tattle on others when we do not know the whole story.

All we need to do is to look around at nature and we will see that the law of labor is rigidly enforced.

Every animal except domesticated animals have to work for their food.

The Bible speaks of the ant.

Pro 6:6  Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise: 

The Bible speaks of other creations.

Pro 30:24  There be four things which are little upon the earth, but they are exceeding wise: 

Pro 30:25  The ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer; 

Pro 30:26  The conies are but a feeble folk, yet make they their houses in the rocks; 

Pro 30:27  The locusts have no king, yet go they forth all of them by bands; 

Pro 30:28  The spider taketh hold with her hands, and is in kings' palaces. 

The Bible speaks of the birds.

God feeds the birds but they have to go look for it.

We had better get one thing straight!

We are not saved by our own works, but by God's free and unmerited mercy.

How are the people of God described?

We are called soldiers.

We are called pilgrims.

We are called husbandmen.

We are called fishermen.

All these things imply some form of work.

In fact all these things require demanding work.

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.

Work was the law in the Garden of Eden.

It only became arduous work after sin entered in!

There is probably no greater feeling than to sit down and partake of those things that come by honest work!

*****2Th 3:12  Now them that are such we command and exhort by our Lord Jesus Christ, that with quietness they work, and eat their own bread. 

2Th 3:13  But ye, brethren, be not weary in well doing.

There can be no doubt that we are commanded to work to provide for ourselves.

Notice this commands comes directly from the Lord Jesus Christ.

Luk 11:3  Give us day by day our daily bread. 

Notice not only is this a command straight from our Lord Jesus, but He also uses this passage as a way to train us in the proper way to act in the Church.

As believers we are prone to make mistakes and we can even make mistakes about how we are to work.

If we have been slack in our work the Lord will forgive us and teach us the proper ways.

We must still confess our wrong and repent.

We are to work with a quiet spirit and mind our own business.

Our brothers and sisters will come to us if they require our help.

We are never to be weary in well doing.

We must not allow idle busybodies to discourage us but stick to the work the Lord had given us to do.

We must not forget we are to be examples of Jesus Christ and not examples of other Church members unless they are wholly following the Lord themselves.

It is obvious that many in this church were doing things right and Paul does not want them to change their effective ways.

There are most always those in the Church that do need some help.

Some who are working and doing the best they can but maybe fell on challenging times.

These are those who we need to help if we are able to do so and continue to help until they are recovered.

Paul also informs these who live and work according to the Word of God that there are things they can do to discourage those that are not following the Word of God.

*****2Th 3:14  And if any man obey not our word by this epistle, note that man, and have no company with him, that he may be ashamed. 

2Th 3:15  Yet count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.

We must understand that the epistles of the Apostle Paul are to be considered Church Doctrine along with all the Books of the New Testament!

If there are those who reject the truth of the New Testament in the blood of Jesus Christ then we are to make a mental note of that person and refuse to be associated with that person.

The Church is a place we are to be in one accord, one mind, one fellowship one bride of Christ!

Note, this is not an excommunication but simply an avoidance.

This discipline is meant to shame that person.

This goes back to where we began our lesson today.

2Th 3:6  Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition which he received of us. 

There should be no excuse for not accepting the truth of the New Testament.

For Paul, it was his intention to read this epistle to read out loud while the entire church was gathered together so there could be no misunderstanding of his intent.

Paul knew that many of them would acknowledge their faults and it would be the end of this matter.

As usual there will be those who still reject the truth and it is these, after they have understood the exact words of the Apostle Paul from whom the Church must withdraw.

2Th 2:15  Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle. 

There must not be any unkind feelings towards this person as the intent is to shame that person.

If this shaming does not work then there might have to be other steps taken but these things will work or this would not have been the truth of the Scriptures.

We must never allow a false doctrine into the Church to take holt.

*****2Th 3:16  Now the Lord of peace himself give you peace always by all means. The Lord be with you all. 

1) We must remember that peace in our lives can come only by the Lord Jesus Christ.

2) The Lord Jesus Christ seeks a close personal relationship with each of us.

3) It is only by the "Grace of God", the undeserved favor and strength in Jesus Christ, that any of us can be saved.

We are not put into the Church to be the judge of any other person!

We are all to obey the truth of the Gospel and help each other understand it as best we can.

This is why the Lord will not allow any deviation in the Words He has given to us.

We are all judged by the same Word of God!

Amen.

The Word of God is True

 The Coming of That Day

Book of 2 Thessalonians Chapter 2

We must understand that the best approach to what the Bible says is, to take every passage as its literal meaning, compare Scripture to Scripture and refuse to make claims that the Bible does not make.

There are some things that the Bible says that cannot for certain be understood. 

It is these places and all the rest of the Bible we are to accept by faith!

It is like the Holy Trinity; I cannot explain and the Bible does not try to, but I know it is real.

I know there is God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost, and they are all one person, one God.

I know a virgin named Mary found favor with God and had a child named Jesus. 

Isa_7:14  Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

I cannot explain it but I know it is the truth.

I know that the Lord Jesus Christ is that One sent down from Heaven to save us. (Immanuel)

I know that eye witnesses saw the Lord Jesus ascend back to Heaven.

I cannot explain it but I know it is the truth.

I know when the Bible speaks of the "Day of the Lord" it does not mean one single day in history.

The "Day of the Lord" covers a long span of time and some significant events that will take place.

There is a terrible time of trouble coming to this world we live in!

There is a day when the wrath of God will fall upon all the wickedness, all the meanness, and all the filthiness of mankind.

This day is not that far off because we are seeing the signs, but as Christians we are not to fear the "Day of the Lord".

Our hopes are for the future and not in the present!

*****2Th 2:1  Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, 

2Th 2:2  That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.

We know that the Lord Jesus Christ will return to this world.

1) To gather His Church.

2) To bring the wrath of God to all unbelievers.

But we are not to think of wild and unreasonable notions concerning His return.

We must not be troubled by the return of Jesus Christ. To the Church this is the best thing that can happen to us. We will be going home!

These saints of Thessalonica were being persecuted so badly that they thought the "Day of the Lord" was taking place at that time.

Many thought that the tribulation years had already begun.

There were some who claimed that some spirit or some angel had revealed to them that the "day of the Lord" had begun already.

They were listening to some false preacher calming to be the Messiah.

He claimed that he had received some special word that no one else had.

He claimed that that he had heard in a letter from Paul that the "Day of the Lord" was taking place.

Many believers became shaken in mind and troubled by all these things as they strived to believe in the Apostle Paul.

The important thing for all believers is, to look forward to the day the Lord gathers His Church and not to the judgment that comes later because the Church will not be a part of that judgment.

It is far more pleasant to focus on the day we go home to Heaven than the "day of judgment" that does not concern the Church.

Heaven is a beautiful place where we can rest from the persecutions of this world!

It is those who have rejected the Lord Jesus Christ who should be shaken in their minds and troubled.

1Th 5:9  For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, 

1Th 5:10  Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him. 

We must be careful not to get caught up in false teaching, and anyone who says they have a special revelation from God, because God will never go against His Word that He has given to the Church.

There will not be any prophecy in the Church Age other than the Word of God that we now have!

We are not appointed to the wrath of God, but to the salvation that God has presented to us!

We must not be deceive by some false prophet or some false preacher at any time.

*****2Th 2:3  Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; 

There are two events listed here from the Apostle Paul.

1)The first event to launch the day of the Lord will be a great falling away of believers from God.

In fact that phrase "falling away" means "apostasy", "revolt" "rebellion".

Many from all over the world will be rebelling and revolting against God.

Before the Lord returns there will be a great day of apostasy, a great day of deception.

Just yesterday I read where the United Methodist Church were meeting to see if they could reconcile their differences as more than half of those had given in to the LBGTQ agenda, even having some leaders who were prophesied to be part of the gay movement and welcomed them all.

Now it is true that the Church is to welcome all who come but they are to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as the Messiah and "Repent" to become part of the Church.

This may not be what the Apostle Paul was referring to but it is involved in this thing somewhere.

We simply cannot fall away from the truth of God.

For some man to decide he was really a woman. He is saying that my God made a mistake which is impossible.

For woman to say that she is really a man. She is saying that my God made a mistake and that is impossible.

For groups to give in to this they are calling God a liar and my God cannot lie!

Before the Lord Jesus will return to this earth there will be a great apostasy and I believe we are beginning to see this now in our lifetime.

What did Jesus teach us? Mat_24:34  Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.

2) The second event that will launch the "Day of the Lord" will be the revelation of that man of sin, the son of perdition, the Antichrist himself.

This means that the Antichrist is on our planet somewhere today.

This Antichrist is a man of sin though he may first seem to be the savior of this world from climate change, war, and politics.

This means that the Antichrist will be that "son of perdition". He will be so evil he will actually be that son of doom! Doomed to destruction.

This means that the Antichrist will not just be another evil world leader that we see so often, but the Antichrist that has been prophesied.

He will come out into the open after hiding for such a long time, working his way through the politics of this world.

The evil that such men from our past that have caused, will not compare to the evil the Antichrist will bring.

Men such as Hitler, Stalin, and other dictators who themselves slaughtered millions of innocent people will be nothing compared to the Antichrist.

Those days will be like the days of Noah before the flood came.

Those will be like the days of Lot when the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.

Mar 13:14  But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not, (let him that readeth understand,) then let them that be in Judaea flee to the mountains: 

What does this wicked man do?

*****2Th 2:4  Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. 

What are the traits of the Antichrist?

1) He is the "man of sin". All he knows is sin and lawlessness. He idealizes sin. He is the ideal sinner. He will fulfill the dreams of Satan.

He will lead a revolt against our Holy God and the world will follow him.

2) He is the "son of perdition". Perdition means doom and destruction.

He is the son of the most violent doom and destruction this world will ever see.

He is the son who deserves his own doom more than anyone who has ever lived.

He is the son of the Devil himself, the father of all doom and destruction.

3) He is the "opposer" of all that is called God.

He is the opponent of Jesus Christ and all believers.

He will show no love, no mercy, no grace, and no justice, but especially to those who profess the name of Christ.

4) He is the one who "exalts himself" above everything that God stands for.

He will lift himself above everybody that is alive in his day, in an antagonistic way.

All people will be his subjects or they will be killed or suffer severe consequences.

5) He will claim to be God.

He exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshipped.

He will attempt to sit in the rebuilt Temple as God to be worshipped as God.

Many people worship science and technology today and the Antichrist will use this to his advantage with some great miracle within his power.

He will lead the governments of this world into war with God.

There will be a one world religion based upon the rule of the Antichrist by the False Prophet.

There will be a one world government.

There will be a false peace for a season.

Remember Rome brought peace through destruction and fear, the Antichrist will do the same.

We must teach these things in the Church!

*****2Th 2:5  Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things? 

When a false preacher gets into to any church his message will always confuse some in the pews because people just refuse to study the Bible.

The Church must understand the truth of the Antichrist and it must be taught in the Pulpit and the Sunday Schools.

Just as Paul had to be careful what he said because he was a Roman citizen and Rome would silence those who spoke against it, it will be the same with those who speak against the Antichrist in his day.

So today is the day we must teach these things about the Antichrist.

The Lord Jesus will certainly return to gather His Church to Him. There will be a "Rapture" of the Church.

The Lord Jesus will return to this earth and that great and terrible day will come and it is sooner than most people want to believe.

The Antichrist will arise upon the world scene maybe just before the "Rapture of the Church" but certainly after the Church has been removed.

After the Church is removed by the Rapture, this world will turn into the most evil and wicked place that ever existed and the Antichrist will use this chaos to his advantage to make a false peace.

Remember the Church will be gone but Israel will remain and Israel will realize how wrong they had been about the Scriptures.

Rom_10:19  But I say, Did not Israel know? First Moses saith, I will provoke you to jealousy by them that are no people, and by a foolish nation I will anger you.

Rom_11:11  I say then, Have they stumbled that they should fall? God forbid: but rather through their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to jealousy.

*****2Th 2:6  And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. 

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. 

2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: 

It should be clear that there will be a historical appearance of the Antichrist. His time is set and he will appear before all the world.

Right now there is some power that holds back the appearance of the Antichrist.

Once this power is taken out of the way then the Antichrist will be revealed.

Notice it says, "taken out of the way" and not "taken away" there is a significant difference in these two statements.

If this power of restraint is completely removed there would be no power of good left in this world.

So this power will only step aside enough to allow the Antichrist to present himself to this world.

This power is so strong that He can control events in this world.

In fact, this person is so strong that He knows the exact day to step aside to allow the Antichrist to appear.

So, just what is this restraining power? In the early Church, those people thought that Rome was this restraining power but this cannot be true simply because Rome's dominance is long gone.

It is not the power of the law because every nation has different laws.

The restraining power can be nothing but the power of God, through the Spirit of God, who came to this earth when the Lord went back 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.

Joh_16:13  Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

That word mystery refers to the mystery of lawlessness that works secretly in our world but when the Holy Spirit is taken out of the way then this mystery of lawlessness will no longer be in secret.

Eph_6:12  For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

Those principalities, those rulers of darkness and that spiritual wickedness will finally be seen by this entire world.

Why do we do so many rotten things as we live and grow older?

That "mystery of iniquity" is that unseen, unknown power which is in our world dedicated to evil working against the will of God.

This is the thing that corrupts everything it touches causing misery in God's creation.

When did it begin?

Gen 3:17  And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; 

Rom 5:12  Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: 

Who is this Antichrist?

Dan 11:36  And the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done. 

Dan 11:37  Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all. 

It is the Holy Spirit (Holy Ghost) who is the power behind the Church!

There should be no doubt that there is an Antichrist that is in this world, he has not revealed himself because the Holy Spirit will not allow it yet to happen just yet, but the Holy Spirit will take Himself out of the way of this Wicked man when the time is just right.

In the last days, when the time is just right for the Antichrist to rise, God is going to remove much of His restraint upon lawlessness and lawlessness will run rampant over this earth.

Men again will be allowed to do their own thing and live as they desire.

Men will get their wish and live without the influence of God.

Mat 24:10  And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. 

Mat 24:11  And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. 

Mat 24:12  And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. 

The Church will already be in Heaven, the Rapture having taken place, and the influence of the Church will be no more on this earth.

The Holy Spirit will still be within each believer in Heaven, but the Holy Spirit will begin another work here on earth.

The Lord will make quick work of the Antichrist!

The Lord will destroy the Antichrist with the brightness of His coming.

How will the Antichrist deceive so many?

*****2Th 2:9  Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, 

The Antichrist will carry on the activities of Satan upon this earth.

He will be the embodiment of Satan.

He will carry on all the lying power and signs and wonders of Satan.

He will carry out the activity and work of Satan on this earth.

Satan will energize him.

He will be totally surrendered to Satan.

All the unbelievers will think they have reached heaven upon this earth, but even the wicked do not approve of all wickedness.

He will bring a false peace to this earth for three-and one-half years.

He may make a way for all to have food and adequate provisions.

Rev_13:18  Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.

He may solve the problems of health insurance, employment, homelessness, energy, and other problems, because Satan is the one who caused those problems to begin with.

He will then claim supernatural power for himself, his government, and his science and the last three-and one-half years will begin.

He will cause the world to worship him as god.

Mat 24:15  When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) 

No man can be god because that grave will make him to be a liar!

When the Antichrist insist that he is god many will rebel against him because they do not want any sort of god to worship.

This world will live in a lie for only a brief time because it has rejected the truth of God.

*****2Th 2:10  And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 

We should understand that any follower of the Antichrist has rejected the truth already.

To receive is to welcome and no one at that time will welcome the truth, they will not want to hear any truth and we are almost there today.

This truth is the "Gospel of Jesus Christ".

They do not want a way to be saved.

They do not want a way to escape death.

They do not want a way to live forever and ever.

They do not want a way to live a victorious life.

They have chosen to suffer at the hands of the Antichrist and Satan the Deceiver.

Joh 8:23  And he said unto them, Ye are from beneath; I am from above: ye are of this world; I am not of this world. 

Joh 8:24  I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins. 

God will cause them to believe every lie of the Antichrist.

*****2Th 2:11  And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: 

We live today in a nation where there has been a persistent rejection of truth.

This behavior destroys the sense of the truth so much that it results in a fatal error.

The lies against the truth become the truth to those who reject the truth.

In other words they believe the lies are the truth.

This is the America we live in today!

Does this mean that God misleads unbelievers? 

That God deceives people?

That answer is no and a thousand times no.

No person is deceived apart from their own will.

No person is deceived against his will.

A person is only deceived because he chooses to reject the truth of God.

We need only to look at the lies of evolution to see how lies have changed our world.

Unbelief is governed by the laws of sowing and reaping.

If a person sows’ unbelief and deception, he will reap unbelief and deception.

Gal 6:7  Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. 

Gal 6:8  For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. 

It is because people reject the truth of the Gospel that they will suffer strong delusion because of their actions, and they will believe the lies of the Antichrist.

Those who reject the Word of God will go further and further astray as we see in our own nation today.

So, God will use Satan as the means to punish them!

The Lord Jesus said to just leave them alone: Mat 15:14  Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.

All the followers of the Antichrist will be those who are deceived about the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

The tragedy of this situation is that a person cannot reject Jesus Christ and expect things to stay as they are.

The truth will always prevail in the end!

God loves His Son too much to see Him rejected because of what He has done for the salvation of this entire world.

The "judgment" of the unbeliever is also drawing closer each and every day!

*****2Th 2:12  That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. 

All the followers of the Antichrist will be damned to Hell.

All those without the love for the truth will naturally believe a lie when it comes because there is no other choice for them!

People love their sin so much that will hold on to it even if it means they will spend eternity in Hell.

Go back and look at the sin of Adam.

Gen 3:17  And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; 

Gen 3:18  Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; 

Gen 3:19  In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

It is the instinct of sinful man to flee from God and His truth!

When the wickedness of sinners is known of God, they will attempt to hide from the truth.

The Lord Jesus came to this earth for this reason.

Joh_15:22  If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin: but now they have no cloke for their sin.

This world cannot expect God to overlook its sin, especially those who take pleasure in unrighteousness.

Any person who rejects the work that our Savior has done for our salvation cannot expect God to overlook the dishonor done to His Son!

The world is full of sin!

1Jn_2:16  For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

These are the things that Satan has used since the time of Adam and Satan has never had to change his ways.

When the Antichrist shows up the world can expect for him to use these things to become its new world leader.

Man loves himself and himself alone and refuses to show true love to anything else but himself and this is the downfall of mankind.

Job 15:16  How much more abominable and filthy is man, which drinketh iniquity like water?

Psa 52:3  Thou lovest evil more than good; and lying rather than to speak righteousness. Selah. 

Psa 52:4  Thou lovest all devouring words, O thou deceitful tongue. 

Psa 52:5  God shall likewise destroy thee for ever, he shall take thee away, and pluck thee out of thy dwelling place, and root thee out of the land of the living. Selah

These are the same ones who will cling to the Antichrist like he is some sort of god when he is nothing.

God will allow the Antichrist to lead this world for seven years and it will be a terrible time to live upon this earth, but Hell is even worse.

Amen

Ready For the Day of the Lord

 Ready for the Day of the Lord

Book of 1 Thessalonians Chapter 5

Our last lesson was about the return of the Lord Jesus so we know for sure that He will return.

So, we should ask ourselves, are we ready for the return of the Lord?

We must not be confused about death and the return of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Lord Jesus died in our place so, in a real sense we will never die.

A true death is, to live forever without God in our lives, in suffering and despair.

Luk 13:28  There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out. 

This place of suffering is the same place where the Devil will spend his eternity.

Rev 20:10  And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.

It is a fact there will be degrees of punishment in Hell.

Luk 12:46  The lord of that servant will come in a day when he looketh not for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in sunder, and will appoint him his portion with the unbelievers. 

Luk 12:47  And that servant, which knew his lord's will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. 

Luk 12:48  But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more. 

In Hell there will be a total absence of favor with God.

In Hell there will be an endless disturbance of life as a result of the complete domination of sin.

In Hell there will be endless pain and suffering in body and soul.

In Hell there will be pangs of conscience, there will be anguish, there will be despair, there will be weeping, and there will be gnashing of teeth.

A true life is living throughout eternity with God in our lives.

Believers will enjoy an eternal fellowship in the company of Jesus Christ.

Believers will live in fellowship, relaxation, joy, and happiness throughout eternity.

There will be a New Heaven and a New Earth!

Heb 12:22  But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, 

Heb 12:23  To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, 

Heb 12:24  And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.

The New Jerusalem will be a literal city because God has given us the measurements.

It is in the New Jerusalem where God will dwell in fellowship with mankind forever and ever!

How could anyone choose a place called Hell over a place called Heaven?

*****1Th 5:1  But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. 

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.

We will never know the exact day or the exact time of the return of the Lord but the Lord told us Himself that we should be able to tell when that time gets close.

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?

The signs point to the soon return of the Lord Jesus Christ!

The day and the time of the return of Christ is not up for discussion the Lord has already said. 

Those that set dates on the return of Jesus Christ cannot know what they are talking about!

Times can extend over many years but the seasons, the things that happen in critical periods of time can be looked at and observed such as Israel returning to the Promised Land and the things that are happening today, in Israel and all over the world.

Only God knows when the details of His return will be fulfilled!

The Lord is coming just as a thief in the night has planned his dirty deed. Suddenly and unexpectedly!

We know that the Lord Jesus will first come to meet His Church in the clouds.

Then at least seven days later, this "Day of the Lord" is that period of time in which the Lord will return to deal with wicked men directly and dramatically in judgment.

There is a day coming when God will punish those who have followed the ways of Satan, the Devil.

Every soul will come under judgment.

We can know that this will be the day when the earth has reached such a depraved condition that it is hopefully lost forever and sits ripe for the "judgment" of God!

Isa 13:9  Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it. 

Isa 13:10  For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine. 

Isa 13:11  And I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible. 

The day of the Lord will be on that day when the world of unbelievers feel that they are so secure that even a God cannot stop them.

Suddenly out of nowhere God will strike this earth!

It will be on a scale as it was in the days of Noah and the time of Lot.

Luk 17:26  And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man. 

Luk 17:27  They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all. 

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.

The "day of the Lord" will be a day of catastrophic destruction.

The "day of the Lord" will be a day of no escape for all those who have always been above the law and ignored the Word of God.

Rom 2:3  And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God? 

The "day of the Lord" will be a dark and miserable day for all those who are left upon this earth.

*****1Th 5:4  But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. 

1Th 5:5  Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. 

A believers we live in the Light of Jesus Christ now, just as we will when we get to 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.

The "day of the Lord" will not be a surprise to the Church because we know the Lord does not ever break a promise. 

That word "overtake" means the Lord will return to this earth when He is least expected.

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.

The true Church will not be caught off guard.

1) By studying the Word of God we are not in spiritual darkness of ignorance.

Rom 13:11  And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. 

Rom 13:12  The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. 

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.

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.

Col 1:13  Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:

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.

What we do know is that we will welcome the "day of the Lord" as we would welcome the morning hours of a beautiful day full of light and full of joy.

To the unbeliever it will be a terrible day!

Amo 5:18  Woe unto you that desire the day of the LORD! to what end is it for you? the day of the LORD is darkness, and not light. 

Amo 5:19  As if a man did flee from a lion, and a bear met him; or went into the house, and leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him. 

Amo 5:20  Shall not the day of the LORD be darkness, and not light? even very dark, and no brightness in it? 

2) Being a child of God is being a child of the Light.

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_11:9  Jesus answered, Are there not twelve hours in the day? If any man walk in the day, he stumbleth not, because he seeth the light of this world.

As the Lord Jesus returned to Heaven, the Church has now become the light of this world.

Mat_5:14  Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.

We are not only the children of the Light.

3) We are the children of the Day.

We will escape the Judgment of God!

We are the receivers of God's glorious salvation and His deliverance.

We are looking forward to the return of our Savior to take us home to be with Him.

We should be always praying and thinking about the things of God and our responsibility to reach people for Christ.

The "Day of the Lord" is so close that we can almost see it.

*****1Th 5:6  Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. 

1Th 5:7  For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. 

In this verse this sleep refers to spiritual sleep. When we are asleep, we are not aware of what is going on around us. When we are asleep spiritually, we are not alert to the things of God and are not aware of what God is doing.

When we are asleep spiritually, we will be caught off guard when the Lord returns to take us home.

We must be alert to the things of God.

We must continue to worship.

Heb 10:25  Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching. 

We must anticipate the return of the Lord Jesus Christ!

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?

We are to live sober lives with discipline and control in righteousness and godliness.

It is certainly not time to quit on God!

We all know that the night refers to evil behavior.

We just need to stay away from those who are asleep to the truth of God other than to witness to them and this should be done in the daytime when no one should be sleeping.

We must stay away from those who indulge in sin and immorality and those who are worldly in their ways.

If a person carouses around in the darkness of the night, then he shows himself to be of the night.

When the Lord Jesus warns us of these things then we need pay attention to Him.

Rev 3:11  Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown. 

*****1Th 5:8  But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation. 

1Th 5:9  For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, 

1Th 5:10  Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.

We must remain mentally awake to the truth of God to protect ourselves from this deceitful world.

We must put on the armor of God because we are certainly involved in the war for our souls!

There is the breast plate of faith and love. The breastplate protects the heart of each soldier.

We must focus upon Jesus and His cause with all our heart.

Our faith will protect our heart when we really believe that it is the Lord Jesus who saves us from sin!

Love also protects our heart when we can see the love that Christ Jesus has for us!

We must focus on the truth of Jesus that we never have to die because Jesus died in our place on that cross.

We must know that we will never bear the punishment for our sin because Jesus took our punishment for us.

That helmet is the hope of our salvation.

Rom 8:24  For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? 

Rom 8:25  But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it. 

Without the Lord Jesus Christ there is no hope in the world!

Eph 2:12  That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: 

Eph 2:13  But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.

The fact that Jesus Christ died in our place is the reason we can now have that hope that we will never die!

The reality of this hope is:

1) God has not appointed us to see His wrath on this unbelieving world!

2) God has appointed us to receive salvation from sin, death, and the judgment that is coming to this world!

There is now no excuse for us to fall asleep and return to this world of darkness when we have been saved out of it!

*****1Th 5:11  Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do. 

If we have received the Word of God as the truth then how can we deny what the Lord is saying here in these passages.

One of the greatest jobs of each believer is to comfort one another.

To edify is to build upon and not to pull down!

To edify is to preserve the unity of the Church.

Eph 4:15  But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: 

Eph 4:16  From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love. 

Every part of the Church and every ministry of the Church must work together to become One Body of Christ!

What is the greatest problem in the Church today? The Church refuses to unite together around the truth of God, the complete truth.

Today, much of the church has descended into rules and religion that have nothing to do to the truth of a Holy God and have forgotten about faith and love!

*****1Th 5:12  And we beseech you, brethren, to know them which labour among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you; 

1Th 5:13  And to esteem them very highly in love for their work's sake. And be at peace among yourselves. 

We have seen many times that our own Pastor comes to us completely worn out from his labors and yet he still does his very best to give us the message that God has given him for us.

This is what that word labor means.

It means to labor to the point of exhaustion, then to keep laboring even if we have become weary.

It means to work beyond what we are capable of doing.

When we are doing a work for the Lord Jesus, this is the labor that is expected from God.

When we are doing a work for the Church, this is the labor that it takes to succeed in this world of today.

We are to know our church leaders, which means we are to acknowledge and appreciate each and every one of them and show them respect.

We have seen the evidence that few people labor as much as our Pastor and our church leaders especially our Pastor.

At the end of a tiresome day our Pastor still has to handle the business side of the church.

This is also the way of the Apostle Paul and I am sure the other apostles worked as hard to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ by word and by example.

1Ti 5:17  Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour, especially they who labour in the word and doctrine. 

1Ti 5:18  For the scripture saith, Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn. And, The labourer is worthy of his reward. 

1Ti 5:19  Against an elder receive not an accusation, but before two or three witnesses.

In order for us to acknowledge our church elders we must be at peace with ourselves.

We should not criticize, murmur, grumble, envy and nor oppose our church leaders who are following the will of God.

We may at times have differences of opinion, but we are not to dispute those among ourselves as the Word of God will settle all disputes.

Leaders are not to act as lords over God's children as we already have the perfect Lord who is Jesus Christ!

But we are to question anyone that acts contrary to Scripture!

Our Church only works when each believer is at peace with themselves and both that leader and that member are at peace with each other all according to the truth of the Gospel.

How did the early Church thrive and succeed?

Act 2:46  And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, 

Act 2:47  Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved. 

We are to warn those that are in the Church but are against the truth of the Gospel yet, we are to help those babes in Christ to understand.

*****1Th 5:14  Now we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly, comfort the feebleminded, support the weak, be patient toward all men. 

1Th 5:15  See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men. 

We are never to allow unruly church members to destroy the peace of the church family!

We must warn those who are out of line in their disturbances of the church.

Anyone who is causing damage to their own soul must be warned just as any unbeliever.

The Lord will not tolerate unruly behavior in the Church!

Those who come to the church but who leave, going out into the world to do their own thing, should also be warned.

At the same time we are to comfort and assure those who are babes in Christ until they come to the knowledge of the truth.

We need to try to help all those who yield so easily to temptation, and are easily discouraged or defeated.

We need to cling to them as we cling to Jesus never turning loose of either one.

We are to be patient with babes in Christ and patient with each other as the coming of the Lord draws nearer.

It is certainly not a time to quit on the Lord!

We must never render evil for evil to anyone.

When we mistreat someone our testimony with that person is over!

With these things under control there are important things that every church member needs to be doing to make our church a true Church for Jesus Christ.

*****1Th 5:16  Rejoice evermore. 

1Th 5:17  Pray without ceasing. 

1Th 5:18  In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. 

1Th 5:19  Quench not the Spirit. 

1Th 5:20  Despise not prophesyings. 

1Th 5:21  Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. 

1Th 5:22  Abstain from all appearance of evil. 

We need to be always rejoicing because our names are written down in the Lamb's Book of Life.

Our prayers are the main way for us to receive things from God. We need to live our lives so that we can always know that God will hear our prayers for if he hears them, He will certainly answer them in one way or another.

We should wake each day giving thanks to God for another day to serve Him.

If we are having a wonderful day then we need to thank God for it.

If we are having a dreadful day then we need to thank Him for helping us through that day.

We need to thank God for His presence and His power as we walk through our trials and tribulations.

All these things are in the will of God for our lives.

If we quench the Holy Spirit then we have lost the power of God in our lives.

If we ignore the Holy Spirit and go our own way then we have neglected Him.

If we allow sinful things into our lives, we will quench the Holy Spirit.

If we behave immorally, we quench the Holy Spirit.

If we do anything contrary to the Holy Spirit, we will quench the Spirit.

We certainly should not ever lie to the Holy Spirit!

If we quench the Holy Spirit, it is a sin that requires God's forgiveness!

We must never despise the preaching of the truth of God.

This is what the world does and we are to come out from the world.

Neither are we to just blindly accept any preacher or what they say.

Every person is to be tested and proven by measuring the things they say by the Scriptures.

The Scriptures, the Received Text of the early Church are never wrong but some translations can contain errors unintentionally or intentionally.

We must know the Scriptures ourselves to know if we are hearing the truth of God.

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.

When we know we are hearing the truth of God, then we need to latch on to that person and keep that person as part of the Church of Jesus Christ.

We are also to abstain from all appearances of doing evil!

If we are near anything that has the appearance of evil, we need to flee from it!

If there is even the smallest suggestion that what we are doing could be seen as wrong then we are to flee from it!

Being a Christian has its own responsibilities!

Amen